BEYOND TIME

LIFE LINE PROJECT (LLP) is an interesting Symphonic band from The Netherlands, that I been following since some months ago due to the good music and the virtual friendship I developed with "Erik De Beer" (mastermind of the band).

Recently Erik sent me the latest LIFE LINE PROJECT album called "Beyond Time", but we are not talking really about a new album of the band for two reasons:

1.- Most of the music was written between 1976 and 1976 , released in 1994 and remastered in 2010

2.- The album is performed by Erik de Beer, who plays all the instruments, being that the first LIFE LINE PROJECT album featuring a band, was released in 2003.

The album is opened with the pompous and vibrant "Overture", in which he captures efficiently the classical 70's Symphonic spirit (well, it was written in 1976) but with a modern touch that makes the song sound original but respectful of the golden era of Prog.

"Shadows of a Distant Past" begins with a Mellotron intro that places the most demanding fan in mood for the classical influenced track played with strength and energy, even when I'm not sure if the choice of keyboards is the best, we are here to talk about the music and it's outstanding, with a hint of RICK WAKEMAN (Criminal Record), but with a more atmospheric sound and radical changes.

"Acceptance" is a short Medieval inspired interlude, played with an instrument that sounds like lute, and works as an introduction for the main theme, the 17:33 epic "Beyond Time", which starts with a strong and sober introduction reminiscent of MUSSORGSKY'S "In the Hall of the Mountain King", but which immediately and after a dramatic change morphs into a full Symphonic track with lush and fluid keyboards.

ERIK DE BEER plays with the audience jumping from the introductory theme to different keyboard based Symphonic sections, Baroque inspired themes, Electronic Prog or simply to Hard Rock passages where he proves his skills with the guitar and percussion. An excellent song.

"Like Never Before" presents a different approach, starts with AOR sound (This song was recorded in 1986), some Neo Prog influences and some rhythmic mainstream, not my cup of tea, but still interesting, specially when the time comes for some Medieval moments and good heavy guitar passages, an uneven track.

The original album ends with "Liberty", a soft song that flows gently from start to end, not without a couple changes and "Finale", another breathtaking song with excellent keyboard performance and full of strength.

The 2010 version has two extra tracks recorded on stage, "Little Alice" that reminds me of RICK WAKEMAN'S late 70's albums and the excellent "Last Run" where ERIK plays guitar in the style of JAN AKKERMAN.

Now comes the difficult part of rating it, to be honest, it's not as strong as "The King", mainly because the choice of keyboards in some tracks and the use of Roland Electronic Drum Kit on a few tracks (he also plays acoustic drums on most of the album). But the music is solid so would like to give "Beyond Time" 3.5 stars, but being impossible, will have to go with 4, being that it's way above the average.