MODINHA

Some time ago my good friend Erik de Beer from LIFE LINE PROJECT asked me why I never reviewed "Modinha", my reply was simple, "The first time I listened it, didn't liked it, so some day when I listen it carefully, I will review it". Well, after several months I placed the CD by mistake in my car stereo before a travel, so I had the chance to listen it repeatedly during the 12 hours drive from Lima to the mountains and back.

To be honest, each time I listened it, found that "Modinha" is some sort of acquired taste, each time I played it, found it better, so by the end of the trip really liked the album a lot, not in the level of "Beyond Time" but still a great release.

The album starts with Modinha, a sober and Neo Classical oriented track, with some pompous moments that Prog lovers enjoy so much. Apart from the usual ability of Eric in the keyboards , I have to mention the excellent performance by his sister Elsa, who adds a brilliant flute plus the accurate bass of Iris Sagan.

Joy is a fluid and frenetic track that gives no time to breath with tireless keyboards, restless guitar and excellent drumming, the radical and frequent changes are a plus for those of us who enjoy complex music, reminds me a bit of Rick Van Der Linden to whom is dedicated..

Dark Procession begins softer and more dramatic, but us usual we can't expect they won't change repeatedly, so after a minute the changes begin, from fluid and fast to slower with an impressive Moog performance. Not as good as the previous tracks, but still an interesting piece.

Stampede as it's name indicates, is another frenetic song where the drums & percussion hammer constantly while Jody Van Der Gijse offers a memorable guitar performance, combining distorted passages with fluid ones and Iris Sagan is again solid in the bass.

The Chase is another opportunity for Elsa de Beer to demonstrate her skills in the flute on a track that serves as an introduction for Modinha Jazz-Intermezzo, a pleasant piano based fusion between jazz and classical music, very beautiful piece.

Keeper of the Keys is another absolutely frantic track in the vein of "Joy", only that this time reminds me of ELP's excesses with a jazzy fugue, a track that contrasts with the heavier and more guitar oriented start of Subjective Object, that as expected in this bands moves to a jazzy passage and returns to good old Rock & Roll at the end.

It's the turn for my favorite song, the dramatic Sonho, an incredibly beautiful Neo Classical piece in which Dineke Visser makes a heartbreaking oboe interpretation, not particularly complex or elaborate, but the combination of piano, flute and oboe works for me.

Another Dayride is once more an ELP oriented track that morphs into sime kind of soft fusion, if it wasn't for the percussion I would consider it a highlight of the album. With this I don't say that Ludo de Murianos is a bad drummer, by the contrary, he's very good and accurate, but the choice of percussive instruments is a hit & miss.

Modinha - Oracao is a short and beautiful acoustic interlude that prepares the listener for Night on the Freeway, a soft and fluid piece that would sound better if the cowbell wasn't used. But a guy like Erik de Beer can't wait too long to make a display of his speed and skills with the keyboards, a great combination of organ, synths and solid percussion.

Quasar is also a keyboard driven song , but again the problem with the percussion appears, what a poor choice of instruments and abuse of cowbell. Thanks God is followed by the Baroque (Vivaldi) oriented intro of Modinha Final at track that starts wit a soft flute and ends band giving all what they have and short "Tarantella" inspired closing, a great finale for the album.

The version Erik sent me has an extra track called Song for Lara, melodic and beautiful but is obvious it's not part of the original conception of the album.

There are albums that you like instantly, like love at first side, but others that you dislike and progressively grow on you, this is the case of "Modinha", an outstanding release (with a few minor flaws in the percussion), that deserves no less than 4 stars.

Erik de Beer brought Life Line Project back to life in 2003 and in a five year span he managed to record a few albums like the short ''Illusion'' or the early versions of ''The king'' and ''The journey''.By the end of the decade he established a solid core for his project with Jason Eekhout and Jody van der Gijze on guitars, Ludo de Murlanos on drums, Elsa de Beer on flutes also with Iris Sagan on bass and Dineke Visser on oboe.Helped by the press, the first trully official release of Life Line Project was the 2008 album ''Modinha'', at a time when de Beer was strongly influenced by the book ''Mar morto'', written by Brazilian author Jorge Amado.''Modinha'' refers to somekind of a melancholic song a blind man was constantly singing throughout its lines.

However ''Modinha'' remained only the source of inspiration for Erik de Beer, as the album contains nice classic-rooted Symphonic Rock along the lines of E.L.P., FOCUS and CAMEL with no particular references to anykind of Portuguese tradition.It is completely instrumental with a balanced level of energy and a deep sense of melody, still there are moments with big time solos performed by de Beer on his synthesizers.His performance though is much more varied than this.Great retro-inspired organ waves, Classical-influenced piano preludes and tons of moog synths stand next to his modern synthesizers, while his delivery ranges from atmospheric and melancholic to bombastic and grandiose.And there is still room for some fine guitar solos and rhythmic parts by the duo of Eekhout and Van der Gijze.The closest comparisons that come to mind are TEMPUS FUGIT and SOLARIS, especially if taking into consideration the few but lovely CAMEL-esque flute parts of Elsa de Beer.A few pieces even contain a bit of jazzy piano lines, showing the direction this project would take in the future.

Nice little gem from the Dutch grounds.Dynamic, melodic and flexible Symphonic Rock all the way.This country gives us a whole new world of decent symphonic-oriented Prog acts.Warmly recommended.