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SPHERES ALIGNED

Lost World Band

Crossover Prog


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Lost World Band Spheres Aligned album cover
3.86 | 57 ratings | 3 reviews | 19% 5 stars

Excellent addition to any
prog rock music collection

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Studio Album, released in 2019

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Aligned (3:56)
2. Rockfall (3:44)
3. Dawn Day Dusk Night (3:37)
4. Running In The Sun (3:47)
5. Symphonic (5:05)
6. Aise (1:26)
7. Sail Away (3:43)
8. Crystalized (4:18)
9. Lighter than Air (3:53)
10. Pressured (4:35)
11. I Am the World (8:45)

Total Time 46:49

Line-up / Musicians

- Andrey Didorenko / guitars, bass, violins, keyboards, vocals,
- Vassily Soloviev / flute
- Yuliya Basis / keyboards
- Evgeny Kuznetsov / bass
- Konstantin Shtirlitz / drums

Releases information

Label: Samum Publishing
Format: CD, Digital
April 8, 2019

Thanks to mbzr48 for the addition
and to Quinino for the last updates
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LOST WORLD BAND Spheres Aligned ratings distribution


3.86
(57 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(19%)
19%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(42%)
42%
Good, but non-essential (33%)
33%
Collectors/fans only (2%)
2%
Poor. Only for completionists (4%)
4%

LOST WORLD BAND Spheres Aligned reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by TCat
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin
4 stars Lost World Band is a Crossover Prog band that was founded in Moscow, Russia in 1990 by 3 classically trained musicians, originally known simply as Lost World. Their first album was released in 2001. They have released 6 full length studio albums and 1 live album. Their 6th album was released in April of 2019 and is called "Spheres Aligned". The group's line up for this album consists of Andrey Didorenko on vocals, guitars, bass, violins and keyboards; Vassily Soloviev on flute; Yuliya Basis on keyboards; Evgeny Kuznetsov on bass; and Konstantin Shtiriltz on drums. The music on this album was composed and recorded between November 2017 and December 2018 in both New York City and Moscow. The album consists of 11 tracks which in total comes to about 50 minutes. The music consists of half of the tracks being instrumental songs and half with vocals.

"Aligned" begins on an upbeat track which consists of a violin leading the charge along with the full band with a fast and complex, but somewhat lilting rhythm. Right away, you know you are in for a great progressive production as the violin tears things up in this great introductory track. "Rockfall" begins with stately synths introducing another fast and catchy progressive track which is mostly led by rousing guitar and keyboard solos. "Dawn Day Dusk Night" starts off pensively with processed piano and keys and the first instance of vocals in a stylized harmonic wash of sound. The violin takes the lead again between the lyrical lines. As the lyrics become less repetitive, the piano plays dissonant chords, and after this, a complex instrumental section comes in with heavy guitars and more violin and keys. "Running in the Sun" features a more lyrical led track. The vocals have a slight leaning towards Geddy Lee in his later years, but a bit weaker. But the musicianship is so good on the album that you hardly notice, even in this faster track. The instruments generate enough excitement that make you want to keep hearing more.

"Symphonic" goes back to the complex instrumental sound of the band. Meters and moods change often here, creating an excellent progressive track where guitars, synths, and the flute take turns supporting and leading while the rhythm section takes everything through a somewhat complex track. It's quite a kaleidoscope of sound and texture. "Aise" is a short piano solo instrumental which is quite nice and rhapsodic. "Sail Away" has a atmospheric beginning with synths and piano bringing in vocals. There is a feeling of vulnerability in the voice in this softer setting, which mostly works, but exposes some weaknesses until the guitar comes in with a nice instrumental break. The flute comes in later to support the vocals in the last verse. "Crystalized" begins similar to a light folksy instrumental similar to that of a Jethro Tull instrumental, complete with flute and guitar.

"Lighter Than Air" begins with vocals right away and a lilting and pastoral feeling with smooth keys, acoustic guitar and flute. "Pressured" begins with a march style rhythm that suddenly darkens with heavy guitars which propel the track forward through some cool synth solos and some great progressive interruptions injected throughout. Great stuff! "I am the World" is the final track, and also the longest at almost 9 minutes. A slow electric guitar solo ushers in the vocals which has lyrics with sci-fi elements. The track remains pensive and soft and at the 3 minute mark, percussion comes in, remaining at a moderately slow tempo while a nice instrumental break carries things forward. Things suddenly get progressive and complex as everything works together to build different levels of intensity. After the violin churns up some excitement, a short section with vocals come in and then more intense guitar work pushes everything to the last refrain. At the end, you just want it to keep going, and that is an indication of a great album.

This is definitely an enjoyable album consisting of some great progressive tracks and even bringing in occasional folk elements to keep everything interesting. There are some nice slow and atmospheric passages, and also plenty of exciting and complex sections that will get your heart racing. The vocals could use some work, especially in the softer passages, but it doesn't ruin the overall sound of the album. There is a good amount of variety on the album, yet the overall feel is quite consistent. Even with most of the tracks being short, the quality of the music is not compromised and development of the tracks is well executed. This boils down to an excellent album that is worth checking out, it's not perfect, but it's definitely worth the time.

Review by kev rowland
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Reviewer
5 stars It has been many years since I came across Lost World Band and their debut album 'Trajectories'. The three founder members all met at the Moscow Conservatory, and Andrey Didorenko (guitars, violins, vocals) and Vassily Soloviev (flute) are still there while original keyboard player Alexander Akimov has taken on the production role. Their last album ('Of Things and Beings') was just the duo alongside drummer Konstantin Shtirlitz who had joined in time for the previous album 'Solar Power'. However, it does feel that the guys have become a band at last, as the trio have been joined by Yuliya Basis (keyboards) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (bass). All the songs are still by Andy, but what has really amazed me is the way the band have taken all their complex musicality and made it incredibly commercial. There is a groove running all the way through this, and songs such as 'Running In The Sun' cry out for major radio airplay as it is full of hooks, as well as complex layers and musicality. The vocals are smooth, the harmonies spot on, the violin and flute just so in the background, while the bass drives along, the drums are all over the place, and when the electric violin comes in to take a solo it is short, sweet, and full of edgy power.

Here we have a Russian band who have moved so far away from their debut to be almost unrecognisable, yet still use flute and violin as key instruments to keep their music rooted to the past. The album itself starts with an instrumental, and as the keyboards and guitars swap chords, the violin and bass are off and running and we are being thrown headlong into a rushing progressive number where it feels like everyone is in flight, the harmonies switching and swirling as different musicians take the lead and everyone is charging to the same destination. The first time I played this I actually stopped what I was doing to check that I had loaded the right album as this is both dramatic and melodic, joyous and dramatic, strident yet harmonious. They have expanded in many directions in this album, which may mean that some listeners won't be completely satisfied with everything they hear as there are so any different styles at play. Me, I think it's glorious and easily their most complete, accessible and incredible album to date. Lost World Band are back with a bang, and this should be searched out by all progheads.

Review by BrufordFreak
COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars Less proggy than previous releases, does Andy want to be a 1960s jazz-pop star? The musicianship remains top notch if the compositions a little more sappy/syrupy.

1. "Aligned" (3:56) (8.4/10)

2. "Rockfall" (3:44) (8.1/10)

3. "Dawn Day Dusk Night" (3:37) an awesome kind of Satie-esque Gentle Giant vocal-instrumental weave experiment (9.5/10)

4. "Running In The Sun" (3:47) fast-moving rock with all instruments and vocals worked tightly into the weave. A little bit of THE ASSOCIATION or RIFTH DIMENSION worked into the harmonies in the vocal arrangements. (8.5/10)

5. "Symphonic" (5:05) sounds like an jazzy instrumental continuation/variation on the previous song. Not really necessary. (8.2/10)

6. "Aise" (1:26) nice little Keith Emerson-John Tout piano solo. (4.5/5)

7. "Sail Away" (3:43) piano-based vocal ballad by Andy. His English vocals are definitely improving. (8.25/10)

8. "Crystalized" (4:18) another jazz-pop instrumental with some classical/math rock structure to it. Nice flute work and whole-band cohesion. Could be a Broadway or soundtrack career for Andy yet! (9/10)

9. "Lighter than Air" (3:53) spiritual/New Age, too? Nice choral section with flute and piano interlaced but, otherwise ... meh. (7.75/10)

10. "Pressured" (4:35) I can't help but cringe when I hear Andy's music try to go to heavy rock'n'roll power chords. Nice keyboard flights in the Edgar Winter "Frankenstein" sections. (7.75/10)

11. "I Am the World" (8:45) an uninspired attempt at a prog epic. Kind of a cross between Yes The Yes Album and Richard Harris' "MacArthur Park." (16/20)

Total Time 46:49

Four stars; a solid contribution to the modern lexicon of Progressive Rock music though not Andy's best (that was 2016's excellent Of Things and Beings).

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