OUT OF THIS WORLD

The Dutch melodic symphonic crossover group Kayak is going through a brilliant phase since founding member Ton Scherpenzeel reformed the group in 2018 with the record 'Seventeen'. The 'Live 2019' record showed the new band to be in a glorious form on stage (which I also witnessed myself in the city of Arnhem). Vocalist Bart Schwertmann is the best singer the band ever had (which is saying a lot) and master guitarist Marcel Singer is the ballsy counterweight to Ton Scherpenzeel's very melodic and classically influenced type of songwriting. On their latest record 'Out of this World' the band manages to bring some of that great podium flair to the record (something lacking on the rather flat sounding 'Seventeen' record). The production is quite good here. Kayak usually makes albums with a few strong progressive rock tracks and a string of lighter melodic pop rock songs and this album is no different. There are however a lot of great five-star progressive tracks here; 'Out of This World', 'Under a Scar', 'Kaja', 'Mystery', 'The Way She Said Goodbye', 'Critical Mass', 'Red Rag to a Bull' and 'A Writer's Tale' are all tracks fit among the best material of the band. Think of extended Kayak classics like 'Merlin', 'Icarus', 'Starlight Dancer' and 'Daphne'. The band uses some classic building blocks to make the sound typically 'Kayak'; the intelligent harmonic chords patterns by Scherpenzeel, the endless melodic lines in vocals and guitar, the interesting mood changes within songs and the band's recognizable 'light touch' to tie it all together. Sadly the album is also plagued by three out of place sounding pop songs on which guitarist Marcel Singor has lead vocals. As much as I adore his guitar playing, I just don't see how these songs fit on a Kayak album with their strong influences of Bowie and perhaps Sting. Other notable songs are 'One by One', a ballad sung by bass player Kristoffer Gildenlöw that could have been written by Trans-siberian Orchestra. The last songs 'Ship of Theseus' is sung by Ton Scherpenzeel himself and is actually a nice ending with a ghost ship theme and atmosphere. This album could have easily been Kayak's 21th century swansong and it would still have had a playing time of 50 minutes, but as it stands I can't give it more than four stars. 'Out of this World' does however offer some of the best symphonic progressive rock of 2021 and therefor comes as highly recommended to listeners of before-mentioned genres.

It is strange to think that soon we will be coming to Kayak's 50th anniversary, an achievement for any band. Of course, there have been multiple line-up changes over the years, plus the band has had breaks, but the current five-man line-up stands proudly when looking back over their achievements. Of course, at the heart of it is all is Ton Scherpenzeel (keyboards, lead & backing vocals), the founder who has kept it going all these years. Drummer Hans Eijkenaar joined in 2010 before leaving and then rejoining recently, while the others all joined when Ton reset the band after 2014's 'Cleopatra ' The Crown of Isis'. They are of course Bart Schwertmann (lead & backing vocals), Marcel Singor (guitar, lead & backing vocals) and Kristoffer Gildenl'w (bass, lead & backing vocals). Yes, there are a lot of singers on here, and while Schwertmann can be heard on most of the tracks, Marcel Singor takes lead on three, while Kristoffer Gildenl'w and Ton Scherpenzeel have one each. On top of that, drummer Hans Eijkenaar debuts as composer, working with Ton to write the music of 'Traitor's Gate' while the rest of the album was written by the band leader alone.

This is not a band using a name to get some publicity, but instead are showing they are standing on the shoulders of giants as they continue to thrive and deliver an album which is a delight from beginning to end. This is not some geriatric outfit with nothing to offer who are still surviving on loyalties built from music in the past, but have produced an album which is exciting, inventive, immediate and an awful lot of fun. There is a mix between different styles, some more commercial than others, and the result is something which any proghead will enjoy the very first time they play it and will continue to gain more as they repeat. There is some tasteful guitar here and there, while Ton is of course a wonderful in- demand keyboard player, here providing both swathes as backdrops or taking leads, while the drums set the foundation and of course multi-instrumentalist Gildenl'w is always there to add to some finesse.

It is a highly polished release, full of crossover elements which sees it bring in some pop as well as some symphonic, and it is nice to listen to an album which is just so easy to enjoy and not have to work at. Let's hope they have more in them yet as this is not the sound of a band ready to retire.