VOYAGER

I didn't want to post my review until the official release date of Jan 1, 2014, even thought I had had the CD for a week. But I have just received an email, saying that the Voyager has officially launched! (which would make it a de facto 2014 album, I guess?)

I must say I have been somewhat disappointed by the 2014 crop; no names shall be named, but I have found that most of the Top 100 albums wouldn't merit more than 3 stars.

But the Voyager flies high and shines bright. Cailyn and her band took Gustav Holst's grand creation, The Planets, and propelled it all the way into the deep space. Which, being a space exploration enthusiast, I find exciting and fulfilling.

As usual, instead of dissecting and analyzing the album bit by bit, I'll take the liberty of telling you all what my first impressions were. The Voyager certainly proves that Cailyn and her band have come of (space) age; the quality of their compositions, the execution and the sound engineering are very impressive for a relatively young band. The imagery they use is powerful, beautiful and perfectly congruent with the album's message. Nothing is overdone, and nothing that's worth exploring is left out. A very mature and well-rounded album.

So, why 4 stars only? If I have to pick on the Voyager, I'd say that it's perhaps 5 to 10 minutes "too long", meaning that I have to sort of "force" myself to listen to a few extra minutes past my natural attention span, which slightly diminishes the overall enjoyment. I do reserve the right to re-visit my review and upgrade it to 5 stars :)