As every progger on the planet already knows, the laws-of-physics-defying (he's everywhere at once!)
John Mitchell of It Bites, Frost*, Arena, Kino and countless session jobs finally came up with his solo project.
Please Come Home is tagged as a Lonely Robot album, but that's just the project title the humble Mr. M. has chosen to use.
No reason to be humble, though. The album features John at his most energetic, with just a couple of of his wistful ballads. There's little downright prog here; I'd call this mostly prog-tinged art/power rock. Hooks and strong riffs aplenty, likewise choruses that will stay with you, with a zillion little details built into the structure. And I love his raspy, warm and so very human voice - one of my favorites of current lead singers in any band.
JM is a brilliant songwriter and Please Come Home puts this very much into the spotlight. No long solos or instrumental passages, with songs staying within the 4-5 minute range, and they all pack a considerable punch. Nice album art too :)
My rating: 5 / 5
Perfect Beings from the USA crept up slowly into my radar range, with a number of people giving high marks on
their eponymous debut album. I finally got to listening to it and it is a doozy! Hard to categorize, too, with influences ranging from prog to typically American alt.rock to XTC's (if you're a fan, check out this albums's
Helicopter from 1:45 on!) slightly psychedelic art rock and even Beatles/Lynne -style harmonics.
It took a couple of plays to turn my initial "what's this?" reaction into warmly liking this stuff, and now I'm growing really, really fond of this. It's an example of crossover prog or prog lite I truly enjoy: a band that clearly plays what they want and how they want it. I admire the clarity of the overall vision, with excellent production, clever song arrangements and that hard-to-explain element that gives a band their own identity, even when some of their benchmarks can be recognized. More, please!
My rating: 4,5 / 5
A wonderful thing has happened on the prog metal front: Brazil's pride
Angra are back - and they are back big time!
I've loved their mix of power metal, prog metal and occasional Brazilian influences for over a decade and felt genuinely sorry when, after a number of lineup changes, the great Edu Falaschi left the lead singer's chair empty in 2011. They had been moving in a slightly softer, Queenrÿche-ish direction with their last albums with Edu (
Aurora Consurgens in 2006 and
Aqua in 2010), with original drummer Riccardo Confessori putting in a dazzling comeback performance on the latter album. The music was solid but the albums did not sell too well, and I was expecting to read about the band's end sooner rather than later, especially when guitarist Kiko Loureiro released an instrumental solo album, and a very good one, too.
But now it's the debut of Angra Mark 3, with Rhapsody of Fire's Fabio Lione on lead vox and a very young, twentysomething Bruno Valverde behind the drum kit. And these two have set the band positively on fire. Simply put: the new album,
Secret Garden, may be their best ever, period.
It's a stunning show of force and artistic maturation, ranging from fierce and truly heavy metal to symphonic drama, prog moments, ethno-musical references and quieter, lyrical passages. They have done all that before but never with this intensity and bravado. This just may be Angra's
A Trick Of The Tail, the moment when a band proves their strength after losing a charismatic frontman. Everyone plays perfectly, Valverde is a real revelation, and Fabio's vocals, just a bit rougher than in his Rhapsody years, are just right for Angra. And since there's more prog here than in any previous Angra album, I could not be happier.
Parabéns, guys - Viva Angra!
My rating: 5 / 5
I have never acquired the taste for Radiohead, and the quite numerous bands that follow their combination of electronica+alt.pop+prog tend to leave me totally cold. Scotland's
North Atlantic Oscillation are a notable exception to the rule. Already their debut cautiously rang my bells and the follow-up,
Fog Electric, was positively intriguing, displaying a strong songwriting skill to go with the mastery of the electronic soundscape.
With the brand new album,
The Third Day, N.A.O. really come into their own. This is a veritable dream house of manipulated sound, carefully constructed aural dreams and extremely well honed songwriting. The prog element now has more weight than before, taking the overall experience to a 21st century version of what was called Art Rock in the 1970's. If 10cc or ELO were young bands today, they might be close to this.
My rating: 4 / 5
In closing, just a reminder that it sometimes pays to try what seems improbable. The Dutch band
Adeia's debut album
Hourglass combines classical music (both mainstream and modern) with extreme metal and prog - and they actually get away with it. Mind you, they are not doing the Nightwish-style quasi-classical/symphonic thing but integrating undiluted chamber music styles, vocals and instruments into the metal paradigm, with liberal doses of prog mixed in. Not radio friendly, and actually rather challenging.
I find the experiment successful and the only complaint I have is that some of the songs could have been worked on a bit more, there are passages that rest on fairly standard riffing. I have no idea if Adeia is supposed to be a continuing band or a one-off project; I hope for the former but even if it ends here, I cheer their skill and sense of adventure!
My rating: 3,5 / 5
