RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: http://forevermore.se/ Alas, it’s time for the Forlorn to strike again! I am, of course, referring to the original name of the Swedish epic doom metal quartet Isole whose 8th full length was just recently released. Its predecessor, “Dystopia” was better than extra large pepperoni pizza on a Saturday night two…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://www.insomnium.net/ The”Argent Moon”²⁰²¹ EP was such a fantastic release that, as I remarked in my review (5.5/6) I could hardly wait for the full length and it turned out I had been so right about my predictions. The 9th full length from the Finnish purveyors of progressive melodic death metal…
RELEASE YEAR: 2023 BAND URL: https://larsfredrikfroislie.bandcamp.com/album/fire-fortellinger What a lovely surprise this is album is! The wildly skilled keyboard wizard of Wobbler known as Lars Fredrik Frøislie will release this colorful, heartfelt, and superbly written 4-song gem in early June via Karisma Records, and if prog is your thing then make a note of this one. Fire…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://antipope.bandcamp.com/music Once agan I find myself reviewing a fantastic album from a long standing band I have never heard of before. One of my excuses could be that Antipope started as a black metal band and, to be honest, black metal is a cherry pick genre for me. Another one…
VENUE: GrieghallenDATE: 28.01.2023 ORGANIZER: Stageway What better way to spend the early part of a Saturday evening than witnessing the immensely talented The Nordic Floyd Show pay tribute to their heroes, Pink Floyd? It has actually become a tradition of sorts to attend one of the act’s performances in Bergen, Oslo, or some other…
Earlier this year, a very exciting new venture named Is It Jazz? Records was launched by the gentlemen who are also responsible for running and handling everything in relation to the well-known Norwegian labels Karisma Records and Dark Essence Records. Now, the thing is that jazz is many things to so many people, which is…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://oakinoslo.bandcamp.com/ The brilliant Norwegian prog rockers OAK are back with a new and deeply satisfying full-length album that encompasses everything that made their previous offerings great while also looking to the future. The hauntingly bleak and emotive opening track, ‘Highest Tower, Deepest Well’, is a masterclass in light and shade, and…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://fastball-music.bandcamp.com/album/seasons-25 Seasons 25 by the awesome German prog rockers Flying Circus is something quite special and noteworthy. It is a 2-disc set containing a remastered version of the album Seasons from 1997 and, more importantly in this case, an entirely reworked and re-recorded edition of said LP by the current line-up…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.bjornriis.com/ What a lovely surprise this beautifully crafted 4-track EP by the ridiculously talented Bjørn Riis (Airbag) is. It seems like only yesterday that he released the near-flawless Everything to Everyone opus, so I did not see A Fleeting Glimpse coming. Musically and stylistically speaking, these four new and sparkling compositions…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://adventure1.bandcamp.com/ The follow-up to the first part of the dark Tales of Belle musical narrative has arrived, and as with its predecessor (Part 1 is also from 2022), Part 2 is a riveting journey through brooding prog rock landscapes where the terrible deeds of the loathsome Norwegian serial killer are emphasized…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://caligonaut.bandcamp.com/album/magnified-as-giants Caligonaut is the brainchild of the wildly skilled guitarist/vocalist Ole Michael Bjørndal whose name you may or may not associate with such stellar outfits and artists as Airbag, Oak, and Bjørn Riis. This epic 4-song LP originally came out in early 2021 but has now been reissued due to popular…
That Regent Sounds Studio in 4 Denmark Street, also known as the Tin Pan Alley, which is located in London’s West End, occupies a special place in British rock music history is neither in doubt nor in question. Countless renowned artists and celebrated groups laid down their timeless grooves and melodies in this hallowed recording…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/knekklectric/ This quirky and musically adventurous prog rock gem by the wonderfully cool Norwegian outfit sporting the creative moniker Knekklectric is a most inspired and fascinating listening experience. Why is that? Well, for one thing they are singing in their native language using an Aalesund dialect, which is charming as hell,…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/Adventureprog/ Symphonic prog rockers Adventure recently released this ambitious concept record revolving around the infamous Norwegian serial killer dubbed Belle Gunness (born Brynhild Paulsdatter Størset back in 1859) who emigrated to the US in the 1880s only to disappear from view in the beginning of the 1900s. In short, the woman…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: Datadyr – Startside | Facebook The Norwegian trio known as Datadyr is a musically enticing one, and this dynamic group shows impeccable skill here with respect to delivering powerful tunes that are rooted in jazz but where prog, blues, and traces of Americana are expertly woven into the mix. What amazes…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: http://www.pymlico.no/ Norwegian prog(-ish) rockers Pymlico have returned with an elegantly structured album that brilliantly showcases that the 7-piece band are on peak form and know exactly how to craft admirably sparkling songs that crackle with energy. “Supermassive” is close in spirit to the group’s previous outputs, which is to say that…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://facebook.com/Softffog/ The recently launched Norwegian label named Is It Jazz? Records is off to a flying start with this deftly executed 4-track LP by prog rockers Soft Ffog who also hail from Norway. Well, jazz prog rockers, I suppose. For those of you out there who crave thunderous riffs, fret not…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: Svartisen | Kornmo (bandcamp.com) What a lovely surprise this one was! The Norwegian symphonic prog rockers Kornmo originally released this melodically gorgeous and evocative opus of theirs back in 2017, but as far as I know the idea of re-mixing and re-mastering the record was something that had been lingering in…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022 BAND URL: https://www.facebook.com/tronosonic/ How on earth this one snuck right by me back in March is beyond me, but the most important thing is that I recently got my hands on this psychedelic-looking digipak by the Norwegian jazz/prog/avant-garde noisemakers The Tronosonic Experience. Let me tell you right here and now that “The Shadow…
RELEASE YEAR: 2022BAND URL: https://majorparkinson.bandcamp.com/album/a-night-at-the-library How does one even begin to describe or portray Major Parkinson’s brand and style of music? Honestly, I have no idea. Progressive in nature and forward-thinking but endowed with the sensibilities of singer/songwriter music, the band’s outputs have been nothing short of dramatic, theatrical, and riveting. Recorded during the pandemic,…
