A.C.T – Eternal Winter (CD)

 

A.C.T is and has in my opinion always been one of Sweden’s top rate progressive bands. It’s rare that a band doesn’t have at least one low in their career, but these guys have been on a high since day one. So, is it about to change? The short answer is – No! The band’s new, seventh, full length album kicks off with the track “The Family” in the classic A.C.T mode. Melodic, quirky and slightly proggy, not over the top. This is classic A.C.T material, ranging from soft keyboard parts to happy, up-tempo melodic quirkiness. “A New Beginning” starts off as a cool melodic poppy ballad, going into some heavier chord changes, still keeping the melodies of course. Really nice arrangement with lots of cool little surprises and some Saga-esque guitar/keyboard melodic soloing. A great track, indeed! “When Snow Was Magic” also starts off very soft and tender and then turns into a waltz type almost musical kind of number with a Christmas theme shining through. A beautiful song with Herman almost roaring in the third verse. Fantastic choirs, too! The start of “Waiting For The Sun” takes us back into classic A.C.T proginess with some cool funky guitars found in the verse, too. Another quite poppy number, it turns out, but with some heavy proggy riffing thrown in, and a cool up-tempo solo parts with keyboards and guitar. A nice blend, indeed! ”This Special Day” kicks off with some really cool heavy guitars and Styx-style keyboards, moving into a very poppy verse, a crushing heavy bridge. This one has turned into one of my absolute favorites on the album. Love the vibe and the quirkiness (yes, I use that word a lot when it comes to this band). Lots of stuff happen in this one! Moving on to “Signs” which also starts out pretty mellow with keyboards and vocals, but it still has a feeling of heaviness lurking in the shadows, and yes, there it is! The next verse moves into a cool up-tempo vibe, then into half-tempo heaviness. As usual we don’t know what to expect next, and the songs moves through a lot of different vibes and motions. Another killer song, indeed! “Home” kicks off in high gear, moves into half-tempo and then into slow mode. And that’s just the first 20 seconds! Soft, melodic and cool verse, but of course it doesn’t end there. The song floats in and out of different textures and vibes, but with that traditional A.CT ease and without feeling forced. Another cool guitar/keyboard interplay solo and a cool heavy section breaking it off, going into the guitar solo, back into another keyboard/guitar interplay that just gives you goosebumps. I change my mind, THIS is actually my favorite song. The album finishes with “The Big Parade” which could have been an old, resurrected show number, or something Freddy Mercury might have come up with. A cool way to end the album, totally unexpected! 

Janne Stark

Label: Actworld

Year: 2025

Country: Sweden

Future Elephants? – The Past Was A Blast… (CD/LP)

Future Elephants? Current Dinosaurs? I don’t know about the elephants, but these guys sure aren’t no dinosaurs. They may have been in the game since Jeebo walked around in shorts, but these guys manage to find ways to up the old game of prog-infused rock. This is the third outing from this band, and it sure doesn’t disappoint. Singer/guitarist Roger Holegård (of Neon Rose fame), guitarist Dante Holmberg (formerly of Uppåt Väggarna, Strix Q etc), bass player Anders Lundguist and drummer Sigvard Frenzel again being out a really nice slab of music. We get a nice variety of sounds and colors We have rockers like “Shake The Snake”, passing semi-soft almost pop-folksy songs like “Ground Floor Man” on to the classical sounding intro of “Walking With a Dead Man” that goes into some really cool heaviness with a touch of Jethro Tull. Side one of the vinyl ends with the odd semi-ballad “Rain” with moody, yet slightly proggy twists. Side two starts with another cool slightly proggy semi-heavy number named “Bring In The Judge” with a really powerful chorus. “The Planet’s Crusaders” goes in a different direction, bringing in some blues rock with a quirky guitar melody that really gets stuck in your head. For some reason it made me think of Dire Straits “Money For Nothing”, but better. “Peter’s Demons” takes us back to the proggier regions with a touch of vintage Blue Öyster Cult. Really cool guitar solo from Dante, too. The album ends with another killer straight ahead rocker entitled “Drink” with more of Roger’s excellent lyrics. He mixes tongue-in-cheek stuff with some deep meanings, which I really like. I’ve been a fan of his lyrics since back in the Neon Rose days. I also really like the analogue sounding production, very modern retro. The sound is great, the playing is stellar and Roger’s vocals fits the music like a glove. What’s not to like? Get it!

Janne Stark

Label: Rock Music Production
Year: 2023
Country: Sweden

Highproject – Highproject (CDr)

Highproject is a Swedish progressive rock band featuring former Zello keyboard player Anders Altzarfeldt. Opening track “1000 People” reminds me a bit of vintage Asia, but with a slightly heavier edge. This was a really nice surprise! The album was one of the many Corona albums where the members recorded each at their own home/studio. You honestly can’t hear it. It all sounds very “together”. Besides Anders, the band features Stefan Andersson (Sonic State Capital) on bass, Bjarne Forsbom on guitar, Mikael Grönroos (ARA) on drums and Robert Johansson Lind (ARA, Heathen’s Eye, Ability) on vocals, acoustic guitar and percussions, plus guest singer Lovisa “Loa” Pigani. “Trust In Me” continues in the same vein, but also draws close to vintage classic prog bands like Nektar and Yes, and even a bit of early Saga here and there. Robert is an excellent singer with a broad range and a strong voice. Great melodic feel, too! The arrangements are quite intricate and there are a lot of different themes and passages in the songs which makes this a really interesting listen. “Prime Time” initially offers some pretty heavy and intense guitar riffing, but it soon switches gears into a heavy, yet dynamic vein with really cool keyboard patterns coloring the musical landscape. This is really brilliant, I must say! “Rhayader Goes To Town” is the only cover out of the six numbers, originally written by Camel. Even though I’m a big fan of progressive rock and bands like Kayak, Nektar, Yes etc., but I’ve never really listened to Camel. Listening to this song, I realize I probably should. I don’t know how close to the original these guys do it, but this is a really intricate and interesting song, indeed. Quite playful and with some really cool twists. This album REALLY deserves a proper release!! I know lots of prog fans who would drool over this! 

Label: private release

Country: Sweden

Year: 2023

Link: https://www.highprojectband.com/

A.C.T – Falling (MCD)

My favorite Swedish melodic progsters are back again! After two EPs, they now deliver what could be considered a classic 70s vinyl length album, clocking in a 30 minutes and 8 seconds, but would today be considered a mini-alnum. The album starts with the short “Fall In” intro which is just a short runway into the excellent heavy and melodic “Digging A Hole” with some really cool technical mid-sections. This is A.C.T in their prime. An outstanding song, indeed! Next up is “The Girl Without A Past” where we get to revisit Emilie who first had a song of her own on “Today’s Report”, and who still has problems with her memory. It’s a quirky song that starts out quite soft, but picks up into a pompy and theatrical chorus. There’s a lot of classic early Saga in the keyboard/synth arrangements, I feel. Lots of different vibes and parts, which really makes this listen experience a thrill. Next up we have the kinda stroll along, pretty straight forward and slightly poppy “Breathe”, a song you can’t help bobbing your head to. Despite being “straight forward”, it of course has some really cool and quirky passages, especially in the solo section. With A.C.T “straight forward” isn’t really the same as AC/DC “straight forward”. There are different levels , you know. “A Race Against Time” gets us into a heavy, energetic proggy intro with a pretty naked verse that moves into a power bridge. Another hard hitting number that shows A.C.T has so many more tricks to show us. This is brutal!! “One Last Goodbye” is really classic sounding A.C.T in their strutty, prog-pop vein. As usual the vocal layers and harmonies are exquisite, the musical technicalities and arrangements are out of this world. “The Earth Will Be Gone” gets us back into the theatrical and pompy world, of course with some reggae-infused parts thrown in for good measure. A very interesting vocal mid-section which really enhances the theatrics, and almost moves us into a Broadway musical. These guys never cease to surprise and amaze. Listening to this CD is definitely the best spent 30 minutes today! 

Janne Stark

Label: ACT World

Country: Sweden

Year: 2023

The Jolly Company – 10 Acts To Astound And Amaze (CD)

There has come quite a bunch of high-class progressive acts from the little country of ours such as ACT, Jono, Kharma, Add The Jolly Company to the list. “Hear The News” kicks off in the true pomp/prog mode with hints of bands like Klatuu, Queen, ACT, City Boy. “Paris Summer Love” certainly has some severe Queen overtones with multilayered harmony vocals from the extremely talented Göran Edman (Madison, Malmsteen, Kharma etc). The project was initiated (and written) by former Crossroad Jam/Backwood Spirit keyboardist Peter Emilsson. The line-up also features Peter’s former Crossroad Jam colleague Joje Lindskoog on drums, Jonathan Lindskoog also on drums, Stefan Jonsson on guitar, Niclas Boson on bass and Anneli Axelsson on backing vocals. If you’re into intricate, orchestrated, theatrical, melodic proggy pomp rock, this album is a MUST. The songs are top notch, the musicians brilliant and Göran’s vocals are really the icing on the cake. My only disappointment is in myself and that it took me so long to really listen to and review this masterpiece!

Janne Stark

Country: Sweden

Year: 2021

Label: Self-released

Between Spaces – Between Spaces (MLP 6tr)

I’m not 100 % in what genre to place this Gothenburg based band. Opening track “Lies” has a bit of garage rock attitude, almost a new wave vibe and then suddenly a heavy rock break and in comes… a saxophone!? (Sorry, sax is my absolute pet hate). Singer Mikael Lilja sounds like he’s been influenced by anything from Johnny Rotten and Iggy Pop. “A Silent Room” has a different kind of approach with a slightly proggier touch. I honestly don’t really know where to place this band musically. It is quite intriguing and it’s honestly nothing a listen to on a regular basis. The song has quite a lot of different moods and vibes and definitely falls under the progressive banner. Melodic, garagy and progressive. Side A finisher “In Memoriam” takes quite a different turn and starts out leaning more on soft folky piano music. Maybe a reference to Jan Johansson? The vocals are fine, but the Swenglish pronunciation and crammed in sentences is a slight bit annoying to my ears. The song itself is really interesting and the build-up is very dramatic and thought-through. When the crescendo solo part kicks in it’s really really good, with some really cool unexpected chords popped in. Loved that! Side two opens with “At The End” which starts out in an interesting proggy vein, to move into a more straight ahead avant-gardist, almost gothy verse. Quite hard to pin-point where the band has picked their influences. “Fear Of Being Inadequate” kicks off in an almost hard rocking up-tempo style and continues as a really good proggy rocker, clocking in at 8:45. The production is very analogue sounding and works really well with the music. The record finishes with the track “Tempus Fugit” which also starts out with some mellow Jan Johansson:ish piano. An intriguing composition, I must say, with nice strings blending in with the piano. I’m afraid I’m not a huge fan of the vocals, but musically the song is an interesting, well-composed and well-arranged piece, going from the soft folky intro into quite heavy guitar and bass chugging with some interesting keyboard and violin melodies and soloing. It made me think a bit of Swedish proggsters Anekdoten, which is really good in my book.

/Janne Stark

Year: 2021

Label: private

A.C.T – Heatwave (MCD)

One of my favorite Swedish bands, the minions of prog, A.C.T, have instead of releasing a new album, divided it into Eps. In 2019 we got five new songs on the outstanding “Rebirth” EP, and now, a bit into 2021, they give us six more songs as the EP “Heatwave”. After a short intro, they break the door down with the battering ram entitled “Checked Out” which sounds as much A.C.T as A.C.T can sound. Playful, melodic and proggy. Heavy guitar riffs are mixed with strutty rhythms and Herman’s vocal tale telling. It feels like this song kinda explains the essence of what this band is about. A killer track, indeed! “Brother” continues with more of the same. Pompous, playful, melodic and irresistible. Fantastic! Now the expectations is at a sky high level for some sort of crescendo. But, I’m sorry to say, the next track “Dark Clouds” is a bit of a disappointment in that area. It’s by no means bad (A.C.T. don’t do bad), but it feels very ordinary and almost a bit sleepy in comparison with the first two crushers. Well, the title track “Heatwave” brings it back to normal again. Poppy, playful and fantastic, are the words of honor. These guys eat tempo changes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The only band I know that can drop in a waltz and make it sound just natural. This is stellar! The last track, “The Breakup” just adds to the positive vibes, another killer track in the long line of A.C.T killer tracks!   

Janne Stark

Year: 2021

Label: Actworld

Kansas - The Absence Of Precense (CD/LP)

I’ve been a fan of Kansas since the early seventies and I’ve followed the bands through their ups and downs, from the progressive and orchestral early Steve Walsh period, via the more easy accessible melodic John Elefante era, the Stere Morse-era, back to the slightly uneven second Steve Walsh period. After Steve Walsh decided to leave the band a second time, he eas replaced by singer Ronnie Platt who made his debut on the 2016 album “The Prelude Implicit”. Ronnie sounds quite a lot like bass player Billy Greer, who sounds a lot like Steve Walsh. Another new guy on the previous album was guitarist Zak Rizvi, while original members, drummer Phil Ehart and guitarist Rich Williams are still in the band. Here’s also Billy Greer and David Ragsdale, who have been with the band for many years now, while Tom Brislin, on keyboards and vocals is a new face on this album. ”The Abscence Of Presence” opens up with the title track, which sounds as much classic Kansas as it possibly can. A more that eight minute long journey, going from melodic rock through orchestral passages. An excellent number. ”Throwing Mountains” kicks off with a surprisingly heavy guitar riff, to proceed into a slightly softer verse, but still sounding like Kansas in splendid shape. “Jets Overhead” continues in the same vein and I now have to say that, this far, this is the best I’ve heard from Kansas since their heydays! ”Propulsion 1” is a short instrumental piece that brings to mind the Steve Morse era of the band. A proggy, and very nice intermission. ”Memories Down The Line” takes it down to a soft piano ballad level. Even if the song may be a bit cheesy in the verse, the nice pompy mid-section takes it up a few notches and makes up for it, where also the following verse has been enhanced with a nice orchestral backdrop. In its context a really nice song. ”Circus of Illusion” starts with the classic violin solo, continues into a proggy section and a nicemeodsic verse. I have to say that this, still, is a damn fine album! ”Animals On The Roof” continues in the same vein with a nice musical rollercoaster where melodic parts go into odd rhythms and proggy solos. “Never”, again takes it down to a soft piano ballad level, but here it gradually evolves, but without being all prog rock. The album finishes with “The Song The River Sang” which opens with some pretty intricate rhythms and riffs. The verse however shows a slightly different side of the band, and it’s positive, and thene the classic Kansas moves come back in! A really nice and at times pretty intense thing that keeps the listener’s interest up. A highly surprising and abrupt ending though! Can we hope for a sequel, maybe? This is a really outstanding album with all the ingredients I could’ve wished for from a top-notch Kansas album. Despite several of the original members missing, I can’t really say I miss them when listening to the album. Sure, I wouldn’t say no to a couple of licks from Kerry Livgren, and some Steve Walsh vocals (from back in the day when his voice was in top shape), or maybe a violin solo from Robbie Steinhardt, but no, I can’t say I really miss it when listening to the album. The new members, and the old ones of course, do an outstanding work and the album sounds just like a kick ass Kansas album should sound. What more could I wish for?   

Janne Stark

Country: USA

Year: 2020

Label: InsideOut

A.C.T – Rebirth (MCD)

My favorite Swedish melodic progsters are back!!! YES!! The band’s new EP (hopefully just a taste of what’s to come) is a 5-track release in a nice digipack. Opener “Ruler Of The World” throws us straight back to A.C.T in their prime. Poppy, proggy, melodic, rocking, the perfect mix! “Running Out Of Luck” continues in the same vein. This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for! Rebirth? Hell yeah!! “Digital Affair” starts off in a humanoid, futuristic vein, with a touch of early Saga (can’t remember the track right now), continues in the classic half-tempo, heavy yet melodic A.C.T manner. A different, but really cool track! Love it! “Meet The Past” is a poppy, up-tempo number, with the true happy-rock A.C.T vibe to it. Ooops, there was a bit of reggae, then comes an ABBA-esque part, going into City Boy territory. That’s what I love about this band, how they seamlessly go from style to style without missing a beat or making it feel strange. Closing track “A Broken Trust” brings out the heavy artillery! Powerful guitars, heavy rhythms and chugging guitars, but still so melodic. This is melodic prog in its finest form. Ola’s guitar solo is just genius! One of my favorite tracks! Quite honestly, A.C.T have always sounded great, but now they sound better than ever!! Now my appetite for a full album has really been awoken (so… what was that little teaser at the end of the last track?)!! Damn, this band is great!!

Janne Stark

Label: Self-released

Year: 2019

Country: Sweden

Link: www.actworl.se