Beyond its lack of a particularly ostentatious or significant title, Curved Air's second album represented a compositional leap forward. Despite the musical differences between Daryl Way and Francis Monkman, even that couldn't stem the powerful flow of ideas that sprang forth, beginning with the baroque jazz-rock, psychedelia, and ultimately progressive sound of their opening track, Young Mother. One foot in electronica, the other in rock, and that persistent rawness, Monkman and Way were truly constructing two distinct symphonies in unison, which, when layered, created this complex collage.

Back Street Luv is another representative track where, in a psychedelic format with a complexly syncopated rhythm, a pop melody unfolds that then becomes classical and later very, very dark. Jumbo embraces the Renaissance, from the violin...through the piano...to Sonja Kristina's voice. This palatial respite serves as the ideal companion to the risky adventures of their more avant-garde tracks.

In You Know the band rocks it at their own pace, with Monkman on guitar, in that other dimension where you can trace something of The Doors. Puppets deliberately slows down the development...with a steadily building tension, like King Crimson's Islands, featuring Florian Pilkington-Miksa's subtle drumming, almost ticking off the clock...and Francis Monkman's increasingly prominent piano. Sonja's echoes, seemingly calling to Ulysses from the ocean, complete the picture.

Everdance is another classic from the band for me, with its frenetic, syncopated waltz rhythm, where the violin takes center stage and vies with Sonja's voice to see who can lay out the most intricate lines. And there's definitely a melody to be had! While Darryl Way plays one part, Francis Monkman tackles another, with Florian Pilkington-Miksa providing the perfect backdrop for them to shine.

Bright Summer's Day 68 is another fun experiment in the style of ragtimes that Queen used to do, where they play the harpsichord, and it closes with an electric guitar solo in the style of Jimi Hendrix. Piece of Mind is the most complex and extensive track, where they revisit their ideas but with even greater development, featuring wild violin solos followed by Sonja's vocals and then Francis Monkman's guitar, leading into more subtle segments with solo acoustic piano and a guest orchestra.

When Darryl reached his sharpest high notes, followed by the rest of the band...Curved Air found its raison d'�tre: a progressive rock dressed in still-bloody skin, a raw and harsh baroque, at times becoming jazzy with the piano, atonal like Gentle Giant, and yet romantic like Genesis, in this epic where Sonja sang whispering and Way scraped his violin until it smoked...and kept going even after that. The electronic musings would be the connecting link with the third part of the initial trilogy, from the lyrics of Piece of Mind in a mental institution...to Phantasmagoria itself.

— First review of this album —

Multi-instrumentalist Paolo Pagliari is an Italian musician based in France, who used to be a member of the Old Castle, a little known and still active as of 2022 symphonic prog band and this is his first solo album, helped on drums by Alberto Quacquarini, also ex-The Old Castle. There is also a crew of backing vocalists as well. Very much steeped in the classic symphonic prog tradition, the result is sheer ear candy. The title should inspire a thoughtful and yet uncomplicated audition, devoid of any prejudgement, bad mood ranting or angry mindset, the innocence of youth is all the bliss one may require.

"So Begins" embraces all those young memories of openness, curiosity and excitement , Paolo displaying playful coquetry with both his trusted redolent bass, the acoustic and electric guitars gently smiling, the piano and keyboards there in order to keep the shoulders straight and the fingers nimble, contented children in the playground.

The effortless segue into "Stars in Your Eyes " is where the soft voice glides into place and the organ signals a more profound tone and atmosphere, a musical world where sublime melody and unfettered passion rule. Silky and dreamy, with just the perfect amount of intensity, as youthful exuberance rarely understands boundaries, Paolo emoting on both his e-guitar excursions, the light voice sincere and then elevating the entire arrangement with a massively successful symphonic upsurge that supplies all the crescendo one could ask for. Extremely impressive. No time wasted with the longest track here, the nearly 10 minute "Father's Words" is most deserving of respect, as wisdom also has a large part to play in any child's life. Lest we forget that many of us have been fortunate enough to have been raised by loving and caring parents, who also have provided guidance in building their offspring's self- esteem and the need to show humanity to others. The heartfelt piece is honorably respectful, eloquently expressing admiration with a glittering guitar ride that easily rivals the legends of this genre (Hackett, Gilmour and Latimer). The flute and mellotrons add just the right amount of fluency, the rhythmic suspense being decisive, Alberto forcefully propelling the epic along the Yellow Brick Road. The bubbly synth chaperones the finale into the horizon.

Time for a nice trio of pieces, first with an acoustic guitar intermezzo, a barely three-minute diversion into a title that really explains the mood thoroughly "Watching Through the Window on a Melancholic Rainy Day", crisp finger technique, flute meandering nearby and raindrops falling unobtrusively. A robust bass introduces the Beatles-like "Hold On!", a song fueled by an opulent organ and flute presentation, yet it's the bold vocal that really does the trick and raises more than just one eyebrow! The authenticity flowing from this simple tune is breathtakingly fresh and a sheer pleasure, with a lurking Hammond solo that could have /should have lasted another couple of minutes. The brash axe insert is brazen. Completing the experience, the inquisitive "Lune de Mer" ends with a delicate juvenile request, always some question ready to be blurted out in latent curiosity, the hallmark of youth. The fluttering pace is maintained "In the Shelter of Your Eyes", sonic suspended animation in the finest Floydian tradition, a pivotal platform for an elongated axe glide that you just know is going to eventually soar, way high up into the sky. Paolo can play, that I can assure you.

With an overt title like "Camel Escape", you cannot mistake the influence, even if you tried. Moon madness on a dune-laden mirage, naked, breathless, amid the dust and the dreams, a stationary traveler offering a nod and a wink to his idols. It brought me to the harbour of tears without any holding back. My goodness! All the classic dromedary ingredients are all there: the Saharan cobra tongue flicker coiling over the sand , the snow goose fluttering in the blue sky above, the guitar work on par with the numbing organ menace and the rhythmic duo focused on the sun-scorched trail. As great an instrumental homage one should ever expect.

Two circa 5-minute twinned tracks close out this magnificent adventure. "Memory Box" provides a longing return to the past, a natural progression of life experience, as every person getting older year by year, eventually finds the most comfortable memories to reminisce, not only those that brought unfettered joy, but also the ones that surmounted obstacles that were considered unchallengeable. Resilience is the key, if only one could live life backwards. A lovely track. The beauty of this remarkable album is that it does not end in doom (unlike the current media tsunami), "Light in the Night" offers an inherently positive outlook, an indestructible reminder that love conquers all, much better that darkness in the day. The grandiose melody is colossal, insistent, bright and very tight.

Easily one of the biggest surprises thus far in 2026, on a myriad of levels. A comforting album that I intend to cherish for the remainder of my youth. 4.5 fledgling observations

One of the stranger acts to emerge from Spain's late 70s progressive rock frenzy was the Catalonian band COT� EN P�L which emerged in Valencia in 1976 and haunted the prog underground until the band disbanded in 1981. The band featured Carles Pic� (electric and acoustic guitar), Pep Llopis (organ, synthesizer, mellotron and vocals), Paco Cintero (bass and vocals who replaced the first bassist who died) and Vicent Cortina (drums and percussion) and long before Morte Macabre released its lauded "Symphonic Holocaust," this band simply released its only album HOLOCAUST in 1978. Given the symphonic dominance this album easily could've been titled identically. Similarly COT� EN P�L was primarily inspired by the darker tones of King Crimson however other elements such as Magma-esque zeuhl, eerie synthesizers in the vein of the French act Pulsar and vocals that sometimes are more out of the Yes playbook intertwine in a true anomaly within the Spanish scene which tended to generate uplifting prog hybrids that cross-pollinated with the local folk flavors such as flamenco.

Despite the KC influences, in many ways this band sounds closer to the Swiss prog act Island stylistically speaking howeverCOT� EN P�L didn't engage in the overt compositional complexities to that degree but nevertheless many have considered HOLOCAUST a true masterpiece of the Spanish underground and one listen and you'll at least comprehend why some deem that to be the case. The band name supposedly means "hydrophilic cotton" in the local Catalan language which was taken from a rock opera "L'home de Cot�-en-P�l" which was performed at the Teatre Principal in 1974 in Valencia where the band composed and performed much of the works on this release. After a year of honing its chops the band participated in the "I Festival Espa�ol Rock-Blues-Jazz" along with such acts as Bruno Lomas, Costa Blanca and Tar�ntula and gained enough attention secure a recording opportunity to be released on the Dial Discos label and in 1978 HOLOCAUST joined the up and coming Spanish prog boom.

HOLOCAUST is a moody slow burner without ever really ratcheting up the tempos or energetic level save a few moments. Armed with an arsenal of organs, synthesizers and mellotron, the band generated a truly creepy sounding collection of four tracks, the final two of which really constituted a single two-part suit that swallowed up the B-side almost reaching the 19-minute mark. Even the introductory track "Aura De Sons" takes a painfully long two minutes to slowly ooze into action first with gentle keys that fade into the forefront along with an ominous storm sound effect presence. Once the actual music begins at just over 4 minutes it's not apparent that King Crimson is the primary source of inspiration at all belying the claims that this band was nothing more than a clone. The track features lazy guitar licks, erratic jazz drumming and a dark atmospheric presence but once the track picks up a bit of speed the guitars deliver an erratic almost avant-prog angularity before an ominous organ takes over. The bass becomes very Squire-like. Other than tone, no sings of KC here really. At over 9 minutes the vocals finally kick in and then the Island comparisons (a lazy version no doubt) kick in however its more diverse.

The second track "Lamentations" is more relaxed and less scary in ballad form with acoustic guitar parts and vocal melancholy. This is one is much more steeped in a mellow Mediterranean seaside vibe and despite almost 5 minutes playing time sounds more like an interlude between the darker tracks that bookend it. The cornet offers a rather melancholic chamber music mood setting sounding more like something Gnidrolog would've conjured up. The two part title track is the highlight of the album with its side swallowing majestic feel dominated by gloomy atmospheres, ominous keyboard usage and a creepy bass groove generating a mood setting that perfectly fits the subject matter. This is an elegant track that sort of delivers the same idea that Morte Macabre would happen upon only 20 years later. This two-part suite features excellent spooky transitions that offer tension building motifs that ratchet up the ominous dread with cynical grooves before morphing into different passages that slowly build up to allow more varied instrumental interplay and guitar presence and keyboard excesses. Once again reminding me more of Island than KC.

Reading about this album made me think that COT� EN P�L was going to be something like the equivalent of Starcastle to Yes however that couldn't be further from the truth. Other than some of the eerie darkness portrayed on HOLOCAUST that evoke some of the darker sides of KC, there really aren't many other references and as i've already stated the stylistic effect is much more akin to the Swiss band Island on its sole release "Pictures" which came out only a year before this one however even then this band sounds distinct as Island is simply the closest reference i can pinpoint. For those who consider Island too weird and overly pompous, then COT� EN P�L provides a more palatable version of this dark brew of downer prog. Personally this album really works for me as its distinct enough to totally laugh off all those critic hacks who panned it as being woefully out of their minds. This is a beautiful album of slow generating progressive excellence although i could definitely forfeit the lengthy four minute build up at the start. A true outlier in the Spanish prog scene, COT� EN P�L delved into a unique prog arena that belied its Spanish origins. For my tastes this one is great.

Review N� 971

Gentle Giant was a British prog rock band that was formed in London in 1970 and disbanded in 1980. The band became known as one of the paradigms of prog rock music. It's one of the most influential prog bands too. During their musical career, Gentle Giant released eleven studio albums and several live albums. Despite their very short musical existence, Gentle Giant became one of the best and most influential progressive bands ever. They became also known because of the creativity, complexity and sophistication of their music. Gentle Giant's music was considered extremely complex even by progressive rock standards. It ranged from folk, soul, jazz, medieval, classical and twentieth century music.

"Interview In Concert" is a live album by Gentle Giant that was officially released in 2000. It reflects the band's musical complexity. The album is part of a series of "official bootlegs" and captures an energetic performance by the band during the American leg of their 1976 tour, held at the Calderone Concert Hall in Hempstead, New York, on July 3, 1976. The set list is very similar to the one found on the official live album "Playing The Fool", recorded a few months later in Europe and released in 1977. Despite some other differences, the major difference is the presence of three songs from the 1976 "Interview" album from the band released in 1976: "Give It Back", "Timing", and the title track of it, "Interview".

Technically, "Interview In Concert" has nine tracks. However, some of the original studio tracks were fused together. So, "Interview In Concert" opens with "Proclamation", one of the two lengthiest tracks on "The Power And The Glory". It's a typical Gentle Giant's track with relatively complex arrangements and with great melody. This is one of my favourites from that album. But, unfortunately, the beginning of "Proclamation" is missing from this recording, which is a pity. The second track "On Reflection" was originally released on "Free Hand". "On Reflection" has all the traditional trademarks of the band, the polyphonic vocal inspired by renaissance and a cappella music. It changes between acoustic and electric parts, but essentially it's an acoustic track. This live version is very similar to its studio version with about one minute more. The third track "Interview" was originally released on "Interview". That title track of that album is very experimental, hard rocking, jarring and played to perfection. It's one of the greatest moments on that album. This is also a live version very similar to the original studio one even in its length. The fourth track "The Runaway/Experience", is a fusion of two tracks originally released on "In A Glass House". "The Runaway" is a track rich in varieties, styles and textures, extremely melodic but that is at the same time complex and creative. "Experience" is another amazing track, inventive and with a complex musical structure. It's rich with wonderful vocal harmonies and varied forms of music. This live version is a bit different from the two originals, maybe because of the fusion of both tracks. It's also shorter, with about less than four minutes. The fifth track "So Sincere" was originally released on "The Power And The Glory". "So Sincere" is a complex and dissonant track, very experimental and avant-garde with some jazz influences. All in all we may say that it's a rather exquisite track that cannot appeal to everyone. This live version is relatively faithful to the original despite being about two minutes more. The sixth track "Excerpts From Octopus", as its name indicates, has some excerpts of tracks from their album "Octopus". It includes several parts from that album, "The Boys In The Band", "Dog's Life", "Raconteur Troubadour", "Knots", "The Advent Of Panurge" and "River". As a medley, we can say that we are in the presence of a completely new and original track. "Give It Back" was originally released on "Interview". "Give It Back" is a bit of a bizarre track with reggae influences. It's a perfect blending of prog rock and reggae, where the band puts their unique stamp on the style, giving to it a unique and strange edge. This live version is close to the original, even in its length. "Timing" was also originally released on "Interview". "Timing" is a loud and prog hard rock track, well composed and with a good instrumental work. Still, I'm not a great fan of it. This live version was extended to triple. So, this is an interesting version with some nice music improvisations. "Free Hand", was originally released on "Free Hand". That title track is an elaborate complex track, a traditional Gentle Giant's track with some dissonant parts and constant changes of rhythm and tempo. This live version is great and similar to the studio one, even in its length.

Conclusion: So, as I mentioned above, with "Interview In Concert", we are in the presence of another "official bootleg" live album from this great band. And as happened with almost bootleg works, the quality of the sound isn't logically the best. In this case, we can say that the recordings have an acceptable quality for a bootleg. I confess that I was in the presence of some worst, although it features some background noise (hiss) characteristic of the time. The recordings are possibly originating from an FM radio broadcast, although it features some background noise, a clear characteristic of the time. Anyway, "Interview In Concert", is a very nice and interesting live document of a great band that reflects its complexity, blending rock, jazz and classical elements. If it weren't for its not great quality, I would have given it 4 stars.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

For the first time in many, many years I gave this album a try (I got rid off it after two listening sessions when it was released in 1978), unfortunately it still doesn't appeal to me. There are hints from the previous albums Wind & Wuthering and A Trick Of The Tail, music that carries me away, but on ATTWT I can appreciate only a few good compositions but mostly my prog pleasure is brutally interrupted by songs that are more melodic rock and even pop (like the awful Follow You Follow Me).

What I miss is the wonderful interaction between Banks and Hackett (trademark 70-77 Genesis), they inspired each other to an extreme level. After Hackett left Genesis he found a kind of new Tony Banks in Nick Magnus, I embraced Hackett solo and said goodbey to the Genesis trio. Simply because for me they had turned into another band, hardly the captivating symphonic rock as on their previous efforts.

My rating 2,5 star.

No one can achieve perfection, even the greatest geniuses fail at times, and, after releasing three masterpieces of the concept album genre, both as a solo artist and band member in Pink Floyd, Roger Waters releases "Radio K.A.O.S" in 1987, his first album after permanently departing from Pink Floyd. And just as the Floyd was in an identity crisis, releasing a low quality record in 1987, just after Roger's release, Waters was having a crisis keeping a coherent and interesting sound together, without the help of David Gilmour or Eric Clapton to add melodic weight to his otherwise dense and complex records.

Trying to find any positive aspects in the melodic and musical qualify of this record is, to say the very least, difficult, as the compositions themselves are weak, repetitive, unengaging and overly polished. Just as prog bands like Yes or Genesis were releasing pop albums, Roger Waters does the same, but unlike them, his compositions try to dance between this thin ice of operatic, dense and heavy music and the softer radios catchy pop of the 80's, two contradictory and incompatible musical styles, trying to (forcefully) mix themselves together, thus, they are unbalanced, furthermore, the musical interpretation, musicianship, vocals and sound effects are poor, the drums specially, feel lifeless, uninspired and dull, the rest of the instruments barely stand out, and Roger's vocals are mechanical, robotic and two dimensional. We can also say, the sound effects in the middle of the songs do not act in the same manner as they did in "The wall" or "The pros and cons of hitchhiking", this time, they're out of place and don't have good timing, eclipsing the actual music.

Production wise, the album has mediocre mixing and mastering, the drums being too loud and reverberating, the bass hidden underneath walls of sound, Roger's voice equalized in a way that makes the lower pitch parts stand out too much without putting any attention to mid and high pitches, the guitars and synths hidden underneath sound effects and the incredibly loud drums and, to no one's surprise, all of this extremely compressed and claustrophobic, this doesn't help the already weak compositions, this just creates an exhausting and unappealing, unmelodic, disorienting mess of a record.

If I had to say something positive about the record, it's the concept, it follows the story of a disabled man called Billy talking to a DJ through a radio call, telling the story of his life and how police repression and poverty ruined him, this would be a great critique of inequality and abandonment if it weren't for the unnecessary addition of nuclear war, which doesn't add anything to the recor (as the threat of nuclear war was thawing at the time) , except eclipsing the great aspects of the concept, this nuclear premise (which ends the album, since we can interpret that Billy dies in a nuclear attack at the end of the story) is straight up forced, the album would have been much better if it just stayed on the concept of poverty, abandonment and repression.

Overall, it's one of the most boring records I've ever listened to, pretentious in a negative way, loud and unlistenable and uninspired. Unless you're a hardcore Roger Waters/Pink Floyd fan, I'd say skip this record, and go straight to it's follow up album "Amused to death".

My dearest of respects to the talented musicians who played on the album, since they were sadly, drowned by poor compositions and production.

ONSEGEN ENSEMBLE began as a Finnish trio in 2005 and has since grown to include nine musicians for their fifth album.

Their music draws its roots from hard rock and has evolved over the years into a psychedelic, folk-infused maelstrom of great and rare originality, while remaining very heavy in its chosen sounds. The band's lineup is atypical, featuring a percussionist, a violinist, a flautist, and a trumpeter in addition to the usual instrumentalists (guitar, bass, drums, and no keyboardist). All of these musicians have previously played in other bands in their country.

Their album comprises seven tracks ranging from 4:25 to 8:32. Some are entirely instrumental, such as the fifth track, "The Word" (9/10), which features only exceptionally brilliant choirs, enhanced by Jarmo Vaara's trumpet, an instrument rarely used in progressive music.

The opening track, "Garden of Celestials," which also features predominantly female vocals, is equally excellent (9/10). "To Be Led by the Lost," on the other hand, is based on soaring male vocals, a little less captivating in my opinion, but still quite enjoyable (8/10).

In "A Thought," we find a demonic violin, both dark and lyrical. Mikko Vuprela's soundscapes permeate the piece, giving it unparalleled depth. Vilma Pesola's almost sepulchral voice completes the puzzle (10/10), my favorite track on the entire album, strongly reminiscent of Nordagust for those familiar with them. "Oldest Father" is noticeably weaker, being rather repetitive, though still listenable (8/10). The penultimate and shortest track, "The First Casualty," is entirely dominated by the trumpet and choirs, interesting without being excessive (8/10).

The album's longest track, "Crystal Waters of Spring," is the most complex, where Mikko Vuorela's flute adds a welcome airiness to the whole. I had a lot of trouble getting into it, which is why I didn't rate it...

ONSEGEN ENSEMBLE was a real surprise of the first half of 2026, a band I hadn't even heard of before. Originally published on Profilprog.com

Was the wait worth it? A crucial question, given that DIFFERENT LIGHT's previous album dates back to 2020, six long years to discover the sequel to "Binary Suns - Part One," logically titled "Binary Suns - Part Two." Frankly, the answer is a resounding yes, as Trevor Tabone has crafted captivating and breathtakingly beautiful melodies. As a concept album, it's once again difficult to categorize the twenty tracks.

It's worth noting that with the Progressive Gears label having ceased operations, DIFFERENT LIGHT has found a home with Shaded Moon Entertainment, a Dutch company dedicated to progressive and metal music.

Four mini-suites form the core of the album. What are the strengths of this work? Undoubtedly, the melody in all its forms; Trevor Tabone is an absolute master of this genre. The gentleman sings very well, and even more so; on many occasions, I feel like I'm hearing the four Liverpool musicians in the vocal harmonies, or the Barclay James Harvest of their golden age when Woolly was still with the band, setting the stage for the underlying symphonic dimension ("The Singularity"). This symphonic quality is also present in the following track, "Labour of Love," enhanced by a superb six-string solo from Petr Lux.

The show continues from the very start of the second suite, "The Syncretist," with the brilliant, energetic, and remarkably effective instrumental "Sober Dancing," which segues into "Pillage of Souls," in the same vein but with vocals and, again, very much in the Liverpool style.

The track I like the least on the entire album is the one that was premiered: "A Fool's Errand." Not bad, but below the rest of the album in my opinion, more generic (which is what I felt after several listens), incredibly radio-friendly. "Constant Silver Lining," which then unfolds in four sections, features Petr Lux playing a virtuoso piece reminiscent of Ulrich Jon Roth. It's a very rock-oriented track compared to the rest of the album, illuminated by Trevor Tabone's magical piano playing, and concludes with a very successful polyphonic choral arrangement (ooh ooh... and ah ah...), one of my favorite passages on the entire "Binary Suns Part Two."

We still have "Stalker Talks" in three parts, energetic in its introduction (with Petr Lux still front and center), followed by a piano/vocal passage of absolute finesse (reminiscent of vintage Barclay James Harvest's "Everyone is Everybody Else"), a rhythm section (Jiri Matousek and David Filak) at the peak of their powers, pure musical pleasure in a single, concise phrase.

The closing track, "The Last Call," says it all in its title, too short for my liking, an enchanting melody where the four instrumentalists unite in a brilliant finale that makes you want to hit replay.Originally published on Profilprog.com

The last dinosaur of progressive music, chapter twenty-three as far as studio albums are concerned. Their previous album, "Mirror to the Sky," released in May 2023, was a good record, despite what the many naysayers here, there, and elsewhere might say.

Certainly, Yes will never recreate "Fragile," "Close to the Edge," or "Relayer" for many reasons, and good reasons at that. Times have changed, the musicians involved are no longer the same, with only Steve Howe remaining on guitar. Recording techniques are different too, and Roger Dean's signature style, now carried on by his children, remains for the visual aspect.

Jon Davison had a lot of trouble taking over the vocal duties, Jon Anderson remaining irreplaceable, but this finally seems to have been resolved over the last two albums.

Among the interesting features of this new album is the use of the Czech Symphony Orchestra on two occasions, which breathes new life into the classic Yessian music, as was already the case on "Magnification" in 2000. Interestingly, these two pieces are among the best: "Aurora" (9/10) and "Ariadne" (8/10). How to reproduce them on stage remains a mystery for now; we'll find out in 2027. Regarding the two bonus tracks, while "Watching the River Roll" is still listenable (6/10) as background music, the same cannot be said for "Jambustin" (4/10).

Other highlights of "Aurora," in the order presented, include "Loves Lies Dreaming" (8/10), where Steve Howe shines on acoustic guitars; the epic "Countermovement" (9/10), which, while a bit slow to get going, has an excellent second half; and "Emotional Intelligence" (7/10), reminiscent of the delicate "Wonderous Stories" (which makes us feel old).

As for the tracks not mentioned (2, 6, and 7), I'll let you judge for yourselves. Personally, I found "Aurora" significantly inferior to "Mirror to the Sky," which was very harshly criticized by many three years ago.

Originally published on Profilprog.com

-- The First Review --

There is one rather frustrating downside to this compilation: the lack of release years of the source albums. That said, the listened surely would also appreciate some liner notes, too. At least the musicians with their intruments are listed trackwise, as well as composers, and the source albums albeit sadly without the years. Therefor especially for the timeline you are driving blind, so to speak, unless you do online search while listening. I won't be doing that now, so my review concentrates on the musical contents. And they are quite interesting!

In general, it seems that most progheads only appreciate/remember Curved Air's early classic era featuring both violinist Darryl Way and keys/guitar player Francis Monkman, ie. the first three albums '70 -' 72. True, the band's later phases, built around vocalist Sonja Kristina, are uneven and a bit messy, but all the more positively this 2-disc set can surprise you. I guess nearly all material here dates from this Millennium, perhaps with some 90's thrown in. Four tracks come from the 2014 Curved Air album North Star which I have given a warm review. The next biggest representation of Curved Air itself is for Reborn (2008). The point of this set, however, is to represent also solo projects of Kristina, Way, Monkman and the numerous musicians who have contributed to the band's later eras. Just too bad there are no liner notes, because this is exactly such release where they would be very useful and valuable.

The songs from Reborn actually sound pretty good in their modern production. 'Screw' was a new version of the song from the CA debut Air Conditioning. One track is (prev. unreleased) from the Reborn sessions and another is a Japanese only bonus track. Kristina, Way and the original CA drummer Florian Pilkington-Miksa were accompanied by guitarist Andy Christie.

Of solo projects of Darryl Way is here represented Children Of The Cosmos and its fine title track. Monkman's solo harpsichord recording of H�ndel's Suite No. 7 (Ouverture) is among the numerous previously unreleased tracks, like also the Way & Kristina collaboration 'Ichiban Girl'.

Bassist Mike Wedgwood sings his own laid-back, blues-flavoured song 'Coming Out'. 'Towards Tomorrow' is a fusiony instrumental from Curved Space which was practically a jam-based brainchild of Monkman and Pilkington-Miksa. 'Shame' is a bluesy vocal track from guitarist Kirby Gregory's solo album. Drummer Stewart Copeland (of The Police fame, and Sonja's husband) offers his previously unreleased piece performed with a symphony orchestra.

CD 2 contains several more previously unreleased tracks, and quite nice ones, such as violinist Paul Sax's (and keyboardist Robert Norton's) instrumental 'By the Fire'. 'Moon Beams' is an ethereal, beautiful collaboration of Kristina and Norton, and 'One Step Forward' an elegant instrumental for three bass guitars, by Chris Harris. 'Labyrinth' is a 13-minute instrumental composed by Norton, Pilkington-Miksa and Gregory. Kit Morgan plays all instruments on his Eclectica Historica breezy instrumental piece 'The Gift', and so does drummer Andy Tween on his 'Paraselenae'. The set is closed by Curved Air's lovely Yes tribute 'Soon' where Kristina has rather Jon Anderson -like vocals.

All in all, this is a very versatile and pleasant set, and a solid proof of the high level of musical talent that has graced Curved Air's later periods. With proper information and liner notes my 3,5 stars would definitely have been rounded up.