Loading

Friday, May 30, 2025

Skullcap "Snakes of Albuquerque"

Country: USA
Genre(s): Instrumental Jazz-Rock, Fusion
Label: Cuneiform Records
Format: CD, digital,vinyl
Release date: May 30, 2025
Tracklist
1. Pine Trees Of Tennessee (5:35) 
2. Rt. 40 (3:13) 
3. Bear Out There (3:27) 
4. Journey To The Sunset (3:21) 
5. Snakes Of Albuquerque (4:27) 
6. Miles (1:06) 
7. Orange Sky (4:21) 
8. Just Passin' Thru (1:55) 
9. Desert Turtles (6:20) 
10. Ambrosia Burger (1:32) 

Total Time 35:17

Credits
Janel Leppin - cello, Minimoog
Anthony Pirog - electric guitar
Mike Kuhl - drums, percussion

All compositions by Skullcap.

Recorded at The Brink Analog and Digital Studios in Richmond, VA on December 27–28, 2023.
Engineering, mixing and mastering by Mike Reina.
Produced by Mike Reina.

Description/Reviews:
Snakes of Albuquerque is the debut recording from the rock and jazz, free improvising, classically informed, adventurously rhythmic, and memorably tuneful power cello trio Skullcap.
This is not a band that is easy to pigeonhole. The song titles offer a kind of road map through its unpredictable terrain. ‘Journey to the Sunset’, ‘Snakes of Albuquerque’: these suggest Gothy darkness, jumper cable skronk, and an internationalist mindset, all qualities apparent in Skullcap’s sound. But tying those attributes to a single genre? Not going to happen.
Snakes of Albuquerque is a record of instrumental rock that doesn't sound like anyone else. With this instrumentation, how could it? 

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Surunaamio "Surunaamio"

Country: Finland
Genre(s): Progressive Rock/Metal
Label: Isosisko Records
Format: digital
Release date: May 30, 2025
Tracklist
1. Musta
2. Epäinhimillinen
3. Äänetön kevät
4. Kuoleman kentät
5. Näkymätön voima
6. Erämaa
7. Yksinäinen tuli
8. Menneisyys

Credits
Kalle Koo (At The Hollow) - Vocals, guitars & bass
Matias Rokio - Drums

Music & lyrics by Kalle Koo
Recorded, mixed & mastered by Janne Saksa
Album cover by Tuomas Vuorensola


Description/Reviews:
While At the Hollow’s soundscape was serene and sensitive, tranquillity has transformed into rage, anger and power that comes from deep within. The album’s music combines the raw sensitivity and punk attitude of Apulanta’s Kiila with the heavy melodic nature of Dissection’s Reinkaos album. The drums hit hard, the riffs cut deep, and the vocals carry with strength. Despite the heavy surface, Surunaamio also carries a deep blue melancholy, not unlike Juha Tapio. The combination of Surunaamio doesn’t neatly fit into any single genre, but it contains influences from different directions and makes it something entirely its own. Light, shadows and every shade in between.
Media/Samples
Äänetön kevät
Näkymätön voima

Links:
Facebook (Kalle Koo)

Lorentzen "Leave Nobody Behind"

Country: Norway
Genre(s): Instrumental Progressive Rock, Classical
Label: Apollon Records Prog
Format: CD, digital, vinyl
Release date: May 30, 2025 (CD, digital), July 4, 2025 (vinyl)
Tracklist
1. Leave Nobody Behind (9:20) 
2. Autumn (1:03) 
3. Offering To Lares (7:40) 
4. Evening (0:49) 
5. Lament (1:34) 
6. Dimensions Of Hope (6:28) 
7. The Dark Hours Of My Being (1:00) 
8. Solitude (1:32) 
9. Leave Nobody Behind 2 (4:33) 
10. Symbols (0:52) 
11. Remembrance (1:12) 
12. Dimensions Of Hope (4:49) 
13. Autumnal Day (2:20) 

Total Time 43:12

Credits
Eivind Lorentzen (Gentle Knife)
    With
Atle Pakusch Gundersen (Wintherstormer, The Cut)
Trond Gjellum (Panzerpappa)
Jácome Guerrero Kiko (Superkabras)
Paulin Skoglund-Voss - cello
Markus Reuter (Stick Men)
Davide Rossi - violin
Charlotte Valstad Nilsen (Gentle Knife)
Brian Talgo - mellotron, recitations

The album was mostly recorded in Lydkjøkkenet by Øystein Vesaas and in Double Decker Studios by Arild Brøter
Mastering by Jacob Holm-Lupo
Cover design by Siv Gade Lien
Additional artwork by Susanne Hæstad.

The album is produced and mixed by Eivind Lorentzen and Øystein Vesaas.
Music composed by Lorentzen except Dimensions of Hope I-II composed by Lorentzen, Antonio de Honestis and John Sinks.

Description/Reviews:
A roster of great contributors come together in this project helmed by Norwegian musician and composer Eivind Lorentzen (ex-Gentle Knife, Oldenborre, K, Synsbedragerne etc). Together they create an album of evocative minimalist prog characterized by great performances interspersed with readings of Rilke. Firmly rooted in the prog, modern classical and nordic jazz realms, and nodding to Vasks, Reich, Fripp, Frahm, Bartsch and others. 
Repeating motives in asymmetric meters are contrasted and echoed with live strings, drums and acoustic and electric guitars.  A listener phrased it as “humanistic minimalism”. At first glance apparently nothing much goes on… but then it does… Hope remains a central dimension in the record, expressed in the album title Leave Nobody Behind and the eponymous pieces as well as in the pieces Dimensions of Hope I-II, and notwithstanding The Dark Hours of my Being (a Rilke poem recited on the record).

Media/Samples
Streams

Links:
Facebook

Tuesday, May 20, 2025

Holle Mangler "Tales From A Fairy World (Part 2)"

Country: Germany
Genre(s): Instrumental Atmospheric Progressive Rock, Electronica, Ambient
Format: digital
Release date: May 20, 2025
Tracklist
1. The Sorcerer (10:56) 
2. Staring Into The Eyes Of Death (11:19) 
3. Panic (4:36) 
4. Funeral For An Oath (11:00) 
5. Liberation (12:43) 
6. Along The Butterfly Meadow (5:55) 
7. Page 21 (6:30) 
8. Garden Of Rebirth (2:00) 
9. Gathering Of The Council Of Elders (13:10) 
10. Outro (1:27) 

Total Time 79:36

Credits
All tracks composed, arranged and produced by Holle Mangler
Cover Art by Steven Stahlberg

Description/Reviews:
Although it is the most varied and dynamic release so far, the style cannot be clearly assigned. However, it shows parallels to progressive rock, as well as to the familiar electronic sound.

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Links:
Web page (Free Download)

Friday, May 16, 2025

Phil Selvini & The Mind Warp "T.E.T.R.U.S."

Country: Italy
Genre(s): Progressive Rock
Label: Luminol Records 
Format: CD,vinyl,digital
Release date: May 16, 2025 (digital)
Tracklist
1. To Make Ends Meet (9:10) 
2. Reverie (Including ''Cloud Nine") (5:11) 
3. Riding In The Fog (8:17) 
4. The Last 48 Hours (7:46) 
5. The Mind Warp (26:18) 

Total Time 56:42

Credits
Phil Selvini: guitar, vocals, mellotron, effects
Leonardo Spampinato: guitar
Davide Sebartoli: keyboards
Francesco Scordo: bass
Leonardo Puglisi: drums

Description/Reviews:
Composer, author, singer, guitarist, dreamer Phil Selvini defines his artistic production as classically '70s progressive rock, with melancholic solutions and extensive use of organs, synths and mellotron, complicated structures and long-lasting songs. Influenced by King Crimson, Genesis, Yes, Pink Floyd, Radiohead, with the Mind Warp Phil Selvini has achieved the goal of being able to lead a collective capable of reproducing and rearranging his songs. This reality is represented as an entity, a container of emotions, the fusion and opposition of ideas, order and disorder, the most stormy chaos and the most solemn quiet, the mind alien to the body. 
Phil introduces the five tracks of T.E.T.R.U.S. as follows: "In To Make Ends Meet alienation and mass control, consumerism and empty conformism are the main themes. The rhythm is nervous, the atmosphere at times disturbing and dreamy at the same time, they evoke images of empty people in search of a leader, like sheep in need of a shepherd. Whoever dares to rebel against the rules is considered a madman by a conservative, greedy society populated by schizophrenic men. The introspective and melancholic Riding In The Fog recalls, from time to time, Pink Floyd with its ascending melodies and evocative passages here give shape to a sleepless and silent ghost that rides through the hills on a foggy night. The Last 48 Hours and the suite The Mind Warp are somehow connected, they tell the emotions that can be felt due to the loss of a loved one. Pain, mourning, delirium, threatening shadows and the inner feeling of cold that an empty house can transmit. But here the marble house can also be understood as a metaphor for the tomb, and the general atmosphere of these last two pieces is that of a touching and sincere elegy".
Media/Samples
Streams

Links:
Facebook

Marco Mattei "Age of Fragility"

Country: Italy
Genre(s): Progressive Rock
Label: M.P. & Records (World), 7d Media/Third Star Records (NA)
Format: CD,digital
Release date: May 16, 2025
Tracklist
1. Just Tired (7:52) 
2. You Don’t Deserve It (3:39) 
3. Human Again (3:42) 
4. Wrong (3:29) 
5. Insomnia (5:25) 
6. A Trick Of The Mind (4:49) 
7. Watermark In My Heart (3:04) 
8. So Fragile (4:22) 
9. End Of The Line (6:01) 
10. Just Tired (Extended Version) (11:09) 

Total Time 53:32

Credits
Marco Mattei: Electric Guitars, Guitar Loops, Bouzouki, Acoustic Guitars, Celesta, Keyboards, Percussion, and Programming, Lead Vocals (2)
Duilio Galioto (PFM): Piano, Wurlitzer, Hammond B3, Mellotron, Lowrey Organ, Rhodes Mk1, Vox Continental, Farfisa Compact Deluxe, Memory Moog
Jerry Marotta (Peter Gabriel, Paul McCartney): Drums, Percussion
Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson): Electric Bass, Upright Bass
Dave Bond: Lead Vocals (1, 10), Backing Vocals (2)
Malena Ramonet: Lead and Backing Vocals (3)
Tino Boley: Lead Vocals (4)
Jennifer Maidman: Voice (5)
Trey Gunn (King Crimson): Warr Guitar (5)
Jeff Kightly: Lead and Backing Vocals (6)
Peter Voronov: Violin (6)
Joe Edelmann: Lead and Backing Vocals (7)
María Betania Hernández: Cello, Viola and Violin (7, 8)
Wrongonyou: Lead and Back Vocals (9)
Michele Boni: Cavaquinho (9)
Katrin Romanova: Harp (9)

Artwork by Bernhard Wösteinrich, elaborated for the Italian version by OndemediE
Music and lyrics by Marco Mattei, except "So fragile" (music by Marco Mattei and Duilio Galioto, lyrics by Marco Mattei)
Recorded in June 2024 at Dreamland Studios in Woodstock, NY
Mixed, mastered and produced by Marco Mattei

Description/Reviews:
An album that introduces a peculiar fusion of ethno-worldbeat, progressive rock and art rock.
"Age of Fragility" is a concept album that creates the most suitable sound environment to represent particular moods of modern life, telling stories of isolation, indifference, emotional dependence, fragile relationships, self-sabotage and depression. Through its poignant lyrics, the album paints a vivid portrait of the fragility and complexity of the human experience.
The album was , where an incredible ensemble of musicians gave life to the compositions of Marco Mattei, who is also the producer of the album.  The result is a deeply emotional and engaging sonic journey, with songs that strike deep chords, offering listeners a rewarding experience with every listen. 

Media/Samples
Just Tired
Bandcamp

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Proggnosis

Joviac "Autofiction Pt. 1 - Shards"

Country: Finland
Genre(s): Progressive Rock/Metal
Label: Inverse Records
Format: CD, digital
Release date: May 16, 2025
Tracklist
1. Level 1 
2. Haven 
3. B.O.M.B. 
4. Burn 
5. Canvas 
6. Shine 
7. Level 7 
8. Open Eyes And Mind 
9. Once 

Credits
Viljami Jupiter Wenttola - vocals, guitar
Johannes Leipälä - guitar 
Tuomas Honkkila - keys
Antti Varjanne - bass
   With
Rudy Fabritius - drums

Composed and written by Viljami Jupiter Wenttola
Arranged by Joviac
Album produced and mixed by Viljami Jupiter Wenttola
Drum engineering and mix by Rudy Fabritius
Mastered by Teemu Liekkala
Cover art by Tuomas Välimaa

Media/Samples
Streams
B.O.M.B.
Shine 
Burn

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Proggnosis

Sunday, May 11, 2025

Zolar Czack "Who?"

Country: Ukraine
Genre(s): Instrumental Jazz-Rock, Fusion
Format: digital
Release date: May 11, 2025
Tracklist
1. Badaboom (1:15) 
2. Falling Moon (4:42) 
3. Zin (4:50) 
4. Qarakorshaq (4:29) 
5. Hyakki Yagyō (3:28) 
6. Paradox Of Place (4:33) 
7. Abura-sumashi (4:00) 
8. Time (4:13) 
9. Portal (5:04) 
10. Eat The Frog (6:00) 

Total Time 42:34

Credits
Composed and recorded by Dennis Fursov (Quiet Observer)

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Links:
Facebook

Saturday, May 10, 2025

Zio Crocifisso "Campana di Legno + Trappola per Topi"

Country: Italy
Genre(s): Instrumental Avant Prog 
Label: AMS
Format: CD, digital
Release date: May 10, 2025
Tracklist
1. L'acconto
2. Arenicola 
3. Speziale
4. Metaxu
5. Il Tramonto dell'Occidente si Avvicina
6. Lievito Madre (PT. I-V)
7. Buone Parole
8. E Mele Fradicie
9. Margherita Legge Umberto G.
10. La Rivolta dei Servi
11. La Malabestia di Calafato
12. Vince
13. Il Cuore si Stanca anche Lui
14. La Malora

Credits
Paolo "SKE" Botta (Yūgen, SKE, Not a Good Sign) - Keyboards
Dario Magri (Yokoano, Sho) - Drums
Fabio Malizia (Orbe) - Bass
Matteo Serenelli (The Appetizers) - Guitars
   With
Thea Ellingsen Grant (Juno) - Vocals
Andrea "Mitzi" Dal Santo (Christadoro) - Vocals
Simen Ådnøy Ellingsen (Shamblemaths) - Saxophones
Jacopo Costa (Yūgen, Loomings, Oiapok) - Vibraphone
Margherita Botta - Vocals
Elia Leon Mariani (Yūgen, SKE) - Violin
La Miniera - Choir

Recorded by Davide Vezzoli at Alari Park Studios,
Matteo Serenelli at Albero Musicale
and Paolo "SKE" Botta at South Central Ceppine Studios
Mixed by Matteo Serenelli at Albero Musicale
© Mastered by Fabio Intraina at Trai Studios
Mastered by Matteo Serenelli at Albero Musicale
Executive production: Matthias Scheller / AMS Records

Illustrations by bicindolor.com
Graphics by Paolo “SKE” Botta

Description/Reviews:
Zio Crocifisso is an Italian instrumental avant-prog band. The character we portray (taken from Verga's novel "I Malavoglia") represents the expression "there's none so deaf as those who will not hear".
We are inspired by bands such as King Crimson, Poil, Melvins, Tool, Zu and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum.
This album is the result of the merging of three different approaches to music. Rather than finding a common ground, we tried to merge our ideas to find different and hopefully interesting solutions. Hope you enjoy what we did.
This material is released on CD by AMS Records, and includes all music from 2024's Campana di Legno EP + new unreleased material named "Trappola per Topi" for a total lenght of + 50:16 +

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

Friday, May 9, 2025

Pymlico "Core"

Country: Norway
Genre(s): Instrumental Progressive Rock
Label: Apollon Records
Format: CD, digital, vinyl
Release date: May 9, 2025
Tracklist
1. Welcome Back (5:55) 
2. Ellipsis (6:06) 
3. Captain Teebs (5:28) 
4. Fair Play (6:05) 
5. Don't Do That (6:27) 
6. Point Nemo (5:38) 
7. 221B (8:03) 
8. Done And Dusted (4:55) 

Total Time 48:37

Credits
Øyvind Brøter - keyboards
Stephan Hvinden - guitars
Andreas Sjo Engen - guitars
Are Nerland - bass guitar
Robin Havem Løvøy - saxophones
Arild Brøter - drums / keyboards
Oda Rydning - percussion

Description/Reviews:
This time, the band chose to strip away the extra layers and focus on the core – the seven members. The goal was to maximize the potential of this group, and the result is an album that is rawer and fiercer than anything they’ve done before – yet still filled with all the qualities Pymlico has become known for: melodic, groovy tunes and powerful solos, all wrapped in a modern production.
Songwriting and arrangements have been a more collective effort than ever before, with each song helping to shape the overall direction of the album. The sound is more organic and less polished, and the album has been painted with a wider and more dynamic brushstroke than previous releases.

Media/Samples
Don't Do That

Links:
Web page
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

Raccomandata con Ricevuta di Ritorno "In Fuga"

Country: Italy
Genre(s): Progressive Rock, Hard Rock
Label: AMS
Format: CD, vinyl, digital
Release date: May 9, 2025
Tracklist
1. Incubo
2. Mary Reilly
3. Sognando
4. Nubiano
5. Ancora l’ombra
6. Sandrina

Credits
Luciano Regoli (DGM) - vocals
Nanni Civitenga - bass
Walter Martino - drums
and more

Description/Reviews:
The songs on In Fuga are often reminiscent of the more prog and epic sides of Uriah Heep and Deep Purple, adorned with wind instruments (flute and sax) and indelibly marked by Luciano Regoli's still expressive incredible voice.

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Links:
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

Friday, May 2, 2025

Roland Bühlmann "GAPVIS"

Country: Switzerland
Genre(s): Instrumental Progressive Rock, Fusion
Formatdigital
Release date: May 2, 2025
Tracklist
1. Genuine (5:03) 
2. Autistic (10:53) 
3. Perception (6:55) 
4. Views (10:26) 
5. Inside (7:13) 
6. Secrets (9:45) 

Total Time 50:15

Credits
Roland Bühlmann: electric, nylon and bass guitars, aeon sustainer, korg MS-20, logic software synthesizer, grasses (2), kalimba (3, 6), and various objects as percussion.

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Links:
Web page

Moonsoon "East of Asteroid"

Country: Norway
Genre(s): Progressive Rock
Label: Apollon Records
Format: CD,digital,vinyl
Release date: May 2, 2025
Tracklist
1. Virtual Avenue (4:08) 
2. Rays Of Cosmic Embers (Part I) (2:49) 
3. Rays Of Cosmic Embers (Part II) (3:25) 
4. MP3 Crack Our Codes (Prologue) (1:26) 
5. Crack Our Codes (4:45) 
6. The Nasty Man (Prologue) (3:38) 
7. The Nasty Man (4:06) 
8. The Nasty Man (Epic-logue) (2:02) 
9. Ones And Zeroes (5:01) 
10. East Of Asteroid (Part I) (2:40) 
11. East Of Asteroid (Part II) (5:17) 

Total Time 39:17

Credits
Helge Nyheim - drums, vocals, composition
Daniel Hauge - composition, lyrics, mixing, mastering
    With
Ian Ritchie - saxophone
Kjetil Møster - saxophone
Bjarte Aasmul - guitar
Eric Campbell, Egil Hauge, Helge Haugland, Inge Rypdal, Kai Taule, Marie Moe, Bastian Veland, Ivar Kolve, and Sharon Gaynor.

Description/Reviews:
Moonsoon is a progressive rock odyssey that blends symphonic grandeur with dystopian themes and futuristic soundscapes. The album invites listeners on an immersive journey through vast, mysterious realms of sound, balancing introspective beauty with powerful, cinematic arrangements.

Media/Samples
Bandcamp

Links:
Web page
Facebook

Firmament "A New World If You Can Take It"

Country: USA
Genre(s): Progressive Alternative Metal
Format: digital 
Release date: May 2, 2025
Tracklist
  1. Liquid Lush
  2. Angels in Vermilion
  3. Conduit
  4. Lunar Caustic
  5. Deadringer
  6. Decomposure
  7. High as in Low
  8. A New World If You Can Take It: Autocult
  9. Meltwater Pulse
  10. After Me, The Flood
  11. A Prohibition on Dreaming
  12. Beneddictional
  13. Eclipse
  14. Cherub
  15. Antimony
  16. A Silence Made for Two
  17. ??ζΩ?

Credits
Eric Carbenia – Vocals
Brandon Carbenia – Guitars, Production
   With
Alex Hunter (Present) – Vocals (12)

Kris Crummett – Mastering (1)
Jens Bogren – Mastering (2-17)

Description/Reviews:
A New World If You Can Take It blends modern metalcore, post-hardcore, and progressive rock with philosophical and spiritual themes. Lyrically, it draws from real-life mystical encounters, apocalyptic worldviews, and personal reckonings. From the crushing intensity of “After Me, The Flood” to the cryptographic experimentation of “Cherub,” the album is rich with symbolism, sonic depth, and intention. With tracks engineered and recorded over an 18-month period, the album incorporates ciphers, backmasking, and musical cryptograms, making it as much a cerebral experience as an emotional one. The album’s thematic backbone explores transformation through “Time and Alchemy,” set against the ghostly backdrop of the Rust Belt and surreal encounters with underground spiritual communities.
Media/Samples
A Silence Made For Two
Beneddicitonal

Links:
Facebook
Progarchives
Proggnosis

Love Unfold The Sun "Explode Yourself"

Country: USA
Genre(s): Instrumental Fusion, Hard Rock, Prog Folk
Label: Norumba Records - NUR2501
Format: CD,digital
Release date: May 2, 2025
Tracklist
1. The Bite That Feeds (6:27) 
2. Delirium (9:02) 
3. Explode Yourself, Then Convulse (7:08) 
4. Nightpath Prelude (2:07) 
5. Nightpath (6:33) 
6. Rising (8:21) 
7. Zapatos The Cat (6:59) 
8. Taksim, Makam Taos (Group Version) (7:09) 
9. Steppe Up (6:49) 
10. Saba (11:45) 
11. Taksim, Makam Taos (Group Version), Alternate Take (7:05) - Digital Bonus Track

Total Time 79:25

Credits
Mustafa Stefan Dill - guitars, oud
Dan Pearlman - cornet
Ross Hamlin – bass
Dave Wayne – drums

Recorded December 10-12, Frogville Studios, Santa Fe, NM
Recording and Mixing Engineer: Jason Reed
Mastering: Carl Saff, Saff Mastering
Photography: Lisa Jo Goldman
Cover art: Sasha Pyle, levl9design

Description/Reviews:
Searing, atmospheric and hypnotic, Love Unfold The Sun deftly summons free jazz, Middle Eastern and hard rock elements as the canvas for sparkling telepathic interplay and muscular grooves. 
“Explode Yourself” is a raucous, joyous celebration of exploding yourself with and for the love of life. "Explode Yourself" is the group's first studio release, offering new tracks as well as a more detailed, concise treatment of previous live material, while still maintaining their trademark spontaneity and sensitivity. 
The vibe is set right away with The Bite That Feeds, which encapsulates much of what Love Unfold The Sun does - hard rock, Middle Eastern elements, group interplay, dynamic shifts – all in one concise punch, taking no quarter right out of the gate and going from there. 
The album moves straight into Delirium, a hard blues-y feel with a Middle Eastern overlay and a bit of Sabbath–esque menace in the turnaround. A few tunes later we encounter the 2010 composition Rising, inspired by and dedicated to the many thousands creating the winds of change at the time known as the Arab Spring. 
The final track on Explode Yourself is Saba, a loose piece around the Saba Zamzam maqam. A slow and sexy, funky groove with a wide range of dynamics and spaces, the piece is often Love Unfold The Sun’s encore piece – and thus a natural way to close the journey of this veteran band’s long awaited debut studio album. 
Media/Samples
Saba (live)
Nightpath (live)

Links:
Web page
Facebook