Various - Mellotron Sampler 27

Year of Release: 2000
Label: Mellotron Magazine
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 69:46:00

Those of you who had the pleasure looking into a copy of Mellotron magazine know what a great job Andres Valle and his team are doing to promote progressive rock in Argentina. Every three months or so they release a lavish magazine filled to the rim with interviews and CD-reviews, all done in a fingerlicking layout. To top it all they include a superb CD-sampler (as far as I know, this deal is only for subscribers, yet I could be wrong!) sporting some of the best contemporary new progressive acts on the planet. This sampler, together with the contents of the magazine, should be an ideal introduction to those who want to step into the wonderful world of progressive rock. The latest issue of Mellotron not only includes great interviews and stories with Roger Hodgson, ELO, King Crimson, Tony Banks, Transatlantic, Ayreon, Gabriela, Arena, Nexus, Gryphon and Yoke Shire but also has this lengthy CD sampler with no fewer than twelve outstanding, mainly instrumental symphonic tracks. It's already the ninth sampler and certainly the best of the lot!

The atmosphere is already 100 % pure symphonic once the Greek band La Tulipe Noire kicks off offering a huge bombastic sound with clavinet and a wonderfully melodic guitar. The "pumping" bass is very reminiscent of the work of Yoke Shire who is represented here with a special radio edit of "Maiden Voyage". The violin is the main focus within the Carpathia Project which in a way reminds me of Zello. Almost classical in every sense of the word certainly has to be Rumblin' Orchestra, another great find from the Stereo KFT label in Hungary. A bit in the same field as Wim Mertens is the lush piano from Csaba Vedres. The nice thing about Mellotron and Andres Valle is that they try to include new and interesting South-American acts all the time. On this sampler you can hear three acts from Argentina. What a treat is it to hear the band Haiku, unknown to me before this sampler and a real gem. I absolutely adore the great cello playing here and certainly I have to get my hands on the full album from what I call the South-American After Crying! The band Big Time then comes close to the band Philharmonie what with emphasizing the acoustic guitar so much. Apparently this comes from their second album Troika so I certainly need some catching up here! The final band in the Argentinian trilogy is Proyecto C3. I don't know if the C3 stands for the famous Hammond organ, yet although the instrumental contains interesting hooks, I'm not too fond of the drumming, making it less interesting than what it could have been. The long awaited second album by XII Alfonso Odyssees is represented by "Eclipse", which is once again a song that comes very close to the best of Camel. Also from the point of view of sound, this one is crystal-clear, enabling us to hear every little detail in the recording. The unknown Chance project introduces Flower Kings guitarist Roine Stolt by means of "From There To Infinity", the longest track on this sampler. Then we make an interesting journey to Panama of all places. Here I'm surprised by the talent of the band Equinox which seems to combine cosmic elements and symphonic textures resulting in "Fall Into Imaginary World". The sampler closes with a track by our Mexican friends Cast's latest album Legacy. The polyphony of the vocals in the intro come close to Yes before piano, synths and church organ create a huge symphonic sound.

Once again this sampler contains a nice variety of current bands active in the wonderful domain of progressive rock. Even if you can't read Spanish then a subscription to this wonderful magazine is justified for the samplers and the artwork alone! Also, the more people subscribe to this superb progzine, the longer it can continue to exist, as it would realy be a big shame should Mellotron have to cease to exist one day. Go on, treat yourself or a friend to a year's subscription. Each issue costs $10 but you'd better send an e-mail to Andres to find out the total cost including post & packing. Or better still ask for a sample issue and tell your friends. Lots of friends!

Tracklisting:
Image I (La Tulipe Noire, Shattered Image, Musea) (4:00) / Maiden Voyage (Yoke Shire, Masque Of Shadows, Zygo) (4:39) / Carpathia(Carpathia Project, Carpathia Project, Pereferic) (5:35) / Overture Fantasy (Rumblin' Orchestra, The King's New Garment, Pereferic) (9:34) / The Tales Of A Dark Room Part VIII (Csaba Verdes, Mes?k Levelek, Schober KKT) (4:00) / Caminos De Otono (Haiku, Las Voces De Un Rio, Gobi) (3:10) / Three Balls In The Air (Big Time, Troika, Big Time) (2:29) / Escape A La Libertad (Proyecto C3, Proyecto C3, independent release) (5:28) / Eclipse (XII Alfonso, Odyssees, Musea) (7:19) / From Here To Infinity (Chance, Escape Horizon, Musea) (11:20) / Fall Into Imaginary World (Equinox, Spirits Of Freedom, Medallon Cosmico) (9:29) / Celestial Garden (Cast, Legacy, Cast / Musea) (4:03)

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Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin VA

Added: October 1st 2000
Reviewer: John

Hits: 3411
Language: english