The return of a legend when it comes to psychedelic music, and with guitarist, backing vocalist and main man Andy Glass still at the helm, the only original member, it is, somewhat surprisingly, a stunning album. The new sextet includes females as vocalist Emma Brown and fiddle player Jenny Newman illustrate, plus a male quartet on the guitars, keys and drums. The album itself consists of 5 tracks, so you're getting the necessary short and long prog-rock classic approach to things on what is also a type of concept album, to boot (plus there are 3 bonus tracks that we'll come to later). The sound is very similar to their ye olde album “Silent Dance” only sounding remarkably fresh, original and surprisingly addictive for what is a hippy-esque example of prog-rock.

The first track, “Eyes Of Fire”, eases you in gently with a low-key melodic mood that's as emotive as it is wistful, all manner of cosmic bliss flowing and floating its way through layers of heavenly female vocals, drifting guitar refrains and gently strummed acoustic, all creating a seriously full-sounding pastoral mood which warms the cockles of your heart, with even a Pink Floyd-esque electric guitar break around the 6 minute mark, taking you towards the end on ebbing waves of guitars and keys, now joined by Mason-esque drumming and the whole thing is pure “WYWH-era” Floyd. The 8 minute “Keepers of The Truth” is seriously decent seventies prog, like a cross between Renaissance, Wolf, Genesis and Greenslade, with organ, violin, keys, guitars and rhythm section backing, interweaving with and soloing over the rich sounding female vocals, again a strong burst of electric guitar providing the bite when the solo sizzles and burns, but there are so many textures, as the rhythms maintain a mid-paced strength and the whole thing is a mix of smouldering flame and energising bite. The synths come to the fore as the whole thing builds to a cresecendo, then winds down to end as it began, only with that female vocal joined by....well..... practically everything else. “Warriors” is a 17 and a half minute prog-rock epic by any other name, and if you can imagine a cross between Yes, Renaissance and Brand X with more atmosphere, less pomp, definitely better crafted and plenty of dynamics from searing guitar breaks to vocal-led passages of great reflection, then this numbers alongside the great prog-rock epics of that era and beyond. The next two tracks, at around 11 minutes each, follow a similar path, working a treat and essential listening for anyone into seventies prog, and even modern-era prog, come to that. Through playing , production, composing, singing and arrangements, they don't put a foot wrong from start to finish. So, not only do you get what is arguably one of the finest albums to come out of prog-rock Britain in the last 20 years, but you also get three bonus tracks from the original “Silent dance” album, remixed by Porcupine Tree's Steven Wilson, the icing on what is already a seriously tasty cake.

Andy Garibaldi (Dead Earnest 12-13)