After 'King For A Day' in 2015 (see here) and 'The Suffering Joy' in 2017 (see here ), the Norwegians of 'Magic Pie' released a new album 'Fragments of the 5th Element' with always this mix of influences from 40 years of progressive rock and in every composition a lot of names of famous bands come to mind as in a kind of “inventaire à la Prévert” and we can mention in bulk 'Genesis', 'Kansas', 'Beatles', 'Emerson Lake & Palmer', 'Pink-Floyd', 'Marillion' or 'Deep Purple'. First, the first four titles each have their own personality with 'The Man Who Had It All' which, after an energetic introduction, takes us into a style between pop and rock of the 70s with beautiful vocal arrangements. 'P & C' which follows is also tagged 70s with a catchy chorus that serves as a binding for different parts whether they are pop, psychedelic, rock or jazzy and 'Table for Two' moves away from the progressive and has a more traditional approach with a new catchy melody and finally,' Touched by an Angel 'is a beautiful ballad where the guitar of' Kim Stendberg 'accompanies beautifully the slow tempo and offers us a sumptuous solo at the end of the title in the manner of the best bluesman. And then, as in the last opus, the master piece is without context the last title, 'The Hedonist', which as the name suggests, offers us 23 minutes of pleasure by embarking on a patchwork of moments, all as subtle as any other, this kind of progressive composition that requires many listenings to tame it. In summary, the Norwegians of 'Magic Pie' are releasing a new album in the great tradition of progressive rock with always the same quality and the same diverse influences, and therefore, 'Fragments of the 5th Element' is intended for any amateur of progressive music who enjoy not only long developments but also vary styles... | |
