18: LALU - Oniric Metal (2005)

Introduction by Raimond Fischbach

Despite just enjoying its 10th anniversary, somehow Oniric Metal isn't ageing and still sounds fresh. Although it hasn't been a commercial success, I loved this album when it came out and I still do. It has become a sort of companion and I still listen to it on a regular basis. There are so many unusual keyboard sounds on this melodic metal effort, that I never get tired exploring them all anew. The album provides a great variety, so one never feels bored at any second.

Vivien Lalu has done magic in writing this gem and playing the keyboards, and the line-up on the album is quite impressive. Martin LeMar on vocals, Joop Wolters on guitar, Russell Bergquist on bass and Ryan Van Poederooyen on drums, provided outstanding performances. The 16-minute track, Potboy (The Final Fantasy), is a bit cheesy though, as it's about a pot smoker riding his space ship. But it's quite fun and a perfect album closer.


From  the DPRP review archives, read Andy Read's original review of Oniric Metal in 2005.
Read it here 

Enjoy all 16-plus minutes of Potboy from this Youtube page
Watch the video here

Artist page where you can listen to and buy the album: 
Lalu Bandcamp Page

17: TWELFTH NIGHT - Live at the Target (1981)

Introduction by Jerry van Kooten

With time's passing, one's taste tends to shift, so sometimes it's nice to see how well one's opinion of some albums has held up. Looking through the list of reviews on DPRP I ran into Live at the Target. The first official CD re-issue was reviewed by our former team member Nigel Camilleri and rated 9/10.

Anyone who knows me because of my musical taste, knows that Twelfth Night have been one of my favourite bands for a few decades now. My taste has made a journey that has crossed the blues and now has reached mostly instrumental post-rock and post-metal. Interesting then to see that this album, an old favourite of mine, has never ceased to impress me or make me feel good, feel warm, feel lost, just feel. At the end of the day, isn't that the most important thing music can do?

I loved and still love the slow build-up of tense atmospheres, the sudden blasts of power, and the creation of well-crafted pieces without becoming overly complex. Music played from the heart, and everything very melodic, just the way I like it. It still touches me and moves me, as it did when I first heard it. I guess that's the definition of an all-time favourite. Whichever direction my musical taste has headed, this album has always been travelling along.



From  the DPRP review archives, read Nigel's original review of Live At The Target in 2005.
Read it here 

A very rare recording of vocalist Electra McLeod, singing Sequences with Twelfth Night at The Target on 21 November 1980.
Listen here

16: GENESIS - Calling All Stations (1997)

Introduction by Rich Kamerman
(A DPRP reader and music blogger from New York City)

Some albums have trouble surviving the weight of expectations, and Genesis’ Calling All Stations is a perfect example. Following-up several multi-platinum smashes was never going to be easy, and when they returned after a six-year absence with a new, mostly unknown lead singer, they were fighting an uphill battle. Open-minded fans were rewarded with a fantastic record that is dark, dense, melodic and full of memorable songs. They range from minor hit single Congo, to ballads like Shipwrecked and Not About Us, and on to extended progressive pieces like Alien Afternoon and (my favorite) The Dividing Line. 

It wasn’t successful enough for Banks & Rutherford to carry on (or even tour the US), but it’s an under-valued gem in their catalog and it introduced the prog world to the raw, powerful vocals of Ray Wilson. Had this album been released by Arena, Pendragon, IQ, Pallas or another well-respected modern prog band, the reception might have been significantly different.

From the 1998 archives, read Ed Sander's original review and see what score he gave the album:
Read it here  

Watch Genesis play The Dividing Line live in Poland in 1998.
Watch the video here

15: CANNATA - Mysterium Magnum (2006)

Introduction by Andy Read

"This album is one of the true hidden gems in the DPRP archives. I know that, because in over 10 years of writing for DPRP, this review has generated the most positive feedback. Indeed, two people I now like to call friends, first came into contact with me thanks to this album.

American-based singer/song-writer and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Cannata is one of the few artists sitting in the small niche described as 'Progressive AOR'. Mysterium Magnum draws together the best elements of prog rock, AOR and melodic hard rock, with Jeff's sublime songwriting and vocals. Almost a decade later, this is still a regular feature on my playlist.

Despite my glowing review, both this and Jeff's equally impressive Tamorok album (released under his Arc Angel moniker) have remained criminally under-discovered. Jeff now concentrates on making music for movies and commercials. This is a gentle reminder not to miss out."

 

From the 2006 archives, read Andy's original review and see what score he gave the album:
Read it here  

Watch the official Cannata video for the track Promise You Heaven.
Watch the video here

Visit the Cannata CDBaby Store to grab your copy (and pick up Arc Angel's Tamorok somewhere too!)
Buy it here

14: OPETH - Blackwater Park (2005)

Introduction by Ben Cameron a DPRP reader and musician from London (via Australia)

"I first heard of Opeth through a friend at school. I was a typical angst-riddled teenager, listening to bands like Metallica and Pantera. I picked up Blackwater Park purely because I had heard The Drapery Falls and loved the guitar melody. My first impressions were of amazement. A band that was heavier than anything I’d listen to, could at the same time be so sweet and heartfelt. This album opened my eyes to what music can be without genre barriers, which has in turn forever changed the way I write music.

I also owe this album for introducing me to the brilliant Steven Wilson, whose music has been an obsession of mine ever since... but that’s a story for another time.

Fast forward eight years and I was backpacking through Europe and got the chance to see Opeth at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Nothing could have prepared me for that night. The best venue in the world, the last-minute seat upgrade to a grand tier box, but most of all, a spectacular, complete performance of the album that made me re-think music. Pure bliss."

From the 2005 archives, read the original review by the DPRP's Gatot Widayanto, and see what score he gave the album:
Read it here  

Watch Opeth play the title track live at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Watch the video here

The album is currently available on Grooveshark.
Listen to it here

13: NETHERWORLD - Netherworld (In The Following Half-Light) (1981/2003)

Introduction by Jerry van Kooten

It was around 1983 when I learnt about this album, and it has been an all-time favourite ever since. Twenty years later I was happy to be instrumental in getting it reissued on CD and I am glad that our objective team member Mark Hughes agreed with me on the full 10/10 score in our duo review. Another twelve years later, how are things now?

Prog in the USA around that time was rare, but the opening track, recorded in 1981 would have fitted right into the second wave of prog in Britain. Side A's closing song is weirdly modern and haunting, and between those are two true progressive songs. Side B still has two of the most beautiful, more classic prog songs I know. Then there's even the scary Sargasso and brilliant bonus track in Cumulo Nimbus. A great combination of different sub-styles of the prog genre on a single album and all done to a very high level emotional, not too technical, with amazing arrangements. Yup, this is still one of my favourite albums.


From  the DPRP review archives, read the original duo review of Netherworld.
Read it here 

Find out more from the Netherworld website here

12: YES - Going For The One (1977)

Introduction by Andrew Halley

Going for the One was the first album I ever bought. It was the summer of 1977 and I was seventeen years old. Punk was all over the charts and the music press, but this album went to No.1 in the UK album charts. I remember thinking that must have pi**ed off all the "trendies"! 

By October I attended my first ever stadium concert: Yes at Wembley. £4.25 for the ticket and the band played the whole album live. 

From the opener Parallels, through the animated ballet dancer backdrop of Turn of the Century, to the Roundabout encore, I can still hear it now. 

Back to to the LP, and that lovely sunset, gatefold image of Lake Geneva (Lac Léman), with the band's individual photos, even changed the way that I dressed. Awaken I was.


From DPRP's Yes review special in 2014, read our trio review including the viewpoint of guest reviewer Theo Travis (Steven Wilson Band/Soft Machine Legacy).

Read it here 

Watch this official video of Yes' Wonderous Stories.
Watch the video here