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Various Artists — Periferic 2000-Sympho-Rock from Hungary
(Periferic BGCD 053, 2000, CD)

by Mike Ezzo, Published 2000-10-01

Periferic 2000-Sympho-Rock from Hungary Cover art

Lots of music to cover on this compilation, so let’s get right to it. First comes Rumblin’ Orchestra’s instrumental workouts — rich in harmony and recalling Wakeman’s early work with orchestra. Solaris is represented by a song from Nostradamus; bombastic and heavy, Tull influenced, with excellent bass, drums and production quality. Dobos Gyula offer(s) an instrumental number with a guitar-centered arrangement in a slightly Oldfield character. Laren d’Or we reviewed in the past: he uses keyboards and programmed instruments to simulate a big ensemble, but well done and avoiding clichés and mimicry. Next we start to get more original, with a simple, but effective and emotionally performed song by Cziglan Istvan, with a female vocal. A pop song by You and I follows, in a Rabin-era Yes mode; female singer, but this time lyrics are in English. The best entry up to here was Carpathia Project, who turn the volume down and the spirit up, for some exciting collaborative interplay between violin, flute, drums, and guitar. Torok Adam was nearly folky, with a clear nod to Jethro Tull’s first album. Vocals are Hungarian and the high point was a subtle flavor almost non-existent in the previous eight songs. Kada I raved about once before — eclectic, daring, in a spotlessly brilliant live performance! Townscream follow this, with a very impressive number that goes through numerous mood changes. No nonsense prog trio with an awesome pianist in a classical rock direction — the finest in their field. Next up, Force Majure came across to me as a blend of Jarre and Vangelis, while Kollar Attila (flautist from Solaris) gives us a classicized instrumental progressive piece from his recent solo CD. Finishing out is the band whom most people (including Periferic I think) see as the best Hungarian group going right now: After Crying. Three live tracks appear in their ELP-meets-Crimson style. All the music on this compilation is available on the CDs issued of each respective band.

Filed under: New releases, Issue 20, 2000 releases

Related artist(s): Laren d'Or, After Crying, Rumblin' Orchestra, Various Artists

 

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