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"Sunchild's frenetic quest for musical perfection continues unabated. With "Exotic Creatures and a Stolen Dream", he's well on the way to achieving it."
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4/5
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Having fled to Poland in the early hours of the war in Ukraine, taking his keyboards with him as he fled Kharkiv, Antony Kalugin got back to work with his Sunchild project, which had not been heard from for five years, releasing in quick succession an archive compilation ("Time and the Tide") and then this new album comprising two long suites supplemented by two short tracks and two edit versions of the same suites.
After an introduction on keyboards reminiscent of Alan Parsons Project's "I Robot", Antony Kalugin takes us on an extraordinary 26-minute journey through many different progressive worlds, with Genesis and Yes influences particularly prominent, as well as the pastoral progressivism inspired by Anthony Philips. Backed by a highly inspired rhythm section, this first epic multiplies themes throughout its seven sequenced parts, with a constant concern for melody that grabs the listener from the very first seconds and never lets go. Even if the male vocals occasionally prove a little limited, Maria Panasenko's convincing interventions, regularly assisted by Olha Rostovska, help to enhance the abundant instrumentation that accompanies them.
With 'Life Lines', Sunchild manages to find the right balance between the various instruments, which was not necessarily the case on previous productions. Enough space is left to the guitar, which graces us with melodic lines against a back of neo keyboards, with a few soothingly melancholy saxophone interventions. 'Northern Skies' continues in the same vein, but with a slightly more complex approach, featuring elaborate instrumentation, swaying rhythms and a few technical passages, among which a few flamboyant choruses and female vocals provide a welcome contradiction. More anecdotal, the last two tracks of the album come to a close like turning off the lights after a fantastic show that's succeeded in every way, giving a definite cinematic color to this conclusion.
Antony Kalugin's frenetic quest for musical perfection has returned to the limelight in spite of himself, thanks to extra-musical events. With "Exotic Creatures and a Stolen Dream", he comes very close. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
 01. Life Lines - 26:26
02. Northern Skies - 14:17
03. Timeless Motion Reprise - 1:24
04. Northern Lights - 3:08
05. Northern Skies (single Edition) - 4:51
06. Life Lines (single Edition) - 7:07
LINEUP:
Antony Kalugin: Chant / Claviers / Percussions
Alexandr Pavlov: Guitares / Invité
Dmytro Ignatov: Guitares / Invité
Ivan Goritski: Batterie / Invité
Konstantin Ionenko: Basse / Invité
Maria Panasenko: Chant / Invité
Max Velychko: Guitares / Invité
Olha Rostovska: Invité / Choeurs
Sergii Kovalov: Invité / Accordéon
Yan Vedaman: Invité / Saxophone
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(1) COMMENT(S)
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READERS
4/5 (1 view(s))
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STAFF:
4/5 (2 view(s))
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