1. Looking For a Platform (15:06)
2. So far (23:31)
3. Sheepish (12:55)
4. Ventura (14:38)
Year: 2008
Label: Abel Records
With a bit of luck Abel Ganz would be listed among such „brands” as
Marillion, IQ or Pendragon. Unfortunatelly their career hasn’t
progressed this way and today in Poland (and probably not only in
Poland) they’re almost unknown. It’s worth mentioning here that Alan
Reed, once a member of this Scottish group is today a frontman and lead
singer of Pallas and you’ll read some more about him later in this
review,
„Shooting Albatros” is an album recorded after more than a 14-year
break!! What’s this band like after long time of silence? It’s
absolutelly great! Their new album includes four tracks but they last
for more than 60 minutes altogether, they’re complex and multi-layered.
Long and instrumental pieces dominate much of the album, there are
some fine keyboard lines, some great acoustic guitar work and all this
embellished with soft sounds of electric guitar. The band underline
their roots, many a time they draw on Scottish folk and I must admit
that the overall effect is very interesting and folk-tinged pieces are
real highlights of the album. The greatest piece is an almost
twenty-three minute long composition entitled „So Far”. This is an
exquisite composition that encapsulates all the things that are the best
in Abel Ganz. This suite is a story of „American dream”, which at the
same time retells in a sentimental way the history of this country (of
course just the outlines). There are some fragments about discovery of
America and the Vietnam War. To my mind „So far” is one of the most
interesting progressive suites recorded over the last years. I must
stress that vocals recorded by Alan Reed add greatly to the overal
impression. His distinctive voice, delicate but at the same time very
strong, fits perfectly to instrumental sounds included on the album.
Masterpiece. The album is completed with „Looking For a Platform” and
„Sheepish” which are in a similar, softly sounding style, and „Ventura”
including loads of acoustic guitar work.
If you love early Marillion, IQ or Pallas you should definately look for
this album. It’s just perfect for you. Brilliant melodies, easy to
listen to compositions make that you will keep returning to this album.
9/10
Piotr Michalski
translation: Gosia Michalska
