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The main problem I have with The Flower Kings is the amount
of material they release. I can't remember how many 2CD sets
they have produced and even single albums are stuffed to the
max. This does mean that quality control can sometimes go
out of the window and the wealth of material can make getting
through an album very labour intensive. But no such problem
with this latest album. It's a single CD and yes it is stuffed
to the max, but the material is top notch. The band sound
on top form, maybe as a consequence of the excellent drummer
Zoltan Csorsz coming back to the fold for these recording
sessions. Also worth mentioning that keyboardist Tomas Bodin
really shines too on this, utilising a whole host of analogue
keyboards.
The opening "One More Time" is a very strong piece to
start off the album with. A gorgeous intro theme played by
Bodin is very pleasing and the whole song is melodically very
strong. Some very nice Holdsworth style guitar playing by
Roine Stolt throughout this track too. The vocal interplay
between Stolt and Hasse Froberg has never worked better than
on this track and throughout the album.
The shortest song on the album, "Trading My Soul" is one
of the best Flower King songs ever. Lyrically and melodically
this is a winner. The longest track "Love Is The Only Answer"
is the one track I am still coming to terms with. At over
24 minutes it does take a bit of digesting. But everything
else gels wonderfully. A particular favourite is the Yes-like
"Life In Motion", with Stolt even doing some nice Steve Howe
type slide guitar.
Special mention about the artwork by the always excellent
Ed Unitsky. The limited edition digipak packaging is very
nice and comes with a bonus disk which includes a few additional
tracks which are pretty good and some in the studio videos.
For me, this might be the best Flower Kings album yet
or at least the best since 2002's "Unfold The Future". This
has been a very good year for the band. Not only this excellent
studio album, but a few months back they released the compilation
album "Road Back Home" which contains some nicely remastered
and re-worked material covering their entire back catalogue.
With these releases The Flower Kings have surely secured their
position as one of the very best progressive rock outfits
around.
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