CARPTREE

Carptree are Swedish. Carptree play Prog. Carptree are alleged to sound like Fish-era Marillion and Peter Gabriel-era Genesis. Carptree also benefit from having 'songs', charisma, intrigue, and influences beyond the obvious. Sure, the first thing you may think is Marillion/Genesis but, delve deep, and you'll hear fellow Scandinavians Green Carnation or the work of Steve Wilson, and a whole raft of electronics firing arpeggios all over the place. I shouldn't actually like this too much, such is the over-reliance on prog trappings (twisty-turny departures, widdly-diddly ego-enhancers, nonsense lyrics et al), but something in the dirty production betrays its grand ambition. At the heart of it all is something unpolished and a little of that chaos that turns sterile pomp into wonderful 'live'-sounding tales. Sometimes the electronics get a little too close to drowning things out, but it's all over in a matter of minutes before the finger is tempted to reach for the 'next' button. Still, despite my praise, it's hard to see who the benefactors of all this are. Hardened prog fans may be turned off by the not-exactly-state-of-the-art production values. Rock fans are unlikely to be drawn in by the whimsical nature of some of the vocals, or the addition of drum-machines etc. But I would implore both groups to give this album some of your time, because there is much to enjoy; even if it is beneath the surface.

LABEL:

FORMAT:

Fosfor Creation

Album

NYMF

Review by Steve Cowan

RUNNING TIME:

44:25

RELEASE DATE:

Sept 2010

TRACK LISTING

1) Kicking and Collecting
2) Land of Plenty
3) The Weight of the Knowledge
4) Dragonfly
5) Between Extremes (Prelude)
6) Sunrays
7) The Water

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

Sweden

"At the heart of it all is something unpolished and a little of that chaos that turns sterile pomp into wonderful 'live'-sounding tales."