UNITOPIA - MORE THAN A DREAM

UNITOPIA - MORE THAN A DREAM

Disk 1 . . . . . . .61.52
1. Common Goal . . . . . . . . 4.36
2. Fate . . . . . . . . 4.57
3. Justify . . . . . . . . 12.52
4. Take Good Care . . . . . . . . 8.36
5. Ride . . . . . . . . 3.44
6. More Than a Dream . . . . . . . . 5.42
7. Slow Down . . . . . . . . 8.09
8. Lives Go 'Round . . . . . . . . 6.31
9. Still Here . . . . . . . . 6.40

Format: Single CD • Unicorn Digital UNCR-5039 • release date: March 1st, 2007
Unitopia's official website at: http://www.unitopiamusic.com/

Line-up:
- Mark Trueack: vocals/hand percussion
- Matt Williams: acoustic & electric guitars/vocals/banjo
- Sean Timms: keyboards/vocals/mandolin
- Mike Stewart: soprano, alto & tenor saxophones/flute/clarinet/percussion/keyboards
- Shireen Khemlani: electric and acoustic bass/vocals
- Monty Ruggiero: drums/percussion
- Tim Irrgang: tuned and un-tuned percussion

Produced by Sean Timms

Australia's Unitopia is a well-kept secret that I wish to share with everyone; the band's first full-lenght album entitled More Than A Dream is just a perfect little gem, you have to listen to this CD, it will hook you instantly! The band's musical style is a delicious mixture of light, melodic prog rock and world music with a poppy edge. One of the strongest points of this album are the catchy, soulful, innovative compositions and the wonderful orchestration. Great captivating lyrics on various social and environmental topics and beautiful, soothing vocals reminiscent a bit of Bruce Hornsby.

The album is composed of 9 tracks for a total lenght of 62 minutes. The first track, Common Goal begins with a nice mellotron intro, a catchy track with an energetic rhythm, horns, and cool, fuzzy guitar riffs. Fate is a radio-friendly track, a great rock composition, very reminiscent of the Bruce Hornsby sound. Justify is the longest track of the album and features many influences, from the later Genesis sound circa Calling All Stations all the way to Rush' Power Windows. Great, catchy vocals and a beautiful melody, with some cool B3 action in the middle. Take Good Care begins with a dramatic orchestral intro (courtesy of the Adelaide Art Orchestra) and turns into a beautiful world music-themed track with a great, sweet melody. Ride begins with the exact same syndrum sound as on Genesis' Duchess, an energetic track that's also inspired by Genesis' Calling All Stations. More Than a Dream's intro again has this unmistakeable Bruce Hornsby vocals/piano sound, and the melody does sound a bit like one of Transatlantic's better known epics, a sophisticated track that includes some nice guitar passages and delicately arranged orchestral portions. Slow Down begins on a melancholic tone but picks-up the pace midway with a dance-like rhythm that puts quite a bit of emphasis on the orchestral portions and ends on the same melancholic theme as it began. Lives Go 'Round is an exuberant, enthusiastic track that features an infectious chorus and a mean synth solo in the middle. The album ends on a high note with Still Here, a track that features great percussion and cool back vocals mingling with the alto sax, a very peppy rhythm, with banjo (yes banjo!) riffs that are surprisingly effective, and concludes with an extremely catchy albeit too short chorus towards the end.

This great album will appeal to fans of progressive rock on the lighter side such as Jadis, Frost and of world music inspired by Peter Gabriel. It's one of those CDs you can listen to again and again without tiring of it. The aussie group released this CD a while back, in October 2005 more precisely, but got worldwide distribution when the album was re-released through Unicorn Digital on March 1st of 2007. A polished, quality production, this is a remarkable first album and hopefully one of many to come.

My rating for More Than A Dream : 8.5/10(album reviewed by Robert Dansereau 05/24/2007)