Sacrament, by the Norwegian prog legends White Willow, from 2000, outstanding representatives of what I call Northen Prog, the Prog that comes from the North (at least compared to my latitude), from Scandinavia.
Fantastic album, of excellent, complex, rich, sumptuous Symphonic Rock. We know well how, beyond the great technical skills and the compositions, in this band the atmosphere and the splendid voice of Sylvia Erichsen are essential.
An album that took a long time to write and arrange the tracks, and the result is songs marked by creativity, dynamism and beauty in every piece. Fantastic flutes and the use of unusual percussion instruments.
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The atmospheres are sometimes suspended, sometimes folk (not only Scandinavian) and then they turn into prog gallops, of extreme complexity and with always innovative solutions, and the performances are extremely precise, accurate, as well as intense.
The symphonic lines of the Mellotron and Hammond organ, the acoustic sections, the synthesizers, the pianos, Einarsen’s flute, Holm-Lupo’s wonderful guitar on acoustic and electric guitars, the beautiful choirs, everything creates a grand atmosphere.
My favorite tracks are Gnostalgia, Anamnesis and The Reach.
TOP production.
Artwork faithful to the original in this beautiful reissue.
No weak points on this record, it’s excellent and with that dose of melancholy that always dwells in northern souls. Maybe their best album, but I listen to them often so I can decide better; to me they all seem like masterpieces. This one too.
My Version
Label: Karisma Records – KAR233LPC
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Limited Edition, Reissue, Stereo, White
Country: Norway
Released: Jul 8, 2024
The Tracks
1. Anamnesis (9:11)
2. Paper Moon (6:44)
3. The Crucible (7:32)
4. The Last Rose of Summer (3:23)
5. Gnostalgia (10:18)
6. The Reach (10:59)
Total Time 48:07
The Line-up
- Sylvia Erichsen - vocals
- Jacob Holm-Lupo - electric, acoustic and classical guitars, keyboards, bass, vocals (4), co-producer
- Brynjar Dambo - keyboards and glockenspiel
- Ketil Vestrum Einarsen - flute, recorder, melodica, keyboards
- Johannes Sæbøe - bass
- Aage Moltke-Schou - drums and percussion, glockenspiel
With:
- Øystein Vesaas - wordless vocals (1), co-producer, mixing
- Simen E. Haugberg - oboe (1,3,5)
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