Adventure - New Horizon
Arthur Chachlowski, mlwz.pl, 19 March 2019
Arthur Chachlowski, mlwz.pl, 19 March 2019
Adventure - New Horizon
Streetclip, 14 February 2019
Streetclip, 14 February 2019
Adventure - Caught In the Web
Peter Swanson, Dutch Progressive Rock Page (DPRP)
02 November 2014
Peter Swanson, Dutch Progressive Rock Page (DPRP)
02 November 2014
Adventure are [sic] a Norwegian project from Trondheim started by Terje Flessen and Odd Roar Bakken in the mid nineties. They both liked the same 70s' style progressive/classic rock and wanted to take their music to a higher level. In the beginning a studio project only which resulted in their self titled debut album in 2004. This was followed in 2009 by Beacon of Light. This year they're back after a break and some changes in the line-up with a brand new album entitled Caught In the Web.
Stylistically, the music on the album contains influences of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Jethro Tull, Camel, Pink Floyd and a whiff of Kansas. The result is an album containing music from classic rock to symphonic prog with a folk flair.
There are lots of changes of pace and flow in the material which contributes in making this album worth listening from beginning to end. The two core members Terje Flessen (guitars) and Odd Roar Bakken (keyboards) enlisted the help of several recruits Terje Craig (bass, vocals), Elen Hopen Furunes (vocals) and Kristian Resell (drums). They are supported by the superb singer Roar Nygard who's reminiscent of John Lawton (Uriah Heep) - with the same tone, timbre and similar dramatic power. The other guest musicians on the album are Lars Hyldmo (flute), Tone Dahl (flute) and Knut Erik Jensen (piano).
Adventure deliver an album full of diversity and skill. Musically a creation in retro fashion, Caught In the Web is dominated by vintage keyboards (Hammond, Moog). The guitar expert Terje Flessen has a wonderful ability to combine hard rock hooks and subtle melodies. This CD is beautifully packaged with a booklet featuring nice artwork, band photos and lyrics.
There isn't really a bad track on the album but for me all the tracks sung by Roar Nygard, the title track (devided into two parts) and Empty Minds stand out. I think this release is a must have for all fans of the 70s style progressive/classic rock and above mentioned bands. Check out the media section on the band's official website to relive your musical past!
Conclusion: 8 out of 10
CAUGHT IN THE WEB (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)
PH, Prog Archives
05 August 2014
PH, Prog Archives
05 August 2014
The third album from Norwegian ADVENTURE is a real treat. Stylistically, 'Caught in the Web' sounds like a mesh of Uriah Heep (circa 'Firefly'), old Deep Purple, mid - 70's Alice Cooper, Jethro Tull, Camel and Pink Floyd. Total content holds the territory between classic rock and symphonic prog with a folk flair. Such kind of approach allows the material to give changes of pace and flow. Each composition effortlessly segues into its successor, giving the album a good feel of continuity... Having played together for more than 17 years, the core members Terje Flessen (guitars) and Odd-Roar Bakken (analogue keyboards) enlisted the help of several recruits: Terje Craig (bass, vocals), Elen Catherine Hopen Furunes (vocals) and Kristian Resell (drums). They are underpinned here by a superb singer Roar Nygard who's reminiscent of John Lawton - with the same tone, timbre and similar dramatic power. Two guest flutists, Lars Hyldmo and Tone Dahl, contribute their tinge to keep atmosphere over four tracks. Piano player Knut Erik Jensen gives an additional sense of variety to keep interest over the long haul. Adventure delivers a solid-catchy performance full of diversity and skill, nice on some quieter songs, yet mighty when the band rock out. Expertly sculpted in retro fashion, 'Caught In The Web' is dominated by vintage keyboards (Hammond, Moog). The orchestral grandeur from Odd-Roar Bakken reminds of Ken Hensley - although without sense of imitation. The guitar expert Terje Flessen has a wonderful ability to combine hard rock hooks and subtle melodies. A plodding rhythm section seems ready to burst at any moment, while flutes extend the musical horizon for listening pleasure. The beautiful female voice is simply haunting. Overall, an excellent stylized release. A solid step forward for Adventure, one that should get them the attention they deserve. This CD is beautifully packaged with a 16 page booklet featuring nice artwork, band photos and defined lyrics. For more information about the band check out the band's official website.
Adventure, it's a simple name, yet one which evokes thoughts of everything from "Boy's Own" tales, to space bound journeys, or mythical ocean voyages riddled with peril and danger. And yet this third, and first for five years, album from Sweden's [sic] Adventure takes us through far more Earth based stories of everyday pitfalls and social challenges; the album's name, Caught In The Web, a neat play on words, with the "web" in question being the one we all while away hours and hours on every day. Opening, scene setting, track, "All Aboard", segues seamlessly into "Fast Train", both again metaphors for the "use it, bin it, get rich quick, fame at all cost" culture we live in and yet while the themes and lyrics may be modern and current, the music transporting them to your ears is traditional Progressive Rock with the merest hints of something heavier, a sprinkle of Uriah Heep here, a whisper of Threshold there, the odd fluting float of Jethro Tull bouncing by.
Vocalists Terje Craig, Elen Catherine Hopen Furunes and guest, Roar Nygard, combine and separate beautifully, a mix of solo performances and male and female vocal interplay adding perfectly to the soaring keyboard work of Odd Roar Bakken and Steve Howe like guitar forays from Terje Flessen. However as you pass through "Solitude" (a lyrical theme across the album), it is the theatrical arrangements which drive the songs on, the loosely conceptual pieces arriving with added weight and poise. "Empty Minds" provides more than a little oomph, although as much through flutes as riffing guitars, while "Test Of Time" is happier combining Heep like Hammond to a more Neo-based keyboard approach. However right across Caught In The Web - which comes housed in a simply stunning cross between a "find it" game and a Rodney Matthews alike artwork of the year contending sleeve courtesy of Tor-Erik Ledang - it is gently Progressive themes and ideas which bring the songs to their wonderful conclusions.
Caught In The Web is a magnificent Adventure and one worth exploring and reliving on countless occasions. If you're looking for me, that's where I'll be....
Track Listing
1. All Aboard
2. Fast Train
3. Solitude
4. Empty Minds
5. Simple Man
6. For Elise
7. Test For Time
8. Watching The Glow
9. The Virus
10. Caught In The Web - Part 1
11. Caught In The Web - Part 2
12. Hope
13. Into The Dream
"...incredible musicianship, the melodies are gorgeous, and choruses catchy without being too in your face."
Adventure have been around for nearly twenty years but, in that time, have only managed to release three full albums, including the brand new 'Caught In The Web'. Their name does ring a few bells but that fact is ultimately why I have probably never got to hear them properly before and it is to my disadvantage because, if their first two albums are anything like this one, then I really should have been more astute! Centred around the writing partnership of Terje Flessen (guitars, sound FX) and Odd Roar Bakken (keyboards, acoustic guitar), plus an array of other musicians, Adventure ply their musical trade in mainly 70s’ prog and heavy rock. If you love early Uriah Heep, Jethro Tull, IQ, bits of Pendragon, ELP, whilst also occasionally delving into BigElf and Pink Floyd territory, then this will be a fascinating and joyous album for you to get hold of. Adventure's main lineup is completed by the very David Byron sounding Terje Craig (vocals, bass), Elen Hopen Furunes (vocals) and Kristian Resell (drums).
From the strange introduction piece, 'All Aboard' (which would quite easily sit on an early Demon album), into first track proper, 'Fast Train', you'll find the Tull/Heep influences are very strong. Adventure are one of the few bands I've heard where I think the flute works alongside the guitars. This song, in particular, sounds like a collaboration between Ian Anderson and Mick Box with Ken Hensley drafted in on the keyboards. According to the press release, Adventure have moved away from the Tull/Heep comparisons slightly and gone more progressive with this album, so it will certainly be interesting to hear how the first two records sound. I'm not for one minute suggesting that Adventure are copying anyone, everything here still sounds original, but it's not surprising to read that their heroes and idols are those already mentioned. Next track 'Solitude' is almost as heavily influenced but also has a musical theatre sound to it in the chorus - for some reason I kept thinking 'The Rocky Horror Show'; I could certainly see Tim Curry singing this one!
To complete the lineup on this album we also have Roar Nygård (vocals), Knut Erik Jensen (piano) and Lars Hyldmo & Tone Dahl (flutes). Every one of them displays incredible musicianship, the melodies are gorgeous, and choruses catchy without being too in your face. And the sixty minute plus running time goes by without you getting bored. This definitely isn't waffling prog like some bands and albums managed in the 70s. All the songs have a beginning, middle and end and, even though that decade is easily the main reference point, there is also a nice production which brings the album into the 2000s. Some might question why we need an album like 'Caught In The Web' or a band like Adventure when Ian Anderson and Uriah Heep, amongst others from that period, are still recording wonderful music but couldn't you say that about any band? This is a great album and a much more palatable listen than many of the hundreds of metalcore bands that pop up every five minutes. Do yourself a favour and go on an 'Adventure'!
Terje Flessen og Odd Roar Blakken [sic] er selvfølgelig norske, og disse karene står bak en av årets virkelig store overraskelser. Adventure er intet mindre enn et symfonisk prog rock band med klare referanser til det glade 70 tallet, og band som Jethro Tull, Uriah Heep, diverse andre 70 talls band, og sist , men ikke minst, fantastiske Camel. Hvis jeg så legger til at det er mesterlig utført i alle ledd, kunne vel egentlig bare denne anmeldelsen sluttet her, for da er uansett alle med hjerte for denne fantastiske musikk sjangeren allerede på vei ut døren for å få tak i herligheten. Musikken varierer fra storslått og episk, til rolige partier med panfløyter og akustisk gitar, for så å gå over til tunge og nesten prog metal aktige partier, og det fine er at absolutt alt fungerer. At Uli Jon Roth blir nevnt som en stor inspirasjon er heller ingen bombe, enkelte gitar soloer er nemlig tydelig inspirert av den gamle gitar helten, noe som absolutt ikke er noen ulempe. Anbefales!
Adventure is a progressive rock project spearheaded by Terje Flessen (guitars/bass) and Odd Roar Blakken [sic] (keyboards/acoustic guitar) back in the 1990's in an attempt to bring back the symphonic and hard rock sounds of classic 70's bands. After releasing their self-titled debut a few years back, the duo are back with Beacon of Light on Progress Records, an epic sounding new release that should please those into bombastic, hard rocking prog rock music. Joining the duo are a host of guest singers and drummers, giving Beacon of Light a sort of prog-rock opera feel not unlike acts such as Ayreon, Roswell Six, and the like. The press sheet that came with this release brings up such names as Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Jethro Tull, Camel, ELP, and Trace, and those are good comparisons, though I wouldn't say that Adventure are really mimicking any of them too closely. The hard rocking riffs, the classic keyboard sounds, the occasional flute, all these elements are things that vintage prog & hard rock fans love, and Adventure bring them to the forefront here. Opening suite "Something to Believe In" is a real slice of bombast, the lead vocals of Vebjorn Moen husky and thick (though they might be a tad over the top and overly dramatic for some) while plenty of thunderous guitar riffs and vintage keyboard sounds explode around the mix. Lyrically, this one's about the belief in a higher power, and the internal battles that all humans have when it comes to balancing good and evil. The third movement of this piece sees all the epic sounds move into a more tranquil state, as acoustic guitar and synths take on a more somber tone, making for a very well rounded 18 minutes of music. Other highlights here include the dreamy 'The Swan", a real Camel & Uriah Heep influenced number with haunting vocals by Henning Mjoen and lots of heavy as well as pastoral sections, the 2-part epic "A Crack In the Ice", which mixes heavy rock with Camel styled melodic prog, the lush, almost White Willow-ish "Emilie's Piece (featuring some lovely flute and acoustic guitar), the Hammond & guitar drenched "Fragile Frame", and the extended 4 part finale "Beacon of Light". The latter should be a favorite of vintage prog lovers, as it comes complete with plenty of assorted keyboard sounds from Odd Roar Bakken and Flessen's mix of heavy riffs, tasty solos, and lush acoustic strumming. Moen returns on this epic to add his powerful, bombastic vocal delivery.
Beacon of Light will prove to be a big hit for unsuspecting prog fans here in 2009. Not only does this CD contain some magnificent playing, but the lyrics, dealing with religion, racism, global warming, war, and narcissism, prove to be very relevant in these troublesome times. Seek this one out folks!
... The music of this band is delightful, a symphonic marvel of great quality, is really a adventure or a journey to the past until the present days of Progressive Rock Age. A small blend of Rick Wakeman's tales with Aeryon's power, some times adding a very melodic folk parts, an instrumental of high level amongst the keyboards and nice guitars. Adventure "Same" is the first full-length debut CD and self-produced album released by the group, it was recorded at Skansen Studios, Trondhein - Norway between june 1996 and november 1999. There is no special and particular attention to the songs, all of them are great and very interesting. Adventure are: Odd-Roar Bakken - Keyboards, Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin, Lead Guitar and Backing Vocals, Terje Flessen - Lead Guitars, Rhythm Guitars, Acoustic Guitars and Bass Guitars, Vebjorn Moen - Lead Vocals and Backing Vocals. Guest Musicians Stein Egil Bratland - Drums and Backing Vocals, Elisabeth Nilssen - Flute and Stine Mostervik - Flute. As Adventure it said: Our music is to all the fans of Progressive Rock around the world. Excellent and indispensable work, high recommendable...[sic]
