After a five-year hiatus during which members of The Flower Kings pursued outside projects, the Swedish proggers return with the long-awaited <em>Banks of Eden</em>. A beautiful-sounding album with all of the band's signaturessymphonic flourishes, a dash of jazz and a hint of blues<em>Banks of Eden</em> unexpectedly eschews epics in favor of shorter songs that go off in heavy directions with dark undercurrents. “Pandemonium,” for example, opens with something that could have been lifted from <em>The Yes Album</em> before the mood turns apocalyptic. Bandleader Roine Stolt's guitar histrionics dominate these five tracks, fueled by a greater sense of melody and purpose. Longtime fans need not fear, though: Sprawling leadoff track “Numbers” runs for 25 minutes and invokes all of The Flower Kings' influencesfrom Genesis to Stravinsky.<br /><br />A second disc includes four bonus tracks totaling only 21 minutes, and all four of them could have (<em>should</em> have) fit on the main disc; they're too good to be considered throwaways. <p align="right" style="text-align: right;"><br /></p>
The Flower Kings
Banks of Eden (Inside Out Music)
