Curved Air
Live Atmosphere
Curved Air Records
2012
Seeing a band becoming active after 18 years is not a minor thing of course. Curved Air was formed back in 1969 when rock music was on its prime and there was space for improvisation & experimentation. Back in the day, Curved Air was one of the first groups to have a female vocalist, the diva, Sonja Kristina.
This CD/DVD features concert and festival appearances of the band, in the UK, Japan, Italy, Malta, Germany, Portugal, Holland and Belgium. The eminent Sonja Kristina along with the original drummer Florian Pilkington-Miksa still front the band and they both ended up with some impressive new musicians for the new era of Curved Air. The performances are all wonderful, trying to capture the “old feeling” but with a new contemporary aesthetics. The new members are so into the band’s philosophy and there’s actual music chemistry among the old and the newest ones. That progressive rock, jazz, space, psychedelic, classical & pop-rock music blend of Curved Air is still exciting even today and I think that the new fans can also be interested in it. The album was produced by Marvin Ayres and I can say that he has truly done a great job.
Except for the band’s “old classics”, which are being delivered kinda differently, the fans will have the chance to enjoy a bonus DVD that accompanies this release. The DVD is featuring a collage of several live performances in an 18-minute video and a 12-minute tour featurette from “Live Atmosphere Tour” 2010/2011.
As long as I was listening to the album, I came to realize that I was getting more into its appealing atmosphere. This is a good album so as to get to know the band and appreciate the music that was made in the 70s… but with a today’s attitude.
This CD/DVD features concert and festival appearances of the band, in the UK, Japan, Italy, Malta, Germany, Portugal, Holland and Belgium. The eminent Sonja Kristina along with the original drummer Florian Pilkington-Miksa still front the band and they both ended up with some impressive new musicians for the new era of Curved Air. The performances are all wonderful, trying to capture the “old feeling” but with a new contemporary aesthetics. The new members are so into the band’s philosophy and there’s actual music chemistry among the old and the newest ones. That progressive rock, jazz, space, psychedelic, classical & pop-rock music blend of Curved Air is still exciting even today and I think that the new fans can also be interested in it. The album was produced by Marvin Ayres and I can say that he has truly done a great job.
Except for the band’s “old classics”, which are being delivered kinda differently, the fans will have the chance to enjoy a bonus DVD that accompanies this release. The DVD is featuring a collage of several live performances in an 18-minute video and a 12-minute tour featurette from “Live Atmosphere Tour” 2010/2011.
As long as I was listening to the album, I came to realize that I was getting more into its appealing atmosphere. This is a good album so as to get to know the band and appreciate the music that was made in the 70s… but with a today’s attitude.