Emily Rach Beisel "Sumptuous Branching" ALBUM REVIEW [Cinematic, Drone, Avant, Experimental, Ambient]

by Dean Wolfe (Prog dog Media)       Album released April 10, 2026.

I didn't know what to expect, but I ended up really loving this album. 

Sumptuous Branching is an invigorating, challenging listen—decidedly not background music and not for the faint of heart. It demands attention, rewarding even as it unsettles, like a disturbance that stirs a riverbed and leaves the water cleaner.

Soloist Emily Rach Beisel is a Chicago-based improviser, composer, educator, curator, and woodwind specialist. She performs all music on this album, with bass clarinet, vocals, piccolo, and electronics. Listening to her work can feel like an alien abduction: everything familiar falls away, replaced by a world you didn’t know existed. She has said she was inspired by late medieval chant, drawn to its wild freedom and rich density. Whatever the artist’s statement might suggest, my first instinct is to set that aside and respond directly to what I’m hearing.

As a fan of first-contact movies like Arrival, I can’t help but think much of the album would be perfectly suited as a film score covering that same strange territory. “To Rise in Arms,” a standout track, captures this tension perfectly—at once jarringly beautiful, but also eerie and otherworldly.

'Her Still Singing Limbs' evokes strong imagery in my mind, reminding me of the classic early 70's TV show Kung Fu about a peaceful Shaolin monk who travels the desert expanse of the American Old West, using martial arts and wisdom to avoid violence while helping others and searching for his lost half-brother. 

Fragments of the familiar do surface on this album, especially on the title track, thoughtfully chosen to close the album with, offering a kind of quiet reassurance. A simple, lonesome clarinet begins with a single breath, before three or four voices gradually join in, answering it in kind—loneliness still present, but shared, and in that sharing, softened. It restores a distinctly human touch within a broader soundscape of electronically scrambled and manipulated textures.

[The album was recorded at Marmalade in Chicago by Bill Harris, mixed by Harris and Beisel, mastered by Edward Hamel. This is her second album released through Chicago’s avant/exploratory label Amalgam. She is wrapping up a mid-west tour right now.] 

https://www.emilybeisel.com

https://emilyrachbeisel.bandcamp.com

https://www.instagram.com/beisel_m_

https://www.amalgamusic.org

https://www.instagram.com/amalgam_chicago

https://www.facebook.com/amalgamusic


FOR FANS OF:
Sunn O))), Om, Zu, Faust, Amon Düül, Colin Stetson, Nala Sinephro, John Zorn, Oren Ambarchi

GENRES:
Drone, Avant Jazz, Experimental, Ambient

Angine De Poitrine ALBUM REVIEW "Vol.II" [microtonal looper math rock/prog(?)]

by Dean Wolfe, prog dog media.   Album released 2026. 

If you’ve been living under a rock lately, prepare yourself. Vol. II by ADP is a brain-stunner of an album that hits you like that soccer ball you never saw coming.

Angine De Poitrine, it seems, are the “chosen ones” to bring lively, fun, quirky, challenging, and audacious instrumental rock to a nutrition-deprived audience. It’s all delivered with snappy drums, a double-neck instrument combining bass and six-string guitar (with twice the usual number of frets), and a complex looper rig demanding speedy, barefooted coordination and precision.

The mania is spreading ever wider since the duo’s live KEXP performance on YouTube (13 million views as of this writing). This burst of popularity suggests a genuine thirst among listeners for something different—if not outright unhinged—compared to the usual mainstream churn of predictable or overly processed schlock,  not to mention an endless stream of replayed classic hits of yesteryear, and yester-century.

Has the dam broken? Is Angine De Poitrine the long-overdue wrench in the machine that prophets have foreseen and forewarned us about? Is a massive world-wide musical reboot about to be triggered? 

I knew this would be a hard album to review, because Vol. II by Angine De Poitrine isn’t just a unique record. This papier-mâché-clad Québécois duo is fast becoming a heavily scrutinized, impossible-to-ignore cultural phenomenon.

Many longtime prog fans count themselves among Angine De Poitrine’s new devotees, hyping the pyramid hand signals in YouTube comments—and probably in real life too. Some even claim the duo as “one of their own.” But is it really progressive rock?

Rather than belabour genre labels, it’s probably easier to accept a few things. Plenty of prog fans love this band, and math rock, while it came later, digs into the same kind of rhythmic complexity. And yet it’s still its own thing—related to prog, but not quite the same. Clear as mud.

What does the duo say about their own music? I discovered a very recent interview on Youtube entirely in French. In their own words (translated and with a bit of paraphrasing): 

"[Angine De Poitrine] is first of all a duo... rock with a bit of an electro flavour, meaning the music is constructed and built on loops. There's a certain repetitiveness but always with an intentional build-up to bring in the next phase or a more developed riff etc.

"The tunes keeps moving forward, and don't stagnate.... but they have a kind of repetitiveness that reminds you of techno... In terms of timbre it's anchored in a very instrumental rock tradition- a bit left field overall. Super danceable."

They say that got into microtonality simply through curiosity and were...

"interested in ever increasing complexity ...the notion of a challenge is always attractive. ...it started with a fascination with eastern music...but we didn't want to copy it - we used it in a way that was more our own...our own flavour...made sure it wasn't just a pastiche of what's done in the East. We make it very 'Seguanay-an'...(they are from Seguanay Quebec)"

So, they are making use of microtonality in a way they were comfortable with and in a way they enjoy--attracted by the closeness of the notes, the friction, the timbre, and the novelty as well. 

Listening to Vol. II, I feel reassured they’re here to stay. This doesn’t strike me as a flash in the pan. They did refer to ADP as a “project” in an interview, which suggests they’ll stick with it only as long as it continues to challenge and intrigue them—but on this album, their artistic integrity feels intact. The music is genuinely strong, and it sticks—more like cast iron than Teflon. And how can you not love “UTZP,” with its munchkin-scaled, Led Zeppelin-ish flair?

The album feels a tad on the short side, but there’s that old saying: “leave ’em wanting more.” There’s good variety across the tracks, even veering a bit country on the opener to side two, keeping things consistently interesting as one piece flows into the next.

There’s a deliberate otherworldliness to the album, mainly in the occasional vibey vocals—like Sesame Street aliens singing from another planet—and in lead guitar lines soaked in wild, unpredictable effects.

The bass tones really rock out, reminding me of Chris Squire on The Yes Album, with aggressive pick use and plenty of lines up high on the fretboard. This album is fun and fresh. ADP pull the tablecloth out from under the listener’s dinner plates before they even realize what’s happened. There are generous splatterings of funk, disco, rock, and jazz fusion, plus an armada of catchy riffs—cleverly making use of, quite literally, the notes between the notes.

The drumming is also highly satisfying. Klek is, quite literally and figuratively, half of the band’s sound—and together with Khn, they are far more than the sum of their parts. Hearing them play together, it’s not surprising to learn they’ve been jamming since they were young teenagers.

I give this ingenious and highly listenable album 5 out of 5 prog dog bones. Do yourself a favour—pull up a chair and let these Quebecois masters of microtonal riffs pepper your brain with polka dots. You won't know what hit you. Guaranteed fun for the whole family. 

Clive Nolan "The Mortal Light" ALBUM REVIEW [prog-adjacent theatrical rock]

by Dean Wolfe, Prog dog Media. Album released February 2026. 

This is a fun listen—even though outside my usual range. Rock musicals and stage productions aren’t in my regular rotation, so it’s fair to wonder why I’m even reviewing this. The short answer: I don’t mind stepping outside my comfort zone. And with a project from British progrock mainstay Clive Nolan (Pendragon, Arena, Shadowland, Strangers on a Train, and Caamora), it felt like a safe enough bet that it wouldn’t be time wasted. "The Mortal Light’ is the third musical in the ‘Alchemy’ series. It chronicles the ongoing journey of Professor King and friends as they navigate the dangers and challenges of a colourful Steampunk Victorian ‘Universe’.

I approach this album the same way I would a good book—something to take in from cover to cover. It’s a time investment, and that’s the point. This is also the kind of release that demands a physical copy—the package is an attractive box set of 4 CDs and 3 booklets, with a full story to follow in graphics and text. I’d splurge if I had the cash, but for now I’ll be relying on the PDFs that came with the digital promo.

The vocals are strong and spirited throughout from an extensive cast of characters. It must have taken a lot of time just to organize all the singing sessions. They mostly avoid that traditional operatic style—which I appreciate—and at times in the style of Nightwish music. Compositionally, it’s solid, as is the production but not every second is crafted with the precision of The Dark Side of the Moon, probably because it spans over two 70 minute CDs. Tracks like Prophesy, and especially the verse in Decisions for example, deliver some genuinely moving and powerful melodies. Fade is powerfully cinematic. There’s also a lot of character acting and dialogue woven throughout. So this is definitely an album that has to be experienced in sequence—Act 1 through Act 2.

One of my favourite elements is the incidental percussion—bodhráns and other hand-driven rhythms that Clive Nolan uses so effectively. There’s a real sense of variety, and it adds a lot of character. At times, it genuinely feels like he’s tapped into some Viking-warrior drum circle—and it hits in a way that feels almost primal, like it’s waking up something buried deep.

Prog Dog score: 4 prog dog bones out of 5. If rock musicals are your thing, you’ll likely enjoy this distinctly British, sumptuous extravaganza, featuring impressive vocal performances and plenty of drama.

Advent Horizon "Falling Together" ALBUM REVIEW [Prog Metal/Progressive Rock]

by Dean Wolfe, Prog dog media      (Advent Horizon's 4th Album, released 2026)

Ambitious and inspiring, “Falling Together” is Advent Horizon's fourth album.  It leaves a strong and lingering impression beginning with In a Lone and Dreary World, the mere 19 minute 'opener' that establishes the album's adrenaline-fueled energy. The musical foundation is its monolithic sonically fine-tuned prog-metal guitar tones and dangerous and gut-punching bass and drum rhythm section. It's all dressed up with plenty of synths and amazing vocal harmonies. 

But despite all the explosive instrumental dynamite, the glue that makes the album cohesive as a whole for me is the vocals and also, surprisingly, the acoustic guitar that is revisited throughout and gives the album a more unique signature. Keyboards also play an essential role in the band, keeping it firmly in progressive rock territory, nicely rounding out this super-tight and at times djent-y band. 

Rylee McDonald is gifted and super-capable singer and reminds me a bit of Dennis deYoung of Styx. He shares the lead vocal on some tracks with Kristen McDonald, whose voice is absolutely sublime (and that can't be understated). She seems to have the female energy that brings balance to the universe and to this band, though she doesn't appear to be a permanent member per se (but she is married to Rylee I believe). 

A quick aside: This newer generation of prog-makers are helping the genre expand from its late ’60s and ’70s origins, delivering modern interpretations and fresh iterations. It used to be a relatively small circle in the 70s— Yes, Rush, Genesis, King Crimson, E.L.P., Renaissance, Gentle Giant, Camel etc. Nowadays the offerings are growing broader each year. It’s not a couple handful of acts creating great music: it’s a boatload. Truly this is thanks in part to much more affordable recording technology and also due to the instant and all encompassing internet distribution. An album that cost tens of thousands in the 70s can be arguably rivalled on a laptop computer with a digital interface and a few decent microphones. But there are no shortcuts in the art of songwriting, musical instrument mastery, and having an ear for properly produced music and arrangements.

So here's a band regularly reaching for those ‘hairs-standing-up-on-the-back-of-your-neck’ moments. The production is beautiful, the songwriting stays interesting and engaging, and not overly hooky.  My two word review of Falling Together is: (drum roll...) "Ridiculously good." My score is 4.5 prog dog bones out 5.  

The Sunday Goose "Where My Heart Lies " ALBUM REVIEW [Soft Prog/ Romantic Prog Rock]

by Dean Wolfe, prog dog media. Album release 2025/ first physical media release 2026. 

Finally luxurious prog rock you can slow (and medium) dance to!

The Sunday Goose, an original sounding Dutch progressive/symphonic rock band from the Netherlands, was originally founded in 2009 by keyboardist Bram van Risp, who wanted to set up a progressive rock project. Finally, here it is: Where My Heart Lies, their debut album which was criminally kept hidden on a shelf in a Windmill somewhere in the Netherlands for almost 15 years.

This is an album which fills a mostly empty niche in the progressive rock canons--and in suggesting it be called soft-prog I don't mean weak or wimpy. It's music on a high order of quality, like silk sheets with a very high thread count. 

Yes, you can actually put this album on the turntable and serve your special partner a romantic candle-lit home-cooked meal! 

It's so funny that I first listened through this album for the first time early on Sunday morning given the band's name The Sunday Goose. I just happened to wake up too early in the morning to actually get up and out of bed, and so I scanned my emails and came across this album via a Bad Dog Media promo and was struck by the cover art and name of this band I'd not heard of before. 

The music is quite gorgeous and intricate throughout. Ly's vocals are a treat, rich as they are with emotional strength (the promo material does not provide a last name: just Ly). An obviously natural singer her voice is world class. She works in the tradition of Sting: lead vocals plus holding down the rhythm section playing her Music Man bass. Oh, and the odd Moog Taurus pedals...not unlike Geddy Lee? 

There are some adventurous inter-song transitions reminiscent of classic Pink Floyd. There are plenty of gorgeous keyboards gracing the songs throughout the album. 

Fave track- Time.  This track does rock out in parts. The composition is representative of the entire album- taking the music down unexpected paths. Some of the guitar work is recalling one of my favourite guitarist Steve Hackett of Genesis. There's some gorgeous acoustic guitar work too. Much of the analog synth work reminds me a bit of Tony Banks work with Genesis as well, with healthy doses of Melotron. Plus classic acoustic piano sections. 

The album is so well produced- I would dare to say near perfectly done. I don't feel there was much more they could have added but perhaps they could have edited the length just a hair (minor quibble!).

Certainly fans of Magenta will embrace The Sunday Goose as well- another prog band with strong female lead vocalist 

There's moments that raise the hair on the back of your neck like a string section in the 8 minute track 'Oceans'. Any album can benefit by as many tiny-hair-raising moments as possible! 

These are the kind of discoveries I live for: when your expectations were just blank or vacant- and you trip across something that just excites you down to your soul. It's been happening a lot to me lately, which tells me we are living in a time of prog rock renaissance. And mostly it's happening on a small scale necessarily as this niche genre is not as massively adopted and popular as it was in the early 70s when albums with side long songs were selling in the millions and filling stadium-sized concert venues. 

With the more album reviews I do I am figuring out why an album deserves a high score. I definitely rate them as a whole- the best albums having zero 'skip-it' or 'filler' tracks. I see albums as an art form to be judged from the first grooves on side A to the final groove of side B. And so it is not really a competition with other artists as much as it is judging whether the album is a fulfilment of its' own promise. I can't see any other score than 4 1/2 out of 5 prog dog bones. Bravo guys: great album. 

The bonus track 'My Town' is super-cool and gets a 'hit repeat' award for catchiness. It could have been great official album track. I suppose the production sounded a little different than the rest of the album? For example in parts the vocals sounded 'cloudier' in recording quality, but regardless it's notable for its originality, hints of reggae drum textures, and clever guitar rhythms. 

Based on some of the promo material The Sunday Goose has invested a lot of time and work into this album. All that were involved are talented and deserve more recognition. 

(author's note: This review is A.I.- free. Occasionally I have used A.I. to help clarify a paragraph here or there, but not in this one.)

Echoverse "Fall Towards The Sky" ALBUM REVIEW [progressive rock]

by Dean Wolfe (prog dog media). Album Release May 2026

I got to interview drummer Kyle Fagala of Echoverse on my podcast (on YouTube) not long after discovering his band and having listened to their new album through 4 or 5 times. I mentioned to him how the band sounded like a ‘band.’ Yes, I said that. Now what the heck kind of compliment was that? A high compliment actually, and I'll explain.

When I was young man, I was always on the lookout for the next great band. On my first listen to an Echoverse song, I got taken straight back to my youth and got that feeling, like: “Wow! What band is this? This is awesome! I’m gonna get behind this band! Let’s hear some more. I hope it’s all this good.” For example, back in the 90s I was all about The Dave Matthews Band for a while. I raved about them to everyone I knew because none of my friends had heard of them (Mind you, I kind of lost interest after their sophomore album).

So yes, Echoverse equals genuine excitement for me! There is a tinge of Rush-ness there which I am always a sucker for, but that's only in one of the songs. They have their own imprint- hence that first impression I had “….they sound like…a band’. 

I love the busy bass lines and tom work on track 1- Radical Rebirth. I love the Iron Maiden-ish quality of Kyle Graves vocals that really shine through on the title track. I love the bouncy ping-pong-y guitar riff that opens The Serpent & The Schism -- how the drums and bass lock into the triplet groove. 

The synth vibes are strong and sweeping and cinematic in parts. I love the composition, the structure, the melodic hooks, the classic guitar tones, the vocals…. It all hit me on a guttural level. Even what sounds like one of the album's 'slow songs' like Gold Bar is just as appealing to me as any other track. There are no 'skippers' on this album (and the 'slow songs' have loads of surprising twists and ends up not being 'slow' at all). 

Since in this review I can't just pour out endless praise lest I appear too fan-boyish, without any suggestion for improvements-  I'll just say I'd like to hear a touch more hairy ‘wildness’ in the guitar department. Any album could always use an extra dash of hot sauce craziness, though The Serpent & The Schism has a perfect amount of soulful guitar screams. I think ideally- it would be so cool to hear Echoverse get the deluxe treatment: amazing top-tier studio and engineers and time to pursue the highest degree of recording perfection possible. This is a band most deserving of it, but despite that, they have produced a remarkably solid, cohesive sounding album without any Label backing. This likely due to the passion of band member Doug Bowers who Fagala reports is a driven and passionate producer within the band, and it shows.

On another point worth discussion, there is the fact that the band are all Christians, though it sounds like that wasn’t necessarily a deal-breaker when auditioning members in joining the band like Kyle Fagala who happens to be Christian as well. There are some Christian themes explored lyrically but nothing that feels at all preachy or uncomfortably heavy. I do consider myself a student of Christianity, but I don’t typically seek out Christian bands per se, and honestly whether Echoverse are or not, doesn’t influence my level of enjoyment of their musical craftwork.

My one-word review of this album: Superb. 

Albums don't always inspire one word reviews- maybe I should strive for this as a feature in all my reviews! Approaching them  in an inspired way feels like the right thing to do. If you think about all the work that a band puts into the average album it represents an amazing amount of deep thought, effort, time and passion. Great albums are a true artistic triumph. Congratulations guys, you made a damn good album here. 

Esthesis "Watching Worlds Collide" ALBUM REVIEW [art rock, neo-prog, prog noir]

By Dean Wolfe (Prog dog Media)  [album released 2022]

This band was new to me, even though they’ve put out a few albums. Speaking as someone who’s video-reacted to over 1,300 songs on YouTube, I’ve noticed that in hearing a band for the first time one's naturally inclination is to make comparisons with familiar bands. So who comes to mind here? Talk Talk, Tears for Fears, David Sylvian, Steven Wilson (especially in the vocal department), the Alan Parsons Project... and for some reason, the X-Files TV series!

Right away, I was drawn to Arnaud Nicolau’s drumming. With all the modern advances of 'in-the-box' drum production (which I have nothing against), it is refreshing to hear the tasteful flourishes of a real drummer sitting at a properly mic’d kit. He’s joined by Marc Anguill on bass, who lays down plenty of great grooves throughout much of the album—not with a plectrum, but with what sounds like strong, two-finger plucking which I totally dig.

Esthesis is firmly rooted in sophisticated prog pop rock. Aurélien Goude’s vocals are laid-back yet constantly reaching—not in a strained way, but with a searching, introspective quality, as if he’s a singer in pursuit of answers. Mathilde Collet adds beautifully complementary vocals on several tracks, helping to shape the band’s distinct and nuanced sound.

Compositionally, the album is broad and expansive, with little repetition and a willingness to wander down long, winding corridors of sound. While it does rock out at times for emphasis, the overall vibe is laid-back—in a cool, deliberate way. That’s where I draw the connection between prog and noir: the music often feels wrapped in a smoky mystery, like it’s unfolding in the shadows.

There’s some truly mature and memorable songwriting on display here, supported by superb arrangements and rich jazz-influenced chord progressions. The band isn't bound by predictable verse-chorus structures; instead, the songs unfold in expansive, often unexpected ways. Much of the music is piano-centric, with tasteful and layered use of synths and textures that complement the core beautifully. Trevor Horn would absolutely love this band—in fact, he’d be the perfect producer for them.

The album carries an introspective tone—relaxed, unhurried, and never trying too hard to impress. No one’s breaking a sweat here, and that restraint adds to its charm. There’s some lovely violin work on track 3, and a horn section makes welcome appearances throughout several songs. The atmospheric touches are especially notable—some tracks would fit seamlessly as background in a modern crime noir TV series.

A solid 4 out of 5 dog bones. Esthesis exude a smoky ambience I’d describe as prog noir—a sound steeped in jazz influences that creates a rich, atmospheric sense of mystery. While the tone leans toward the darker side, there’s enough uplift to keep it moving forward with some optimism.

Video companion to this review: https://youtu.be/wRG1umxKoUQ