BLIND GOLEM – A Dream Of Fantasy (2021)

I would buy “A Dream Of Fantasy” – the debut album from Italians BLIND GOLEM – only for the exceptional artwork, a work of talented Rodney Mathews, painter of Magnum album covers, among others. But there’s another very important reason: the music packed inside is excellent.
Simply put, “A Dream Of Fantasy” is one of first musical highlights of this 2021, however musically inspired by the timeless classic rock form the greats.
These slightly progressive-toned elegant hard rock songs tick all the right boxes to convince lovers of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, and Magnum classic era. And it is no coincidence that Ken Hensley, the legendary ex-Uriah Heep who unfortunately passed away a few of months ago, appears as a guest on one track.
But there’s a much wider audience for BLIND GOLEM & “A Dream Of Fantasy” – they don’t make albums like this anymore, so well done in this genre / style.

Influences aside, the strong point of Blind Golem is the quality songwriting, really fresh and varied: ‘Devil In A Dream’ opens the disc showing the band’s skills with agile riffing and clever keyboards to enrich the always well-chosen melodic lines.
‘Sunbreaker’ is particularly immediate and engaging, a piece that would find its ideal location on a stage around 1978. ‘Screaming To The Stars’, and even more ‘The Ghost Of Eveline’, show the darker, progressive side of the band with their slow pace and atmosphere.

‘Night Of The Broken Dreams’ is a ballad – a meaty, complete ballad without cheese, delivering a guitar / keyboard combination recalls the early Magnum works.
‘Carousel’ brings to mind the atmospheres created by Led Zeppelin of “In Through the Out Door”, a song that captures you from the start with a haunting, magical effect.
‘A Spell and a Charm’ puts an end to the disc with an acoustic mix, where the vocals shine and the melodies makes you float in the air.

There are many musical journeys all over ‘A Dream Of Fantasy’, a record that despite its long running – 14 track – gets you hooked from start to finish.
It’s driven by a constant balance between guitar and keyboards as it was used in the glorious Seventies, but also the strong vocals and the excellent rhythmic versatility, which enriches and gives personality to each single song. The individual performances are top notch, but it’s the collective work of Blind Golem which really impress.
HIGHLY Recommended

 

01. Devil In A Dream
02. Sunbreaker
03. Screaming To The Stars
04. Scarlet Eyes
05. Bright Light
06. The Day Is Gone
07. The Ghost Of Eveline
08. Night Of The Broken Dreams
09. Pegasus
10. The Gathering
11. Star Of The Darkest Night
12. Carousel
13. Living And Dying
14. A Spell And A Charm

Andrea Vilardo – Lead Vocals
Silvano Zago – Guitars
Simone Bistaffa – Hammond, keyboards
Francesco Dalla Riva – Bass, vocals
Walter Mantovanelli – Drums

 

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