*. Mogador .*

Album: All I Am Is Of My Own MaKing (2010)
Genre: Prog Rock (Crossover/Heavy Prog)  /  Italy

Soon after the release of Mogador's first album, Stefano Lago left the band while the other members started to work on another conceptual work. According to the band, Richard read the story of a man who got trapped in a lift in a newspaper and it struck him as a viable vehicle for a narrative album, the other two agreed and set about writing the music. The result is another self produced work, 'All I Am Is Of My Own MaKing', featuring an improved recording quality and an overall sound that could recall bands such as The Flower Kings and Spock's Beard. The opener 'Unexpectedly, Friday' sets the atmosphere. It is just like any other Friday evening, the weekend beckons and the protagonist of the story is ready to enjoy its delights. But he forgets his keys in the office and has to go back... 'I should have taken the stairs but I saw that open door / As I rose the lift shut down, a sudden halt / Unexpected dark and silence / Unwelcome dark and suspense / Took me by surprise...'. The man shouts, asks for help... 'Deep In Trouble Deep' is darker and more aggressive. While Richard George Allen interprets the protagonist of the story Paolo Pigni interprets the narrator and in this piece he takes the lead... 'He was the last one out of the door / Trapped in a lift, it was trouble for sure... Hitting wildly in all his rage / To try to break free from this steel cage... So you thought life was so good? / And you said I want everything now / But look now, my young friend, where are you? / Deep in trouble deep...'. 'Panic!' is a beautiful instrumental track featuring many changes in rhythm and mood that describes the feelings of the protagonist when he realises there's no one to help him... The next track, 'So Cold', is calmer and begins with an acoustic guitar pattern. The voice of the protagonist comes back... 'Panic gave way to reason / As I slid on the floor / At times like these I thought intelligence would pay / But thinking very calmly made it all seem worse... It's cold, I'm cold / Help me someone...'. 'One Day' begins with a piano solo pattern and marks the lowest ebb of the story for the protagonist. On the first part we can listen to the voice of the narrator. The protagonist finds a gentle peace while his hope slips away and fear gives way to peace. The second part of the track features a church-like atmosphere and great harmony vocals... 'We know that one day / We will all fall to sleep... If we have lived in full virtuous and true / Who knows, death may be a blessed relief...'. 'Sweet Liberty' is lighter and begins with a delicate acoustic guitar arpeggio, then the rhythm section and the keyboards come in. The protagonist is saved by a rescue team, at first he thinks that the voices of his saviours are nothing but a dream then he can see the light again... 'In a moment I was free... In a moment I could see... Finally unbound, all the world was there for me / Thanking endlessly / Oh sweet, sweet liberty...'. Tubular bells announce the end of the dark. 'Homely Smells Again' tells what happens later the same day... 'They provided a car to take him home... He turned the key of the door... / He headed for the bed, to rest his head / Finally homely smells again...'. But this is not the end of the story and this is a complex track. The protagonist is woken by the sound of the phone. A lawyer calls him and insists that he needs assistance... 'We met later that week / There were damages to seek / A six or seven figure sum for a life undone...'. The protagonist returns to work two weeks later but when he places the damage claim on his boss's desk he's fired... 'I was called in by the boss again / And told to return at home / This time I took the stairs...'. 'A New Beginning' is a reflective track that marks the end of the story and the definitive change in the attitude of the protagonist. The protagonist suits his former employer in court under the media's attention but he loses the case and can't find another job... 'Now I'm living in a different place / Right and wrong are in their place / I take each day as a new beginning / The rising sun brightens the way / Ends the darkness, leads the way...'. 'All I Am Is Of My Own MaKing' begins with a marry piano pattern and draws the moral of the story: never surrender! The music could recall the Beatles and the sax played by the guest Marco 'Plumber' Bonetti enriches the sound of this piece... 'There are times when you feel sad and very lonely / And the world looks grey and grim / Don't surrender, face the fight...'. Voices and sounds coming from the country conclude this work as a ghost track. Well, all in all I think this is an interesting story and a very good album... Review by "andrea" (Prog Archives).

RATING:  8 / 10

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