Diagonal(UK) - Diagonal (2008)

Diagonal biography:
DIAGONAL surprisingly appears on the stage in 2008 like an insider's tip. This Brighton/UK-based band is consisting of seven musicians in the mid twenties who obviously have the preference on 1970s prog music.

Accompanied by a 7'' production the eponymous debut album was released by the Rise Above Records label. The songs are full of references to wellknown prog dinosaurs but not getting dusty though. Based on a rich instrumentation and a sophisticated songwriting DIAGONAL is blending nearly all styles the genre has to offer. Far away from any mainstream this band is recommend to prog gourmets.

Review by moonknight
*****I really like progarchives and use it frequently to dig for new/old tunes.But when I saw that this album by Diagonal only had two reviews and it had no major love from the it's members of the site I decided to join. It is a serious crime that this AMAZING album is not in at least one of the top ten's. DIagonal takes everything good about 1970s prog with turning it into something new and fresh for those hungry for a classic sound. It does not have a "hipster retro " feel due to the quality of playing and sounds like if all the mistakes of the genre from 80's and 90's never happen.One things that the band manages to capture that I enjoy the most is subtle mixing of CTI jazz vibe with a classic hard rock sound. I could drop parts of it at a house party and the crowd would go nuts. But at the same time I could be reading Alfred Bester on a quite Sunday morning and be taken for a cosmic ride in space.Secondly for having 8 members, the band has a great sense when to play and when not to so the album isn't a busy and hard listen but a smooth ride.I seriously believe this will be a classic and hope they play the US. nuff said...