It’s most definitely been a progressive rock week for me as I both discovered Hasse Fröberg & Musical Companion for the first time while reviewing their latest album as well as covering Rick Wakeman’s latest release. While I do love progressive rock I can’t say that I spend a lot of time listening to bands of the genre but I have to say that I really had a blast listening to both.

First off Hasse Fröberg & Musical Companion’s follow up to their smash album Future’s Past, Powerplay, is a beautifully crisp sounding album. Despite the somewhat generic looking album cover for the album the production sounds worth every penny paid. Vocals are powerful, warm, and on a clear track all their own. I really appreciate how the instruments on the album change depth levels as well. In the first track alone the guitar sound is both at the forefront and at times sounding distant, depending on the ambient sound the song is attempting. In any case, like all the instruments on the track, everything has it’s place. There is never a time when it sounds like one instrument is attempting to climb over another. It’s clear sailing on all soundscapes.  

Even though I admit to not having listened to too much prog rock there has always been a constant in the genre and that is the musicians involved tend to be masterful when it comes to their respective instruments, Hasse Fröberg & Musical Companion are no exception. Kjell Haraldsson’s keyboard work here is phenomenal, Anton Lindsjo and Hasse Frodberg in their respective roles on guitar supply some pretty dynamic duo work as well as exceptional independent performances on the album. Finally Ola Strandberg and Thomsson supply a good base for the bands drum and bass area allowing the rest of the band the flexibility to push their sound when required.

I’ll be honest when I say the band has a slight 70’s retro rock sound that I had to work with to truly appreciate the vocals and lyrical aspect of the album, but once I crossed that hurdle, which only took the first few songs, I was hooked on the duality of the bands complexity and simplicity all rolled into one. A very easy listen that I highly recommend for fans of prog rock or older rock with a more current flare to it. As always final judgment is yours. Enjoy.