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SYKOFANT – LEAVES EP

(Available on Bandcamp)

Sykofant is a progressive rock band hailing from Oslo, Norway.  This EP is actually the second part of two EP releases.  The first one, Red Sun, was released in early 2025.  The two are being combined for one LP and CD release for which the band is taking pre-orders.  Both are mini-concept albums; Red Sun is about the harshness of the desert, while Leaves is about trees and forests, as you might have already guessed.  This review will focus on Leaves.

Somehow Sykofant manages to pull off the complete prog experience without a keyboard player.  But Emil Moen, who plays guitar, sings and is the primary songwriter, plus lead guitarist Per Semb, drummer Melvin Treider and bassist Sindre Haugen fill out the soundscape splendidly.  This is prog for all it’s worth, full of vivid sonic textures, songs of epic grandeur, shifting time signatures, and tracks with multiple, changing sections.

The band must have an abiding love for Pink Floyd, as references are sprinkled all about the EP.  Opening track “Roots and Canopy” will remind you in spots of the Floyd’s “Welcome to the Machine,” although the actual song is calming and pretty compared to the sardonic “…Machine.”  And anyway, the similarities are brief, as Sykofant creates its own appealing melodies, and the song is gentle and relaxing.

The track segues into the “Mycelium March” and the Wish You Were Here-era Floyd nods are present again, as the chugging rhythm is comparable to “Have a Cigar” and parts of “Shine On, You Crazy Diamond.”  Again, Sykofant creates something all their own with it.  The instrumental track rocks, with some scalding guitar work by Semb with help from Moen while Haugen and Treider apply just the right amount of funk and percussive chops.

Those two tracks are prep work for the epic sixteen-minute “Heart of the Woods.”  This one’s got everything but the kitchen sink.  It begins with some lovely classical style acoustic guitar.  It lulled me into such a calm state I could’ve been blissed out if the entire sixteen minutes was just that.  But this is prog and of course we can’t have that, as the proceedings are interrupted by a jolting electric guitar.  Section by section, layer by layer, Sykofant builds “Heart of the Woods” into a journey full of fast and slow, light and heavy parts, most of it under the signature of Semb and Moen’s often blistering guitars.  Moen’s vocals are excellent, usually with stacked overdubbed harmonies.  Pink Floyd makes a return, with a component ten minutes into the track that reminds me a bit of “Another Brick in the Wall.”  As with the other tracks, the Floyd references are actually brief and the artistry is really all Sykofant’s.  The song settles into coda for the last two minutes as that classical guitar from the beginning returns and is joined by a female choir consisting of Mina Storrud, Marie Luren, and Helga Tenold Fridtun.  This section is really gorgeous.  The cinematic, soothing wordless choir sings in rich harmonies, their voices blending seamlessly.  It’s actually my favorite part of the EP.

Sykofant’s roots (ahem) go back years with Moen and Semb playing guitar together, but they’re a young band as a whole, with their recording history only dating back to their self-titled debut LP in 2024.  It should be interesting to see where their journey takes them and us next.

(Mark Feingold)

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THOUGHT BUBBLE - DARK SHAPES EP
(CD/DL from Bandcamp)

The band loved our review of their last album so much they rushed their new EP over for us to enjoy. And boy do we! 'A Complicated Place' beams in from outer space, dodging champagne bubbles, riding an electronic wave of funky, body-swerving beats, and will have the dance floor sagging under the throbbing, mobbing party crowd. 'Enemies' is a krautrockin' korker [sic] with a poppier approach to EDM that can be enjoyed equally on and off the dance floor.

The fun continues on the playful 'Waiting On The Kill' (think Hot Butter's 'Popcorn' run amok in a video arcade), and the ambient, chill out finale 'Forgotten Worlds' has an air of Peter Gabriel fronting the KLF while navel gazers stroke their chins approvingly.

(Jeff Penczak)

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WEAVEWORLD - WEAVEWORLD
(CD/LP from Godflame)

The roots of Weaveworld go back nearly 40 years to the demise of Manchester's much-loved Chameleons. Following the departure of guitarists Reg Smithies and Dave Fielding, Chameleons rhythm section Mark Burgess (bass) and John Lever (drums) formed The Sun And The Moon with Andy Clegg (who played keyboards on an '85 Chameleons Radio 1 session) and Andy Whitaker.  Lever, Clegg, and Whitaker previously released an EP as Music For Aborigines and additional 1986/87 recordings were released in 2005 that included guitarist Graham "Aky" Atkinson.

In 1991, the quartet (now calling themselves Weaveworld after the Clive Barker novel at Aky's suggestion) released the "Davy Jones" EP (the Monkee, not Ziggy) and were set to record an album but label interest faded, Brit-pop reared its ugly head, and the band went their separate ways, Whitaker releasing several solo albums (including one co-written with guitarist Clegg) and Atkinson releasing a few singles with Molly Half Head in the mid-'90s.

Back story completed, we fast-forward to 2026 and the band finally release their debut full length compiling two tracks from the "Davy Jones" EP (featuring Lever, who passed away in  2017), a revamped MFA tune 'Perfect Day' recorded in 2019 with former BFG/current Skids drummer Mike Simii (Simpkins), and new material from '24/'25. 'Poll Tax Woman' kicks things off with shimmering guitars from Clegg and Atkinson, and there's an dreamy aura to 'Out And Down', originally on the 'Davy Jones" EP. The lead track, writen as a preparatory obituary is a boisterous slab of punky pop with several winking references to Neil Diamond, The Beatles (wrongly accused of getting old and having gone serious and progressive, we had Davy Jones & co. to assure us there was still room for tomfoolery in rock and roll), Daktari, (when Whitaker's elder brother  announced "the monkeys are coming on TV" he was referring to the safari programme, not the group's show!), and Davy's "home town" near Ashton where the band were from! [You can see the band's promotional video for the song here. It does include scenes of the area where Jones grew up, including his primary school on Varna Street.] Jones joined in on the tomfoolery and sent the band an autographed photo inscribed "Weaveworld RIP, David Jones"

The dreamy 'Cyanide For The Bride' with its melancholic mix of Richard Hawley and the Montgolfier Brothers' Roger Quigley was recorded in Simii's Studio Atica in 2024. 'Heavenly Bride' a mostly instrumental melancholic reprise featuring vocals by Annabelle Ghilks was one of several tracks recorded last year. The cinematic slice of stalking  electronica 'Waken' also stems from the early 90's sessions.

'Perfect Day' ebbs and flows with gothic touches like flickering guitars, Simii's assured skin pounding, and Whitaker's ghostly vocals suggesting a noir nightmare lurks around the corner. The lads pay tribute to any absorbed influences from Pink Floyd with an exciting interpretation of Rick Wright's 'Remember A Day' that breathes new life into its '60s psychedelic framework.

I also particularly enjoyed 'Open Up My Eyes', an upbeat, hopeful pop tune with Whitaker channeling Lever's drumming style after studying live footage from their Sheffield Poly gig. He shared with me that he could almost feel Lever stood behind him during the recording session.

'Intimidation' is a corking finale with echoes of Chameleons and Psychedelic Furs. Whitaker's drumming and bass lines are particularly ferocious here.

It's a shame the band didn't get a chance to record and release these songs in Lever's lifetime, but at least, after 35 years we can absorb, enjoy, and revisit them at our leisure.

(Jeff Penczak)

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SWARM OF BEESE - ORCHARD OF DREAMS
(CD on Backwoods Modern Recordings)

We love Swarme Of Beese here at Terrascope, so it was a nice surprise to see that they have completed another album. Orchard of Dreams follows on from Waiting For A Sign which was released in 2024. This is the band’s fourth album and is released on their Backwoods Modern Recordings record label. Swarme of Beese morphed from The Victor Mourning who began their career back in 2010 with A Handful Of Locusts.

A three-piece outfit consisting of Lynne Adele, Stefan Keydel, and Stephen Canner from Austin Texas, the music is in the small but perfectly formed mutant folk/gothic country genre. Stephen writes, sings and plays guitar, Lynne also writes, sings and plays guitar adding some percussion, and Stefen plays violin and viola, also adding some harmony vocals to 'The Cuckoo.' They are joined, as ever by Mark Addison, who produces and also adds subtle instrumentation, such as keyboards, dulcimer and bass.

This album features Lynne’s singing more than perhaps on any of their previous recordings and she kicks off the proceedings with the title track 'Orchard of Dreams,' a song inspired by the true story of Johnny Appleseed (John Chapman) a fella who wandered from place to place planting apple trees and making cider in the 18th century (oddly referred to as hard cider in the States). This is a lovely introductory song, given plenty of space to breathe, a gentle invocation of a rural America, imbued with pretty, dancing violin. 'Distant Father' follows, a sparkling song with some terrific lyrics, of brambles and briars, white linen and black feathers, black earth and bare cornfields, again beautifully sung by Lynne. Nature is pretty much a constant theme and again informs 'The Shallow River,' a dream of a better life, where over a pretty melody, the bitter tears of reality set in.

The first of three traditional songs arrives with 'The Cuckoo,' a song recorded by artists as disparate as (the American) Kaleidoscope and Shirley Collins. I have always taken issue with the lyrics though, as they state that the cuckoo doesn’t call until early July, but now cuckoos announce their arrival in spring and have often departed by July, not having nests to build or young to raise. However maybe the season’s have changed since the song was written? In fact, it is very old, some say as early as the 12th century! They do a fine job here with call and response vocals. Another traditional, 'Selkie' is given a quite stark arrangement. It's a song of the sea wherein seals transform into humans in Celtic and Norse mythology.

'The Last Petal' arrives with a dirty, lead electric guitar melody which continues throughout the song of being taken for granted, of something you never really notice until it’s gone. 'Wreck of The Elizabeth' is inspired by the tragic death of the 19th century transcendental writer Margaret Fuller, the first female American war correspondent, who on a six-week voyage returning to America on a ship transporting marble back from Carrera, drowned. The ship’s Captain had contracted smallpox and died during the journey and maybe the inexperience of the first mate perhaps contributed to the accident, which happened just 50 yards from shore.

My favourite song on the album is the closer 'State of Arkansas,' sung by Stephen. It is another traditional; but one that I am not familiar with. Gothic in the extreme and all the better for it, a great listen and a fine way to end the album. It tells the tale of one John Johanna, an itinerant traveller seeking work, who never knew what misery was until he came to Arkansas.

This is a really delightful album and one that I highly recommend.

(Andrew Young)

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TELEGRAPH - TOPOGRAPHY OF MIND
(Available on Bandcamp)

From Israeli prog rock quartet Telegraph comes this most excellent release.  It’s a mostly instrumental album (but for a few brief bits of ghostly vocals on “Field of Fade Memory” and “Valley of Delirium”) that recalls British prog’s early Seventies heyday.  All four tracks run about eleven minutes long.  They’re majestic, innately melodic, and performed brilliantly by Eze Sakson, a master of keyboard and synth sounds; guitarist Tal Rubinstein; Avi Barak, who provides both the beautiful flute on the title track and “Valley of Delirium” and plays drums; and bassist Liran Hirnstadt.

The band somehow manages to simultaneously convey the ghosts of past masters of the genre while creating something all their own.  The influences are obvious and I won’t bother listing them here, as you’ll know them immediately upon listening.  But that’s really a jumping off point for Telegraph, a tight band who knows what it wants to do and chisels a beautiful new sculpture out of a historic rock.

What sets Telegraph apart is that this is some of the most mellow prog you’re likely to hear.  From start to finish, Topography of Mind never raises the volume or intensity to anything like what you’d expect from a prog band.  That isn’t to say Telegraph isn’t intricate or complex.  The four mini-epics are about as well thought-out as imaginable.  But there are no wonky time signatures or screaming guitar solos – sophisticated, yes, but not in your face. 

This is an album of sublime relaxation, an inner tube down a lazy river, and supreme interplay – between guitarist Rubinstein and keyboardist Sakson, or Rubinstein and bass player Hirnstadt, or between Sakson and Hirstadt.  The teamwork on display is understated and impressive.  There are ample opportunities for Rubinstein to shred or play showy guitar solos.  He certainly has the chops.  But he chooses to stay within the laid-back swim lane of the whole album.  Meanwhile Sakson has all the classic keyboard tones, from Hammond to Mellotron, Moog to ARP, and nimble fingered talent to spare.

Could you use a reset?  Life getting you down?  Try giving a listen to Topography of Mind.  You’ll emerge 45 minutes later calm and relaxed, ready for what lies ahead.

(Mark Feingold)