Rogier
From the Shadow of the Sun
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(Excerpt from track 'Questions')
CD / 14 tracks / 54.22 mins

It is always pleasing to make new discoveries and if you are into beautiful melodies placed in an easy to get on with setting, often accompanied by relaxed rhythms, then this is for you. Amongst his influences are Vangelis, Kitaro, Gandalf and Yanni and it shows. If you are into these artists, or even Jonn Serrie and Terry Oldfield then I would strongly recommend you try this guy out. A violin gets 'A New World' underway backed by the faint sound of the wind. Later on synth pads swell and little cosmic touches are added. It then gets quite symphonic with massed strings and even timpani.

'Lonely' starts with the sound of a storm then becomes gently rhythmic. Melody is provided by soft pads, piano and later, flute with acoustic guitar. 'Closer to the Truth Part 1' then 'Part 2' are both rather tender symphonic numbers with maybe a slight Celtic touch. The latter includes some piano but even more is present on 'Part 3' where the strings take more of a back seat. Ideal music to listen to in the Scottish Highlands. Flute again comes into play along with acoustic guitar and piano on 'Himalaya Mountains'. It's an extremely serene combination. 'Dream' is quite a jaunty rhythmic number, acoustic guitar then piano combining to form playful little melodies.

It's all extremely pleasant foot tapping stuff that flows straight into 'Closer to the Truth Part 4'which takes up the theme from the earlier parts but gives the whole thing a much more romantic feel as does 'When the Story Ends'. The last instalment 'Part 5' however is a much different affair being rather moody, even melancholy. 'Associations' and 'Strange Beauty Crying' are both gentle chuggers with a similar feel to 'Dream'; imagine if Terry and Mike Oldfield got together to record, it might sound something like this. 'Questions' is flute dominated, initially just accompanied by a little percussion and faint piano. The piano becomes more prominent later, taking lead duties for a while then sharing the limelight with the flute as we get closer to the end. Again it's all extremely peaceful and pleasant. 'Into the Mountains' is as upbeat as it gets, with even a restrained dance type rhythm accompanied by high hat backing, balanced by lovely piano / flute interludes. It works surprisingly well! An ideal CD for romantic evenings. (DL)

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