Karmakanic - Entering the Spectra

Entering the Spectra is one eclectic collection of songs. Depending on which of the eleven songs on this disc you are listening to, you might be hearing prog rock, jazz fusion, progressive metal, or mid- to late-80s pop! The variety makes sense, because Karmakanic (get it?) is a side-project of bassist Jonas Reingold of The Flower Kings that is meant to be an uninhibited exercise. All members of the Kings but Hasse Froberg appear on the record, but it is Reingold's show, and he makes the most of the opportunity by inviting musicians like Goran Edmon (Yngwie Malmsteen) to join in the fun.

The Flower Kings formed soon after the release of guitarist/vocalist Roine Stolt's 1993 album, The Flower King, and quickly became popular in the progressive rock community. They would record four studio albums (including two double albums) and one live album before the 90s were over, and became renowned for a Phish-like live show that was never the same no matter how many times you saw it. Reingold joined the band in 2000 on Space Revolver, bringing expertise in both jazz and metal that helped to refine the Kings' sound. In 2002, he got the solo itch and put together the Karmakanic project. Entering the Spectra was released shortly before Unfold the Future, the Flower Kings' latest double-album opus.

Reingold kicks Spectra off with an overtly annoying voice-over that very nearly made me stop the disc without ever hearing it. "There once was a tiny little man in a tiny little town, that lived in a tiny little house on a tiny, tiny, tiny, tiny planet called the Earth"?? This nonsense actually introduces the concept of the album, which Reingold has described as follows: "It's 3000 years ahead of time and [a] scientist has found documents regarding this little man who's living his life in something they called the Internet. We follow this little man on his journey through life." Anyway, the music begins on the title track, which is almost textbook 70s prog rock, Yes/Camel style. The best track comes next, “The Spirit Remains the Same.” For the first time, metal rears its wonderful head and Edmon steps up on the mike and reminds me why I have such fond memories of his performance on 1990’s Eclipse. The songs begins with some bizarre chanting before Edmon passionately takes to the mike to work his magic. A dreamy interlude then sees Reingold exploring his bass fretboard and letting it all breathe. Finally, some heavy riffing (conspicuous on this album) before Edmon brings it all back. On the next song, “Cyberdust from Mars,” Stolt takes over on vocals, and do I detect a David Bowie influence here? In any case, Stolt gives it a larger than life feel. “Space Race No. 3” is another good, uptempo number with Edmon. “Man in the Moon” is so commercial pop you might hear it on the radio commuting to work. Edmon imitates Dream Theater’s James LaBrie at his absolute faggiest on “Is This the End?” and makes me want to pummel somebody. Reingold then gets loose on “Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major,” before we kick into “Welcome to Paradise,” whose chorus is Styx all the way. The final track, “Loser’s Game,” sounds like DeBarge meets N’Sync and—I hate to say this—it’s actually pretty rockin’!

Sometimes it is hard to get into a project album, because they are not always meant to be coherent, organic pieces of music. The musicians might simply want to experiment and flex their chops. Entering the Spectra is, to a large degree, a case in point. The album's lyrical concept is not particularly well-defined, the songs are uneven in quality, and the range of musical genres is so wide that it can be a bit jarring as you listen. The one constant is the performances of the musicians on the album (particularly Reingold on bass). And it would be fair to say that there is probably something for everyone on this record, even if you are not a prog rock or metal fan. In the end analysis, Spectra is an interesting diversion, but not a record I can see returning to often in the future.