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Sacrament, one of the legends of Norwegian prog, White Willow, from 2000, is a preeminent representative of what I call Northern Prog, the prog that comes from the North (at least from my latitude), from Scandinavia.
A fantastic album of excellent, complex, rich, sumptuous symphonic rock. We know well how, beyond the band's remarkable technical ability and compositions, the atmosphere and Sylvia Erichsen's splendid voice are fundamental to this band.
An album that took a long time to write and arrange, and the resulting songs are characterized by creativity, dynamism, and beauty in every track. The flutes and use of unusual percussion instruments are fantastic.
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The atmospheres are sometimes suspended, sometimes folk (including European not just Scandinavian), and then transform into prog rides, extremely complex and with ever-innovative solutions. The performances are extremely precise, accurate, and intense.
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The symphonic lines of the Mellotron and Hammond organ, the acoustic sections, the synthesizers, the pianos, Einarsen's flute, Holm-Lupo's marvelous guitar playing on acoustic and electric guitars, and the beautiful choirs—everything creates a grandiose atmosphere.
My favorite tracks are Anamnesis and The Reach.
TOP production.
The artwork is faithful to the original in this beautiful reissue.
There are no weak points in this album; it's excellent and has that dose of melancholy that always resides in the soul of the North. Perhaps their best album, but I listen to them often to help me decide; to me, they're all masterpieces. This one too.
The Tracks
1. Anamnesis (9:11)
2. Paper Moon (6:44)
3. The Crucible (7:32)
4. The Last Rose of Summer (3:23)
5. Gnostalgia (10:18)
6. The Reach (10:59)
Total Time 48:07
The Lineup
- Sylvia Erichsen - vocals
- Jacob Holm-Lupo - electric, acoustic, and classical guitars, keyboards, bass, vocals (4), co-producer
- Brynjar Dambo - keyboards and glockenspiel
- Ketil Vestrum Einarsen - flute, recorder, melodica, keyboards
- Johannes Sæbøe - bass
- Aage Moltke-Schou - drums and percussion, glockenspiel
Featuring:
- Øystein Vesaas - wordless vocals (1), co-producer, mixing
- Simen E. Haugberg - oboe (1, 3, 5)
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