Back in the World of Adventures and the sunny and positive Symphonic Prog of The Flower Kings

Back in the World of Adventures, The Flower Kings' first album, 1995

 

The Flower Kings are a Swedish band founded in 1994 by guitarist, singer, and songwriter Roine Stolt. The band emerged from Stolt's 1994 solo album, The Flower King. The same band that initially accompanied Stolt on tour to promote that album later formed a band called The Flower Kings, consisting of Stolt, Jaime Salazar on drums, Hasse Fröberg on vocals, Michael Stolt on bass, and Tomas Bodin on keyboards.

 

I've written extensively about Roine Stolt in other articles about his various progressive rock projects, including the supergroup Transatlantic (with  Neal Morse, Mike Portnoy and Pete Trewavas) and collaborations with  Jon Anderson of Yes and  Steve Hackett of Genesis during The Flower Kings' Italian tour with Neal Morse and on The Sea Within.

 

Their music is characterized by symphonic progressive rock, blending the symphonic rock of the early to mid-1970s with jazz fusion and blues. They have released numerous studio albums, featuring long songs, complex arrangements, frequent changes of tempo, and positive, sunny, and hopeful lyrics.

 

Various lineup changes have led to many prestigious collaborations, with a lineup that also includes Jonas Reingold. The band has an extensive discography, with many albums released as double LPs or CDs. Their most recent studio album, Love, was released in June 2025.

 

Back in the World of Adventures, here in a beautiful reissue that includes a CD and booklet, is, along with The Flower King, a "prequel" to all their subsequent works as a band, and Banks of Eden is one of their best albums. It's clearly inspired by '70s progressive rock, which I (we) love so much. It's a thirty-year-old album that still retains its charm, beautifully produced and played by great musicians.

 

A fusion of traditional and modern progressive rock with melodic and complex compositions, and although predominantly composed of long songs, it contains catchy and captivating sections, a hallmark of the band's sound. Roine Stolt's guitar work and Tomas Bodin's keyboards, with his Hammond organ and Mellotron, are exceptional.

The opening track, "World of Adventure," and the epic closing track, "Big Puzzle," along with the instrumental "The Wonder Wheel," are top tracks.

 

A debut that was just the beginning of a consistently high-quality repertoire, pure symphonic rock, ambient moments and more intense moments with beautiful guitar riffs. An enjoyable album from start to finish, and despite its length, it never gets boring. Highly recommended!

Note: All links to the musicians' works are in the TAGS under the article title or on the "Artists" page.

Tracklist

1. World of Adventures (13:37)
2. Atomic Prince / Kaleidoscope (7:49)
3. Go West Judas (7:47)
4. Train to Nowhere (3:50)
5. Oblivion Road (3:48)
6. Theme for a Hero (8:33)
7. Temple of the Snakes (1:24)
8. My Cosmic Lover (6:47)
9. The Wonder Wheel (4:17)
10. Big Puzzle (13:35)

Duration 71:27

LineUp

- Roine Stolt - lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, composer
- Tomas Bodin - piano, Hammond organ, Mellotron, synthesizers, flute, effects, mixing
- Michael Stolt - bass, vocals
- Jaime Salazar - drums
- Hasse Bruniusson - drums (10), percussion

Featuring:
- Ulf Wallander - soprano saxophone (5, 8, 10)