Presto Ballet is a project that channels Metal Church’s Kurdt Vanderhoof desire to reflect his passion for 70’s Rock. With the release of “The Lost Art Of Time Travel” the band follows up on their 2005 debut “Peace Among The Ruins”.

 

The music on this sophomore effort is mostly inspired by acts such as Yes, Kansas, Genesis and Deep Purple. For the more Metal-minded folks such as myself, the best comparison I can make is to Ayreon, although the music of Presto ballet will never get as “extreme” as some of the passages on those records. Still, like with Ayreon, the tracks on “The Lost Art Of Time Travel” have a tale to tell, which by the sounds of it is generally pretty positive, something that sometimes collides with my Doom-minded self. That doesn’t take away from the quality of writing songs that always seem to go somewhere. In that perspective, instruments always function as a part of a whole, rather than filling voids with endless shredding. In a way comparable, the vocals of Scott Albright fit right in place with the entire feel of the music: solid, very fitting to the much without getting to any sorts of extremes. So even though my musical taste is really too far removed from the material offered on “The Lost Art Of Time Travel”, it’s at least clear that the album has something to offer for those interested in 70’s Prog Rock.