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██▌ Artist...: Ring Van M÷bius ░▐██▌
░▐██ Album....: Firebrand ░██▌░
▓▐██ Year.....: 2025 ▓▐██▓
▓▐██ Rel. Date: 2026-05-12 ░▐██▓
▐██ Genre....: Progressive Rock ██▌░
░ ██▌ Label....: Apollon Records ██▌
▐██ Source...: CD ▐██
░▐██▌ Type.....: Album ▐██▌░
▓▄████ Quality..: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo ████▌░
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1. Firebrand 9:33
2. The Fever 13:32
3. False Dawn 24:42
47:47
Ring Van M÷bius are a retro-prog band from Karm°y, Norway. They describe
themselves as ''Progressive rock straight from 1971, but made today".
---
While acknowledging the differences, as they are a contemporary band
from Norway, Ring Van M÷bius have the ability to sound like bands from
the 70s. This is a good thing if you like the instruments and spirit of
that era, as long as it doesn't just become a mere stylistic imitation.
Wobbler and Nedlepoint have successfully met these requirements, and
both are also Norwegian, which is no coincidence. With the Hammond
organ, you can hear Emerson, Lake & Palmer, but there's also a more
metal-oriented rock energy, like when Rick Wakeman used singers more
from the hard rock scene, such as Ashley Holt. Firebrand is a good
introduction to this otherworldly atmosphere, with its drums, mini-Moog
keyboards, Hammond organ, classical harmonies, virtuosity, and
Mellotrons.
The Fever showcases a well-crafted composition that gradually progresses
and develops. It moves from Keith Emerson to Rick Wakeman, but once the
curtain rises, a whole world with its own distinct personality emerges.
There are subtle nuances that pave their own way. Thor Erik Helgesen
sings and plays all the keyboards, Dag Olav Husσs plays drums and
percussion, and Hσvard Rasmussen plays bass. Clearly a trio, the
influence of Emerson, Lake & Palmer is present, a progression
reminiscent of Tarkus.
There are moments where the glockenspiel and the keyboard create very
delicate and subtle moments, until the Korg MS20 arrives to create that
great epic atmosphere but sprinkled with moments as if suspended in the
nebula. False Dawn is the central theme, and in addition to the
aforementioned references to Tarkus, there are also elements of Nektar,
although, as we said, it's progressive with a singer in a metal
register. This doesn't prevent it from being epic and flowing with the
music, as happened at times with Wakeman's Journey to the Center of the
Earth. When "the attacks" come, when the trio starts playing
instrumental passages, it's a real treat; there's a certain wildness and
anarchy that remains perfectly directed, following the path the song's
plot demands. Schicke & Fⁿhrs & Fr÷hling could be another point of
reference, as they too were a trio exploring every possible possibility.
It's rare to find a modern jam session that evokes the best of Keith
Emerson, Greg Lake on bass, and Palmer's tight, precise drumming.
Emerson's lyricism and classicism are also present in Thor Erik
Helgesen, who delivers a rather operatic vocal performance at the end of
"False Dawn." But more surprises await us, like a whole classical piano
suite that would make even Keith smile with pride, knowing he had set a
precedent. That change of register...that virtuosity and interpretation
are rare in today's music, and it's good that they coexist with other,
more avant-garde offerings, since they too were once groundbreaking.
--
My previous experience with this band was not ideal, I perhaps was just
not impressed enough to review their previous album, 'The 3rd Majesty',
not because it wasn't hyper talented trio but rather more to do with the
more overt technical displays that have always bothered my enjoyment of
ELP, actually daring to prefer Triumvirat. Speed and inhuman talent have
never electrified me more than subtlety and emotion. That being
dutifully stated, Thor Erik Helgesen is a world class keyboardist that
Emerson would surely approve , Dag Olav Husas can bang a gong and pretty
much any other rhythmic implement put in front of him and Havard
Rasmussen plays bass with invincible abandon.
Being firmly open to changing or even reversing my opinion, I must admit
that I found enjoyment in this 2025 essay, the title track affecting my
positive judgement on multiple fronts from the very fist minute ,"The
Fever" increasingly affecting my body temperature and shifting my
preconceptions away from any past barriers. What happened is quite
simple, the endless variations came unexpected as opposed to
predictable, the attention to constant detail clearly emitting a
maturity that I had not easily detected before. Little inserts of
e-piano, bold swerves that caught me often unawares, even Thor's vocals
were way more polished than before. There was also a well-practiced
decision to concentrate on the bass guitar work to better appreciate the
contrasts between the overt and the covert deliberations, a method I may
have neglected back in 2023. Guilty as charged. This middle track
restored my feelings for the better, solidified by the more ambient and
experimental finale. The Kraken-esque colossus "False Dawn" nails it
finally, and with a nearly 25-minute running time, the trio takes us on
a pan-global tour, dealing out every card in the deck, unhindered and
free of any restraint. There is no doubt at all that the preferred style
is glowingly retro but so is Bach and Mozart , yet the sheer
musicianship cannot leave anyone indifferent. In fact, this album is
better than many of the latter day ELP and Triumvirat albums were the
inspiration eventually ran out of ideas and switched lanes towards
overtly accessible fluff, that ultimately doomed both giants. In my
mind, not sure AI in all its algorithmic splendour could ever hope to
emulate (I repeat, emulate) this torrent of inspired playing. The
chemistry between these three musicians is undeniable, team players with
a mission to continue to boldly go beyond the expected norm , even if it
looks back lovingly to the past for inspiration.
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