Roz Vitalis is the prog-rock project of Russion musician/composer Ivan Rozmainsky, and Compassionizer is the band's seventh CD release. Ivan handles keyboards, recorders, percussion, and samples on this latest one, and is joined by guitarist Sydius, and Yuri Verba on clarinets. The music of Roz Vitalis is instrumental, and borders between electronic and savage progressive rock. The opening cut "Tragic Fate" is an aggressive piece, somewhat like a collision of King Crimson and Magma, with jagged guitar lines and plenty of synthesizer blasts. A similar ominous & foreboding feel can be heard on "Autumn of Hypocrisy", this time with various keyboard sounds creating the drama. Some of the songs have a more lighter, fusion element floating to the surface, like on "Elusive Goodness" and "Disruption", and the presence of Verba and his clarinet usually contributes a sort of Canterbury flair on some of these tracks. Elsewhere, Rozmainsky's moody and at time eerie keyboard textures steal the show, whether it be on dense & dissonant chamber rock numbers like the title track or dark prog-rock territory such as "Wakatte Kudasai", which has a brooding ambient feel happening as well to go along with the repetitive rhythms and synthesizer blips.
The fact is, much of the music on Compassionizer is very hard to describe initially. It's not till after multiple listens that some of these pieces start to open themselves up a little, and even then, the dissonant and harsh nature of the arrangements don't alwayslend themselves to accessibility. That being said, if you like dark instrumental prog with many layers, this latest from Roz Vitalis will be a good choice to add to your list of future CD purchases.
Track Listing
1. Tragic Fate (7:05)
2. Autumn of Hypocrisy (3:58)
3. Compassionizer (5:21)
4. Elusive Goodness (4:24)
5. Wakatte Kudasai (7:27)
6. Annihilator of Moral Hazard (6:22)
7. Dances of Lost Opportunities (5:37)
8. Disruption (3:41)
9. Train of Parting (Compassion Version) (7:55)
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