Sergey Milyaev (bass, vocals) first formed Algabas in 2007 in the Northern Russian city of Vladimir, with the band name meaning “thinking ahead” in Kazakh. He was already a locally well-known musician and writer, but it was only during the recording of their debut album in 2012 that the line-up crystallised as he was joined by Ilya Frolov (keyboards, guitar), Vladimir Mikhailov (guitar) and Albert Pogosian (drums). The album was originally released through Bandcamp as a digital only release, but it has now been made available by Mals who also translated the album title into English, but that is the only real change as the album itself is performed in Russian.
If ever there was an album out of time then this is it. Realistically this should have come out twenty years ago, as it is definitely to the early Nineties that these guys look for their inspiration. It took me a while to work out who they sounded like on the opening title cut, but eventually I twigged that it was very much like Winter performing the classic “Toybox”. But, they have taken their clue from more than just the Irish lads, and have brought together elements of IQ and Marillion with Pallas and Citizen Cain but have also then thrown in some traditional Russian folk elements, which definitely gives the album quite a twist.
Vocally Sergey is not as sweet and pleasant as many prog singers, but I don’t have an issue with it and like the additional edge. The keyboards are for the most part fairly basic, but the guitars and bass are strong, as are the drums, and while the result ay be slightly off-balance for some, I found that I really enjoyed it. I have actually been playing this album far more than I normally would to review, as there is something here that appeals to me, although I find it hard to put my finger on it. Possibly it is just hearkening back to the early Nineties when the neo scene was so buoyant, as these guys would have fitted right in back then.
www.mals.ru
