Maestro Viv Lalu makes a stunning comeback with Paint the Sky

Lalu is back with a new album! And a new all-star cast! Almost seven years after “Live at P60” and a whopping 9 years since “Atomic Ark”, french composer Vivien Lalu could not have produced a better album than “Paint the Sky” for his comeback. With long-time collaborator Joop Wolters handling both guitars and bass this time, Vivien enlisted the vocal, melody and lyric talents of none other than legendary british singer Damian Wilson (Arena, Headspace, ex-Threshold) and to round out the core band, french talent Jelly Cardarelli (Adagio) on a flamboyant drum-kit as well as co-producing the whole affair. Without dwelling too much on the extensive guest list that features illustrious names such as Steve Walsh, Jens Johansson, Simone Mularoni, Vikram Shankar, Jordan Rudess and more, “Paint the Sky” has turned its attention very much towards a colorful palette of (heavy) progressive rock sounds compared to the meaty melodic prog metal of its Lalu predecessors. Like a prog rock version of Headspace maybe, or a heavier, modern version of Saga, that’s sure to turn some heads of fans of quality music of all sorts, as it is nothing short but a masterpiece! Welcome back, Lalu, we hope you’re here to stay! (Also don’t miss out on our upcoming Progtalks Episode with Maestro Viv himself – coming next Wednesday!) Dario