Olexandr Ignatov is a brilliant composer, musician and engineer from Lviv, Ukraine. His latest album release, ‘Forgotten Reality’, is a stunning collection of orchestral pieces. We have been lucky enough to review this magnificent piece of work.
The 16 track album begins with the rousing piece, ‘Adventures To Go’. It is a classical piece with marching strings and percussion filled with urgency. There is a main theme which reoccurs with a comforting familiarity. The horns pull away toward the end and they elevate the song up in layers.
The title track, ‘Forgotten Reality’ feels like a call to arms. It has a menacing vibe, urgent in its delivery, epic and atmospheric. It is a startling representation of score music at its best.
‘Can’t Stop the Sunrise’ and ‘Blue Ice’ are built around the piano and they reminded us of Tori Amos, more specifically the 2007 ‘American Doll Posse’ album. The use of arpeggiated chords in the bass and the melody dancing on top is pure music for the soul.
‘Shock Therapy’ is another favourite track of ours. It builds into a crushendo where the percussion sounds like bullets being fired. The music is so detailed and descriptive. From first listen we could picture an alien invasion in our minds. Towards the end of the piece a drum and bass feel kicks in which is very different to what we have previously heard. This use of layering creates texture and interest to an extremely well constructed song.
‘Rising from the Ashes’ has a sparse opening with one note being played on the piano, swimming in lots of luscious delay. The shift in tempo gives the listener time to breath and take in what they have heard. The closing track, ‘Battle Is Over’ is a gentle finish, completing the album perfectly. It is serine in nature offering: a sense of peace, hope and a new future to build on. The strings and woodwind work in harmony together beautifully and they balance each other with grace and elegance.
Ignatov has many strings to his talented bow and composition is most definitely one of them. He reminds us of John Williams, any one of these songs would fit beautifully into TV, Film and Game placements. We could hear them in season 8 of ‘Game Of Thrones’, Steven Spielberg’s next blockbuster or any war Video Game.
The production and the mastering of ‘Forgotten Reality’ is to an extremely high standard. It has been mixed beautifully with each element being given it’s own space to shine. There is just enough reverb, delay and compression to make each instrument sit comfortably in the mix.
‘Forgotten Reality’ feels like a concept album taking the listener through times of rallying, battles, invasions and finally peace on the last track. This is music to take you on a journey. Leave your world behind and take a trip through Ignatov’s mind of interest, mystery and imagination. If you do one thing today, make sure you check out this exciting composer.
Reviewed by FVReviews August 2018
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