It took a lot of time and effort to create "Of Clans and Clones and Clowns", and the final result brings the feeling of a real accomplishment. It was a long, complicated process, constantly laden with a myriad of good reasons to give up or compromise. It probably couldn't be any different, as our goal was a mature, well-produced statement, consistent in quality throughout, and at the same time versatile enough in its various moods, styles and approaches. A creative and diverse Rock/Metal album, exploring vast melodic and rhythmic territories - from ABBA to Zappa, from King Crimson to King Diamond, between East and West and way beyond - in true progressive fashion. Like any reflection of the world we live in, it takes a wild ride over a wide emotional spectrum: sad, funny, perfectly sane, totally insane, very direct, quite obscure, and everything in between. We also had the great honor of featuring the instrumental talents of Arjen Lucassen (Ayreon), Yossi Sassi (ex-Orphaned Land, Yossi Sassi Band), Sergey Kalugin and Yuri Ruslanov (Orgia Pravednikov), as well as other wonderful musicians (see credits below). Our next aim was to ensure that these components allwork in the final picture, and that's the reason why we welcomed one of the best guys on the list to mix and master this work - Jens Bogren (Opeth, Paradise Lost, Devin Townsend). It deserved the best possible treatment, just as you as a listener deserve the best possible quality. The mixing process was far from trivial, and it took some effort to shape everything our way - clear and powerful enough, yet not overproduced. So, if you like what you hear, please order yourself a CD, or the highest quality digital download, to have it the way we really meant it to sound - full-scale and uncompromising. We hope you will have your own exciting experience with the album!
Credits:
Noa Gruman - lead and backing vocals, choir
Yoel Genin - guitars
Constantin Glantz - keyboards, programming, vocals (2,4,5,7,8,13,14), shamisen, percussion
Michael Rosenfeld - bass guitar, sitar, violin
Dor Levin - drums
Arjen Lucassen (13) – lead guitar
Yossi Sassi (10) - bouzoukitara
Sergey Kalugin (6, 11) - acoustic guitar
Yuri Ruslanov (6) - flute
Vladimir Migutin (4) – flute
Gennady Birenberg (1-3, 6) – vocals, backing vocals
Lior Ozeri – bass (9)
Michael Glantz - child's scream (13)
Music, Lyrics, Production - Constantin Glantz
Recording:
Drums and Add-on Vocals - Raz Burg (Tamuz Studios, Israel)
Lead guitar (13) - Arjen Lucassen (Electric Castle Studio, Netherlands)
Flute (6) - Yuri Ruslanov (YUR Records, Russia)
Additional recordings done by the band and guest participants at different home studios
Editing, Premix - Constantin Glantz
Mix, Mastering - Jens Bogren (Fascination Street Studios)
Cover illustration - Vasya Lozhkin (Alexey Kudelin)
Cover and booklet direction - Constantin Glantz
Cover design, booklet and back illustrations - Slavik Riff
Booklet and back design - Gennady Birenberg
Heartfelt gratitude to all the great people contributing to the album and all the wonderful folks supporting, advising, and helping along the way!
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Progressive Rock & Progressive Metal - E-Zine
