The Flower Kings The Sum Of No Evil

Another stroke of genius. Vastly different from their darker and highly melodic Paradox Hotel and a nod to the jazz of Space Revolver, the happiness of Stardust we are, and the positive melody-writing of Adam and Eve. This album completely kicks out their tendencies to make an album-flow with short songs, intermissions and interludes…

The Flower Kings enjoyed a rather long break following 2007's The Sum of No Evil album and the tour that ensued, with individual members undertaking solo projects or simply laying low, recharging their creative batteries after years of grueling, non-stop work. Naturally, however, this hiatus only heightened fan expectations leading into the band's next progressive rock challenge, 2012's Banks of Eden, which inevitably found the lovable Swedish egg-heads both reveling in and wrestling the characteristic excess, majesty, and hubris of their chosen art form, as expected. Indeed, cynics could easily allege that the album's opening, 25-minute-long "Numbers" is pretty much what happens when a prog rock band starts jamming and simply doesn't bother stopping (nerds armed with instruments gone wild!?)…

Adam & Eve is the eighth studio album by the progressive rock band The Flower Kings. A Japanese edition contained an extra disc which includes the bonus tracks from The Rainmaker bonus disc (the first six tracks), as well as three songs recorded during the Space Revolver sessions. The album has the only appearance of Pain of Salvation's Daniel Gildenlöw as a full-time band member (he appeared on both Unfold the Future and Meet the Flower Kings as a guest) and is the last album with the drummer Zoltan Csörsz before his first departure (he later appeared on The Sum of No Evil). The album cover illustration was made by Argentine artist Ciruelo Cabral.

Roine Stolt's voice is strong, full, passionate, and delightfully accented. The Flower Kings' lyrics are heady, compelling, and hook city. The guitar work is extremely melodic and rates right up there with anything Brian May or David Gilmour has offered.
The ten songs here are split between five instrumentals and five featuring great vocals mingled with extended instrumental bridges and a variety of sonic excursions.
Take the best of Crack the Sky, Pink Floyd, early Genesis, and the slick cool pop/rock of Queen and Prince's 1999, mix everything together in the cauldron of Stolt's vision of world peace, and out comes a fresh batch of magic.