OZONE PLAYER: Frozen Paint on boiling Canvas
2005 (CD, 52:25): Visual Power VP006
Style: Symphonic electronic progressive
Sound: **** Composition: ***1/2 Musicianship: ****
Performance: ***1/2 Total rating: 15

Finnish synth wiz Otso Pakarinen has been around for quite awhile, sometimes dabbing in '80s-style techno-rock, at other times unabashed Scandinavian progressive. This, Pakarinen' fourth disc under the Ozone Player cognomen, is a work that falls somewhere in between. Pakarinen utilizes digital and modular analog technology, and has firmly established himself as heir apparent to the Larry Fast school of electronic progressive.
He's not a "purist" of electronic media like Fast - Pakarinen plays a little guitar throughout, and guests Tim Walters and Esa Hyvonen are credited with winds, hammered dulcimer, and percussion on three tracks. Yet, the blending of non-electronic instruments with Pakarinen's huge bank of synths is seamless. All of this material is fairly jaunty and sequencer-driven. What really catches me, though, is the dash and sparkle of harmonic daring and melodic invention way too seldom heard in electronic music.
His use of hybrid circuitry guarantees a huge palate of moods and textures to work with, and he has the imaginative resource to use the technology to maximum advantage.

John Patrick , Progression