"Gothic progressive rock" is how the press release describes Noise626's debut album. It's a fitting description for the work of Ant Graham too. Peter Gabriel is the obvious influence here, both in terms of Graham's weary, soothing and (at the same time) troubled vocal and the Genesis-like tendency to let songs meander into non-conformist song structure. To remind us that we are in the 21st Century, the odd trip-hop and electronic effects are thrown in adding to the mixture of acoustic rock (the pretty Mike Oldfield-like guitar patterns of 'Away') and lo-fi grunge (often used on the concept-led second half of the album). The first half of the album is very good indeed; whilst retaining the ability to stir emotions - whether it be hope or despair - the refreshingly original arrangements touch on a unique sound that is rare on modern day independent releases. An encouraging beginning.