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Kev Rowland for Progressor

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This is only the second album I have come across from Russian pianist Yelena Eckemoff, but this is her 23rd since 2010! Born and raised in Russia, Yelena’s mother was a professional pianist and teacher, so she started playing by ear from a very early age. Yelena became a classical concert pianist yet after graduation from the Moscow State Conservatory she kept looking for new styles and played piano in progressive rock and jazz-rock bands. She stopped playing to have a family, and then emigrated to rural North Carolina, and with her children growing up she returned to music.

This album was recorded over two days in Benny Anderson’s (yes, ABBA) studio in Sweden and is co-credited to the other two musicians who were involved, Svante Henryson (cello, double bass, electric basses) and Morgan Ågren (Karmakanic, ex-Devin Townend-live, ex-Magma-live) on drums and percussion. Yelena provided all compositions and arrangements, played all piano and keyboards, and even painted the artwork used on the cover. The last time I heard her I felt it was progressive mixed with classical, and while that is still true with this one, there are also a huge number of jazz influences with Ågren doing far more than just provide rhythm and time as he contributes to the melody and Henryson providing wonderfully warm fretless melody which both contrasts and underpins the piano, while keyboards are used sparingly and generally just to provide backdrop.

It is an album which for the most part is relaxing, and I certainly feel it captures in music the feeling of walking through a large garden and finding different beauty and patches of sunlight as one strays from the path. It is an album which demands attention as it is only then that the hidden layers and nuances really come to light, as otherwise it just becomes background noise, and it deserves far more than that. When Henryson bows the cello it takes on a whole new perspective and Eckemoff allows the other musicians to clearly demonstrate their skills, allowing them into the foreground when the time is right. This is yet another incredibly interesting and fascinating release from Yelena as she continues to seamlessly blend different musical styles. 

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Yelena Eckemoff: Scenes From The Dark Ages (2025) – mini-review

US based artist Yelena Eckemoff is out with the double album “Scenes From The Dark Ages”, and progressive rock is the style explored on this production. It is a bit of a multifaceted take on the instrumental progressive rock tradition we get here, and the composer has been rather creative in the manner these compositions have been set up and executed. We get floating, dreamladen landscapes not too far removed from the likes of Camel here, but also compositions where the organ has a central role to add a more sacral mood and atmosphere to the proceedings. Flowing and elegant jazz and jazzrock is a bit of a staple here too, and all along we get a steady influx of folk music elements and arguably also certain details that adds a little bit of a classical chamber music dimension to the landscapes explored. And while we do get a number of compositions that hone in on the more purebred landscapes described, the norm here is to play around with these various facets and aspects and combine them in a number of different manners. From minimalist jazz and free form inspired jazz movements and all the way to creations reminding more of aforementioned Camel or an artist such as Bo Hansson. A production to seek out by those who enjoy elegant and expressive forays into a landscape that combine elements of and facets inspired by folk music, jazz, classical music and rock inside of an instrumental progressive rock framework.

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