Arena-The Visitor (1998)

The third album by the British band Arena is one of the most acclaimed and praised neo-progressive records, an admirable work of intelligent fusion composed of exuberant melodies and vibrant rock under an intricate and passionate musicianship. In this new release, the band introduced a new guitarist, John Mitchell, who replaced Keith Moore, becoming a key figure with his heavy riffs and tremendous melodic solos. Added to this are the haunting keyboards of the group's leader, Clive Nolan, who creates multi-layered sounds, grandiose orchestrations, and dreamlike, spacey synthesizers. For his part, Paul Wrightson's passionate, expressive, yet delicate vocals greatly contribute to this concept album reflecting why it is one of the greatest neo-progressive records in history.

Arena-Immortal? (2000)

The British group Arena formed in the mid-nineties thanks to the gathering of a small constellation of musicians from several leading neo-progressive bands. These included keyboardist Clive Nolan (Pendragon), Mick Pointer (Marillion), Keith Moore (Asia), later replaced by John Mitchell (Kino), vocalist Rob Sowden, and bassist Ian Salmon. Their debut album, "Songs From The Lion's Cage" (1995), is a minor masterpiece of neo-progressive rock, followed by other important works such as "Pride" (1996) and "The Visitor" (1998). Two years later came the band's fourth album, "Immortal?", another spectacular record with a magnificent repertoire, most notably the epic suite "Moviedrome", an impressive musical canvas offering a dark vision of life at the end of the 20th century. The style on this new release is darker, heavier, and more aggressive than their previous albums, with sounds that often cross the line from progressive to harder metal. In addition to the aforementioned "Moviedrome", highlights include the majestic and haunting "The Butterfly Man", the chilling "Ghost In The Firewall", and the energetic "Chosen". With this release, Arena once again reached the pinnacle of perfection, recording one of the best progressive rock albums ever made.

Arena-Songs From The Lion´s Cage (1995)

In the mid-nineties, two of the finest instrumentalists of neo-progressive rock, Clive Nolan, keyboardist for Pendragon, and Mick Pointer, former drummer for Marillion, joined forces to found Arena. In mid-1995, they released their monumental debut album, "Songs From The Lion's Cage", considered one of the gems of the progressive rock genre of the nineties. For this first recording, the two musicians collaborated with Marillion guitarist Steve Rothery, guitarist Keith Moore, bassist Cliff Orsi, and vocalist John Carson. Arena's approach on this first release was based on the progressive sounds of early Marillion, with echoes of the great bands of the 70s like Genesis and Yes. The sounds of Clive Nolan's eloquent and omnipresent keyboards, Mick Pointer's formidable precision on the drums, and the outstanding guitar and bass work combine to create an album as spectacular as it is surprising, featuring the epic and progressive "Valley of the Kings" and "Solomon", the powerful "Out of the Wilderness", the melodic "Jericho", and the atmospheric "Crying for Help IV". From this point on, the band would regularly release a series of high-quality works, such as the subsequent "Pride" (1996), "The Visitor" (1998), and "Contagion" (2003), among others, culminating in "Double Vision" (2018), the latest major contribution from this formidable neo-progressive band.