Renaissance-inspired from the stunning cover, the third album by the British band Gryphon, released in 1974, is a concept instrumental album based on chess. Instruments like the cromorno (a Renaissance woodwind instrument) and the bassoon, accompanied by keyboards and synthesizers, create a cheerful and evocative atmosphere, giving the album a personality and character that are hard to find in the vast melting pot of lesser-known bands of the era. The excellent melodic ideas compensate for some virtuosic excesses.
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