Here I was, thinking that reviewing an EP with some five songs shouldn't take too much time. That is, until I started to listen to HÄLLAS and "Above The Continuum", the opening song of "Panorama". It actually clocks at 21:30 minutes, and takes up almost half the time of this full length album. To be more precise, "Panorama" is the fourth album by this Swedish Progressive Hard Rock band. But that is not even the most surprising part of it all, as what HÄLLAS does is transport you back to the seventies of the twentieth century. They do that musically, as what they write could have come straight from that era. But they also are able to give this album a production that sounds like it has been done in that decade as well.

As for sounds, you had better be prepared to music that will remind you of Peter Gabriel era GENESIS, but also a bit of early RUSH, combined with JETHRO TULL, YES and URIAH HEEP. I know, that is quite the list, but there is no escaping the fact that on "Panorama" you will hear all those influences come by one by one, but sometimes even simultaneously. I really like the fact that HÄLLAS has written and recorded the opening of the album in such a way that it sounds like it was used as a leader for a cop show in the seventies. After 1:36 minutes the synthesizers are used to indicate just emphasize that.

What I didn't realise is that HÄLLAS actually has quite the following in their native country, as they do headline slots at festivals. They might not be the massive ones you know, but still, they are top of the bill. And when you really start to listen you realise why. The music is just right. It doesn't matter is they write a song with a (what we would call) normal length, or if they produce a song that would cover a full side of a vinyl release, not one second goes to waste. Everything these guys play is relevant, adds to the structure and appearance of the track and is able to enhance its listenability and accessibility. Because HÄLLAS might be in essence a Progressive band, they are not prone to lengthy outbursts of solos or intermezzos. On the contrary, they make every second sound as if it counts. And it does. That is the real strength of HÄLLAS on "Panorama".