Woods of Chaos

As a fan of prog-rock music, when I hear the words "solo piano album", it often makes me cringe. The thought of a well-honed keyboard player going acoustic and showing off their dexterity and, moreso, their ego. These artists tend to be appalling songwriters and such albums are barely listenable despite the instrumental prowess they display.

Thank heavens for Rob Costlow!

One listen to "Woods of Chaos" is enough to convince anyone that Rob is not only a skilled pianist but also a very gifted and (for want of a better word) efficient songwriter. It's not an album where he shows off how fast he can play the piano, but one that displays the moods he can evoke with it. And before you go thinking he's another Richard Clayderman, his writing isn't romanticised and sugar-coated dross at all - it's hard to describe: it's too modern to be classical and too diverse to be new age. What's even more surprising is that a full album of solo piano instrumentals is incredibly easy to listen to in one go - a rare feat.

Play the opening track, "Meant to Be" and that speaks for itself. You'll be back for more - I guarantee it.

Beautiful

One Word = Excellent.

This reminds me a bit of a crisp version of George Winston's Autumn. It sounds like there is the occassional stutter, but that may be me not following the music.

The album is arranged well, strong at the beginning and the end, (my favorite tracks are Meant To Be and Woods Of Chaos) and a touch slower and more reflective in the middle.

Overall, a great album listen to while your doing some desk work and need to drown out the rest of the world. A little too loud and direct for good background during dinner, I think.

Quite nice, and I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys piano.

I like every song I hear, very calming. In todays gotta go right now world, its very helpful to use this to find that peace. I will admit that the songs do sound like "The Sims" for the pc. Its not a bad thing, I love it as it brings back memories.