Reviewer Steve Conrad has given Morri’s Rock Boutique four stars on ProgArchives, in a review that starts with the sleeve and works inward — the rocket ship, the angular arch, the bloodshot mechanical eye “in full surveillance mode,” and Ezekiel’s wheel in the sky over a landscape the boutique is the last outpost of.
He calls the record “an apocalyptic COVID-confectionary construction,” reaching back to a 1970s Rolling Stone review that dismissed a Kansas album for its “wedding-cake arrangements” — and reclaiming the phrase, because those arrangements “were exactly what made some of us geeks sit up and pay attention.”
On the band:
“A ‘rock collective’ of accomplished musicians who play supremely well together, and given a spacious production by Ian Beabout.”
Jan Christiana’s bass and vocals are “almost other-worldly” — “Upon first hearing, I wondered who on earth could actually sing that high, with that kind of power and control? Well, Jan can.” Dyanne Potter Voegtlin provides “standout synth and keyboard fills and flourishes that genuinely soar, that color the overall sound with richness and verve.” The review singles out “Storms” and “The Cossack’s Dream” for “the kind of grandeur and sweep of early era progressive and glam-rock music,” the Japanese instrumentation Tanaka Seijin brings to “Lakeview Samurai,” and David Jackson’s saxophone on the film-noir “Hell or NYC.”
The verdict: “Excellently done, catchy, filled with verve and variety, demonstrating fine musicianship from each participant in this production — progressive rock luminaries and newcomers too.” Conrad settles on “3.5 candied stars, but rounding up to 4 thanks to the overall fine effort given.”
Read the full review: https://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=3309134
Morri’s Rock Boutique (Melodic Revolution Records, March 2026) is available now: