It’s getting epic again: “The Flower Kings” are back
Prog rock legends from Sweden on live tour with proven and fresh forces
If a band deserves the title “epic”, it is without a doubt “The Flower Kings”. For almost 30 years, the Swedish prog rock legends around their charismatic frontman and guitarist Roine Stolt have been enriching the music world with symphonic masterpieces that are once again a very special experience “live on stage”.
Although Roine Stolt has several other projects going on, he can look back on a proud record of 15 studio albums together with the Flower Kings. The most recent work, “By Royal Decree”, was released in April 2022. “It’s fresh and lively, the compositions are bursting with witty ideas and musical twists”, was the verdict of a critic from the leading German hi-fi magazine “Audio”. In fact, the “Flower Kings” show no signs of wear over all these years. The little bit of patina that some of the old albums may have acquired is mainly due to the limited technology at the time of their creation, as seen from today’s perspective. Therefore, the back catalogue of the “Flower Kings” is now being successively restored according to current standards and partly remixed.
What the Swedish prog rock kings will ultimately play during their live tour is, as always, something to look forward to. Fortunately, the often obligatory single hits have never been their thing. And that’s a good thing. Most of the songs of the “Flower Kings” last more than five, sometimes even more than ten minutes and yet never get boring for a second. On the one hand, this is due to the clever arrangements that run through the most diverse moods, similar to an exciting film that makes you forget all about the remote control. On the other hand, the music has an unbelievable stylistic range with influences ranging from classic blues and the Beatles to Yes, Pink Floyd and 1970s jazz fusion.
In addition, another new studio album is planned for September, which will be presented on the upcoming European tour in October.