Nautilus: A Floating City

Nautilus began as the instrumental electronic duo of Martin Ludwig and Werner Strätz, forming in 1998. Hailing from Germany, the duo became a trio with the addition of Ralf Obel, but for the band’s fifth release Obel was relaced by Ralf Weiden. On their eighth and most recent album titled A Floating City the players are:

Jürgen Dürrbeck (synthesizers and sequencers)
Martin Ludwig ((keyboards, synthesizer, acoustic guitar, vocals)
Meiko Richert (vocals, bass, keyboards)
Werner Strätz (guitars and harmonica)
Guest artists:
Katja Weigel (backing vocals)
EROC (mastering and additional samples, vocal mix on track 3)

This is a conceptual piece based on the Jules Verne 1871 novel A Floating City, an auto-biographical tale of the novelist's travels from Liverpool to New York City aboard The Great Eastern, the largest iron ship that has ever been built, considered to be an engineering marvel at the time.

The disc begins with the vocal track “Waiting Room�, a nice foray into subdued and melodic progressive rock with a great hook, effectively setting up the rest of the album. Classy use of keyboards combined with exceptionally clean guitar solos. The vocals are pleasant and rather relaxed. Next is “Departure� where pulsating keys and synths weave and wind creating a depth of atmosphere that recalls bands like Tangerine Dream, one of the band’s earliest influences. Now we arrive at the fourteen minute epic “The Great Eastern�. Acoustic and electric guitars are both used effectively, including a highlight reel solo that recalls Gilmour’s unparalleled ‘feel’ for the instrument. With the mellow “Unguilty� the band has produced pure ear candy (meant as a compliment), the guitar and synth solos are particularly catchy and on “Moondance� the band channels the moody atmosphere of Pink Floyd, before a pulsating groove ensues, all the while focusing on that wonderful guitar work that pervades the disc.

A Floating City has been an exceptional find, from a band I was completely unfamiliar with. A true diamond in the rough.

A Sireena Records release.

Discography:
Rising Balloon (1998)
Underground Visions (1999)
Solar Moon (2000)
North Pole Pilgrim (2002)
In Search of Castaways (2004)
Along the Winding Road (2008)
The Mystery of Waterfalls (2020)
A Floating City (2022)

Track Listing:
1. Waiting Room (5:53)
2. Departure (6:05)
3. The Great Eastern (14:16)
4. Unguilty (4:07)
5. Moondance (6:44)
6. Autumn Light (5:03)
7. Mother (4:49)
8. Silver Ways And Rainbows (9:55)
9. The Fall (4:30)
10. Last Signals On Endless Sea (5:42)

Added: November 5th 2023
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Band's Official Site
Hits: 733
Language: english

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