The Band:

No Brass is a project created by Ohio musician Mike Kovacs, who provides the drums, vocals, and musical direction. Kovacs enlisted the help of five other musicians, but as the name would imply, there are no frills in this music, be it horns, keyboards, strings, or flourishes of any kind. Instead, No Brass is a stripped-down outfit that showcases the guitar and bass, and it's best kept that way. The sessions took place over the course of a few years, and was intended to be a studio project rather than a full-time touring band. Their sound might be compared to early Rush, Kings X, or perhaps even the Police at times. What places them in the Progressive world is the virtuosity, dueling guitar/bass interplay, longer track lengths, and the extremely challenging drum performances. Kovacs vocals are deep and pleasant, though without a great deal of dynamic range. In the end, however, it is the guitar tones that set No Brass apart from dozens of other acts. Steve Ronyak, Dave Zupport, and Dirk Garman play in a consistently crisp and non-abrasive style that can be listened to at high volume without prompting for the aspirin bottle. Erol Sommer and Dave Kovacs provide the Bass guitars.

The CD:

"The Crowning of the Sun" is the debut album from the No Brass studio project. Although it is self-produced, the sound quality is excellent, accurately bringing out the crisp sounds. The album sustains a rock tempo throughout, so look elsewhere if ballads are what you seek. The playing is quite energetic without going over the top, and the musicians themselves were expertly chosen. The longer tracks feature tasty instrumental breaks that allow for a more open structure, but the playing itself remains tight. None of the songs appear to be marred by record company pressure for a hit (one of the many advantages of self-production). To quote the web site: "it is a record I am extremely proud of, and has (in my own mind) validated my many years of playing music."

Highlights:
True Passion: Mike Kovacs really opens things up instrumentally on this one, leading with some impressive virtuoso drumming and bass.
The Crowning of the Sun: The best vocal lines and meaty hooks... untapped radio potential here!
The Death of a Drone: A more epic song that should appeal to Rush fans, with its heavy chords and thoughtful lyrics.

Chris Dixon / Prog Net
No Brass-Prog Net's "In The Spotlight"-March 2000
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Missing classic Rush? Or Boston? Or The Allman Brothers Band? Deep Purple, maybe? Well, from the opening notes of Ohio based No Brass' The Crowning of the Sun, you'll think the heavy rockin' 70's have returned. Big guitars, deep bass, heavy drums, open arrangements. None of these songs are rehashes of any specific 70's band, but there are elements of those mentioned and more. It is a 70's sound with a 90's spin - as the song topics are certainly present day concerns.

This is more rock than progressive - at least as we've come to think of progressive. And pretty good stuff to boot. The weakest aspect is the vocals, which aren't that bad. Drummer and guiding force for the band Mike Kovacs sings in a style that leans toward early Geddy Lee, but not quite. Certain sections of certain tracks are more effective than others.

The dynamics of the recording are good - the drums (not unexpectedly) stay up front without dominating. You can hear Kovacs' cymbal work as well. The sound fills out well, the basses of Dave Kovacs and Erol Sommer each taking Mike's lead (Dave plays on half the tracks, Erol on the other half). No Brass features three guitarists, though not all three play simultaneously. Steve Ronyak plays rhythm guitar for half the album, Dave Zuppert for the other. Zuppert and Dirk Garman share soloing credits - again split about half - and half. But, for all that, this album has a seamless and cohesive feel.

"A Star To A Star" has the quirkiest rhythm, just on the rock side of 80's New Wave. It belies a thoughtful lyric, though in no ways unique. Not because you've heard it all before, but because you've probably done it before - stared at the starry sky and contemplated the universe, and the arrogance our species has concerning not only the other creatures we share this planet with, but the universe at large. While the aliens probably haven't landed (that we know of), they are no doubt out there. We cannot assume, however, that they have any interest in exploration - that they've evolved for that to even be a consideration. Well, I'm taking the theme in a direction Kovacs isn't - his assertion moves along the lines of God being more industrious than we give him credit for - that we aren't alone in the universe (I agree, to a point, stopping short of assigning any divine causality to our being).

In more worldly matters, "A World Within" uses the incident at Waco as but one image in painting a picture of separatists, from the inside. And this can be interpreted in two ways - in one view we see the government as the "bad guys," in the other, we see a portrait of a separatist and what might be going through his mind. It is one key phrase that can be interpreted either way: "I look around and see my family / There so quiet there so still." If they're dead, by the government's hand in trying to get at the protagonist, or by his own hand in a misguided attempt to save them from the government's clutches? That isn't clear, as an earlier lyric states: I am not quite sure 'bout my family / But I know I'll take myself."

Not quite "Highway Star," hmm? So, in this they are closer to Rush, in that Neil Peart writes many songs about weighty issues. Of course, this gives the music a small amount of irony -  here you have a rocking beat, great guitar leads..not quite party rock..but air-guitar ops, for sure. This music is deeper than the arrangements would lead you to believe. Subversive!

This is great stuff that grows on you as you dig deeper. I just love the final guitar solo (Zuppert) of the final song "True Passion" - it is evocative without being imitative of every great lick of the 70's. Not truly progressive, mind you - but some really good AOR.
Recommended.

Stephanie Sollow / Progressive World
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Prologue: Another excellent debut from Ohio. "The Crowning of the Sun" is the very first No Brass album. It consists of nine songs recorded at various times and places by the talented drummer, vocalist, composer and lyricist Mike Kovacs with the help of his friends.

The album: On the whole (except for track 6-read lower), "The Crowning of the Sun" is based around heavy guitar riffs leading basic themes into accompaniment with really incredible interplays between Mike Kovacs' drums and Dave Kovacs' / Erol Sommer's bass guitars. I think the drum / bass "duels" on this album are some of the best rhythm-section work in recent years. Mike is an impeccable drummer (and vocalist) whose proffessionalism and virtuosity draw from the best of Bill Ward.

The major infuluence at work is Black Sabbath in the second phase of their early period (1971-1973), though there isn't the silly fantasy themes that occasionally gets in the way of Black Sabbath music (e.g. "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath") at times. There are no keyboards and the arrangement focus is on the diverse guitar solos and interplays with some distinct progressive influences.

Titles such as "The Castle Dweller", "Around the Corner", "A World Within", "A Star to a Star", "The Death of a Drone", and "True Passion" highlight the intence hypnotic metal (such an optimistic kind of doom metal) of all lead, rhythm and bass guitarists furious playing against a powerful backdrop of excellent drumming and singing from Mike. Songs like the title track and "Roll On" indicate the direction of traditional heavy metal, though their instrumental arrangements are done incredibly. The rest track, "The Love Song", is the only more or less mellow composition on the album: this is a quiet heavy ballad with a strong blues influence.

Summary: I have no idea what the other reviewers have said, in my opinion "The Crowning of the Sun" is probably the best Proto-Prog Metal / Progressive Hard Rock album released in the second half of the 90's years. While Mike's vocals are well done, I find the instrumental structures composed by him even far more interesting. As a drummer, Mike Kovacs is definitely Ward's equal. His complex virtuostic playing keeps my interest strongly. Incredibly done solos and instrumental parts. If you have a taste for metal, if you are looking for something different than the traditional Prog Metal sound, go for it. If you like Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne or Metallica (only in the 90's years) you'll go crazy over these guys. Buy this album: it will help open the way for other excellent independent Prog Metal bands!

Vitaly Menshikov / "ProgressoR": Uzbekistan Progressive Rock Pages
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I get a lot of CD's sent to me to review, but this one really jumped out at me. Mike Kovacs' "crowning" achievement thus far is this 9 song, 54 minute labor of love, "The Crowning of the Sun". It's an energetic disc fairly brimming over with tight, hard prog-rock in the vein of the Galactic Cowboys, early Rush, Spock's Beard, or Big Wreck. Kovacs, from Cleveland, Ohio, put it together over a couple of years time in a private studio, using three different guitar players and two different bass players. All the musicians are really top notch. Mike plays some powerful drums, and he sings pretty well too, although hard rockers may have a problem with his voice. It kind of reminds me of Brett Kull of Echolyn, sort of off-kilter, which I happen to enjoy. The multiple guitarist drive this disc, with tasty melodic riffing, crunching and soloing over the tight rythhm section throughout. They sound alternately like Steve Vai, Jimmy Page, and Allan Holdsworth in places. It's your basic catchy groove-based rock and roll, with progressive left turns, long solos, and clean, edgy vocals. Despite being an independant release, the production is great, the artwork is excellent, and I find myself spinning it way more than I would have expected for an unsolicited CD that magically showed up in my mailbox one day for my perusal. It's good stuff. The lyrics are intelligent, if a tad trite in places, but you won't notice unless you actually read them. The self-conscious parts are actually kind of humorous, like reading someone's diary. "A Star to a Star", which contemplates God's industrious nature, has some spiritual meat for those so inclined, although it's a bit off-kilter musically. Standout tracks for me are the title track, "The Castle Dweller", and the finale, "True Passion", which has some really tasty guitar and bass work. Mike Kovacs deserves some recognition for his hard work and talent. No Brass is a winner. Like the liner notes say, "If a musician plays only for himself, and nobody is there to hear him, is he really a musician?" In Mike Kovacs' case, most definitely.

David Taylor / Virtousity
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No Brass is an Ohio-based band playing balls to the wall guitar-driven rock. The "band" is led by drummer and vocalist Mike Kovacs who is joined on various tracks by Steve Ronyak on guitars, Dave Zuppert on guitars, Dirk Garman on guitar solos, Erol Sommer on bass, and Dave Kovacs on bass. There's nothing new here, but the musicianship is rock solid with fantastic guitar playing and a rhythm section that is spot on.

The music is a cross between 70's heavy jamming rock and the kind of stuff shred-meisters like Vai, Satriani, and Eric Johnson produce. But don't read too much into any analogies these names conjure up because there is a variety of guitar styles and sounds on this disc and the backbone that the rhythm section (including rhythm guitars) provides is just as much in the spotlight as the solo guitars. And Kovacs' vocals are powerful, giving the music an extra punch.

The disc has nine tracks and is very much a roller coaster ride from beginning to end. Songs like the opening title track are very much in the Johnson / Vai shred vein, but there's also a more Holdsworth-like style on "Around the Corner". This is a cool tune that lays down a metallic headbangin' groove then the guitar goes into it's Holdsworth styled exploration while the rhythm section pounds away behind.

Tracks like "The Castle Dweller" and "Roll On" have more of a stoner rock feel. "The Castle Dweller" is similar to Black Sabbath but with much better musicianship, though it soon breaks out of this mold and becomes a more standard but kick-ass rocker. "Roll On" is one of my favorites on the disc. It's got that heavy stoner backbone but with a cleaner guitar sound soloing over the top. I love the combination. Another one of my favorites is "A Star to a Star" which is a rapid-fire rocker with a guitar solo that sounds like an organ.

But my hands down favorites are the last two tracks, "The Death of a Drone" and True Passion". "The Death of a Drone" is the headbanginest metal blazer on the disc. Nothing doomy about this at all. Just great kick ass guitar rock. And "True Passion" is a phenomenal rocker that grabs you by the scruff of the neck and rocks you into the cosmos for nearly 8 minutes.

In summary, No Brass are one tight unit with top notch musicians playing solid heavy rock. All the songs are stylistically similar, but there's enough variety to keep the disc interesting and enjoyable from beginning to end. Guitar fans step right this way.

Jerry Kranitz / Jerry's Prog Rock Page
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No Brass, from the USA, is a band moulded around Mike Kovacs who plays drums and sings, writes all of the songs and produced the album.  Also appearing on the CD are rhythm guitarists Steve Ronyak and Dave Zuppert, who also plays some solo pieces as does Dirk Garman, and bassists Erol Somer and Dave Kovacs.

The over the top cover picture of a hippy, sitting on another planet (the earth is in the background), hailing an enormous blazing sun belies the song writing which springs from some serious subject matter - comparisons to Rush come to mind here.

The music's roots are firmly based in the seventies, yet this is not a regressive period copy.  Kovacs takes the 70's feel and pulls it kicking and screaming into a new century, conjuring up a gutsy guitar-led sound.  No, this isn't traditional prog rock (there's not a keyboard within hailing distance) but it certainly is progressive.

Kovacs' voice, although not particularly strong, appears in a variety of guises; from a nasal whine reminiscent of  the Buzzcock'sPete Shelley, through to a Robert Plant inspired style, stopping at various points in between .

Likewise the music.  The first and title track (and probably my favourite number) features the bubbling rhythm guitar of Steve Ronyak, with a great smooth guitar solo from Dirk Garman.  Whereas the next track, 'The Castle Dweller' relies on a fabulous bass line played by Dave Kovacs.  'Around The Corner' is a much heavier piece, but it contains some inspired guitar work which lightens the whole mood and so it goes on ... each track being different from the others, and each having something different to recommend itself.

On the one hand, you can listen to this album and play the game of listing the influences - and everybody will spot different ones.  Or you can simply listen and enjoy the good strong sound ... Long live rock!

Marisa / New Horizons
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I must admit, I wasn't sure what to think of this project when I first saw the package. I thought it might be some "New-Age" hippy stuff. I was pleasantly surprised to find "The Crowning of the Sun" contained some very tasty progressive rock done very well I might add. No Brass epitomizes the independent scene, one guy, Mike Kovacs, who pretty much put this project together along with numerous guest musicians. He seems almost apologetic on his website, but there is nothing to be sorry about, he's put together quite an impressive project.

Most impressive was the musicianship, the players are accomplished at their specific instruments. The songs are intricate and well executed. The lyrics are not bad either. I'm not overlly thrilled with the vocals, although it does fit the songs most of the time. When I say progressive, I mean closer to Yes and Kansas than Queensryche or Dream Theater. It has much more of a 70's feel than an 80's or 90's. The guitar tones are more smooth than crunchy, but it still has a thickness to it. The overall production does sound indepenent, but it's not watered down or weak. In other words, they did very well on what was a limited budget.

There are no songs that are stronger than others, it's true album rock for the most part. Mike obviously is not after a Top 40 hit, but rather to play the style of music HE want't to. I think that takes alot of guts, expecially in today's corporate music cnstraints. Hopefully Mike continues on this trail of putting out music he enjoys playing, because so often that integrity gets lost in the almighty dollar.

Rock and a Hard Place
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This is very much one of those projects that has been worth the wait. First conceived and started way back in 1995, this now finally sees the light of day. This project is really Mike Kovacs backed by various musicians along the way. 55 minutes of rock powered guitar led songs . If you get off on guitars then I would suggest a look at this, there's all you are looking for, songs that are well constructed and power along, not giving the listener a lot of time to let up before the next assault of guitar heaven. This is sure to make an impact on most rock head's out there, "Roll On", "The Death of a Drone" ( that reaches in heavy metal land), and "A World Within" are the better tracks on the CD for me. This CD has been 4 years in the making, and I would guess a life time in the planning, if you are into rock&roll guitars, then a look over No Brass's own web site should tell you all you need to know.

Martin Jones / Acid Attack Music
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The album opens with the title song which makes me think of the Canadian band Third Perkins. This is a strong track which contains a beautiful guitar solo by Dirk Garman which evokes the feeling of a classic Vinnie Moore guitar work. Very symphonic and fluid as well. Also Mike Kovacs shows his great talents as an instrumentalist. The next track, "The Castle Dweller" is more on an average level. It's a good composition with great guitars (slightly reminiscent of Thin Lizzy) though, but it really didn't catch my full attention. Honestly I don't know why.

The album has after the two initial tracks got off to a very promising start. Althought some might not consider this to be pure progressive rock, it is clear that the music contains at least fragments of it. But why bother defining what it should be categorized as? So far as it is good music. I think that is most important. The third track, "Around The Corner", is a roughly edged track based on a rather simple but nevertheless catchy theme. It contains a very nice middle part with a laid back jam. The guitars here are great and once again performed by Garman.

So far the music is characterized by fine engaging compositions and arrangments with very good guitar playing and aggressive drumming by Mike Kovacs. I would say the music is a fusion of several styles, roughly speaking of hard rock and progressive rock but also with minor elements of, for example, jazz fusion. Anyway, here is where the first really good song takes place. "A World Within" highlights the very best of the band. It is built upon a wonderful theme and ends up in a great instrumental climax with great guitars and drumming. It has a heavey metal feel to it but with a dynamic and very personal touch in aspects of structure and content.

There are a few minor odd moments. "A Star To A Star" is a quite strange and eccentric song. In my desperate search for an appropriate description of what this track sounds like, I always come back to think about some cartoon with a runaway train. You know, one with a steam-engine with mouth and eyes which loses it's grip and goes totally wild. Weird, I know. I think you need to listen to it and judge for yourself. Maybe then you will understand my figurative comparison; "Yeah, he's right, here comes one of those runaway trains.....ZAGGADAGGADAGGADAGGA.....this is good fun.....DAAA DAAA!" Anyway, it's a cool song. Also it makes you happy.

The following three tunes, "The Love Song", "Roll On", and "The Death of a Drone" are all good ones but has strongly varying characters. The first is undoubtedly the most varied. It starts off in a quite relaxed mood which developes in a spectacular way as it proceeds. Nice performances by the musicians here. "Roll On" is the most groovy song of the three. It is pretty uncomplicated but it has nevetheless a very interesting instrumental middle part. The last-mentinoned is the most straight forward one. Very much heavy metal with rather predictable guetar solos. My least favourite of the three, but still good.

The upbeat final track," True Passion", has an enjoyable ring to it. In fact I think it is the best track alongside "A World Within". Perhaps the groove stands out slightly more than the melody, but it really doesn't matter. I like it very much indeed. This song is somewhat of a wild final ride where everything is being unleashed by the players. After seven minutes or so, some typical Thin Lizzy semi-synchronized guitar lines take place which perfectly interrups the fast and energetic tempo and carries the song to a nice melodic end.

Conclusion:

An energetic, emotional and very personal journey awaits those who experience drummer Mike Kovacs' creation, "The Crowning of the Sun". Perhaps there should be a warning label attached to this recording, for the energy level is so high that ther's a possibility it will blow one's mind. Basically this is a guitar dominated heavy rock album with a few distinctive marks of progressive rock. Ronyak, Zuppert and Garman provide the compositions with fluid and effective guitar works which fit very well alongside Mike Kovacs distinct drumming. There are several great guitar solos to be found here. The music on this album is characterized by an unmistakable  precision. A precision which raises my expectations high for  forthcoming albums from these highly skilled musicians. Overall this is a fine piece of work and it shows well the seriousness of ambition behind it all. For those of you who are into guitar based progressive-heavy rock, I strongly recommend this album. Well above average. Cool album.

Per Stenberg / Lunatic Fringe
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No Brass is a studio project created by drummer Mike Kovacs of Ohio, but he is also helped out by several excellent guitarists, and a couple of bassists, which gives everything that band-effort feel. I would describe Mike's music as being progressive hard rock. Most of the songs follow traditional song formats, blues patterns, and feature plenty of vocals. But the exception here is that most of the tracks are extended by excellent soloing, and instrumental interludes. The guitars really stand out and feature inventive riffing, breaks, melodic soloing, and multi-tracked harmonies.

This style of music sounds like it would appeal to a larger audience (radio play, clubs, etc.), yet most musicians will instantly notice the interesting musical ideas (like Soundgarden) below the surface. A great mixture of hard rock, with a progressive edge.

Zoltan's Progressive Rock Web Page
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Essentially the project of drummer / vocalist Mike Kovacs (who wrote, arranged and produced the entire album), No Brass plays heavy rock with liberally sprinkled progressive and psychedelic overtones. "The Castle Dweller" is typical of  No Brass's
approach: Heavy guitars and solid percussion drive this show, while Kovacs' singing ties the proceedings together. A true standout track is the seven-minute "The Death of a Drone," a heavy cooker with politically charged lyrics wrapped around interesting music. Exploring this direction more fully may bode well for future projects. No Brass is certainly worth checking out for listeners whose tastes lean toward the heavier end of the rock spectrum.

Bill Knispel / Progression Magazine
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Well I wouldn't exactly call this progressive rock, but this band and the music they play certainly has a bit more to it than your average rock / hardrock / HM band. The music is perhaps closest to that of the 70's hardrock scene and with three guitar players, it's guitars galore with some truly great playing! Drummer Mike Kovacs (who is also the songwriter / producer) is also very good. Just listen to the drumming on a track like "True Passion" and you will know what I mean. There are some really good tracks on this album with some parts leaning more towards progressive rock and even dare I say with traces of jazz fusion, like the middle section of "Around the Corner" for example. Other tracks that are more representative of the overall sound, like "The Castle Dweller" and the latter parts of "True Passion" are to me reminiscent of Thin :Lizzy, not only because of the multiple guitars, but also the way they are played with two or more guitars playing the same lines only in slightly different scales, something that was a Lizzy trademark. Other good tracks on this album include the title track and "A World Within".

This might not be an album for hardcore progressive rock fans who seek complexity and dramatic time changes, but for those of you who like me have nothing against more straightforward stuff this could very well be something worth checking out, and if you're a fan of 70's hardrock and guitarbased bands like Thin Lizzy, then this is almost certainly something you would want to hear! Clearly above average.

Jocke Ohlund / First Light
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No Brass' full length debut album, "The Crowning of the Sun", was a fresh surprise. The entire album is filled with smart thoughtful lyrics, excellent fingering expertise by the three guitarists, great drums and bass by the two bassists. "Crowning" has all the elements required to become a classic: sometimes a normal rock beat, other times jazz overtones. Between the riff intensive stringing, bass, drums and David Byrne / Ian Anderson / Greg Rolie like vocals, "Crowning" will no doubt remain on rotation in my CD player. No Brass has a unique sound all their own and is a band I would recommend to fans of Rush, Dream Theater, Journey, and Spock's Beard.

Joe Keiper / Clevaland Metal
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A studio project initiated by vocalist / drummer / songwriter / producer Mike Kovacs. Melodic hard rock with a touch of progressive. Otherwise hard to label, I hear all kinds of things-bits of Galactic Cowboys, older Rush, Thin Lizzy, Echolyn, Mother Love Bone... the list is extensive and would probably just confuse you. You could say the band lacks some direction, you could also say every composition in its own right is well worth listening to. You'll hear some excellent guitar work here and Mike Kovacs obvioulsy is a gifted drummer, I'm not so sure about the vocals, they are a little thin at times, and acquired taste. Throw in the decent production and it all amounts to...an above average debut. If you're looking for a CD that not everyone you know already has in their collection, check this one out.

Ro Leentvaar / Ro Zone
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All songs were written and arranged by Mike Kovacs and the album starts off with probably the best track, "The Crowning of the Sun". There are good vocals and guitar solos on this track, in fact the guitars on this album are superb as can also be said for the drumming. On "The Castle Dweller" the music is slightly more subdued and gives depth and character to this album. On "Around the Corner" the main tune is a bit average and predictable but is salvaged by some good guitar work. "A World Within" begins with a blues guitar in a similar style to the late, great Tommy Bolin. "The Love Song" has changes of tempo and again reminds me of Tommy Bolin who used to drop guitar solos at a dime a dozen which was shown so well on Deep Purple's "Come Taste The Band", his work with the James Gang and on his solo albums. "The Death of a Drone" has Metallica power chords and wouldn't be out of place on a new Metallica album except that Mike Kovacs hasn't got that bitter growl of a voice that makes James Hetfield so special and really is the key as to why Metallica are at the top as far as heavy metal is concerned. The 7 min. blues tinged "True Passion" finishes off this album as it started with blazing guitar solos but the vocals sound a bit strained. So all in all not a bad first album and if you're into good guitar solos and heavy metal type music then this could be for you especially if you are into the above artists.

Terry Tucker / European Progressive Rock Reviews
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August 1999 saw the release of the first CD of the Cleveland-based band No Brass, named "The Crowning of the Sun". Driving force behind this project is Mike Kovacs as writer, drummer, vocalist and producer. No Brass is essentially a studio band including three different guitarists (Steve Ronyak, Dave Zuppert and Dirk Garman) and two bass players (Erol Sommer and Dave Kovacs). No Keyboards here.

This could best be described as guitar based rock with some progressive overtones. Most tracks come close to the hard rock sound that was so popular a few decades ago. Kovacs has written all the songs and provides some interesting ideas in composition. Most lyrics are OK, though some tracks show a weakness here, but that is usually patched over by the good instrumental performances. Production and arrangement are good. Not bad for a first outing.

Most tracks have a rather basic structure with instrumental sections, but with some very good solos on guitar. The guitarists do provide the best work here, especially Dirk Garman on tracks like "Around the Corner", "A Star to a Star" and the title track. Most tracds feature two guitarist, one on thythm, the other on solo. Bass is also well handled, dominating tracks like "The Castle Dweller" and "Roll On".

Mike Kovacs provides excellent and energetic drumming, but weakens the album by his vocal performance. He brings a lot of emotion to the lyrics, but too many cries like "Oh yeah!" and "Whoa!" become distractive, if not annoying. Personally, I'd like to see him focus on songwriting, production and drumming and enlist the aid of one or more good singers for the next album.

Tracks like "The Castle Dweller", which I consider to be the best song, and "True Passion" have grown on me, so I'm sure I'll play this album again and will keep track of the band in years to come. This CD is foremost a good rock album, but I'm disinclined to label it 'progressive'. But as that term has come to cover so much music in recent years, some of you may disagree with me, as I'm sure Mike Kovacs himself will. I can definitely recommend "The Crowning of the Sun" to those who enjoy older guitar-based bands like Thin Lizzy and Deep Purple, and fans of Rush and perhaps Spock's Beard could give it a go.

Mark Sander / DPRP
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What about some 70's rock? No Brass from Ohio is the brainchild of Mike Kovacs, who took care of drums and vocals on this debut release. No Brass play 70's jam rock with influences of blues, jazz, funk, progrock, good guitar solos, sometimes sounding like Ted Nugent, sometimes like Alex Harvey, sometimes like The Allman Brothers or Boston. If you like guitar oriented 70's rock, you should check this album out because it combines both feelings of the 70's and the 90's and features very good work on guitar. For my personal taste the album is a bit too dry...but then that's a problem I have with lots of releases from the 70's.

Markus Weis / DURP Tales From the Progressive Ocean
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