Cairo – “Nemesis” | Progressive Rock Central.com

Cairo has released their 2nd album Nemesis, on May 5, 2023 on Spirit of Unicorn Music. I missed the release date, but fortunately, I did not miss hearing this dynamic and full powered album.

Now, this is not Cairo, the San Francisco, USA band from the 1990s. This is the Neo-Prog, Milton Keynes, UK, band, formed by Rob Cottingham, formerly of Touchstone; back in 2016. Rob found one of the UK’s best singers, before she left the band Touchstone, Kim Seviour. He has had to replace the lead singer in Cairo, a couple of times, for various reasons. He definitely knows how to pick a great female lead singer for a band. I think he has found the perfect match for the new sound of Cairo, in Kat. Her voice compares well to one of my favorite vocalists of today: Maiah Wynne, of Envy of None. However, Nemesis was recorded while Sarah Bayley was still the lead singer. She has since left the band. Kat, does sing on Cairo’s new single, recently released by the band Salvation. The video link is included at the bottom of this review.

Cairo, the band, features: Sarah Bayley, on vocals; Rob Cottingham, on vocals, keys drum machines sequencers and SFX; James Hards, on electric and acoustic guitars; Paul Stocker, on bass and bass pedals; and Graham Brown, on drums and percussion.

Rob Cottingham, a Kurzweil endorsee and Nord Artist; states that he was “after a new sound with the same sensibilities, but with heavier passages, as well as more ambient, electronic soundscapes – plus more time spent on crafting the blend of male and female vocals within the overall production of the music.” Mission accomplished!

Before releasing the band’s debut album, Cottingham sent a copy to Steve Hackett, famous guitarists of Genesis. Steve had this to say about the debut, “I very much enjoyed listening to songs from the album Say, by Rob Cottingham, and his new band, Cairo. Intriguing arrangements with amazing layers, strong vocals and blazing guitar work. I recommend this to all”. With those high marks, the band were voted by readers in the PROG Magazine, “Readers Poll” of 2016, as #6, ‘Tip for 2017’. Cairo, also won the “Best Newcomer Award – 2016”, from the Classic Rock Society vote, in the March 2017, “CRS Best of The Year” awards.

So let’s begin:

“Asleep At The Wheel”, is a full-on rocker filled with excellent electric lead guitar playing and riffs, that kick this album off to a fast-paced start. The bass and Rob’s keys, help create a supporting backdrop, but the lead guitars hold control of the mainstage; along with a rumble/tumble feel. Rob and Sarah Bayley perform a vocal duet uniting their voices. They sing, “Clouds in the gloom. You’re the elephant in the room. Holding court with your throng. Don’t know right from wrong. Looking down your generous nose. In your emperor’s new clothes. Wanting followers to kneel. When you’re asleep at the wheel”. Then, Rob plays through a cool keyboard solo, following one of the best guitar solos on the song. Keyboard solos from a virtuoso, like Rob, are everywhere on this album. I also remember so many great ones from Touchstone’s debut album, Discordant Dreams. Later, they sing, “Now, take your stance. Show the way – lead the dance. Join in the fight. ‘Cos, we know what is right. Come take my hand. Fill the void, join my band. It’s time to heal. When we all take the wheel”. The mad keyboard sounds and guitar solo that close this song are worth the price of admission alone. Off to an excellent start! Over 7 minutes of incredible musicianship.

“Tripwire”, opens with Rob and famous Arena, Kino, Frost*, and Lonely Robot, guitarist and songwriter/producer, John Mitchell, singing from what sounds like an echo chamber, “Woah, woah, woah, woah!” Then, Sarah takes the stage and she sings, “You think you’re cool, you think you rock. But to me you’re really out of luck. Between the lines, you think you’re fine. But to me you’ve totally lost your shine. Tripwire in my head. Down your nose you look at those less able, you really don’t give a shit. You know it’s true, it’s about you”. Her voice is one of a kind. Sultry, on key, and in control. No need for yelling, when you are delivering this kind of sound. Sarah sings, “You really make me want to scream – yeah! (but thankfully she doesn’t). “Tripwire in my dream. I do not miss your Judas kiss. A double cross to carry on your back. I think it’s time, a light to shine. To show the world everything you lack. You’re such a hot shot. You’re such a big man – in your own world. You’re such a grey suit back-stabber – I see red!”. Powerful lead electric guitar, dominant bass and perfect drums. The drumming on this one is some of the best on the album. Over 6 minutes of rocking guitar, bass and drum power. Rob’s keyboards are stellar towards the end; then James Hards’ lead guitar joins in; like something you would here from Asia or GTR, or other favorites from the 1980s.

“Glow”, is a massive showcase for the beautiful power of Sarah’s softer side. Her voice absolutely shines very bright on this one. Sarah sings, “Oh, when I’m thinking, and slowly sinking. All my colors are grey. And when I regress into my darkness. Your light shines my way. Roll up and see my show”. And definitely, this is her show! She sings, “All it takes is tea and sympathy. Maybe we can grow. All it takes is a touch of bonhomie. To see the rainbow glow”. Then, another one of the most powerful lead electric guitar solos on the album. Rob joins in with a wonderful synthesizer solo of his own. Sarah sings, with such emotion. Just…magic.

“Rogue”, opens with a powerful lead electric guitar solo, followed by deep bass, and swarming drums. Sarah sings, “Reflections of a childhood lost, their glow into the night. And the politicians bicker; playground fights, in somber grey effigies burnt to ashes, the ashes of yesterday. And the breadcrumbs fall like footsteps. In ever-shifting sands; the ever-shifting sands. Rogue; rogue. Of a life pulled down, the shallows by the tide. The tide of misplaced plans; and the calculated theories threw the gauntlet to the floor. And the exit turned to entrance in the ever-revolving door”. This song is full of more excellent lead guitar and keyboards. The acoustic guitar towards the end is so heart-warning. Rob joins Sarah to sing a duet as the song slowly fades, “As the laughter turned to chaos in the ensuing afterglow. Of a lonely, abused misfit no-one ever wants to know. As you feel an arm around you. To help you through your pain. You turn to see a rictus grin. The reaper looks insane”.

When you are trying to write a song with the title, “The Love”, you really have to capture that emotional feeling in the music and words. Well they do it here. Probably the best track on the album, and one of the best songs of the year. The song’s opening is full of beautiful, piano keys. A powerful love song, indeed. A heartfelt memory of someone passed. Sarah sings, “You were the first to leave this world. It was your time as I saw you slipping away – felt more pain than I could say. Fireworks were your joy, turned a man into a boy. Your spirit as a child. Lives in me – makes me wild”. The electric guitar and keyboard solos rise higher than they do throughout the album; on this song. Sarah closes the album with the best lyrics, “Last of all, one held so dear. Why you left is still not clear. You were strong and kind and true – a willing smile and eyes so blue. But you gave me your spirit. Left my world and me in it. To care like you did. To share the love that can’t be hid”. Then, soft piano and effects take the song to the end. Simply magnificent.

“New Beauty”, opens softly with a very cool guitar chord, echoing, with keys and effects. What a great instrumental opening follow-up to the previous song. Then, the electric guitar solo picks up. Rob and Sarah sing, “Find new hope to run to. Find a rope to pull you, away. Moving through your broken walls. Running down those empty halls. Poor me”. A song, I think, about aging, that we all go through, only they have the right spirit, to get through it. They sing, “Scaffolds round my weaker points. There’s concrete in my broken joints. Held back by my own façade. A clown who slips; falls quite hard. Find new hope to run to. Find a rope to pull you away. The mirror tells me don’t look down”.

“Déjà Vu”, has that cool percussion – like drum sound from Peter Gabriel and Genesis albums of the 1980s. So good to hear that sound again. This track is Rob’s masterpiece. The keyboards that open this one are some of the best, on the album. But James Hards’ lead guitar solos are also magnificent. Graham Brown’s drum playing throughout this album is exemplary. This song is ‘simply irresistible’; to borrow a 1980s phrase. Sarah and Rob sing, “A cold chill down your spine. Like a ghost passing by. A shining glimpse blinding you. Only déjà vu”.

“Jumping On The Moon”, almost sounds like the opening of the famous Van Halen, song. But Sarah and Rob soon jump in to sing the song, along with keyboards and electric guitar. A child’s bedtime story set in a Van Halen – like whirlwind. Who would have imagined that?

“Save The Earth”, is a powerful instrumental song. It is mostly instrumental. It does come with a warning vocal, “Save the Earth from a terrible experience”. It is a call to avoid what all too many times, seems inevitable. The opening repeated warning, cool futuristic sound effects and symphonic keys are a cinematic statement, with breathtaking sound. Rob sent me lyrics that were not included in the song, as a prelude to the closing track, Nemesis. These lyrics should have been included because they were phenomenal. “Nature. It is sometimes like an unbridled stallion – one moment magnificent; controlled; temperate – and we bask in its glory and in… The Beauty. The next moment – wildness in the eyes; frothing at the mouth; limbs flailing around like tree branches in a storm…and we cower in fear from the totally unpredictable repercussions as we move closer to try to tame… The Beast”. They continue, “So, to us… The Human Race. We like to think we can control Nature and Mother Earth through ‘smart-thinking’, controls, systems, technology – and yet in our global biodiversity failures, we unleash a Pandora’s Box of uncontrollable consequences leading to unforeseen chaos, devastating carnage – and then the ultimate cost”. The powerful lyrics continue their countenance, “When we were born, our mother was our world. She gave us life; security; succor; warmth and unconditional love. Would we treat our own mother like this? We are, at times, our own infliction; our own ‘Bete Noire’, – our own… Nemesis. There is, however, one chance at redemption. We have a lodestar glinting in the sky to help us pilot through the self-made gloom; one simple beacon of hope shining brightly like a lighthouse piercing through the dark; guiding battle weary ships to the shore through the thick fog and that… is our capacity … to Love. But – is that enough?” A great question. Hopefully, we will all answer that question…correctly. (By the way, thanks for the reminder of the Bryan Ferry Bete Noire, solo reference. I need to spin that album again),

“Nemesis”, the album closer, is a dynamic, full court press to make this album memorable. All the power of the 1980s Neo prog greats, we all remember are harnessed in this keyboard opening. Like a Marill-IQ-Pendy-Pallas soundscape. Rob sings to dreamy keyboards, “Float your dreams away. You’re with me night and day. You catch me when I fall. You help me see it…all. China in your hand. Turns to dust and in turn sand. It was bound to lead to this. I am my nemesis. Sarah joins in and consoles Rob and us, while this strong, emotional, melody plays us out, “Hear me when I say. You catch me when I fall. You help me see it all. Go gently while you weep. Your child is fast asleep. Oblivious to your tears. And all your hopes and fears”. What a powerful closing!

Nemesis, is a great re-introduction to the musical creativity Rob Cottingham is capable of producing. As a fan of Touchstone and his other works, I am so glad he found a vocalist, in Kat, to sing his compositions to life. Nemesis is a great place to start if you missed their earlier music. The band is full of music that will take you back to all of Rob’s original works, or forward into the new music; Rob and this amazing band are making today.

This studio album was recorded with John Mitchell at Outhouse Studios. Nemesis was engineered, mixed and produced by John Mitchell and Rob Cottingham in the UK , during February of 2022. “The Love”, was adapted from a poem by Deborah Cottingham. Lyrics and words by Rob Cottingham. Band photography by Eckie. Album cover concept by Rob Cottingham and photography by Hoss. Design and art direction by Paul Tippett for Vitamin P. Creative consultancy by Andrew Wildman and Rob Skarin for Crystal Spotlight. Rob Cottingham is endorsed by Kurzwell and Sequential Circuits, and is a Nord Featured Artist.

Track List:
1. Asleep At The Wheel – 7:46
2. Tripwire – 6:13
3. Glow – 3:25
4. Rogue – 5:47
5. The Love – 5:21
6. New Beauty – 7:37
7. Déjà Vu – 3:20
8. Jumping On The Moon – 5:35
9. Save The Earth – 4:14
10. Nemesis – 8:32

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