Karmakanic is a Swedish Progressive Rock band that formed back in 2002. The group has jumped from one label to another for each of their albums, having released three full-length efforts up to this point. For 2011, the band brings us their fourth studio album, In a Perfect World, three years after the rather successful Who's the Boss in the Factory?. The group has also gone from InsideOut Music, and seems to have stuck with InsideOut Records as their home for this release. With seven tracks spawning a total length of nearly one hour of music, one can only wonder if Karmakanic will be able to outdo themselves from their last release, or even retain the same level of quality this time around.

Like with previous recordings, comparisons to bands like Yes and Genesis can be immediately felt in the group's music, but the same can be said for some more modern Progressive Rock elements from acts such as Fates Warning and heavy synth driven acts like Ayreon. A good deal of this comes from the audio quality of the release. The whole atmosphere to the recording feels dark, but more in a Stadium Rock kind of setting, full of bright lights with a gigantic stage show, all working off a sleek and stylish production quality to give it a very modern sound. The keyboards, however, still seem to feel like they are from an early eighties Rock band like the earlier mentioned acts. The vocals are performed in a clean singing manner, and they do work for the overall Progressive Rock atmosphere and show a nice range. The drums can often be showcased more then the guitars though, which makes sense due to the heavily keyboard-driven sound. The levels to the kit are all at the proper levels, and there's a strong bass presence throughout the release against a heavily twangy guitar that feels more like a lead bassist then a lead guitarist, and that contribution is more along the lines of an early Hard Rock sound, which works nicely against the pollished modern Progressive sound.

The album start off with the fourteen plus minute track "1969", which exemplifies exactly what makes this group sound so good and the whole sleek sounding Progressive atmosphere and quality of the music. Much of the track goes at a mid-pace, but the band really throws in some sudden changes in the sound and speed of the song, sometimes going into a much slower pace that feels like a snail crawling, and can often feel a bit padded out through simple and unneccesary keyboard-based bridges. Overall the song is not really awe-inspiring, though it does bring up the sense of childhood in the music, having a very innocent feel, and it does establish a general atmosphere to the recording that seem to stick throughout In a Perfect World that retains that childhood innocence, as if looking at the world through the music and trying to see the best out of everything like a young child would. For that, the album really stands out and makes you drift back to your own childhood and play with your memories of a time when life was simpler. Whether this was the intention of the music or even the lyrics is unclear, but "Turn it Up" shows it is a concept that exists and is here to stay with it's simpler, but more majestic and innocent sound that will warm the heart of any listener fortunate enough to be in earshot to such emotionally touching music.

While this innocent atmosphere exists through the first three tracks, it seems to suddenly get derailed for "Can't Take it with You". The song has a strong keyboard presence again, but in a manner that seems to cover the bongos or keyboards, depending the version, of a traditional Spanish-sounding song that is used greatly in media to present a sense of paradise, such as the television show Burn Notice. The song has a darker edge to it though after it's start, despite it's lighter, my tango dance style worthy approach and some random gutturals that sound like a legit parody of the Cookie Monster going "la la la" with the song being about how you can't bring money with you when you pass away. There are some heavier Metal moments that do occur during the song as well, and with the way the band blends that upbeat sound with the darker Progressive sound really becomes more interesting then anything else on the recording. This is where the album starts to stick with that darker, more mature tone that is highlighted on "There's Nothing Wrong with the World", and it feels like that childish innocence grows into a more wiser look at the world, trying to see the brighter side of things through a more delusional state of believing that there is nothing really wrong with the world despite the learning of how it all works, which is established on "Can't Take it with You".

In a Perfect World remains this way until the very end when the music goes from a darker approach, to a more adult atmosphere. The music shifts more towards an authentic Blues approach. Musically, the song focuses heavily on an acoustic guitar performance, and a really emotional clean singing performance that captures the passion of the lyrics and the music. It's a saddening sound that sounds more like you've reached the end and accepted the fate, sort of in a farewell manner and saying goodbye to innocence, which is clear when the lyrics literally say goodbye to it. Eventually the bass comes in, and it's not a bad contribution, but it doesn't really feel like much is added at first, and the keyboards can be heard faintly in the background in more of a church organ sound. It continues to build this way until the end of the song when it changes from that traditional Blues sound into a more Blues oriented Rock song.

When you sit down and listen to In a Perfect World, at first it might not strike you as a good album. "1969" takes a little while to really grab the listener, which is a bad thing considering it's fourteen minute plus length, and then you won't really get the idea as to what is going on until the next track, "Turn it Up". Eventually when you realize how the album progresses, In a Perfect World becomes a phenomenal album full of innocence, maturity, and self-realization, all the while still looking at the world through the eyes of an optimist. In this album, the world really is perfect. Sure there are times where you can't help but think Karmakanic did add some passages or bridges to pad out the songs and make them longer, but overall the album is a truly amazing experience that will play on your childhood beliefs and memories of the world being a safe place and always perfect, bringing on more of a mentality from hit shows like The Wonder Years where the biggest concerns were acne, bullies, and taking that girl you've liked for years to the freshman dance, continuing along this path until you feel you're at death's door, but still refuse to believe that the world is really such a tragic place. At least, that's what I managed to get out of the atmosphere, and in reality, it's hard to sit back and say you won't feel the exact same way. In a Perfect World may not be a perfect album in itself, but fans of Progressive Rock will absolutely love this release, and how the music and production style manages to capture many of today's synth driven Progressive acts with early Rock acts that share the same kind of foundation that is utilized today, all to leave the listener with a smile on his or her face as they are taken into their most happiest of places.