Stealing The Fire - Roadmaps and Rituals (2026) [Hi-Res]

“The group’s energetically trippy arrangements remain a highlight, especially on keyboard-driven cosmic instrumentals The Ritual of First Joining and A Frost and Hawthorne Winter Charm. Both compositions are thrillingly adventurous, evoking the dark intensity of modern IQ and the mellower playfulness of classic Gong without becoming derivative. The pleasant male/female harmonies and rural textures of Dancing With The White
Bear, Roadside Shrines and Airsphere, in particular, conjure the symphonic and folk rock qualities of Renaissance and Phideaux as much as any space rock or neo-prog predecessors.” JMB. Prog Magazine.

"Sometimes Stealing The Fire skip, sometimes they’re off to garden parties or dancing with white bears through the bomb sites – Dancing With The White Bear is a particular highlight as they paint lines of fire on their canvas. it isn’t all about the keyboards, there’s songs here, takes, tunes, personalities and yes, this is an acquired taste, it isn’t for everyone, and yes the Prog scene these days is rather blighted, way too many not so great bands and some awful ideas in terms of the prog media (and a gig promoter or two) in terms of what prog actually is. Now and again though, now and again a delight like this comes along; Roadmaps and Rituals isn’t a perfect album by any means, it is flawed at times, some of it is almost quaint and it certainly is a throwback to those beautiful early 80s days of market square heroes, speaking ceilings and seven stories fitting into eight."

"Whatever it is they are doing, the three of them do their thing with such delight. Stealing The Fire aren’t perfect, they might be a little dated but then is some ways that humanity, that warmth, those imperfections alongside their obvious joy, their appreciation of it all, all of that makes this album feel just right."