Taking sanctuary from his ongoing Sanctuary series (and a quick diversion from his band Magenta) to refresh his palette, Robert Reed goes full electronica here, drawing blatantly from Jean-Michel Jarre, John Carpenter and Tangerine Dream. Cursus 123 430 is an unapologetic concept album, with spoken interludes provided by Les Penning, his frequent collaborator, who played with Mike Oldfield many moons ago (notably on Ommadawn). This, however, is Reed’s least Oldfield-esque album yet. Those who moan at him for copyism can now moan at him for copying different people, while those who enjoy interesting journeys through timehonoured tropes can relish the trip and the shimmering, twinkling, scenery.