Is Nic Meier too nice? The man has developed a unique guitar sensibility, condensing his cosmopolitan influences into a potent melange of eastern European and middle eastern sounds underwritten with a classic rock ear. Yet he often finds himself in contexts that don't bring out this specialty. It must've been great touring with Jeff Beck, but Meier was subjugated as second guitar man. And here, spectacular and much appreciated as Budjana's pyrotechnics may be, they rarely sit well with the more melodic, more nuanced and more acoustic Meier.

Of course, there's a vitality to Flying Spirits, not least in the title track. But the sense of drama, expectation and mystery that Meier sets up is soon swamped by Budjana's big progging electric. Mind you, in Asaf Sirkis there's an elbows out drummer happy to go mano-a-mano with Budjana, while Jimmy Haslip won't be fazed by anyone. Throw in the flights of fancy from Syah's flute and you have an album of prog fusion delight, loud, brash, cocksure and charismatic. But within that mix we know Meier is so much more.