THE GRAND ASTORIA

The Grand Astoria considers their latest release to be an EP. Normally, I'm respectful of bands' classifications of their releases, even if they're much longer than the usual length of an EP. For example, the 60-minute Tulimyrsky from Moonsorrow is absolutely an EP, with its weirdly scattershot collection of covers and re-recordings. This 33-minute release, though, feels cohesive enough to be a short album, which is why I've placed it here, and not on my Top EPs list. Addressing the substance of this release, it's a stellar slab of space-psych suffused with stoner spirit. Folky acoustic guitars and banjo mesh effortlessly with the astral atmosphere of the title track, and the 10-minute "Njanatiloka" showcases the band's strength at blending stoner metal with complex prog riffs and arrangements. This might be the band's most explicitly spacey release yet, and it's an angle which suits them well.

Review originally posted here: theeliteextremophile.com/2021/01/14/top-50-prog-albums-of-2020-part-2-25-1/

There are times when one is sent an album, after it is played the only reaction is "how on earth am I going to describe that?". The Grand Astoria are a Russian band who describe their music as "Psychedelic jam rock having sex with heavy metal". Not too sure about the sex or metal, but add in blues, punk, Mars Volta, Pink Floyd, 90's neo-prog with 70's King Crimson and VDGG plus a warped sense of humour then you might just get close. Looking at their Bandcamp page reveals more than 30 releases, the vast majority of which are full albums, so these guys are nothing if not prolific, and they have released another studio album since this one came out in 2020.

There is an energy and enthusiasm in this which is infectious, and unlike many releases on this label, many of the lyrics are in English which makes it more approachable for some (the language never bothers me). At times they sound like they are going to Americana with picked guitar but then they shoot off at tangents so one never knows what they are going to do next. Musically they seem to have no boundaries whatsoever, yet whatever they are segueing into or blending together somehow makes sense and the result is adventurous and quite unlike other bands in the scene. Some groups tend to take one band as a starting point and then move from there, but I have no idea where these guys are coming from as it is such a mixed midden of sound. Dirty and distorted in some places, clean and airy in others, this is eclectic yet somehow more mainstream than one might imagine.

With such a huge back catalogue they can be quite a daunting prospect to investigate but why not start with this one and then go from there. Progheads will find much in here to enjoy.

[Originally published at The Progressive Aspect]

Whoa! I can't believe I've gone all this time without being aware of the wonder of Russian band The Grand Astoria, a band that has put out a dizzying array of singles, EPs and albums since 2009, with their own unique take on many different musical sounds and styles - even a song sung in Kobaïan, and a series of (literally) solo pieces inspired by Roscoe Mitchell. The band seems to have a revolving carousel of members, with the only constant being the musical mastermind Kamille Sharapodinov. The only other long-standing members I can discern are Igor Suvorov and Danila Danilov. Of particular interest to some, I'm sure, will be the presence of Gleb Kolyadin (of iamthemorning) on this release. I would love to get inside Kamille's mind and see what makes it tick, but in the meantime, listening to The Grand Astoria will do very nicely. I'm slowly working my way through their discography, after being introduced to the band by From the Great Beyond.

So what do The Grand Astoria sound like? Well, based on what I've listened to so far, there's very little consistency in their sound at all ? and that is no criticism. Indeed, to the contrary, I love not knowing what to expect next from the band. There's not yet been an unpleasant surprise. I guess you could call the band psychedelic, as psychedelia does seem to pervade the great majority of their work - but very rarely in the same guise. The journeys may be similar, but every trip is different. From The Great Beyond was potentially a good starting point for me as it definitely eased me into their world of weirdness.

The opening title track welcomed me to their home, and continues to do so. It's almost a spacey prog version of Violent Femmes, with its vocal and percussive acrobatics and sparse minimal feel. The clean sound disappears in a wave of fuzz as Wasteland follows. The percussion is heavier and darker, the chanting hypnotic and shamanic. Waves of Tangerine and Pink float over the rhythmic barrage, and now there's the galloping riffy intro to Njanatiloka, like a psychedelic Iron Maiden, before erupting into something more like Black Sabbath, and that's just the beginning. It jumps all over the place over its ten or so minutes and is easily my favourite track here. However, while I'm mentioning names, realistically The Grand Astoria doesn't really sound like any of these. It's just an attempt to show how nimbly the band leaps from one sound to another. So let's add some more. How about Queen and Chrome Hoof?

Like many Russian bands I've encountered, The Grand Astoria seem to draw influences from the East as much as the West, which only adds to the eclecticism of their sound. I am kind of reminded of Faith No More or System Of A Down, not in sound, more in the way that the band so fluidly experiments with sound impulsively and indulgently, without it ever sounding overwrought or overindulgent. The way that they translate their experimental tendencies into something quite melodic, and verging upon mainstream despite very definitely coming from the fringes. The way that they subvert their instrumentation and approach their music from unexpected directions. Interestingly, I tend to be mentioning names that are not normally the ones that might come to mind as prog (though if you think they're not progressive, I'm not sure what you're hearing).

By the time Anyhow hits with its unlikely jazz-cum-bluegrass fusion, if you're not ready to expect the unexpected and expect to enjoy it, then The Grand Astoria is not the band for you. Again, I have to reiterate how well they play with the various styles, so no matter how disparate they might seem, they never feel disjointed. The Grand Astoria takes their listeners on a series of ambitious adventures to the Great Beyond, but for sure always returns them and welcomes them back home. The band manages to pack a lot of punch into any track, no matter the length, and not one of the longer tracks ever feels too long. This is perhaps unsurprising when you consider the wonderful The Mighty Few album which comprised only two tracks in its fifty minute duration - both of which are incredible in their pacing and structure, revealing many intricacies and leaving no room for attention to wander.

The track lengths may be considerably shorter on From The Great Beyond (it is an EP, after all), but the multitude of ever-changing sounds and textures are still present ? and still not one ever feels extraneous or forced. Listening to The Grand Astoria from their beginnings really reveals how far the band has travelled to reach this point. While I don't think I could ever call them a stereotypical stoner band, their debut does reveal the band started out closer to those desert (or perhaps tundra) horizons. But the depth and breadth they have traversed since is quite astounding. A lot of the heavier moments still lean towards doom (and there's nothing wrong with that), but some of their composition is almost classical in nature, and this interplays with improvisation (or, at least, a lot of the music sounds joyfully spontaneous). They flirt with jazz, blues and funk, the only constant is the psychedelia - which, as I pointed out earlier, does not present itself in the same way, meaning even the only constant is not particularly constant.

It's possibly worth stating that while the band call From The Great Beyond an EP (because they believe it not long enough to call an album, in the context of their discography), their label (Addicted/No Name), considers it a full length album. Personally, I don't really care, so long as the music is good, and damn, this is good music. The only difference it would really make to me at this point of the year is that as much as I love it, I might struggle to find room for it in my list of favourite albums of 2020. However, if I call it an EP, it's a sure fire contender for the top spot. Whatever you want to call it, this is a fantastic release that is worthy of your attention. It almost passed me by - don't let it pass you by!

"Omnipresence" is the 3rd full-length studio album by Russian, Saint-Petersburg based stoner metal act The Grand Astoria. The album was self-released in January 2011. The Grand Astoria was formed in 2009 and relased their self- titled debut full-length studio album later the same year.

The Grand Astoria play quite the eclectic style of music on "Omnipresence". While the band certainly have their stoner metal elements down, they also incorporate elements from thrash, psychadelia, and punk in their music and actually make it work pretty well. The band are well playing, the album is pretty well produced, and the songs are rather intriguing. I like how the band combine heavy stoner metal grooves with melodic faster paced thrashy riffing. The punky vocals are probably an aquired taste and personally I think they are the weak link in the chain. They are not horrible or anything like that, just a bit one- dimensional and delivered within a limited range. With a more interesting and varied vocalist the music on "Omnipresence" could have been slightly more enjoyable.

...as the album is, I´m still pretty impressed by what these guys are able to produce and I´m sure fans of the more adventurous and energetic stoner metal style will greatly enjoy the album. "Omnipresence" deserves a 3.5 star (70%) rating.