Perhaps no other band in the entire history of prog underwent an evolution as lightning fast through the course of three albums in rapid succession as Italy's JUMBO did in only two years. JUMBO recorded and released these three distinct albums in the early 70s which began with the rather uninspiring display of blues rock, followed by a much more dedicated prog album before taking a massive leap in creative ingenuity with its third and final offering VIETATO AI MINORI DI 18 ANNI? which has become known as one of the all-time masterpieces of the 70s prog scene.

This is made all the more amazing since JUMBO formed in Milan as far back as 1969 and only released its rather average proto-prog blues rock in the year 1972 when the genre had more than come of its own having delivered some of the most accomplished albums of the entire prog 70s. While the band's second effort "DNA" was a competent display off tertiary Italian prog, it still lacked the overall sophistication of a true classic however it would only take one new drummer and a year for the band's musical DNA to activate and take their musical performances into the stratosphere.

The sudden burst in musical mojo was the result of original drummer Vito Balzano relieving himself of his drumming duties and simply quit the music business altogether. By chance the band had witnessed a phenomenal drummer named Tullio Granatello playing at a local concert. His skills and unparalleled style simply blew band leader Alvaro Fella away with his virtuosic displays of jazz-infused drumming techniques. After a request for him to fill the slot of the band's freshly vacated percussionist's post, Granatello gracefully accepted and single-handedly inspired the band to up their game in every possible way.

After a month of intense rehearsals with the newly established drummer, JUMBO emerged a completely new band that went for the prog jugular with a unique stylistic approach that remained distinct from the burgeoning symphonic prog sounds of PFM and Banco and equally distinct from the more folk-based Le Orme. VIETATO AI MINORI DI 18 ANNI? ( translates as "Forbidden to Minors Under the Age of 18") was then recorded with the help of cutting edge gear such as the amazing VCS3 oscillators lent to the band by Franco Battiato as well as Aktuala percussionist Lino Capra Vaccina's wide assortment of bells, chimes and unique percussive contributions.

To make things even more bizarre the band recorded in a makeshift studio setting that served as Mussolini's press meeting lecture hall during the years of the brutal dictatorship, an unusual circumstance shared only by Latte i Mieli in those days. The lightning speed progression of the band's style gave them the confidence to experiment with not only the wildly avant-garde but also to explore taboo subject matters such drug addiction, prostitution, social injustices, religion, alcoholism and other non-puritan topics that got the band censored by national radio and television broadcasts. The title of the album refers to the unsavory subject matter that wouldn't be considered appropriate for children. Unfortunately the album came out boeuf the free radio broadcast movement caught traction. Minors who do not speak Italian are presumed to be safe however.

VIETATO AI MINORI DI 18 ANNI? was a leap in ingenuity on every conceivable level with stronger melodies, utterly unpredictable transitions between folky lush acoustic guitar led passages, psychedelic excursions, energetic hard rock outbursts and unorthodox compositional creations. Add to that all the wild experimental production techniques offered by the slickest and newest technological breakthrough courtesy of Franco Battiato's appreciated participation. The album wastes no time getting to business by starting things off in full vocal-led song form before transmogrifying through varying styles all delivered by unusual instrumental interplay, over the top catchy melodies and call and response intensity from the instruments.

The opening "Specchio" alone features a bizarre shapeshifting formula that allows hitherto unthinkable juxtaposition of stylistic differences to coincide, yet organized into such a manner that the phrasing finds a logical reprise for each musical motif only decorated in completely new colors. There album continues with one completely original track after another with each offering a distinct personality of its own. The following "Come Vorrei Essere Ugulae A Te," the ONLY track that found any trace of airplay starts off as a feisty piano roll before morphing into a trippy psychedelic folk number only to be overturned by a raucous heavy rock performance. The ending features an interesting tape speed increase which showcased the band's ingenuity in the recording process as well as the superior songwriting skills. Even the short 2-minute instrumental "Il RItorno Del Signor K" showcases an impressive display of flute and guitar tradeoffs before morphing into a bizarre and even hilarious Mediterranean cafe music silliness.

The majority of the album never loses the element of surprise nor the instant hooks of a memorable excellently ever-changing melodic procession. "Via Larga" continues the process however it's the 7-minute plus "Gil" that really stands out as the oddball of the album. Initiated by lead singer Alvaro Fella after the recording process left about 8 minutes of time to fill. The result was a psychedelic jam that featured an acoustic guitar and dreamy mini-moog with the help of Battiato's VCS3 space machine.

The addition of the chimes and bells made it sounds like a comic trip in the spirit of raga rock only drenched is freaky lysergic psychedelia making it one of the most unexpected curveballs that entire album had to offer. While originally a 20-minute cosmic free floater, the band was forced to edit it down to just over 7 but unfortunately didn't think of keeping the entire piece for future posterity. The track is accompanied by Fella's contemplative lyrical prose only this time semi-narrated. The freeform folk style evokes the freewheeling 60s communes much more than what JUMBO dished out on the previous tracks!

The final three tracks: Vangelo?," "40 Gradi" and "Noi" jump back into full on progressive mode with endless variations in drumming techniques, stylistic approaches, instrumental interplay and of course controversial lyrical delivers which of course were only sung in the Italian language. Church organs melded with psychedelia, jazzy interludes ceded to hard rock heft and stop / start ostinato elegance traded off with light breezy flute solos. The band had mastered the art of dynamics shifting and thus featured many alternating motifs within a fairly uniform rhythmic and melodic framework. No other band can i think of mastered the art of soft lush folk one minute and then raucous filthy guitar hard rock the next only followed by classical piano virtuosity and then who knows what next! Remember! This was WAAAAY before Mr Bungle :)

It goes without saying that JUMBO not only crafted its best album but also delivered one of the absolute pinnacles of progressive rock period. The album is flawless in execution, groundbreaking in its approach and startling in its unique delivery system all without sacrificing those attributes that cemented it firmly in the world of Italian progressive rock. Despite existing for another couple of years before the band ceased to exist, JUMBO never recorded again leaving this one prog rock legacy from 1973 behind as its' crowning achievement and one of the most memorable moments of classic Italian progressive rock. This is easily one of the top 10 Italian prog albums of all time and a personal all time favorite of any musical genre. Perhaps i'd even dare to say one of the best albums ever recorded in the entire history of recording music at all. Yep, it's that good and it only gets better every time you give a listen. While it's an instant four star love affair, time will only reveal the subtle genius on multiple levels.

Another rescue job from the patron saints at Musea Records who have been digging up long lost obscurities from the past and bringing them to life for the first time. While neo-prog was sweeping England in the early 80s as the comeback revival prog du jour, in France the zeuhl style unleashed by Magma never really died out although outside of the biggest acts such as Magma itself, the zeuhl style remained an underground sensation that very few were paying attention to at the time. The Bordeaux based PSEU was just one more act that never had a chance to release its material even though it recorded an album's worth of material in 1981-82.

The band existed from 1978 - 1983 and consisted of Philippe Dulong (guitar), Christophe Codet (drums), Eric Baron (bass), Thierry Jardiner (keyboards) and Christian Coutzac (vocals) and like all the underground sensations was active on the specialty club circuit which kept the zeuhl genre evolving ever further away from its parent source from Kobaia. This band was really obscure and lurked in the shadows even during its existence. While there is no doubt Magma was the primary influence (as is mostly the case with zeuhl acts), PSEU was one of the more uptempo outfits to tackle the Carl Orff inspired genre with its repetitive grooves and hypnotic atmospheric elegance.

PSEU was also one of the more energetic bands which while not exactly incorporating large stentorian choirs, offered thundering bass grooves, avant-prog inspired guitar sweeps sounding a bit like the works of early Present as well as crafting a more melancholic vibe that could easily point to the early moments of Univers Zero. While the instrumentation is sparse, PSEU made the most of it with only Christian Courtzac who offers both wordless utterances as well as mostly frantic spoken dialogue in French. The album begins with shorter tracks such as "Biguine" which are right out of the Magma playbook but at the end of the album three lengthy tracks of over 10 minutes each offer more diverse influences ranging from jazz fusion and the theatrical antics of Ange.

Overall PSEU was one of those between the cracks zeuhl bands that never really developed a distinct style that is unabashedly original however the material these guys did record was just off enough from anything especially in the use of guitar and musical motif arrangements that it offered a different shade of similar acts such as Uppsala, Abus Dangereaux and of course Magma itself. The things that it offers apart from other bands included avant-prog leanings ranging from the early RIO of Univers Zero and Present to the more discordant guitar work of Robert Fripp in King Crimson's most experimental phases and the Ange like vocal escapades. While Magma purists will surely deem this as close enough to be considered a mere copycat, careful listening will reveal glaring differences and since the performances are excellent and the compositions are enthralling for anyone who enjoys the micro-differences within the zeuhl genre will find themselves enthralled.

POTEMKINE formed in Toulouse, France early in 1971 and started like many bands simply playing covers of English rock bands like The Rolling Stones and Deep Purple. Initiated by brothers Charles and Gilles Goubin, together the two acquired a taste for the jazz rock and fusion explorations of bands like the Weather Report, Mahavishnu Orchestra and Miles Davis but residing in France was also exposed to the underground sensation Magma who brought the wild world of zeuhl into existence. After many years of stumbling around eventually POTEMKINE found a true band formation with brother Philippe Goubin joining in on drums and bassist / vocalist Dominque Dubuisson also added. With the addition of violinist Xavier Vidal, the first lineup was complete and the two-track debut EP emerged in 1974.

It took two more years but the band pushed ahead and recorded its first full-length FOETUS in 1976 on lauded Pole Records better known for its wild French take on progressive electronic than jazz rock but nevertheless the release of the album found the band finding larger playing venues and exposure courtesy of the brilliant Tartempion non-profit which organized concerts. Delivering a much mellower style of jazz rock fusion with zeuhl rhythms and wordless vocals, FOETUS seamlessly melded the placidity of the Weather Report with the more French sounding zeuhl sounds of Zao only with a more robust flow of diverse cadences and musical motifs that were occasional punctuated with a bit of guitar heft for contrast. The Jannick Top style fretless bass slides gave it a distinct zeuhl flavor as do the scattered vocal appearances.

More jazz rock oriented than zeuhl, FOETUS showcases a dreamy procession of jazz-fueled workouts with scat vocals adding an extra element of support. The music mostly drifts on in slo-mo but occasional outbursts add some spice. Despite the jazzy chord progressions and nods towards varying fusionists, POTEMKINE featured no horn section or wind instruments with the bass, drums and keyboards seeing the most action. The violin creeps in from time to time for assistance in the spicing it up department and the same with the guitar so mostly FOETUS features sparse instrumentation and tends to engage in repetitive grooves that don't offer as much diversity or contrast as one would expect from anything remotely tucked into the zeuhl category. The track "Cedille" sounds more like a classical piano recital with no other instrumentation to be heard. Remote references to England's Canterbury Scene are on the fringe but never really heads in that direction.

Overall FOETUS is a bit too tame for my liking as the entire affair seems like the band as only getting its footing in its new chosen style of operation. The compositions are particularly weak and the use of the violin seems like wasted potential. While the pianist clearly showcases a competency level worthy of a the prog rock status, the rest of the musicians don't seem on top of their game. While the band hints at zeuhl it never really goes there either. It's more of a traditional and rather bland display of underwhelming jazz fusion that sounds neither cohesive nor particularly well crafted. It's not a horrible listening experience by any means but in category of progressive music that was cranking out some of the most exhilarating musical acts of all time, POTEMKINE's debut seems a bit lackluster in comparison. The only track that really gets my juices flowing is the two minute finale "Cycles." OK album but not great.

"Nomzamo" had already embodied a stylistic mutation in IQ's musical approach, largely shedding the languishing progressive structures of the second half of the 80's for a more digestible and commercially friendly orientation in which legends such as Yes (Big Generator) and Genesis (Invisible Touch) were also immersed, and which the band's fourth album, 1989's "Are You Sitting Comfortably?", ratified.

Although Martin Orford's futuristic opening keyboards accompanied by Mike Holmes' delicate acoustic notes on the persistent and critical "War Heroes" give it an interesting start, the album once again opts for accessible melodies and a dangerous ride over pop precipices such as the dreary "Drive On" and "Sold on You", or the insipid "Through My Fingers", pieces that do a disservice to the band's legacy.

And both "Nostalgia", the instrumental that precedes the mysterious "Falling Apart at the Seams" and "Wurensh", an intricate piece that Holmes rounds off with some beautiful Spanish guitar arpeggios in its last section, provide the best of the album with their reminiscences of the band's early work, before closing with the hypnotic and conformist "Nothing at All".

"Are you Sitting Comfortably?", the second and last work that featured the correct vocalist Paul Menel who left the band together with bassist Tim Esau after the promotional tour, is probably the most discussed and misunderstood album in the discography of the Englishmen, partly because it follows the aseptic path of "Nozmamo", and partly also because of the successful return to their sources that four years later from the subsequent "Ever" onwards redirected the path of IQ.

2.5/3 stars

2.5 stars. CASTANARC are a Neo Prog band out of the UK and they released three studio albums in the 80's then one in '98 before going doormat then returning with a compilation album in 2020 before a return with a new studio album in 2021. I have their first two and prefer the debut to this one. Mine has a different cover art and they also changed the track order on the re-issue and Discogs calls this release a cdr.

You could say this is more mainstream than the debut but the biggest disappointment is the 80's drum machine they use. They also program bass patterns along with drum patterns here and drums sound awful, your a better music fan than me if you can stomach this. Vocals are okay and so is the music otherwise but it's like there's an elephant in the room with the beats. This is more of an Art rock/pop release I'd say than a Neo Prog record like the debut and the debut had a real drummer!.

Very much a disappointment when I was hoping for an improvement over the debut and instead they went in a different direction. A couple of guest guitarists were added as well on here.

— First review of this album —

Third album (and third review) for master keyboardist Ben Bell, a seasoned player who has graced a multitude of fabulous albums from artists such as Drifting Sun, Kashgar, Gandalf's Fist, Broken Parachute, Tom Slatter and Fusion Orchestra. His previous recording, 2016's "Five of Cups" was an excellent work which garnered high praise on many sites, accentuating not only his superlative ivory tickling technique on piano, organ and synthesizers but also a rather skillful vocalist to boot. "Hourglass" is therefore 7 years in the making, and it has all the requirements for surpassing his previous efforts, as tasty as those already were. Ben is ably assisted by drummer James Chapman on 4 tracks as well as featuring the current wunderkind of Prog, the incredible Pat Sanders of Drifting Sun (we are all pals allegedly) doing a Moog solo on one piece. The album is tentatively to be released on May 1, 2024, but I got an advance copy to review. Ah, connections, connections.

"Wake Up "could very easily be a dawn's early light etude on piano, a gentle awakening from the torpor of rest, ready to face a new day with all its intricacies, even in routine. A fitting segue into the first of three epic tracks, "Carpe Diem", seizing the day in Latin, where the gleaming ivories resonate with new found vigor, the athletic drums in full support, the solo voice ably assisted by choir manifestations, even daring to hit those very high notes with apparent ability. Clanging guitars blend well with the tingling piano, staying true to the intense arrangement that exudes awareness, with dreamy transitions that remind the listener that the clock is ticking. Ben's vocal skills are seriously on par with his talent on multiple instruments, the man can play like the wind, but the voice is quite impressive.

The first of two short "Promenade" pieces provide moments of reflective introspection, the piano setting the stage for "Blind Faith", the second 10 minute+ rocking extravaganza, where the wicked Hammond organ now takes the spotlight, Ben is regarded as one of the finest in Progland, and the raging arrangement is the ideal platform for an initial synthesizer flurry from Sanders, setting up his pal on the churning beast with a series of wandering bursts. Ben tosses in some grittier vocal lines, electric guitar ablaze, as the pace subtly morphs into another choir fantasy, symphonic in its melodic bearing before collapsing into a dissonant vapor. The disillusionment of failed trust.

The childlike piano on "My Home Is Tomorrow" is hopefully positive 'as the road stretches onwards', but the voice becomes agonizingly intense, the tempestuous organ blast even more incendiary, the glowing Moog embers billowing like ashes falling from the skies. The sizzling guitar scorches mercilessly, the drums pounding in unabashed fury. Once again, saner minds prevail as the dust settles, the ornate piano and the voice now delicately in acceptant submission. The cymbals thrash as if to say goodbye to today.

"Promenade 2" is quite different, gently insistent chaos, perhaps inspiring some kind of maritime accident, as the third epic "Castaway" kicks into gear. The delirious electric guitar splashes onto the cosmic beach, a bruising bass undertow and drum concussions, like coconuts dropping from the sky. This is the longest track, a vivid solitary musical adventure, 'drifting into serenity', letting the axe lead the way, as the raising vocal growl implies a certain finality, perhaps even anxiety. A gust of sonic wind and the ambient piano waltzes over the electronic orchestrations, a bright disposition that still carries a sense of impending consequence. The elegant keyboard spins its soothing magic remarkably until it gets shoved aside by the organ tormenter, obstinate and ominous, as the stormy arrangement transitions back into density and courage in the face of despair. A furious guitar swerve sets the sun back in its hiding place, as "Wake Up (reprise)" recalls the infallible notion that night has once again arrived and perhaps, the time has come to rest those bones beside the fire.

4.5 flowing sands

SIRIUS were a four piece band out of Germany and this is their debut from 1982. They had two keyboardists and this sounds just like Peter Gabriel era GENESIS. And considering they existed in the first half of the 80's they surely met a need with GENESIS going in a less Symphonic direction. These guys are Symphonic all the way. Some compare them to FLAME DREAM out of Switzerland another band I just couldn't get into. Now another reference was Germany's own TONIC with that 1980 release and I love that one but it had horns and they were far from copying another band's sound like SIRIUS.

Vocals in english here and we do get flute like early GENESIS. They have a warm sound and I think many would like them but I just can't get past the hero worship. It is what it is. Such a profound statement I know but the bottom line is that this is very good music that has no originality about it which I'm sometimes okay with depending on the album, so there's that. Ramble on.

3.5 stars and better than their second record from 1984.

STEAMHAMMER were a hard rocking Blues Rock band out of the UK releasing four studio albums with "Speech" being the final one from 1972. They were a five piece on their first two records, down to a four piece on that third album, and to a trio here of bass, guitar and drums. They brought in a guest singer as well as Keith and Jane Relf to add backing vocals and Keith helped produce this. Keith and Jane being from THE YARDBIRDS of course. Interesting that when STEAMHAMMER broke up the the guitarist and bass player joined Keith and formed ARMAGEDDON releasing their sole album in 1975.

There is nothing bluesy about this album at all. It really is a one-off in their discography of three long experimental tracks that has more to do with Krautrock than anything else. Maybe that's why the Brain label in Germany signed them here. Brain was a hotbed of some of the best Krautrock bands out there back at this time. The music is dark and not very melodic most of the time. Experimental all the way especially the guitar, but the bass player uses a bow on his bass and man does he get some ugly sounds out of that. Priceless stuff.

We get the side long opener "Penumbra" which is a great example of what this album is all about. The bowed bass, high pitched guitar theatrics, it's dark and experimental and vocals come and go, mostly go. Oh that bowed bass is distorted at times. Nasty. "Telegram(Nature's Mischief)" is the 12 minute opener on side two and after a brief spacey start that squeeling guitar takes over as the vocals sing in a determined but odd way. Man this is different. A gong signals a change and there's few of those as this plays out. The guitar lights it up late but mostly we get this annoying high pitched sound. Harmonies too from the Relf's after 5 1/2 minutes then a calm and some repetitive stuff.

The closer is the 11 minute "For Against" which for the most part is a drum solo starting around 3 minutes in. So there's that. This is one of those albums that their fans would have dismissed after what they had created before with the previous three records. For me this would have been the album to bring in a different fan base if they had kept going and in this style of music but this truly is a one-off for them, and being so experimental not a popular one either. My Krautrock membership won't allow me to go lower than 4 stars here despite not really having that enjoyment factor I demand out of a 4 star record if you know what I mean. This was a talented band and I can't just say they were out to lunch here, or were they?

While Breton instrumentalists GWENDAL eventually became best known for their blend of Celtic folk and jazz, this quality is barely evident on their debut, which in re-releases was named after the first track. This is mostly a series of traditional jigs, reels and slow airs propelled by flute and violin, inasmuch as they are propelled at all. By this time ALAN STIVELL and TRI YANN had already issued seminal releases from this neighborhood, and CLANNAD and HORSLIPS had served notice from the northern extremes of the British Isles.

GWENDAL tries to sound spirited, and really, with the uptempo cadences and flutes how could one not at least partially succeed. Unfortunately, apart from the skirt lifting flourishes of "An Dro Nevez" and the reflective wonder of O'Carolan's "Planxty Burke", this mostly colours within the lines, like early GRYPHON on diluted uppers. Elsewhere, when they do cut loose, it brings to mind their overindulgences with minimalism which would mar later releases ("Deu tu Ganeme"), while numerous other tunes offer fumes that never quite ignite ("Patrick's Day"), firmly shackled by the confines of numerous setlists of Sunday afternoon seisuns. That said, the dispiritedly named closer "Irish Song" would raise even the differently abled out of their seated prisons if only for 3 minutes.

While I may take issue with later Gwendal and their tendency to repeat themselves more than a radish in a GERD sufferer, their first album is mostly just a "We better throw our hat in the Claddagh ring before it's too late" proposition, and is thus weak in a different but just as valid way.

For the casual lover of progressive rock, it may seem strange that nations like England, France, Italy and Germany were so prolific in how many bands they produced during the freewheeling 70s while others like Greece, Portugal and Spain seemed to be woefully absent from prog party. It has to be remembered that many of these nations were under the control of authoritarian regimes who restricted artistic expressions with an iron fist. No nation fitted this more than the Francisco Franco dominated Spain who ruled with impunity from 1936 to 1975. Once this tyrant finally died in 1975, suddenly Spain was free to engage in an entire world that had passed them by including the golden years of prog that had only recently peaked and still lingering on well into the latter half of the 1970s (but declining quickly).

Many bands soon got in on the act including the lineup of José Rafael García (guitar), Randy López (bass), Rosca López (keyboards) and Rafael Zorrilla (drums) who had traversed the Franco years from 1971 to slightly beyond in 1978 as the band Expresión delivering a mix of psychedelic and hard bluesy rock but in 1978 the members suddenly shifted gears and changed their name to MEZQUITA (means "Mosque" in Spanish) and transmogrified itself into one of the most accomplished progressive acts of the entire Spanish prog scene that erupted in the latter half of the 1970s. While the band existed from 1978-83, MEZQUITA only released two albums, the first of which RECUERDOS DE MI TIERRA ("Memories Of My Homeland") is considered a Spanish prog classic.

The band emerged from the Andalucían city of Córdoba which historically was a crossroads of cultures as well as an Islamic stronghold after the Umayyads conquered it in 711 and would remain so until the Castillian-Leonese king in the year 1231 recaptured it and brought it back under the jurisdiction of the Spanish Empire. Despite all the battles and booty plundered throughout its history, the city and region has left an indelible mark on the Spanish culture existing in the region where Arabic, Moorish and Spanish influences forged a musical truce which would become the global musical phenomenon flamenco which in the 1970s was utilized to create a new style of progressive rock called Rock Andaluz of which bands like Triana, Veneno, Cai, Imán Califato Independiente and MEZQUITA would develop to put Spain on the map with its own unique style of progressive music.

The band's debut RECUERDOS DE MI TIERRA was released in the summer of 1979 and displayed the region's rich cultural heritage fortified with flamenco, Arabic and Moorish influences that had made Andalucía's traditional music so exhilarating. The band crafted an amazing display of adapting these sounds to the world of crazy complex prog rock and in the process unleashed one of the most defining and daring displays of virtuosity in all of the Spanish prog scene of the era. While a good five years late to the original prog party, MEZQUITA wasted no time and went for the prog jugular with RECUERDOS DE MI TIERRA with dazzling time signature rich guitar workouts, ELP inspired keyboard freneticism and crazy twisted compositional meandering all kept in check by the traditional melodic underpinnings that merged the present with the past.

The blistering title track immediately sets the stage with Arabic music scales luring the listener in like a desert mirage before jumping into a high tempo, time signature fueled frenzy with lightning fast precision and impeccable instrumental interplay and competent vocal deliveries in the Spanish language. The album while offering a few moments of placidity for the sake of catching one's breath hardly lets up in its 36 minutes playing with six tracks blurring the distinctions between flamenco rock, jazz and the most demanding strains of progressive rock in the vein of Gentle Giant, Yezda Urfa or the Mahavishnu Orchestra. With a galloping rhythm section stampeding full force like a herd of spooked cattle over the plains, the soloing delivers a lightning bolt approach whizzing around the rhythmic processions. The musical richness was fortified with guest musicians providing a string section along with several violins and a cello often sounding a big liker a spaghetti western.

The Spanish prog scene was utterly unique standing proud and distinct from its European counterparts and although thwarted by political totalitarianism was allowed to erupt into a frenzy of creative expression for the short time that prog was still in fashion however the best years had been missed and most of these bands including MEZQUITA only squeezed out a sole album or two as their creme de la creme before financial pressures forced them either to give it up completely or to adopt the model of dropping the complexities altogether and delivering a more mainstream mix of rock or new wave. Unfortunately MEZQUITA did exactly that and while not abandoning its signature sound altogether, watered it down enough to be of no interest as heard on the 1981 sophomore album "Califas Del Rock." While leaving only this sole example of Rock Anadaluz at its most proficient and wildly unhinged, RECUERDOS DE MI TIERRA has become a cornerstone of the entire Spanish 70s scene and a reminder that had this nation been allowed to participate in the golden years of prog that it would've more than produced some of the top acts of the entire prog 70s.

MIND MOLD EP

The Calgary based MIND MOLD is the darkened bleak creation of Robert LaChance (guitarist of Canadian dark grind devastators WAKE), Will Bjorndahl, and Ryan Kennedy (of Calgary-based avantgarde grind anomaly Seminary) who together released this sole EP in 2017 and then returned to the spawning fertile hellish ground from whence they came.

Although a mere 21 minutes in length with only five caustic tracks to sample, MIND MOLD's self-titled concoction courtesy of the Sentient Ruin Laboratories follows the modern trend of heavy downtuned dissonance guitar chords accompanied by anguished screams of pain and sludgy post-metal drifting processions that conjure up the most menacing of atmospheres and blackened doom metal fortified with thick noise walls of reverb and sustained feedback.

A trudging journey through the bleakest musical expressions possible, MIND MOLD's self-affirming companions to be a blender's worth of various extreme noise / hardcore / metal bands such as Neurosis, Red Harvest, Blut Aus Nord, Today Is The Day, Rorschach, Jesu/Godflesh, and Swans existing in a torturous harmony is actually the most accurate description anyone could possible come up with although i'd add the spidery guitar chords are more out of the Deathspell Omega camp.

In the end MIND MOLD sinks to a depressive new level of skronky pasty-metal style sludge that is really hard to categorize by normal standards. The corrosive creepy crawl of the bantering din is akin to a shoegaze act fornicating with a vitriolic disso-death band like Ad Nauseam, Ulcerate or Pyrrhon only slowed down to a snail's pace of funeral doom metal with bands like Esoteric and Evoken coming to mind. Overall a grotesque mutilating journey of the soul into the darkest recesses of the musical gutter but delivered in a way that makes it all feel so good.

Following in the footsteps of the modern wave of French black metal, Germany's VEHEMENZ formed in 2010 in Hammelburg with the unusual lineup of six members that consisted of Letharg (guitar, vocals), Monolith Aversion (guitar, vocals), Furor (drums), Inclusus (vocals), Obscurus (bass) and Aquarius Igneus (guitar). Although technically still in existence so far this sextet has released only one self-titled album in 2014 that came out on the MDD label which has spawned many underground metal artists.

Forged in the fiery pits of hell, VEHEMENZ which features members from various previous bands including Krew, Atopie and Demgoroth unleashed its debut of ravaging black metal that offered a taste of jangly spider guitars of the Deathspell Omega playbook while evoking various German bands like Bethlehem and Agrypnie as source inspiration. Likewise the band showcases a frenetic tremolo based guitar style reminiscent of the typical second wave black metal scene while alternating slower passages with more outlandish rampages.

The band's claim to fame is that it hosts three guitarists which all work together to assault the senses with heavy riffing, spooky arpeggios and distorted dissonance and dismay. The percussion varies from fully fueled blastbeats to more contemplative lackadaisical time keepers just chugging along. Unlike many black metal albums, the bass is quite distinct as the instrumentation allows for cracks in the flow for every sound to rise out of the crevices into an aural spectral range. Most compared to Agrypnie for its song structures, the band's overall sound is like a murky mix of atmospheric black metal, blackgaze and post-metal.

At times the music is caustic and at others very epic sounding with the concluding 9-minute track "Der Traum ... Im Chaos Verient" offering a more relaxed procession through the moods and dynamics VEHEMENZ delivers on their sole release. For whatever reason this band stopped cold after this 2014 debut and has been M.I.A. for the last decade with only vocalist / drummer Furor emerging in the band Heimleiden since. Overall VEHEMENZ delivered a solid black metal release but unfortunately the album also doesn't really stand out significantly in any particular way. Despite the three guitar shtick it's mostly not even apparent that three guitars are clamoring away rather than two. Decent and competent but not original enough to be considered any sort of classic by any means.

3.5 rounded down

I don't know much about this band but judging by the music they must be Pink Floyd's biggest fans. Many bands have tried but few succeeded. It's all in the details you know: the lazy pace of the drums, the dreamy synth waves, some guy talking in the background, and those crystal clear blues guitar licks that are as bright as a puppy's eyes. Yes, this band really got all that nailed.

As to the songwriting they missed the clue completely though. The albums is made up of an endless sequence of short tracks strung together in 4 larger movements. Most of it sounds like an ode to 'Shine On', almost as if it's a premature studio outtake right from 1974. The melodies are not quite there, the guitar is searching for that brilliant sequence of notes that would stick in the world's collective memory for decades to come, but no. Finding them it doesn't. Kudos to the keyboard player though whom I'd swear is the real and unmatched mr. Wright in person. It actually made me check out 'Wish You Were Here' for the first time in ages.

THE ENDLESS RIVER. It's kind of a cool name for a band, but naming their debut album 'Pink Floyd' is maybe a bit of a risk, not that they make any attempt to hide their main influence, but actually using that name, I'm not sure this won't end in some kind of lawsuit from mr. Waters.

Way back in the 70s I was really fascinated by Gary Boyle's guitar playing ... pretty much like Allan Holdsworth, John McLaughlin or Larry Coryell. No, don't want to compare them from a stylistical point of view, I only like to highlight an extraordinary spirit which units them all. This album has been part of my vinyl collection ... until I decided to sell (nearly) all my LP's to an enthusiastic collector. Some time ago I came back to this by accident and noticed that a modified version exists in the meanwhile released on See For Miles. This means the album title as well as the track order have been changed and some remixes were included too.

I'm sure you feel the same sometimes? Someone mentions a band or artist and then you immediately associate this with a special song? When it comes to Gary Boyle respectively ISOTOPE it's Deep End - my absolute favourite. And so first of all it's some spacey flavour which attracts attention. I mean the intro before the machines begin to proceed really. Here were have a proper proportion of improvisation, however interweaved with a tricky arrangement. Speaking of a groovy fundament which is interrupted by some wonderful relaxed interludes with subsequent piano and guitar solo excursions. I love this song! Gary Boyle at his best, no doubt! But to make it clear, he's far away from a dominance.

Due to the fact that we have two keyboarder equivalently acting here, Zoe Kronberger and Frank Roberts, I'm not able to say which part they play. Sometimes it sounds close to Jan Hammer. I like the groovy dynamic on Crunch Cake where some other songs are coming more from a popular jazz rock territory like Fonebone or Pip Dream which partially is close to Joe Sample's Crusaders. Sliding Dogs Lion Sandwhich is a nice bonus surprise, especially dedicated to this release ... and fantastic on top of it! Well, an improv track with some avant touch. Probably a leftover from the original recording sessions and simply considered to be too weird?

And now to this remixes ... there is nothing new to state practically ... to be honest, it took some time to make friends. Nothing new concerning the compositions - but for one or two it might be interesting to notice the brilliance as for the updated sound quality and the presence of keyboards and guitar especially. Nowadays, with an interval of more than 30 years (and while also demanding an higher standard probably) I'm still positive about the album's spirit - 'Deep End ... Plus' is essential, a fine recommendable jazz rock/fusion effort.

Brian Ellis came to my attention through his band ASTRA but most recently with that band folding he and Conor Riley have a new band called BIRTH. Brian has many solo albums but this is the first under the name BRIAN ELLIS GROUP. His "Quipu" record from 2011 is a masterpiece of Jazz/Fusion mixed with psychedelia and closes with a Zeuhl number, it is awesome! He is a music fan like us and an incredible multi-instrumentalist. And yes a Producer and a wizard in the studio. Electric piano is his instrument of choice here with synths and organ added at times.

The "Escondido Sessions" involve three drummers with one I'm not familiar with but we also get Hurley from ASTRA and Marrone from BIRTH as well as Mast playing bass from BIRTH and the wild card Shiroishi from CORIMA on sax. I was interested to see what Ellis would come up with here and he's gone down that rabbit hole called Free Jazz and I make no bones over the fact I just am not into this style. To over simplify it, it's Jazz music with a horn player wailing over top in a relentless and often dissonant manner right Pharoah Sanders? So the CORIMA guy does that throughout here but this guy is sure talented offering up some really cool sounds that had me shaking my head. It just gets annoying after a while when there's little in the way of melody.

My favourite part of listening to this 35 plus minute album is the drumming. Flat out so good, the purposed style and with Miles coming to mind right away on the opener with the electric piano with reverb and sparse bass and sax not trumpet here but yeah "Bitches Brew" with the atmosphere as it takes it's sweet time. So much of the time the music sounds distant but if not for the sax domination I'm going 5 stars for the musicianship alone. Just my tastes of course but this is a 4 star album and one of the very few in this style that I appreciate like this.

Brian Ellis has done it again and he's on the El Paraiso label here so mastered by Jonas Munk and art work by Jakob Skott but produced and recorded by Brian Ellis. Another very impressive work by Mr. Ellis.

This is interesting. A big change from the predecessor. For people used to the more traditional sound of prog, with lots of organ and analog synths, developing a more symphonic, melodic and spacey sound, it will be an improvement over the predecessor. As for my own opinion, I disagree. I think the band lost a little bit of the flair that made their music captivating in their debut, with all that ecletism and although not hugely innovative, at least original sound.

Space Cabaret seems to be a somewhat concept album. At least, the first four songs are presented as a part of a large suite with a Space theme. The most experimental part of this suite is Archway 272, that shows some changes and is a showcase of their new sound heavily reliant on keyboards. On the other hand, I think the band lost a bit of energy in this new style, and while Song From the 4th Era is a great song and A Distant Thought, a Point of Light is also beautiful, they lack the quirkness that made songs interesting in their debut. These songs remind me a bit of Omega in their least prog songs in the 70s.

The second side has two long songs, that are the most interesting, with some long organ solos, a mix of styles (even a little bit of funk in Dream) but unfortunately they are not strong back-to-back. As if they have five or six minutes of great material, but padded it with a bit of less inspired music.

Too bad the band didn't survive the lack of success, because they had creativity and talent to maybe make a few great records still, had they continued. But, although this album sounds more like the dominant prog sound of the 70s, it is a bit less interesting than their debut. Maybe the fact that this album, being easier to compare with the top prog bands, shows more its flaws, while the freshness of their debut leave a better impression. Nonetheless, it is still a very good album.

Let's just start here by saying that this band just keeps progressing and gets better and better with each release. No easy task as their previous effort 'Black Rain' was an outstanding offering, well worth checking out if you haven't already. This one, arguably, is better still. It is filled with beautiful arrangements, melodies, and instrumental excursions that are at times haunting, other times invigorating and uplifting. The lyrics are catchy and intelligent, often highlights of the songs. The vocals are most enjoyable and pleasant. They are strong when warranted, appropriately soft and aethereal at times, with plenty of engaging harmonies. This band is a master of songcraft for sure! I seriously wonder if this group of artists could produce a bad song even if they set out to do so deliberately.

This album, like the previous one, is highly accessible, but has plenty of cross-over prog aspects such as tempo changes, instrumental shifts, and different sounds and moods. There is plenty of variety to keep it interesting over repeated listening. That being said, some may tend to say this is more on the soft rock & pop side, and this is arguably so. But be thinking in terms of later years Moody Blues, Alan Parsons Project, early Beatles, some solo David Gilmour, Pink Floyd, pre pop ELO, early Supertramp, Blackfield, and others in this vein. There are more influences that are not coming readily to mind, but you should get the idea. The outstanding achievement is that while you will catch glimpses of these influences, this is no knockoff band. FoF has a definitive and unique sound. The conclusion is that, if this is somewhat more pop than prog oriented, it is highly elevated, sophisticated, and has a musical integrity and degree of complexity that doesn't insult your ears or intelligence. One can only hope this album gets the exposure it surely deserves!

So, some thoughts on the tracks...

8mm: FoF have a knack for starting their albums with a great opening track and this one is no exception. Here we have the title track and what a way to start! This is nearly a perfect song. Starts with pensive piano over projector sounds. Anyone with a little age on them like me remembers these noises and it creates an uneasy DeJa'Vu and a sense of loss for days gone by. Full instrumentation quickly follows with the opening lyrics soon following perfectly encapsulating these feelings. About 2:15 the tempo changes and there is an instrumental escalation that captures the sense of emptiness and frustration that comes from being able to recollect the past but not bring it back, and then to conclude, it returns to the lovely opening melody and lyrics, and fades out. Prog oriented enough for me. I'll say it again, a nearly perfect song. Hard to believe, but there is better yet to come. (10/10)

Collateral Damage: Okay, another nearly perfect song, albeit in this case more on the pop side of things. Starts once again with a tinkling of the piano and then full instrumentation following, nice acoustic oriented guitar work building up to electric guitar with some pleasant, restrained soloing. The catchy lyrics and hooks drive the earworms in deep. If you don't want to sing along with the chorus after a listen or two there must be something wrong with you. Perhaps a tiny bit repetitive, but it's just so good that you won't care. (10/10)

Overture to Flame: The shortest track, and the only instrumental, and it is way too short. Starts with a striking guitar riff over light synth wash, drums enter to up the beat, and then a synth rhythm follows that raises up the Alan Parsons vibe in a big way. If you like the old APP instrumental tracks, you will love this. It is unfortunate because it is so good, that instead of exploring this instrumental line more fully, it drops off quickly to fade into the next track. It is an overture after all, the warmup and lead in for what is to follow. We'll lean this one to the prog side. (9/10 Docking a point because it is too short!)

Flame: So here we roll into the longest track of the album, and arguably one of the less pop and somewhat more prog like ones. According to their web site, this is the first cover that they have ever done, and they chose a good one. I looked for the original to compare them, but couldn't find it, so I'll venture to say that it is a bit obscure. In any event FoF seems to have made it their own with their signature way of constructing songs. This one starts slowly with nice acoustic guitar, almost with a hint of a Spanish melody, slowly builds and then ballad type lyrics and vocals enter around 1:45. The music drops back to acoustic guitar and slowly builds up again. The arrangement is very nice with some upfront bass and enjoyable drum fills steadily moving things along. About the 6:00 minute mark the beat picks up out of ballad mode and starts to take flight, the intensity builds to its outro fade out. Another great track. (9.5/10)

Jump This Wall: This was the one that was a grower for me. It's curious that this was the case really, as it is a very good track, musically interesting and upbeat, with even a touch of brass laced throughout. The male and female vocals add an extra dimension, and the lyrical content is timely, touching on 'being locked up in a lock down', seemingly alluding to the contradiction of having freedom to move and at the same time dealing with so much isolation at the same time. All good and well. Here though, was my problem, the 'I'm having a ball trying to jump this wall' chorus which is prominent throughout the song didn't really work for me. Although a catchy rhyme, it just seemed clunky and awkward. It even annoyed me a bit. But after a few listens to the album, what lyric kept popping into my head? Yeah, this one. Go figure. So, it's a grower. My lowest rated song for this album, but still very good all in all. (8.5/10)

Don't Lose Your Spirit: This is a big one for this collection and for FoF in general, starting with a great instrumental intro for the first 2:30 that slowly keeps building in intensity, pretty rocking for this band! Then suddenly, a big tempo change but still with a strong beat, and vocals enter. The blend of male and female singing makes this full and rich sounding. Another chorus here that you can take home. Last minute ends with yet another contrast, a quiet contemplative tone with a slow brooding vocal fade out finish. These guys are just so good at what they do. Yes, another near perfect tune! (10/10)

Funerals: This is my number one track here, and may in fact be the actual perfect song in this offering. This one checks all the boxes for me. While still cross-over and immediately accessible, this has definite prog roots with some nice shifts and variations, but it's long enough to develop the themes and sections to satisfaction. Starts with a slow tempo, and just slightly eerie tone. The vocal carries the feeling further, with guitar coming in to further enhancing the eerie flavor. A little further and the synth enters just building things up more. At about 3:45, there is a big tempo change and the mood shifts to a more happy feeling but with an organ underneath keeping the slightest hint of the eeriness, and then a memorable acoustic guitar lead over the top. Very nice! Drops back to bring the vocal full cycle with the opening flavor but just a bit more lifted up in intensity. Lyrics in this song shine. On the one hand you can relate to the idea of unrequited attraction, but on the other hand there is just a bit of creepiness given the context. Leaves you wondering. A great song! (10+/10)

Silently Raging: Starts with a light synth roll and percussion, while spoken word vocal touches on the growing loss of privacy by facial recognition, followed by a female lead vocal with male backing, so there is a different and warm feel to this. There is a bit of edge that picks up the anxiety of the brave new world we are all facing. Some nice lead guitar in this one to good effect, but always in control, never unrestrained. This is followed by a second spoken word section that this time touches on trying to allay any concerns of our being monitored by the powers that be. Timely stuff, and another strong track. (9/10)

Instillers: Starts with a sort of Genesis atmosphere, with synths similar to their Duke era sound, but quickly grows into a big up tempo arrangement. Big guitars, bass, synths, and drum propulsion. Every instrument is sounding distinct and powerful here, well mixed. Lyrics regarding the madness of mankind's course and poor interactions with one another sets the tone. The musical arrangement is intense, at least as intense as it gets on this album, and the ultimately positive message works well with it. (9.5/10)

A New Home: This is a beautiful duet in a mid pace ballad with just a bit of a jazzy vibe. This band makes these songs seem so easy to make. They sound so simple, yet there is a delicious subtle complexity and sophistication in the musical arrangements that is undeniable. It is just another example of how it so easy to be absorbed right into the FoF musical universe and just get lost in it. The lyrical theme centers around the plight of refugees. The predominant essence of the music is a mournful, longing overtone that has a sense of despair, yet it has enough uplift in it to also carry a ray of hope. Just so well done. Another very strong song for sure! (9.5/10)

Life is Like the Weather: The slowest, simplest, and most stripped down offering on this album. This one raises the ghost of early Beatles type ballads. It is also short like a 1960's single should be, catchy, warm and immediately likeable. A most classy and elegant closer. These folks sure know how to transform their sound in a myriad of ways and do it so well! (9.5/10)

In conclusion, this album is extremely high quality in most every way. Don't miss out on it! It's truly dumbfounding that it hasn't received more exposure. In my book, there are four nearly perfect (10 pt) tracks, another four (9.5 pts) that are just shy of this mark, and the remaining three receiving high marks as well. The production is extremely high quality, clear and vibrant, with every instrument easy to pick out and follow. Nothing muddy here at all. The arrangements are superlative, a combination of top tier song writing along with prime musicianship that extolls the talent of these artists. Everything here works together in a logical cohesive way, yet each song is strong enough to stand alone. The songs channel various emotions through both the lyrics and the melodies, creating a most refreshing experience, one that you will want to come back to frequently. This is definitely a five star effort in the cross-over prog category, highly recommended, and absolutely essential if you are into the accessible end of the prog wheel house!

Quite often prog rock fans look into those more obscure bands trying to find the great lost gem of progressive rock, and fail, since there is hardly something like that. Even so, many albums can be quite enjoyable. And it was more or less what happened to me when I came across CMU Open Spaces album. Luckily, the CD was not a "unofficial" Russian release.

CMU music is very ecletic, with heavy jazzy and bluesy leanings, but also some psychedelia, folk and experimental touches as well, not unlike many other offerings of the era. The band features a male and a female vocalist that share vocal duties, sometimes together in the same song, but mostly alternating between songs. The more experimental songs, which are also the two longest ones, are the most interesting in a progressive point of view. Chantecleer is more rock side and Open Spaces is more experimental, unstructured. Both great songs.

The other songs are also interesting, ranging from good to great. Highlights are Henry, with lots of changes, strong jazzy overtones and quite interesting lyrics; their rendition of Pharoah Sanders' Japan, with more subtlety than the original, giving it a nice Japanese traditional folk vibe; and Mystical Sounds, with its psych touches and nice flute work.

All in all, it is an album I like to come back to it frequently because it is well recorded, well played, has interesting ideas, and not very derivative (I particularly enjoy the usage of clean guitar tones and the strong rhythm section). It even had some songs that became instantly remarkably in the first listen, which is a boon in the genre, since it is often that albums are good but you can't remember any song of the album after a few listens.

Ornette Coleman is a legend in Jazz circles putting out albums since the 50's and the man can play the sax. He also creates very difficult music that I would suggest is Free Jazz here other than the 2 short tracks which come across to me as Avant/Jazz. Far from the easy listening, smooth Jazz that was being released in the second half of the 70's. This music will clear a room guaranteed. Basically a five piece with two lead guitarists surprisingly along with bass and drums and of course Ornette's constant wailing on the sax.

This will be a short one and I agree with Easy Money that it would have been refreshing if Coleman had let the guitarists have some space to do their thing. This to me is an unusual recording as even the drums are different sounding along with those guitars. This really is out there and not in a good way in my music world. And I was surprised that there' aren't more horns on here although Robert Palmer adds clarinet on the short pieces.

Yes I've wandered too far from home when it comes to Jazz, this is Free Jazz with some insane sax throughout. There should be a warning on the cover of this album. When I agree with Easy Money on the rating at least I know I'm in good company. I know little beyond Jazz Rock and Jazz Fusion I'll admit.

1. Darkest Hour crimsonian stoner prog psyche atmosphere 2. Ominous Signs with swirling guitar on an airy new wave synth base 3. At the Gates synths, do you want some here, pronounced space tune with the melancholic violin, brightened up; its like King Crimson chance or not 4. Dark Days sung and haunting tune on a cottony Asia, especially for the guitar solo; odd, 5. Lonely Landscape is worth the strident and eclectic metronomic space tune, redundant, hypnotic 6. The Long Night vocal by Angel, track on Yes, Asia, UK

7. The Quasi Effect for the BOF Miami Vice for example, fruity, well-crafted and consensual sweetened theme 8. The 11th Hour well from the looks of it we are in full matching mole for some fruity jazzy psyche; here again the guitar solo is highlighted between two space synths from Flash Gordon, very new wave synths 9. Between Two Worlds with the atmosphere that sinks into the 70s psyche genre; vocal which can recall the Archangel, air well perched 10. Distant Thunder continues with a synth from the time of special effects... spatial, hard to write that, kitsch time! The flowing marshmallow solo 11. Dark Money very 80's again with Joe who enjoys playing a tune that I would have liked to hear on the BOCs of yesteryear 12. For All to See variation in the tormented Eric Serra style where the bass shows that it can be primordial and that we too often forget; the enjoyable, dazzling guitar solo 13. Beyond Reason again a keyboard base and a percussion forward, the guest must be a drummer!

2 bonuses on CD on 2 flagship tracks featuring Billy on a light piano with I Saw the Light and on I'm Not in Love the flute for the finale of an album to be taken for what it is, a great reunion of musicians who come here to just have fun without trying to make a hit; They understand that prog is very outdated these days!

The last review I made for Todd Rundgren's music was nearly 2 years ago. Good lord that was a while ago. I still fully believe A Wizard / A True Star isn't really a good album after all this time, and even stated that I'll not touch another Todd Rundgren album again. However, conveniently enough I manage to still lay a finger on one of his works due to an album swap, and, well, let's just say I kinda back peddled on my statements a bit, since now I am fairly interested in what he has made.

Initiation, the sixth album within Todd Rundgren's studio discography is much like any other record he has made, featuring lots of music crafted with the intent of adding as much space to a vinyl as possible. This time, though, instead of putting a lot of filler onto one record, he decided to strip things back a bit, and only add 7 full-on tracks. 6 tracks with more normal lengths that showcase his more prog pop rock sides, similar in vein to bands like Supertramp and ELO, and 1 massive 30+ minute electronic epic on the second side.

Right off the bat I already liked this a lot more than A Wizard / A True Star, since now I find there are less mediocre tracks here to sit through to get to some of the more better stuff. In fact, this record only really has one bad track on here, being Born to Synthesize. I will get to that later, but most of the tracks here are a lot more dedicated, and may even rival some stuff off of his Utopia project.

My favorite tracks are more on the first side, with my particular favorite being Eastern Intrigue and The Death of Rock and Roll, being these very fun progressive pop-like tracks that combine the prog with elements of more commercial genres (The Death of Rock and Roll being classic rock n' roll, and Eastern Intrigue having elements of soul and funk). I also really dig the epic of A Treatise on Cosmic Fire, which I think gets very close to being my favorite Todd Rundgren epic, aside from The Ikon of course. It feels like proto-80s prog electronic music, where I can hear stuff that can be related to some 80s Tangerine Dream albums, and funnily enough with the second movement, III - The Fire of Spirit - Or Electric Fire, Frank Zappa's album of Francesco Zappa. I guess Todd is certainly a man who tries to be quite innovative with his works, and it all does work out very well in my opinion.

Though I won't say this album is a masterpiece. For one, Born to Synthesize feels like one of the biggest missed potentials on this record. It is merely Todd singing with a filter on. That's it. I don't mind Todd's singing; I think as a vocalist he is pretty good, but I don't wanna hear a 3 minute 'song' of just his voice through some crappy wobbly effect. If the track had some synths in the back, it probably still wouldn't be my favorite but I wouldn't mind hearing it, and it could be a nice song that could tease a bit of Cosmic Fire, kind of like how the beginning of A New Career in a New Town by David Bowie teases a bit of the more ambient side off of Low. Unfortunately, the track doesn't do that and all we get is a very mediocre song.

Also, like all the other Rundgren albums I have heard, this album drags a lot. This is kind of a problem I see with the albums I have heard from him, especially when it comes to his epics. I do enjoy his more long, proggy stuff, but a lot of times it feels like he doesn't quite know when to stop until he realizes he is recording an album and not performing a live jam session. At least on here it is a bit more understandable as it is more electronic based than rock, and I have become a bit more used to the long winded epics thanks to bands like The Flower Kings, Echolyn, and Moon Safari, so I can get quite used to Cosmic Fire quite quickly, but still sometimes I wonder if, for its time, 38 minutes verges on the line of fun proggy goodness, or overly pretentious musicianship. Not quite sure still, but it does make things rather overbearing.

Still, I did very much enjoy this record. I am certainly willing to check more of Todd's music out, and maybe a bit more Utopia albums too. If you like a mix of pop, prog, and electronic in your life, check no further than here as it is a very good offering of just that.

Best tracks: The Death of Rock and Roll, Eastern Intrigue, A Treatise on Cosmic Fire

Worst track: Born to Synthesize

PALLAS is rightfully known as one of the earliest neo-prog bands that along with Marillion, IQ, Twelfth Night, Pendragon and Solstice ushered in the second wave of popular progressive rock in the early 1980s. What's not well known however is that the band formed as far back as 1974 in Aberdeen, Scotland and spent many years hitting the club circuit with the mission of keeping symphonic prog alive while the entire prog scene was clearly in decline. What's also interesting is that the band was first called Rainbow until Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple and assembled a band of the same name and achieved superstardom. After a brief stint as Pallas Anthene, the second part was dropped and has been simply PALLAS ever since.

While the first proper PALLAS album didn't emerge until 1984 way after its contemporaries jumped on the on the neo-prog bandwagon, the band did predate its competition and in fact released its debut EP simply titled THE PALLAS EP as early as 1978 however PALLAS was an entirely different band in those days with only founder Graeme Murray remaining by the time "The Sentinel" saw the light of day. THE PALLAS EP was a completely different beast than anything that came after and wouldn't even be recognizable as a PALLAS release even by the staunchest of followers. Pressed only once as a 7" vinyl recording with four tracks, this earliest offering from PALLAS found itself in a tug of war between Genesis inspired progressive rock and the contemporary sounds of punk rock. This hard to find musical artifact didn't even have a proper album cover and was simply released in a plain 45 styled sleeve with a simple THE PALLAS EP stamped on it.

One of the most unusual moments for any band that would be called neo-prog, PALLAS delivers a strange hybrid of punk rock simplicity with the progressive rock instrumentation such as a mellotron and 12-string guitar. Avoiding any time signature workouts, THE PALLAS EP focused more on simple punk rock songs with titles like "Reds Under The Beds" and "Thought Police" which displayed an anarchic sense of paranoia right out of the Sex Pistols or Crass playbook however the unusual electronic embellishments and high register vocal style of Peter Gabriel and early neo-prog clearly kept this in a world all its own. While Peter Hammill and Van der Graaf were flirting with punk rock crossover moments, their music provided a much more nuanced approach and greater finesse.

THE PALLAS EP is a crude first attempt at the recording process with a shoddy production and garage rock style songwriting. The four tracks on board do offer distinct melodic developments but stick to a short punchy 4-minute-ish running time. The lyrics almost sound like a parody with the opening "Reds Under The Beds" referring to the Red Scare of the Soviet Union and the ensuing paranoia the West had during the era about commies emerging from every nook and cranny ready to dethrone democracy in a McCarthy-esque coup d'erat. "Thought Police" is equally head scratching as it features a few prog moves such as an opening synth solo while three chord guitar punk banters on in accompaniment. The vocals are fairly bad with a laughable attempt to sound punk but failing to evoke all the proper attitude that made punk rock so effective.

"CUUK" offers a bit of bagpipe sounds to a less punk influenced sound and more reliant on hard rock. Vaguely sounding like what Big Country would conjure up in the 80s, the track was perhaps the most interesting musically speaking. The final "Wilmot Dovehouse MP" almost sounds like a tribute to The Who with its Pete Townsend guitar strumming technique but mixes the punkish guitar and bass moves with a trippy new wave styled keyboard heft. The vocals are in the style of an impish elf half-narrating and half-singing a storyline. The EP is one of a kind really and while not even remotely essential for lovers of the neo-prog style, it certainly is an interesting little curiosity that showcased a band experimenting with its stylistic approach before finally latching onto the 80s scene that would make them one of the top artists in the neo-prog second wave of progressive rock. Hard to find but available for a quick spin on the band's Bandcamp site. It's so bad that it's good in a Shaggs sorta way so i'll give it 3 stars.

While the 80s neo-prog scene is primarily associated with the English revival prog that was launched by Pallas, Twelfth Night, Marillion and IQ, there were really quite a few lesser known bands emerging from other nations around the very same time. In fact of all the earliest known neo-prog releases, only Twelfth Night can claim to have released anything before bands like the Dutch band ARKUS which unleashed its full debut release as early as 1981.

A rather mysterious band formed in the city of Nieuwegein sometime in the late 1970s, ARKUS just kind of snuck in its debut album before the English neo-proggers got their bearing and then disappeared as quickly as it arrived. Strangely the band has periodically reformed and dropped a second album in the 90s and another in 2003. The lineup featured Frans Smits (vocals, guitar), Ron Willems (guitar), Jan-Henk Wiggelinkhuizen (strings, organ, synthesizers), John Bouwman (bass, vocals) and Erik van Duin (drums, percussion, vocals).

While sounding more like an English band than any prog rock that came from the Netherlands, ARKUS evoked more of a post-Gabriel Genesis stance rather than the theatrical early English neo-prog bands. More Camel and even Pink Floyd than Marillion so to speak and as much classic symphonic prog as early neo only the dreamy pastoral kind. The band's debut 1914 was a concept album based on a poem written by Dutch poet and translator Bert Voeten. The original album featured seven tacks at 38 1/2 minutes long.

The band delivered a competent slice of early neo-prog and 1914 is actually quite pleasant. It's a dreamy airy affair with softy strummed 12-string guitars in conjunct with those classic Hackett inspired lead guitar sweeps and a thick synthesized atmospheric back drop. The bassist cops a Pink Floyd feel as have many neo-prog bassists throughout the decades and lead vocalist Frans Smits delivered a smooth competent vocal style that while not the cream of the crop was better than many of the neo-prog acts that could often sound atrocious. The compositions are all fairly consistent and the melodies are catchy from the getgo.

Despite its obscure nature and relative difficult status as an easy to obtain collectible, the album was reissued on CD with a couple bonus tracks. Overall this is a fairly decent slab of primeval neo-prog that didn't even emerge from the British Isles and if ARKUS had stuck it out for the long haul perhaps could've been a contender of best bands of the era but as it stands the album isn't perfect and could've used some spicing up as the formula is set to cruise control and the members needed to hone their chops a bit more for prime time. A nice little obscurity bin but there's a reason this one lingers in the shadows behind the bigwigs of the era.

The departure of Peter Nicholls after the successful "The Wake" and the immediate addition of Paul Menel as vocalist for their third album, "Nomzamo", implied a change in IQ's musical direction, leaning towards light and translucent structures dominated by typical eighties synthesizers, to the detriment of the more complex and intricate sonorities timidly present.

And so, after the intriguing introductory keyboards of Martin Orford in the persistent "No Love Lost", the album travels for most of its journey through tame waters of few risks, with developments that approach the most melodic and accessible AOR, such as the jovial "Promises (As the Years Go By)", the ballad "Still Life", which Ray Carless' saxophone tries to save, or the festive "Passing Strangers" and "Screaming", the latter piece even with an undisguised pop wink.

The recessive gene of IQ's progressive vein is visible in fragments that add nuances to the general appearance of the album, such as Paul Cook's tenacious percussions with African reminiscences in the piece "Nomzamo", the extensive "Human Nature", or the emotive and pacifist "Common Ground", with Mike Holmes' arpeggiated beginning and a luminous counterpoint with Orford's synthesizers that lead to a beautiful guitar solo by Holmes towards the end. Surely the best piece on the album.

Despite the always laudable intention of expanding musical horizons, it seems however that with the departure of Nicholls the band loses more than it gains, even in its graphic aesthetics. "Nomzamo" is a decent album, to be sure, but it could have been better.

2.5/3 stars

Many people who got into Porcupine Tree and No-Man in the 1990's also took a look at Blackfield. This is an energetic if sad collaboration between SW and Aviv Geffen, who is very popular in Israel. It's sad because all the music is melancholy and based on minor chords. This is Wilson's forte. He really likes sad songs. He excels in the emotional venue of dissatisfaction with life. His best Porcupine Tree tracks are also sad songs. He finds that sad emotions brings out the best in high emotions. The catalog of Blackfield is great music that most people have never heard. They never had commercial success because they make music that is outside the mainstream and young people like the lame stream which is the core of the main stream. This compilation is the best they did up to 2018. 4.5 solid stars.

Annette Peacock is an American composer, multi- instrumentalist, singer and on and on. She was at the forefront of Timothy Leary's movement in the early 60's as well as feminist movements as heard in her often irreverant lyrics. She is probably connected most to the avant/jazz style of music even though she was an early user of the moog as Robert Moog gave her a prototype in the late 60's.

"X-Dreams" is her second studio album from 1978 and her vocals are the focus as she speaks, sings and well you name it. Even though we have an astonishing amount of talent on here instrumentally she didn't take advantage of that. We get 5 bass players including Jeff Clyne, 4 drummers including Bill Bruford, 6 guitarists including Mick Ronson, Brian Godding, Chris Spedding, one keyboardist Peter Lemer, 3 sax players and 2 conga shakers. She had to be an influence on Laurie Anderson the way she speaks and sings and the sensual nature of the lyrics. I really do not like "Dear Bela" but the two opening numbers along with the closer are pretty good.

3 stars as the enjoyment factor is low.

— First review of this album —

THE STARK REALITY were a Jazz band from Boston who managed to release this one studio album in 1970 but broke up after a failed tour. More on that later. This has to be one of the most unique recordings in my collection. It's just such an unusual idea to basically re-do a children's album from Britain circa 1958 by Hoagy Carmichael that was used on his PBS children's show. The lyrics here are for kids make no mistake like "30 days has September, April, June and November..." etc. A double album back in the day of about 90 minutes or so.

So you can imagine trying to tour with this record right? Who is your audience? Parents bringing kids or adults just not showing up. I feel the Bio here doesn't do this band justice. This is Monty Stark's band and he is the singer and talented vibes player. But come on, the Bio here should emphasize that the legend named John Abercrombie is on guitar here. We also get bass and drums with this four piece. Abercrombie has been a staple on the ECM label for decades and his first two solo albums from 1975 are classics "Timeless" and "Gateway" which I spun the other night much to my delight.

The music here is for adults for sure and impresses me to no end, but then the silliness with the vocals seems to fight against the seriousness of the instrumental work. This is a highly improvised, reimagined interpretation of Hoagy's recording. Interesting that Abercrombie adds his own composition "Blue Pillow" which is pretty much him on acoustic guitar and sparse bass and the words "Blue Pillow" are beside his name and picture on the back of the album. Yes the man with the moustache and guitar who I shall call from now on Mr. Abercrombie.

I checked about 8 tracks that I was really impressed with so this is a 4 star album in my world, just very unique and possibly sitting with MOTHER GONG's "Fairy Tales" even though this is quite different from that and in my opinion this is not quite as impressive as what MOTHER GONG created. I mention Stark's vibes work and the guy does get creative with them and often leads along with Mr. Abercrombie as far as soloing over top goes. I really like the setup. There has been some archival material surface many years after this that are from 1969 when they had a fifth member playing sax and flute which obviously changes their sound.

I think my favourite track is the over 8 minutes "Dreams" but that short "Travelling" song with those vibes is so good and closing it out with both "Comrades" and "All You Need To Make Music" at over 12 minutes is finishing strong. Of the earlier tracks I have four in "The Old Prospector", "Cooking", "Shooting Stars" and "Rocket Ship" that leave me very satisfied.

These guys are players, I mean the bass and drums are both killer supporting Mr. Abercrombie and Stark. There are a ton of extended instrumental passages on here, often starting that way then several minutes in the vocals show up briefly and possibly return later. Again such a unique record by a very talented band this one is for the jazzers out there who still have that kid in them.

Continuing from the British blues rock scene that got underway in the mid-60s with bands like the Yardbirds and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, the power trio BAKERLOO rode in the wave of the more accomplished blues rock acts that culminated with Cream and The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Serving somewhat as a crossroads pit stop between the blues rock 60s and the blues-based hard rock that would take the 70s by storm like its early namesake The Bakerloo Blues Line (a London subway line) then shortened to simply BAKERLOO, this short-lived band only existed for a mere two years but proved to be quite influential as well as the gestating grounds for all of the musicians involved.

Initiated by guitarist David "Clem" Clempson and vocalist / bassist Terry Poole the band went through a couple of drummers before settling on Keith Baker BAKERLOO was a fast-rising hit at local London establishments such as Henry's Blueshouse before receiving an invitation to join the UK Big Bear Ffolly tour which included the soon to be called Black Sabbath band Earth, Locomotive and Tea Symphony but also opened for Led Zeppelin's London debut event at the Marquee Club on the 18th of October, 1969. While the band seemed like a guaranteed success story, BAKERLOO only released its sole self-titled album in September of 69 and would soon part ways with all members joining some of the most famous blues based hard rock bands that the UK produced in the 1970s.

The original album featured seven tracks which added up to 46 minutes of playing time but future reissues have found various numbers of bonus tracks included. While the album was primarily self-penned originals, "Bring It On Home" was actually an uncredited Willie Dixon song, a trend that was common in the British blues scene of not giving credit where it's due as well as a tasteful rearrangement of a Johann Sebastian Bach's "Bourée in E Minor" composition in the form of "Drivin' Backwards." All three members were at the top of their game and effortlessly delivered fast-paced virtuosic blues rock jamming sessions bringing a sense of sophistication that the style wasn't particularly known for which possibly proved to be a bit alienating for the audiences who gravitated towards the style but caught the attention of the early prog rock lovers for its attention to detail and in particular the 15-minute closing "Son Of Moonshine."

The opening "Big Bear Ffolly" which refers to the tour which got them noticed immediately finds the band firing on full cylinders with a fiery enthusiasm that found the members almost telepathically crafting a super tight instrumental interplay. The creative diverse musical motifs and lightning fast playing style surely must've wowed the audience because BAKERLOO was truly on another level of competency. While mostly looking back to the earlier blues rock style of Cream as the primary source of inspiration, tracks like "Gang Bang" clearly pointed to the future world of faster hard rock with more intense instrumental displays and heavier chord stomping including an exquisite drumming solo. "The Worried Feeling" slows things down a bit to offer a more traditional blues style with less reliance on rock. The sprawling closer "Son Of Moonshine" showcases the band's expertise in extended jamming sessions and a 15-minute string of creative improvisation skills. While not exactly reaching prog rock territory certainly wasn't too far away from jumping on that bandwagon.

Although the band had only formed in February 1968 and found enthusiastic reviews over its album, the first to jump ship was Clem Clempson who would soon join Colosseum and then eventually Humble Pie and The New Jazz Orchestra. The band's end soon followed with Terry Poole most notably forming May Blitz and Keith Baker also joining May Blitz and Uriah Heep. Early drummer John Hinch would go on to join Judas Priest while early drummer Poli Palmer went to Family. A short stint for all involved but BAKERLOO's sole release is a fondly remembered album and live band from the era and had it continued could've gone far in the anything goes 70s. As it stands this is the only representation of the band's recording efforts but what a pleasant and exhilarating display of blues rock BAKERLOO unleashed. The bonus tracks on future editions are also very nicely done.

3.5 stars. I spent a week with "Electric Bath" back in the spring of 2021and was actually just recently surprised to see Don Ellis is on our site. I'm more about being inclusive than exclusive so bring on Buster Williams, Les McCann, Donald Byrd and on and on. The big negative for me with this 1967 release is that it's Big Band music. My dad may have liked it but me not so much. Hearing multiple horns as in 15 horn players on here has never been my thing which is in part why I'm not into orchestral music or Classical music. Now as I've always said there are always exceptions to my musical prejudices and when it comes to Big Band music I love TOSHIYUKI MIYAMA & THE NEW HEARD's "Yamataifu" from 1972. Experimental and dark, it's unique.

Don Ellis is a trumpet player and he's got something like 20 plus musicians helping him out. That cover art had to be controversial in 1967, they blanked it out on RYM. It does look like some art from the classics. Lots of horns yes but lots of percussion too and we also get some sitar surprisingly opening and closing "Turkish Bath" and clavinet 8 minutes in. "Alone" reminds me of some of those theme songs for 60's TV shows. The closer is all over the place so I guess you could say proggy. I like the opener "Indian Lady" for the energy but my favourite has to be "Open Beauty" for the electric piano and flute, this is laid back.

A lot of traditional jazz stuff on here of course, this is 1967 and I just have trouble getting into a lot of it.

"La notte anche di giorno" is the third studio album by La Coscienza di Zeno and was released in 2015 on the Fading Records label with a line up featuring Alessio Calandriello (vocals), Gabriele Guidi Colombi (bass), Andrea Orlando (drums, percussion), Stefano Agnini (synthesizers, Moog, organ), Davide Serpico (guitars), Luca Scherani (piano, synth, Mellotron, Hammond organ, bouzuki) and Domenico Ingenito (violin) plus the guests Joanne Roan (flute), Melissa Del Lucchese (cello) and Simona Angioloni (vocals). It's an interesting concept album, divided into two long suites, about two female characters and two different ways to face fear and pain. It confirms all the good qualities of the band's previous works and the cover with a beautiful painting by Priscilla Jamone gives a visual form to its dark atmospheres and reflective mood...

According to the liner notes, the first suite, "Giovane figlia" (Young daughter), was inspired by the figure of a suicidal girl, Serena Zanimacchia, and is dedicated to her memory. It is divided into six parts but, despite its complexity, is well structured and flowing. The first part, "A ritroso" (In reverse), begins with music and lyrics evoking the image of an empty, very particular swing hanging from a tree, a girl floating in the air like a kite without string. Then the music and words take us back in time conjuring up the images of an unexpected pregnancy and of a girl in a hospital fed by syringes and nurses. She feels helpless, as if she were put on trial for her sins and condemned even by her own mother... The following section, "Il giro del cappio" (The turning of the noodle), marks a change of perspective, the atmosphere is calm and reflective, the mood melancholic. The narrator tries to understand the reasons for such a tragic, extreme action. There's pity and mourn, the memories of the deceased girl emerge from the shadows, with all her efforts to change and the sense of impending tragedy that slowly grows. What did they do to her? She lived in darkness even during the day, but who forced her to hang herself, who knitted the fatal rope? The vortex of memories becomes a hurricane in the third section, "Libero pensatore" (Free thinker), where the narrator draws the image of one of his friends and of his brilliant girlfriend, a bit crazy but friendly and tenacious, now lost forever... In the next part, "Quiete apparente" (Apparent quiet), comes back the image of the girl swinging in the air like a kite while the light chases the shadows along the walls at dawn. A short instrumental part, "Impromptu pour S.Z.", leads to the last part, "Lenta discesa all'Averno" (Slow descent to Avernus) which attempts, once again, to investigate the reasons that pushed the unfortunate girl to take her own life. She couldn't overcome her crises, some evil persecuted her like a slithering serpent. What follows is a long, scary journey throughout the holes of the soul, where our hell simmers, a gloomy place that only the wise or the madman dare visit. The last verses of the suite are sung in French by the guest vocalist Simona Angioloni and are taken from a traditional ballad that tells, in a very poetical form, of a terrible family crime. The ballad is "La complainte de la blanche biche", in the past interpreted, among others, by bands such as Malicorne and Tri Yann...

The second suite, "Madre antica" (Ancient mother), is divided into four parts and is dedicated to Bianca Orsi, one of the most important Italian sculptresses and to Sfefano Agnini's father, Gregorio, who during World War II lived in the Po Delta area. Born in Salsomaggiore Terme, Emilia, Bianca Orsi trained in Milan at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts and in the first half of the 1930s frequented artistic and intellectual circles. Later she experienced the horrors of World War II first hand taking part in the Resistance as a partisan relay and a profound trace of that experience remains in her works. The first part of the suite, "Il paese ferito" (The wounded country), describes fake scenes of normality in a country ravaged by war: a little girl playing in the street, an old man smoking tobacco, two lovers kissing passionately, two stray cats on the run... The second part, "Cavanella", takes us in a village of the Po Delta and conjures up the image of the young Bianca walking barefoot on the bloodstained sand while some boys amuse themselves throwing stones with their slingshots at some corpses in uniform floating on the river waters. Mercy seems to be vanishing in war times and violence rules... The third part, "La staffetta" (The relay) depicts Bianca as a partisan messenger in Salsomaggiore Terme. In fact, the most common task for female fighters was the staffetta. The staffete brought or collected weapons and sent messages between the various fighting groups. They were women, in most cases very young, who perfectly knew the territory and moved on foot or by bicycle. The risks they faced were very high... The last part, "Come statua di dolore" (Like a statue of pain) evokes images of the concentration camps in Germany and tells of how Bianca managed to overcome that horror: now her blade cuts into the wood generating statues that recall death, statues of women pierced by pain...

On the whole, an excellent work!

— First review of this album —

Witold Szczurek is a very talented Polish bass player who has been in a number of bands over the years. He's also released many solo albums and this is his debut from 1984. He played double bass and acoustic bass here along with bowed bass. A four piece band of bass, drums, guitar and vocals(on 2 songs) with Witold composing and arranging the music. By the way Witold has an alias in Witold Rek.

I was so disappointed with this when I visited it at the end of doing my "best of" Jazz and related list several years ago, actually saving this for the end because I was so excited to spend some time with it. Man I was disappointed especially when I saw this tagged with Zeuhl and hey it's an album created by a bass player and I love bass but not doing my homework here as I'm not big on acoustic bass or double bass. But I like the bowed bass of course bringing melancholy to the fore. But this album is so mellow, surprisingly so. The Zeuhl tag is for the track "Hey, Hullo" which sounds like a MAGMA outtake but that's not enough to save the day here at least not in my music world.

Maybe my expectations were unrealistic as I've seen some high ratings for this but "Basspace" will always be an album that I look at as one that let me down.

Long before it started to smell like teen spirit, another blissful band coalesced in the fertile London underground in 1966 just in time to join the nascent psychedelic scene that was quickly sweeping away the old and ushering in a new era of rock and roll world domination. Formed by the songwriting team of Irish guitarist and vocalist Patrick Campbell-Lyons and the Greek born keyboardist / guitarist Alex Spyropoulos, the duo was fairly forward thinking in its musical approach that mixed aspects of 60s rock, Baroque chamber pop, folk, jazz, Latin music, classical and is now considered one of those proto-prog albums for releasing what is considered by some to be the first narrative concept album in the form of its 1967 debut THE STORY OF SIMON SIMOPATH beating The Pretty Things, The Who as well as The Moody Blues (Days of Future Passed came out a month after this one).

This album was indeed ahead of its time conceptually although very much steeped in the sounds of its era. Described as "A Science Fiction Pantomine" it narrates the fantasies of a boy named Simon Simopath who dreams of having wings abut ultimately grows up to work in one of those sterile office cubicles which leads to a nervous breakdown. But luckily after ending up in a mental institution he fantasizes about entering a rocket and befriends a centaur and a miniature goddess named Magdalena whom Simon falls for and marries! Now if this isn't the subject matter of a really good LSD trip then i really don't know what is! Far from the Seattle grunge band that adopted the NIRVANA moniker (and was sued by this band and settled out of court), THE STORY OF SIMON SIMOPATH is one of the earliest examples of childish twee pop and almost comes off as a musical fairytale meant to be played for children at bedtime.

Although NIRVANA was a mere duo, guest musicians included Sylvia Schuster (cello), Michael Coe (French horn), Brian Henderson (bass) and David Preston (drums). The music falls somewhere between simple 60s sunshine pop and a fully orchestrated classical crossover behemoth but the emphasis is on the cute and cuddly endearing storyline and the overall pop hooks leaving the orchestrations are a mere backing that only accent the overall performances. Nevertheless the Baroque chamber rock arrangements were quite unique when they emerged and have although the band itself attained only marginal success and the music they created evokes only a lukewarm response, it is fairly agreed upon that this NIRVANA was very influential for many bands to come including the earliest examples of progressive rock by The Moody Blues, Deep Purple and The Pretty Things.

While broken down into two acts with 10 tracks, the entire album only slightly exceeds 25 minutes of playing time making it one of the shortest concept albums for sure. This NIRVANA is probably more famous for having the same name as the successful 90s grunge band fronted by Kurt Cobain than for its own music mostly because it's a bit too hokey for its own good. While the spirit is heading in the right direction, the gleeful innocence of it all really does make it feel like a kid's album of some sort that could easily be played next to classics from Sesame Street or Peter The Wolf. Overall NIRVANA's debut is a fun little curiosity that warrants a listen just to place a sound to a name most are familiar with as the FIRST Nirvana but as an album that stands on its own it falls short of a totally captivating experience in any way. It sort of reminds me of "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band" at times except not even close to as ingeniously constructed. One that serves as a footnote in history and worthy of a spin or two but not something i would return to often.

Napolitano bands Osanna and Cervello unite (reuniting brothers Danilo and Corrado Rustici) for some groovin' jazzy blues-rock fusion.

1. "Tailor Made - Part 1 & Part 2 (5:09) what starts out sounding rather funky turns into driving blues-rock when the singing starts, but in the instrumental intervals between vocal passages it's highly-charged Jazz-Rock Fusion! Saxophonist Elio D'Anna is on fire but so is that rhythm section! What a temperamental song from these headstrong lads! (9.25/10)

2. "Something Inside Keeps You Down - Part 1 & Part 2 (6:11) opens as a kind of meandering, wandering "warm-up" or "practice" session turns into something quite else when Corrado Rustici enters singing in a high almost-falsetto voice. After two minutes, the singing shuts down and the band folds into a heavy rock motif that is anchored by some awesome deep bass playing and amazing drumming from Franco Lo Previte. Heavy and brooding but not bombastic or pedantic, this is very solid instrumental (9.25/10)

3. "Nova - Part 1 & Part 2 (7:10) opening with some funky rhythm guitar, Franco enters with some stunning drum work while everybody else settles into the rock 'n' roll groove. Elio takes the lead with some awesome sax screaming--on multiple instruments--while the guitars work out from beneath who's the lead and who's the rhythm. The brothers duke it out with Danilo shrieking out his more blues-anchored style before giving it up to Luciano Milanese's bass by way of short bursts from Elio and little brother Corrado with his fire-breathing machine gun. Elio gets another solo sixth minute which allows us to focus more on the different playing styles of the Rustici brothers: Danilo being all blues-orented while Corrado is so much more Mahavishnu--which is especially demonstrated when he finally lets loose in the final 30 seconds with some of his fire and brimstone. (13.5/15)

4. "Used to Be Easy - Part 1 & Part 2 (5:12) picked and strummed electricguitar chords over which Corrado starts singing in his higher-pitched vibrato voice that I'm so familiar with from my love of the band's Vimana album. The music beneath is sounds quite firmly founded in blues-rock, though you can tell from both his vocal and guitar that Corrado is very much interested in going a different direction (Elio, too); as a matter of fact, the rhythm section of Franco, Luciano, and Danilo all feel so firmly rooted in the blues-rock forms that this is the first time I'm conscious of the rift that must have led to their departure from the band. (8.66667/10)

5. "Toy - Part 1 & Part 2 (4:21) nice semi-funky rock with some jazzy elements coming from the rhythm guitar, lead sax, and drums (a bit)--the rest is more instrumental jam-band rock. By the time they get to the third and fourth minute the infectious groove has gotten so inside your being that the solos become quite enjoyable. I can't believe how 180 my view of this song became over the course of its four minutes! (9/10)

6. "Stroll On - Part 1 & Part 2 (10:33) hard-drivin', blistering-paced, near-metal blues rock with rather coarse and aggressive vocals from Corrado while the band races forward for the first six-and-a-half minutes, Luciano Milanese sounds very much like he's trying to match the speed and style of Percy Jones. Then they slow down a bit, allowing for a bit of space within which the various instrumentalists are able to clearly, patiently inject their solo--though the highlight of the entire song is Elio and Corrado's paired melody lines during the song's final two minutes; the two are in sync! (17.75/20)

Total Time 38:36

Interesting to contrast the two guitar styles of brothers Danilo and Corrado: the former is far more blues-rock oriented with lots of note bending and favoring a much more "dirty" sound while the latter is clearly a student/emulator of the technical wizardry of Mahavishnu John McLaughlin. At times Corrado's vocals sound so much like David Bowie! As accomplished as the musicians are, the sound engineering mix is not very enjoyable: the bass and drums are mixed farther forward than any of the other tracks! And Luciano Milanese is no Percy Jones (future member/contributor to the band) but he and drummer Franco Lo Previte are quite a force as a rhythm team. Though the music is often far too close to standard blues rock in both sound palette and style, I have come away very impressed with the power and presence of this album. I think the power of the music even helped me to cast aside my initial myopic orientation to only being open to Jazz-Rock Fusion. This is not Jazz-Rock Fusion. Still, it is my opinion, that the band's core trio's next move--to move to London, England, where they will use studio musicians in supporting rolls to record their next albums--is the best move they could have made.

B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of hard-driving technically-awesome jazz-infused bluesy rock 'n' roll music.

For a BRIDE that has been DYING since 1990, she sure has more lives in her than a cat which supposedly has 9. In fact the English band MY DYING BRIDE led by the distinct vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe and guitarist Andrew Craighan formed over three decades ago is still showcasing an immortality beyond the longevity of most bands from the same era. Still alive and kickin' in 2024 MY DYING BRIDE has released the 14th album of its never-ending procession of gloomy Goth-tinged doom metal with death metal decorations with A MORTAL BINDING which after a turbulent first two decades of lineup changes finds a bit of stability in the form of the same cast of members that were featured on 2020's "The Ghost of Orion" with the sole exception of Dan Mullins rejoining and replacing percussionist / drummer Jeff Singer.

Another chapter in the MY DYING BRIDE book but pretty much the same thematic developments as this band that was once wildly experimental between albums has long ago found the perfect comfort zone that seems to keep the fans coming back for more thus showcasing the desire to pacify the buying public rather than risk the golden goose by releasing some fusion of polka-based Gothic doom dance pop or anything of the sort. Au contraire. At this stage one can ostensibly predict without much chance of error exactly what any particular edition of the MY DYING BRIDE canon will sound like and in the case of A MORTAL BINDING, you guessed it! Another slice of oozing doom metal accompanied by Stainthorpe's plaintive Gothic vocal style set to the oozing dread of doom metal with the melancholic atmospheric backing to guarantee another soundtrack of dread and damnation only with the occasional outbursts into death metal.

Augmented by the band's now classic violin backing, A MORTAL BINDING for the most part follows the playbook cemented into place so long ago which means that one can only judge the quality of any particular MY DYING BRIDE release by the strength of the songwriting alone as the performances are always top notch and despite doom metal bands springing up from all four corners of the planet since this band's inception in 1990, MY DYING BRIDE still sounds as utterly unique as it has since day one. As far as consistency is concerned, this band certainly has it with one strong album after another, a few bonafide masterpieces and a few bellyflops in the pool that got drained over night. While A MORTAL BINDING does not reach the lofty pinnacle heights of the band's earliest death-doom works or the lugubrious perfection of albums like "The Dreadful Hours" or "Songs Of Darkness, Words Of Light," neither does it sink to the dreadful lead-lined depths of throwaway albums like "Evinta" or the lackluster mediocrity of many of the 2010 releases.

In fact as a true fan of this band having heard every album and EP, i'd have to say that the band sounds somewhat rejuvenated here with tracks that take a somewhat different approach than the automatic pilot get the job only but not much more albums since "A Line Of Deathless Kings." Sure this is undeniably a MY DYING BRIDE release through and through but the chunky guitar riffing offers a bit more of an energetic upgrade on many tracks including the opening "Her Dominion" and the lengthiest track on board, the 11 minute and 22 second "The Apocalyptist" which evoke the band's return to some of the death-doom sounds that brought them into the world's scene in the first place. The album features all those slow-burners of course with the weeping violin lamenting the tales of woe and despair but the diversity not he album gives A MORTAL BINDING a nice spicy return to the classic style of the band that once had a fiery passion to keep the BRIDE from falling into the grave.

As such MY DYING BRIDE always walks that fine line between exhilaration and ennui as the tight wire balancing feat is something that requires the ultimate finesse to maintain the attention span of an ever-increasing A.D.D. listening public and while the last few albums seemed to simmer on cruise control, A MORTAL BINDING hits me in all the right ways and gives me faith that the band still has a second wind that will propel it into a new era of prosperity however it is true that there will come a time when the band will have to rebrand itself as MY IMMORTAL BRIDE because whoever this mysterious maiden is, she seems to have a life support system and has discovered the fountain of youth while so many have crashed, burned and become buried. While A MORTAL BINDING certainly won't be declared the band's triumphant comeback of the century, it more than offers enough magic mojo by my discerning ears to grasp onto. As i stated it all boils down to the songwriting with this band and on this album the band seems to have put it all together in the right way for my liking. Better than i was expecting to say the least.

Highly-acclaimed jazz-rock fusion from a British quartet of seasoned musicians--including Hugh Hopper.

1. "Illusion" (3:54) nicely-partitioned jazz-oriented rock music, drummer Nigel Morris and mutli-keyboard-playing Laurence Scott seem more deeply connected in keeping the rhythm track on a tightly-formed course while the disturbingly-distorted bass of Hugh Hopper and wah-wah-ed rhythmic guitar play of Gary Boyle seem to be the more adventurous and experimental explorers on top. I think I'm most impressed with Mr. Scott on this one. (8.875/10)

2. "Rangoon Creeper" (6:01) weird boring funk. Laurence Scott again gets the chance to show off his tow-handed skills. (8.5/10)

3. "Spanish Sun" (7:50) great display of Gary Boyle's technical skill on the John McLaughlin-like guitars (especially the electric). I like the minimal support from the other band members; the song could probably even exist without them but they add something (besides their solos). (13.5/15) 4. "Edorian" (2:01) seems like a reprise of the two opening songs--especially in the sound palette choices. I like the doubling up of the keys and guitars while Hugh Hopper just wanders off on his own--apparently as tripping and his fuzz-tone bass. (4.3333/5)

5. "Frog" (2:31) a MAHAVISHNU'/"Vashkar"-like song with more drugged-out bass but nice lead guitar over the tight rhythm section of Nigel and Laurence. (I guess I'd better get used to the fact that Hugh Hopper will never contribute to the rhythmic structure and linear pacing of any of these songs, that it is, in fact, keyboard player Laurence Scott that will be playing the role usually expected/relegated to the bass player in tandem/association with the drummer.) (8.75/10)

6. "Sliding Dogs / Lion Sandwich" (5:58) I can see the draw to this one: for the fine execution of its mathematical structure--especially as it gets complicated with multiple tracks moving in off-set rondo--but it's not my favorite style of jazz-rock fusion. (Plus, Hugh Hopper's bass sound is already driving me to distraction and dislike.) (9/10)

7. "Golden Section" (5:15) at least on this song Hugh Hopper is able to show off some skills despite his fuzz-tone bass as he mirrors Gary's melody lines over the opening 1:20. After that, there's really nothing very special here: just over extended Fender Rhodes play with some sometimes-interesting bass exploration beneath. Even the song's main theme is nothing to write home about. (8.75/10)

8. "Marin Country Girl "(2:10) delicate interplay between piano and guitar with minimal support from bass and drums. The bass play may even be a second guitar, not Hugh Hopper's bass (which is highly likely due to the fact that it is not electric). Very nice. (4.5/5)

9. "Lily Kong" (2:32) what starts out rather simply, as a fairly straightforward weave, turns more complex until it is rudely faded away from our listening capabilities. Foul! (4.5/5)

10. "Temper Tantrum" (3:46) two tracks dedicated to electric guitar, bass and drums mixed kind of to the rear, with panning/reverberating keys floating in the in-between, Gary establishes quite an awesome little duel/battle with himself--between the two guitars (one that reminds me quite a bit of the amazing future duel between Al Di Meola and Larry Coryell on Lenny White's "Prince of the Sea"). Now this is Jazz-Rock Fusion! Easily the best song on the album! (9.5/10)

Total Time: 51:58

The music here is definitely not connecting with me the way it has for many other music lovers. I am impressed with the sound and with the guitar playing of band leader Gary Boyle, but I do not find the compositions as substantive or dynamic as I like. And I absolutely do not understand the affinity to or allegiance to Hugh Hopper--whose obsession with the abhorrent sound created by the singular bass effect he seems so stubbornly attached to over the album's first seven songs is almost enough to drive me away; a keyboard could (and should) do the work that he is so praised for! Kudos to Laurence Scott for coming in from relative obscurity and holding his own next to these other giants.

B/four stars; an excellent if totally confusing and sometimes off-putting example of experimentation within the fairly- new Jazz-Rock Fusion genre of music.

The sophomore album release by the German guitar genius. All tracks are Volker Kriegel compositions except where noted.

1. "Slums on Wheels" (13:24) John Marshall is a beast on the drums from the get go on this J-RF rocker. Guitarist and band leader Volker Kriegel uses a DANNY KORTCHMAR "It's Too Late, Baby" style acoustic guitar solo in the Alan Skidmore's soprano sax play in the second movement is so dynamic and exciting! And let's not forget the extraordinary drum playing of Nucleus' own John Marshall! Eberhard Weber's bass play is fairly standard until the seventh minute when the band clears out and he's given solo time--then you know this is the one and only Eberhard Weber--two minutes he's given before the band slowly re- matriculates. The section that follows the bass solo is a bit odd--feeling meandering and out of place, and then Heinz Sauer's saxophone solo feels like it goes nowhere and never gels with the rest of the band, but at 12:15 there's a bit of a restart that helps the band to get back on track for the final minute. A truly remarkable multi-part song (or suite)! (28/30)

2. "The "E" Again" (6:36) tediously repetitious rhythm track over which everybody seems to get a turn to solo (except the bass and drummer). The loose, laid-back feeling coming from all of the song's performers is kind of cool, but then, after six minutes it proves to be overdone. (8.70/10)

3. "Zanzibar" (10:22) penned by Edu Lobo, this is a very catchy, melodic song that feels as if it's led by the big band-like horns. Great jazz funk bass play (in a style that I've never heard before from Eberhard) leads in over John Marshall's solid drumming over which Volker, then, takes the first extended solo on his jazz guitar. It's very GEROGE BENSON and Wes MONTGOMERY-like. From the 3:00 mark two tenor saxophones trade off the next solos. Again, these guys are very engaging and compelling (which is exceedingly rare for me: I am not nor have I ever been a fan of the saxophone). The grooving JAMES BROWN-like high-energy R&B jazz-rock fusion is so infectious! Amazing performances top to bottom! (19/20)

4. "Missing Link" (12:03) some wild and crazy sounds being emitted here from all the band members but I ultimately reject this song for its overly-repeated foundation and 1960s-sounding guitar solo. Great, creative performances on top, but way too simplistic and repetitive--even in the suite's different motifs. (21.75/25)

5. "Für Hector" (5:45) another hard-drivin' song based on a fairly rudimentary JAME BROWN-like rhythm track (and "Shaft"-like introductory hi-hat play) that somehow inspires stellar performances from all soloists as well as the rhythm-makers. It's like they're pretending to be the JBs only at 45rpm speed instead of 33! Has there ever been a rhythm section as tight as these guys? Eberhard Weber and John Marshall are extraordinary! (9.25/10)

6. "Remis" (4:26) a more Latin-based song that feels as if it came out of the Latin/Caribbean-crazed 1960s: 1960s hippie game show music! But so tightly performed! Very smooth, fluid jazz guitar play over acoustic rhythm section (and electric piano). (9/10)

7. "Tarang" (10:00) a composition credited to Eberhard Weber, it opens up sounding like something from the Far East (not quite Indian, perhaps SouthEast Asian). The sound palette is very cool; not what one would expect on an album that presented those first six very Western songs. It's not until the second half of the third minute that we begin to hear any instruments familiar to the Western ear: double bass, drums, acoustic guitar, and electric piano. The sixth and seventh minutes present a long nearly-alone Eberhard Weber solo with clay hand drums before Fender Rhodes and drums start to reinforce both the pace and the harmonic structure. Interesting and definitely engaging despite a kind of lack of melody and harmony. I like it! (17.75/20)

8. "Lastic Plemon" (5:21) another rampant-flowing R&B-based song in the James Brown tradition that flies along with everyone playing their 1960s parts. Well-orchestrated impeccably-performed song that never really grabs me. (8.875/10)

9. "Janellas Abertas" (4:09) a short little four-part Caetano Veloso composition with double bass and symphonic percussion beneath Volker's extraordinary Spanish-style nylon-string acoustic guitar play. John Taylor also gets some time in the spotlight with his electric piano in the third movement, but everything returns to Volker's lap for the final beautiful section. (8.875/10)

10. "Plonk Whenever" (4:06) another song that sends the musicians off to the races from the very start, arranged in some very complex "old jazz" forms and streams, sounding a lot like pre- or proto-Fusion Herbie, Wayne, Miles, Johnny Mac, and Tony. (8.875/10)

11. "Definitely Suspicious" (5:55) acoustic guitar and gang come up with a rock/pop like construct with a bit of Latin and psych flavor over which Volker's simple rock/psychedelic electric and acoustic guitars take turns soloing for the first three minutes. The styles seem to move fairly cleanly between rock, psych-rock, and blues-rock. Fender Rhodes solo from John Taylor in the fourth minute before we return to Eberhard excels in a Danny Thompson kind of way while this song makes it clear that John Marshall is really meant to be a Jazz-Rock Fusion guitarist (not pop or jazz). Catchy enough melodies that I could see this getting some radio air time (back in the day). (9/10)

12. "Finale" (0:10) Volker's cartoonish finish.

Total Time: 81:77

A much more jazz- and jazz-rock representative. The question is: How much of this album's superlatives are due to the guitarist, composer, and band leader and how much to the amazing all-star lineup he's enlisted in support? I mean, these collaborators keep performing at such a high level throughout the album (despite some weaker song foundations) that it's hard not to credit them, but could it also be the band leader's brilliant instruction and inspiring example motivating these amazing performances? Also, I must mention and commend the great sound the engineers and producers got out of this album. Also, I'm very much appreciative for this opportunity of seeing/hearing bass virtuoso Eberhard Weber in a far different light than anything I'd ever heard from him.

A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of eclectic jazz, R&B, and Jazz-Rock Fusion pieces from a band of multiple virtuosi.

All I knew about 10CC back in the 70's was the songs I heard by them on the radio. So it was very surprising to listen this one for the first time. The witty lyrics, the quirky sounds, the vocal arrangements all bringing to mind either Frank Zappa or QUEEN much of the time. There are some inappropriate lyrics for sure and silliness rules the day here.

I don't remember hearing any of these songs back in the 70's although apparently "The Wall Street Shuffle" and "Silly Love" were released as singles. Honestly I will repeat myself a lot if I describe each track. Lots of piano, plenty of guitar, both upped by the vocals and silliness. "The Worst Band In The World" is a sarcastic track with the focus on the vocals and Zappa came to mind.

My least favourite song is "Hotel" for the lyrics and silliness. "Old Wise Men" isn't much better. I thought of QUEEN on "Somewhere In Hollywood" the longest track at over 6 minutes. "Baron Samedi" is a nervous sounding piece, quite jittery. Rough vocals at times. Zappa came to mind in spades on "The Sacro-Lliac" with those vocal arrangements. The closer has a country vibe to it and is a catchy vocal driven tune.

Not my music at all but I enjoyed spending time with it, a talented band. They were Neil Sedaka's backing band? Lol.

Swedish experimental Jazz-Rock Fusion with the help of Quartermass keyboard player Pete Robinson (later with Brand X).

1. "Bluegaloo" (6:25) a B+ funk track in a Herbie Hancock Headhunters style with successive solos from flute, electric guitar, drums and percussion, and electric piano (with flute and horn accents and embellishmnts). Nice jam with nice sound but there's really nothing very innovative from the soloists in terms of the sound or styles. (8.75/10)

2. "Woodchurch Sorceress "(1:50) creepy cinematic flute and percussion in-the-woods kind of stuff. (4.25/5)

3. "Kokt Tvätt" (5:51) flourish-filled launch into a repeating bar of odd rock-riffs arranged into a groove over which flute and electric piano solo and stuff. Not your typical Jazz-Rock Fusion; more like drawing from the older stuff of the earlier experimental work of Tony Williams, Freddie Hubbard, Herbie, and even Miles Davis. Nice drumming and percussion work. Pete Robinson and bassist John Gustavsson are a little too free and crazed for me. (8.75/10)

4. "The Nard Finished Third" (7:08) more funky like something from PARLIAMENT, WAR, or THE AVERAGE WHITE BAND than jazzy. Over the first few minutes it's all about the funk with little attention given to solos or jazziness. The third minute finally sees some soloing but this is all rock guitar (again like Parliament). I guess this reminds me also of Larry Coryell's eccentric Jazz Fusion. Again I must commend the percussion work of Malando Gassama and Ola Brunkert as well as dummer Barry De Souza (or is it Ola Brunkert on this one?). The flute play in the next section is quite flamboyant--more akin to that of Ian Anderson or Thijs van Lier than Joe Farrell or Hubert Laws. (13.25/15)

5. "Equator" (5:51) a quick-out-of-the-gate percussive sprint leads into a section of frenzy before the band finally settle into a still-frantically-paced and performed body akin to something John McLaughlin or Larry Coryell might have something to do with. Guitarist Janne Schaffer comes out of the first turn as the first true soloist before the percussion team takes over for a "solo" of their own. Then Pete Robinson, Janne Schaffer, and John Gustavsson start to trade barbs, back and forth, around the triangle, before settling into a side-by-side race of all-out soloing. The "chorus" brings the band back into harmony despite the frenetic energy feeding the soloing instincts of every one in the band. Wow! (9.25/10)

6. "Third Meter Stroll" (6:40) opens with lone bass acting as if he's trying to find his way through a cave system in the dark. Crazy-man Björn J'son Lindh joins in on his bat-fluttering flute while synthmeister Peter Robinson adds his own version of mammalian scurrying and fluttering action. The song goes on like this for the duration of the entire 6:40 as the hiker/spelunkerer continues down the tunnels on a steady if stop-and-go, look-and-listen, bump-and-learn mode. (8.875/10)

7. "The Visitor" (9:54) opening with an awesome deep thrum like the Talking Heads' "The Overload" within and over which guitar, percussionists, and wind instruments add their incidentals. Pretty cool--and, I'm sure, a lot of fun for the percussionists/sound effects artists! I wonder if Brian Eno or any of the Heads heard this song before heading into the Remain in Light sessions. (17.75/20)

Total Time 43:39

Interesting for the wide variety of Jazz-Rock Fusion styles adapted here as well as for the experimentalism used to try to create a variety of cinematic moods.

B+/four stars; an excellent collection of experimental Jazz-Rock Fusion songs and tracks. A very interesting listening experience!

For those who don't know him, Marco Minnemann is the drummer for the supergroup The Aristocrats (among others). He is a very complete musician, who participates in numerous projects and who offers with 'Their Colors Fade' his latest solo album in a Prog/Jazz/Metal style. On this one, in addition to the drums, Marco plays guitar, vocals, bass, keyboards, etc... Although the heart of his music is very anchored in rhythmic and percussive elements, this album surprises with its harmonic and melodic musical qualities, its diversity and its audacity.

From the first track "Egg Nog", the listener's bearings are disturbed. 8 minutes of polyrhythm, guitar and bass licks with a metal tendency, doubled vocals (male/female with Mikaela Attard ) with a strange melody. Not the most accessible song to open the album, but quite fascinating to dissect. And the icing on the cake: the participation of Alex Lifeson (Rush) on guitar?

Complete change of register on the very short instrumental "Mirrors" where Marco plays all the instruments showing his talents as a composer and performer.

"What do YOU ​​know?!" is a more traditional-looking song, almost pop, with an unexpected Hispanic vibe. On "The Ugliest Of Beasts" it is clearly the drummer who takes control for a jazz fusion track which seemed intended to be 100% instrumental until the arrival of a surprising female vocal. We are precisely in the part of the album devoted to the voice of Kendall Yates for a series of very pleasant songs.

Marco Minnemann is all alone again on "Fireflies", a powerful single that is reminiscent of Rush , including in the way he sings.

It is the beautiful voice of Pauline Cattiaux which takes over on the long development "To All New Ghosts In Town", a title with a very interesting rhythmic approach, listen to the implementation of the guitar and bass in relation to the drums, especially on the instrumental bridge.

"The Dark Side" is a jazzy ternary track with an experimental tendency with vocals that can be described as "Zappa-ian". So far, there haven't been too many electro elements, this happens with "Sailboats" which maintains a fairly dark atmosphere.

"I <3 My Shark" is a great success since it skillfully mixes Rock elements, an almost childish melody and lyrics, with complex orchestrations and brutal breaks.

Then comes "Calculator", a beautiful dark acoustic ballad which contrasts with the rest of the record. Jazz experimentation, superb brass parts, and poetry on the gripping "Glass Attack" which is a type of musical Happening.

A very beautiful piece with a silky arpeggio that calms the spirits, "Hope" brings a little light at the end of the album.

'Their Colors Fade' is a rich, complex, innovative album on which Marco Minnemann impresses with his qualities as a composer, singer, guitarist, and drummer of course. If you like adventure, a form of experimentation and don't fear complex rhythms, this record could appeal to you. The album is nevertheless a little long for my taste, since it displays 17 tracks for a duration of 1h12, but can you really blame a musician for being generous?

Review originally posted on www.progcritique.com.

If you are regular readers of ProgCritique, you know that the first part of the work devoted to Joseph by Neal Morse, namely 'The Dreamer ? Joseph: Part One', excited me. I invite you to go and read this column if you have not already done so. Some six months later, Neal returns with the second part of the project: 'The Restoration ? Joseph: Part Two', which constitutes the continuation and the end. The format is unchanged (concept album, rock opera, musical comedy, your choice), and the narration picks up where we left Joseph at the end of the first part, namely: at the bottom of the hole. We find in this second part many musical themes already present in part 1, but under slightly different arrangements. However, I find this one a little more Rock, a little more adventurous, and even more Prog, which is not to displease.

From the start of "Cosmic Mess", the instrumental virtuosity is there. Prog fans, settle in, you are at home here. Then the title takes a Rock turn with the arrival of Neal Morse 's singing lost in a reverb supposed to evoke the character's situation. The song is enhanced by dynamic brass parts and segues directly into the next "My Dream", where the trio D'Virgilio , Morse , Jennings is reconstituted (don't forget to listen to their album 'Sophomore'), for a set of high-level vocal jousts. Ross Jennings (Haken) stays on track for "Dreamer in the Jailhouse", a title still part of the Prog, dotted with interesting keyboard touches and some metal guitar insertions. The fervor does not diminish on "All Hail", which contains a bridge with a soaring 60s Psyche Rock atmosphere, and a finale which gains in intensity led by beautiful keyboards. A furious Prog title with vocal performances reminiscent of Gentle Giant, "The Argument" is a pure virtuoso demonstration and serves as a sort of introduction to "Make Like a Breeze", a resolutely Rock/Metal piece with the arrival of Ted Leonard on vocals and enhanced with grandiose organ and guitar parts.

The "Overture Reprise" reminds us of the opening theme of part 1, 'The Dreamer', then Neal Morse displays his talents as a composer on " I Hate My Brothers" which skillfully mixes Hard Rock guitars and brass. On "Guilty as Charged", we recognize the melody used on "Heaven in Charge Of Hell" from Part 1. It is from here that the two parts seem to begin to interact. The title also features a very beautiful string part, shifting the story to a more emotional angle. And on "Reckoning" it's the riff from "Gold Dust City" from 'The Dreamer' that emerges! Return of cannon vocals in Gentle Giant mode on the introduction of "Bring Ben", which then evolves into a more accessible Classic Rock style à la Toto. Then comes "Freedom Road", a ballad in the purest Neal Morse style, emotionally charged, with the support of the strings.

Return of the melodic theme of "Heaven in Charge Of Hell" from 'The Dreamer' on "The Brothers Repent Joseph Revealed", an extremely rich piece with numerous reminders of themes and marked by very successful string and brass arrangements. "Restoration" leans for a moment towards Jazz and Samba and brings a little lightness to this end of the story via a style that recalls the luminous side of the Extreme group's album 'III Sides to Every Story'. On "Everlasting", it's party time for the reunion of a large part of the protagonists who embark on a sort of jam session. The story closes with "Dawning of a New Day (God Uses Everything for Good)" in which Neal Morse can freely deliver his message of hope by speaking directly to us. The title (and the entire work) ends in apotheosis with a very orchestrated crescendo and the repetition of the words "God uses everything, Everything for good".

That's it, end of story. In total, combining parts 1 and 2, Neal Morse offers 2 hours 20 minutes of high quality music, all in less than 6 months. It's incredible to see such creativity from such a prolific artist. Perhaps some will see it as the work of the hand of God. In a more Cartesian way, we can imagine that the musician finds the capacity to surpass himself by tackling a theme of such dimension and which is so close to his heart, as many other artists have done before him.

Review originally posted on www.progcritique.com.

Three years after their first record publication ('Fragments') Trifecta is back with 'The New Normal'. From the cover, the graphic codes of the first album are used, ensuring a beautiful coherence to the project: Three rectangular black and white photos of the members of the group on a plain background (changed from red to blue) dotted with a few stains. As a reminder, Trifecta is made up of three big names: Nick Beggs on bass, Craig Blundell on drums and Adam Holzman on keyboards. All three of them together accompanied Steven Wilson on stage for a time. Musically, the group favors short formats, less than 4 minutes (with one exception), based on grooves or Jazz-Rock inspired themes, to put it simply. 'The New Normal' thus offers no less than 19 titles constantly alternating styles and atmospheres in order, I suppose, to avoid boredom. So the album is (to use the metaphor of a famous American film) a bit like a box of chocolates: you find your favorite flavors there, those you like less, and consuming the whole thing at once can be turn out to be a bit nauseating.

The powerful funky groove of "Beck And Call" opens the hostilities in a Jazz-Rock style that smacks of the 70s. An almost danceable track that sets you up for the rest. Piano, double bass and brushes for the interlude "Dot Are You Wooing?" which sounds straight out of a live recording in a smoky Jazz club. "Stroboscopic Fennel" is, for its part, more surprising, since we are facing a kind of slam, but in an old-fashioned way, in the style of The Last Poets, on which Nick Beggs declaims his surrealist poetry. So British! "Just Feel It Karen" turns on a slightly twisted Latin groove, leaving room for some very inspired drum and bass interventions. Return of poetry and surrealism with "Sibling Rivalry" on which two brothers seem to compare their way of playing the Didgeridoo (!), the title then evolving into an ethno-electronica style (I'll let you judge the relevance of this term). We could discuss for hours about the gastronomic usefulness of the decorative salad, the song "Ornamental Lettuce" does not do anything superfluous, and goes straight to the point for a new frenzied Jazz-funk groove. And here is the longest track on the record (4 minutes and 11 seconds!) "Daddy Long Legs" on which Adam Holzman expresses all his talent for building atmospheres, finding sounds and breaks that surprise.

Return of British surrealism via the dialogue "What Are You Doing?" which ends with the word "Kajagoogoo" referring to the famous pop group of the 80s ("Too Shy", 1983) which included in its ranks a certain Nick Beggs , at the time when he wore his hair with firecracker. Did Trifecta attempt to land a pop hit with the clearly announced "Stupid Pop Song"? Not quite, since it's more of a bossa-nova ballad sung very second-rate, as you might have suspected. Return of the groove guided by inspired keyboards on "Crime Spree" and its 80s thriller atmosphere. The unexpected inspiration of JS Bach is very present on the successful "Bach Stabber", while "Kleptocrat" allows you to appreciate a groove more traditional around the drums-bass-piano core.

New song sung and luxury guest participation from Alex Lifeson (Rush) on the simple and effective "Once Around The Sun With You". "Chinese Fire Drill" won't come as much of a surprise since we're starting to know the recipe. Last interlude-sketch "Ouch! My OCD" leaves you perplexed, fortunately the alarm is sounded by "Wake Up Call" to restart the end of the album with its jazzy, airy, precise and powerful bass riff. And it's the bass that keeps the lead for the following track "Wacky Tobaccy" in the purest style of the group. The atmosphere calms down with the sung track "Canary In A Five And Dime" bringing a welcome slight melancholic touch which continues on the final track "On The Spectrum" and its Mike Oldfield-style atmosphere .

There is really something to do with this 'The New Normal' which, despite its title, evolves far from normality, or rather from current music standards. The talent of the three musicians is once again dazzling, and the disc emanates a pleasure from the trio in playing together their own style, anchored in the jazz of the pioneers spiced up with a good dose of British humor.

Review originally posted on www.progcritique.com.

LAGWBAT is a freaking masterpiece and one of the best rock albums of all time for me. Each song continues to grow on me, having been listening to it on repeat since 2022. This album is more nuanced and richer in every aspect, while the three preceding records are all uniquely amazing creations in their own right, this one feels - for lack of a better word - fuller. More evolved. More definitively Rishloo.

The songs Dead Rope Machine and Landmines are absolute jewels not only in the overall composition and execution but lyrically, they are deep, hard-hitting and quotable-unforgettable masterpieces. The melodic and heavy parts merge beautifully, ebbing and flowing together, leading the listener into the heart of each song - which, for me, is the deep well of emotion at its core. And for me, that's what makes Rishloo so special and original. It's --- uncontrived and full of heart and yet refined and poignant at the same time. That's what this album nails for Rishloo. Drew's vocals get better than they've ever been, *and that's saying something.*

I love every song on this album. Dark Charade, The Great Rain Beatle and Winslow are pretty heavy and gutting; they seem to have become my go-to angst anthems over time. On the other hand, take the song Salutations, or Radio --- clean, soft singing, and the overall production is so light while packing the gut-wrench at the same time. Or the beautiful demented vocal part in Winslow that goes: "See it for the shadowbox cannibal dance distraction, see it for the tiered smoke-and-mirror display, see it for the crimson neon-stained glass refraction, see it for what it is.. not what you want it to be" (actually typed this from memory) that haunts you long after you've listened to it. They seem to achieve this balance of lyricism and profundity and poise and straightforward brutality in this album, not to mention the sheer skill that each of the four musicians bring. I have no technical insight or comparisons to other bands to offer, and I believe not everyone enjoys or processes music predominantly that way. Really immerse in the songs, the entire composition and lyrics and the energy of it all, and if you're like me, you could never have enough of this album; or any previous work of Rishloo's for that matter, as they all plot the points of their journey, leading into ever more exquisite mindstreams and inimitable experiences with each song and album... getting us thoroughly jaded and melancholy-holic with this one.

And perhaps that is why their art, underrated and unpromoted as it's been, stands out like a monolith in prog rock for me --- it gets very personal, the emotions are intact, the whole output has its cohesion and integrity... and all the while the musicianship continues to blow my mind. Thank you, Rishloo.

For better or worse, the Sortie CD is the most easily accessible way to get a legitimate copy of the work of Cartoon, America's answer to Henry Cow or Samla Mammas Manna. For the most part, it's better, since you get almost - but not quite - the entirety of their two studio albums on one CD. The sole missing track is Trio from Music From Left Field - a lightweight bit of nothing which may well have been devised solely to round off side one of that album, which was otherwise mostly taken up with the 15 minute epic Quotes. The odds of an American band playing this sort of music having any sort of commercial success in the early 1980s was always going to be remote, but Cartoon's body of work is impressive enough to merit a critical rediscovery, and Sortie is the best presentation it had. It's also 30 years old - isn't it high time Cuneiform revisited this stuff?

Cartoon's debut album was impressive in part because they were able to give the impression of a sprawling lineup with just a trio to hand; for their second album, they add more personnel, but otherwise they still occupy the hinterland between Zappa, Canterbury, and the RIO scene. As the clown on the cover may suggest, the RIO side of their sound this time draws a little less on Henry Cow and a bit more on Samla Mammas Manna, due to a similar interest in working circus music into the equation, though for an idea of just how spawling their range of influences is just listen to the epic opener Quotes and see how many musical references you can find tucked in there. (They even start playing the piano opening to Lennon's Imagine at one point). Never reissued on CD in full, most of this can be found on the Sortie collection, which trims off the admittedly rather disposable Trio in order to fit this and the debut album onto one disc, but Sortie is some 30 years past at this point; surely a new reissue is overdue?

Review Nº 772

"XII" is the ninth studio album of Barclay James Harvest and that was released in 1978. This album represents a mark in the musical career of the group because it was the last studio album with the presence of the keyboardist and founder member of the band Woolly Wolstenholme. He left the group due to musical differences with the other band's members. He had become disillusioned because the band moved away from their initial progressive roots, and he started his solo musical career, creating his own band. The limited success of the group leads him to withdraw from the music life and dedicate his life to an organic farm. "XII" is unusually a long vinyl album and is also their last album with a Mellotron.

"XII" has eleven tracks. The first track "Fantasy: Loving Is Easy" written by John Lees is a very solid song to open the album. It's a straightforward rocker with nice lyrics and strong guitar work with a good riff, very well accompanied by Hammond and synthesizer works. The second track "Berlin" written by Les Holroyd is a song inspired by separation of the citizens of both sides of Berlin by the wall. It's mainly a beautiful ballad performed essentially by Les Holroyd on piano and Woolly Wolstenholme on keyboards. This is a very emotional song that became a classic in their musical career. Sincerely, this is, for me, one of the finest compositions made by Les Holroyd. The third track "Classics: A Tale Of Two Sixties" written by John Lees is a very melodic rock song in the same vein of "Titles" from their album "Time Honoured Ghosts". This song was an attempt by John Lees to revisit his early musical influences and it also represents his personal homage to the music of the 60's. The fourth track "Turning In Circles" written by Les Holroyd is a very good and interesting rock ballad with some good guitar riffs and excellent bass work. It's true that this is a commercial track not very original but very well played and nicely and tastefully arranged. The fifth track "Fact: The Closed Shop" written by John Lees is a song based on the political and trade union situation in Britain in the late 70's. Musically, this is, for me, a very surprising song. It's a song with some medieval influences composed in a folk/rock style. It's a song that reminds me strongly "Part Of The Union", a song on "Bursting At The Seams" of Strawbs. This is, for me, one of the finest moments on the album. The sixth track "In Search Of England" written by Woolly Wolstenholme is a song about the conflict of youthful inexperience versus the wisdom of age. This is really the last great classic symphonic composition made by Woolly Wolstenholme with the band. This song represents one of the great progressive moments on the album and it's also one of the best compositions made by him. The seventh track "Sip Of Wine" written by Les Holroyd is a pleasant and nice rock ballad not very original but at the same time is very well performed and very well arranged. This is also a song with good guitar work. The eighth track "Harbour" written by Woolly Wolstenholme is a song that counts the feeling and the reflection of to return home after a long journey. It's a very simple ballad with an extremely beautiful melody and rich harmonies, very well supported by nice guitar work. This is a completely different song from "In Search Of England" and represents the other musical side of Woolly Wolstenholme. This is also one of my favourite songs on the album. The ninth track "Science Fiction: Nova Lepidoptera" written by John Lees is a very strong track and is inspired by John Lees' love for science fiction. It's a majestic piece of music and one of the most progressive on the album. This song is, in my opinion, a reminiscence of their earlier musical times. John Lees and Woolly Wolstenholme are simply brilliant. This is another great musical moment on the album. The tenth track "Giving It Up" written by Les Holroyd is another very atmospheric ballad with nice backing vocal moments of John Lees and Les Holroyd. Like "Turning In Circles" and "Sip Of Wine", are very nice songs but although not very original, they're very well played and nicely and tastefully arranged. The eleventh track "Fiction: The Streets Of San Francisco" written by John Lees taking is inspiration from the famous American TV police series of the 70's. It's a very beautiful ballad with some nice musical parts like the harmonica work, in the end of the song, playing in the back over the acoustic guitar.

Conclusion: "XII" is, in reality, an excellent album. However, it hasn't so known and beloved songs of their fans like "Hymn" and "Poor Man's Moody Blues", such as "Gone To Earth" has. Still, "XII" is probably, in my humble opinion, a better album than "Gone To Earth" is. "XII" is a more cohesive, uniform and balanced album that "Gone To Earth" is. "XII" is also an album that represents the end of an era in the music of the band. If John Lees songs are great and with some progressivity, unfortunately Les Holroyd songs start to sound too predictable and commercial, a tendency that would be confirmed in the near future. By the other hand and unfortunately, with the departure of Woolly Wolstenholme, the last progressivity influences and their symphonic roots have gone permanently from Barclay James Harvest. And it was really a pity. "XII" is in reality the last album of Barclay James Harvest that can be considered a true classic album.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

If listening to bands jamming makes you break out in small, red, itchy bumps you're going to want to look toward some later mid 70s work for satisfaction, say the jazzy psych rock of Dance In Flames or full on Fusion oriented Guru Guru of the late 70s on Globetrotter. This is not that however. This, Guru Guru's 1970 debut album Ufo, is a wonderful and heavily acidic mess.

On the first side we get three songs, all teetering on the edge of the unstructured abyss; flirting with uncontrolled free fall into an ocean of acid so thick and fuzzy there is no swimming out of. Stone In and Girl Call both start out a little sleepy. Some tremendously fuzzed out guitar moaning and groaning here, and some freely wandering drums and bass there (and some AUAUghghauauGhhhHh 'vocals' dribbled out on Stone In! Always love to hear). Both songs start to coagulate into the nearly gone, hectic and frenzied, point of no return, freak outs discussed earlier, but ending just before free fall, or at least Stone In fades out and Girl Call is rather abruptly, but kinda, effectively cut off. Also have to stop and mention how much I love the guitar distortion on Girl Call, some truly deranged, heavy, and fuzzed out wah wahs. Next Time See You At The Dalai Lama starts off sounding a bit more structured than anything else on the album, and seemingly more deliberately paced. The structure and pace does start to falter and waver, Ax, Mani, and Uli all rambling and coasting off into the cosmic brain, then coalescing for a slight time, before succumbing to the drift again.

Now, to flip this [%*!#]er over, and here we find that the inevitable has happened. You dance and prance for so long on the edge of psychedelic insanity, that falling into the vastness of kosmische sea will occur. The first of the two songs, sharing the album name, Ufo; sees our intrepid oceanic trawlers completely immersed into nebulous and hypnotic soundscapes. Guitars, electronics, percussion, and effects all dither and scratch around and about, occasionally swarming together into a truly wild proto industrial/noise piece here. A musical rendition of a grimy, old piece of space junk limping through the cosmos. While plenty of classical composeurs ;) were fiddling around with long and exploratory pieces of music, I find they never seem to actually be all that enjoyable, or reach the depths that more amateur works do. When you fiddle with the unknown the known ain't going to cut it. The final track Der LSD/Marsch is more grounded, but no less prescient. The first half, Der LSD I guess, sees some strung out guitar calling out over foggy, sunken graveyard, while some plodding bass and wispy and haunting, electronically treated flute(?) (Kraftwerk!?) slowly flow around. This all mends together into possibly the most cohesive our intrepid group have sounded, or it just seems so after the past 12 minutes. Marsch is appropriately titled, because after making it out of vast cosmic, oceanic, expanse it's a long walk back. Guitar, bass, and drums all have moments of cohesive, buoyant, forward drive, but fall into a tired and languid sounding plod on occasion.

Proclaims the group on return "Soon the ufos will land and mankind will meet much stronger brains and habits, lets get ready for that."

One of Argentina's best kept secrets from the fertile and creative 1970s prog scene, SÍNTESIS was a band like no other in a nation that followed in the footsteps of the romantic Italian prog scene more than any other stylistic approach of progressive rock. Forming in the city of Rosario in 1973 by the power trio of Julio Alberto Cusmai (drums), Jorge Migoya (guitar) and Juan Carlos Ricci (bass), SÍNTESIS dropped its sole eclectic obscurity onto the market in 1976 right in the middle of the coup d'etat that rocked the nation and installed a military dictatorship for the next several years. The members barely escaped Argentina with their lives but it also meant the band that was only getting started came to an abrupt end.

One of the boldest and wildest bands of the entire Argentine 70s, SÍNTESIS' all instrumental self-titled release has become quite the underground sensation fetching hundreds of US dollars for a single original copy of the original Profeta Records vinyl. A bizarre mix of Crucis, East of Eden, Return to Forever, King Crimson and a touch of the pastoral Italian folky prog band of the same era, this short but sweet album of seven tracks packs a major punch despite its meager running time of slightly less than 33 minutes. As much as an eclectic prog sensation as a jazz-fusion excitation, SÍNTESIS flavored its power punch album with a roster of talented guest musicians who added the extra flavors of the saxophone, flute, clarinet and violin. The one glaring omission is any trace of keyboards.

Offering as many adventurous guitar workouts as jazzy interludes that find angularity avenue around every corner, SÍNTESIS unleashed some of the most demanding time signatures and captures the essence of avant-prog without deviating from its jazz focused mission. The knotty and shapeshifting compositions are restless and jittery little buggers and you can never predict what lurks around the corner with John Albercombie guitar freak outs one moment and then making a hairpin turn into a compelling duet between a violin and flute workout but the jazz never strays far and the funky guitar chord procession accompany the ceaseless soloing as well as tackling the more heady style of fusion that goes for the avant-jazz jugular. The overall effect is brash and in your face almost drifting into a heavier rock paradigm but always tethered to the sensual flutes and Miles Davis sax escapades.

Led by the imitable guitarist Jose Migoya, SÍNTESIS took fusion to the next level and despite crashing and burning and literally forced to scatter worldwide, the band more than offered a career's worth of creativity in a single album's worth of material with heady excursions into stop / start guitar stops, frenetic bass outbursts and John McLaughlin style of reckless abandon on crazy guitar soloing run amok. The beauty of the album is each track features a completely different theme and tackles a completely new approach making this one of the wildest and energetic deliveries of eclectic prog flavored fusion in the entire Argentine paradigm. With no clear core sound to the band's overall approach, the album really is a free for all of as many prog and fusion ideas under a single roof. As placidly beautiful as is demanding and avant-garde, it's no wonder why SÍNTESIS has become the top cult favorite of all 70s prog from South America's most prolific prog nation.

With an acumen of a seasoned band that had existed for years and years, the cohesion of the musicians involved is nothing short of breathtaking. An amazing achievement made all the miraculous by the album being recorded in the midst of one of Argentina's most disastrous years in its history. This is certainly one band i wish would've carried on abroad in some shape or form but given the hardships endured and the crisis that unfolded during its making, it appears we have to be grateful that not only this one was recorded but actually survived all the turmoil and can be experienced digitally in the modern era. In dire need of rediscovery and a repressing because despite a proper CD release it's still almost impossible to track a decent copy down at a reasonable price. One of my top picks of adventurous fusion from the 70s underground bar none.

"Peter And The Wolf" comes across as a children's tale, which it is, set to music here by an all-star cast. It's not up to the standards of MOTHER GONG's "Fairy Tales" which also had it's stars but when you see some of the names listed out of the 20 something it's easy to be impressed. Led by the duo of Jack Lancaster who plays wind instruments along with violin and Robin Lumley the keyboardist who some will know from BRAND X. Jack by the way was in BLODWYN PIG at this point. These two guys wrote, arranged and produced this record and man what an undertaking with all of these musicians most involved with their own bands so getting them together must have been a challenge. This is 1975.

How many people saw this album in a record store and decided to buy it solely by who's playing on it? I mean no self respecting prog fan could put this back on the shelf could they? The main drummer is Phil Collins but we get brief appearances from Bill Bruford, Jon Hiseman and Cozy Powell. While Lumley takes care of most of the keyboards we get Keith Tippett playing piano and Brian Eno, Manfred Mann and Gary Brooker adding synths. Guitar? How about Alvin Lee, Gary Moore, Chris Spedding and John Goodsall. Percy Jones takes care of most of the bass duties but BLODWYN PIG member Andy Pyle helps out too. Violins and a lot of vocals and spoken words. And of course narration from Viv Stanshall and it's so well done. Really Julie Tipppetts and Bernie Frost are the only singers as only three tracks have singing although we get a choir on another tune but lots of character speakers here done by many of the musicians here.

The tracks average under 2 minutes as we go from scene to scene so not much time for the instrumentalists to show their skills. But this is about the story and it's well done in my opinion but honestly if I never hear it again so be it. The one track that stood out for me was "Wolf And Duck" at under 4 minutes and the one with Chris Spedding on it along with Eno, Collins and Jones. "Cat In Tree" is pretty good too but again this is more about the story, the lyrics. "Rock And Roll Celebration" is a disappointment, a shot at a single I guess. 3 stars.

Herbie's first studio album since decommissioning his Mwandishi project. Herbie is stated to have said that he was tired of the spacey, high-end stuff and just wanted to bring it back down to Earth with some funk. It is important when listening to this album to remember how influential it was: both to other artists as well as on the tastes of the popular ear; this was, after all, at the time (until the 1976 phenomenon of George Benson's Breezin'), the highest selling jazz album of all-time!

1. "Chameleon" (15:41) the opening funk bass sound and line lets us know right off the bat what's going to be different about this music compared to the famous "Mwandishi sound" of Herbie's previous three years of work: Funk is paramount here. The problem here is how long Herbie stays affixed to a particular pattern and motif: it's as if it takes him 30 measures to get the feel of a pattern enough to be able to play within much less diverge or solo above it. I don't know if the rhythm section (or engineer) realized that they were speeding up in the sixth minute, beneath Herbie's funky ARP Soloist solo, but it's awkward for a bit until they all return to the pocket. At 7:40 there is a reset to let Paul Jackson and Harvey Mason reset their rhythm pattern. Now we're in Fender Rhodes territory--the soundscape that will become BOB JAMES' standard/go-to palette. Paul and percussionist Bill Summers start playing off one another, which is highly entertaining despite Herbie supposedly being in the lead up top. Harvey's innovative use of the hi-hat here might also have served to influence all future Disco drummers. I prefer this middle section to the opening one. At the 12-minute mark there is a reset bridge with those rich ARP strings and panning Fender Rhodes play. J-R Fuse Heaven! Now this is where Smooth Jazz came from! At 13:15 there is another reset bridge that allows the band to restart the opening motif. Here Bennie Maupin finally gets some front-time on his tenor sax. Nice. A song that contains so much innovation I can't justify down-rating it despite my not really liking the majority of it. (27/30)

2. "Watermelon Man" (6:29) a very popular song that is denigrated by the fact that to me it is a very thinly-veiled revisitation on Dobie Gray's big hit from 1964 (a Billy Page compostion), "The 'In' Crowd." Then there is the presence at the opening and ending of the odd breath and voice percussion (what would probably inspire a whole generation of Bobby McFerrins. (8.875/10)

3. "Sly" (10:18) a reference to he of the Family Stone? What starts out deceptively in some disarray becomes, quite suddenly, at the two-minute mark, a meteoric flight through high altitude with bass, drums, percussion, and clavinet all rushing wildly along in a very loose weave beneath Bennie Maupin's wild soprano saxophone play. Then Herbie gets a turn on his Fender electric piano. The man is so smooth! Paul Jackson's low end bass play paired up with Harvey Mason's hi-hat and cymbal work is pure genius! Somebody (Bennie Maupin) must be playing the clavinet beneath/alongside Herbie's two-handed Fender Rhodes exposition. I have to admit that I'd never really appreciated the drumming of Harvey Mason before this--cuz I'd never heard anything quite like this before. High marks for the extraordinary work of that dynamic middle section.(19/20)

4. "Vein Melter" (9:10) It would seem here that Harvey's semi-automatic militaristic snare and hi-hat riff would run contrary to the somber, etheric world being created by the rest of the band, but somehow it all works (except the ARP sounds: they sound so dated!) My favorite part is hearing Bennie Maupin playing with such feeling and emotion without having to blast it or even raise his "voice." Also, you can hear here the reverberating Fender Rhodes electric piano sound that everybody will be using over the next ten years: KOOL AND THE GANG "Summer Madness," Donald Fagen/STEELY DAN, BOZ SCAGGS Silk Degrees and so many more. (17.5/20)

Total Time 41:38

Thrust is my favorite Herbie album.

A-/five stars; a minor-masterpiece (and landmark album) of Jazz-Rock Fusion.

From lovely Imola with its stunning Sforza castle, comes this new addition to the RPI school of prog, offering a classic take, flush from all the legendary influences, but adding a darker, as well as a more contemporary, somewhat investigational twist to the proceedings. Let me introduce the talented five-man blue squadra: vocalist Francesco Ronchi, Nello De Leo on guitars and vocals, keyboardist Cristiano Costa, and the rhythmic tandem of Lorenzo Marani on bass and drummer Jacopo Cinesi.

While there are many moody adornments on the silky opener "Sogni Infranti", the arrangement does eventually veer away from the initial Floydian atmosphere into a crosscurrent of conflicting dissonant melodies that certainly add drama so as to herald the rather operatic vocals from Francesco, who seems to be in very good voice, a set of voluminous lungs that are both expressive and effusive. The windy synths, the churning organ, and the tense mellotron seek only to follow the ardent bass undercurrent and the stabilizing drumbeat.

The cavernous choirs rise and fall on the sombre "L'Illusione dell'Obilio" catapulted forward by an elastic bass line and then exploding into a howling hurricane or organ-fuelled rage. The transitions and tempo changes are expertly navigated, as if bathing in some cosmic nirvana. Francesco scours the sonic crests like a pro, as the slashing guitar riffs pound the valley below (the Rogue poet). A colossal mellotron wave puts this one to bed. The magnificent "Catarsi" takes aim at a more atmospheric realm, eventually settling into an elegant groove (that thumping bass again) as the piano meanders a sorrowful lament, heightened by the pleading voice. Nello's bluesy axe rant shivers and trembles, up and down the intensity scale, propelled along by some majestic keyboard colorations. The piano (which was there all along) re-engages with even more concentration, honing further the direction of the arrangement, which reaches celestial heights as the operatic voice brings down the velvet curtain onto the stage floor.

The impressive "Apologia di Reato", with its flickering wrist guitar is another sombre bass-led reptile, slithering along menacingly as the voice flings itself vigorously beyond the pale, until some well-intentioned keyboard wavering obfuscates the impending doom, synthesizers effervescing like blinding phosphorous, gradually the voice crawls out of the abyss, to finally collapse into silence. Magnifico! The lovely retro sound of "Isolazione" showcases the wonderful osmosis of old school RPI with a more contemporary sound, but very much in keeping with their style of rising levels of thrusts and contrasts, the rifling guitar and the swirly synths being a pure delight, all well anchored by some deft drumming. The relentlessly painful fretboard solo is a showstopper. The passion expressed in the vocal department is equally outstanding. Adventurous and impeccably done.

The mighty organ takes center stage on the wild and at times manic "Madri di Niente, Figli di Nessuno", an obvious wink to Uriah Heep, a track that seeks to blitz intimidatingly with no mercy, a whirlwind of raging voices, Middle Eastern synth sax motifs in a jazzy sandstorm and even some hypnotic psychedelia. The devilish voice spits venom and thankfully gets shown the door and cleared out by a bass security guard.

The final track is the longest one here, clocking in at 7:39 and as such is a perfect finale, a remote mirage of sweltering dunes of sound, perfectly encapsulating their rather unique style. The bass guitar once again flows along like a river of consistent tranquility, leaving the passion to be delivered by the residual instrumentalists and the madman's declaration. The extended finale is a shimmering wave of exalted guitar shadings, keyboard flourishes galore, manic, and relentless drumming and an apotheosis of vocal expression.

I was totally captured by the overwhelming natural rawness of it all, namely the theatrical vocal deliveries, the solid rhythmic pulse, and the fascinating keyboard interventions and the gritty guitar work. This is a band that should have a fascinating career, which I fully intend to follow and to promote as best as I can. By the way, the cover art is absolutely eye catching and luxuriant.

4.5 Squaring Circles