EKSEPTION PLAYS BACH

Yet another band I know almost nothing about. Thanks to the public library system for filing this one under ‘Classical’. And really that’s what it is: various Bach classics given a sort of ‘switched on Bach’ treatment. Those who were around years ago may remember Wendy Carlos and her synth-driven recordings of Bach classics, and the litany of copycats who followed her in the early seventies. This album is sort of like that, except that for the most part these are real symphonic and band instruments (with the exception of Rick van der Linden’s organ), and the ‘treatment’ part mostly consists of the addition of lots of brass to the arrangements, the aforementioned organ, and of course guitars and drums.

This isn’t a very memorable album really, but it makes for some decent background music for a boring afternoon while I’m catching up on reading and a little spring cleaning. There’s not much point in describing each track since the album’s title pretty much lays out the concept. The rest doesn’t require a whole lot of imagination to figure out.

These aren’t complete renditions of classic compositions, they’re more like samplers. A couple that are noteworthy include “Ave Maria” with some really upbeat and beautiful horn arrangements mixed in with what sounds like an electric piano; the jazzy and heavily guitar-infused “Bourree”; the short “Air” with its lively piano scales and more trumpet; and the opening “Italian Concerto” which sounds anything but Italian – more like ‘classical gas’ with a bluesy tempo.

I’m not sure why I’m even writing about this record except that I’ve been playing it for a couple days now and it’s kind of growing on me. I was surprised to find this band listed here, although in looking over their discography this is probably on the far end of their classical leanings.

This is a modestly-recommended record if you run across it and are into jazzed-up classical music. I’m not sure it’s really progressive – kind of reminds me of more obscure bands like Sindelfingen, The Load, and Carnegie, or maybe a much tamer version of Trans-Siberian Orchestra. If you’re into bands like that you’ll probably dig this one; otherwise, you probably won’t. Three stars.

peace