LAST DAY AT LOKUN

The debut demo from this band which really never broke out of their village and into the scene. Thanx to Bandcamp, this and their other two offerings has got proper releases. Another good reason to love Bandcamp then.

This demo has a lovely analogue sound with the occasional sound disturbance from the LP player. Very charming. The overall sound is very good and this does not sound like a demo to me, sound wise. The Bandcamp format may have something to do with that though.

The music is charming 1960s sounding melody based proto prog. The songs are long and the band tries to pull of long compositions without really succeeding. The material on this demo is anonymous and dull. But this band had talent, but perhaps not the business skills required to break out. This is a decent demo, but nothing more. It is highly recommended to all proto prog fans.

2.5 stars

US Progressive Rockers Northwind were formed in 1968 by keyboardist Jan Stepka and singer/guitarist Roland Ernest.With Steve White on drums the original line-up created and performed a rock opera under the title ''Looking Back'' in 1970 and two years later they recorded a demo on a 2-track tape at Oakland University, pressed in a limited number of vinyls.Thanks to bandcamp this demo is available as a digital download.

1972 finds Northwind performing in a very British style of Prog, reminiscent of CRESSIDA, FANTASY or BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST.The compositions of the band contain plenty of shifting moods between softer and heavier moments and the use of synths, organ and piano by Stepka makes their sound very rich.Interesting arrangements with some hard guitar parts but always enlightened by a number of keyboard acrobatics like virtuosic piano lines, strong organ runs and moog synth solos.Vocals are great with a sweet and romantic approach, often with polyphonic lines.The atmosphere changes from pleasant and pompous to dramatic and somber in a rapid way, another section Northwind were strong at, but the below average recording quality leaves much to be desired.

For anyone into early-70's Progressive Rock with a strong British flavor, ''Last Day at Lokun'' is simply an auto-buy.Charming and well-played music, that comes warmly recommended.