FOUR

Along comes the opportunity to chart new musical discoveries, accepting to listen intently and review something completely unfamiliar, when asked nicely by an artist looking for some much-needed exposure. Tenk Van Dool is a fine Dutch name but works out of the USA, as a mainly a two-man show, as Tenk skillfully handles a rather superb and reptilian bass, as well adorning powerful keyboards, guitars and vocals, while drummer David White completes the roster. The music is punchy, crisp, somber, thoughtful, brash and rebellious. This is their fourth album and quite the revelation I must say, as anything led by a nasty bass is often cause for some intense celebration. What also strikes me upon my initial go through, is that the material is quite original in that no apparent or overt influence jumps to the fore, occasionally heavy, suddenly jazzy, often dissonant, never boring or trite, constantly adventurous.

The album kicks off with brash guitars, electro keys and a solid drumbeat, until a ferocious bass furrow shoves it into overdrive, phosphorescent sparks flying, smoke billowing on the water, gently floating over the waves, before returning to the sonic madness. You are welcome, indeed. This leads next into another pile driver, the sardonic "Your Fly is Down", as both bass and guitars bruise the senses, insistent keys and marshaling drums complete the onslaught! A slick jazzy upturn catapults this into another realm, very catchy and way too short! More please? On "The Wind", a wobbly bass intro introduces the amazing voice of Amanda Lehmann (whose recent solo album was a definite ear-opener), a reflective yet quirky piece of melodramatic progressive rock, painted with strokes of gusty dissonance and breezy atmospherics, and a chorus that veers towards neo-gothic bombast. Very tasty indeed.

The tablas driven atmospherics on "Pareidolia" evoke images of 'Taj Mahalian' proportions, the bass carving a slow- paced space-rock ride that hanker back to Gong, Ozrics and company. Incense and curry, contemplation, and karma. Again, a very cool instrumental with loads of synths and effects. And now, for something completely different, a reworked and upgraded drum solo, Tenk quivers away on the electric guitar while drummer White evokes his inner Pierre van der Linden (of Focus fame), both sounding like that famous Dutch legend on exalted steroids. Fun, fast, slippery, and just plain brilliant. The bass, here played by guest Dale Wiser, is quite simply jaw dropping. "Human Zoo" is a more traditional pop-rock tune, focusing heavily on the sarcastic lyrics that try to settle a score with the human condition. Very well played instrumentally melodic yet acerbic lyrically, just the right dose of spit and venom, a slick guitar solo closes the enclosure's gates. That darn bass fretless bass announces the next vignette,"Llamada a San Cristobal" , a jazzier foray that cajoles and caresses with a wide variety of sounds emanating from the keys and guitars, everything swerving, veering and spinning in a near Canterbury fashion.

The epic "The Unfurling" stretches out over 10 minutes, flexing musical muscle and creative juice and displaying complex subtleties that will keep your ears on edge. The superlative playing is over the top genius, as the band shows an uncanny ability to keep things fascinatingly unpredictable whilst remaining utterly enjoyable, distributing abundant contrasts between shade and shine, tossing jolly frills along the way, such as the surprising piano section that really grabbed my attention. The uncoiling mood is soft one moment and jarring the next, distorted but very strategic, a clear sign of thoughtful dramatis.

Pounding returns on the effusive and belligerent rocker "Freeway", a driving song that I historically often dislike with very few exceptions. Its just not an inspiration for me as 'I'm in Love with my Car' 'Highway to Hell', 'Radar Love' or even 'Born to Be Wild' do not really shake my tree. That being said, the well-oiled bass and revving guitars are ridiculously tasty and chunky. Another bopping rocker, the sneering "Go Champion" sounds like T-Rex on speed, more gothic glam that anything heard recently, a somber vocal part notwithstanding. Fine companion to that other regal "Champion" song, I guess. The finale hits the spot on "Lemongrass and Thyme", a pastoral ditty with acoustic guitar in tow, reverberating keys, drowsy beat and a forlorn piano, with shrouded vocals dripping in whispered melancholia. The stinging electric guitar solo is like Larry Carlton homage.

A very entertaining entry, which I will surely revisit (next long road trip, LOL) as well as a band I intend to discover more releases past and future. Well done.

4 Sanctuaries of Turns

TEMPLE OF SWITCHES debuted in 2012 breaking down musical barriers by delivering dark, contemplative, dissonant, unrestrained, variegated alternative rock; brief avant-garde where jazzy and melancholy touches are added; founded by Tenk VAN DOOL and helped by drummer David WHITE of the group RATTLEFACE, they released this 4th opus with bluffing atonal sounds which must be ignored at the start. A progressive cinematic album where the eccentric is in order, where the classic mixes with the pure progressive of the 70's.

'Welcome' as an instrumental preamble title, rock with latent electronic components, its own from the start reminiscent of the Focus. 'Your Fly is Down' vocal Nick Cave or Rik Ocasek or David Bowie, electro new wave a tad offbeat, bucolic and psychedelic synth variation, strange, the bass prints a strong base. 'The Wind' operates a 180° musical shift with a clean air, Amanda Lehmann flirting with her borderline voice Marianne Faithfull; vibrant and subdued atmosphere on a spleen of sirens, the majestic organ adding a layer, sublime. 'Pareidolia' delves even further with this Arabicizing, eclectic and psychedelic Dead Can Dance instrumental; a bit of the Doors vibe in a trance with this monolithic reverb. Captivating and hypnotic, clear and filled with wisdom. 'Dale's Neglected Song' on a drum solo starting on a psychedelic The Cure; a bit of Focus, a master drumstick-drummed vintage rhythm by David for a trip down memory lane. 'Human Zoo' spins 90 degrees and goes to Crimsonian lands all to a high voice that amplifies instrumental dramatic grandeur; a title that surprises in a singular register with a final Genesis or Hackettian solo, it's up to you to see.

'Llamada a San Cristobal (Chepo's song)' on a Yessian declination for the bass and Genesis for the keyboards, the latent side and the flute, a beautiful bucolic Canterburyan instrumental exercise before moving on to 'the Unfurling' for the piece, thundering moment with delicate primary breaks, variegated tempo flirting on jazz with piano and its dark Crimsonian debauchery; uncompromising art rock with back and forth from the 70s to the recent 90s, an inexplicable title, surely one of the most beautiful progressive pieces of the decade with a contemplative final decrescendo. 'Freeway' denotes, heavy rock title of the 70's on the line of Blue Oyster Cult, always with a dissonant voice. 'Go Champion' drives the nail, the first Alice Cooper or T-Rex, on the glam in fact. 'Lemongrass and Thyme' for the finale on a singular bucolic variation, a mixture of Leonard Cohen, Johnny Cash for the phrasing; it's still confusing, intimate and melancholy yet enjoyable and vibrant; necessary to rest his ears from this uncompromising musical niche.

A bucolic album with mud, light rain, showers of petals, an eclectic album mixing various genres, simmered to get out of quirky and crazy retro prog but full of sensitivity, spleen, new musical sense. TEMPLE OF SWITCHES just did that dexterously; an album to listen to differently.

Another multi-varianted 2022 album, some fresh produce coming in from Tenk Van Dool. Okay, plus a few friends in music, needless to say, everything covered under the moniker TEMPLE OF SWITCHES again. A mixed bag, 'Four' appears rich on impressions, surprises, turns, edges. Hereby offering a real crossover of music styles, a great mix of atmospheric moody things and heavier occasions, also equipped with a touch of weirdness on top of it. And so, sooner or later, one is practically urged to find out more about the individual pieces of music. Very useful then, if you will have the accompanying PDF file at hand that is offering the particular lyrics, as well as some rather enlightening comments offered by the mastermind himself.

There is another regular contributor to consider here, not to forget. I mean drummer David White of course, who already has produced music with Tenk Van Dool in the past in one way or another. He intensively was involved in the songwriting process too. The songs are made of new material, but this is also drawing on inspirations, even recorded portions from the past in the same way. Now please, let's say welcome to the album due to the eponymously named short instrumental track that already evolves with an unpredictable flow. Showcasing the lovely Amanda Lehmann contributing the vocals for The Wind this appears in a proper Cary Grace mood, I would say. Fretless bass and nice organ are properly underlaying this charming matter. Paredolia then joins nearly in the same mood with a strong ambient, psychedelic and indo/raga feel.

To whom it may concern ... Dale's Neglected Song finally has reached for a renewal. A bit Rush infected this is culled from former recordings back in the late Eighties, when Tenk Van Dool, David White, and Dale Wiser (bass) intensively worked together. Towards the end it also shows some impressions from the original extended drum solo. Quite a lot of instruments are used for the suite The Unfurling. This may be acclaimed as the album's masterpiece by many. Certainly a challenge, especially from the compositorial point of view. This album offers an entertaining song collection. During more than 50 minutes playing time there's plenty to discover, that's guaranteed.

2022 saw the band return with their fourth album, and yet again it saw some changing of the guard with just two mainstays this time in Tenk Van Dool (bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals) and David White (drums) again being joined by guests which a returning Dale Wiser providing bass on one song, Akuda (who I think was previously known as Kevin McConnell) back providing vocals on one song, with Jim Chavez returning to do the same with Amanda Lehmann also providing vocals on one. This is the first time since the debut that there has been another musician apart from Tenk play on every song, while everyone apart from Amanda had been involved in at least one other album, with Akuda and Jim now being on three.

With David and Tenk working together on every aspect of the album, this has much less of a split personality than the previous one, yet although there has been a tempering of some of the more avant garde moments which could be found particularly on their second, this still does not have the more singular approach which we had with their debut. It is definitely far more rounded in its approach, with "Pareidolia" a fine example of how music can be delivered when the percussionist and melodic lead are fully in sync. Dale may no longer be a full member of the band, but the way he interacts with David and Tenk on "Dale's Neglected Song", which appears to be built around a drum solo, is simply wonderful. I really enjoyed the interaction between the three of them on the previous release and was actually expecting an album from the trio this time around, and this instrumental demonstrates just what a powerful entity they are when in full flight. True, Tenk is providing guitar and keyboards here, but it is the closest we get to a band really pushing hard.

"Human Zoo" is far more reflective, but while that is not uncommon, there are quite a few rockier numbers, and it is interesting to hear how the band keep reinventing themselves with each release. It is not possible to know in advance what a Temple of Switches album is going to be like, nor who is going to play a part and how big that is going to be apart from Tenk Van Dool as here is a band who keep reinventing themselves and their music each time, and all power to them for doing that. Personally, my favourite is the debut, but all three have merits and are a band that progheads should be investigating.

More than 10 years have passed now since the conception of Temple of Switches, a band whose music is actually new to me, and I am glad my ears found it. I know they have released four studio albums so far, being 'Four' their newest and the one I am reviewing.

What this band led by mastermind Tenk Van Dool offer is a great mixture of prog, jazz, rock and even a bit of electronic music. It can be heard in the first track, entitled 'Welcome', which is an adventurous opening that take us through a diversity of sounds and emotions. 'Your Fly is Down' has vocals for the first time, and we can appreciate that besides being great musicians, they add a kind of humoristic sound to their already interesting music, which is great. I love the raw bass sound here and all those small but constant changes they dare to make in a short 3-minute track. There are moments where guitar take over, then keyboards say "I'm in charge", and then all gather together to continue the journey as a whole.

'The Wind' has the beautiful addition of Amanda Lehman in vocals, her charming style is wonderfully complemented first by some soft bass lines and then by addictive piano notes that add more textures. The drums are great, David White actually does a great job during the whole album, with some figures and sounds that can be better appreciated while listening with good headphones. This might be one of my favorite songs from this album.

A short mid-eastern trip can be found with 'Pareidolia', a low tempo track that one can enjoy while listening with eyes closed. It is trippy indeed, spacey atmospheres created by synths while bass and percussion guide us. It is striking how the songs sound really different from one to another, but for some reason, we can perceive the essence of Temple of Switches, instead of thinking there is a different band every 4 minutes. So yeah, a completely different sound appears in the amazing 'Dale's Neglected Song', which is quite an adventure: fast and skilled drums (it's his song, I think), bass, guitar and keyboards joining that vertiginous journey and giving the listener a rush of adrenaline and prog rock. Awesome!

'Human Zoo' is a nice track that has a let's say more traditional sound, I mean, it does not has the changes in time and mood than the previous tracks, it has more a soft rock sound, which is not bad at all, but to my ears, not the most attractive track of the album in spite of its more adventurous final minute. Important to say it also has nice male vocals, though. Next is 'Llamada a San Cristobal (Chepos Song), which has an interesting blend of jazz and ambient music. I love the fretless bass here, the gently sound of the guitar and the diversity of atmospheres created by keyboards.

The longest track is 'The Unfurling' whose 10 minutes display the creativity that lives inside Van Dool's mind, and that fortunately can be put into paper and then, into music. It is a good example of what a progressive rock song is, ambitious, challenging, great, and in moments even unpredictable. I love its different changes in time and mood, and the always accurate addition of keyboards.

'Freeway' is the one closer to rock and roll, you can feel its power and energy, taking elements from 70s and 80s bands without a doubt. It is catchy and you might even get ready for a small rockin' dance. 'Go Champion' continues with the rock feeling, however here is a bit heavier, like a combination of Black Sabbath and T. Rex, so as you can imagine, the 70s essence is present here.

The album finishes with 'Lemongrass and Thyme' which has a melancholic essence, even a lullaby-like and tender sound. So Temple of Switches gave us those constant changes during the whole album, most of them capable of surprising and involving us. And yeah, just like any album, I have my favorites and a couple tracks whose spark didn't hit me. Anyways, it is great to know so talented low-profile people creating music, so I am happy to write about it a little bit and put my grain of sand.

Enjoy it!