HERE WE ARE

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Cumbersome back beats, stoned out lanquid vocals, distorted guitar and mellotron sweeps give Jane a more groovy feel on their second psychedelic blues/rock album which stylistically occupies a grey zone somewhere in the region between kosmishe musik and more mainstream rock. Much more straitforward and less whacked out than the more experimental music of some of their German contemporaries such as Xhol Caravan, Guru Guru or Amon Duul II this melodic music is certainly more accessable to the casual listener.

Overcoming the loss of singer Berndt Pulst who delivered the soulful vocal power on the outstanding Green Brain debut Together, drunmmer Peter Panka takes over on vocals and Wolfgang Krantz joins as an interim bass/guitar player replacing ailing Charly Maucher. Practically broke at the time, the band had to borrow music equipment in order to complete the album, exemplified by the ballad Out In The Rain with it's orchestral meloncholic air which was to become an everlasting fan favourite. Although not as forward moving and hard rocking as it's predecessor Here We Are has denser feel to it with it sounds as if the tapes were slowed down particularily on the first extended track Redskin which plods along at a tortoise pace for almost 9 minutes and although gets into a cool psychedelic groove it could have been saved for the conclusion of the LP given the lesser impact of the remaining tracks. Nonetheless, Here We Are more or less cosolidated the ethereal Jane plod 'n roll formula which endures to this day. Several single edits appear on the CD re-issue as the original running time occupied no more than a mere 33 minutes. A foreshadow of bigger things for this Hanover band get the headphones out for this mellow trippy and overall enjoyable album.

3.5 stars really!! Jan's second album is a logical following of their debut but songs are a tad shorter. This group is a borderline inclusion for they were more of a hard-rock with progressive leanings than a prog rock per se. Also the lyrics did not have special attention from band members but they are sung in very correct and accentless English. they may be compared to Birth Control , Wallenstein's early albums, Uriah Heep etc...

in the usual tradition , this second album opens with a lenghty track (Redskin) with the usual blistering keyboard lines and good guitar heroics. The singing has gotten better due to personel change. Many very correct tracks such as Dandelion, Moving, Waterfall make this an enjoyable album but the peak of the opening track is not reached a second time.

The repertoire CD holds extra tracks from one non-album single and they add up quite nicely to the album content with Daytime and Hangman as very solid tracks. The second single had two album tracks but in a very shortened version: these bonuses hold limited interest. All in all , a good rock & roll album but should we not call this Prog'n Roll????

AN EXCELLENT SOPHOMORE FOLLOW-UP

After their excellent first album TOGETHER, JANE came back one year later with HERE WE ARE! This album follows the same pattern than the first one by mixing space rock, psychedelism with hard rock guitar bravado. A new bassist WOLFGANG KRANTZ took over CHARLY MAUCHER and plays guitar as well.

The album starts strongly with quite a unique tune REDSKIN , a 8mns extravagant odyssey of groovy beats accompanying a psychedelic guitar solo before some spoken words appear with nice organ texture...and female vocals sounding like indian chants (yes the title of the song is REDSKIN, i told you!). At least this is a very different track that i cannot compare to anything else. You may like it or you may not; that's not here to leave you indifferent for sure.

OUT IN THE RAIN is pure JANE at its best: a wonderful melodic ballad well sung with a beautiful mellotron soundscape and of course another emotional guitar solo just playing the right notes, but the ones which will touch you deep inside if you are into melody.DANDELION and MOVING follow in the same style, slow paced with a lot of organ and more beautiful guitar sounds. KLAUS HESS guitar technic is not about playing 20000 notes a minute, this is about making his guitar cry and transport deep emotions from his playing to your inner self making you feel good. A guitar with a heart so to speak!!

WATERFALL is another mid-tempo spacey track with again beautiful guitar, angelic mellotron and....those delicate female vocals! Oh my gosh!! such a beauty! and this wonderful symphonic ending is sure to bring you to heaven prog!

LIKE A QUEEN is another dreamy symphonic piece, albeit short but showcasing perfectly the JANE spirit and how good they can be at producing the best romantic melodic prog you will ever hear, sometimes reminding me of NOVALIS. HERE WE ARE the title track is more on the rock side with strong guitar riffs, but not that hard, don't worry!This song was the single of the album (the fanous 45 rpm of the time). An excellent opportunity for KLAUS HESS to show us how he can carry a song with a long powerful guitar solo getting more and more furious towards the end, but still played so tastefully!

HERE WE ARE is the perfect complement to TOGETHER. My edition includes 4 bonus tracks, the single versions OF DAYTIME nad HANGMAN from the first album and HERE WE ARE plus REDSKIN from this album. Nothing to hurt you!!

Albums like TOGETHER and HERE WE ARE should get 200 reviews on a site like PA. This is prog music at his best deseving more than 5 reviews. So please stop listening to ANIMALS, CTTE and SEBTP for once and give a chance to these 2 first albums from JANE. You will be rewarded!

4 STARS!

I was quite impressed by "Jane" 's debut album. Especially with "Daytime". A fully Floydian song which transported me into the "ASOS" days. Luckily enough, there will also be such a song featured on their second album. "Out Of The Rain" features the same atmospheric mood and those brilliant keyboards sounds.

I can't really say the same about the opening number. Heavy blues rhythm, monotonous and with little feeling. But I'm not in blues really. Might just be therefore. The ethnic chants (American Indians) featured at the end of the song are not for me either even if they are in-line wih its title ("Redskin").

We are reverted to some good psychedelia with "Moving" as well as "Waterfall". I far much prefer this side of "Jane" 's music. Heavy organ like "Heep" and wonderful guitar breaks. If you lioke this mix, you'll like the early "Jane", hat's for sure.

To enjoy this album, you'll need to be attracted by the early years of psychedelia. This album sounds outdated but it is a very nice journey to the old days of prog. Their debut album was really great and superior to "Here We Are". The title track and closing number is another very good moment. It ends in a wild chaos of organ and furious electric guitar. "Heep" could have released this.

The CD version holds several bonus track of which the single version of "Daytime". One of their best ever song. Even if it fits the single format and has been reduced by almost five minutes, it is always a pleasure to listen to this jewel.

A little star less for this second album. Three stars.

I will reiterate "Febus" quest for more exposure for "Jane". I quote : "Albums like TOGETHER and HERE WE ARE should get 200 reviews on a site like PA. This is prog music at his best deseving more than 5 reviews. So please stop listening to ANIMALS, CTTE and SEBTP for once and give a chance to these 2 first albums from JANE. You will be rewarded!".

He was damned right! (although I stll listen to "SEBTP" and "CTTE"). Their albums are all available on CD format and you can them for 8? (+ shipment). So...