CORVUS STONE

I hesitate to call this a new studio album, as more than half of the tracks are either remixes, alternate versions, or expansions of songs from Corvus Stone's excellent first two releases. Nevertheless, I enjoy this group's releases so much that the chance to hear anything new from them entices me to rate them highly. And, as usual, the perfect performances of Tench, Koivu, Lindstrom and Wolff deserve such praise.

The remixes here are not special to me. I rarely buy remixes of album that I already own, unless the originals were not mixed well, or I feel new technology, or a specific producer can bring out something new in the performance. But alternate versions, and other differences, like adding vocals to an instrumental, can pique my interest. There is enough of the latter to keep me interested, but that is not why I love this release.

The new songs are great, as usual. Colin Tench's guitar always brightens my day. He mixes an offbeat avant fusion sound, similar to David Torn, with elegant Spanish guitar and smoky blues stylings. And, as usual, Koivu's keyboards, Lindstrom's bass, and Wolff's drums are every bit as good.

Standout tracks, to me are "Horizon" (one of the remixes), a dirge of a song, brought to like by some simply bizarre percussion effects, and "Scary Movie Too", which mostly reminds me of King Crimson's "Deception Of The Thrush" improvs.

I would not recommend this as a starting point for newcomers to Corvus Stone, but it is a fine album.

Like a modern-day Beatles' White Album, an album that took its own pace and recorded whatever crossed the musicians' mind. The main styles of choice here is fusion, with a refreshingly assertive guitar of Colin Tench, blues-rock and traditional music, often flavored with the Latin, pastoral or oriental. One thing they dont seem much interested in doing, though, is rockin' out, because tracks in that style here are either throwaways or covers (the energetic jam in the otherwise Pink Floydian Boots for Hire). In short, perfect music for an aging progger (it even sounds the early 70's) - a theme that I frequently ramble on in my reviews. Even the fact that despite the multitude of vocalists, all sing similarly in that John Wetton-esque tired middle-aged man style testifies to my theory.

Nowadays, to mention the name of Corvus Stone produce a smile upon my face, because the music (the main thing) is wonderful, and also because I've been in contact with mastermind Colin Tench for some time, creating a long-distance friendship that satisfies me a lot because he is a true gentlemen that I hope one day can meet. So this review is dedicated to you Colin, but also to Sonia, Pasi and all who made possible this truly interesting multi- national project named Corvus Stone.

I remember my first experience with the band wasn't the best, I thought their first album was quite long and uneven, however, with the second album I understood they had magic on their compositions, and my responsibility was to catch that magic and let it purify my senses. Now I can say I love CS II, so when Colin told me there was a new album entitled Corvus Stone Unscrewed, I got excited and was sure they would surprise me with high quality material. And of course, they did not let me down!

The band has so many positive details that we the fans should thank, one of them is that they decided to give a free download of CS Unscrewed to the ones who already bought CS I or II, because there is an inherent synergy between fans and musicians, one can advance without the other, so it is great to step forward along with Corvus Stone, who I really wish they release this album on CD in the near future. This 2015 record might not be a complete new album in terms of compositions, because we find here some songs that were featured in their previous albums, however they are revisited versions that of course, has something new to offer. Anyway, there are of course new songs here, so in the end this third CS child has a lot of new tales to tell.

The album contains 13 songs that make a total time of 49 minutes, something I must mention because I sort of have problems with albums that last over 60 minutes, so the total length of this one allows me to enjoy every single minute of it (of course, because the music makes me enjoy it). It opens with "Brand New Day" which was also released on video, showing Colin practicing ice skating, enjoying a brand new day full of hope, happiness and surprises. I love this song, the guitars are wonderful as usual, but I like what it transmits, so I believe this album couldn't have started with a better opener. "Early Morning Calls" is a familiar one, but this finishes with calls in plural and not in singular like in CS II; so it is a new version in which we can enjoy for the first time vocals and lyrics, which are by the way shared by the voices of Sean Filkins and Phil Naro.

"Joukahainen Without Chips" has quite a different mood from its predecessor, and this is something Corvus Stone does in all their albums, all their songs might be quite different, of course there are elements that we can say "this sounds like Corvus Stone", but it is common to find that track 2 has nothing to do with 3, which has nothing to do with 4, and so on. This song has a sweet and soft sound, in which guitars remind me a bit of some Mike Oldfield passages. "Horizon" is a short composition that can be found in CS I, however this is a remix of it, which is of course, pretty nice, with excellent keyboards on it, played by Pasi Koivu. "Landfill" has a calm start that is reminiscent of past Centuries, I can imagine a sort of ceremony with knights and queens here. The music flows, the guitar plays great tunes but I love those soft but accurate percussions that sound here and there.

"After Solstice" is another old track remixed, which I must say I like a lot, mainly due to the bombastic time change that comes after 1:30 minutes, creating a vibrating symphonic prog that reminds me a bit of some classic prog acts from the seventies. "Jussi Pussi" comes also in the debut album, but the version here is also remixed, if I'm not wrong. Here we can notice their excellent musicianship and also their craziness in some parts. This is a weird but amazing track that has some hard rock moments blended with jazzy tunes and even some avant-gardish passages. This particular track might fit in a Zappa album, so go figure.

One of the best tracks here is "Scary Movie Too", which is a revised version of CS I's Scary Movie. The atmosphere is darker than the previous songs, introducing some fear and tension on it, so it is a very visual track in which one can put images on our minds and create our own story. After 6 minutes it comes another interesting change, so there is a new route to be walked; here I love the drums and the rhythm. "Petrified in the Cinema Basement" has an evident Spanish sound due to the acoustic guitar, and this is something I love from the band, that they take elements from several regions and styles, and make them theirs, so in the end we can easily determine it is a Corvus Stone track.

"Lost and Found revisited" is of course, a new version of Lost and Found. Here we can enjoy one additional minute from the original version, and for the second time in the album, we can enjoy Blake Carpenter's vocals. The drums are like funeral ones, so the mood is a bit dark but at the same time, it brings hope and future. In every album there is a favorite track, and in this one it is "Cinema Finale" the one who clicked with me since the very first listen. Let me tell you that Corvus Stone gave us in their first album a long track called Cinema, which we can find here un CS Unscrewed divided in two tracks: "Petrified in the Cinema Basement" and this one, "Cinema Finale", whose sound is wonderful, I love the atmosphere keyboards produce, but I love also the great and disarming sound of Tench's guitar. In moments my mind tells me this track is perfect for an album made by David Gilmour and Mike Oldfield (it that collaborative duo existed, haha). Killer track!

"Pack up Your Truffles" is a short, disarming and melancholic track; for some reason I think the sense of goodbye is inherent here; this is a new song that greatly closes this amazing album. But wait... there is a bonus track that can be noticed when a crazy contrast comes after Truffles, when all of a sudden bombastic keyboards start, we are already listening to"Moustaches in Massachussets", a remix of the original version; a fast and entertaining track. I love Corvus Stone, I love what they do, their creativity and friendship that allow them to generate excellent records in spite of the physical distance between the members, which is something not so many bands can do. I love Corvus Stone Unscrewed and would really love to have it on my hands soon, because I think it has become my favorite CS album so far. Their will to innovate and surprise us cannot be neglected by progressive rock fans, which is why I invite any of my readers to discover this band, which I am sure will be giving us more and more surprises in the future. A step forward, closer to perfection. 4.5 stars.

Enjoy it!

With a cover like that, and with no less than three tracks bearing movie´s motifs, it is no wonder that Corvus Stone´s third effort gives the impression of being a soundtrack, or maybe a homage to movies soundtracks. I don´t know if that was the original idea, but certainly it works very well that way to me! The album has some new material plus some extended or remix of older stuff. At first it sounded to me like a bad idea, after all the band is too new to be redoing their "old" tracks. However, upon listening to the album I found out that they fit in perfectly. Unscrewed does seem to be a terrific soundtrack of a film: even if you don´t see with your eyes, the music alone will take you into a wild ride! It´s a roller coaster of emotions and sound landscapes.

Unscrewed changed my perception of Corvus Stone. Where the first two albums are very good but lacked a cohesive feel, this one finally sounds like all the tracks were played by the same band. Not that the group decided to be less eclectic, no. On the contrary, there are as many variations and styles as ever, sometimes during the same tune, but somehow they now seemed to have developed their own personality and you can feel that on this record, even if the songs are quite different from each other on several occasions. And the good thing about Corvus Stone is the fact that their tunes always, no matter how freakish they may sound at times, have a discernible melody line. In other words, even when courting the avant guard, RIO or jazz, their stuff always have a point. Unlike many other prog acts it´s never complexity for its own sake neither an exercise on self indulgence or some internal joke. There are always good melodies. That´s what set them apart and make their music both innovative and familiar, experimental and accessible.

In the end I found Unscrewed their most satisfying and coherent album to date. They added to their already many qualities (strong compositions, emotional guitar lines, excellent bass runs, vocals when needed and so on) what was missing from their previous two albums. This is the first Corvus Stone record that I listen from start to finish without feeling that I´m listening to a different band on some tracks. I really hope they´ll follow this trend for future releases. They seem to have found their own style and sound. The chemistry has been good from the start but now the band sounds much more than just the sum of its parts, and that´s a big difference! Kudos to them!

Rating: something between 4 and 4.5 stars. Highly recommended to anyone who likes progressive music in general.

Listened to on Progstreaming.

After many listens, it is time to review this fun album. Like it's 2 predecessors, UNSCREWED packs a heap of music within it's confines. 13 tracks. Some new some reworkings, remixes, and rewhatevers make for an enjoyable listening experience. I am a sucker for bands that are not afraid to rework some of their previous material instead of considering it sacrosanct. Heck, Blue Oyster Cult improved some of their classic songs like ASTRONOMY and I ate them up with a spoon. Like prevous albums, this is an eclectic mix of jazz, rock, prog, folkie, .....you name it. The band is tight and sounds like they are truly enjoying themselves, and the sound mastering is great. No instruments are lost in the mix. I don't like to do track by track reviews but I will say I especially enjoy "Brand new Day", "Early Morning Calls" and "Lost and Found Revisited". I can't say it tickles my musical fancy as much as Corvus Stone II, but it's close. Easy 4 and a half stars. Congratulations Colin, Pasi, Robert, Petri, and a shout-out to Sonia Mota for another amazing cover. Cheers.

The latest-to-date album from Corvus Stone must have surprised a lot of people, and rightfully so. A collection of remixes already, from a band with only two studio albums under its belt? And less than 50-minutes long, after stuffing those earlier CDs almost beyond their digital capacity? Was the Stone finally slowing down and starting to gather moss?

Hardly. The most surprising aspect of the new album is how fresh and invigorating the remixes are, enough to qualify as original compositions. Even more obvious is the evolution of a genuine Corvus Stone identity, beyond the enthusiastic multi-national kitchen sink style defining the band thus far. With three albums now to their credit, it's easier to triangulate an underpinning of an actual group aesthetic, from the typically eye-popping cover art to the ear-friendly warmth of the music itself.

"Ear-Friendly" is guitarist and spokesperson Colin Tench's phrase. He's referring specifically to the dynamic range of the new mix, a vast improvement over the sometimes sterile, studio-confined sound of the earlier albums, in particular the 2012 debut, which supplied the bulk of material for these reboots. The difference can be startling. Listen to the bonus track "Moustaches in Massachusetts", the one song here left more or less untouched from its original incarnation, and then to the completely revamped "Scary Movie/Cinema" medley, for an immediate and dramatic comparison.

The same ear-friendliness applies to the music also, and in particular to the new tunes (yes, there are newer tunes, comprising a third of the album). I would hesitate to use a word like 'maturity' when describing songs with titles like "Joukahainen Without Chips" or "Pack Up Your Truffles", but there's an organic richness to the writing and performances that at last fulfills the potential of the band's earlier efforts. Not for nothing does the album open with a track titled "Brand New Day".

All the players shine, and it's very much a group undertaking. But Colin Tench's classic rock guitarmanship is worth singling out, capable of moving with ease from Arena Rock extroversion to unplugged intimacy, often in the space of a few bars. This project actually began as an acoustic set, but in typical Corvus Stone fashion mutated quickly into something else entirely.

"Unscrewed" is (so far) only available as a digital download, and free of charge to anyone who bought an earlier Stone album: a gesture of uncomplicated goodwill almost unknown in musical commerce. The one string attached is a warning to consumers: "Don't try to lie to us, or we will send Mike Portnoy, Lars Ulrich and Lemmy to hunt you down!" That's a direct quote from the Corvus Stone Bandcamp page, and a frightening threat if you really think about it. Did someone say Scary Movie..?

Tench calls the freebie a gift to fans. But really the album is a present to everyone, offered with disarming modesty and a refreshing lack of hyperbolic bows or ribbons. In retrospect the first two albums were only works-in-progress: calling cards announcing the headline act to follow. If true, here's a sign that the band is now ready to take the main stage. Ladies and Gentlemen...presenting Corvus Stone.

Corvus Stone was born from the creative minds of experienced musicians from different parts of the world, who met on social networks through their common appetite for the flamboyant, groovy and intricate sounds of the 1970's. Keen on coating their musical meals in thick layers of humour, they are in the line of rare breeds like Frank Zappa or early Tubes. The positive feedbacks on their first album fueled their hopes in getting further involved in a project as diverse in its approach as their origins. When the sophomore effort saw the light, it was received with as much enthusiasm as their debut effort, proving that their food for ears was rather tasty. The cohesion of the band was tighter this time, thanks to the full participation of the drummer. Then, when fans were still enjoying this release, the league of cheerful craftsmen went on to cook up "secretely" a new album. While Sonia "bounce bounce happy bounce" Mota was consciously working on the artwork, Colin "did I play on words?" Tench was sitting, together with his mates abroad, both on new eggs and older ones. In fact, the third creation-to-be slowly turned to be a blend of remixed (or reworked) previously recorded material and brand new songs. It could then appear as partly a sampler, partly a new album. In what sounds finally like a good introduction to anyone new to the band, the tears of the guitar contrast with the joys of keyboards (the dancefloor-friendly "Moustaches In Massachusetts", the exhilarated "Horizons"), as much as they support their sadness (the soundtrack to an imaginary horror movie "Scary Movie Too", the funeral march "Lost And Found"). Thanks to its versatility, the guitar also opens the door to the sun to let it heat our skin and put a smile on our face (the hasty "Petrified in the Cinema Basement" with its colourful gypsy overtones, the rocking waltz "Early Morning Calls" and its spellbinding vocal lines). With a broad range of influences (circus music in avant-garde outfits on "Jussi Pussi", elegance of Renaissance days in "Landfill", sunny gypsy rhythms and mournful bolero as seen above), to spice up their classic rock-dyed songs, Corvus Stone carry proudly the flag of eclecticism, which is rare enough in our genre-driven musical world to be mentioned...and praised as much as possible.

I was introduced to the music of Corvus Stone through their second album. Though I'd read reviews that called the music eclectic and because of that I had expected a disjointed album trying to cover everything, I was actually very pleased to hear an album that exhibited variety as well as cohesion. The band had an established sound and they could do a lot with it. Different guest vocalists augmented the sound palette of the album with their individual voices. After some time, I was fortunate enough to get hold of a copy of the debut album. How would I like it? Some reviews said it was more like an album of demos.

I have to admit that it has taken me time to get into this one. That is not a bad thing, of course, as sometimes albums that need time to grow on you turn out to better the more memorable ones. But I also went off exploring other areas of music which called more for my attention shortly after acquiring a copy of 'Corvus Stone'. So I didn't have the mindset for really listening to the music. Also, the album is long. When I left my house in the morning and pushed 'play' I would still be listening to 'Cinema' by the time I reached work. There were yet three more tracks to go!

Now I have finally had the chance and the desire to listen carefully and carve out an opinion of this album, albeit the last two listens were done piecemeal and not in one sitting.

First, let me say that the sound of the band is there and intact on the debut right from the start. Colin Tench's unmistakable guitar playing, with his occasional salute to Ritchie Blackmore, is perhaps the easiest to pick out (so to speak). He has quite a large bag of tricks which he employs with great skill and cunning. Keyboardist Pasi Koivu also takes the lead often and provides plenty of textures and atmospheres. Bassist Petri Lemmy Lindstrom wields the bass and rumbles to the forefront from time to time, most notably for me in 'Cinema' and 'Moron Season'. And drummer Robert Wolff, who was not yet a full member of the band until near the end, even gets his own drum solo. There are two guest vocalists this time, unlike the sophomore album which features more singers.

The album includes fewer songs and more instrumentals. In fact, there are only four songs: 'Ice King', 'Moron Season', 'Lost and Found', and 'You're So Wrong', which is a cover of a song by Black Widow. The rest is all instrumental, though with the occasional weird spoken line or word as in 'Jussi Pussi'.

Though the album begins sounding like Corvus Stone alright, I find that the first few tracks often pass by without my mind latching on to anything permanently. It's as if the band are still trying to work out exactly how they will use their individual talents and they are striving to establish what Corvus Stone should be. The band's theme song is where the first of the progressive instrumentals really catch my radar. But then we enter the beginning of the more experimental stage of the album. The music begins to move ahead here with a guitar and organ rocker 'Moron Season'. Now 'Horizon' and the short but beautiful instrumental 'Intermission' begin to bring the album into form. Things get weird by 'Jussi Pussi' but next up, 'Iron Pillows' brings us back to familiar prog land. From here on in there are plenty of ear-catching moments and songs and instrumentals that demand replays.

I have now heard this album several times through since first acquiring it and it is indeed growing on me. To the credit of the band, they sound like they are composing music that they enjoy playing. They are not overly technical but they use their individual and combined skills to make it sound like they are serious about having fun with music. As an analogy, I'll use a box of crayons. Some bands start with a big box of 24 colours and try to cover a large sonic palette. Others have a 12-colour box and use the colours to create a landscape of various tones. Corvus Stone sound to me as though they had only a box of basic 8 colours and they start out the album really working on how to get the most out of their colours. By the middle of the album, there's more experimentation and then they have found to best mix their colours in order to create colours they didn't have. In other words, you won't find cello, oboe, harpsichord, ulleann pipes, or bouzouki being played. Instead you'll find a band that works hard at being creative, versatile, and interesting with the instruments they are each individually good at playing.

For me the hardest hurdles to overcome are the selection of keyboard sounds on some tracks and the sheer number of tracks, especially instrumentals. The keyboards occasionally sound too much like supermarket Muzak to me and it makes the band sound like they are doing a Muzak cover of an original song that possibly sounded better. Thankfully, they are some other much better sounding keyboard solos that rescue that aspect of the music.

The thing with the instrumentals for me is that they often feature guitar and keyboard solos and there are times when I don't feel the solos are as inspired as I came to expect after hearing the second album. For many years before I had kids, I would sit up at night with my guitar and attempt to solo along freely to songs and there were moments when I really felt I had hit a sweet spot, when I felt I had just played something soul tweaking. One time I composed a simple piece of music on the keyboard at the school where I worked and recorded it to minidisk and took it home where I tried to come up with a guitar solo that I could play to the music for the staff Christmas party. The notes were all in key and the solo began as simple and built up, but I couldn't feel any wow factor. It was just composed and played very methodically. Sometimes I feel the solos of 'Corvus Stone', in particular the keyboard solos but occasionally something on guitar as well, are like my humble composition of years back ' the notes are in place and follow the music but in the end there's no fiery moment of 'oh, yes, that's awesome.'

Wrapping this up, this album is a great start, setting Corvus Stone firmly on the route they would continue to follow, but there was a bit of a shaky beginning where the boat seemed to veer a little left and right before they got it firmly on course. By the second half of the album they got sailing under clear skies with a stiff wind bolstering their sails. From there on they would be in full sail in time for 'Corvus Stone II'.

I find myself hesitating to give this a firm four stars but three stars is only worthy of a few tracks, mostly near the beginning. I gave the second album four stars easily and I like it much better. Then my four-star rating here is with a twinge of hesitation, more like a 70-75/100. Perhaps I need to reassess my rating of 'Corvus Stone II', to which I would give somewhere around 85-90/100. Or perhaps with further listens this will grow on me even more.

(Review originally published in french on Clair & Obscur webzine)

I must ashamedly confess that Corvus Stone had escaped my progressive radars' Until one evening, while listening to the broadcast of my friend Lucas Biela on ISKC Rock Radio, I discover an instrumental UFO, 'Brand New Day', so joyful and fresh that it could make you regret a summer heatwave! Without thinking it twice, I enquire, get in touch with Colin Tench, we chat around, and I end up with the 13 tracks that form this 'Unscrewed'. Corvus Stone (CS) is a curious beast, in that it saw the light thanks to the social networks, a trend that is observed with many of their contemporaries. Musicians contact each other, share drafts of songs and team up with one another when the spark flashes. As a result, the main CS brains (the four musicians joined by the graphic designer Sonia Mota) went to deliver two albums since 2012 (1 and 2, to make it simple). They then remixed some of their earlier material in-between creating new stuff to finally bring together those pieces and issue a third effort, which was not intended at first.

'Unscrewed' is a merry melting-pot which makes you jump from one subject to another, without ever jumping out of the frying pan into the fire! Given that it was self-produced, the album may suffer from slight flaws. Yet, in all honesty, the cheerful gentlemen of Corvus Stone will agree with me: we don't give a damn! What matters here is the fresh air the compositions breath, the ideas behind the remixes, the delight that the musicians share in playing this material, the ideas that rush in your head without making it a mess, a few winks to some heroes of the 70's...but also way more. In fact, there is nothing conceptual about this record, the transitions between the tracks are even sometimes quite surprising. 'Unscrewed' is a bit like the front window of a renowned pastry: one wants to come in and taste everything, but as the mind forces to stay reasonable, one will limit to one cake only'before returning the day after!

Also, I will not go through the complete and long storyline of this candy (already too many broadcasts and online shops dedicated to food on TV, don't you think?), all the more that you can read anything about the genesis of this album on the bandcamp page of the band. Instead, I strongly invite you to follow the musical endeavours of those merry chaps, which cheerfulness never ceases to ooze from an album, where technical control makes no doubt (a special mention to the blazing guitar play of Colin Tench), and where compositions are rich and humorous in turn, yet without pointless developments or showing-off.

Besides "Brand New Day", a real gem, other tracks that stand out include "Early Morning Calls" (for the way it builds and its amazing vocal layers - ah this flight with 'I see it in your eyes'', it could easily top 10 CC), "Horizon (remix)" (brilliant and humorous, with the fat Petri bassline), "Landfill" (funny and off-the-wall with its flashy percussions and its Oldfield-like guitar), the jazz/fusion-like "Scary Movie Too", "Lost and Found Revisited" (somewhere between Blackmore's Night and Crosby, Stills and Nash) and "Cinema Finale" (for Colin's crispy guitar).

Take also a look at the promotional teaser of the album illustrated by Sonia Mota on YouTube and you will have a full picture of the bright yet crafted humour of Corvus Stone. In times when so many musicians and bands take themselves so seriously (too much for some of them, when compared to the quality of their productions), Corvus Stone take us back to the very roots of progressive music: a blend of well balanced influences (rock, jazz, classical, traditional'), of musical darings and of a humour that could get along with the movies of Tim Burton, the Marx Brothers or Monty Python'

For all these reasons, 'Unscrewed' is a breath of fresh air in a lush and sometimes suffocating musical landscape, which will certainly prompt you to dig the remainder of Corvustonian discography if not done yet. Enjoy...with a smile on your face!

This album gave me one of the best first impressions i have ever recieved. I usually don't make track by track reviews so i will say this: in general, all songs are very different from each other and nicely arranged, specially the guitars. What an enormous value is for me that this international band have a varieté of sounds and styles. It's so boring to listen to the same formulas being used over and over again in many prog subgenres in this site however; this is an exception. Corvus Stone II is a very original album, maybe the most original album i've heard in the last couple years. It's even better if you have listened to many different prog and rock bands from the 70s because in my opinion this album sounds like an ode to 70s prog and rock, without being cliche (not even in the song Purple Stone which is one of the best songs in this genius album in my opinion). 4/5 definitely an excellent addition to any prog rock music collection.