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The Hemulen
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: July 31 2004
Location: UK
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Points: 5964
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Topic: Gnidrolog Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:13 |
These chaps' '72 album "Lady Lake" defines the term "lost classic".
Powerful, complex, packed with emotive playing, distinctive vocals,
interesting instruments and clever arrangements it's wall-to-wall
genius - symphonic prog at it's best. Why then, are they never ever
mentioned? Lord knows, but they never made it big and as a result will
forever remain an obscure footnote in the history of progressive rock.
Footnotes don't get much better than this though.
Haha! I've just realised how much this sounds like a review! I may have to adapt it!
Anyway, who else knows their work? Am I alone in my adoration for them?
I've had Lady Lake for about two years now and I still stick it on once
every three weeks or so. It never fails to hit the spot.
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goose
Forum Senior Member
Joined: June 20 2004
Location: United Kingdom
Status: Offline
Points: 4097
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:19 |
I don't know much about them, but that's a bloody excellent cover!
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Jimbo
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Honorary Collaborator
Joined: February 28 2005
Location: Helsinki
Status: Offline
Points: 2818
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:19 |
Great album indeed! I really like Colin Goldring's vocals, although they probably are an acquired taste.
Unfortunately, that's the only album I have by them, I would really like to hear "In Spite Of Harry's Toenail".
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Manunkind
Forum Senior Member
Joined: February 02 2005
Location: Poland
Status: Offline
Points: 2373
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:20 |
The problem with "Lady Lake" (as with many prog albums) is that it's only the long songs that are really worth listening to. But overall a very interesting release.
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"In war there is no time to teach or learn Zen. Carry a strong stick. Bash your attackers." - Zen Master Ikkyu Sojun
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The Hemulen
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Joined: July 31 2004
Location: UK
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Points: 5964
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:21 |
In Spite is excellent but Lady Lake is an utter masterpiece - worthy of
the top 100!! (Top 30 if you ask me!). And you're right goose - it's a
gorgeous cover, I had to include it in my post!
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The Hemulen
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Joined: July 31 2004
Location: UK
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Points: 5964
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:23 |
Manunkind wrote:
The problem with "Lady Lake" (as with
many prog albums) is that it's only the long songs that are really
worth listening to. But overall a very interesting release. |
I'll have to respectfully disagree with you there! I think "A Dog With
No Collar" is utterly beautiful, and "Same Dreams" shows just how a
broken heart can produce wonderous music.
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Jimbo
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Joined: February 28 2005
Location: Helsinki
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:27 |
Manunkind wrote:
The problem with "Lady Lake" (as with
many prog albums) is that it's only the long songs that are really
worth listening to. But overall a very interesting release. |
"A Dog With No Collar" is IMO the weakest track, but the rest of the stuff there are excellent!
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eugene
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Joined: May 30 2005
Location: Ukraine
Status: Offline
Points: 2703
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:29 |
I have "Lady lake" (1971) and "In spite of Harry's toenail" (1972). Both of them are excellent, but still I like "Lady lake" a bit better
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carefulwiththataxe
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Arsillus
Forum Senior Member
Joined: March 26 2005
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 7374
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:31 |
I think the cover's okay, but from what you've said and what I've read, I'll probably be picking this one upppppp.
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dalt99
Forum Senior Member
Joined: April 23 2005
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 454
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:47 |
Grrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS Trouser. Another band that I REALLY want to own. I have actually known about and heard about them for a year or so now. I really need to get this one soon. Have you heard the band named "Lady Lake" that got their name from the title of this album? I have heard good things about them too...
Edited by dalt99
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Best of 2006 that I've heard: PFM-Stati Di Immaginazione Zenit-Surrender (Best "unknown" album) Oaksenham - Conquest of Pacific 2007: Phideaux - Doomsday Afternoon La Torre Del Alchimista - Neo
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The Hemulen
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Joined: July 31 2004
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:55 |
dalt99 wrote:
Grrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS Trouser. Another band that I REALLY
want to own. I have actually known about and heard about them for
a year or so now. I really need to get this one soon. Have
you heard the band named "Lady Lake" that got their name from the title
of this album? I have heard good things about them too... |
Sorry! No, I've not heard of them, actually. Mayhaps I should check them out! Argh! So much music, so few hours in the day!
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eugene
Forum Senior Member
Joined: May 30 2005
Location: Ukraine
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Points: 2703
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:58 |
I would not call it "symphonic prog at it's best" but rather fusion with symphonic touches at it's excellence.
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carefulwiththataxe
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Manunkind
Forum Senior Member
Joined: February 02 2005
Location: Poland
Status: Offline
Points: 2373
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 18:58 |
Trouserpress wrote:
Manunkind wrote:
The problem with "Lady Lake" (as with many prog albums) is that it's only the long songs that are really worth listening to. But overall a very interesting release.
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I'll have to respectfully disagree with you there! I think "A Dog With No Collar" is utterly beautiful, and "Same Dreams" shows just how a broken heart can produce wonderous music.
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I may have exaggerated somewhat, but I still believe the longer tracks are the more interesting ones.
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"In war there is no time to teach or learn Zen. Carry a strong stick. Bash your attackers." - Zen Master Ikkyu Sojun
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The Hemulen
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Joined: July 31 2004
Location: UK
Status: Offline
Points: 5964
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 19:01 |
eugene wrote:
I would not call it "symphonic prog at it's best" but rather fusion with symphonic touches at it's excellence. |
If VDGG are symphonic then so are Gnidrolog. And I agree with you
Manunkind that the long tracks are the real killer ones - but I think
the two short acoustic pieces help to lift the album and give it more
variety. S'only about four minutes in total, so why complain at all?
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eugene
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Joined: May 30 2005
Location: Ukraine
Status: Offline
Points: 2703
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 19:36 |
Trouserpress wrote
quote
If VDGG are symphonic then so are Gnidrolog
unquote
I cannot agree with this statement. I feel that difference between Van Der Graaf and Gnidrolog is of same scale as difference between symphonic prog and fusion. And although I do not want to start or to get you into arguments about useless categorisation of genres, I'd like to know what so similar you find in VDGG and Gnidrolog apart from using saxes, and what makes you think that they belong to same subgenre. Just out of curiousity.
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carefulwiththataxe
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The Hemulen
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Joined: July 31 2004
Location: UK
Status: Offline
Points: 5964
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 19:41 |
eugene wrote:
Trouserpress wrote
quote
If VDGG are symphonic then so are Gnidrolog
unquote
I cannot agree with this statement. I feel that difference between
Van Der Graaf and Gnidrolog is of same scale as difference between
symphonic prog and fusion. And although I do not want to start or to
get you into arguments about useless categorisation of genres, I'd
like to know what so similar you find in VDGG and Gnidrolog apart from
using saxes, and what makes you think that they belong to same
subgenre. Just out of curiousity. |
Melodramatic vocals, similar use of arranged songs with ocassional
lapses into "jam territory", heavyness with touches of jazz without
ever being truly "jazzy".
I really don't hear Gnidrolog as "fusion". Not at all. They're nowhere near jazzy enough!
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Petra
Forum Senior Member
Joined: August 23 2004
Location: United Kingdom
Status: Offline
Points: 663
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Posted: June 30 2005 at 19:50 |
Oh yes..I discovered Gnidrolog a few months back, i love their sound with a kind of medieval vibe and wondered why you rarely see them mentioned, they seem to have VDGG (without the keyboards!) and Jethro Tull influences with a beautiful use of wind instruments.Their album 'In Spite of Harry's Toenail' is up there with 'Lady Lake' but my favourite is their live 1972 album it's a more intimate affair and has the excellent tracks' In Spite Of Harry's Toenail' and 'I want to be a soldier'.
It goes without saying that i was attracted to them by their album cover too
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Don't hate me I'm not special like you
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Sean Trane
Special Collaborator
Prog Folk
Joined: April 29 2004
Location: Heart of Europe
Status: Offline
Points: 19541
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Posted: July 01 2005 at 02:38 |
In Spite of Harry's Toenail is definitely harder-edged than Lacy Lake. Both albums are superb.
Careful to pick out the right version of In Spite , choose the one with four bonus tracks predating the first album. There is another version with two alternative takes from Lady Lake tracks. Less interesting.
Also much worth it is the live album full of unreleased tracks but plagued with poor sound quality.
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let's just stay above the moral melee prefer the sink to the gutter keep our sand-castle virtues content to be a doer as well as a thinker, prefer lifting our pen rather than un-sheath our sword
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con safo
Prog Reviewer
Joined: March 17 2005
Status: Offline
Points: 1230
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Posted: July 01 2005 at 03:48 |
Incredible album, reminds me alot of vdgg. The vocals are excellent and
the instrumental segments are brilliant, one of the most underrated
albums in prog. It's great that they can pull off an excellent symphonic sound without the use of keyboards.
Edited by con safo
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Trotsky
Special Collaborator
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Joined: October 25 2004
Location: Malaysia
Status: Offline
Points: 2771
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Posted: February 07 2006 at 00:39 |
I have just let my 2 albums on 1 CD In Spite Of Harry's Toenail/Lady Lake sink in ...
Lady Lake in particular is absolutely superb ... dashes of Gentle
Giant/Jethro Tull/King Crimson, but really a sound that's all their own
... Highlights for me are I Could Never Be A Soldier, Ship and the
title track ... what a pity the band collapsed after this ...
I haven't heard Gnosis (the 2000 comeback album) yet ... but am looking forward to it!
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"Death to Utopia! Death to faith! Death to love! Death to hope?" thunders the 20th century. "Surrender, you pathetic dreamer.” "No" replies the unhumbled optimist "You are only the present."
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