FRAGMENTROPY

Thomas Thielen (aka T) has been an artist always on my radar, though I only possessed his Scythe experiment, and over the years I noticed the reviews of his previous 4 releases without plunging in. Why, you may care to ask? Well, I just do not know. Maybe there is a certain angst about one man projects being totally successful, though that is a pure excuse. Rob Reed, the Psychedelic Ensemble, Patchwork Cacophony, the mercurial Colin Mold, Like Wendy, Andy Jackson, Eureka, Cosmos Dream and Patrick Broguiere have all released masterful albums that defy the criticism of one-man showmanship being a superiority complex gone haywire. So I finally relented and gave this a purchase consent and I have been dissecting it ever since. As mentioned by many other pundits, this is a too sizeable slab to digest in one easy setting, extremely dense and laden with endless symphonic structures, sudden pastoral pools, a dark sonic chiffonade that defies the common, oodles of special effects and temperamental vicissitudes. T certainly can master all the instruments, the bass lines are highly efficient, the overall keyboard work simply fabulous (piano and e-piano in particular) but it's the attention to detail that really throws one for a loop and forces the repeat button to being abused.

The voice is at times eerily close to Steve Hoggarth, Gazpacho's Jan-Erik Ohme, Riversea's Marc Atkinson or fellow German Marco Glühmann of Sylvan fame. T studied and was deeply influenced by the Marillion connection (a rather common revelation for many aspiring musicians in the mid-80s). A multi-part opus with an avalanche of fragments (hence the title) that defy the norms, constantly seeking out new sonic planes and highlighting an unending source of inspiration. I really like the Bartok analogy a lot, as I had once witnessed alive classical concert that featured a famous Strauss piece that went down almost anti-climactically while the Bartok segment was drenched in perspiration, raw emotion and an almost DeMaupassant/Kafka feel, a gripping, impenetrable and intense experience. This stupendous oeuvre has some moments that recall Edison's Children in many ways, including the symphonic structure and the neo stylistics, draping curtains of velvet anxiety and melancholic exhilaration in well-structured fragments that fit together perfectly in some instances and then offer jagged edged stimulations that appear out of nowhere.

With "Chapter1- A Sky-High Pile of Anarchy ", a 14 minutes plus introduction , the prog propellers are whirring with gasping turbo-charged abandon, slipstreaming through the clouds and yearning for some unforeseeable relief. Though not some other critic's choice, 'Fragmentrophy's fog, smog, and drizzle does titillate me'. Truth is that one cannot fault the titanic musical effort displayed here but it does have accessibility issues which may scare off a few potential fans, making it rebellious, non-conformist and susceptible to rejection. Clanging guitars, an angelic soaring voice and a spiralling whirlwind melody that grabs one by the throat, the thrill is intact. "Brand New Mornings" inserts a more conventional melody, loaded up with multi-part vocal harmonies, Thomas' fatigued voice really induces thought and concern, a depressed version of Queen perhaps, complete with a series of searing, soaring guitar solos that screech wildly.

Chapter 2 really captures the essence of this album, encompassing three strong pieces, the opener "Uncertainty" contains a remarkable melody and a glorious vocal effect-laden performance, remindful of the lead vocalists mentioned earlier, achingly poignant and stirring, a near perfect neo-prog classic. Things get murky and trauma-like on the spidery "Entanglement", a 16 minute epic web of thin filaments of inspiration, a mesh of clashing contrasts, deep dips and swerving loops, slashing waves of the hand, unending sense of angst and undisclosed claustrophobia. A distraught saxophone blaring briefly amid some outright David Bowie vocal gymnastics (Major Thom?), pleading choir work and lush orchestrations where both dramatic keys and edgy guitars build the wall of sound. A defeatist and anguished piano extols some sense of vanquish, broken shards of crystal glass embedded into a crimson velvet curtain, bleeding rivulets of brown plasma pooling at your feet. Hush now, sweet black widow, hush now! "Eigenstates" serves as a fine and final addendum to the previous megalith, a misty, foggy maelstrom of effects, swooning orchestrations and muted voice. Poignant, emotive, bathing in minimalist anguish, one cannot help to think of Talk Talk's "Spirit of Eden", in terms of mood and substance. The shrieking guitar blasts only heighten the sizzle, the stark voice unflinching in its desperation.

The final chapter is composed of two pieces, "the Black of White" being a feistier affair, armed with a slight dissonance, compositional ebb and flow, twinkling guitar in the background and urgency up front on the microphone. Lots of mighty vocal twists, whisper to shout, fragmented like a symphonic jigsaw puzzle, and definitely psychotic and crazed, like Queen gone berserk! Then throw in a little "School's Out "reference (Alice Cooper) and you get what I mean! This overpowering piece has so many nods and winks , one would throw in the entire kitchen , let alone the sink. The finale is a gentle, windswept soundtrack "Shades of Silver" swims into dreamy Hoggarth-era Marillion, though in a more ambient and atmospheric mode. Thomas' pleading voice yearns for some untold deliverance, and ultimately, relief arrives on a synthesized wave of colossal sound and fury, conducted by a rabidly clanging guitar riff and tectonic drumming.

There is no immediacy to this demanding work, it has to be revisited often in various social circumstances, analyzing where and how it can fit into any easy pigeon-hole that would make it easier for everyone to understand, digest and enjoy this complicated, somewhat acerbic piece opus. Fans of Marillion, Edison's Children and such will and should flock to this interesting and yet highly challenging work. The artwork is quite disturbing as well, with various photos that seek to shock and perhaps even awe.

4 sonic puzzles