A TRACE OF MEMORY

SANGUINE HUM is a trio resulting from the ashes of JOFF WINKS BAND and the formation ANTIQUE SEEKING (mixture of ZAPPA and Canterbury). This British group offers us a fifth draft, "A Trace Of Memory" with a cover for the less disturbing ... how would I say ...? Hmmm ... very bloody and a little disturbing when you look closely at the lady! This opus was written during the summer of 2018 and follows the series "Now We Have Power". Provided with two guests, the drummer PAUL MALLYON and ANDREW BOOKER, SANGUINE HUM sends us under the name Neo-Prog a Canterbury instrumental atmosphere and songs drawing on pop music. Guitarist JOFF WINKS has a beautiful organ and lets us know with a subtle and deep voice, which often expresses STEVEN WILSON-like intonations in the phrasing,real talent to make us dream and travel! MATT BABER is a locomotive pulling with it myriads of keyboards all as brilliant as each other, where it is necessary to underline the presence of an electric piano with jazzy tunes bringing depth to certain passages. Bassist BRAD WAISSMAN and drummer PAUL MALLYON are the other keys to this group of artists participating brilliantly and accurately in this celebration.artists participating brilliantly and accurately in this celebration.artists participating brilliantly and accurately in this celebration.

The influences are multiple and make think of a mixture of groups such as MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA, TORTOISE, KRAFTWERK, DEVO, XTC, ZAPPA, BIG BIG TRAIN and STEELY DAN, but also of ZOPP new to the world of Canterbury. Their music may seem simple at first glance but make no mistake, with more careful listening it turns out to be much more complex and detailed, with parts that seem to be improvised, and driven by swarming and repetitive variations, giving to this works the feeling of a complete and successful work in KING CRIMSON way, exalted by the ambience embedded in this landscape. The sounds are crystal clear with modern and analytical textures, I want to say that it's fresh and refreshing! The sung passages are always melodic,on the contrary, musical parts passing from one world to another by subtle and progressive passes of arms.

A brilliant and synthetic alarm clock welcomes us kindly in "New Light": a quiet bass temporizes this refrain present throughout 3:04 followed by a calm and luminous guitar. It's beautiful and relaxing, but the desire to go to bed takes me back! (7/10). "The Yellow Ship" is a bravery piece that shows us the touch of this album, both by its duration and by the quality of the proposed arrangements which are linked over more than thirteen minutes with a heavenly melody and instrumental outbursts filled with this energy specific to the group: drum rolls, guitar sounding KING CRIMSON style, HAPPY THE MAN keyboards, timers which sparkle delicately and which last ... and which last for our greatest pleasure (9.5 / 10). Once is not custom,STEVEN WILSON enters through a secret and mysterious door in this "Pyramids" with inside the temple a pop song whose rhythm and sound resemble a carousel that never ceases to spin. At the end of each verse, the voice is minimized on three high-pitched notes taken up by an intense orchestration magnifying this iridescent merry-go-round of bright colors (9/10). "Thin Air" begins with a futuristic synth whose first twenty seconds are of breathtaking ambient beauty, a relaxed guitar explores the surrounding space with jazzy tunes, stocked with Rythmo Latino percussion. This warm and evanescent atmosphere remains firmly anchored to a string of instruments well installed in this back and forth game (8.5).

With "Unstable Ground" I will simply place its initials to avoid being redundant: SW. Yes, once again, always the same ... but there is also the music. This one becomes soft and obsessive by intense instrumental repetitions revolving around a crystalline voice and filled with emotion. Well composed melodies set in fabulous sounds and atmospheres which are just as much ... what talent! (9/10). "Still as the Sea" begins with a piano and a repetitive guitar, the beautiful voice of JOFF WINKS carries us away with her far from here with a well articulated and rising melody. Spinning piano, drums with organic cymbals, slightly jazzy guitar, what a great recipe before attacking the last big piece of this cake (8.5 / 10). "Automaton"is the archetype of jazz merging with beautifully crafted Progressive Rock. You take a big piece of KING CRIMSON, sprinkle YES on it, and heat it all up in a BRAND X oven. Big biting bass led by an electric piano, a vindictive and powerful guitar, all arranged by keyboards multicolored and sharp six-string solos. As on the whole album, no instrument is placed here at random, nothing is recorded to amuse the gallery or offer us neck effects. This piece is a pure masterpiece worthy of the greatest to mark with a white cross! (10/10).and you heat it all up in a BRAND X oven. Big biting bass driven by an electric piano, a vindictive and powerful guitar, all arranged by multicolored keyboards and sharp six-string solos. As on the whole album, no instrument is placed here at random, nothing is recorded to amuse the gallery or offer us neck effects. This piece is a pure masterpiece worthy of the greatest to mark with a white cross! (10/10).and you heat it all up in a BRAND X oven. Big biting bass led by an electric piano, a vindictive and powerful guitar, all arranged by multicolored keyboards and acerbic six-string solos. As on the whole album, no instrument is placed here at random, nothing is recorded to amuse the gallery or offer us neck effects.

Here I am modestly arrived at my twentieth chronicle and this album is, without question for me, the best that I could listen to so far within the framework of my evaluations. With this one the group comes to reinforce its power of fascination, with melodic themes which are always crossed with Canterbury accents, but SANGUINE HUM constantly takes a malicious pleasure to grind them to bring forth convoluted compositions which work wonderfully, and that even. if the richness of the disc actually requires several listening to fully reveal itself. The tones are magnificent, the compositions and arrangements fabulous with a first-rate production. Their music is subtle and powerful like wildfire ready to explode, but still contained with that very British phlegm.These musicians are virtuosos who know how to write and play their scores with rare intelligence and take us very far into their universe! This is a great gift idea for Christmas!