INSIDE

I first tried Oceans, which turned out to be a dissapointing record for it's reputation. I rated it three stars. Maybe we got off the wrong way, the early seventies approach is more like my cup of tea. So here we have a vinyl copy in perfect condition of Eloy's second record. Listening to it for some time now, I wonder, could there have been some sort of conspiracy:

"Don't tell anyone of Eloy we use mellotrons and senthesizors these days!".

No.. Eloy only uses organs for there first attempt at making space rock. Ironicly, this is the KEYelement (in two ways) of this record which makes it adorable and even cult-like. Influences seem to be Uriah Heep and Deep Purple instead of Pink Floyd, which wouldn't have been a wild guess for a space rock outfit.

On side one Eloy enter's the world of side long epics with Land of No Body. A variety of themes pass by, most of them are influenced by the hard rock scene of early seventies with the vibe of Eloy giving it the space feel we came for in the first place. Most of the time relaxing, but also hard'n heavy at times as the distorted organs riffs appear and the drums are rockin'. Vocals have never been the reason to listen to Eloy, but on this record I must say they sound pretty OK. On the background, but somehow mysterious. The musicianship is good, but not excellent. No solo is great and non of the riffs and melodies are very sophisticated. No, atmosphere of a young space rock/hard rock group playing is the main reason to listen to this record. On side two the songs are shorter and the PF - Echoes influences do show up with the high pulses on Up and Down (if I remembered it well). The bizarre percussions on Future City are a strange passage, but likable once accepted as experimental.

Conclusion. One record, one special vibe. Like a sort of feel of motivation, searching for that unearthly feeling and succeeding partly. I will give this three stars, for I don't think it's excellent for everyone, but it works for me. Listen to this at the end of the evening or in the depths of the night with candles on, it shure helps you to understand it! As Eloy is searching on this record, this is precisely what Eloy did till the end of their career IMHO. They just never hit the Jackpot with their relative non-sophisticated space rock. Three stars.

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