JAZZ ROCK/FUSION

Unfortunately, he is also prone to releasing some absolute duds here and there, but more about those perhaps some other time. Suffice to say "Now Here This" falls somewhere in the middle. The rating between 1-5 stars would leave this barely above 2.5 by Prog definitions.

This is not a "bad" album, but I couldn't call it good, either. Ordinary Fusion devoid of any excitements, or definite highlights.

I have "endured" this piece over three repeated runs and found it rather uninspiring and mediocre. Quirky and swift runs on the guitar are impressive alas, there is nothing much new there, more of a repetition of what's been recorded before. The rhythm section - consisting of talented musicians - are pretty much wasted here as they are only engaged to provide a backdrop to those familiar guitar notes. And the overuse of slap-bass by 2012 could be regarded as somewhat "passe".

With due regret, I could not recommend this work as a "must have".

Ptf continue the excellent tradition of violin-driven Japanese Prog groups like KENSO, OUTER LIMITS or MIDAS with some pinches of JEAN-LUC PONTY in the process and present here a delicate and dreamy Symphonic-Jazz Rock with some superb arrangements, beautiful solos and soft rhythms.No fanfares or pyrotechnics, the compositions are carefully arranged till' the last detail, alternating between dramatic sections with really complex musicianship and ethereal melodies with a Classical aura.The short pieces are pretty great, bass and drums are played with consistency, keyboards are used mostly for background purposes, mainly organ and acoustic/electric piano and Takashima's violin is the driving force without question, monumental performances with great hooks, solos and melodies.But the three long cuts, clockin' at over 10 minutes, are something else, featuring outstanding moods and climates with lots of melancholic tunes, romantic soundscapes and dense instrumental moves.Balanced on the thin line between Symphonic Rock and Fusion, this quartet delivers excellent variations in these cuts, performed like mini-suites and creating very emotional material.Some of the best blends between technical and melodious textures you can find around.

Killer album.Violin-drenched Symph Fusion of the highest calibre, fluid, melodious and slightly virtuosic.Highly recommrended, among the best of the year.

The tracks 1-8 are the album's main body "which took a year to carefully form and craft itself", and in contrast to that, the next four pieces under the moniker UTOPIANISTI MEETS BLACK MOTOR & JON BALLANTYNE were composed in a day and recorded live at JJ Studio, Tampere, August 2nd, 2012. And as a "bonus track" there's nearly 10-minute, breathtaking 'U.L.J.C. (The Unnecessary Leftover Jam Session)' which definitely sounds better than its title. But let's return to the start, to the main tracks each with a different line-up of guest musicians.

'Mekonium Fist' (according to the foreword "inspired by our first diaper change where four hands weren't enough") is hectic and fast. 'The Vultures Were Hungry' mixes opera vocals with ZAPPA- like avant-rock. 'Pohjola' is probably the best track, a gorgeous Fusion piece in the spirit of PEKKA POHJOLA to whom it is dedicated. It stays more serious than the album as a whole, without losing freshness and certain musical joy. 'Tango Succubus pt. 2' is sung in Finnish by opera baritone(?) Waltteri Torikka. This very angular piece featuring also an accordion reminds a lot of the 90's cult band HÖYRY-KONE.

On the meaty jazz-rock number 'The Forest of the Bald Witch' there are delicious contributions for e.g. flute, organ and guitar. Like three other tracks, 'Bisphenol A' features The Utopianisti Big Band, and has an emphasis on heavy brass and programming. It is my least favourite, as well as the 7th one, a hilarious, ethnically oriented (Balkanesque) tune featuring accordion and fiddle among others. ALAMAAILMAN VASARAT, the instrumental descendant of Höyry-Kone, did enough of this kind of silly crap (sorry).

If there had been only these eight tracks, I wouldn't much like this album with so many annoying things in it. The live tracks featuring Jon Ballantyne on piano and electric piano are airier, jazzier and more thoughtful, in other words quite free of the silliness. With a suitable use of skip button you'll have a wonderful musical trip with this extraordinarily brave release. My subjective rating would be three stars, but for the masterful musicianship and some amazing highlights it deserves four.

I opted for the deluxe DVD/CD package of the IF "2" release, a beauty that has a live DVD recording as well as the studio effort, all nicely put together with an amazing booklet, artwork etc?I was already familiar with keyboard whiz John Mealing (who later graduated to Passport and the Strawbs) as well as accomplished drummer Dennis Elliott who of course became a famous Foreigner. Dick Morrisey is a sax legend, so I knew enough to be at least conscious of their existence but the big surprise for me was guitarist Terry Smith, a wicked stylist with amazing technique a la Steve Cropper (blues and a distinct RnB country feel), a rock solid bass player in Jim Richardson and a real cool vocalist in J.W. Hodgkinson. I had never heard of these three, so I was in for a thrill. Though this is late 60s music , it stills smokes quite brightly and is a joy ride from beginning to end, it got me thinking that we would need some upbeat stuff like this in our currently apathetic/doom-laden culture. (Sorry Pharell but "Happy" is not quite enough to heal the world).

Things begin in radiant fashion with a sprightly "Your City is Falling", Hodgkinson grabbing the mike stand and showing who is the boss, while the lads pummel mightily in the background. The mood is balmy, warm and inviting, a really faultless opening salvo that sets the tone perfectly.

An extended platform for improvisation is the 8 minute+ "Sunday Sad", a Spanish guitar motif finds itself escorted by a flute caress which then quickly merges into a slick rambler that fumes, smokes, smolders and rages with torrid passion, fueled by the loaded double brass assault of Quincy and Morrissey on saxophones and another fine vocal performance by J.W. Bassist Richardson carves some manic grooves while Terry Smith does a splendid job on his axe, a gritty and sulphurous affair that is just awe-inspiring. Mealing's grumpy organ is shoved along by Elliott's sturdy drumming and lo and behold, this is such exhilarating music!

The Brits love their weird song titles (hello Canterbury lads) and "Tarmac T and the Lonesome Nymphomaniac" (what year? 1969, hmmm, pretty racy, wot?) certainly qualifies, a bluesy trippy ditty with a manic vocal that has a definite Traffic/BST feel, spread-eagled by a sick sax flirting overtly with the fuzzy wuzzy organ (that is innuendo-laden wordplay for you), sensual and sexual jazz-rock with some serious soul.

Driving your vintage MG or Triumph Spitfire, propelled by a bass-mad "I Couldn't Write and Tell You", gives the music a down to earth meaning, surprising the listener with inimitable genius, a flute from nowhere, a consistently believable vocal delivery , a solid beat and some glittering solos all within its 8 minute sinews. Terry Smith glitters on his axe, a blistering technique that nears supersonic speeds, frenzied and acidic. Wow! Has anyone noticed where my jaw landed? Yeah, baby!

Smooth? You want some velvety class , well it does not get creamier than the suave breeze heard on "Shadows and Echoes", sounding like some jazz toone from the 50s movies, a cool cat skinning his brushes, upright bass bopping along while the crisp and clear guitar does some marauding. A wide mouthed vocal again does the trick, versatile and groovy.

Hey, you wanna another oddball song title, look no further than the quirky "A Song For Elsa, Three Days Before her 23rd Birthday", I mean, C'mon! Doggone it when Brits can out soul the Yanks, and that's including the 'brothers'! At least in musical terms, British blues and jazz bands of the 60s and 70s certainly played a part in emancipating white crowds into getting off on black music (Hey, Jimi, How ya doin'?). Here Quincy and Morrissey play majestically, a pure joy and total marvel to witness and revel in.

What a great record and I can bury my ignorance now by pursuing the entire catalogue!

Merci, Michael!

4.5 Rudyard Kiplings

Forget about the long compositions of the previous efforts and the interesting leading keyboards of Langlois for this album.Does this mean that Maneige sounded less tasteful or moreover commercial?No way, ''Ni vent... ni nouvelle'' does not contain any long pieces, in fact none clocks at over 6 minutes, but the music remains extremely sophisticated, fascinating and complex, showing an obvious turn towards more jazzy rhythms and solos and presenting an instrumental lifting.The sound is now heavily relying on flutes, sax and electric guitar with occasional piano interludes and frequent injections by the invited string section.The music is great with countless interplays, managing to be delivered in a dreamy fashion, which still bursts incredible individual and teamwork skills.The overall style contains soft symphonic touches, the already known rural vibes and a heavier Prog Fusion attempt with the guitars having a dominant role compared to the previous albums.What's really exciting about the album is how the hell these guys maintained this efficient profile, balancing between chamber and jazzy arrangements, after a quite significant instrumental change.To my ears this one sounds even better than ''Les porches'', even introducing a few somewhat bombastic sections between the elaborate and efficient interplays and ends up to offer a nice bunch of amazing electroacoustic mini-suites.

Superb album.Jazz meets Classical meets Folk meets Rock Music in one of the best displays ever to see the light by a Prog band.Instrumental flexibility, excellent interactions and lovely orchestrations.Highly recommended.

I must admit; I wasn't quite sure what to expect from Uzva's Uoma, the third (and presumably final) album of their career. I was first taken aback by their second record Niittoaika, a beautiful work that managed to reinvent the fusion of classic prog rock and jazz in a refreshing way. While nowhere near as impressive as their sophomore, Uzva's debut Tammikuinen Tammela offered a different sort of experience, closer to the chamber rock style of a band like Aranis than anything strictly jazz-related, although once again, Uzva managed to surprise me with their fresh take on a familiar genre.

There's no doubt that Uoma is a technical triumph beyond its predecessors- it took two years to record this album, and the instrumental wizardry Uzva only ever implied they were capable of on past albums takes a strong role in Uoma. Be that as it may, it is the first time I feel Uzva's venture into a new realm has not resulted in a fresh style. For better or worse, Uzva's third album saw them finally marry themselves to prog fusion, as well as the stylistic bells and whistles the label implies. The intimately pastoral tone that in part defined them has made way for progressive fireworks and a fitting demonstration of their obvious chops as players. In a way, it's as if the big wish I had with the debut has been fulfilled; still, I am left feeling like I would have preferred to hear Uzva continue their pursuit of woodland atmosphere and dynamic restraint.

Of course, I do not mean to imply that Uoma is a bad album by any stretch; the change is in most ways an evolution rather than a hindrance. Most of all, Uoma succeeds in bringing the talent and tightness of Uzva to the forefront. Before this, the band made it plainly obvious that they could pull off sophistication of a Gentle Giant or King Crimson calibre, but they chose not to, instead favouring whatever felt best for the composition itself. While there were times even during Niittoaika where I might have wished to hear something more explosive, I think the restraint did more good than harm; above anything else, it set them apart from the legions of equally skilled fusioneers that weren't afraid to strut their skills. In that sense, in spite of the fact it is undoubtedly the most challenging of the three Uzva albums, it is also the most conventional.

In keeping with the band's tradition, Uoma primarily operates with longer suites, broken up into shorter tracks to better get the impression across that they work better as movements of music rather than well-rounded songs. Among these, "Arabian Ran-Ta" is the most instantly gratifying piece, wrapping itself around exotic flute instrumentation and atmospheric tension unheard on Uzva's past work. "Chinese Daydream Part 1" is also noteworthy, if only for the fact that it recalls the immersive atmosphere of Niittoaika. The obviously King Crimson-influenced "Vesikko" ("Part 3" begins with a crunchy riff borrowed from Crimson's "One More Red Nightmare"); like the album's opener "Kuoriutuminen", "Vesikko" is best described as a meticulously composed jam rather than a full-bodied composition. Stretches of time are set aside for the sake of building leads, although Uzva never venture far or long from the written framework.

Uoma is magnificently performed, and aspects from both their chamber rock and jazz fusion styles have found their way here, although it's clear by this point that Uzva had declared their undying love for the latter. There is no doubt that Uzva's third album is the most challenging and layered thing they would ever produce. Even so, in spite of its technical accomplishments, I'm not hearing the same moments of near- cinematic beauty that defined y experience of Niittoaika. The compositions have given up some of their atmosphere for the sake of demonstrating skills we already knew Uzva were capable of. I have no doubt that some will see Uoma as the strongest offering by Uzva. I prefer the moderation and restrained arrangement of their second. If anything may be said to conclude an exploration of Uzva's striking (yet brief) discography, it's that they successfully managed to reinvent themselves with each new record. Regardless whether the changes were favourable enough, that is a feat in itself.

Uzva's second album Niittoaika ranks among the more promising albums I've heard lately. Although prog fusion is far from alien to most fans of progressive rock, it was the way they brought jazz in with the progressive traditions that made Uzva's sound and style so compelling. Unsurprisingly, the refreshing experience I had with Niittoaika impelled me to explore further into Uzva's relatively small discography. Anyways, here we have it: Tammikuinen Tammela, a debut that released quietly two years prior to its successor at the turn of the millennium. As I expected, the rich arrangements and thoughtfully restrained performances were part of Uzva from an early stage. Unfortunately, in spite of their strong technique and interesting stylistic foundations, Uzva's debut lacks the focus and purposeful momentum that made Niittoaika such a hit with me.

I don't believe I'd be making such a far stretch in calling Tammikuinen Tammela an example of 'lounge prog'; while Uzva are clearly capable of pulling off instrumental complexities of a Gentle Giant or King Crimson nature, they purposefully keep things mellow and light for the most part. Moments like the energetic, clarinet-led opening riff to "Part IV" allude to potential Uzva have yet untapped; for the most part, Tammikuinen Tammela takes the form of a laid-back, largely acoustic interplay between musicians. While Niittoaika and their third record Uoma may be defined (albeit prolematically) as a prog-jazz fusion, Tammikuinen Tammela would be relatively well-placed as chamber rock. Unlike many of the 'chamber rock' acts I'm familiar with (Aranis and Univers Zero, to name a couple), Uzva favour individual expression over rigid composition. Uzva's jazz influences aren't terribly apparent on the debut, but based on the fluid and not always apparent structure of their songwriting, it's not surprising they evolved into a jazzier act later on.

It's conceivable that this loose-yet-richly-layered sort of chamber rock exploration could have worked wonders- potentially even more than the later works which left less up to chance. The technical interplay is certainly here, but Tammikuinen Tammela is held back by how restrained and lacklustre the music often sounds in spite of the obvious technical skill. While dynamic and instrumental fireworks are by no means essential for great jazz, chamber rock or even prog, Uzva's decision to keep things light and meandering is a death knell for the album. It's clear from the harmonies and unison that Uzva composed the music with great care, but the muted energy and consonant harmonies feel hollowed somewhat by the lack of other elements of composition, namely purposeful structure, melodic hooks, a sense of build-up and dynamic. To be fair, there are parts of Tammikuinen Tammela that kick it up a notch (see: the aforementioned intro to "Part IV", or the album's jazz-rock and marimba-infused finale) but it's not enough to put the leisurely parts in context.

Tammikuinen Tammela is a portfolio of some excellent musicianship and talent with harmony-based arrangements. It may have been as engaging as Niittoaika too, if it had anything else to offer on top of that. True to the chamber music tradition, the performance feels amplified and simultaneously limited by the austere composition-based restrictions it places on itself. In the case of Tammikuinen Tammela, it feels like there are inspired performances wanting to get out and place an even greater emphasis on the musicians' individual expression (arguably being the strongest part of Uzva's debut) but it seems the band are torn between letting their spontaneity and dynamism run free, or focusing their structure and performance. As it turns out, with Niittoaika two years later, they chose the latter approach, and haven't looked back since.

Uzva is among the rare few that, while entirely deserving of the 'prog fusion' label that's tossed their way when discussing genre, fuel their music with a sensibility that appeals to the heart as much as the brain. Indeed, it's a shame that so many artists who pair progressive rock ingredients with a jazzy context (or vice- versa!) tend to lose sight of the fact that both styles are best when the technical prospects give way in part to hooks and atmosphere.

Given that preface, it should not be a surprise that Niittoaika trumps many of its contemporaries as a solid reinvention of traditional progressive rock. While many of the genre-based expectations a listener might have for either side of the fusion are fulfilled, Uzva's balance of traits is refreshing; the austere atmosphere and tonal experiments (closely resembling King Crimson in their heyday) and flute leads (fairly damned well analogous with prog in a rock setting) are here in full, as are the irregular chord choices that jazz listeners should be right at home with. It's the way that Uzva combines these familiar traits is what makes Niittoaika impressive; the egotism and fertile potential for loose jams are put aside in favour of compositions tightly structured and rich with atmosphere. Adding to that instrumentation heavy in flute and cello/violin leads, and it feels almost as if Niittoaika is the soundtrack to a wordless, woodland nature documentary.

Uzva's second album consists of three tracks, and to my delight, each distinguishes itself from the other two from the first listen onwards. "Soft Machine", as any seasoned prog listener might suspect, takes a fair bit of inspiration from the classic band of the same name. It's slow to build, but even at its most leisurely, there's the certain impression that Uzva haven't left much up to chance or spontaneity. The album's middle movement "Afrodite" is arguably the best of the three; it's helped a great deal by its warm atmosphere and focused attention on melodic lines. "Drontti" (an unassuming epic that reaches past the seventeen minute mark) continues the increasing momentum; after a short acoustic intermezzo ("Drontti 3.1"), Uzva pick up the pace and don't let up until the album is over. I might argue Uzva milk the finale too long for their own good (the otherwise mellow album has a near-ridiculously bombastic conclusion) but it is good to hear a more energetic side of Uzva before Niittoaika finishes up.

While the finale might leave listeners with a different impression, Niittoaika is a fairly mellow album; while the band themselves are tight and clearly focused (this stuff is undeniably far more difficult to pull off than the relaxed atmosphere might imply) Niittoaika demands nothing of its listener. Fans of progressive rock may see this as a fault. From where I'm coming from, it sounds like Uzva have done something that many in modern prog have attempted, and few others have actually managed to pull off; they've taken the traditional aesthetic of the genre and made it their own. Niittoaika lacks the boldness to rewrite the book as it were, but the vision here is refreshing and, above all, enjoyable.

I think this is a terrific record. All the songs are enjoyable, and the instrumental performance are justifiably famous. With only four songs, it's hard to go wrong. I think Classics in Jazz Part I would be a good place for anyone who is just starting to listen to Miles. This is Davis at his most accessible. If your looking for Jazz Fusion, which would be the main focus of this website, this is not even in the same ballpark. Classics in Jazz Part I is on the borderline between bop and cool jazz. However, this is some very enjoyable Miles Davis.