4 little gems (181)

— First review of this album —

 Erroneously called "Electrophon" even on the YouTube clip that i'm listening to, the fact is that this one and only ZYGOAT album is eponymously titled and a one stop and disappear type of affair, but what a nice slice of progressive electronic this is. The styles are all over the map and the energy level is intense and demands the listener to totally dedicate oneself in order to grasp the fullness of the movements and moods in place. ZYGOAT is the electronic dream of American keyboardist Burt Alcantra and is composed of two side long tracks that display everything from progressive Yes-inspired riffs to Herbie Hancock type funk (think "Headhunter") as well as classical and experimental procedures. The tempo is quite frenetic for the most part and has a very high energy approach that lasts for most of the album's length. At times it also reminds me of 80s Philip Glass especially around the "Glassworks" and "Koyaanisqatsi" phase.

To date this album has only been released on LP and although not a true obscure rarity, perhaps and under-appreciated specimen of early mid-70s electronica.One of the most original creations of the mid-70s electronica that puts lots of elements together in a hitherto unprecedented manner. This is quite enjoyable for those who like melodic electronic music taken to extremes. When not on full speed, slower tracks like "Ybur Knom" coast on a slower tempo but add some strange pitch slides that create an interesting "out-of-tune" approach that makes it sounds like a soap opera theme from the past for insane asylum residents. It incorporates a Philip Glass "Einstein On The Beach" frenetic keyboard solo style that makes me wonder if Glass was listening to this after the fact and incorporating it into his own style. Personally i find ZYGOAT an exhilarating listen. It is above all energetic and dynamic with not only speedy keyboard riffs going for it but a great sense of balance between tempo, mood, synthesizer effects in the timbre department and songwriting. It is ever changing in its melodic approach as well. Very cool.

I am utterly mesmerized by the album cover (as well as the music). A young Pan observing a (presumably) Mediterranean coast city with an embryo gestating in a cloud amidst some sort of cloud city in a seemingly parallel reality. This album really does it for me on all levels. It seems like it was a little ahead of its time taking the tempos of a more hurried 21st century and applying them to a progressive electronic Tangerine Dream and Cluster type of electronic setting. This is utterly unlike anything i've heard before and something that elevates my freak flag to the highest of levels. I'm surprised that this has gone under the radar for four decades but now that it has emerged on Prog Archives i'm finding that it is something totally anachronistic in my life but totally hits me on a majorly profound level. Very cool stuff if you can just let the originality flow without any preconceived expectations. 4 stars for now but i could see this growing on me to a higher rating.

I didn't like Laurelie much, probably because of the production and vocals.