BURDEN OF PROOF

I would highly recommend any of the three SOFT MACHINE LEGACY studio albums. This is the most recent studio release by the band which features Ethridge on guitar, Babbington on bass, Marshall on drums and Travis on sax, flute and Fender Rhodes which really adds to the sound here for me.

"Burden Of Proof" opens with spacey keyboards before it kicks into a jazzy mode around a minute with the spacey keys continuing. Sax joins in but when it stops after 2 1/2 minutes the guitar takes over. They will continue to trade off. A really good track. "Voyage Beyond Seven" is sax driven early on which i'm not big on but man does this turn for the better 1 1/2 minutes in when the sax stops and we get some intricate guitar and other sounds that come and go. So cool. It feels like an improv here, very innovative. The song ends as it began but the middle section just kills. "Kitto" features intricate guitar lines throughout intertwining and complimenting each other. "Pie Chart" is a lazy sax driven tune but I love when the guitar replaces the sax in this jazzy number. Sax is back but the guitar returns late. "JPS" is cymbals and drums throughout. Oh John Marshall you certainly love your solos. Nice piece. "Kings And Queens" is such a chilled tune. This all sounds so good as the flute joins in early before being replaced by the guitar, but the flute returns before 3 minutes. Excellent song.

"Fallout" has lots of prominent sax but check out the experimental section that starts around 1 1/2 minutes in. So good! It ends like it began. "Going Somewhere Canorous?" is a short piece dominated by cymbals and guitar. "Black And Crimson" is a top two track for me. I just love the Fender Rhodes here but the bass, drums and guitar really add a lot as well. The sax replaces the guitar 2 1/2 minutes in but it stops a minute later as the keys, drums and bass continue. The sax is back late. "The Brief" is drums galore early on as the sax joins in. "Pump Room" is so catchy as it really grooves. A really good rhythm section happening here. The sax comes in playing over top but then check out the guitar expressions that replace it. This is great! The sax is back before 4 minutes trading off with the guitar. "Green Cubes" is a top two as well. Sparse sounds come and go including flute, drums and guitar expressions. Man the guitar kills in this one. Sax arrives and some nice bass 3 minutes in but man the guitar begins to light it up later on after the song kicks into a groove. "They Landed On A Hill" features melancholic keys and guitar and they both seem to echo. A very cool way to end this very solid release.

Easily 4 stars and God bless Elton Dean and Hugh Hopper, both former members.