FACELIFT FRANCE & HOLLAND

Yet another Soft Machine archival release from Cuneiform captures performances from January to March 1970 - in other words, square in the period when Third was coming together. The sonic transformation from out-there psychedelic delirium to cutting edge jazz fusion has been largely complete, Robert Wyatt's vocals have been largely bypassed, and the short-lived dual saxophone lineup of Elton Dean and Lyn Dobson is the hot new feature of their music these days. Between this, Mike Ratledge's gruesome and haunting manipulations of his organ and keyboards, and the Hopper/Wyatt rhythm section on good form, it's a snapshot of the Soft Machine in one of their most creative eras. The sound mix is not what it could be, but is reasonably good for 1970.