AETHELLIS

By Boulevard Denim

The latest Aethellis release differs from the previous three as the spotlight is on guitarist/vocalist Mark Van Natta, both compositionally and vocally. Keyboardist Ellsworth Hall only sings on two tracks, "Anandia" and "Another Car." It's not clear who is singing on "Pathdancer" as it sounds like neither Ellsworth or Mark.

The album personnel this go-round consists of just Ellsworth Hall (keyboards, vocals, guitar, drum controller), Mark Van Natta (guitar, vocals, bass, keyboard) and Erik Marks (bass). Absent is drummer Mike Harrington who contributed top-drawer playing on the previous two albums with such tracks as "Sounds Good" and "Janice." However, it has come to light that while those previous releases were touted in reviews as having "full band" performances (and thereby satisfying the reviewers' bias that they were more desirable), Ellsworth actually contributed a major portion of the drum tracks, as well as some guitar and keyboard bass. But no surprise there as he handled all that and vocals on the first album; this is well known.

But Mark Van Natta is a strong influence on The Affinity Oeuvre, contributing pop, funk and jazz tracks to the mix.

The album kicks off with a 12-minute prog tune, "Anandia" (about a child refugee of war) with piano intro, Mellotron sounds, catchy melodies and odd time signature riffs. And a bit of dissonance in the instrumental section. This track is Ellsworth's sole prog contribution with some soaring vocal harmonies. Of Aethellis epics, only "A Home In Your Thoughts/Second Home In Your Thoughts" (from the previous release) clocks in longer at 15 minutes.

Mark's influence is evident with "Affinifunk," a funk tune with a nice groove and fabulous blistering guitar solo.

"Pathdancer" is Ellsworth's sole jazz contribution to the album complete with scat singing towards the end. Tasteful playing with lots of modulations. Like many of Tony Banks' compositions, Ellsworth never stays in one key for very long.

Then we move into pop territory with Mark's tunes "Do Like I Do" (complete with a brass ensemble finale) and "Dreams On Pause," a lament to the confinements of the COVID period. Another Mark Van Natta pop tune with a Greg Hawkes-style synth solo, "Let Me Be Me" round out the pop selections. Mark also played bass on these tracks as well as a bit of keyboard. And, of course, performed the vocals. An all-arounder as well!

"Another Car" (music by Ellsworth with lyrics by Ed Hopf) is an amusing homage/satire of New Wave songs from the early 80s. But a bit more atonal in places than actual songs from the period. Progressive New Wave?

Another excursion into jazz, the Hank Levy-inspired "Chicago News" penned by Mark Van Natta, is a tour de force of odd time signatures and big band arrangements.

We return to funk with bassist Erik Marks' "The Stennis Compromise" (a Watergate reference?). A solid bass groove and jazz chords are the highlight of this short ditty.

The album is rounded out with Mark's reggae-influenced "Why Do You Keep Fighting" (a call for peace) and the bizarre jazz-fusion track "RIP" which is rather dissonant, with fast and furious guitar work. The guitar's quartal harmonies add to the jazz flavor. "RIP" is a co-written track with Ellsworth from their Affinity Band days (hence the album title).

So, if you're looking for a full-on prog album, you might be disappointed in The Affinity Oeuvre.. While it contains some prog elements, it spans other genres such as New Wave, Jazz Fusion, Funk and Pop. And tracks like "RIP" are far from mainstream if not strictly prog. But if you're willing to be open to Aethellis' take on other genres you might enjoy it. Prog is an eclectic melting pot of different styles after all. The album has some of Mark Van Natta's best guitar solos.

The album is on the Revolution Records label.

There is something of a lack of depth within the arrangements which I am sure would have been addressed if this was a band as opposed to a project, but this is just one musical area for Ellsworth who also works in classical music, library music, and providing music for games. It is passable, but when I finish playing it I am unable to remember anything about what I have listened to as it is somewhat lightweight. Opening track, "Anandia", show promise at more than 12 minutes in length but there are only two others which manage to make it past five and most of the rest are less than four. The material is not strong enough to be memorable, and the reduction in personnel also means we are not getting the best out of it. Not one to which I will be quickly returning.

The opener title track is emblematic. According to the liner notes it's an epic piece inspired by the battle of Heavenfield, fought in 634 between a Northumbrian army led by Oswald of Bernicia and a Welsh army under the command of Cadwallon ap Cadfan of Gwynedd. It starts in a very promising way: harmony vocals a cappella, roaring keyboards surges alternating with calm, dreamy passages... Then, after six minutes, surprise! The music incredibly veers to cheesy synth pop for other five minutes. The other tracks flow away without infamy and without praise, jumping and turning around echoes of Genesis pop period and sweet melodies. It's a pity, because I feel that this band have a good potential and unexpressed talent to showcase... Anyway, if you like bands such as Toto or Asia have a try! You can listen to the complete album on bandcamp...

In fact, "Northumbria" and "The Peace Path" are the longest tracks on the album with varying moods and sections and with some pyrotechnical keyboard and guitar playing. Angry and aggressive, the organ on "Northumbria" delves into polytriad dissonance at times; a welcome change from the more diatonic and modal harmonies from the first album. (To be fair polytriads and jazz harmonies also appeared in the first album but were often more subtly interwoven and less aggressively displayed.) And there are thematic elements and leitmotifs that are stated, recapitulated and transmogrified within intelligent song structures on both tracks.

Other tracks such as "The Awakening" and "Exchequer Prague" are progressive riffs on electronica or synth pop, taking the basic earmarks of the genre but infusing them with harmonic and melodic sophistication beyond what their inspirations contained.

I find the funk and jazz influences ("Celui Qui Soit La Bosse" and "Sounds Good") refreshing. Did not progressive rock in its earlier incarnation take from various forms of music and combine them into something new? Classical, folk and jazz were all fertile ground for planting new seeds of artistic directions. So why not now funk and electronica? Eclecticism is a virtue in prog.

Hall handles all instruments and vocal lines in this album and, as with many one-man projects, some of his music parts are nice, while others lack the professionalism of a normal band.His overall style falls into the accesible keyboard-based prog category with an undoubtful 80's feeling throughout and strong AOR hints here and there.The compositions range from symphonic passages and Neo-Prog tastes to Melodic Rock and cliche AOR ballads.Hall's keyboard work is the one that shines through this release.Fast piano paces and fine interludes, good synth passages and some decent solos are likely to please fans of keyboard/piano-driven musicianship.The few organ appearances have also a strong WAKEMAN-ish flavor and most of the melodies are listenable.On the other hand this album suffers from a number of flaws.The songwriting is decent but not great, some of the synth parts sound really cheap, the guitars are hardly recognizable, while the biggest problem seems to be the over-plastic drum machines.Even Hall's voice does not set a candidacy for the best singer around, still it suits well enough with the music.

If Hall had managed to set a regular band and record this album in a professional basis it would have sounded a lot better, no question.For the time being ''Aethellis'' seems a work strictly created for fans of Neo Prog or 80-sounding synth Art Rock and this is the audience I would recommend to check out this effort...2.5 stars.

And yet you will find lovely passages in 7/4 and 17/8, the oft-cited rather jarring polytriads, and numerous modulations ("Saint Augustus"). "Hubris" continues the journey with danceable rhythms and funky guitar yet balances these with quartal harmonies, macabre vocals with augmented chords (a favorite of Steve Hackett), and diminished scale synthesizer melodies.

Jazz harmonies mix with contrapuntal piano and hip-hop rhythms in "Djibouti." Banksian tone colors and chord progressions flow in "Portal" and "Tie and Handkerchief" while gnarly riffs and more asymmetrical meters weave throughout "Final Affinity" climaxing with a Wakemanesque organ solo.

Apart from these tasty attributes, the song structures display compositional acumen where themes are stated, developed, restated in a variation and morphed further along with other interlocking thematic material. For example "Final Affinity" weaves all the motifs from the first three sections into a tapestry of recapitulations in the final climax.

Indeed there are catchy hooks abounding; top-notch lush complex interlocking keyboard orchestrations and smoothly earnest (and sometimes impassioned) vocals. If this lends one to conclude the album is "poppy" and thereby more immediately accessible, then so be it. That is a positive attribute if it draws one in to the music. But upon repeated listenings, the layers unravel and deeper treasures are found. The point is: it may be accessible but it is not simplistic.

Aethellis is a project of Ellsworth Hall , a classically traind keybordist and piano virtuoso who released a single album so far in 2003 at Affinity Music. Ellsworth Hall plays here at everything is to be heared on this labum, from keys, vocals, guitar to drums, so a realy solo album. This name and this project was unknown to me untill 2 years ago when I've discoverd him. Well, what to say something between neo prog, maybe the lighter side but still very much uptempo in places and some popy elements added, very melodic with lush keys on top. The vocals he made is realy mediocre, he has no voice, not irritaiting but forgetable, the rest of the instruments are ok, specialy the keys are most important here, but also the guitar has his share, but not spectacular in any sense. The keys sound intristing in places with a happy atmosphere on some pieces Tie And Handkerchief or Djibouty, the best tracks from here, the rest are ok. In the end , this Aethellis get a moderate succes in prog circles, still unknown for many, well I don't think he will became more popular than he is today, not because the music is bad, but to the lack of realy solid songwritting. Still pleasent to be listened from time to time, nothing spectacular or special but enjoyble, 3 stas, good but totaly non essential work. Similar with Jadis, at some point Pendragon or '80's Camel.

1. Tie and Handkerchief

Great opening, atmospheric leading to what? Nice piano the a nice groove and synth with Geoff Downes overlays and a great contribution to the prog rock world. More of it I say. It isn't rushed with vocals or changes of instrumental sounds in the first few minutes. It's allowed to flow. A real drummer could have helped but the effort of 'digi drums' (and percussion?!?!?) is as good as I've heard. Nice layering of sounds in the vocal breaks...did real well without a real guitarist. Great finish which leads to...

2. Saint Augustus

This track moved me. More church organ - HA!! Was this studio or produced it somewhere else?? Unfortunately the vocals were a bit too even here but the chorus really got going which helped lift the track (my perspective only). Love the bridges - and the lead breaks. I don't know what his religious loyalists are but a track that could be 'top and tailed' as a single. The ending of this track should be given to music students as a way to close off a track - great use of echo on the vocals.

3. Hubris

Introduction sounds like it follows on from Saint Augustus and tends to flows from Track 2 and then changes direction as the tracks takes and number of changes. Great synth and atmospheric work to build tension. Almost Eastern feel. Then it morphs into an almost 'rif' feel from MAGUS (different artists / different time but similar feel) in the middle which blends into a Geoff Downes (New Dance Orchestra) series of chords which moved me more than you what to know. Top stuff and the best I've heard in a long time (tone up those Wakeman licks at the end - HA!!)

4. Portal

Great change of pace and acoustic piano at the start. Which leads to the track proper. Carol? Lost friendship? Very pastoral. I'd almost heard this track before. The layering of vocals is great and then it spirals into Part 2 of this track which follows the general melody but keeps exploring little nocks and crannies along the way.

5. Djibouti

A real change from the other tracks. Nice groove after the first part and not rushed at all. Almost Wakemanish. Is there such a word!?!?!?!? Great touch on the synths (Wakeman and Geoff Downes in the one track - good stuff!!!). Beautiful melding of electronic and acoustic overlays which is as good as 'Tumbleweed' [from Affini Logue]. One of the better instrumental tracks of 2004.

6. Final Affinity

Great start into a weirder section that gets a bit experimental but not 'over the top'. Disguising the vocal doesn't help (unfortunately) but the instrumental section after is a buzz - loved the guitar sound-a-like and the overlaying of sounds and bass work. The middle section seems to flow effortly from guitar to keys... But it's a long track and then the organ starts (same from Saint Augustus???) which leads into an almost early 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth' feel and into a great improv section. Then there is the light synths flowing over the top of a great groove and even better mid section.

By this time I want to listen again and again and again.