CIRCLE OF THE CRAYFISH

Sixty-Nine were a German duo formed in (you guessed it) 1969 by a young keyboardist and guitarist Armin Stowe and a drummer and percussionist Roland Schupp. Three years later, the group recorded their only studio album Circle Of The Crayfish followed by a live-cut Live! album one year later. These are the only known releases from the outfit.

Throughout the years, we have come across numerous organ-driven threesomes: Emerson Lake & Palmer, Egg, Triumvirat to name a few. However, duos are rather uncommon. Sixty-Nine is one of them. Their style may highly likely remind the listener of the previously mentioned organ-centric bands, especially Triumvirat. The duo fuses elements of heavy hard rock rhythm of Deep Purple, keyboard virtuosity of Keith Emerson, and their own Krautrock-esque factor. Jazz influence is reflected in rapid rhythms and lengthy improvisational passages.

Armin Stowe is undeniably an incredibly talented musician, regardless of what you think of the band. He often uses foot pedals of his Hammond organ to compensate for the lack of a bass guitar. Ironically, I often find there is too much low end in the mix, which blurs the rest of the sound, giving it a rather unpleasant feel. Stowe provides a wide plethora of sounds, including fuzz organ, synthesizers, pianos as well as dreamy electronics. The inspiration of Keith Emerson or his countryman Jurgen Fritz is evident. He rarely sings, but his voice has a dark, bass timbre, similar to that of Lee Jackson of The Nice. Roland Schupp's drumming is incredibly heavy. However, it goes far beyond just simple rhythmical structures. He often finds himself in more complicated scenarios, which include a blast-beat technique, commonly found in jazz and metal and odd time signatures. Despite that, I feel like his playing lacks finesse a lot of the time.

Circle Of The Crayfish consists of six tracks. These are not characterized by a great diversity whatsoever, too often do they sound all to similar. However, they are not bad by any means. Yes, they might me a bit dull and unremarkable, but they feature some really interesting moments. The longest track on the album, 'Paradise Lost' opens with a moody ambient texture, which than resolves into a washy-bashy theme, typical of the band. 'Ballast' is probably the most classical-oriented piece with allusions to 'In The Hall Of The Mountain King' as well as a few other classical pieces.

All in all, Sixty Nine's only studio release, Circle Of The Crayfish, is a pretty solid effort. There is nothing original or innovative about it, but there is nothing particularly unpleasant about it either. Maybe with an exception of the low-budget production. This album is mainly centered on highlighting the band members' virtuosity rather than the compositional factor. Fans of Emerson Lake & Palmer, Atomic Rooster, The Nice, and Triumvirat should find this album a decent listening experience. Three stars!