RADIO GNOME INVISIBLE VOL. 3 - YOU

"You" is the third and final instalment of the "Radio Gnome Invisible" trilogy set and IMHO is GONG's best work. Anyone out there who love space rock or fusionish jams will definitely love this album. Mostly gone from "You " is the classic GONG silliness that embodies most of their albums and stands out as their characteristic watermark. Fans of England's OZRIC TENTACLES should definitely check out this album as it obviously had an influence on their sound. One of the most intriguing aspects of this album is GONG's ability to shift abruptly from harmless, sunny-day pop music a la The BEATLES (the opening two tracks) to an ominous, mystical fury a la MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA ("Master Builder," and the band's masterpiece, "A Sprinkling of Clouds"). "You" is for me the perfect mix of Tim Blake's sea of synthesizers, Didier Malherbe's sax offset by Steve Hillage's wild guitar frenzies, Gilli Smythe's 'space whispers and the thunderous rhythm section of Howlett and Pierre Moerlen. At the helm remains the zainy yet inspired Daevid Allen who continues to paint his convoluted musical story of Zero the Hero, Octave Doctors, and the Pot-Head Pixies. This is by far GONG's most instrumental album in their Daevid Allen days, as there is tons of absolutely killer jams. "A Sprinkling of Clouds" is simply one of the best GONG songs I have ever heard, with tons of great, spacy synths, lots of guitar jams, and at the end, killer bamboo flutes. Wow... what else could you ask for ?