Orne - The Tree of Life. 2011 Finland

I haven't heard Orne's debut, so we'll dig right into their second The Tree of Life. Orne are yet another retro prog band on Black Widow. And honestly, at least from my viewpoint, you really can't have too many of those. In some ways, Orne are really like a 1970 band from the United Kingdom. That is, it can be a bit dirgy and slow. The English vocals are a bit flat, and not sure they're entirely necessary to be honest. On the plus side, the all analog instrumentation (though they cheat and use a Memotron rather than an actual Mellotron) is much welcomed, and includes some lovely Hammond B3 and flute, and that will always warm the cockles of my heart. Plenty of fine guitars leads as well, with the appropriate effects on display. But one does hope for a good meter break - the moment that transcends the composition to another level. Even Pink Floyd did that from time to time, at least through their Meddle era. Orne is an offshoot group to the doom metal band Reverend Bizarre, who I've not heard prior. I'm a casual listener to the doom metal genre (for example, I have all the Candlemass albums, and a handful of others from the genre - and of course I know Black Sabbath inside and out), but it's not something I've done a deep dive on. Some doom metal can be excruciatingly slow and monolithic. And there's some of that kind of pacing here as well. It's a style thing, but I prefer a bit more kinetic energy. All that said, I hear plenty here to a) recommend to fans of the old Vertigo Swirl bands (Still Life comes to mind in particular) and b) they clearly have the talent to release a more dynamic album. I also credit Orne for not falling into the typical Stoner Rock traps (90's styled metal slabs for example), that many bands of their background tend to do. Let's see if this project continues, and what they do with it.

CD: 2011 Black Widow (Italy)

7/30/13 (new entry)

Keep - II (Rock'n Rocked Rock). 1982 Japan

Despite the subtitle Rock'n Rocked Rock, Keep's second album is definitely a fusion affair, similar to their contemporaries like Crosswind, Prism, and Casiopea. But the separator here is the ferocity of the instrumental work - recalling edgier outfits of the early 70s like Mahavishnu Orchestra. 'Aristocrat Bachelor' is the definite highlight here, and is closer to heavy progressive rock than jazz.

CD: 2011 Clinck
LP: 1982 Trash
CD: 1999 Vivid Sound

The original LP is a typical single sleeve with requisite obi. I sold my copy of the LP when the first edition CD came out (1999 Vivid Sound). And it was a bear to find. I finally had to ask a friend who worked at Marquee in Tokyo to send me one.

April 2017 update: I recently discovered another mini-LP version, this time as part of a 4 CD box set called J-Fusion Masterpiece Collectors' Box, which I now possess.

Not a Good Sign. 2013 Italy

I really struggled with this title. Truth is this album came up on the weed out report. The percentage of survival at this stage is very low. Looks like my latest elaborate rating system is doing a great job of identifying what I want to keep versus not. But this one I just couldn't pull the trigger. And interestingly enough my rating remains the same. As I say below, one begins to question if you like progressive rock at all when albums like this come up. 2013 was a very special year for Italian prog rock. I'm sure it will come up again for review, but I heard enough last night to delay that decision for awhile anyway. And there's room for growth with this title too. I never did hear their other albums, and I probably won't pursue unless I can get them for a low price. The below review was penned real time after acquisition, and added to my old Under the Radar blog. I've altered some of it based on this last listen.

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Not a Good Sign (NAGS), though from Italy, have really nothing to do with their own heritage in progressive rock. NAGS, a band that could also be called the AltRock Label All-Stars, clearly have their sights up north towards Scandinavia, where the instrumentals recall Anglagard, Sinkadus, and Wobbler. The English vocals, sung in a somewhat commercial style, recall the Swedish group Anekdoten - especially on their later efforts. This is a band who wear their "prog patch" proudly on their collective jackets. We're pretty much at ground zero here for the style, so if you don't like this, then you probably have to question whether or not you like progressive rock as a genre. It's all very well done, but misses the reckless abandon and youthful excitement that perhaps only the amateurs can pull off - not knowing any better I suppose. It's "professional prog" for a lack of a better term. Hard to diss. Hard to get excited about. But it is very good... of course.

Ownership: CD: 2013 AltRock. Standard jewel case release with lyrics, artwork, and recording details.

7/21/13 (first listen / review / new entry); 9/24/22 (update)