Troc. 1973 France

Drummer Andre Ceccarelli is joined here by the Magma alumni of Jannick Top, Francis Moze, and Claude Engel - all apparently slumming in the (then) trendy soul oriented jazz-rock waters, that no doubt had Christian Vander shaking his head in disgust. The vocals are sung by Scotsman Alex Ligertwood, who would provide a similar white boy crooning on Brian Auger's albums shortly thereafter (and later more famously for Santana, who was performing similar music by that time). Ligertwood also gets credit for most of the compositions presented here. Other key members are Henry Giordano on Fender Rhodes and Jacky Giraudo on guitar, who honestly do a lot of the heavy lifting here on the solo front. There's quite a bit of talk about Miles Davis, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, and Soft Machine in the liner notes to the CD. Those are what are known in the literary world as red herrings. Radio friendly blues numbers such as 'Old Man River' tend to keep albums like this from being recognized as the stone classic it could have been. 

Former ownership: CD: 2013 Frémeaux & Associés. Jewel case. Liner notes in both French and English, great sound, as well as two short bonus tracks. Songs have been reordered from the original and the bonus tracks are interspersed.

2/23/14 (review / new entry); 11/27/24

Maxwells - Maxwell Street. 1969 Denmark

Really fine exploratory effort from Maxwells, a band that continued to progress musically via the Rainbow Band moniker and even further as Midnight Sun. The music here is definitely inspired by the cutting edge horn rock movement as portrayed by the Chicago Transit Authority, but with an avant garde edge in places, perhaps recalling Friend Sound on their Joyride album. Splendid little album that demonstrates once again that Denmark was about a full year ahead of their Continental European contemporaries when it came to innovations in rock music.

LP: 1969 MPS (Germany)
CD: 2003 Long Hair (Germany)

The original is housed in a very nice gatefold cover and was released on the fine German jazz label MPS. Maxwells was an odd choice for the imprint, indicating an exploration into different markets at the time. The only reissue is the excellent Long Hair CD, complete with full liners, photos, and 4 bonus tracks.

Quarks - Elemental. 2013 Chile

Quarks are an electronic trio from Chile, with most of the instrumentalists having a progressive rock background (namely SETI, Subterra, Caamora, and Taurus). On Elements, they pay homage to classic Tangerine Dream. Here, we have two keyboardists and a third on electric guitar just like Froese and company. I was hoping for a mid 1970's Virgin era Mellotron and  Moog Sequencer romp with psychedelic leads, but rather Quarks decided to feature electronic percussion and a decidedly more modern era keyboard sound. So it's like discovering a lost 1982 era Tangerine Dream recording instead. Certainly one can do worse than that, so most assuredly fans of the early 80s TD albums will find much to celebrate here (Pergamon anyone?). I do think it's all quite good, though it does seem it's been done before. But I'm all for an excellent reproduction. Quarks does a fine job at that. And with three protagonists, it does avoid the monolithic nature of the multitude of solo acts in this field today.

I'd be curious if the band takes this concept further, and makes full advantage of utilizing the electric guitar within an electronic music setting.  Similar to Radio Massacre International or early Redshift perhaps.

This remains my sole electronic album from South America.

Ownership: CD: 2013 Mylodon. Jewel case with simple booklet with photos and recording details.

2/5/14 (new entry)

Socrates Drank the Conium - On the Wings. 1973 Greece

---2/2/14

Socrates' third album shifts from the blues rock of their first two albums to full throttle hard rock here. In some ways, On the Wings could be considered a distant cousin to the Icecross album. It's not quite as sinister, and Socrates hasn't quite yet abandoned its blues rock background, but there's no denying this is a pioneering album in the hard rock genre. I appreciate that Socrates occasionally uses Greek scales within their guitar melodies. This is a good one for fans of early 70s aggressive hard rock.

---9/3/24

In hearing the album for the first time in a decade I enjoyed a +1 listen. I was wondering why I had the lower grade having remembered this album as a blistering hard rock album way ahead of its time for 1973. I think part of the issue is that the last two tracks don't hold serve with the others, though neither are egregious just a bit more blues based than the rest. Highlights include 'Death is Gonna Die' (what a title) and 'Breakdown'. In addition to the Icecross reference above, one can hear the more raucous bands coming out of the German hard rock scene as well as Australia's Buffalo.

Ownership: CD: 1996 Polydor. Jewel case release.

The Peters International LP was likely to be the introduction for the majority of American collectors back in the day. I found mine at the Dallas Record show (1988). Sold it when the CD came out, though I wouldn't mind grabbing it again.

1988 (first listen); 2/2/14 (review / new entry); 9/3/24 (update)

Astra - The Black Chord. 2012 USA-California

In the world I choose to exist in - the byzantine progressive rock underground - bands like Astra might as well be Taylor Swift in terms of general recognition. These are albums that have close to 500 ratings and dozens of reviews on RYM for example - when the usual norm for my modern era collection is 8 ratings and one review, and that one review might be my own.

For those that still haven't heard Astra - and I can't imagine anyone reading this that hasn't - then they can best be described as 1972 personified. They have absorbed the influences of the time, instrumentation, and recording techniques of a bygone era, and created their own personal vision of what that would sound like. So if you're an "all-in" kind of progressive rock fan, then these albums are can't miss propositions. For as great as The Weirding is, Astra took it a notch further with The Black Chord. The songwriting has improved, as well as the crispness of the playing itself. If all this sounds eerily familiar to another feature I've written before, then you are perceptive indeed. Rise Above's first band to really accomplish this feat is Diagonal, and they too improved with their sophomore effort. Diagonal is more about the arcane UK progressive scene as promoted in 1971 by the Neon, Dawn, and Transatlantic labels. Whereas Astra is coming at this from the early King Crimson, VDGG, and Yes perspective. So from that viewpoint, Astra will feel more familiar to most modern listeners.

Of course when you obtain the kind of popularity that Astra has, especially on the coattails of the classic early 70s progressive rock bands that many adore and feel cannot be replicated, then you can expect a lot of negativity will find its way to them. I would just wave all that aside if you're a fan, and it least give these albums your full attention, and not try to be swayed too much. Personally I can't possibly hear enough albums that attempt to do what Astra has. This is miles beyond the superficial tries of many modern acts who are looking to achieve a similar conclusion. It takes far more than a retrospective view of another era (i.e. watching That 70's Show isn't going to cut it), and throw a Hammond and a Memotron (faux Mellotron) in there and hope for the best. One really has to be a student of the genre to achieve these kind of results. I can only tip my hat, and can't wait for any future releases.

Ownership: CD: 2012 Rise Above (UK)

2012; 2/2/14 (new entry)

Contraction - s/t + La Bourse ou La Vie + Live 1974. 1972/1974 Canada

Contraction: To appreciate Contraction it helps to enjoy the unique Quebecois songwriting style. First half of the album is a classic early 70s period piece, with the beautiful voice of Christiane Robichaud adding some sunshine to the otherwise dreary and smoky clubs of Montreal. The melodies are gorgeous, and the Franck Dervieux (his "Dimension M" album another must listen from the region) influence is quite apparent. Second half focuses more on instrumentals. Contrary to what may be my common inclination, I tend to favor the first side here.

La Bourse ou La Vie: And continuing with the contrary theme, I tend to disagree with my fellow peers, and I think the more straightforward debut is the (slightly) stronger album compared to the more overtly progressive La Bourse ou La Vie. I think the songwriting on the debut is a bit more engaging. However, the side long epic on La Bourse ou La Vie is their strongest moment across both albums.

Live 1974: Live 1974"is a splendid radio recording, perhaps even better than the studio recordings proper. Most of the material is taken from their terrific debut, with the lengthy title track of the second representing the tour de force. Opening track is the English version of 'Chant Patriotique' from the first album, and since I've not heard the English version of the album, it's interesting to hear it with the different vocal inflections. As if to underscore that point, the second track does a bit of franglais, as it mixes French first / English second, which is entirely unique. Then there's the three unreleased tracks: 'Solid Shine', ' Le Temps Fuit comme une Ombre', and 'Sagesse' (and the latter also gets the studio version treatment), that are all unmistakably Contraction, and great to hear after all these years. The live renditions play it pretty straight to the original album recordings, but it's still a superb performance, with perhaps better sound, and significant unreleased material. Definitely a worthy addition to the collection.

LP (La Bourse ou la Vie): 1974 Deram
CD (Contraction): 2005 ProgQuebec
CD (La Bourse ou la Vie): 2005 ProgQuebec
CD (Live 1974): 2009 ProgQuebec
LP (Contraction): 1972 Columbia

The debut was released in a single sleeve, a gatefold, as well as an English language version. The latter is pretty scarce, but the others are relatively common. La Bourse ou La Vie was released as a gatefold only. My first LP copies of each go back to the early 1990s that I eventually sold once the CDs became available. As for CD's, ProgQuebec was the first to market, and closed the book on what needed to be done. The debut CD only features lyrics, but no history. I think the prevailing thought was that anyone who buys the first will most assuredly want the second (and honestly I have to agree, I can't imagine somebody liking one and not the other). And as such, La Bourse ou La Vie does feature a brief history, which is also included on ProgQuebec's website. The Live 1974 CD, that was released 4 years later, actually sounds better than the studio albums (it was a radio broadcast, so that partially explains why), and it features more unique liner notes. All 3 CDs are essential IMO.

March 2019 update: Picked up La Bourse ou la Vie again on vinyl.