Ethos - Relics. 1973-1974 USA (archival)

Fort Wayne Indiana's Ethos are one of the bellwether bands on my USA Midwest / Ontario Progressive Rock (1970's/early 80s) list. If you've read my reviews long enough, or studied that list, then you know what to expect here. Of course this being an archival release - and it predates their major label debut - then you can probably expect more progressive and less commercial. And that's exactly what you receive. Most of the material here is from 1974, with a couple of rougher demos going back to 1973.

For me, on reflection, it's a bittersweet experience. On the one hand it is truly wonderful to hear such great treasure being mined from the vaults like this. On the other, one inherently knows that there should have been so much more. Countless bands operating in a similar territory, but not unified - disparate groups influenced by the same UK bands, though not learning from each other and pushing the boundaries as you would see in England, Germany, or Italy. Everything was grassroots. One of the primary themes of the Midwest Prog list is that America did not have a national scene like the various European countries did. Not a single enlightened record executive, nor a super wealthy individual stepped up and said "I got this". Where were the patrons of the arts? Not everything has to have a bottom line, if one has the wealth to subsidize. I'm pretty sure those that bankrolled the magnificent church frescoes in Medieval times weren't demanding an "ROI". Sigh.

Personal collection

CD: 2000 Black Moon

A great reissue from UMR's good friend Mike O'Neal. and one I bought upon release. The CD comes with a poster insert filled with historical data.