IQ - Seven Stories Into Eight / Seven Stories into '98. 1982 / 1998 England

When I did a full IQ retrospective a few years ago, I realized I had never heard their initial demo tape from 1982. It was then, for the first time it appears (not sure why?), I became aware of this CD. The fact that they re-recorded the material was even more exciting. So off I went to buy the CD... ugh. OOP and expensive. So I waited. And eventually I sourced a copy on ebay for a reasonable price, and here we are.

First off, I was determined to hear the tape first, followed by the re-recordings. The band of course pushed the new recording first, as they indicate often an apologetic approach to releasing the demo at all, but I think most fans wouldn't care about the flaws. And I do recommend a similar approach, otherwise it will take your ears quite a bit of time to adjust from professionals in a studio to amateurs in a bedroom.

The liner notes alone were worth the price of admission, and I learned some things about the band I never knew. For example, I didn't realize they had started out as an instrumental fusion band influenced by the likes of Return to Forever. And this shows prominently on the opening track 'Capital Letters'. It's not until the namesake 'Intelligent Quotient' do we first hear Peter Nicholls and their trademark neo prog sound they helped create. By the time we get to 'It All Stops Here', you can tell the band is firing on all cylinders and ready to hit the studio for their brilliant Tales From the Lush Attic debut.

After hearing the tape, I fully expected to be blown away by the new recordings. But honestly, I enjoyed them about the same, despite the obvious improvement in sound and execution. Perhaps it's because I grew up in the same cassette tape culture IQ operated in, and I appreciate the raw grit that comes with it. This CD is a must own if you're a fan of the early IQ sound, of which I most certainly am.

Ownership: CD: 1998 Giant Electric Pea

7/8/16 (new entry)