CMU - Space Cabaret. 1973 England

Space Cabaret is very different from its predecessor. And, truth be told, this sophomore effort is like two separate albums. All of Side 1 was written by newcomer Richard Joseph. For years I had rejected this side as being somewhat average. In reflection I've warmed up to it quite a bit. It's a type of psychedelic folk. But with Larraine Odell's celestial voice, and trippy effects throughout, it actually works quite well. So one will hear 5 quality well-written psych-folk-pop tunes. But it's so very different from what is to follow.

Side 2 opens with 'Dreams', and is the only composition written by guitarist Ian Hamlett. A brilliant track, that is highly progressive with a dark undertone. They should have let him write more. Here's where Larraine Odell shows she is a great female singer - in the big leagues with Linda Hoyle.

But the real monster of a song is the closer 'Lightshine'. And sure enough, it is the only composition written by Leary Hasson. You may recognize the name Hasson, as he's the grand master of Marsupilami, one of my all time favorite bands. He joined CMU only for Space Cabaret, and sadly only wrote this one song for them. This could have been on Marsupilami's 3rd mythical album! Hasson may be one of the best progressive rock songwriters ever. It is absolutely brilliant in every way, from the construction of the composition, to the type of sounds generated (fuzz guitar, crunchy organ). I had goosebumps and hair raising moments throughout the whole thing. The moment when Odell first begins to sing is something really special. I just falloff the chair every time in amazement. There are over 10 movements here, each segue's brilliantly into the other. It starts in more folky realms (think side 1) and ends in the finest Canterbury tradition with pounding fuzz keyboards and searing electric guitars. At age 54, I'm willing to say this one song is in my Top 5 ever. Honestly, one is left speechless. I fear it's a track no one pays attention to, as it's so much different from the rest of the album. Unlike anything really...

So what happened to the Odell couple? They went onto to form one of London's most famous early 1980's disco groups in Shakatak (pronounced Shack Attack). There's plenty of vintage YouTube videos of the band out there for you to check out (be sure to find the vintage ones from the 1980s, not the modern renditions). If you do check out the videos you may be asking who is that 80's big-haired blond girl? No, that's not Larraine Odell (who doesn't appear to actually have been in the group long, though Roger is indeed the drummer), but rather Jill Saward - of ... ready for this? Fusion Orchestra (another favorite band)!!! Jeesh, who knew?

As for Leary Hasson, this is the last known written composition from him. Where did he get the inspiration? He was so far ahead of the pack, and yet no one knows who he is. Completely forgotten. One day that discovery will be made. One day.

Ownership: CD: 1993 See For Miles. The above also includes all of their earlier album Open Spaces (1971) save one track. Includes full liner notes as well. Excellent CD.

The Mandrake Memorial - 3 Part Inventions. 1969 USA-Pennsylvania (archival)

3 Part Inventions was originally to be the album that followed Medium, The Mandrake Memorial's sophomore effort. This second album is where the band's interest in experimental music began to take hold. So much so, that founding member Micheal Kac bolted from the scene (amicably I might add). Traveling to London in the summer of 1969 to record, The Mandrake Memorial seemed on the verge of releasing their breakthrough album. But the producer, the well known and respected Shel Talmy, thought their brand of music to be hideous and quit. That left the band on their own, without any support of the British music unions, to finish what they started. Once complete, a couple of publications announced the imminent release of 3 Part Inventions.

Of course that never transpired. The label wanted them to rerecord the album, which they dutifully did, and that lead to their final effort Puzzle. In retrospect, it's hard to argue with the label here. The album doesn't really gel together. It's a set of disparate ideas and it's not crisp at all. As an archival album, however, this disparity works completely in its favor. We're hearing a band at the vanguard of music that only groups such as Pink Floyd were exploring back then. The blueprint for Krautrock honestly.

The first 3 tracks all would end up on Puzzle. I didn't compare them to the album proper, but here they seem like 3 random songs that fly by without notice. The album begins to come together on the excellent previously unreleased 'Part of My Dreams'. Here's where the Pink Floyd references start to come out. The primitive synthesizers and trippy tones are what makes this era of music so special. 'Wouldn't You Like It?' was also unreleased, and as the band notes later, should have been the hit single of the album. 'Bucket of Air' of course is the landmark track from Puzzle, from an experimental point of view that is. This version, which I'm sure is different than Puzzle's, is quite excellent as well. You could just picture these guys in front of some strobe-light film extravaganza in Berlin circa 1970. 'Witness the End' comes from Medium, but is a new tripped out version. These latter duo of tracks were to make up Side 2 of 3 Part Inventions. Way ahead of their time. The Mandrake Memorial are far more cohesive than a band like fellow Americans' Friendsound, but the music has this similar go-for-broke attitude.

That concludes the album itself. There are two more tracks thrown on, an unreleased version of 'Cassandra' and 'The 12th Brigade' a track that was left off of Medium. Too bad on the latter, as it's quite excellent psychedelic rock.

For fans of Puzzle era Mandrake Memorial, 3 Part Inventions is a must pick up. Otherwise it's probably going to be too "out there" for fans of just their earlier material.

CD: 2016 Flashback (UK)

The CD booklet has an encyclopedic amount of info regarding the full history of the band. Though oddly only a small fraction is dedicated to the 3 Part Inventions portion of their career. Also has photos, concert posters, that sort of thing. The album is taken from the original masters reel. Essential for fans of the band.

Head - Red Dwarf. 1975 Scotland

Head were a band from Glasgow, Scotland who had a pretty good run of 3 albums, though all of them could best be described as "obscure". Red Dwarf appears to their most known and respected album. Here the band intersects with - on the far left of the circle - the Canterbury scene. I'm most reminded of Ian Carr's Nucleus, and like that crew, Head finds themselves immersed in the jazzy wing of the genre. In fact much of the album is just that - jazz. But a track like 'White Giant' definitely has the Canterbury pedigree with its driving fuzz bass and familiar melody lines. At times the album sounds like a jazz band playing classical music. There's quite a bit of noodling going on here as well. I've read comparisons that Head sound like electric era Miles Davis, but I don't hear it myself. Seems to be a highly rated album by many, but to me it's more academic than enlightening. A solid "good" album, but nothing more from me.

No reissues exist.

The Human League - Dare. 1981 England

One of the more interesting historical tidbits about The Human League is that band leader Philip Oakey thought 'Don't You Want Me' was a very poor choice for a single, argued against it, and thought it would be ruinous for their reputation. Well so much for that! Just goes to show you about musicians and their respective judgement of their own material. Personally I think it's a brilliant 2 minute song, and represents perfectly the era in which it was released. Except... at 4 minutes it's about twice as long as it needs to be. Seems they should have added one or two more ideas there? So maybe Oakey was right - it was a throwaway after all.

Beyond the big hit, much of the album is pleasant, with some very nice fat synthesizer textures. Nothing is as catchy of course, and there's not much experimentation either. Yet another "high school soundtrack" album for me. A nice harmless way to spend 40 minutes.

This is part of a large 80s rock LP collection I bought recently. Been a blast going though so far, though not much is sticking. Still got about 80 LPs to go...

Sting - The Dream of the Blue Turtles. 1985 England

Sting, Gordon Sumner by any other name, was something of a ubiquitous presence during my high school years. Truth of the matter is I was quite fond of The Police back then. One of the better of the mainstream New Wave bands of the day (we didn't have all these other terms/genres like today - everything with this type of sound was called New Wave).

The Dream of the Blue Turtles was released in the summer of 1985. Yea, that's about the nadir year for mainstream music right there. I remember the album when it was released (I was halfway through college), and thought the title very interesting. For myself, probably as a reaction to all the crap the radio was offering, I was really starting to deep dive into genres like Euro prog rock, Berlin School electronic, Krautrock, while maintaining a healthy love for thrash and other kinds of inventive metal. I never heard the album all the way through back then, why would I bother? But since it's here, let's give it a whirl shall we?

The only song that registered in the memory banks was 'If You Love Somebody Set Them Free'. I thought it kinda blew back then. 34 years later... it still blows. The title track, all 1+ minute of it, is an intriguing out-of-place jazz piano piece. Otherwise, wow, this album is really boring. There are no hooks, or any of the magic songwriting Sting brought to The Police. The album is so sterilized you could lick it for days without worry. You just want to go to a garage somewhere and roll in motor oil for awhile. The whole thing screams the Live Aid era. I could go a lifetime not remembering those days.

The Tingling Mother's Circus - A Circus of the Mind. 1968 USA-New York

The Tingling Mother's Circus' sole album is a type of charming orchestrated pop psych, with dual male and female vocals - and small bouts of organ and fuzz guitar to definitely give it that late 60s edge. If you can conjure up a 1968 image of 'Sunday Kind of Feeling' and 'Happy Bubble', then I think you already know how this album will sound without having to hit the YouTube samples first.

Ownership: LP: 1968 Musicor. Comes in a fine uni-pak gatefold on Musicor, a major label that pretty much eschewed the entire psychedelic rock movement. One of the few obscure US psych albums that can still be found for dirt cheap.

No reissues exist.

Last listen: Summer 2014

Fläsket Brinner - Swedish Radio Studio, Gothenburg, November 9, 1971 (archival)

The second disc in the set (see below for further description) is also the only one not from the master board. I love the backstory: Bassist Per Bruun's father had recorded it on reel to reel straight from the radio back then. I related to this because when I first started doing late night radio (1989) on our local NPR station in Dallas, my old man recorded the show (6 hours on occasional Saturday nights) from the local cable system (NPR was background music to any number of "information" channels) onto VHS (yes, VHS). I still have those recordings because of him. Why did he do it? Well he certainly didn't like the music. He just wanted to hear his son talk on the radio. Proud Papa I think they call it.  I suspect a similar reason for Mr. Bruun.

So with that, the sound quality here isn't as strong as the others, but it's most certainly better than bootleg standard - and better than many official releases honestly. The music here is undoubtedly Fläsket Brinner. A true representation of the term psychedelic progressive with a very strong Swedish folkloric backdrop. Today, a band like Agusa would be a good facsimile of this type of sound. 'Jätten Feeling' is absolutely gorgeous. Goosebump material. As the album continues, one begins to realize - on this particular evening - that we're listening to Fläsket Brinner play the music of a one Bo Hansson, and many of these same themes can be found on his own albums. With a good bit more fiery psychedelics of course. As we move further into the disc, we go from Hansson to the more obscure Maffy Falay, a Turkish trumpet player who had relo'd to Sweden in the 60's. Not only are both Swedish and Turkish themes apparent, but the music takes a turn for the jazz underground. Overall, a superb set. And to think it's just 1 of 4 superb sets...

Ownership: CD: 2003 Mellotronen. This CD box set is quite simply one of the greatest - if not the greatest - archival package for fans of the early 70s European psychedelic progressive past. The entire product is brilliant - from the packaging, to the detailed liner notes, and dozens of rare photos, and of course 4 full albums of live Fläsket Brinner, the final disc being entirely new. The first 3 intersect with - but is no mere copy - of what the band had released on their 2 official releases (which featured live material as well). All but one are straight from the master board too. It's what dreams are made of.

I bought this as soon as it came out, which was in 2003. I digested all of it, and planted the high rating at that time. On Gnosis, we have it as 4 separate releases. I wish RYM did that as well - as one rating doesn't seem quite right. In the end though, I think it evens out nicely in this case. All the same, I'd rather space these listens out over time.

Starchild - Children of the Stars. 1978 Canada-Ontario

If you're a Canadian hard rock band in 1978, then who would you look to as a blueprint for success? Correct - Triumph and Rush. And that's exactly what Starchild has done here. This is the good stuff right here. All the quality hard rock stayed in while the rest was drained to the garbage disposal. The first two tracks demonstrate similarities to Triumph. 'Wizard Woman' sounds like it could have easily fit on Rush's Caress of Steel. Side 2 is even better, with a crisp Rush sound circa 2112 (side 2 of said album). The highlight for me is the subtly progressive 'Wooden Steaks and Mashed Potatoes' (I guess they had Sizzler's in Toronto back then too!). All in all, if you're looking for some hard rock with progressive styling, then Starchild is a must hear. I love stuff like this.

Personal collection
LP: 1978 Axe

No reissues exist as I enter this post.

Synaptik - Justify & Reason. 2017 England

In my notes for Synaptik's debut The Mechanisms of Consequence, I mentioned the album essentially constituted a facsimile of a 3rd full length Watchtower album. Since I'm not overly familiar with the album beyond that session, I'll need to rely on my past scribblings. I bring this up because Justify & Reason does not remind me of Watchtower, or tech thrash much at all. Certainly those elements are present, but this one feels much more heavy and - dare I say - modern.

England's Synaptik have a long history with technical styled metal, going back to the late 80s with the awesome Inner Sanctum and then later with the even more obscure Fifth Season. On those past albums, I didn't hear this kind of heaviness. The vocals fortunately are melodic and well done (though occasional shouts and screams are of course necessary), a bit toward the emotive side that can often water down releases such as this (but doesn't here). There's only 5 tracks on Justify & Reason, each sailing past the 6 minute mark and beyond (totaling near the 35 minute EP length). It's certainly still complex, but that's not always the case either. I've seen references to Nevermore and Zero Hour, and those groups aren't too far off the mark. I know in some circles I'd get shot for saying this, but one can also hear Meshuggah and Machine Head as well.

With music that is as involved as Justify & Reason, one already inherently knows multiple listens will reveal more each time. These veterans do not seem close to slowing down, despite a lack of any kind of large scale commercial success. Excellent.

Ownership: CD: 2017 Divebomb. 2xCD set that includes a remix of their debut. Supposedly heavier, I didn't listen to it. At some point I'll need to compare the 2 versions.

3/16/19 (new entry)

Womega - A Quick Step. 1975 Belgium

Womega were a band from Eastern Belgium, near the Dutch border. They released this one fascinating album called A Quick Step, and nothing has been heard from them since. In a nutshell, the album could be characterized as an all-over-the-map type release.  But - here's the interesting part - all within the confines of what normally constitutes progressive rock, rather than the usual kitchen sink mentality that represents all facets of music in general. Presented here are pomp, Canterbury, proto, symphonic, fusion, and Zappa styles. Considerable amount of mellotron and flute are apparent, in the most unexpected places. Some parts are more simplistic, giving it a radio friendly sound, and then followed by something entirely difficult and complex. If looking for comparisons, other Northern European progressive rock bands come to mind such as Pantheon, Dr. Dopo Jam, Shampoo, and Nine Days Wonder. And heck how about a little American Blue Oyster Cult too. Maybe a little too diverse for its own good, but undeniably fascinating!

LP: 1975 Skruup. Single sleeve with a booklet containing liner notes, lyrics, and full instrumentation credits. Recent online acquisition (2019)

11/19/07; 2008; 3/16/19 (new entry)

Eric Delaunay - Antagonisme! 1980 France

Not much is known about drummer Eric Delaunay's past. We learn from the liner notes of Musea's reissue of the second Asia Minor album that Delaunay had been an early member, but left prior to any recording. Then time passes, and he finds himself with a group under his own name on major label Vogue! How he was able to achieve this remains something of an unknown. Especially when one considers how noncommercial Antagonisme! really is. 

The album itself is all instrumental, built upon complex structures and themes. There's some fantastic guitar and keyboards here, along with Eric Delaunay's driving rhythms. Special kudos go to bassist Paul Amar who plays a major role throughout. Other than a couple of short keyboard atmospheric pieces, Antagonisme! is an energetic, well produced, instrumental progressive rock album. Well worth pursuing.

After this album, none of the other members resurfaced again, beyond Delaunay himself. He later formed Tiemko and one can easily hear his songwriting and approach being applied. Especially on their debut Espace Fini, but with more modern equipment (for better or worse).

Ownership: LP: 1980 Vogue. Single sleeve. Recent acquisition from a friend in Japan (2019)

No reissues exist as I update this post on 6/24/24. Sadly Eric Delaunay passed away in a deadly car crash in 1996.

8/25/10; 3/16/19 (new entry)

E.A. Poe - Generazioni. 1975 Italy

E.A. Poe were a band from a small town near Milan, who managed to squeeze out this one album before disappearing. That situation remains true today. Like with Capitolo 6 that we spoke about recently, E.A. Poe are one of the true rarities of the Italian progressive rock scene, and it wasn't until the age of the CD reissue that most of us had a chance to hear it for the first time.

That day came in 1991 from the ever reliable Vinyl Magic (now known as BTF/AMS), and I dutifully bought my copy the first minute I could. 28 years later that collection status is exactly the same. The odds of me scoring a multi-thousand dollar copy of the original is not very likely.

So what of the music? Bulls-eye Italian progressive rock. You love the style already, you'll love this. And the opposite would hold true as well. Starting out with some sneering narration in Italian, followed by a wicked off-meter bass riff and synthesizers, my first thoughts were Pholas Dactylus meets Duello Madre. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, probably for the better, as you are on page 50 of a book that needs to be read from the beginning. From here on out, one will hear a mix of complex prog rock, with a small hint of the singer-songwriter balladry that was a hallmark of the genre. On the more progressive tracks, one can pick up a distinct Le Orme influence ("wait - I've heard of them!") and even The Trip comes to mind here. It's all slam-dunk Italian Prog 101. Definitely one to add to your collection, though there are more dynamic albums from the genre than this. So don't start here, but don't miss it either.

Personal collection
CD: 1991 Vinyl Magic

Originals on Kansas are truly a small fortune. Despite the label stating 1974, August Croce makes the solid case that the vinyl matrix (he being one of the few who has seen one!) is dated January 1975, so it certainly wouldn't have been released in 1974. CD and LP reissues have been plentiful from the ever productive BTF group. You can now get the vinyl in your favorite Smart Phone color! And to think we used to beg folks to make us a cassette tape so we might get a chance to hear it. Now you can go to YouTube to hear it, and own it in a variety of formats. So much has changed. For better or worse.

Sunblind Lion - Observer. 1976 USA

Sunblind Lion were a band from eastern Wisconsin who played a familiar type of music from the Midwest region - that of progressive rock mixed with FM radio sensibilities. Likely they were geared toward the former, but to earn a living they mixed in the latter for both club gigs and the rare chance they might get "discovered". All things considered, Sunblind Lion were one of the more successful bands at this racket, and managed a nice 3 album run. And based on supply and demand economics, it would appear their privately made debut album sold quite well in the local market, given the sheer amount of product that is still available.

The album opens fantastically with the hard driving Kansas styled 'Ride the Wind', with riffing guitars, heavy synthesizers, and ripping organ. Things break down quickly with the club pleasing boogie rock of 'Cat Eyes' and is best skipped over. 'Jamaican Holiday' was their choice for a single, and a good one. Mostly a very pleasant synthesizer lead commercial rock track that is well composed. But unfortunately some of the breaks have that honky-tonk boogie of a Bachman Turner Overdrive. Groan.

Fortunately from here on out, the theme is more progressive than commercial. '(Make It) Another Day' will also remind one of mid 70s Kansas combined with a bit of southern rock ala The Allman Brothers. 'Games of the Lonely' has a very strong synthesizer presence, and could have also been a hit FM rock track of the era. 'Spring Essence' is the most purist of the progressive rock tracks here, and proves Sunblind Lion could have released a masterpiece of the style had they chosen. The 11 minute epic that closes the album is of course more of the same, though not quite as dynamic and takes awhile to get rolling. But once it does, it's superb.

Overall, Sunblind Lion are yet another excellent example of the type of quality material coming from the American heartland of the 1970s. Strong album for fans of the style, but maybe only to them (us).

Personal collection
LP: 1976 Homegrown

A surprisingly easy album to find and relatively inexpensive. I've known about this album for years (and had heard it), but just now got around to buying it. Sealed no less.

Perhaps even more surprising, the band released this on CD back in 1997 to an audience of no one it would appear. Having been a hardcore progressive rock CD buyer back then, I do not recall it ever being offered for sale. Discogs' shows an ownership of zero, yet the CD is clearly scanned and must exist. Definitely rarer than the LP!

May 29, 2019 update: And I now have acquired the CD. Very basic reissue with 2 bonus tracks. Single card front, but with nice textured cardboard.

Varix - Morbid Tribute To Distortion. 1991 - 1995 Germany (archival)

Varix were an obscure thrash band from Germany who had ties with another long forgotten group that we just spoke about: Skeptic Sense. Like with the latter, there's a modern CD reissue on Divebomb that covers their entire canon of work. Given the background, I went forward with Varix expecting something similar...

...Somewhat I suppose, but not really. Varix are much more straightforward than the labyrinthine Skeptic Sense. Not to say Varix aren't creative or progressive - far from it - but much more in line with the inventive thrash bands of the era. The CD itself is interesting in that it presents the later material first (not counting a recent reunion add on) and works its way back to the beginning. I think from a listening perspective it would have been better to hear the band evolve - in both sound and songwriting. So with that, I'll discuss it in chronological order.

Based on what I can ascertain, 1991's Morbus Cron was actually released on cassette professionally (see scan at the bottom). Sort of a demo release I suppose. This would be their only official release until this archival CD. The sound here is raw and reedy. For 1991 it's not particularly heavy, and there's an underlying punk vibe throughout, especially the driving bass work and gang style vocals. Certainly there's plenty of sophistication in the meter breaks, but not overwhelmingly so. At this point, they sound like a more adventurous Exodus - as found in someone's garage. Two years later Tribute to Fate was recorded. Here's where the band adopts a much more crunchy and modern sound. It's not easy to describe, but it's very full and crisp. It seems almost edible. Musically the band follow a similar path to Morbus Cron, but with more complexity. And that leads us to the beginning as it were with 1995's Harmonic Distortion. Here it seems Varix has taken their Exodus roots and added a big heap of Anacrusis to the mix (minus the histrionic vocals of said band). Certainly their most progressive and intriguing tracks to date. I would recommend hearing the album in this order, otherwise each successive phase will seem less accomplished than before. The opposite effect for a quality listen. It's worth mentioning that the 2016 reformation track is not a mere throw-in, and picks up nicely from their Harmonic Distortion output. There was talk of a reunion effort, but you know how that goes.

Overall another worthy adventurous German progressive metal band to consider, though not as complex (Sieges Even, Skeptic Sense) or as nutty (Payne's Gray, Cant) as others from there we've covered in the past. But miles better than the usual straight ahead Euro styled power metal we get from Germany.

Personal collection
CD: 2016 Divebomb (USA)

Usual great retrospective from Divebomb. There are copious liner notes, lyrics, photos, etc... contained within the fat booklet. As is custom for the label, the historical notes are gathered via an interview with the band. There are quite a bit of differences of opinion in their remembrance (respectfully I might add) which made it even that much more interesting to read.

Florian Geyer - Beggars Pride. 1976 Germany

So who was Florian Geyer anyway? He was your basic 15th/16th century nobleman turned subversive warrior, who played around in the Luther camp for awhile, before going even more radicalized and ultimately was killed off for being too much of a rabble-rouser. Interesting to note that both the Communists and the Nazi's honored him as "their kinda guy". In effect, we have a Jethro Tull situation here considering an historical figure, though one it would appear to be more controversial.

With that out of the way, when you first come across a private press rock album from 70's era Germany, you probably would ask the following: Krautrock? Nope. Progressive rock? No. Commercial/AOR? Nope. 1976? No. Germany? No. And of course RYM's king of misinformation states Boogie Rock right? Noooo (yet another mislabeled illegal download - poor guy).

So what does Florian Geyer sound like then? A 1969 era North American or British psychedelic hard rock album performed by a guitar based trio. Beggars (sic) Pride is so far removed from the era and location in which it was released, one wonders what the band had been doing throughout the early 70s, beyond hiding under a rock. There are 6 tracks here, and most are a bit more thought provoking than you might initially think. There are plenty of ideas, and thematic changes throughout. This is not your typical bonehead hard rock album. And there's also lots (yes lots) of guitar solos, both of the psychedelic and hard rock variety. Overall it's crude, but not grungy. To my ears, I hear earlier 70s German bands such as Second Life, or maybe more to the point Ainigma (another North American sounding psych group).

With the CD, you receive copious bonus tracks. I'll cover off on their singles below, which leaves us with the 4 well recorded studio tracks from 1980. Still at least 5 years behind the times, they did manage to incorporate synthesizer into their new sound. The first track 'Morphin' is really quite good, and the band has yet to entirely forego their psychedelic past. The other three tracks I can give a pass. A couple sound like mid 70s Rolling Stones rejects, and there are some... wait for it... boogie rock tracks (now there they are!). But not on the album proper...

Overall a nice pickup for fans of the late 60s hard psych sound.

Personal collection
CD: 2000 Garden of Delights

Original LPs are a small fortune. One hilarious note. There are 4 people on the front cover even though the band is a trio. The 4th? A real beggar, and the inspiration for the title.

The CD first came out on Penner, which was the precursor to the better named Garden of Delights. Comes with the usual great liner notes and 8 bonus tracks.

-----

Candle of My Burial / Monday Afternoon. 1974

If you thought the sole album by Florian Geyer was crude, then wait until you hear their one single from 1974. Honestly it sounds like something from 1966. Not bad on the whole but maannn, you'll need to spray your stereo down after playing this.

I cannot find physical evidence of this 45. According to the liner notes, it was released in an edition of 500. One would think a copy would have showed up by now. So I'm questioning that part at least. But the music most certainly exists!



Hurrican is the band formerly known as Florian Geyer, apparently trying to "be relevant". Florian Geyer couldn't be relevant to their era if their life depended on it. One would expect perhaps a shot at the New Wave or Synth Pop here? Nope - more of the same bad 70s Rolling Stones emulation their 1980 material hinted at. Weird lot those guys were - yep.

Dante - Saturnine. 2010 Germany

Saturnine is the second album from the German progressive metal band Dante, who appear to be still kicking around. At this point in their career - and maybe still the case, as this is the only album I've heard by them - Dante are 100% in the Dream Theater camp. The James LaBrie styled crooning and piano ballads of 'Drifting' and 'Maybe One Day' coupled with 'Never Return' featuring these enlightened lyrics: "Images and Words", are just the beginning of the clues.

Dante do not have the chops of Dream Theater, so they have to make up for that with a bit more creativity in the songwriting, and this plays to their benefit. In addition, Dante are a bit heavier than Dream Theater on average. The guitar and the bass tones plus the monosyllabic keyboard solos recall Awaken's opener '6:00'. Take away the ballads, and you still have over 50 minutes of solid prog metal. No chances are taken, and everything fits neatly into the box, but it's certainly professional and easy on the ears. A little more imagination would have likely resulted in a half star bump.

Duke Ellington & Count Basie - First Time! The Count Meets the Duke. 1962 USA

An embarrassment of riches! Two of the greatest jazz orchestras of their day come together and blast out a good time. As a former stage band performer, it's exactly this kind of music we played 80% of the time. It's not easy to play, but it's easy on the ears. It was the pop music of a bygone era. As The Duke liked to say "Jazz is music. Swing is business."

Not something I need to own and would not pull it off the shelf by choice. Was part of a large buy of jazz CDs, and was fun to hear, for the memories alone.

CD: 1987 Columbia

Jumbo - DNA. 1972 Italy

DNA is the second album from Milan's Jumbo, and shows an incredible trajectory from the raw blues rock of the debut. Though as I mentioned on my review there, the songwriting is similar in naked form - but now it's all dressed up and ready to go out for the evening.

For my lira, there may be no better one-two punch in the vast annals of Italian prog than Jumbo, that which starts with DNA and subsequently followed by arguably the greatest of them all in Vietato...

Jumbo are not an immediately likable band. They have none of the panache of a PFM, nor the stateliness of a Banco. As I mentioned recently in discussing Capitolo 6, Italy had far more bands duking it out in the mean streets, than those attending recitals at concert halls. And who was the meanest, gruffest, toughest of them all? Jumbo. And who is Jumbo? Well literally it's singer Alvaro Fella, and it's his nickname. He is, in fact, what makes Jumbo... Jumbo. Both in name and in spirit. Take him out of the mix and you have a highly performing instrumental Italian progressive rock unit. Put him in, and the band skyrockets to the top of the game. He is the band's secret sauce as it were. Buy into his passion and style, and Jumbo are a 5 star band. But if just scanning albums as quickly as possible to get your ratings total up so you can make some fanciful list made by strangers you will never meet, and be rewarded with... what? Who knows. Well, son, you're missing out on the whole point.  Buy an album like DNA and sit with it for awhile. Get to know it. And watch an epiphany unfold.

One of the common criticisms DNA receives is that the opening 20 minute track is great and then it falters from there. I agree with this in principle, though on close inspection, the problem has more to do with album placement than quality of material. The opening track of the album should have been 'Miss Rand', a playful beginning with a romping guitar / organ run, and what then introduces our main protagonist as he strums the acoustic guitar and growls out the lyrics while Dario Guidotti hoots on the harmonica. Guidotti incidentally is one of the key ingredients to Jumbo's sound. His haunting harmonica is only bettered by his fantastic staccato flute work - always a hallmark of a good Italian prog band. The other hero is guitarist Daniele Bianchini, whose raw electric guitars match Fella's vocal expression perfectly.

The second track should have been 'Hai Visto...', a fine jazzy number with excellent Hammond and piano from Sergio Conte. And Guidotti's flute of course. Closing off Side 1 should be 'È Brutto Sentirsi Vecchi', a more introspective piece that lulls one into a false sense of security. It's the perfect preparation for 'Suite per il Signor K'. Now the listener is ready for what is to come. Honestly as an opening piece it's too much, too fast. Basically you've already had your hard liquor, and asked to drink beer for the rest of the evening. So the album is backwards from what it should be. Program your CD as above, and see what happens. Suffice to say 'Suite per il Signor K' is one of the all-time greats, and a bold statement for any genre, any time. Not much more to write here other than...

Masterpiece.

Ownership: LP: 1972 Philips. Textured gatefold with lyric insert. Acquired in the early days of ebay (1999).

CD: 2001 Philips (Japan). Papersleeve edition.

My introduction to DNA was the Mellow CD (1992). 

I also highly recommend you all seek out a YouTube video of Jumbo from this era. Titled 'Miss Rand', it's a combo of said track plus some parts of Signor K. Interesting to note that the video is in color - and it comes from RTV in Slovenia (former Yugoslavia) (?!). The music is straight from the album, and the video shows the band on sailboats and later in a summer field. The lip syncing and playing is way off (and there are no plugs for their guitars....). It's all pretty silly, and it demonstrates that Jumbo were still young men having fun rather than an intensely serious bunch. Really captures the essence of the era. I love it.

1992; 2010; 3/7/19 (new entry)

Fatal Opera - s/t. 1992 USA

Gar Samuelson was a drummer most known for being part of the first significant lineup of Megadeth. A few years older than most metalheads, Samuelson was a child of the 70s. Growing up near Buffalo, New York, he and his running set (including guitarist Chris Poland) were into the jazz fusion bands that were popular in the underground at the time.

This background makes Samuelson uniquely qualified to start one of the most interesting progressive metal bands I've ever had the pleasure to hear. After leaving Megadeth, Samuelson relocated to Florida, built out a studio on a farm, and began Fatal Opera with his brother - a band that today is more likely to be known as a trivia answer to "whatever happened to..."

Fatal Opera was recorded and released in 1992 on cassette tape, featuring a cover that is a painting of his neighbor (?!) (second photo). A few years later, Massacre picked it up for wider CD distribution, and affixed a more "metal appropriate" cover (first scan). This is only the beginning of the oddities afforded.

The album opens with 'Dead by 1998', a fine but somewhat typical progressive metal track, and perhaps the closest Fatal Opera gets to Megadeth. With 'Evil Tears', the album takes a turn for the heavier and more complex and goes even further down the rabbit hole with 'Spheres of Glass'. By the time of 'Moving Underground' you are in an entirely different world. 'The Unwilling' has the sound and sneer of one of Manilla Road's epics. And it just keeps going - metal for certain, but no fastballs,  all curves and sliders. And knuckleballs.... It's a No Hitter for sure (literally and figuratively). They're pitching a gem so far. Then comes...

'Moon Turns the Tides', which is a Hendrix cover - and not a normal one at that. The original title is '1983 Moon Turns The Tides', as the real song here is '1983...(A Merman I Should Turn To Be)'. Well folks, maintaining my baseball analogy, Fatal Opera just struck out the side to finish the game. I cannot recall anywhere in my collection where a progressive metal album contains a psychedelic guitar freakout, of the kind I report on often in the progressive rock world - and almost always from the 1970s! Has to be heard to be believed. Wow!

The Divebomb reissue adds two more tracks, both of the twist turny variety as found above. Really a brilliant album, one that has completely sailed under the radar. Don't miss this one.

Personal collection
CD: 2017 Divebomb

As is usual for the label, information is gleaned from an interview with the band. The funny thing here is you'll learn more from the questions than the answers. The band wasn't very forthcoming with much recollection (they weren't even sure when this album was recorded, for example). There's also a couple of tribute letters, including a touching one from Samuelson's long time girlfriend. Full lyrics are included as well as the 2 quality bonus tracks as mentioned above. They also altered the cover slightly that is definitely more appealing to the eye (3rd scan). Though I think they should have included the original as well!

Sadly Samuelson passed away all too young in 1999.

The Hunt. 1977 Canada-Ontario

The Hunt are in effect Dillinger V2.0. 60% of the dissolved Dillinger quickly reformed into the rather oddly named The Hunt. And they went right about making a superb hard rock album. All of Side 1, and the opener of Side 2 is darn near perfect. Heavy guitars, Hammond organ, flute, passionate singing, and great compositions is what you'll hear on The Hunt. A little Led Zeppelin, a little Rush, and a lot of Dillinger. Concerning the latter, the prog rock tendencies of the past are wiped clean. This is pure unadulterated hard rock of the highest order. Starting with 'Billy', the album begins to break down a bit. This track sounds like a Styx reject from the Crystal Ball sessions. 'Sent Me Away' maintains the Styx motif, though in this case, it's album worthy and a solid heavy AOR number. 'On Revient (tout le temps)' recalls the earlier hard rock greatness. And the album closes with 'Sad Song' which seems like the mandatory lame ballad has finally appeared. But the track is saved by a powerful guitar solo to close the album. So even though The Hunt does crawl to the finish line, it had built such a great lead, the album still posted high in the standings. Excellent music here and not to be missed by fans of the mid 70s hard rock sound.

Ownership: CD: 1999 Unidisc

3/7/19 (new entry)

Tragedy Divine - Visions of Power. 1996 Germany

Tragedy Divine were a band from Germany who released this one album before branching into two factions, most notably the traditional power metal of Sacred Steel. I have not heard this latter band, though they obviously must carry a loyal fan base given they have 9 albums out and are still going strong. But it's clear in reading the reviews that Sacred Steel seems to be a reaction against what they were doing in Tragedy Divine. That is to say, Sacred Steel went back to the basics.

Visions of Power is from the school of complex progressive metal, and whose attitude is anything-goes in terms of song structure. This isn't Berklee-trained technical music, but rather an imaginative group who enjoys throwing in new riffs and melodies randomly from within. This kind of metal was often more found in the early 90s (though by no means ubiquitous), so 1996 was late to the game. In a time when everyone was trying to be heavier, louder, and groovier, Tragedy Divine was still challenging the mind. The guitars have a rough sandpaper tone, the bass is crunchy, and the vocals are creative. I've read that Gerrit Mutz's vocals take some time to adjust, but compared to most screechers in this genre, I found him very easy on the ears. His voice is very much another instrument in the band. Most of the guitar solos are of the throwaway neo-classical bent, but occasionally a slower, more thoughtful solo will be brought forth. The first 6 tracks are all aces and makes this one a keeper from the get. 'Bleeding Crystal Tears' is an unconvincing ballad/slower song, and 'Ritual Damnation' sort of blows by without notice. Things get back on track with the Mekong Delta styled 'Nightmare Reality' before closing with the band moniker in the same style as the album opened. The album has plenty to offer, and is geared for repeated listens. The perfect justification for ownership.

Personal collection
CD: 1996 T&T

Virgin's Dream - The X-Tapes. 1972 Germany (archival)

The X-Tapes were demo tapes from 1972, and were released for the first time in 2000 by former guitarist/vocalist Rolf Trenkler. To be honest these are pretty rough sounding, but still quite listenable. It states in the promo kit that they were one of the few German groups that the American military really enjoyed - implying Virgin’s Dream were more US sounding than many of their Krautrock contemporaries. They also point to British stalwarts Soft Machine and Cressida as influences. Album starts with ‘Wake Up’ which is the best sounding track on the CD, but is also quite short at just over a minute. Nice instrumental underground rocker with good guitar. The two minute ‘Evening Star’ follows with lyrics based on Edgar Allan Poe. Here’s where the poor sound quality takes points from what could have been a monster album. ‘Der Blaue Kapuzinermonch’ is a 17 minute long track that is a long, spacey instrumental jam. A great track in the Krautrock tradition (doesn’t sound American to me!). ‘Rainy Day in June’ is a lengthy (9 minutes) remake of the Kinks 1966 tune from their Face to Face album. Nice instrumental work, though again sound quality and the actual tune bog it down. The 11 minute ‘The Well’ is more British sounding, especially the vocals. Contains a nice jazzy mid section. ‘El Dorado’ has more lyrics from EA Poe. Sound quality is getting noticeably worse here. Musically this song is more straight forward but with nice staccato electric piano. ‘The Galant Knight’ is a pleasant instrumental with nice guitar and electric piano leads. ‘I Am One of Those’ closes the demo. A highlight track that is more radically progressive with almost Italian sounding moves. The CD closes with two bonus tracks which are wasted here. Basically smooth jazz pop similar to what Rolf is doing now with Chupitos de Fromentera in his adopted country of Spain. A recommended CD for archivists, but those where sound quality is important may want to tread carefully.

CD: 2000 Trep-X

CD sold March 2019.

Etron Fou Leloublan - Les Trois Fous Perdégagnent. 1978 France

Etron Fou Leloublan were one of the 5 original Rock in Opposition bands. RIO, as it is more commonly referred to, was initially nothing more than a protest concert against the music business for ignoring challenging rock music. One look at the lineup though, and it becomes clear that all the bands (save maybe Univers Zero) were of a common strain - that of the far Leftist avant garde of the late 70s. It isn't like Carpe Diem, Artcane, and Metabolisme (and 100's of others) were being fawned over by the record companies either...

And no band represented this movement in its purest form better than Etron Fou Leloublan. The "RIO movement" as it were, would be in later years be tagged with the Avant Prog label, something that covers more of the entire spectrum. But Etron Fou Leloublan isn't even that really - they are what should be called Dadaist Rock. What is Dadaism anyway? I'll quote Wikipedia, but it does capture the spirit of the movement well: "The Dada movement consisted of artists who rejected the logic, reason, and aestheticism of modern capitalist society, instead expressing nonsense, irrationality, and anti-bourgeois protest in their works." That folks is exactly what Etron Fou Leloublan are all about.

To my ears, Etron Fou Leloublan represent a caricature of what your average American thinks of French art. 99.99% of Americans have never heard a note of Etron Fou Leloublan, but if I happened to play some to unsuspecting ears, I'd likely get a "What's that crap? Sounds Frenchy artsy-fartsy to me". One immediately thinks of Monty Python's own imagery of the French (think the Holy Grail here...). This is SILLY FOU FOU folks. I absolutely adore France and French progressive rock music, but not this strain...

If it was only that, I'd rate this a 1 star and continue my bashing from here on. But of course, EFL's second album Les Trois Fous Perdégagnent (Au Pays Ses...) isn't tuneless drivel. There are many fantastic sequences that one wishes would keep going. But one is never too far from some silliness and atonal squonking lurking just around the corner. With nasally French vocals to further annoy.

Look, I would have liked to enjoy a Cuban with Duchamps and Ernst too and debate the evils of the world while sipping cognac. But this whole deconstructionist thing in music... shrug.

Personal collection
CD: 1991 Musea

The above CD is known as 43 Songs, and is 2 discs that contain all 5 of Etron Fou Leloublan's studio albums. With no documentation unfortunately. I bought it sometime in the 90s. I would sell it if all the other albums were similar, but memory tells me each is different. So another day awaits.

Amorphous Androgynous - The Isness. 2002 England

The Isness is the second album from Amorphous Androgynous, better known in the States as The Future Sound of London, and essentially the same duo. From a genre perspective, no way is this a neo psych album. Psychedelic purists would go running out of the room if coming in with that perspective. No, it's one of the many variations of Electronica with a distinctly psychedelic undercurrent (not uncommon within the club circuit of the era). RYM says this breed is "Downtempo". OK, let's go with that. And their definition of said music is: "A type of relaxed, low intensity Electronic music... ...Often instrumental, it features slower tempos than House or Techno and tends to be more groove-driven than Ambient." Sounds about right. There are vocals of the indie variety that bog it down further, but mostly it is instrumental. The psychedelic elements are achieved utilizing some older analog keyboards - or at least the sound of such, even if synthesized. There's also some mild fuzz guitar here and there.

I bought this album when it came out. The US version on Hypnotic is labeled The Future Sound of London which I had some familiarity with at the time. The idea of their brand of Electronica and psychedelia was appealing to me back then. In fact, my initial rating was 4 stars. I have it documented that it had already dropped to a 3.5 only two short years later (via another blog I once contributed to). 15 years on from that, I hear it again - and it drops once more - this time right out of the collection. Why is that? I don't know for certain, but the album lacks the type of depth that one looks for on repeated listens. The Isness is like those Chinese knockoffs one finds for example on Canal Street in Manhattan - they look great on the surface, and are believably the real thing. Until it breaks on the 3rd and 4th use. So - good for awhile, but not permanent. Bye.

CD: 2002 Hypnotic (USA)

Passport - Looking Thru. 1973 Germany

Looking Thru is the 4th album from Klaus Doldinger and Passport. It's also the only one I hadn't heard to date of the first 6. And as 'Eternal Spiral' opens, I thought I may have missed out on the best one! Right from the start, Moog's, mellotrons, and energetic rhythms propel this most auspicious opening. And then... ...it's Passport. For the most part you get 7 pleasant jazz fusion sax driven instrumentals. They're a professional band, and the quality of musicianship and production are high. My original assessment of the album (from the Japanese CD) was good, but inessential. A relisten last night confirms that it probably isn't essential but I still had a +1 listen. Most likely this stems from my recent interest in jazz funk, and I found the melodies more pleasing this go round.

Ownership: LP: 1974 Atco. Single sleeve. Picked this up at the Rocky Mountain Record Show for a couple of bucks, which is retail for this title lol. My copy is the Monarch press for the one person who might care, but Discogs didn't have a photo and I'm too lazy to add it.

3/7/19 (new entry); 3/11/22

Octobre - Survivance. 1975 Canada

Survivance is the 3rd album from Quebec's Octobre. In a nutshell, Survivance takes in both the previous two albums and finds itself at the crossroads of progressive rock and pop music, while ditching the folk rock tendencies of the past. Somewhat like a Quebecois Supertramp, lead by strong keyboard work, excellent lead guitars, and fine vocals in French. The wordless female vocals recall Contraction (which makes sense given they are provided by Christiane Robichaud) and the overall style points to Morse Code's mid 70's work. The two instrumental tracks that open each side highlight this middle-tier work. The pop songs need more substance to take Survivance to the next level, and the fact it's a short album, there just isn't enough time to make a good case. On the high side of good, but it's still just good.

No reissues exist as I update this post. It doesn't need one by itself, but would be great if there were a) some archival tracks similar to the instrumental Contraction type numbers or b) they pair this up with the first 2 albums.

Hippopotamus - Schnatterzapfen. 1982 Germany

Hippopotamus were a band from Germany who released one album with the odd name of Schnatterzapfen. Google Translate informs us that it means Schnatterzapfen in "Luxembourgish". I didn't even know such a language existed and I've been there! My best guess then is that Schnatterzapfen means - in Luxembourgish of course - "straight jazz".

Hippopotamus is frequently lumped in with the Kraut Fusion crowd (and I have it in my own list), but it isn't really. The instrumentation is alto and tenor sax, piano, lightly amplified electric guitar, bass, and drums. It's as jazz as jazz is. There's absolutely zero edge here. On compositions such as 'Midnight in Ruhrort' and the title track, one can hear similar themes as found on the 1974 Missus Beastly album, minus any kind of rock ambition of course. Overall an OK jazz album, nothing more nothing less.

No reissues exist.

Black Bonzo. 2004 Sweden

Black Bonzo were a Swedish retro band who distinctly went for the early 1970’s progressive hard rock sound. Think Uriah Heep mixed with some Caravan and early King Crimson. Definitely more of the former, warts and all. Opening track 'Lady of the Light' lays it out clearly: The fat Hammond organ, driving rhythms, fuzz guitar, and plenty of progressive rock styled changes. Vocalist Magnus Lindgren even manages to nail that super cool David Byron tone. Nicklas Åhlund plays an arsenal of analog keys including the aforementioned Hammond, mellotron, Moog, and various other synthesizers. 'Brave Young Soldier' sets a haunting mood, before breaking into a very cool wah-wah bass, mellotron, and Moog sequence. The vocals even have that Pye Hastings lilt, and thus the Caravan connection is solidified. On 'These Are Days of Sorrow', guitarist Joachim Karlsson obtains some great wah-wah guitar sounds. 'Sirens' opens in heavy mellotron/organ mode, and comparisons to Anglagard are inevitable. And first era King Crimson also rings a bell. 'New Day' and 'Freedom' have more of a 70’s rock-n-roll feel as does 'Jailbait' though with a heavier, almost metallic sound. Tracks like 'Fantasyworld' and 'Leave Your Burdens' strike a balance between straight ahead rock and progressive breaks, with moody acoustic guitar and the usual heavy analog ivory dose. Mellotron laced 'Where the River Meets the Sea' is an apt, if not overly melancholic, closer. Once again, the ghost of classic 70's Uriah Heep is called for one more encore. It's easy to do some band spotting throughout as each track has different influences, but the cool thing is they don’t really sound like anyone exactly - so they manage to open a new door. Certainly one of the best retro hard prog rock albums I've heard to this point (2005). Proves there’s plenty of oil left in that well. It’s not a stoner thing either, or a tribute band. Just exploring a genre they like. I’d prefer more emphasis on their progressive tendencies, where the instrumentation and creative ideas explode with reckless abandon. Still a winning album that shows even more potential. Exciting.

Ownership: CD: 2004 B&B Records. Jewel case release with lyric booklet. I first received the album from the band in 2005 and wrote the above review (since modified a bit) not long after. While Lady of the Light is the first track, there's no indication anywhere that the album is titled that. Not sure where that came from. 

2005; 7/18/06 (Gnosis); 10/15/11; 3/5/19 (new entry)