In today's world, many a budding group releases their demo - or perhaps a fully produced and realized album - on a website such as bandcamp. Often times this can result in a broader release as some enterprising LP or CD label will hear it, and then will sign a contract to release the album in physical form. In the 1990s, this was also done, but via the "demo tape" (not in the 70s sense of the word). So bands had to target their (small grassroots) labels rather than have it the other way around. Enter Mauro Moroni and his Mellow label. He was a pioneer in this process, and managed to release on CD many such endeavors from around the world, which otherwise may never had reached anyone's ears beyond the group themselves. Of these groups, Rejoice has to be one of the label's big winners.
Rejoice were a German band with quite a heritage, which we will cover here in a minute. Their brand of instrumental music is a familiar one for fans of German prog rock - that of the keyboard/drums duo. Bands such as Twogether, Sixty Nine, Minus Two, and Magma are but a few examples of this. In addition to that, the keyboardist also doubles on guitar, which takes the music closer to SFF realms. And the sound is decidedly retro, with mostly analog equipment. So if 6 long tracks of primo instrumental prog rock - that sounds like it was from 1976 - sounds alluring, then this one-off from Rejoice is a must pickup.
So who is this mythical keyboard guy? None other than Martin Ziegler. Who you ask? Well, he was the ivory tickler on that most anachronistic second Moira album from 1984, aka Reise Nacht Ixtlan - an album that still is shrouded in mystery even though I was asking the hard questions about it all the way back to 2001. And then we learn the drummer is Rudi Leichtle. Who you ask? Well... he was the drummer on that most surprising album Dryve by The Perotic Theatre, it too a pseudo-retro prog album that I have a review up for already. So there it is, two obscuro artists releasing an obscuro album. Imagine that? Some people are destined that way. But one day they will be rediscovered properly. Don't miss this one.
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