I've been familiar with The Fents going back to the late 80s (thanks to PPR Jeff), but this is the first time for me to hear their second, more widely available album. It skipped the CDRWL project since it was released on CD from the beginning. I finally secured a copy at a local store. I'll be honest I didn't have high hopes for it, figuring it would be too modern, slick, and digital for my tastes. Something akin to Spyro Gyra for example, minus the saxophones. And if keyboardist Adam Holzman had it his way, they would have succeeded to fulfill my prophecy - his tones scream late 80s. But guitarist Ted Hall would hear none of it, and he's blistering away on his guitar with a sound from a decade prior. Calling up the collective spirits of Terje Rypdal and David Torn, Hall rips, especially on side 2 as the album begins to creep into the consciousness. My listen started in the good territory and eventually landed on great. Plenty of room for growth here. Nice surprise.
Ownership: LP: 1987 Passport. Single sleeve. Recent acquisition from a local store here in Colorado Springs (2023) for $3. It's easy to find and remains a $5 album online if you're curious to pick one up (though the CD is hard to find now). I bought this at the same time as the jazz collection I'm hinting at, but it wasn't part of it. I just didn't see it prior.
4/2/23 (new entry)
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