Kansas ~ USA ~ Topeka, Kansas

Power (1986)

After Drastic Measures, it seemed Kansas had run their course. Long time members Ehart, Williams, and Walsh carried on, and significantly added Steve Morse on guitar to replace the band's thought leader Kerry Livgren, who took fellow Christian born-againer Dave Hope with him. And the trademark violin remains without presence. It was also time to say goodbye to their long term relationship with Columbia and they signed on with MCA. It was a new beginning.

I remember seeing the cool album cover when it first hit the shelves while I was in college. It certainly looked like it might be a return to their progressive rock form. I presumed it probably wasn't considering no one was going back to their prog rock roots in 1986 (except, bizarrely, Supertramp). After all these years, I'm finally sitting down to hear Power for the first time.

The album opens up promisingly enough in a hard rock, almost heavy metal way. Steve Morse certainly seems to have brought the band back to life with his energetic performance. Once Walsh's made-for-radio voice begins, it becomes clear that this will be another attempt at AOR fame and fortune. Unlike Drastic Measures, Kansas offers more on Power for long time fans. A5 is a solid fusion number, pointing to Morse's Dixie Dregs heritage. B1 is an actual bonafide proggy instrumental proving they still had it in them beyond the concert experience. They slip in some fine hard rock and prog throughout, though it's subtle and never dominates the pop song underneath. The closer B5 is painful to listen to.

Not a bad record at all, though hardly one to extend Kansas' legacy. It clearly is a product of the hapless middle 80s, especially for groups not flourishing in the underground at that time. It did, however, provide a lifeline to a moniker that lasts until this day. One that continued to evolve. More to come from UMR on that.

Source: 1986 MCA (LP)

8/28/26 (review)
 

Kansas (1974)

It all starts here for our boys from Topeka. One of America's great treasures, a band whose legacy continues to grow as the naysayers die off. The latter mostly those that were from the same generation as the Sunflower state group. As noted endlessly by me, no group on an American major label was going to be allowed a full album of long form progressive rock music. Hits were demanded and expected. They were more lenient in 1974 than 1977, but nonetheless one has to deliver, or take a hike. With nothing more than true grit, the band toured the fruited plain endlessly and gained enough of a cult following to keep the execs at bay while they kept trying for that one magical song to make them megastars. Each album sold just enough to survive, until they finally hit paydirt with Leftoverture. Their debut illustrates this as much as their next two opus'. They went for four commercially oriented tracks against four overt proggers, mostly tossed in at the end. The FM potential went nowhere, but the US fans of the big UK prog acts came out in favor. The formula largely stayed the same, it was just a matter of catching the popular ear of the day. The talent was always there, it was the fickle public that had to adjust. And they finally did. But not here. 

Ownership: 2004 Epic / Legacy. Booklet with historical liner notes and photos. Features one lengthy live bonus track. Acquired in 2011.

First copy: 1974 Kirschner (LP). Acquired in 1985.

1985; 12/7/11; 5/17/15; 10/24/19; 8/13/26 (review)
 

Masque (1975)

Of all the Kansas albums from the 70s, Masque is the album I'm the least familiar with by some measure. And that includes Monolith. In fact it doesn't appear I owned a physical copy of this until 2002, also the odd album out. One of those "slipped through the cracks" deals. It's obvious from the opening two songs that Kansas is dialing back the complexity of Song For America. They're clearly in hard rock territory, trying to figure out where they belonged in the American rock landscape. Hard rock was far more popular over here than prog, at least for local bands. They had yet to have a hit song to their credit, despite intense pressure to create one, and that wouldn't occur here either. It would be their next opus that assured Kansas their place in rock history. I think it's telling that the hype sticker on my CD states: "Long out-of-print gem from one of America's great rock bands". Note which four letter word is missing. Nonetheless it didn't stop the band from adding in some proggy long tracks, namely 'Icarus', 'Mysteries and Mayhem', 'All the World', and 'The Pinnacle'. While not reaching the heights of Song For America or Leftoverture, Masque certainly is a credible and enjoyable album, not demonstrating a slump or a major deviation of their sound.

Ownership: 2001 Epic Legacy (CD). Contains a history, photos, and two bonus tracks. Acquired in 2002.

2002; 5/3/16; 10/27/25 (review)

Song for America (1975)

When I first got into music via FM radio in 1977, Kansas was not a favorite of mine. Time and place plays a major role in one's development, and this includes music appreciation. Point of Know Return was extremely popular upon release, and the title track and 'Dust in the Wind' were played incessantly. Neither swayed me much back then. I wasn't annoyed, but it was tiresome. I did like 'Carry on Wayward Son' from their previous Leftoverture album, but that was a whole year old! lol. Progressive rock was still a few years away for me and their brand of AOR wasn't that appealing either. A high school buddy, he himself a musician, was a huge Kansas fan. I credit him for encouraging me to hear them differently, especially their early albums. And by late high school I was already immersing into progressive rock anyway. It wasn't until college that I eventually picked up their albums through, ironically, Point Of Know Return. And to this day, those albums they released while I was actually in high school (1979-1983) had no impact on me. That is to say at the point I was introduced to the band is also where they declined. Not really an uncommon story when you consider that I got going in the late 70s just at that point where bands were moving (forcefully or willingly) to more commercial waters. It really wasn't until the 2000s that my appreciation for Kansas began to accelerate. Today I consider them something as magical, a group who represented what American progressive rock could have been. They were about the only one that transcended to the major labels and had blockbuster radio hits. And many of us know by now just how many great bands there were in this country, but most didn't even get a chance to record, and those that did were released in tiny numbers. This blog is full of those albums and archival releases.

Today, the album I'm reviewing here, along with the aforementioned Point Of Know Return and Leftoverture, is considered their best album. That was not the case in 1977, no way and no how. Perhaps the latter two, but Song for America? It was as relevant as Foxtrot was to And Then There Were Three. Like I said: Time and Place. 

Song For America is arguably their most progressive album, at least as we define the term today. Like everyone else in the States, Kansas took as a blueprint all the major UK prog bands, and then added those regional qualities that makes the subgenre so exciting to explore all these years later. Ten minute title tracks and the 12 minute 'Incomudro - Hymn to the Atman' was just not something many American bands had a chance to record. For Columbia no less. And there's really no duff tracks to hedge their bet either. Kansas were all in for prog rock, and their legacy will only continue to grow because of it. The younger generations, who do not have the baggage of the era, can listen more objectively and hear Song for America as it was intended. It's also worth mentioning that Kansas could also be considered a hard rock band, and had they trimmed the complexity level, they would have been top of class in the Midwestern hard rock sweepstakes. And local competition was even more fierce in that field back then.

Interesting to see the photos of the band. Their look was "of the era". Had they tried to break in during the 80s, they never would have gotten in the club door, much less recording time at a major studio. Three of the guys are decidedly overweight, Livgren looks like a sad old dog, with only Walsh and Ehart appearing telegenic (maybe). Metallica, Nirvana, and the rest of them were able to erase that stain for the 90s and beyond, but it's unfortunate that the 80s were so superficial in that way. How many great bands never got anywhere because of their appearance? Of course you could say that about a lot of things outside of music too. 

The CD adds a single edit of the title cut plus a live rendition of 'Down the Road', neither offering up any revelations.

Ownership:
2014 Friday (LP). Gatefold. Acquired in 2023.

2004 Epic Legacy (CD). Booklet with history, photos, and two bonus tracks. Acquired in 2012.

First copy: 1975 Kirshner (LP). Acquired in 1985. Reacquired in 2022. Downsized in 2026.

1985; 8/11/12; 9/22/25 (review)

Drastic Measures (1983)

I'll be spinning up a Kansas page eventually (done) but I don't want to start here. As the years have passed by, my admiration for Kansas has gone considerably up to the point where they've become one of my favorite bands. Their story is remarkable and what they were able to accomplish in a very hostile American commercial market is nothing short of incredible. Something I would not have understood when they were still relevant in the late 70s. But even they couldn't stop the tide that was to be the 80s. Generally considered their worst album, Drastic Measures sees Kansas try very hard to be in the same league as Journey, Boston, and REO Speedwagon. But it's just not for them. The group is only two thirds of the classic lineup, and even they were close to splitting up. The ride was over. Objectively speaking, Drastic Measures is no better or worse than many of the bands operating in the same tight space that was the 1983 AOR landscape. Interesting to note that this album was released in July of 1983. One month later was Metallica's Kill 'em All. The music world was a changin' fast.

Source: 1983 CBS Associated (LP)

5/7/25 (review)

Other albums I own: Leftoverture; Point of Know Return; In the Spirit of Things; Freaks of Nature; Always Never the Same; Somewhere to Elsewhere; The Prelude Implicit; Early Recordings From Kansas (Proto-Kaw)

Other albums once owned: Monolith; Audio-Visions; Vinyl Confessions

9/22/25 (new entry)

Manilla Road ~ USA ~ Wichita, Kansas

The Courts of Chaos (1990)

In the last years of the original incarnation of Manilla Road (< 1993), Mark Shelton was trying to escape the moniker. For The Courts of Chaos he wanted to use his own name (and did on the domestic cassette release). French label Black Dragon would hear none of it as they felt the brand was established and the music wasn't so different than prior. I can appreciate the label's position, and kind of glad it worked out that way. However, you can also hear why Shelton felt differently. At this point he was embracing synthesizers (played by drummer Randy Foxe) and also moving into a more progressive rock direction. Like Iron Maiden's Steve Harris, he was always a progger at heart, though heavy metal was his true calling. The album starts with a synth heavy instrumental, and it's at least six minutes into the album before we hear Shelton's familiar nasally growl. The third track is a cover of Bloodrock's DOA (their only cover song on a studio album), and an inventive one at that. The metal is less epic than their classic 80s albums, and has moments of tech thrash, a nice diversion for the band. Much crisper and more interesting than Out of the Abyss' attempts at similar. Shelton's guitar tone is more processed than usual, though still very much rough edged.

This was to be the last Manilla Road album with the classic trio lineup. Interest in the band had diminished and there seemed to be no reason to continue on. I seem to remember feeling the same way, not obtaining the album for another three years after release. It was due to a friend who pushed the album on me, thank goodness. It was during the 1990s that Europe gained a renewed fascination with Manilla Road's creation of epic metal. This lead to a reformation that lasted about 17 years until Shelton's untimely death (see below).

Note that the original LP leaves off the three part, eight minute 'The Books of Skelos'. This song was on the original CD release from the same year. All of the CD reissues have this track as well. And it's not to be missed.

The CD adds a live version of 'Far Side of the Sun' from their debut Invasion album. Fun to hear them revisiting their proggy hard rock past with a metalized version.

Ownership:

1990 Black Dragon (LP). Lyric inner bag. Acquired in 1993.

2002 Iron Glory (CD). Booklet with lyrics and recording details. One bonus track. Acquired in 2006.

1993; 3//06; 7/11/13; 9/22/25 (review)
 

Out of the Abyss (1988)

As you can clearly see below, I was an established Manilla Road fan by the time Out of the Abyss was released. I bought the LP dutifully when it came out, though it wasn't the type of metal I was looking for post college. Then came the opener 'Whitechapel' which was a real curveball from the Road. It starts off as straight up thrash before shifting into other metal tempos. The problem, to my ears at the time, is it wasn't heavy enough to play in the thrash game. It was an inauspicious start for the album because a) it isn't that great of a track to begin with, b) has little to do with the Manilla Road patented epic metal sound and c) it wasn't indicative of the music that was to follow on the album. Not sure why I never really gave the rest a chance, and it was to be the only Manilla Road LP I released out of the collection. It wasn't until seven years ago that I finally revisited the title via the CD reissue, and realized that Out of the Abyss wasn't really that far off the rails as I had initially thought. Still I'd submit it's more of a follower album than a leader, which the band is noted to be. Sort of what I said about Pink Floyd's Meddle in 1971. All the same, were I to rate all of the studio Manilla Road albums pre-reformation (and not counting Circus Maximus, which is a different band really), then Out of the Abyss would still come in last. And it's a very good album, demonstrating how strong the band were in their prime.

Ownership: 2005 Cult Metal Classics (2xCD). Includes their live Roadkill album (CD version which is significantly longer than the LP). Lengthy liner notes from Mark Shelton. Acquired in 2018.

First copy: 1988 Leviathan (LP). Acquired in 1988.

1988; 2/3/18; 5/20/25 (review)  

Crystal Logic (1983)

I've referenced this album many times, but never have featured it prior. I bought this album without knowing anything about the band or what they sounded like. It was on the wall of a local record store, and with a cover (and song titles) like that, I just presumed it had to be a killer metal album. I rarely would do that with new and costly albums, but I was drawn to the cover like a magnet. And my instincts proved me correct. Though at first I had some hesitancy. In retrospect, Crystal Logic is a transitional album for Manilla Road. And that unfolds through the album itself. 'Prologue' opens things up promisingly enough with a Rush-like 'Necromancer' narrative bit. This leads to the speed metalish 'Necropolis'. The guitar tone is raw and dry, and Mark Shelton sounds particularly nasal here, even more than usual. The song is almost showtooney to be honest. It's not the darkened heavy metal one would associate with the cover. This leads to the title track, and Manilla Road is inching closer to the sound they would be famous for. And then comes the infamous 'Feeling Free Again'. One last look back at their 70s heritage. With lyrics like "I got a feel for life girl, hey baay-bay I'm feeling free again... I'd never thought it's feel like this, now I'm in love with you". Some real heady stuff there. It's a good pop metal song actually. It just happens to be on the wrong album.

And then Manilla Road became Manilla Road. 

From here on out, it's epic metal in all its glory. The birth of the sound as it were. 'The Riddle Master' is everything you want in an epic metal track. Heavy riffs, sinister vocals, and psychedelic guitar solos. The latter is something Shelton dragged along from the 70s, and never let go of fortunately. He wasn't a modern million-chromatic-scale-notes-per-second kind of soloist. He preferred expressive solos, as were more common in the decade prior. All of Side 2 is excellent, with the uptempo 'The Ram' followed by the dark and eerie 'The Veils of Negative Existence'. You'd almost think Shelton was from Europe with his unusual pronunciations. "Negaahteeve Exeestaahnse". And then comes the closer, the blueprint for epic metal to come. 'Dreams of Eschaton' is why you buy albums that have covers that look like Crystal Logic. It just pounds away with one helluva killer riff and Shelton's echoed and impassioned vocals are the icing on the cake. All this leads to one last awesome solo drifting into the mists of time. Groundbreaking - and the beginning of an era.

The CD adds one bonus track 'Flaming Metal Systems' which was originally released on Shrapnel's U.S. Metal Vol. III. This track sounds like Van Halen's 'Eruption' mixed with speed metal. The label curiously placed it between 'Necropolis' and 'Crystal Logic', which kind of makes sense when reviewing the album and its progression. 

Ownership: 

1983 Roadster (LP). Acquired in 1984.

2000 Iron Glory (CD). Acquired in 2004.

1//84; 2004; 7/2/15; 9/28/19; 8/23/21 (review)

To Kill a King (2017)

I knew this was going to be a tough listen. I was all of 19 when I visited my favorite import/indie store in Dallas (Metamorphosis for those old-timers that were there). On the wall they were featuring a most fascinating looking new album. I'd never heard of the band, but it just looked so cool, I had to buy it. It was during the Christmas break from college... 1983. Yes, that album was Crystal Logic (still own that exact LP copy). And from that point forward Manilla Road were intertwined with various personal life events. I even went to band leader Mark Shelton's house in Wichita back in 1991. At the time, he was very excited about his new project Circus Maximus, something that didn't really take off, except for one album, released against his will as Manilla Road.

As is often the case, we all go in different directions. Shelton himself took close to a decade off from recording. My career and personal life took me away from being deeply immersed into the music world, moving more towards strictly a remote music collector. When Manilla Road resurfaced in 2001, I continued to follow the group and buy their albums, but not in the same fanatical way. No more contact, or seeing them live.

During this time, I watched with fascination as Manilla Road went from a barely known metal band that only a few of us knew, to that of true legend. It pleases me no end to see those much younger than I truly appreciate the music that Manilla Road has put out all these years. That legend will continue to grow, this I'm sure of.

To Kill a King will likely be the last Manilla Road album. It wouldn't make sense to maintain the brand, as Shelton was the brand. There was no opportunity for hand off, or to cultivate a successor. Mark Shelton's death came as a shock to us all. He didn't die early (relatively) the way many musicians unfortunately do via self-destructive behavior. Rather he went out the way true warriors do - in the middle of the battle. In effect he died of heat exhaustion, literally playing his heart out for his fans. It was a fitting way to go, though far too early for a man that seemed to never lose his way - where creativity continued to spring like a fountain.

The irony here is that To Kill a King was a look backward - to the very roots of Manilla Road. At the time when they were just as much a proggy hard rock band as anything heavy metal. One could easily hear To Kill a King as a lost album between Metal and Crystal Logic, with some excursions into more modern metal ('The Arena' in particular). To Kill a King is not Manilla Road's most exciting or innovative album, but it's great to hear a turn-back-the-clock album such as this. Perhaps Shelton subconsciously knew his fate, and wanted one last shot at an older style.

If you've never heard Manilla Road, and you're not really a metal fan (in the more modern sense), then To Kill a King would be a great way to immerse yourself into this most fascinating world. And then perhaps work your way through the catalog starting at Crystal Logic up to their masterpiece (IMO) The Deluge.

One fun fact for you: If you drive east on I-70 from Denver towards Kansas, there's an exit for a... Manilla Road. I've always wondered about that.

Now I'm afraid it's time to say goodbye, Mark Shelton. Thank you for everything.

Ownership: 2017 Golden Core (CD). Tri-fold digipak with a booklet containing lyrics and photos. Acquired in 2019. 

11/30/19 (review)

The Deluge (1986)

Manilla Road's peak album among a whole canon of peak albums. The ultimate epic metal performed at a time (1986) when everything was synthesized and slick-as-a-butter-dish. The Deluge is the antithesis - perhaps remedy - to all that was wrong in those misguided middle 80s. And the drumming on this album is insane, it's also like it is just off meter (a little bit) that adds to the urgency. There's an awesome moment in the middle of the lengthy title track that must be heard - incredible riff and drumming! The loss of Mark Shelton cannot be understated. He followed his own direction and made his own music. One that was pretty much ignored upon release (especially here in the US - I was one of the few here who bought it as soon as available) but many years later found his audience. Which continues to expand - and will grow for generations. He died a true warrior - after playing a concert in Germany, pounding it out at age 60 as if he was still 19. Look for the The Deluge to one day be considered a Top 5 album of the year in which it was released. It's timeless. 

Ownership: 

1986 Black Dragon (LP). Acquired in 1986.

2011 Shadow Kingdom (CD). Liner notes from Shelton, plenty of photos, and lyrics. Acquired in 2011.

1986; 11/5/11; 12/23/18 (review)

Open the Gates (1985)

Nobody mixed riff based metal with psychedelic hard rock better than Manilla Road. All wrapped up with fantasy Medieval lyrics and artwork to cuddle up with. It's a big sloppy mess, but wonderfully so. Imperfection never sounded so good. At times Shelton sounds like Frank Marino, as he noodles away wildly, seemingly without purpose, with a crazy racket storming behind him. 'The Ninth Wave' is yet another perfect Manilla Road epic metal track - one that basically reiterates their invention of the style. Manilla Road are for those of you who like Hollywood leading men with scars and lots of wrinkles. If you came here looking for crisply executed, slickly produced, and perfectly played metal - then you cannot possibly be more lost.

Ownership: 

1985 Black Dragon (LP + EP). Acquired in 1993.

2001 Dragonheart (CD). Acquired in 2011.

1993; 12/9/11; 10/13/15 (review)

Mark of the Beast (1981-1982 / 2002)

So the story goes that this album was originally intended to be the second Manilla Road release after Invasion, but was scrapped, and Metal ended up being the final product. The title was to be Dreams of Eschaton. I'm not buying it for one second. There's way too much variation of style and sound quality here to be a coherent album. Not to mention the 66 minute length (double LP? C'mon...). But this is the story Mark Shelton himself tells, but we know how it goes with bands and their memories...

What I will believe, though, is that these are demo recordings from the 1981/1982 time frame, and that would fit the label owner's story of him receiving it at that time as a teenager. It's important to remember that Manilla Road were a hard rock band at their beginning, with psychedelic guitar and progressive lyrical themes. And mostly that's what you get here, along with some of their early chugging metal style that was present on Metal.

It's mostly a solid psychedelic hard rock release, with a couple of down moments like 'Court of Avalon' and 'Venusian Sea' both of which seem go nowhere beyond hearing Shelton sing for way past the song's shelf life. So 13 minutes of just-OK music is hardly a bad batting average. On the flip side....

'Avatar' has to be heard to be believed. To me, this is the perfect 5 star track. What a glorious mess of a song. It is all over the place. It's psychedelic, it's hard rock, it's metal, and it's progressive. All at the same time. I absolutely adore this time in music when there were obvious influences - yes - but not properly placed at all. There were no rules, just whatever they felt like doing, whenever they felt like doing it. You could hear this track forever and not hear it the same twice. I want a triple album of music like this! And then follows 'Dream Sequence' which is an organ dirge with echoed voices, sounding right off a 1970 German Ohr Krautrock album. And no keyboards are credited! Guys, are you sure you did this?

Anyway, so much material here, and plenty more inconsistencies that make it so weird and wonderful. In other words: Must own album!

Ownership: 2002 Monster (CD). Includes all the lyrics and a history of the album penned by one of the label owners. Acquired in 2004.

2004; 7/20/15 (review)

Other albums I own: Invasion; Metal; Mystification; Atlantis Rising; Spiral Castle; Gates of Fire; Voyager; Playground of the Damned; Mysterium; The Blessed Curse; Roadkill; After Midnight Live

7/20/15 (new entry)

Hellwell - Behind the Demon's Eyes. 2017 USA-Kansas

Hellwell were one of 3 active concerns Mark Shelton was running with before he died. Manilla Road of course was his flagship. He also had Riddlemaster, which featured original Manilla Road drummer Rick Fisher. And then Hellwell, which had Fisher's MR replacement Randy Foxe on drums, and was Shelton's progressive rock outlet. At least in theory. Hellwell pretty much sounds like Manilla Road with a predominance of synthesizers in play (credited to EC Hellwell - a Shelton pseudonym). Behind the Demon's Eyes is their second effort, and is off the pace of the debut. It's a bit of a sloppy run through, and there's a lack of inspired ideas. Not to say I don't like it - I really do - but had hoped for more given the promise of the debut. Of course music like this often takes time to penetrate, so perhaps it will age well. With Shelton no longer with us, it's likely Hellwell has ended its run as well.

Ownership: CD: 2017 High Roller. Standard new jewel case issue with lyrics. 

4/28/20 (new entry)

Bulbous Creation ~ USA ~ Kansas City, Kansas

You Won't Remember Dying (1971 / 1994)

Bulbous Creation were from the Kansas City area (Prairie Village to be precise), and whose music can best be described as a powerful blues psych rock, with heavily affected acid guitar, organ, and impassioned vocals (listen to 'Fever Machine Man' to see what I mean here regarding the latter). 'Let's Go To The Sun' recalls the UK band Janus, with its searing guitar leads. Excellent rhythm section as well, even though they rarely stray from the usual 4/4 time. A wonderful original find from Rockadelic.

So it turns out that the original issue of this from Rockadelic was unauthorized, which the label was guilty of in the mid 90s more often than they should have been (especially since they started completely above board, and finished that way too). Not that Bulbous Creation holds any ill will, and in fact credit Rockadelic for bringing the album to the world's attention. So we have a happy ending in this case. 

Ownership: 2014 Numero Group (LP). Four page insert documenting other releases from Numero. Hype sticker and download card. Acquired in 2016. Downsized in 2026.

5/7/07; 1/15/14 (review); 8/5/16 (update / new entry); 4/29/26