Release Music Orchestra ~ Germany

Vlotho 1977 (2022)

Release Music Orchestra is one of the very few bands where I've documented my collection in full. For those that I own more than three albums that is to say. Vlotho 1977 is a newish archival document that just arrived here for the first time. Might as well keep the momentum and get right to it.

Let's start with my thoughts from the Umsonst und Draussen festival album itself: "Release Music Orchestra is a relative big name, and this is their first appearance for the free concerts (on LP - they were there for the '76 festival too). Only Kraan is missing at this point! Here, they offer a slow and atmospheric jazz piece." That piece is 'Sonntag' and is track 5 here.

As with the Bremen 1978 show, Release Music Orchestra is far more attuned on Vlotho 1977 to the original premise of the band than what showed up on their later albums. As for the material, only half of the songs appeared on their studio albums, and all of them have been extended considerably from the originals: 'Sundance' (from Get the Ball), 'Torso Im Summerwind' (Garuda), and 'Up By The Riverside' (Beyond the Limit, which hadn't been released by the time of this concert). And the aforementioned 'Sonntag' was released as is on the Vlotho 1977 compilation. The opening new song 'Rico' sets the tone, and pace, with some frenetic drumming before launching into the patented RMO jazz fusion sound. This song was also on the Brain Festival 1977 album, but this version is different.

The extended sections generally allow for more soloing, mostly from saxophonist Gunther Reger, which can get a bit pitchy at times. I found Rurup's keyboard and synthesizer solos more pleasing. Wolfgang Thierfeldt's drumming is quite energetic, and I suspect he met his calorie burn goal for the day.

The final track is a 16 minute jam titled, appropriately enough, 'Free and Outdoors 77', which is the English translation of Umsonst und Draussen. Bassist Frank Fischer shines the brightest here. In conclusion, a very fine archival document from a band that has still been neglected in the reissue market all these years later.

Ownership: 2022 Garden of Delights (CD). Booklet with historical liner notes and photos. Acquired in 2025.

9/25/25 (review) 

Life (1974)

I've recently written about the second and third RMO releases, but what about their debut? It's different in that it's a live effort, something the band states it wanted to do to capture their energy ("tension and electricity" as they put it). Coming fresh off their former work, under the Tomorrow's Gift moniker, Life has a similar jazz focus, but is geared more towards the upcoming fusion movement. Given the lack of any memorable melodies, I find Life harder to get into than their next two albums, which puts me in the minority camp. However, a couple of repeated listens convinced me Life is at the same level, just a less immediate sound.

Ownership: 1974 Brain (LP). Gatefold cover with full recording details in the center (in both German and English). Life is generally considered the first album on the green label that does not have the word Metronome underneath. However it does still have the word on the cover, and this would be the last album to feature that. Acquired in 1998.

1998; 6/17/21 (review)

Get the Ball (1976)

On RYM, they have a feature called "Discussion" that is embedded within each album's page. It will show if that specific album has been referenced directly (via link) in a specific thread by one of the contributors. What's most interesting about Release Music Orchestra's third album Get The Ball, is the title of the three threads it has been mentioned as a part of (as I write these notes): 1) "Funky Krautrock"; 2) "Synth-Oriented Krautrock"; 3)"Gimme More Jazz Fusion Like..." That folks, is my review of the album right there.

RMO is clearly moving away from their Canterburyish sophomore release Garuda, and heading more into the trendy funky fusion waters of the era. On paper, that sounds like a potential disaster, but in the hands of the veteran RMO, it all comes together nicely. Some fantastic Rhodes and synthesizer work can be heard, and the rhythm section is always on point and edgy. The female vocals only add to the vibe. A very consistent album, where every track could be considered excellent.

Ownership: 1976 Brain (LP). Acquired in 2018.

2010; 9/21/18 (review)

Garuda (1975)

Release Music Orchestra is Tomorrow's Gift version 3.0 and Garuda is their second album under this moniker. By this time, the band are a well oiled machine, and they mix expert musicianship with strong melodies and complex compositions. The title track is sit-up-and-pay-attention worthy, and is a strong Canterbury styled tune similar to Hatfield and the North at their peak. When Release Music Orchestra catch a groove, the results are divine. There are five fully realized compositions on Garuda, and five "Zwischenspiel's", which translates to interludes. Each member gets a short 30 seconds to a minute to improvise. While not exactly on the same level of Yes' Fragile, I do prefer the efficiency. Of these, I thoroughly enjoyed Manfred Rurup's (keyboards) and Margit Haberland's (vocal) contributions. Overall I'd submit that Release Music Orchestra are a bit more jazzy than other German followers of the Canterbury sound such as Brainstorm and Tortilla Flat, but they would still have to be considered pioneers in the upcoming Kraut Fusion movement that was to dominate the landscape in the next few years.

Ownership: 1975 Brain (LP). Acquired in 1999.

1997; 1999; 7/11/18 (review)

Bremen 1978 (2004)

Live recording from their Beyond the Limit years. Way more stretched out and improvisational than the album proper. Takes a bit to get going, but once they catch the groove, they zone out into an earlier and more pure era of music. No more sunny skies, fake smiles, and bad teeth. This is Kraut Fusion for the Umsonst und Draussen set.

Ownership: 2004 Garden of Delights (CD). Booklet with historical liners. Acquired in 2017.

8/6/17 (review)

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None of the RMO albums have been reissued as I update this post (4/28/26).

8/6/17 (new entry)

V.A. - Umsonst und Draussen - Vlotho '77. 1977 Germany

1. Molle - The Joker 4:30
2. Hammerfest - Jung Siegfried 5:35
3. ES - Today 5:15
4. Checkpoint Charlie - Ausschnitt aus der Geschichte von Herrn Müller 3:55
5. Julius Schittenhelm - Drei Orchideen 3:30
6. Munju - Patscha Menga Underground 8:48
7. Moira - Improvisationen 6:15
8. Funky Bone & The Gang - Higher 7:30
9. Embryo - Getalongwithasong 6:40
10. Real Ax Band - Move Your Ass in Time 5:40
11. Skyline - The Journey 7:49
12. Sadja - Daka Dhin 2:30
13. Einhorn - Einhorn Thema 5:55
14. ES - Fee Forever 1:30
15. Missus Beastly - For Flü 7:28
16. Release Music Orchestra - Sonntag 6:25
17. Ihr - Give Peace a Chance 1:27

1) Gets things off on the wrong foot with an awful cover of the Steve Miller Band classic complete with harmonica leads. Don't know Molle and don't need to. OK, looks like they managed an album called "Kotten". Next...

2) Hammerfest are obviously a core band of the festival, and the April/Schneeball kollektiv. This group has proven hit and miss so far, and I'm ignorant of their actual albums, so what do we get this time? We get the good Hammerfest, where music comes first. Here they show their hand at a more sophisticated progressive blues rock style, with some nice organ and guitar work. Even the vocals are soft focused and not offensive as would normally be the case. Hey, the crowd liked it too!

3) Well, lookee here. I've got a copy of ES' "Wham Bang" album, which is actually not bad at all. ES is made up of members of Tomorrow's Gift and their follow-on group Release Music Orchestra (who are also at this festival). With the funky fusion sounds and female vocals, it appears ES are heavily influenced by Embryo's "Bad Heads and Bad Cats" album as well as The Real Ax Band. 14) is a short thrown in, a harmless female vocal lead piece. Not sure why they felt obligated to toss this in.

4) Checkpoint Charlie are the very definition of politrock. I've had a couple of their albums in the past and they mix complex aggressive punk rock with virulent lyrics. Similar to fellow Germans Oktober. Almost like the Cardiacs but even more angry. Here we pretty much have a spoken word (in German) entry with some nice fusion moves underneath. It would be interesting to hear Checkpoint Charlie with an instrumental album. But that's not what they're about...

5) Features the former Ohr record producer. Even before Dieter Dirks was doing the insane knob twiddling in Berlin, Schittenhelm was phasing bands like Annexus Quam through the hazy fields of madness. As an artist, Schittenhelm is a folk singer - hey, gotta throw a bone to the masters once in awhile and keep them happy.

6) Second year in a row for one of Schneeball's most stalwart bands. As with the '76 concert, Munju covers another track from their debut "High Speed Kindergarten". Here they add an extended percussion sequence as a prequel. Munju were near the top tier of Kraut fusion bands of the era, perhaps slightly behind only Embryo, Missus Beastly and Moira.

7) And speaking of Moira, here's their first appearance on one of these compilations. No points for figuring out this is a loose jam. A quite good one with freaky guitar, flute solos and a driving rhythm. Both of their albums are well worth seeking out. Hopefully one of the great German labels will see fit to reissue them in the near future.

8) Funky Bone & the Gang. I wonder what style of music they'll play? This is their only appearance and not sure if they're related to 1975's The Jack Bone Group. Well they don't sound like they are anyway. Despite the funky disposition, this is pretty tight, with some good sax charts and a little wailing as well. Plenty of guitar soloing thrown in for good measure. Another band I'd like to hear more of.

9) Is the requisite Embryo appearance. They are certainly the "name" band in these festivals and they let absolutely no one down. This is a track that would show up on "Apo Calypso" but in an extended 14 minutes form at that point. Garden of Delights has announced their intention to release Embryo's entire Umsonst concert on CD.

10) Is the title track to Real Ax Band's sole album. They catch a groove early and run with it. If you're unfamiliar with this band, I highly recommend the CD that came out about a decade ago. Definitely recommended to fans of Embryo's "Bad Heads and Bad Cats" and both feature Maria Archer, a superb female vocalist from Ghana.

11) Skyline is back for their second appearance in a row. Again, their live material is far superior to their rather static studio LP. Like the '76 song, this track was also added by GoD on the CD release of "Louise For One Night". I would love hearing these concerts in full, rather than these two snippets.

12) Sadja are an Indian acoustic offshoot of Embryo, and foreshadows their later world fusion efforts that they would pursue more steadfastly in the 1980 and beyond.

13) For me, Einhorn was the big revelation of the 1976 concert. Here, they get a bit more fast and loose with the structure, and there's plenty of unhinged free blow. Though I was a bit unimpressed with this piece, I'd still be most curious if the group has any tapes in storage waiting to be reissued.

15) The other big hitter in the Schneeball lineup along with Embryo, is of course my pet fave group Missus Beastly. This is a track that would show up on their superb "Spaceguerilla",and is a fine representation of their infectious and complex progressive fusion sound.

16) Release Music Orchestra is a relative big name, and this is their first appearance for the free concerts. Only Kraan is missing at this point! Here, they offer a slow and atmospheric jazz piece.

17) is a crowd chant to close the album out.

This set features more released material than prior ones, but overall is still quite good!