A Quest for Prog 16: Focus - Hamburger Concerto

"A Quest for Prog" is a series of 50 Progressive Rock reviews to be written over a year.  The band selection is taken from the book in the first post on this blog.  And the albums I am reviewing is based on the highest user ratings for each band on Progarchives.com.

Focus - Hamburger Concerto (1974)

Produced by Mike Vernon

Thijs van Leer – Keyboards, Organ, Flute, Piano & Vocals

Jan Akkerman – Guitar

Bert Ruiter – Bass Guitar

Colin Allen – Drums

Track listing:

Side one:

01. Delitiae Musicae (1:13)

02. Harem Scarem (5:50)

03. La Cathedrale de Strasbourg (5:00)

04. Birth (7:45)

Side two:

05. Hamburger Concerto (20:18)

·         Starter

·         Rare

·         Medium I

·         Medium II

·         Well Done

·         One for the Road

Released in 1974 “Hamburger Concerto” is the fourth album by Dutch band Focus.  The band was formed by classically trained organist/flautist Thijs van Leer in 1969.  The band is best known for hits “Hocus Pocus” from Focus II and “Sylvia” from Focus 3.  

The album begins with the short piece “Delitiae Musicae”.  The track features Flute and Guitar in an English Folk style.  It’s a nice start to the record and the guitar playing is really good.

“Harem Scarem” follows on.  This song is funky and has a strong groove.  There is a real 70’s feel to this song and reminded me of Kiss’ precursor Wicked Lester.  The vocals are a bit silly just allot of “Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs”.  That said quite a fun tune.

The tone changes on “La Cathedrale de Strasbourg”.  A more subtle and quiet track it is quite dramatic and at times cheesy.  The piano is really strong here and is almost classical.  The vocals near the end of the song are over the top and there is also some cheesy whistling.  But the vocals are really interesting at the start of the tune with vocals moving around the stereoscape. 

A nice Harpsicord Intro starts the last song on the first side “Birth”.  The Organs in the main song are great and they play the main theme of the song with the flutes which really cool.  The song get’s quite breezy at points.  The bass is really groovy which give the song a nice 70’s rock feel.  Best song on the record.

We flip the record over to side two for what is almost clichéd for Prog Records a 20 minute side B.  The “Hamburger Concerto” begins with a cool keyboard intro that reminded me of ELO.  The track the moves into a semi-classical section sound similar to “Here Comes The Sun” by the Beatles crossed with Emerson, Lake & Palmer.  An Interesting piece.  The track builds and become almost more triumphant in sound and mood.  There some silly vocals added at the five and half minute mark.  If your into the Goon Show this might be your cup of tea.  There is some harp added before the flute brings the song to a slower section.  The flute playing is great.  The guitars are given a section to play around as the song progresses.  This section is when the mood changes and the sound like late 70’s Pink Floyd.  The soloing does go on a bit longer than it should but it’s still interesting.  There are some decent vocals near the end and the song becomes quite gothic and folky.  As far as 20 minute long songs go this one was quite interesting.

I enjoyed this record and although it tries to silly in places it is quite an accomplished and interesting record.  Well worth a listen.

6/10 

Mastodon – The Hunter

Mastodon – The Hunter (2011)

Produced by Mike Elizondo

Troy Sanders – Lead vocals, Bass

Brent Hinds – Lead vocals, Buitars

Brann Dailor – Lead vocals, Drums, Percussion

Bill Kelliher – Guitars, Backing Vocals

Track listing:

01. Black Tongue (3:27)

02. Curl of the Burl (3:40)

03. Blasteroid (2:35)

04. Stargasm (4:39)

05. Octopus Has No Friends (3:48)

06. All the Heavy Lifting (4:31)

07. The Hunter (5:17)

08. Dry Bone Valley (3:59)

09. Thickening (4:30)

10. Creature Lives (4:41)

11. Spectrelight (3:09)

12. Bedazzled Fingernails (3:08)

13. The Sparrow (5:30)

Released in 2011 “The Hunter” is the fifth album by American band Mastodon.  The band formed in Atlanta, Georgia when they meet at a High On Fire show.  A Demo and a 7 inch single were released before they signed with Relapse Records and released the “Lifesblood” ep in 2001.  Their debut album “Remission” was released in 2002 but it was the follow up 2004’s “Leviathan” (A concept album based on “Moby Dick”) than gained the band attention the music press with NPR choosing "Blood and Thunder" as one of the most import recordings of the decade.  The band left Relapse for Reprise Records and released “Blood Mountain” in 2006 another concept album but this time with a more elaborate and bizarre a story.  The album made may end of year list as did 2009’s “Crack The Skye” in which the band moved into a more Progressive direction. 

“The Hunter” begins with “Black Tongue” which is groovy Metal tune.  This is the kind of thing that Mastodon does so well.  The riffs are intricate and fast.  The melody on the verses is really strong but the chorus is a little week.  The song is a great start to the album.

Next is “Curl Of The Burl” a sludgy stoner metal tune.  This song is very reminiscent of Queens Of The Stone Age.  The verse melody is cool but I’m not a big fan of Brent’s vocals on this track.  Musically this is quite a departure for the band and even though it is quite a radio friendly it a good tune.  

“Blasteroid” is an upbeat metal tune in the vein of At The Drive-In & Deftones.  The track really moves along and has a really bright sound to it.  It is quite Progressive but with a new world Metal sensibility.  I think this one will be great live.       

After an 80’s picking Guitar Intro “Stargasm” moves into a dense groove.  The song moves along at a really good pace.  The guitars are great with some strong picking sections which add to the spacey feel of the song.  The chorus is really strong and has some really cool hooks.

“Octopus Has No Friends” is a fast paced rolling track with intricate playing.  The drums chop up beat here which adds to the groove.  This song really gets your head moving which is impressive for a track for such a technical track. 

The fast paced “All the Heavy Lifting” is next.  This tune is an old skool Mastodon tune with some fast playing and intricate lines.  Cool tune but the chorus is a little weak. 

The slow grinding “The Hunter” follows on.  This tune is reminiscent of Alice In Chains slower grinder moment and features some great vocals from Brent and Troy.  The song is sinister and slowly builds with a strong vocal melody.

“Dry Bone Valley” is next.  This tune is more of a Hard Rock tune than a Metal tune.  That being said it have a really good tempo and moves along at a good pace.  This song like “The Hunter” reminds me of Alice In Chains.

Following on is “Thickening” which again goes down the Hard Rock road.  Unfortunately this time it isn’t as successful.  Stylistically like QOTSA the song has some good playing but the song is quite forgettable.

My album highlight “Creature Lives” is an unusual tune.  It begins with some strange synths and laughing before a really nice bass riff begins.  This song is quite progressive and grandiose with a large crowd vocal on the chorus.  The song has a big sound with layering and is quite progressive.  Cool tune.

“Spectrelight” is classic Mastodon.  The groove is heavy and Troys vocals in the verses are strong.  The chorus is weak but the middle 8 is awesome.

The oddly titled “Bedazzled Fingernails” is an off kilter tune with time changes and grinding riffs.  The changes in tempo add to the heaviness of the track.  The chorus is cool and the verses have a really interesting vocal effect which is almost robotic.  Cool tune.

The album ends with “The Sparrow”.  This track is a slower track with some really nice guitar picking.  The band adds layers of guitars and keyboards to make a bed for a dreamy vocal.  The sound huge and spacious and is almost psychedelic. The song lets loose during the solo which adds a nice counter point.

This is a very different record for Mastodon and on first listen is a little disappointing.  There are allot of layers and textures to this record which can take time to appreciate.  But the more you give it the better it gets and this record is a real grower.

7/10

A Quest for Prog 15: The Flower Kings - Back in the World of Adventures

"A Quest for Prog" is a series of 50 Progressive Rock reviews to be written over a year.  The band selection is taken from the book in the first post on this blog.  And the albums I am reviewing is based on the highest user ratings for each band on Progarchives.com.

The Flower Kings - Back in the World of Adventures (1995)

Produced by Roine Stolt & Don Azzaro

Hans Fröberg – Lead & backing vocals

Roine Stolt – Vocals, guitars, keyboards, bass

Tomas Bodin – Keyboards

Michael Stolt – Bass

Jaime Salazar – Drums

Hans Bruniusson – Percussion, drums

Ulf Wallander – Soprano saxophone

Track listing:

01. World Of Adventures (13:39)

02. Atomic Prince/Kaleidoscope (7:51)

03. Go West Judas (7:49)

04. Train To Nowhere (3:51)

05. Oblivion Road (3:49)

06. Theme For A Hero (8:34)

07. Temple Of The Snakes (1:25)

08. My Cosmic Lover (6:48)

09. The Wonder Wheel (4:19)

10. Big Puzzle (13:34)

Released in 1995 “Back in the World of Adventures” is the debut album by Swedish band The Flower Kings.  The band formed in 1994 as a backing band for guitarist Roine Stoltas as he toured his solo album “The Flower King”.  The band has been extremely prolific releasing 10 albums between 1995 and 2007.

The album begins with “World Of Adventures” which is a pretty punchy rock tune.  The song is a mix of Dream Theater and Electric Light Orchestra.  The production this tune is quite full on and at point a bit over the top.  The guitars sound like early 90’s Scorpions and I gotta say right now I wasn’t a fan of Roine Stolt’s guitar through this whole record.  There are some nice kind of Celtic/Folky sections which are really well played and are a nice change in the song.

Next is “Atomic Prince/Kaleidoscope”.  The start of this song is really strong with the Keyboards and Drums creating a nice groove that is unfortunately ruined when the guitars come in.  The track has a 70’s era Prog sound which is driven by the keyboards.  It has some nice movement and the breakdown in the track is really good.  The song ends with some classical guitar which just comes out of the blue.  It’s some nice guitar playing just seems seems to have no relation to the rest of the tune.

A Jethro Tull tune seems to have been mistakenly added to this album called “Go West Judas”.  All joking aside this song sounds a whole lot like late 80’s Jethro Tull even down to Hans Fröberg being a dead ringer for Ian Anderson.  The song has a good riff and is really up beat but the song does go on a bit.  For some reason Judas Priests “A Touch Of Evil” comes to mind when I was listening to this song not in style but there parts that remind me of it. 

The blatant radio single “Train To Nowhere” follows.  Not much to say about this one but if you listened to rock radio in the 90’s think what a stereotypical radio ballad by a rock was and you get the picture.

“Theme For A Hero” is next.  This track reminded me of Steve Vai’s “Passion & Warefare” album and the kind of music you would get at a Cirque du Soleil show.  Overblown guitar playing but the keyboards are strong on this one.  The best part of the track is the last few minutes with which features Keyboards and some great Drumming.

The interlude “Temple Of The Snakes” is a short interlude that sounds like incidental music from an film.  Cheesy keyboards but kind of dramatic at the same time.

80’s pop rock appears as “My Cosmic Lover”.  The track has that processed and clinical drum and bass grooves that so much popular 80’s music had.  The melody is lifted directly from George Harrison's “Within You Without You” and with some of the lyrics sounds deceptively similar.

Next is “The Wonder Wheel”.  This track is quite calm and relaxed.  The drums and the keyboards show restraint.  There is a Dire Straits feel to it and even the guitars are decent here.  The song builds and comes to a crescendo before coming back down.

The last track on the album is “Big Puzzle”.  It begins with and all to brief Tubular Bell like keyboard section.  Again this is ruined by the guitars.  The track is quite jazzy but it seems that the band was sharing my feelings of being over this album by this point.  None of the bands playing is interesting even the drums and keyboards which have been so good elsewhere.  The track goes on for a long time and just doesn’t do anything.

This album really dragged on for me.  I liked some of the early material (“World Of Adventures” & “Go West Judas”) but as it went I just lost interest.  The silly attempts at commercial tracks didn’t help their cause either.   

3/10

Sebadoh w/ Smudge – The Metro, Sydney 21 September 2011

We arrived at the Metro with some time to get a seat before the support slot which came from Australian underground heroes Smudge.  I have seen Smudge once before at the Big Day Out on the Annandale stage while having a relax and sometime in the shade.  I enjoyed that shambolic set so I was interested in checking them out again.  Unfortunately Smudge were plagued by bad sound from the get go to the point that it was a struggle to get into the songs at all.  Not helping was that Tom Morgan seems to be a bit uninterested in playing a show or doing his songs justice which could be some way of explaining their lack of success outside of Australia.  Drummer Alison Galloway was fantastic and made up for it in some ways.  Some songs were good but some were decidedly average.  That said the crowd lapped up their set and cheered wildly when familiar songs were played.   

I’ve been a fan of Sebadoh’s “Bakesale”/Harmacy” records for a long time.  So to say I was excited to see Sebadoh tour that period of the band was an understatement.  The band hit stage to little fan-fare and progressed through 30 songs in a 1hr 40min set.  Lou had the first slot and we were treated to 6 tunes including a run of classics “Skull”, “Ocean”, “Rebound” & “Magnets Coil”.  All songs were great and set up an interesting change when Jason took the lead.  This is the dichotomy that makes Sebadoh so interesting with Lou’s structured/melodic tunes side by side with Jason’s punky /angular tunes.  Jason’s tunes were given their all by the band with Lou clearly loving pulling bass shapes.  The hardcore “Love to Fight” and “S. Soup” were the standout’s here.  Tag again and Lou knocked out three more tunes.  His ode to his former now current bandmate J Mascis “The Freed Pig” was the highlight and reminded me how great that tune was.  Jason came back for a 5 song stretch which included some of his more melodic tunes.  “Careful” & “Crystal Gypsy” from Bakesale were great and “Bird In The Hand“ from “The Sebadoh” was new to me as I haven’t heard that album in a long time.  The rest of the main set was Lou’s, bar a punky “Sixteen” from Jason, and we were treated to highlights “Soul And Fire”, “Beauty Of The Ride”, “Forced Love” & “Brand New Love” amongst others.  I had heard of “Brand New Love” but never actually heard the tune and it was probably the highlight of the night.  I will have to track that song down.  After a very short and for formalities only encore break Jason lead “Not Too Amused” before Lou lead the band in his “least favourite Sebadoh song” “Willing To Wait”.  The version the band is playing is harder and works all the better for it.  I have to admit that I love “Willing To Wait” and this version makes the song even better.  As the band left the stage you could see the audience were exhausted.  The band’s set posed the question can you have too much of a good thing?  The answer in this case is yes and no.  I enjoyed having so many songs in the set but it was a long show.  Sebadoh certainly delivered and I would love to see you again but I think I will need a good sleep beforehand.   

Setlist:

On Fire

Too Pure

Skull

Ocean

Rebound

Magnet's Coil

S. Soup

Mind Reader

Got It

Love To Fight

Drag Down

Dreams

The Freed Pig

Licence to Confuse

Sister

Drama Mine

Crystal Gypsy

Careful

Bird In The Hand

Soul And Fire

Two Years Two Days

Beauty of the Ride

Not A Friend

Forced Love

Together Or Alone

Sixteen

New Worship

Brand New Love

-Encore-

Not Too Amused

Willing To Wait

A Quest for Prog 14: The Enid - In The Region Of The Summer Stars

"A Quest for Prog" is a series of 50 Progressive Rock reviews to be written over a year.  The band selection is taken from the book in the first post on this blog.  And the albums I am reviewing is based on the highest user ratings for each band on Progarchives.com.

The Enid - In The Region Of The Summer Stars (1976)

Produced by John Sinclair

Robert John Godfrey: Keyboards

Stephen Stewart: Guitars and Bass

Francis Lickerish: Guitars

Glen Tollet: Bass

Dave Storey: Drums and Percussion

Dave Hancock: Trumpet

Track listing:

Side one:

01. The Fool...The Falling Tower (6:16)

02. Death, The Reaper (3:59)

03. The Lovers (5:17)

04. The Devil (4:14)

Side two:

01. The Sun (4:39)

02. The Last Judgement (8:12)

03. In The Region Of The Summer Stars (6:19)

Released in 1976 “In The Region Of The Summer Stars” is the debut album by English band The Enid.   Formed in 1975 by former Barkly James Harvest member Robert John Godfrey with Stephen Stewart and Francis Lickerish.  The three had previously played in a Kent School band called Finchden Manor.  The band had success during the punk explosion which most other Progressive band failed to do.  “In The Region Of The Summer Stars” was partially re-recorded in 1984 the band look to put the album back in print and discovered the second side masters were missing.

The album begins with “The Fool...The Falling Tower”.  “The Fool...” being a short piano piece and “...The Falling Tower” begin reminiscent of Frank Zappa with a Glam Rock feel.  The track is quite progressive moving around in the way a free Jazz quartet might.  There are burst that very orchestral in feel and there are even some timpani’s used at the more epic moments.  The guitars and keyboards are really strong and the bass has a funk feel similar to the sound Les Claypool would adopt with Primus.  Cool tune.

“Death, The Reaper” is a slower more symphonic tune.  The track is grandiose with medieval sounding  guitars and keyboards.  Tubular Bells and Timpani’s used to added emphasis to the track.  It sounds assured and confident but the track does drag a bit.

Next is the muzak “The Lovers”.  This tune goes to the extreme of the theme by being cheesy elevator music.  The arrangement is quiet and slight and seems extremely timid.  This is music that will never stand out and always be wallpaper. 

The opposite of the theme is “The Devil”.  In this song the band is trying to sound evil but it comes across as being kind of jaunty and happy.  The playing is really good in this track and the band is really playing with changes in tempo and time signatures.  To be honest the track is a bit silly but it is fun at the same time.

Side two starts with the overblown “The Sun”.  It didn’t like this track much at all.  It is a dreamy classical Flute and Piano piece that really doesn’t go anywhere.

Next is the “The Last Judgement” which maintains a military drum through the track.  This gives you the feel of a battle but one that does drag on a bit.  The keyboards are the star with the sound being similar to the Clockwork Orange Soundtrack.  The track has some good parts like the breakdown in this song which features Timpani’s and echoed voices.

The album ends with the title track “In The Region Of The Summer Stars”.  This track has a classic era Pink Floyd feel to it some very Gilmouresque Slide Guitar.  The song is very upbeat and optimistic song which really builds and gets better as the song progresses.  Nice end to the album.

This album is a bit hit and miss.  There are some really good pieces (“The Falling Tower” & “In The Region Of The Summer Stars”) but there are also some really bad tracks (‘The Lovers” & “The Sun”) there rest is just alright. 

4/10 

Harmony – Harmony

Harmony – Harmony (2011)

Produced by Tom Lyngcoln

Tom Lyngcoln - Vocals/Guitar

Alex Kastaniotis - Drums/Vocals

Jon Chapple - Bass

Amanda Roff - Vocals

Quinn Veldhuis - Vocals

Maria Kastaniotis – Vocals

Track listing:

01. Painter Blue (3:52)

02. Black Bobs (4:27)

03. Fourteen (6:21)

04. Grand Designs (4:55)

05. No Hope (4:02)

06. Ghost On Mainstreet (4:04)

07. Extinction Debt (4:51)

08. Cacophonous Vibes (4:27)

09. Heartache (4:23)

10. Miss The Sting (2:51)

11. Love In You Absence (5:04)

Released in 2011 “Harmony” is the Debut album by Australian band Harmony.  Harmony was formed by Nation Blue’s Tom Lyngcoln and his wife Alex Kastaniotis.  Tom began recorded the album at home and added Jon Chapple formerly of Mclusky and Shooting At Unarmed Men on bass and Vocalists Amanda Roff, Quinn Veldhuis & Maria Kastaniotis.  Band released the “Cacophonous Vibes”  7” single in early 2011 and this album later in the year.

The album begins with “Painter Blue” which sets the scene for the album.  The recordings are raw and very open.  It sounds as if they were recorded live in a room and at times things can get lost because of it.  The track is stripped back and sports a really strong chorus that reminded me of U2 for some reason.  Not sure why but there you go.

Next is “Black Bobs” which has a nice swampy southern blues feel to it.  The vocals work well together on this one and meld nicely.  Think the Drones with more vocalists.

“Fourteen” follows on.  This track has a nice tension and emotion to it with Tom’s vocal having hints of Nick Cave to it.  The ladies do a great job on their vocals on this track providing most of the backing to the track. 

“Grand Designs” picks the pace of the album up with some driving drums and nice guitar work.  The guitars are discordant and ringing along with a great vocal performance from Tom.

The gospel “ No Hope” follows on.  The track is very loose and open unfortunately the drums are quite rough in places.  The pace speeds up and slows through the track which gives it a lurching and almost jarring experience which is interesting.

“Ghost On Mainstreet” has a 70’s Cosmic Rock feel to it.  Kind of a mix between the Nation Blue and Gram Parsons.  The extremes of this band are used to effect on this track from screams and whispers.

That dichotomy continues on “Extinction Debt”.  This track builds and gets groovier as the song progresses.  Tom plays some nice slow picking in-between noise sections.  

The first single “Cacophonous Vibes” is the most immediate track on the album.  On my first listen of the album this was the only song that really grabbed me.  The vocals work extremely well on this song with the emotion and tension ramped up on this song.  It almost has a mid 70’s Pink Floyd feel to it, well only slightly.

The bluesy “Heartache” is next.  This track is an upbeat 70’s blues rocker with Tom shredding in places.  The drums again are a little rough on this track.  That said the song has a nice feel to it and the chorus is really cool.

“Miss The Sting” follows.  Musically this song doesn’t quite work for me.  I like the backing vocals but Tom’s vocals and the lead melody are a little weak.  That said I really like the breakdown in this song.

The album ends with the slow burning “Love In You Absence”.  The song slowly builds and does suffer a bit in the drum department.  The flourishes in the chorus are cool but the verses don’t do much for me.

This is an album that took me a few listens to get past the production and really give the songs a listen.  I’m glad I put the time into the album because it certainly delivers bar a few of the later songs dragging.  Put some time into it and I think you will enjoy the results.

7/10

...and you will know us by the Trail of Dead w/ Further & Grand Fatal - Manning Bar, Sydney 10 September 2011

I entered a fairly quiet Manning Bar just before the first band Grand Fatal arrived on stage.  This is the first time I have seen or even heard of this band so when the band mentioned that had been around for while I was surprised.  Grand Fatal are Hardcore Punk band leaning more on the pop side of things.  Their songs are similar in allot of ways but their energy is where the band flourishes.  The band is seriously tight and their drummer is the best drummer I have seen in a local band for a while.  Enjoyed their set.

But one thing I did was odd was the number of photographer at the front of the bands set I counted 7 at one point.  It was very strange.

Next were Further a band I have seen on a number of occasions and have always put on a good show.  Further are a Post Punk band who have released 3 solid albums so they have allot of material to build a set from.  Their set was based on track from their first album "Punkrockvampires" and third album "Tactics".  The band were tight and looked like they were having allot of fun.  Always great to see them and they are definitely Sydney's best kept secret. Highlights for me were "Tactics”, “Please Leave Quietly" & "Romance".

I have been long time fan of the Trail of Dead getting into them on the "Madonna" album but it had been a few years since I first was Trail of Dead live.  The show at the Forum was a great show so when I saw the band was touring their excellent "Tao of the Dead" I was excited.  The band at that time had swelled to 6 including 2 drummers and was a different beast to this slimmer 4 piece version of the band.  As the band entered the stage the Manning Bar was far from full but this didn't seem to faze the band who launched into 16 minute long "Strange News From Another Planet".  The band sounded more direct and the addition of Bassist Autry Fulbright II and Drummer/Guitarist Jamie Miller gave the band a renewed energy.  "Strange News..." was truly epic and was a really testament to the music the band had crafted on "Tao of the Dead".  This was followed without break with a selection of parts from the "Tao of the Dead".  All the tracks work really well live and the real highlights were the mid paced "Ebb Away" which seemed to groove more live and the absolutely manic "The Fairlight Pendant".  Two tracks from the patchy “World Apart” followed with the classic “Will You Smile Again?” and “Caterwaul”.  Both tracks were great with “Will You Smile Again?” being simply mind-blowing live.  The drummer swapping began on “Source Tags and Codes” tracks with Jason taking a lion’s share of the drum duties and Conrad help out on one track.  The real surprise was how good a guitarist Drummer Jamie Miller actually was and he certainly held his own.  The “Source Tags & Codes” tunes were all great with “It Was There That I Saw You” & “Now Near How Far” being full of energy and the sublime “Another Morning Stoner” showing its class and why it is still an indie classic.  Madonna was represented by the punky “A Perfect Teenhood” and melancholy “Claire De Lune”.  Both were great and "A Perfect Teenhood" feature some freestyling from Conrad.  Luckily this time around we were treated to two songs from the band Self Titled debut album.  Both were manic and rugged with noise being the approach for these songs.  The encore game was missed tonight and the band just got onto business with “Richter Scale Madness” which included a band initiated stage invasion with the band somehow managing to play amongst it all.  It was quite funny although there a number of nobbles who thought everyone would enjoying their sing or a random bit of swearing.  I hope you got that out of your system that kids.   

This slimmer version of the really delivered and in some ways meant that the band could be much more direct with the songs.  Somehow the band bettered the Forum show and I got another great night with one of the best band around. 

...and you will know us by the Trail of Dead Setlist:

Strange News From Another Planet

The Spiral Jetty

Weight of the Sun (or the Post-Modern Prometheus)

Ebb Away

The Fairlight Pendant

Will You Smile Again?

Caterwaul

It Was There That I Saw You

How Near How Far

Fake Fake Eyes

Another Morning Stoner

A Perfect Teenhood

Clair de Lune

Richter Scale Madness

Richard In Your Mind – Sun

Richard In Your Mind – Sun (2011)

Produced by Richard Cartwright

Richard Cartwright

Conrad Richters

Jordy Lane

Pat Torres

Brent Griffin

Track listing:

01. Vision (4:35)

02. Maybe When The Sun Comes Down (4:01)

03. She Took The Sun Away (2:22)

04. Mountainhead (5:01)

05. Dimension (4:15)

06. New Morning (4:27)

07. Tear Filled Ocean (3:48)

08. SUN (4:04)

09. Where Did You Go (2:35)

10. Aplomb (4:26)

Released in 2011 “Sun” is the Third album by Australian band Richard In Your Mind.  Richard in Your Mind is a Sydney band formed by Richard Cartwright and Conrad Richters.  The band has previously released two albums and two ep’s including last years “My Volcano” album.   

I purchased this album for the handsomely sum of $1 digitally as part of a weekend special through music retailer Big Pond Music.

The album begins with “Vision” a spacey tack that begins with some interesting keyboards before some programmed drums begin.  The groove is great on this track and it reminds me of a mixture of M83 and AIR.  Kind of French Synth rock mixed with German Krautrock.

 Following on is “Maybe When The Sun Comes Down” a psychedelic tune with a cool groove.  A description that came to mind for me what White Boy Folk Dub.  There is some nice layers of instrumentation and a cool backwards guitar solo.  This is a summer song for indie kids.

“She Took The Sun Away” is next and is a mix of Beck with The Beatles “…And Your Bird Can Sing”.  The song has a nice 60’s feel and some nice guitar lines and vocals from Richard.

The next tune “Mountainhead” reminds me of The Flaming Lips.  Kind of a mix between “The Soft Bulletin” mellower tracks & the “In A Priest Driven Ambulance” version of the band.  It’s a nice tune but does seem to lack direction and get a little stuck in it's slow pace.

The slow dub of “Dimension” follows on.  A cool scratchy track in that has similarities with AIR’s “All I Need”.  The instrumentation is groovy but is let down by a weak vocal melody.  The movement of the song is nice and it sports a great guitar solo with horns.   

“New Morning” is up next and is another slow groove similar to “Dimension” but with a stronger vocals.   A delayed Keyboard track sits nicely on this track and the chorus is cool.

The English folk tune “Tear Filled Ocean” follows on.  This is the most radical of the tracks on this album and is almost naïve and simplistic.  It has a nice vibe and instrumentation that is help by some sweet female vocals.

The title track “Sun” is the most similar to the bands previous album “My Volcano”.  After an extended intro Hip Beats and cut up instrumentation build the track.  The phaser and layers are really dense on this track and the keyboards are reminiscent of Kraftwerk.

“Where Did You Go” is next with it picked guitars and a high school slow dance track.  The melody is nice though the vocals don’t do it justice.  The backing doesn’t quite give the song what it needs to really hit the mark.  Though the guitar solo is quite sublime.

The album finishes with “Aplomb”.  This track is a spacey lounge song with and almost jazz feel.  Though a jazz song that has been chopped up and reconstructed.  I like this track though it can be at times a tough listen. 

I'll be honest and say I didn’t really like this album the first time I listen to it but I’m am finding myself enjoying it more with each listen.  A little more one dimensional that pervious albums there is a lot to get from this album. 

6/10

A Quest for Prog 13: Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Emerson, Lake & Palmer

 "A Quest for Prog" is a series of 50 Progressive Rock reviews to be written over a year.  The band selection is taken from the book in the first post on this blog.  And the albums I am reviewing is based on the highest user ratings for each band on Progarchives.com.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Emerson, Lake & Palmer (1970)

Produced by Greg Lake

Keith Emerson:  Organ, synthesizer, piano, clavinet, keyboard, Hammond organ, Moog synthesizer

Greg Lake:  Acoustic guitar, bass, electric guitar, vocals

Carl Palmer:  Drums, percussion

Track listing:

Side one:

01. The Barbarian (4:27)

02. Take a Pebble (12:32)

03. Knife-Edge (5:04)

Side two:

01. The Three Fates (7:46)

a) Clotho (Royal Festival Hall Organ)

b) Lachesis (Piano Solo)

c) Atropos (Piano Trio)

02. Tank (6:49)

03. Lucky Man (4:36)

Released in 1970 “Emerson, Lake & Palmer” is the debut album by English band Emerson, Lake & Palmer.  The band formed after the Keith Emerson of The Nice and Greg Lake  of King Crimson meet while touring America.  Both were looking for new projects as their respective bands were dissolving and decided to form a Keyboard, Bass & Drum trio.  Originally auditioning Mitch Mitchell of the Jimi  Hendrix Experience the band settled on Carl Palmer of Atomic Rooster.  Jimi Hendrix was set to become a member of the band but due to conflicts in schedules he missed the initial set of ELP shows.  Hendrix died a month later so the “HELP” version of ELP never came to be.  The band were extremely successful playing large stadium shows even going out on a financially crippling Orchestra Tour.  Infighting and the advent of punk caused the band to call it quicks after the disappointing Love Beach. 

This is the first album I own, listen to and love in the “Quest for Prog” series.  The album opens with what is quite possibly my favourite ELP song of all time “The Barbarian”.  This is a menacing track that includes a growling fuzz bass from Greg Lake.  The main motif of the song is a dark and theatrical organ line by Keith Emerson.  It’s a really great riff that moves this sludgy song along.  The middle section of the song is a radical change and is a Piano and Drum passage which is almost twee.  Carl Palmers drums are precise and give the passage a great energy.  This mix of moods and the Keyboards, Bass & Drums sound is similar to what Ben Folds Five would present 2 decades later. 

 The 12 minute long “Take a Pebble” is next.  This song is a journey through many movements and styles.  The song begins with some classy playing by Keith which is a mixture of strumming the piano strings and playing a signature on the other hand.  The track has a jazzy feel during the verses which boasts a great melody and vocal from Greg.  Keith gets some space to show off his piano work before the track goes quiet and Grey return with a stripped back acoustic guitar section.  This sections sound like a campfire jam that progresses into a kind a hoedown (very different to track ELP covered later on).    The guitar then moves into a short classical guitar piece.  Nice piece but an odd direction within the track.  The band returns with a nice jazzy section and some really strong drumming for Carl.  The song ends of the vocal section from the start of the track.  Albeit a little odd in its progression this is a really strong track. 

The side ends with “Knife-Edge” the b-side of the “Lucky Man” single.  The track is an upbeat track that features stripped back verses featuring Bass and Vocals from Greg.  The band comes in and plays variations of the riff.  Carl’s foot is working overtime on this track and drives the song along.  Keith has a nice organ solo in the middle of this track which is the highlight of the song.  Good tune but the weakest track on this side.

Side two starts with "The Three Fates" a track that is basically a Keith solo recording.  It is split into three different sections the first an featuring a Church Organ, the second a solo Piano section and the third featuring Keith and the rest of the band.  The Organ in “Clotho (Royal Festival Hall Organ)” sounds really great but I think Keith didn’t really have a grasp of the instrument to get the most out of it.  There are some cool thundering chords but the rest seems like meaningless noddling.  The second section “Lachesis (Piano Solo)“ is allot better as Keith’s Piano playing was really great at this point of his career.  There is a really great energy to his playing and the part includes a solid Structure.  The third and last section “Atropos (Piano Trio)” feature’s all of ELP.  The drums are great on this section and it has a cool Samba feel.  As a whole the track flow as well as it could but there are some great parts and some great playing. 

“Tank” is up next and is in some ways a showcase for Carl.  The drums drive the song along with some tight Marching drums rhythms.  There is a really interesting lead melody which I couldn't decide if it was keyboards or a processed Bass but it sits nicely on top of the rest of the instruments.    Carl is very talented drummer and very precise which is probably why the solo falls short.  The solo is quite one dimensional is missing an spark of some kind.  Not to say it’s bad just could have been better.  The keyboards at the end are very strange but add the counterpoint the song required to be interesting.  My least favourite track on the album.

This brings us to the last minute addition to the album “Lucky Man”.  Written when Greg was a teenager this is very different to every other tracks on the album.  For one it has a very straightforward structure and is Keith missing from the track bar an iconic Moog Solo at the end of the song.  Greg’s vocals and guitar are strong and confident on this track but Carl seems to struggle in the confines of such a simple track.  I like this track but it does seem like a very odd addition to the record.

This is a really strong debut.  This is my favourite ELP record and a record that I would recommend checking out.

8/10

A Quest For Prog 12: Eloy – Ocean

"A Quest for Prog" is a series of 50 Progressive Rock reviews to be written over a year.  The band selection is taken from the book in the first post on this blog.  And the albums I am reviewing is based on the highest user ratings for each band on Progarchives.com.

Eloy – Ocean (1977)

Produced by Frank Bornemann

Frank Bornemann – Lead Vocals, All Electric, Acoustic, and Effect Guitars

Klaus-Peter Matziol – Vocals, Thunderbird and Fender Fretless Bass Guitars

Detlev Schmidtchen – Hammond Organ, Mini-Moog and ARP Synthesizers, Mellotron, RMI Keyboard Computer, Xylophone, Angelic Voices

Jürgen Rosenthal – Sonor Genuine Rosewood Drums, Paiste Cymbals, Timbales, Roto-Toms, Temple Blocks, Kettle-Drums, Tubular Bells, Morse Key, Voice, Triangles, Paper and Flute

Track listing:

Side one:

01. Poseidon's Creation (11:38)

02. Incarnation of the Logos (8:25)

Side two:

01. Decay of the Logos (8:15)

02. Atlantis' Agony at June 5th - 8498, 13 p.m. Gregorian Earthtime (15:35)

Released in 1977 “Ocean” is the sixth album by German band Eloy.  The band formed in 1969 by Frank Bornemann who is the only staple of the band which has had many line up changes over it’s career.  Eloy were originally influenced by The Shadows and The Beatles before becoming influenced by Pink Floyd space rock albums.  The band has released 17 albums including a 1998 sequel to this album “Ocean 2: The Answer”.

The album begins with “Poseidon's Creation” a groovy track with some really impressive drumming from Jürgen Rosenthal.  The song starts with some nice guitar picking and builds into a space rock version of Deep Purple.  The instrumentation is strong and the playing is confident with passages that sound surprisingly contemporary.  There is a strong Pink Floyd influence in the way the Keyboards and Bass interact.  The band gives themselves a lot of room to move and explore the music.  This is a great tune and is only slightly let down by some silly lyrics which do actually work in the context of the song.

Following on is “Incarnation of the Logos” which begins with minimal drums and keyboards.  The Floyd reference is here again with a Wall feel at the start of the song.  The vocals are strong and are heavily treated with reverb which adds to the atmosphere of the track.  The band comes in later in the song with an awesome Space Rock section that gives the Keyboards the lead.  The bass and the drums lock into an almost Post Rock groove.  This is great stuff.

Side two begins with “Decay of the Logos”.  This track reminded me of Trans Am with the mixture of live drums and Keyboards.  The groove is huge on this track.  This track is similar to “Incarnation of the Logos” is it space rock sound until the 2.30 point when the track breaks down.  The guitars get given room to add texture as the bass and drums pulse.  The vocals are treated and are sampled and repeated at different positions in the stereo plain.  The 2^nd half of the song is upbeat and more straight ahead rock and have an ear 80’s Iron Maiden feel.

The final track on the album is “Atlantis' Agony at June 5th - 8498, 13 p.m. Gregorian Earthtime”.  The track slowly builds and starts with a spoken word intro.  It is a very atmospheric track and one that I was surprised I didn’t get bored of.  But this track has so much going on and keep adding layers.  At times the voice over’s can seem very cheesy but it for the most part they are pretty cool.  The keyboards are given a lot of time on this track to build atmosphere and create textures before the rest of the band appear at the 8 minute mark.  The band comes in and brings back the space rock of the rest of the song although less psychedelic and more Meddle period Pink Floyd. 

I loved this album.  This is the first real surprise from this “Quest”.  If you are a fan of early Pink Floyd records then give these’s guys a go.  Wonder what “Oceans 2” would be like?    

9/10