A1. Spectaculum
A2. Supper Time A3. A Bit Near the Knuckle
A4. Clean Up Sunday
B1. Downtown-Paradise-Lost
B2. Oh, Sorry
B3. 108
B4. Unchangeable Things?!
Ardo Dombec are an obscure 4-piece progressive jazz/blues rock group that only made one release off the Pilz record label. Less on the spectrum of fast or freeform jams, the songs are a lot more tightly written. Helmut Hachmann's sax and Harald Gleu's vocals are the two main spotlights for this album; each are excellent at what they do.
There's nothing particularly unique about this album. They just REALLY know how to get down, and it has memorable song writing. My favorite track by far is 'A Bit Near the Knuckle' which is perfect in every way, easily switching between normal and half time. The sax riding beautifully over everything, and Wolfgang Spillner's simple but excellently backing drums, and some of my favorite German psych rock vocals.
I try to avoid using this adjective, but 'Clean Up Sunday' has the most undoubtedly Jethro Tull-esque flute soloing. It's very well done though. The song is more spacious than the previous tracks, with a sweet backing bassline. Halfway through is a nice little guitar solo followed by some verbed out acapella that seems kind of abrupt? The song continues with this whole other kind of jam that at first doesn't seem to fit but manages to seamlessly go right back to the previous section.
'Downtown Paradise Lost' showcases Harald Gleu's harmonica blues playing which is pretty ok. 'Oh
Sorry' is another goofy little oh-no-your-record-got-scratched prank. Eh, woulda been better without it. '108' is some pretty laid back acoustic guitar accompanied by flute. I guess by this point I redact my statement about their consistently tight song writing. The last track is solid but still not as memorable as some of the earlier tracks.
This LP is alright, but doesn't manage to capture quite as amazing a momentum as 'A Bit Near the Knuckle' which is what I will always remember it for. The b-side tracks just seem more like padding compared to the a-side. Its far from perfection but there's some good jams in here. 7/10
1. Hanged Man
2. Keep Watching the Skies
3. March of the Mule
4. Strange Love
I now draw attention to a psychedelic project with the involvement of a local friend, Seattle band Emeralds (NOT to be confused with the drone artist of the same name) who released this EP in 2009 through the funky alcohol and multimedia-infused label "ggnzla RECORDS". This short release manages to carve its own niche into the musical pantheon somewhere between Hawkwind and Uriah Heep, picking up from where the fantastical realm of 70s Heavy Metal and Hard Rock left off. From this vintage sound they expand upon new possibilities through more contemporary eyes, with heavier distortion, a more sinister energy, and an effortless shuffle thorough different flavors of fast and slow, good and evil, harmony and dissonance.
In The Hanged Man, the vocalist washes over the chaos, integrating as another instrument instead of taking spotlight; a hallmark of doom metal's extension from Black Sabbath and Blue Cheer. Yet it doesn't remain content with just being any one of these things, which becomes even more apparent with the second track 'Keep Watching the Skies': a short but energetic and melodically complex tune in which the keyboard plays off the backing guitar really well, and the lead guitar soars but for a couple of measures in regal ecstasy.
'March of the Mule' goes even heavier with the melodic distortion, charging onward to the steady but powerful marching cadence of the drummer, giving way into a psychedelic explosion of high energy that breaks down into a more spacious prog rock realm of "epic-epicness". The way in which the guitar, synth and bass integrate so perfectly with the ferocious beast of a drummer make this perhaps my favorite track on the EP.
The EP ends with the massive and atmospheric 'Strange Love'; a more psych rock oriented tune with verbed-out vocals that seem to channel a strange and mysterious fairy tale vibe. A suitable closer with a sense of both finality and the onward journey for cosmic truth. This EP manages to pack a lot of content for its short duration, and with a ferocious intensity that demonstrates a wide and proficient knowledge of psychedelic rock and roll.
Well, this one's quite the oddity. It took me a couple tries of listening to find the right headspace for this sort of thing. The majority of it appears to be various acapella experiments from vocalist Suzanne Doucet with occasional guitar accompaniment. It was a 3xLP release that apparently came with a mirror in the center part of the cover (seems to have fallen off from most surviving copies). Presumably, each of the three records are sectioned as "Trip (In / Out) / Flip Out (Wrong/Right) / Meditation (Point / Circle)", with every track being full-sided containing various movements.
LP A/B: Trip (In / Out)
A1. Beginning
A2. Analysis of Tune
A3. To Hear Inside
A4. A Very Simple Song
B1. Misty Tour
B2. Water Sound
B3. Television
B4. Organ Dreams (A Very Simple Song)
LP C/D: Flip Out (Wrong / Right)
C1. Childrens' Golden Garden
C2. To Become a Child
C3. Children's Golden Garden
D1. Everything Returns
D2. Indian Child
D3. The Theory of Relativity LP E/F: Meditation (Point / Circle)
E1. Atomical Fantasy (Electronic)
E2. Incarnation
E3. Childhood's Church
E4. Life Train
E5. Dream of Love and Death
E6. Atomical Fantasy
F1. A Verdi's Soul Born Again
F2. Mind Beat
F3. Himalaya's Way
F4. Heaven Bridge
F5. Out of Time
F6. Atomical Fade Out
In Depth
I would say the first 10 or so minutes (A1 and A2?) of this album seem deceptively insubstantial compared to everything else, picking up almost immediately by the second half of side A (In) with some interesting guitar experiments. Side B (Out) has all these strange watery vocal effects and psychedelic synth organ drones.
The second LP "Flip Out" goes right into more crazy vocal experimentation, including lots of pitched up chattering reminiscent of Pink Floyd's "Ummagumma." The second side (Right) has more intense experiments with field recordings of various kinds of voices, starting off with what sounds like a rollercoaster filled with people speeding through an enormous cold and empty metal chamber. There are a couple parts to Right that are even straight-up noise. The second half of Right, into more high pitched voices reminiscent of the previous side (Wrong), with strange hypnotic singing.
I really like the start of Meditation: Point, which I presume to be Atomical Fantasy (Electronic). More of those bird like synth noises reminiscent of Morton Subotnik. I felt pretty bored from the sections after that one, which sounds like random percussion banging and someone who doesn't know how to play recorder and accordion. I acknowledge examples of non-musicians such as Cosi Fanni Tutti's trumpet playing in TG. I guess it's all subjective as to when such things are enjoyable, and I'm not sure if I can give a consistent answer as to why and when I'm into something like that. The second half of Point has some pretty cool atmospheric musique concrète, followed by more silly recorder noodling, random baroque organ, and more accordion drones which are kind of cool at times. This LP side started out promising but mostly lost my interest by the second half, with occasional redeeming elements here and there.
By the final LP side (Circle) I feel pretty uninterested. More percussion banging without variation, just a straight beat and not a particularly interesting texture that doesn't stop for the first 7 minutes, over more random accordion and organ noodling. At around 7:30 there's some guitar plucking. It's slow, and seems like it would be cool if I was anticipating some epic buildup, but knowing there will be no payoff, no lead up to any sort of coherent progression I find that I just don't care. The strumming remains pretty much the same with little variation before going into some other random section of field recording and recorder. Now I mostly just feel relieved that the album is almost over. I do like the section at around 13 minutes, that has shingles and more of those bird synths noises. It really seemed like there was potential here for a really far out LP, but this just isn't it. Most of the time it seems there's little thought put into how these sounds are presented, given little to no melodic or rhythmic variation, any interesting elements being almost incidental. Perhaps I just don't see what she sees in these experiments.
Overall
Whether you find this album enjoyable all depends on your threshold for prolonged minimal sound experiments, primarily vocals, accordion, recorder, and organ. If you have the patience for modern classical artists like John Cage, or liked Pink Floyd's "Ummagumma", Mike Patton's "Adult Sounds for Voice", the original Amon Düül, or maybe John and Yoko's "Unfinished Music No. 1-2" this is right up your alley. It was a challenge to get through with occasional payoff. It seems like it tries to come off as a highly conceptualized experiment but instead falls flat, sounding random, amateur, and limited in its scope and understanding of avant-garde musical possibilities. It is kind of neat that a mostly conventional pop singer would want to go far out and do something like this, but perhaps if she'd applied herself a little more or learned some instruments instead of what sounds to be like a collage of noises quickly thrown together it could have been more interesting. But on the other hand, maybe there's also a place for amateur stream of consciousness experiments like this too. You decide. 4/10
Despite its unassuming cover, Dom's 'Edge of Time' is a very interesting and well done LP. They were a 4 piece, who only put this out in the early 70s. It's very thought out and well put together with many different sections. It has only 4 tracks but all are pretty long and make every minute count.
1. Introitus
2. Silence
3. Edge of Time
4. Dream
The album has a nice dreamy quality to it, with excellent use of acoustic guitar over organ drones, as well as many out of this world synth textures. I really like the wispy magical quality to 'Silence' with the whispers and moans of the vocals, and how they meld into the hypnotic organ during the first section. The next section has some REALLY awesome tape experimentations that sound like an aircraft, with a flute playing over it while the guitar just slowly plucks away. The combination of sounds here works amazingly well, creating a mood that's hard to describe. A truly unforgettable piece.
This isn't the first time German psychedelic rock has reminded me of industrial. Especially with their early experimention in sound effects and tape loops. The title-track starts with this mesmerizing combination of the eeriest soundscapes over a wavering organ. It then goes into this slow acoustic jam that seems to float over this strange and evil soundscape. When it picks up with the drums, the synth makes this incredible harmonic buzzing noise that's hard to describe. The female vocals are a nice touch, and I dig the spoken word. And the flute near the end is great too.
The last track goes totally off the rails with chaotic dissonance for about 1 minute. After that is a nice progression of acoustic guitar and a sustained synth pad, backed by some excellent bass guitar. It's probably the most jam oriented section of the whole album and they do it really well, although the creative decision to suddenly cut it off at about the 5 minute mark into something entirely different is kind of strange. The section after that sounds like dissonant xylophone noodling and all manner of exotic cymbal hits, some prepared piano, and a timpani (perhaps this being where they fiddled around with the studio's on-hand equipment. just a hunch). It's a much more random seeming piece than tracks 2 and 3, which are by far the standouts on this album.
Dom incorporates a number of great folk elements without quite falling into the category of folk itself. It's very concisely organized while maintaining a mood that is both mellow and uneasy at the same time. There's really no other sound quite like it. It's not particularly long but it makes its point effectively with memorable parts especially in tracks 2 and 3, although 1 and 4 are alright as well. 7/10
In Agitation Free's first album they did laid back psych rock jams with middle eastern influences, kind of reminding me of Caravan's first LP. But their second LP '2nd' is a whole other story.
The band started out with a tumultuous, ever-changing line-up that didn't start to settle until around 1971. As such, the two remaining members from the band for the recording of '2nd' are bassist Michael Günther and guitar/bouzouki player Lutz Ulbrich (he played a zither in the previous LP). The other three members are Stefan Diez on guitar, Burghard Rausch on drums, and Michael Hoenig on synth.
greek guitar 'Bouzouki'
A1. First Communication
A2. Dialogue and Random
A3. Laila Part I
A4. Laila Part II
B1. In the Silence of the Morning Sunrise
B2. A Quiet Walk
a) Listening
b) Not of the Same Kind
B3. Haunted Island
One thing I favor highly in an album is diversity, and 2nd has a lot of it. Far-out synthscape and intricate guitar melodies will be found all throughout. It starts with the delightful and highly accessible epic 'First Communication.' From there it gets a lot stranger. Whereas 'First Communication' was mostly this complex and melodically lush prog rock piece, the next track 'Dialogue and Random' is a strange synth-only experiment reminiscent of Morton Subotnik. Short but sweet. It kicks off right back into some prog rock awesomeness with Laila. I especially like the groovy bass playing in Part II. In the Silence of the Morning Sunrise is this moody, almost noir attitude groove, and featuring awesome synth bird sounds near the end.
A Quiet Walk is a real oddity. Sparse and eerie, with all kinds of awesome "haunted house" synth noises that goes into a fast rhythm guitar heavy thing in the second half (indeed its called 'Not the Same Kind'). The closing track Haunted House is extremely interesting. There is no way I can adequately describe the vibe to it, but it's something that's really one of a kind. And the way in which the album leads up to it as a closer only serves to add to its sense of mystery. It's one of those songs that grows on you with each new listen.
2nd is an example of the more adventurous 70s rock groups who treated their LP as a thematic "artpiece" to be taken in as a whole, with the concise use of each element, reminiscent of Faust. It's something to mull over, something that commands full attention. And it changes meaning/significance after each playthrough. I highly enjoy albums that are capable of doing that for me. 9/10
Banished Bridge is a synth-heavy prog album that, although not especially ground breaking, is very dear to me in its raw emotion which I find somewhat reminiscent to Eloy. In this debut, Novalis was a four piece consisting of Heino Schünzel (bass), Hartwig Biereichel (drums), Lutz Rahn (synth), and Jürgen Wenzel (vocals and guitar). It consists of the epic whole-sided title-track, followed by three shorter ones on side B.
A - Banished Bridge
B1 - High Evolution
B2 - Laughing
B3 - Inside of Me (Inside of You)
Listening to these songs again conjure up past memories in a way I don't commonly experience with other records; A time when I was newer to the various styles of 70s prog. This style doesn't seem to have blues or classical influences so much as much soul and gospel, which works especially well with Lutz Rahn's keyboard playing.
The title-track Banished Bridge is an epic 17 minute piece consisting of many sections, which can be somewhat divided into two identical halves. The bird field recording in the opening is such a great touch, and Jürgen Wenzel's vocals seem to just soar through like a bird by the 2:20 mark, in almost a whisper that reminds me of Pink Floyd's 'Green is the Color' (feeling a sense of déjà vu with this comparison?). The intro goes until around 3:30, when the two-halved sequence begins. Here you can hear Lutz Rahn multi-layering what I think to be three synths together in such a gorgeous way, giving way to this awesome in breakdown. The lack of guitar in no way leaves Novalis' empty sounding in Lutz Rahn's driving performance on multiple keyboards, with spot-on precision and emotion. There's also a great choir piece around 10 minutes in, reminding me of Amon Düül II's 'Yeti' but perhaps more powerful and focused. These are musicians with a direct motive and a means of executing them effectively, in contrast to Amon Düül II's more jam oriented endeavors.
It's hard to express the way I feel towards the next song, High Evolution, one of my favorite 70s psych/prog songs of all time. It evokes in me an anxious sense of mortality and existential wandering. The circular nature of existence that comes with time and age. There is something incredible of about the frantic hyper-arpeggiation of the synth, with the dazed and verbed-out existential musings of Jürgen Wenzel. Really wish I could look at what the official lyrics were because they sound incredibly interesting. But anyway, it's an incredibly tight prog rock masterpiece, each sectioning fitting so well into eachother, and in creative ways. I absolutely adore the backing vocalists. The mixing is perfectly balanced, with just the right level of effects.
The third track Laughing never made as big an impression on me compared with the other ones, not to say it's particularly less good, but in how the other ones deeply effected me emotionally, whereas Laughing is more compositionally interesting. It features some soulful keyboard soloing that really rock out and very tight acoustic guitar by Jürgen Wenzel. Laughing doesn't come at me in the raw, immediately sort of way the other tracks did, but it's just as complicated and interesting, and I admire it no less for being that way. Novalis are very tight with their sections, every part exactly where it needs to be for the right amount of time, and impressively this track is no exception. One could argue it's the most complex song on Banished Bridge.
The closing finale, Inside of Me (Inside of You) takes it's sweet time to built up to what (for me) is the most emotionally rapturous and soulful part of the album. Once again I wish I could read what the official lyrics were, because I adore Jürgen Wenzel voice and like the bits of phrases I can make out (I've never been particularly good at hearing out words in music very well). There is something emotionally pure, direct, and uplifting about the keyboard's church organ playing, its effectiveness somehow residing in its simplicity, with its bright and bold major-sounding chords. The brief rock-out ending in the last 15 seconds makes for a nice touch as well.
I don't know if this album is for everyone. I'm not sure who exactly I'd recommend this to. If synth-heavy psychedelia isn't your bag, this may not be your thing, although I might still implore you to give it a try anyway, for the uniquely talented synth-layering methods of Lutz Rahn's playing. And keep in mind that Novalis's precise playing is not like the more open-ended, jammed-out soloing that most psych rock is associated with. Some people I've shown this record to have complained about the shrillness of the organ
sound, but it's something I've always personally liked about that
instrument so that was never an issue for me. I've always regarded it as one of my most precious finds within 70s psych/prog realm. It's one of those LP's I keep going back to, luring me with its roller coaster of existential as well as uplifting rawness, clarity, and excellent musicianship, as well as its short/concise length of around 37 minutes. I would give this an "objective" 8/10 for its excellent musicianship but not particularly groundbreaking sound, and a "personal" 9/10 for its emotional resonance with me.
PS: It has a curiously inconspicuous album cover, in a style that reminds me of Arvo Pärt and Organum.
Brainstorm is this amazing jazz/prog rock band I stumbled upon through Spiegelei's catalogue. They are a four piece with Rainer Bodensohn on vocals/flute/bass, Roland Schaeffer on just about everything looks like, Joachim Koinzer on drums, and Eddy von Overheidt on Piano. It is one of the more intense, high energy prog albums I've heard, with Joachim Koinzer's excellent drum skills leading the way through.
1. Das Schwein Trügt 2. Zwick Zwick 3. Watch Time Flow By 4. Bosco Biati Weiß Alles a) Bosco Biati b) Weiß c) Alles
5. Snakeskin Tango 6. Smile a While a) Intro b) Brainstorm c) These d) Antithese e) Morning Tune f) Smile a While 7. You Are What's Gonna Make it Last 8. Don't Forget
The first two tracks start with a bang: incredibly dense, heavily percussive sections. The third track being a short flute intensive interlude, followed by "Bosco Biati Weiß Alles" which starts very sax intensive, a nice drum solo in the middle, and then in Part C these almost bossa nova style vocals that harmonize with the guitar. I love the crazy vocals in Snakeskin Tango. Brainstorm can really cut loose on a tight, high concept level of instrumentation. The epic 15 minute title-track is perhaps the best example of this, where they rock out really hard. A well crafted epic showcasing the talents of a tight group with wide ranging skills.
The last song, You Are What's Gonna Make It Last is the shorter, more radio friendly song on the album. Even in the context of a quaint psych blues rock ditty, I think they really kick ass, complete with short-but-sweet guitar solo. Not much else to say. Smile a While is brain candy for the Prog Rock enthusiast, with a diverse range of instrumentation and rhythmically complex ideas. Highly recommended. 9/10
