Gargantua s/t
This Polish progressive rock group was one of the few more or less directly in the style that actually drew my interest recently, although I wouldn’t say this is a perfect release. Kind of a more symphonic variant on the Gentle Giant style, a little more modern and generally eschewing some of the more cheesier and melodramatic elements of the style, or at least that’s how it seems to me after a single listen. I still see it headed for a 9 but you never know.
The Guess Who - Share the Land
Maybe the last album of the band’s peak, it’s still not as surefooted as the previous two, Canned Wheat and American Woman. I’ve likely mentioned before, but I grew up on this sort of thing in high school, but I think I must have missed this one, other than the rather famous title piece, as most of it seemed kind of unfamiliar. It’s still quite good, kind of a cross between an R&B thing and classic rock. But not the place to start. I got much more out of Canned Wheat in a revisit.
Van Halen - Fair Warning
I’m not going to cop to being the biggest Van Halen fan, but at an earlier age than the Guess Who days, I liked them, or at least songs and always thought this one was my favorite due to a track or two. What relistening to it did for me is to remind me of what a patchy band they are, I doubt there’s a Van Halen album I like every track on and probably some I wouldn’t like anything on. When they do the muscular rock stuff and Roth holds in his excesses, only the occasionally tacky playing of Eddie Van Halen gets in the way much, but the hints of the solo Roth vaudeville school are starting to raise their head here. Plus I prefer a band like AC/DC who at least play coy and clever with their flirt-talk, rather than the dog-humping-a-leg patter on display here. And it only got worse!