Outer Music Diary

Pocket Orchestra – Knebnagauje (1984 USA). These go hand in hand with two other groups I’ve been checking out lately: Uz Jsme Doma and Begnagrad. This is “neener-neener” music to the neener-nth degree. A bit of a geek-fest, but insanely complex and the musicianship is way above standard. A walking definition of the term “avant progressive” as I know it. The 1983-4 material is much more in the avant prog zone, and you have to think they were well versed with the French AYAA label. Whatever the case, they were completely out of place in Phoenix, Arizona. The namesake title era of 1978-1979 shows their affiliation with the other famous Phoenix band, Cartoon. Both had a penchant to break out into a tuneless improve after cooking on some great grooves. Too bad they insisted on that, since some of this is outstanding material. Still I found this era to be better for the band, with a stronger rock element and more grit to the playing. Overall, not necessarily a favored style, but I can get into this with little effort.

Rebekka – Phoenix (1982 Germany). Been awhile since I heard this Musea CD, but my impressions haven’t changed a bit over the years. Part of a small cadre of German bands from the late 70s and early 80s that combined female vocal led soft rock, some folk, Eastern sounds and an occasional prog rock outburst. Werwolf, Yavanna, Credemus and Eden are a few bands that come to mind. One could throw Emma Myldenburger in here as well, but they were a bit more special. Anyway, good stuff overall, recommended to fans of Renaissance and other similar acts. Unusual as it is, but the CD bonus is the best track - a 12 minute Eastern journey “Lotus” which had to be left off the LP for time length reasons.

Melodic Energy Commission - Time… Is a Slippery Concept (2005 Canada). With these guys, time is a slippery concept. In 1979, MEC sounded like 1971. In 1980 they sounded like 1971. And 25 years later they sound like…no door prizes… 1971! When I say 1971, I don’t mean production styles and era instrumentation, but rather a certain adventurous composition style, completely non-linear and skewed, beyond the scope of rational imagination. Add to that about a baker’s dozen different instruments and a distinctive psychedelic sound, and you have one of the great modern space rock albums. Instant classic with plenty of room to grow from there. File Don Xaliman next to John L. as true modern geniuses who will be discovered long after they’re gone.

(originally posted Sep. 2005)

Quantum Fantay - Agapanthusterra (2005 Belgium).
Quantum Fantay - Ugisiunsi (2007 Belgium). Quantum Fantay are from the latest crop of new bands to play in the post “You” era Gong style. Following in the footsteps of Ozric Tentacles, Hidria Spacefolk and Korai Orom, Quantum Fantay are on the heavier side of the continuum. Like Ozric, they embrace the raucous Moog sequencing that is also prominent is some areas of electronica. But Quantum Fantay stop short of techno, and use regular rock structures and instruments, including real drums. While the debut “Agapanthusterra” could be considered another Ozric album, the sophomore effort “Ugisiunsi” utilizes to a greater extent other music vehicles like flute, violin and wordless female voice, thus adding color to the usual guitar / keyboard raveups. The guitarist adds some metalish crunch at times, recalling the 90s Dutch band Kong. And the solos are Ed Wynne-esque in their intensity. Like Hidria Spacefolk, Quantum Fantay also display a penchant for progressive rock themes and complexities - something that Ozric did more frequently in their past with songs like ‘White Rhino Tea’. Quantum Fantay look to be a major force in the space rock circuit.

Kosmos - s/t (2007 Canada). Kosmos are a new space rock band released on a most unlikely label: The End Records, known most for their avant garde-ish metal releases. But Kosmos features metal royalty, in the man of Away, the drummer of Quebec legends Voivod. What’s most fascinating about Kosmos is that they’re treading new territories over a familiar ground. Unlike most of their metal brethren, there is not a hint of the Desert Rock / Stoner movement to be found. Nor will one hear the post-Gong raveups ala Ozric Tentacles. And you won’t find the retro Krautrock of Electric Orange and The Spacious Mind. Other than some obvious nods to the Neu!/Faust wing of the motorik style, as heard on the appropriately named Faustian “Krautrock”, most of Kosmos’ debut is entirely their own sound. The punkish number with French narration absolutely kills when contrasted against the fuzz bass driven/decidely early 80s French variation of new wave space rock. You don’t know Gutura? I doubt Kosmos does either, but they conjured up the ghost somehow on a couple of tracks. Lots here to discover. I can’t think of another band in Quebec playing music anywhere close to this right now. Hopefully they’ll continue the space rock sound, and forego the temptation to add metal. That’s like adding mustard to your pasta - don’t want to do that.

Machine – s/t (1970 Netherlands). Machine were a 1970 Dutch group who played a mix of what was popular at the time: Psych, progressive, hard rock and horn rock. Nederbeat was one of the more healthy psych/garage scenes coming out of continental Europe and Machine were like the latter stages of those groups such as Q65 and Cosmic Dealer. The strong Hammond organ presence adds a proto-prog sound similar to Deep Purple and Mainhorse. Horns were frequently inserted in those days to increase the odds of a chart appearance, given the wild success of Chicago and Blood Sweat and Tears. And, as expected, there’s also a strong blues influence throughout. The album has a strong start but really crawls to the finish, as predictable 3-chord blues rock takes over the lion’s share of the proceedings. Recommended to fans for bands as diverse as Affinity, Ahora Mazda, Warhorse and Irish Coffee. No legit CD exists.

Goliath – s/t (1972 England). In the jazzy proto-prog area, with plenty of great flute, and SASSY female vocals. I’d be surprised if this chick made it to her 30th birthday, but she sure put her estrogen into this one. One band that rarely gets mentioned as a comparison, but did come to mind here is Fusion Orchestra. More gritty and less progressive perhaps, but does paint a pretty accurate picture. I also hear some melody/composition lines that recalled the great Diabolus album. Affinity is probably the most obvious comparison and when they really get into jazz mode, Catapilla came to mind. Sassy baby! No legit CD for this either.

Frank Marino – The Power of Rock and Roll (1981 Canada). Right in the breadbasket of Frank’s prime era (roughly 1979-1982). While his previous effort “What’s Next” is generally regarded as his high water mark (and I agree), I’d say “The Power of Rock and Roll” is his most consistent effort. Gone are the tedious blues numbers and its place are 100% Frank Marino patented hard rockers. Simple chord tunes with a few yelled lyrics to qualify it as a “song” and then onto some amazing guitar instrumental jam, featuring non-stop screaming guitar (with lots of effects) and through a myriad of genres like jazz, blues, prog, or whatever the hell he felt like. The Mahogany Rush rhythm section were no slouches either, adding that extra zip to propel Frank along into the stratosphere. The 3 long tracks here are incredible, while the shorter ones just have less jams, so not quite as good. Among the best albums he’s ever done. I was already into Frank’s music when this came out, and I can tell you that even then, this album was out of touch with the times. Punk, metal, new wave, arena rock or synth-pop was getting all the airplay (on both radio and MTV). But guitar fronted hard rock? Only as a private press maybe. But Columbia carried on with Frank for as long as they could. And he hasn’t changed a bit, as his last studio album “Eye of the Storm” will attest to. One of those artists I appreciate more every year.

(originally posted Sep. 2005)

Black Mountain - In the Future (2008 Canada). Many bands that have a retro bent, try hard to capture the essence of the late 60s or the early 70s. Rare is a band that understood the mindset of 1978. To me, “In the Future” is like discovering the most interesting looking album at the local Montgomery Wards, set inside some ancient mall that felt more like a DMZ than a shopping plaza. Black Mountain has captured the aura of what Arista Records originally intended to do, before giving into crass commercialism. It’s the type of album you can hear over and over, because of the many different textures, colors and styles. But not in a modern post-rock kitschy way. Rather with the perspective of the 1970’s landscape already in mind. The kind of album, in fact, you WANT to hear over and over in one sitting. Prog rock for the arena concert scene of 1978, and that’s not the same thing as arena rock. Those who were there know the difference. And if you don’t, pick up “In the Future” and compare for yourself. Recommended.

Radio Massacre International - Septentrional (2006 England). RMI have to be viewed as one of the most innovative of recent groups. Certainly within the electronic music space, a field that has the same devotion and non wavering loyalty to sub-genres as does heavy metal. You’re either “Berlin School” or “Ambient” or “Techno” or any other such labels, but you shouldn’t be all of them say many fans. RMI, who started out pretty much “Berlin School”, is now all the above and more, with recent excursions into trippy Krautrock and whatever else they feel like doing. “Septentrional” is one of their most polarizing CD albums (RMI’s privately released CD-R’s are even more off the rails). Produced by Ian Boddy and released on his DiN label, “Septentrional” is RMI at their most modern and controversial. But in a paradoxical way. See, “Septentrional” has more of that ancient mellotron than any of their other albums. Of course it’s put through the production grinder and is echoed, technoed, phased and manipulated through Boddy’s mad scientist lab. It’s all rather fascinating. Headphone music for the modern age. In fact, I now rate this amongst the top quadrant of RMI albums, and that’s quite a statement given they have such an impressive body of work. Keep it going guys!

Radio Massacre International - Rain Falls in Grey (2007 England). As stated in the “Septentrional” blurb, RMI are one of today’s most innovative groups. Case in point: “Rain Falls in Grey”. On this outing, RMI pays their respect to Syd Barrett. Musically this is RMI’s most overt space rock effort, with raging electric guitars and ferocious drumming. As well, RMI has successfully created those magical atmospheres that one would tyically find on an old German Ohr release, who themselves were enamored with late 60’s Pink Floyd. This being RMI, one is never too far from classic mid 70’s Tangerine Dream, and the combination of the early Krautrock sound with “Berlin School” electronics is highly fascinating. After a bit of a lull at the beginning of the decade, RMI has created a triumvirate of classic releases starting with “Emissaries”. Each represents an entirely different sound. Rare is this kind of innovation found, much less from a band whose recording history is almost 15 years old.

Judas Priest – Rocka Rolla (1974 England). First time to hear on CD. I remember originally buying this LP in Seattle circa 1979. I was 14 and a huge Priest fan at the time. And for some reason, this title was hard to score in chain mall-store infested Dallas. My Uncle (who could double for Archie Bunker) let me have 20 minutes in a cool record store (Peaches I think?), and I made the best of it with what I knew at the time. Naturally I was disappointed with this non aggressive, non metal album. Time and revisionist perspectives have been very good for “Rocka Rolla”. I highly encourage all Priest fans to listen to this with a fresh set of ears. Rather than expect `Genocide’ or `Exciter’, listen for good old fashioned hard rock. Admit it, had this band been called Dustwood, released a private album from 1974 and were from Pittsburgh, it would be a $400 album. Besides, there are some definite early Priest riffs here like on `Cheater’ and `Dying to Meet You’. I really dig the arty feedback laden tracks `Winter’ and `Deep Freeze’. Also the lengthy mopey guitar solo driven `Run of the Mill’. Not to mention the instrumental melancholic closer `Caviar and Meths’.

Host – Hardt mot Hardt (1976 Norway). For some reason, over the years, I have developed a strong liking for Scandinavian vocals – or at least I really enjoy the delivery of them. Host were one of the early bands to use their native Norwegian. With the heavy guitars, a strong organ presence, complex song structures, a few dashes of Yes, along with the aforementioned vocals, it’s a real mystery I don’t rate this album in the higher echelons. The early tracks are outstanding, but it loses something as it goes. There’s some almost commercial rock moves in the middle of the album that takes a little something off. Still, a no-brainer purchase for those that like the heavy end of the progressive rock spectrum. They’re just missing that extra special “something” that a band like Trettioariga Kriget had, for example, during this era.

Gemini – Counterbalance (1981 England). This is striking me better than I remember. Musically, these guys score some nice points for melody and composition. They get dinged, though, for period instrumentation. Sounds like their lead synth choice was a Moog Opus 3, or some other early polyphonic synthesizer. And the lack of other lead instrument vehicles like guitar, sax, flute, organ, etc… makes this one a bit tougher to give a higher grade, given that it’s an instrumental album and all. Rhythm section is quite good though, not crisp but precise all the same. And the final long track features guitar as well, adding exactly what they need. No CD exists.

(originally posted Nov. 2005)

Forgas Band Phenomena – Soleil 12 (2005 France). For me, one of the most anticipated new albums for 2005. Definitely not a let down, as Forgas and Co. really put together a nice set of instrumental compositions. The opening title track is the best, almost deploying a horn rock sound. This is followed by a 34 minute number that tends to drag a bit. I think that’s the main problem with the album, as it doesn’t sustain the enthusiasm for its length (another 28 minutes follows). It’s never boring, just missing a little something. Like running the football on every play – until they finally score a touchdown. Give me a little razzle dazzle! My guess is the “one take – live concert” concept hurt it a bit. From my perspective, “Soleil 12″ falls behind the debut, but is better than the sophomore album.

Napoli Centrale – s/t (1975 Italy).
Napoli Centrale – Mattanza (1976 Italy). The debut is a competent, better than average progressive fusion with vocals. Politically oriented band, though the album doesn’t have that angry feel of their socially conscious brothers in Germany. On a musical level, more enjoyable than similar acts like Il Baricentro, New Trolls Atomic System and latter day Arti+Mestieri. This one is aging well. The followup, which I hadn’t heard prior, is a little more edgy, the vocals are indeed angrier and the sax player has a definite free jazz quality about him. Not that it’s free blow or anything, but definitely a little more grinding. These CDs have cell phone ads stapled in the booklet. For crying out loud…

Wicked Minds – From the Purple Skies (2004 Italy). So many of these new stoner bands seem more interested in the social aspects of said lifestyle, rather than what makes it really interesting – and that’s the music. Wicked Minds may be the best band in this genre I’ve heard that captures the essence of the early 70s, while still moving the ball forward into the modern age. Fantastic hard prog rock, with great period instrumentation such as organ and fuzz guitar. Long tracks with experimental bits also points to an adventurous heritage. All roads lead to the UK early 70s non-symphonic school. Very much recommended.

(Originally posted Dec. 2005)

Quarteto 1111 - Onde, Quando, Como, Porquê Cantamos Pessoas Vivas (1975 Portugal). I knew this EMI album was Jose Cid’s band before going solo, but I always thought they were a pop group with some progressive leanings. And maybe that’s true for their 1970 effort. But this opus would fit smack dab in the middle of the 1973 Italian prog movement. Mellotron galore, with dramatic vocals that would make a band like Celeste or Quella Vecchia Locanda proud. In fact, this album has more mellotron than any other album I can think of. And the melodies are sublime, a rare “certain sound” that is hard to write about, but no one creates music like this anymore. I first heard of this album from an article in an old Marquee from Japan, and someone translated it for me. All these years of searching for it, and it’s still impossible to get ahold of, despite being on a major label. Finally reissued legit in 2008 on the Portuguese label iPlay in a nice digipak with liner notes from the band (in Portuguese).

Bland Bladen - I Grevens Tid (2003 Sweden) Bland Bladen are veterans of the Swedish spacerock scene, and play frequently with another great Danish/Swedish band in Oresund Space Collective. Naturally bands like Hidria Spacefolk and Ozric Tentacles are thrown out as influences, along with newcomers like OSC and Quantum Fantay. There’s an underlying Swedish folk sound added to the proceedings, which give Bland Bladen a unique vibe. Echoed blues guitar and some Doors like electric piano are applied to great effect. More laid back than many in this genre. Album was originally released by the band as a limited run CD-R in 2003. The official CD (released in 2008) is courtesy of Transubstans, who will also be releasing a subsequent new album hopefully soon!

Ozric Tentacles - The Floor’s Too Far Away (2006 England). As I stated on my review for “Spirals in Hyperspace” a few years back, I felt the band were going the wrong way by working with smaller lineups. “The Floor’s Too Far Away” does not address this problem, however this is a much better sophomore effort for their latest label Magna Carta. Most of the tracks here utilize real drums, and the ones that use machines, are of a high energy level, appropriate for the near-electronica that Ozric has always been. Tracks like ‘Jellylips’ are as powerful as any track in their entire, and extensive, discography. And Ed Wynne delivers molten guitar solos on almost every track, as opposed to only a handful. It’s always the guitar centric tracks that are favorites in the Ozric live repertoire, so look for some new classics to be added. “The Floor’s Too Far Away” is not amongst the very best of the Ozric albums, nor is it near the bottom. Definitely a solid work, and recommended to Ozric fans, even those that have tired of them a bit. Now if they’d only add more instruments…

NoVox – s/t (2005 Netherlands). Cliffhanger may be my favorite of all the bands working under the neo prog banner. I like their adventurous songwriting, elaborate compositions, and mix of modern and vintage equipment use. NoVox is all the members of Cliffhanger minus vocals. Here the group mixes up full band compositions with piano solos, fuzz bass/drum workouts and mellotron featured tracks. Maybe what I like most from Cliffhanger, and NoVox, is the bass player. He’s very active and has that super cool “woody” sound that really drives the material forward. In all, a really good new album.

Oblique – s/t (1985 Netherlands). One of many obscurities that I had received in my cassette tape trading days. I didn’t even realize I had this until digging through the tape drawer recently. An interesting mix of Berlin School electronics, new age and instrumental rock with electric guitar and sax. Not too bad, though typical of the era. Never reissued on CD.

Pugh’s Place – West One (1973 Netherlands). An album I always think I’m going to love, and just never do. Pugh’s Place is the type of rock I really get into, with a winds lead, heavy guitars and high energy tracks. Maybe it’s the liberal use of covers (ugh – “Drive My Car beep, beep YEAAA” NOOO!). It is pretty good, but most albums in this genre score better on the whole. I don’t think this one ever was released legit on CD.

Supersister – Spiral Staircase (1974 Netherlands). Arrgh, this album just bugs the heck out of me. As if the silly portions of their previous albums didn’t hurt them enough, they go off and decide that they should release a whole album of it! Of course there are some good moments to be found here, but in the end, it seems like a bunch of great musicians wasting a lot of time goofing around for this outing. And never to release a new album again. Boo!

(Originally posted Dec. 2005)