Discography

Black Noise (77) Headroom (78, aka FM) Surveillance (79) City Of Fear (80) CON-TEST (85) Tonight This Time (87) RetroActive (95)

Reviews

Canadian trio who made a very accessible progressive rock, very influenced by Yes and Genesis, and much science fiction lyric is involved.

Canadian Trio featuring Cameron Hawkins (Synthesizer, Bass, Bass-Pedals, Vocal), Martin Deller (Drums,Percussion), Ben Mink (Violin and Mandolin on 1st, 3rd and 4th albums, Guitar on 5th) and Nash The Slash (Violin, Mandolin and Vocals on 2nd and 5th albums). Their sound was pretty unique as the Mandolin subs for guitar throughout; The earliest albums tend to be more jazz-fusion influenced, the first Headroom, consisting of two sidelong instrumental pieces recorded direct-to-disc. With the second album Black Noise, there is less reliance on improvisation as they became more Yes influenced, with multi-part complimentary vocal arrangements, and science fiction based lyrics. Surveillance carried on in much the same mode, but by this point any remaining jazz influences had all but disappeared. City Of Fear was their first dog, where about half the tunes appear to be attempts to make a hit single; the remaining (good) tracks were leftovers from the soundtrack to the movie "The Incubus." They regrouped in the mid-80's as a four piece for Con-Test, this time the entire project seemed to be aimed at the pop single market, which they finally got with the minor hit "Why Don't You Take It," which resounded with it's Phil Collins-isms. Most of the album's tracks sound more like The Cars circa Candy-O than like anything FM had done before. By 1987 both Deller and Mink had bailed, leaving Hawkins and Slash to try to do it again with two newbies. The result was Tonight a totally mainstream album without even the slightest hint of their better days. Any of the first three are a good place to start.

Interesting Canadian band. The direct-to-disc first album consists of two 16-minute-or-so pieces of exploratory improvisation using bass guitar and pedals, electric violins and mandolin, and tons of synthesizers. Vocals are buried deep in the mix, almost impossible to hear even if you try. Still, completely intruguing. Black Noise is probably their best album, more song orientated with now prominent vocals. The use of electric mandolin gives it the necessary originality, I certainly don't know of any other band that's used it to this extent before. Something like a high-tech, spacy mix of Rush and U.K., for want of a better comparison. Black Noise is definitely the one to begin with, if only for the magnificent 10-minute title track. Surveillance is the beginning of a downward-spiral for the band, the degeneration is already beginning to set in, as evidenced by the banal cover of the Yardbirds' "Shapes Of Things." Still, songs such as "Orion" and "Sofa Back" make this one decent enough to be enjoyable. -- Mike Ohman

Canadian band with some interesting albums at the end of the seventies. Black Noise is very good, clean production, listen with a headphone! Surveillance is also worthwhile but no songs catch my attention. City of Fear is a question of taste, the songs are certainly more commercial with simpler structures (check the chorus). Nevertheless I like it, the vocals are good and the playing is as with all albums superb (the electric mandoline is still very much evident). I've also got one their eighties albums on tape, avoid it all costs. It's amazing how bands can change their sound! -- Eric Hermans

Black Noise (1977): A three-piece band set in Toronto, the first lineup consists of Cameron Hawkins (keys, bass, vocals), Martin Deller (drums, synth), and Nash The Slash (violin/mandolin, vocals). Note the absence of guitar, but you couldn't tell that from Nash The Slash's electric violin, which sounds like a guitar at times. This is their true first album; synthesizer-driven progressive music that rocks out at times. One can notice a definite Yes influence, as well as then-contemporaries Rush (particularly in the keyboard parts). There is some pop edge to the vocal pieces (well, it IS 1977, when most progressive bands were trading in quality for commercialism), and most songs have a basic structure to them. However, this doesn't detract from the music, as the musicianship is high and the melodies are quite memorable. Overall, this is a quality album and is the one to start with if you're curious about this band. Headroom (Direct To Disc) (1978): By this point, Nash The Slash left for a solo career, and was replaced by Ben Mink on electric violin and mandolin. This is an unusual recording in that it consists of two side-long pieces that were recorded directly to vinyl without a master acetate. As a result, the pieces were done in one take with no overdubs! Each piece has many parts to it, and explore quite a few variations in style. The intro in very Yes-like, with each musician trading off high-speed licks with each other (complete with Chris Squire bass runs!). In contrast, here are other sections that are completely improvised, and convey a spacey feel to the music. Good stuff. Each part is described by the band on the album notes, but you can't help but laugh at some of the lines: "The piece concludes with added synthesizer environments of modulated noise and alpha brain wave control of an ARP2500"! Still, this is quite a good album, if you can find it. Only 200 or so copies were made, so it could be quite pricey. Surveillance (1979): Now the band starts to hit-and-miss. It seems they decided to start streamlining their sound and catering to the pop market, at the expense of their progressive edge. However, there are still some great moments on the album, particularly the songs "Orion" and "Sofa Back" (not surprisingly, these are the two instrumentals on the album!). Again, I get reminded of Rush around this period (the intro to the song "Horizons" sounds exactly like something out of the Rush song "Xanadu", complete with synthesizer and glockenspiel!). The album isn't terrible, it's just not up to the quality of their previous efforts. City of Fear (1980): The band appeared to be shooting for singles on this album, but the music doesn't have much lasting value on the listener. If you listen closely, there are still some decent songs, but they seem more New Wave than Progressive, if I had to label them. Look for this only if you are a big fan of the band. -- Simon Karatsoreas

Links

[See Mink, Ben | Nash the Slash]

Discography

In And Out Of Focus (70) Moving Waves (71) Focus 3 (72) Live At The Rainbow (73, Live) Hamburger Concerto (74) Ship Of Memories (74) Mother Focus (75) Dutch Masters (75, Compilation) Focus Con Proby (78) Dutch Masters (compilation) (75) Focus 8 (02)

Reviews

Focus about 1973 - Bert Ruiter, Thijs Van Leer, Jan Akkerman and Pierre Van Der Linden Because they have a flautist they can sound like Jethro Tull at times, Most of their music is instrumental. Some of the songs they sing on are in English, and those songs tend to be their worst. The ones they sing in other languages are better. Best albums are Hamburger Concerto, Moving Waves, 3, and Live at the Rainbow.

Focus was the four piece from Holland that can be credited with being one of the first bands to bring instrumental progressive rock to the AM airwaves with their 1971 hit "Hocus Pocus" (featured on Ship of Memories). Their high- powered sound was propelled by virtuoso guitarist Jan Akkerman, and Flautist/ Keyboardist/Vocalist extraordinaire Thijs Van Leer. The other mainstay of the band was drummer Pierre Van Der Linden. Bassists came and went with nearly every new album. Their music was heavily classical and jazz influenced, with an equal proportion of hard driving instrumental flash-rock featuring vocals as an instrument, not as a conduit for lyrics. Waves and 3 represent the best of the band's earlier intensely progressive period with plenty of sidelong tracks and healthy extended solos. Most will agree that Live at the Rainbow and Hamburger Concerto were their best, moving into a period of more pure classical and jazz influence. With Mother Focus, the band took a more or less commercial turn, with shorter cuts and snappier tunes. Ship of Memories is an album of odds and ends recorded in the Rainbow/Hamburger period that had been previously unreleased, and also includes the radio version of their mega-hit "Hocus Pocus." All great stuff not to be missed.

Pretty good jazz-rock band. Focus 3 (1972) is a double LP that takes the obligatory side-long song -- a rather aimless instrumental jam in this case -- an extra step by fading out after nearly 20 minutes, and then putting another seven minutes onto the next side! In fact, all but one song on the whole set is instrumental... and that one song ("Round Goes the Gossip") has lyrics in Latin, from Virgil's "The Aeneid". What pretension... what pomp... what snobbery... but worth hearing. (This refers to the whole album -- the singing on the song in question is mediocre.) Live at the Rainbow (1973) -- recorded, you guessed it, live at the Rainbow Theatre in London -- consists of (I think) tracks from their first three albums. More jazzy instrumental noodling, along with crowd noise and the semi-legendary (and very fun) "Hocus Pocus" -- which you have quite likely heard on the radio at some time in your life. -- Greg Ward

Seminal Dutch progressive. They had a hit in the US with "Hocus Pocus" which was known for the yodeling, more than anything else. Unfortunately, that became the "signature song" for the band and is not at all representative of what their music is about. They mix jazz and classical ideals into extended, very melodic rock suites. Flute, guitar, and organ dominate the sound. Their first, In and Out of Focus contains mostly shorter songs, is a little uneven and reveals the band in development. You can hear some of Jan Akkerman's classic guitar licks and Thijs Van Leer's signature flute straining out through the music Some of the music has a beat/psych feel but "Anonymous" and "Focus (Instrumental)" hint at great things to come. Beginning with Moving Waves the band found their groove and turned out several excellent albums. My favorite is 3, but any of them, up to and including Hamburger Concerto are excellent. Highly recommended!

Early, highly influential Dutch progressive, featuring the flute, keyboards and vocals of Thijs Van Leer and the undisputed talents of ex-Brainbox guitarist Jan Akkerman. I haven't heard the first album yet, it's supposed to be pretty proto-prog. Moving Waves is probably the one you'll want to begin with, anyway. Notorious for the six-minute novelty hit "Hocus Pocus," a rocker with Black Sabbath-like guitar riffing including wild yodelling, goofy cartoon voices and solos for flute and accordion! Whether they wanted it to or not, it became their signature song. But the real reason to own this is the 21-minute "Eruption," in which the various sections highlight Van Leer's flute playing, churchy organ and pillowy Mellotron as well as Akkerman's top-notch guitar playing. Focus III is a somewhat overextended double LP, with tracks like "Answers? Questions! Questions? Answers!" and the 27-minute (!) "Anonymus II" going off on jazzy tangents, and for the most part going on longer than they should. But these tracks do have their moments, and the shorter songs, notably "Carnival Fugue" and "Round Goes The Gossip" (the latter graced with Latin lyrics!), are excellent works with rock, classical and jazz elements. The beautifully melodic "Sylvia" was a major instrumental hit in Europe. An attempt to write a side-long piece entitled "Out Of Vesuvius", intended to rival "Eruption," resulted in the title-suite of Hamburger Concerto, which does indeed blow "Eruption" away in every which way, no mean feat if you've heard it! ("Eruption" I mean.) Van Leer pulls out all the stops--literally with synthesizer and even pipe organ! Meanwhile, Akkerman's guitar is as good as ever. Also noteworthy is the classic "Birth," spotlighting Van Leer's flute, and the hard-rocker "Harem Scarem." Perhaps their best album ever. Ship Of Memories is an album of odds and ends, mostly recorded in between Focus III and Hamburger Concerto, some of which eventually ended up on Hamburger Concerto (like the aforementioned "Out Of Vesuvius," which appears as an incomplete five minute track here) and Mother Focus. -- Mike Ohman

Stylistically, the music that is presented on the new Focus album, Focus 8, brings to the listener not only the familiar, distinctively original, and immediately recognizable spirit of this Legend, but also a decent dose of something new, which wasn't typical for a "classic" Focus. Above all, this concerns the sound of today's Focus, which, overall, is heavier than ever before, even though there is only one track on the album, the stylistics of which represents a real fusion of Classic Symphonic Art-Rock and Prog-Metal. This is the album's opener, "Rock & Rio", which, at the same time, is much in the vein of "Hocus Pocus" from Moving Waves and, of course, includes inimitable joking vocalizes by maestro Van Leer and highly virtuosi (just brilliant!) arrangements that, moreover, are full of magic. Honest! By the way, all the eleven tracks on the new Focus album are, IMHO, either excellent compositions or masterpieces. No merely good tracks here, not to mention mediocre ones! While created in Focus's best traditions, most of the compositions on the album are, however, richer in the elements of Prog-Metal than in those of Jazz-Fusion. (Whereas before, the elements of Jazz-Fusion were much more typical for Focus than those of Prog-Metal.) In short, Focus 8 sounds by no means like being the mould of Focus's classic style, but is a really fresh album by the band that is still capable to amaze. -- Vitaly Menshikov

Focus 8 has been said to be a "Focus reunion" album, but this is really not right. What really happened is that a band named Hocus Pocus had formed as a Focus tribute album, but when Focus flautist/organist Thijs van Leer heard them, he decided to join up himself. So the only member of this band from any of the old Focus line-ups is Thijs. So it's not really a "reunion" of any sort. Who cares? The music is what's important here, and the question to ask is: "Is this a good Focus album or not?" My answer would be, "Yes, it is". Well, with some slight reservations. Focus 8 reminds me quite a bit of the new Greenslade material. It is about as much like the original music as that is, yet also has some elements of "adult pop" in the sound. In other words, it's easier on the ears, smoother and more "grown-up" than the older material. Some may hear this as a "dumbing down" of the music, but I don't think so. It's not as wild and crazy as the original stuff, but as far as musicianship and composition goes, it's far more mature. It is a little more thoughtful and less adrenaline-laced. Mr. van Leer is getting too old to play while standing on one leg any more ... oh, sorry, that's that other prog flautist! This album contains everything you might want from a Focus album ... plenty of flute and keyboards from Thijs, tasty guitar playing from Jan (that's Dumeé, not Akkerman, and he's just as good or better!) and even some yodeling vocals. This isn't just a new band with an old name, this music is unmistakably Focus in its sound. As for Vitaly's "prog-metal elements" comment (previous review), I can only say ... "Huh? Did we listen to the same album?" Dumeé's guitar has plenty of crunch in some parts, but I think that calling it "prog-metal" is a bit much. It's certainly no more "prog-metal" than Focus ever was. But each listener will hear his own things, I suppose ... don't be expecting any Dream Theater licks here or anything, though. In summary, a highly recommendable album to the old fans of Focus, and maybe some new fans as well. -- Fred Trafton

Links

[See Akkerman, Jan | Brainbox | Sweet'd Buster | Trace] Click here for the Official Focus web site Click here to read Vitaly's review in its entirety Click here to order Focus 8 from Musea Records

Discography

Wanderers Of The Neverending Night (92) Soul Travels (93) In Flux (95) Earth Shaper (96)

Reviews

A very fluid, mostly instrumental rock project that drips of psychedelics, comparable to something like Erpland without the reggae influences. Ripping lead guitars and throbbing rhythms paint a modern space-rock that burns in overall intensity. I'm sure any fans of Ozrics would go berserk over this (I did!). A long disc to boot, almost seventy minutes.

Fonya-- there is a macron (horizontal bar) over the "o" and "a" so the name should be pronounced phone-yay -- is the solo vehicle for multi-instrumentalist Chris Fournier. In this day of countless neo-progressive bands, Fonya instead draws from the likes of Eloy, Tangerine Dream and Camel to create a very spacious (and spacey) melodic progressive rock. Functioning essentially as a trio, Fournier combines either bass (his primary instrument) or guitar with drum machine and sequenced keyboards. To date, Fonya has released two compact discs, Wanderers of the Never Ending Night and Soul Travels. A third, In Flux, is in the works. Wanderers of the Neverending Night was Fonya's 67 minute debut release from 1992 on Larry Kolota's Kinesis (then Kinetic Discs) label (KDCD 1004). As you might guess, this fine debut is a conceptual work based on the planets of our solar system, plus the sun around which they revolve. There is an additional song called "Sea o' Dreams" which I can only guess might be inspired by our moon's Lunar Mares. For the most part, the arrangement of songs reflects the order of the planets from nearest to the Sun out to Pluto though Neptune manages to slip into the third orbit while centrifugal forces threw Mercury out to the sixth orbit. The planets are followed by "Elder Sun, Bringer of Light" then the above mentioned "Sea o' Dreams." Right! So what about the music? Unlike Holst's orchestral suite, "The Planets," Fonya music creates a vision of celestial grandeur that has forever drawn man's fascination to the sky. Holst focused on the astrologial and mythological significance of the planets. Fonya instead conjures up the majesty of the planets themselves. The first thing that I noticed was the keyboard sounds. Chris uses a wide variety of sounds ranging from chimes to shimmering "space dust" sounds (hell, I don't know how to describe 'em) to the rumbling floor shakers. Integrated with these are the drums, guitar and bass. The compositions are well thoughout and, though the planets may be out of order, lead well from one song to the next, each building in intensity. By the time I had travelled past "Mars" to "Jupiter" -- Whew! That asteroid belt! -- I was completely absorbed and flying around "Mercury" was a delight. I thoroughly enjoyed Wanderers of the Neverending Night except for two things: vocals and a bit of redundancy. Brother Phil contributes vocals to four of the eleven songs. His style of delivery is, umm, faux-tortured and doesn't really contribute anything to the mix. In fact, they are buried in 'verb and very hard to understand. They're a bit of a distraction at first but I found them easy enough to listen around. Though present on "Jupiter (Dark Side of Callisto)," they're not enough to keep this song from being one of my favorite on this disc. The redundancy is a minor problem. By the time I had voyaged out to "Saturn" a degree of sameness has crept in. Still, an impressive debut and well worth a listen. The second release, also on Kinesis (KDCD 1007), is the 61 minute Soul Travels from 1993. The music carries on in the same vein as the first Fonya album and no new territory is explored. I find this to be a bit of a detriment as I would have liked to have seen more variety and exploration of sonic textures relative to Wanderers of the Neverending Night. The majority of the compostions are still fairly strong (I like "Glacier 21," the dreamy and all to short "Voyager" and "Bluefoot," for example) but there is nothing to *contrast* this release with Fonya's previous. A side-long suite would be nice, too! There are now twelve songs so they are slighly shorter on average. I don't detect any conceptual themes among song titles that might be suggested by the album title other than a vague "life's experiences." Nineteenth century classical afficionados will want to note that "The Sea/The Shipwreck" is based on fourth-movement of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade." Well, I guess it's time to roll out the obligatory criticisms. The synths used are all digital which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Chris uses some wonderfully spacious timbres with slow attacks and long decays. Combine these with mild doses of reverb and even Robot would get lost in space. But after awhile it grows tiresome. After listening to these two albums many times the thing I wanted the most was for Fournier to cut loose with a good ol' analog solo. Bring on the moog, Chris! Honestly, that's not a problem of the music but instead a personal preference of mine. My next quibble was with the bass and drums. On Wanders of the Neverending Night both of these rhythmic instruments were well integrated into the texture creating an uniform sound with no instrument dominating any others. On Soul Travels, however, I felt the bass was too prominent which distracted from the spacey elements that I so enjoyed. The same for the drums. The machine patterns began to sound similar by the mid-point of either album. Again, I found this to detract from the cosmic atmosphere I felt was being created. I didn't mind them for a few songs but I didn't want to hear them in each and every song. Finally, back to the drum machine. Chris spent much time gigging with and studying real drummers, including his brother Tony. From them Fournier learned what goes into good progressive drumming and it shows in much of his drum programs, which are generally very good. Obviously, Chris gave a lot of thought to the rhythm tracks. But, one of my beliefs in drum machines is that they shouldn't always be used to play *drums.* With digital technology, the electronic musician has at his disposal a seemingly infinite variety of sounds that can be used as percussive instrumentation without them sounding like drums or like he's trying to do that Fourth World thang. You have a synthesizer...synthesize something. In Flux is Fonya's third release. In Flux offers nothing new and therein lies the problem. The style is not significantly changed and, if Chris continues in this current vein, I'm afraid that even the most devoted fan will tire and look elsewhere. I think it's cool that Chris is able to do his own thing, but I feel the time has come for him to challenge himself and explore other areas. By way of example, only two tracks really stood out on In Flux. The first was "Fleabitten Cat," an ode to his cat that prowls his studio and has been known to stretch his claws on Chris' leg while practicing! The programmed percussion on this cut shows how Chris has developed in his use of the drum machine, an instrument I usually consider a bane of good music. The melody line of synth chasing guitar and other catchy hooks are also nicely done. The best track is a medley cover of "Los Endos" and "Hairless Heart." Once again, his mastery of the drum machine is well-demonstrated. Unfortunately, this well-done cover also shows to me how much it is time for Fonya to move on into different realms. -- Mike Taylor

Links

Click here for the Fonya web site Click here for the Kinesis/Fonya web page Click here for Vitaly Menshikov's overall view of Fonya on his ProgresoR web site

Social Gathering (70)

Foodbrain were part of the early Japanese psych scene. Two of its members, Shinki Chen and Hiro Yanagida were part of a circle that included Speed, Glue and Shinki, and Love Life Live + 1. Foodbrain's Social Gathering features Yanagida's swirling Hammond organ and Chen's monsterous blues guitar. Where there is smoke there is fire and these guys smoke! The album has a nice raw vibe that adds to the overall energy of the album. The "normal" songs are connected by brief interludes of experimental bits, harpsichord, and so forth. The longest song, "A Hole in a Sausage" is the most experimental and contains some mad saxophone amidst the obligatory free-form psychedelic freakout. It gets a might tedious unless you're as stoned as those guys were! The rest of the album, though, is good heavy blues/psych. If you like good heavy blues guitar and organ, or are a fan of heavy psychedelia, check out Foodbrain.

[See Love Live Life + One | Speed, Glue and Shinki | Yanagida, Hiro]

86/88 (88), Live (89), Nerd Illusion (90), Illusions (90), Both Worlds (91), Running in Circles (94), FAF Out of HAL (95), Tintinnabulation (96)

Gack! This is typical SI brand neo-prog pop, lacks imagination and creativity, born yesterday, derivative of every other neo-prog band you can think of... just another crappy pop band who's highest goal is to sound like Pendragon.

Powerfully melodic prog band established in the mid-80s and hailing from Rotterdam Holland. Band is centered on the soaring English vocals of A.T. (he, like many Dutch, has almost no trace of an accent in English) and the tight, economical keyboard playing of Peter De Jong. Running in Circles contains some of their best hard rock influenced numbers, such as "Into Love," "Someone Like You" (which features fantastic drumming and grooving guitar), and "The Bald, the Fat, and the Ugly" (instrumental). FAF Out of HAL is a newer release which is half unplugged in the studio and half live in Holland. The acoustic setting allows the band to stretch out with great vocal harmonies and original percussion. The live half features their most popular numbers, including "Attitudes" found on a SI Music complilation CD. The crowd is loud and rowdy. In November of 1996 the band released another CD which I haven't heard yet. -- Antonio Ortolani

[See November. Ilusions is essentially a CD reissue of Nerd Illusion, which was cassette-only. There are fewer songs on the CD.]

Discography

Total Eclipse (99)

Reviews

Force Majeure - László Kovács and Zsolt Vidovenyecz The group name here is telling, because these two Hungarians have obviously studied their late-70's/early-80's Tangerine Dream albums with great care. Total Eclipse (Periferic Records BGCD038) is a 49-minute electronic suite dedicated to the August 1999 solar eclipse, and displays a wealth of Tangerine Dream mannerisms: pulsing bass lines, cascading bell or piano-like sequences, sweeping pads and clearly drawn but nicely spun out melody lines on alternatively metallic or reedy synth patches. The sprightly melody of "Rainbow" also hails back to Jean-Michel Jarre's glory days, while the arch chords and descending synth lines at the beginning of "Stonehenge" are straight out of Vangelis' majestic Antarctica soundtrack. Though the sources of their ideas are obvious, Force Majeure have clearly put a lot of effort in their compositions and they actually do mix and vary their ingredients in a creative way, rather than just chucking up loads of half-digested bits ripped off from their favourite albums and calling the resulting hotch-potch an original composition. The mainly digital soundscapes on this album are well constructed and of audiophile quality, though perhaps in some cases a bit too General MIDI tinny and obvious (then again, some of TD's early-80's sounds don't stand up any better today). The few shorter tracks serve more as segues and atmosphere builders than songs in their own rights, and for the most part the album eschews conventional rock beats ("Stonehenge" is the main exception). All in all this album will not dazzle anyone with originality, but fans of Tangerine Dream and Vangelis will find a lovingly crafted tribute to some of their heroes' greatest moments. A good album then, but to come up with a truly great album, Force Majeure need a more radical or at least original approach. -- Kai Karmanheimo

Links

Click here for Force Majeure's web site

Discography

Forest (69) Full Circle (70)

Reviews

[Forest] put out 2 acid-folk style albums on the EMI-Harvest label, UK. Full Circle is my favorite ... it has dark, haunting, yet magical themes, seeming to touch lightly upon Celtic mythologies drenched in subtle acid lyrics. Lots of 12-string and Mandolin prog-folk at its finest. Produced by Malcom Jones, inventor of Harvest Records ... "... for you, the bluebells dance ..." -- Mark Doyle

Love Cycle (69)

Rarest UK psych.

Discography

Artificial Horizon (90) Opportunity Crosses the Bridge (92) One Thing After Another (98) Down With Gravity (00) Racket Science (05)

Reviews

Forever Einstein - Kevin Gerety (bass), Charles O'Meara (a.k.a. Vrtacek) (guitar) and John Roulat (drums and percussion) Forever Einstein's John Roulat seemed to think I "got it" when I e-mailed to thank him for the promo of their latest CD, Racket Science. Just in case I've had a lapse between then and now, I'll repeat the first impression I told him here: "I am taken with the clean, un-overdubbed sound. I'm sure you guys could perform these compositions live and sound just like the album. I'm a fan of big symphonic complex sound, but sometimes that gets tiresome. Sometimes it's more interesting to hear what three guys can do without electronic trickery." I'm thinking that's the part that resonated with John, I guess I have some idea of they're trying to accomplish here. Forever Einstein is as oddball as anything on the Cuneiform label, but they manage to do it without much in the way of dissonance. The music can take jarring leaps into unexpected directions, but when it does, it will usually sound like something familiar ... surf rock, melodic prog, rock'n'roll and even sitar music, but not into anything that isn't harmonious. No thickening with Mellotron or orchestral samplers, no heavy chording with guitars. In fact, keyboards of any sort are used only sparingly; this album is mostly about guitar, bass and drums. The same instrumentation as The Stray Cats, and sometimes sounds like them -- for about five seconds, before bouncing off into some other direction. The orchestration is the musical equivalent of pointillism, where you can always hear each note distinctly ... nothing is ever lost in a wash of sound. But lest you think this makes them not wierd enough for you, I'll just say that more than anyone else they remind me of Fred Frith circa Gravity. That's not too straitlaced for you, is it? Plenty of odd meters and angular melodies to keep you interested for multiple listenings, yet with enough points of reference to not sound overly alien. Great stuff, and highly recommended! -- Fred Trafton

It's almost always a mistake to have high expectations about a band, but from the buzz, I was looking forward to hearing these guys. After listening to their Down With Gravity CD a couple times, however, I began to rapidly lose interest. I suppose in the purest sense of the term, they are progressive, it's just that they progress into areas that kinda bore me. A strange and somewhat fun mix of surf, electronic and garage, Forever Einstein's weird din just left me flat. -- David Marshall

Links

Click here for Forever Einstein's web site Click here to order Forever Einstein CD's from Cuneiform Records

Cocktail (77), L'Oeil (91, recorded earlier?), Art d'Echo (92)

French guy who apparently has several albums. L'oeil is the one recently released by Musea, the sound gravitates between progressive, fusion, pop, and even hits borderline disco in a couple places. The good stuff is good and the bad stuff is lame, about 50/50 overall.

Patrick Forgas is a highly talented multi-instrumentalist who has been around since the seventies. Unlike his previous release L'Oeil, Art d'Echo is an instrumental album with very little singing. Forgas also allows room for his guest musicians to play acoustic instruments (sax, flute, brass, and guitar). Nine of the ten songs were recorded in 1992 while My Trip is the second side of the LP Cocktail recorded in 1977. Art d'Echo hints at Soft Machine's Third due to Jean-Pierre Thirault's outstanding saxophone. I also detect similarities to Weather Report and Miles Davis. The high point of the album for me is the nineteen minute opus, "My Trip." I think this song works better than the rest because of the interaction of the six musicians laying down licks and playing off each other. I do not get the same feeling of interaction on the other tracks. If nothing else, seek out this disc just for My Trip. If you enjoy the Canterbury or Zao form of jazz, you won't be disappointed.

Discography

Fiction Edge 1 (Ascent) (00)

Reviews

From the title of Forgotten Suns' debut CD, it seems clear that this is intended to be the first album of several. The opening piece is a spacey synth piece titled "Big Bang" which is somewhat reminiscent of Pink Floyd's "Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun", but without vocals. After this mellow intro the next tune "Creation Point" becomes all Prog Metal; crunchy guitars, thrashing drums and rasping vocals, though with lots of good synthesizer and organ work sweetening the sound and keeping it from being totally guitar-dominated. A nice guitar solo and tops off the cut. The next song, "Rising Nature Child" is another instrumental, with some definite Rush flavorings ... phase-shifted clean electric picking a-la Alex Lifeson, then a string synth section. There are several more quiet moody instrumentals with acoustic piano and a crying baby which seguès into the short "The Warning", a quieter clean electric piece. The going gets heavier after this with "Wartime", back to Prog Metal again. Well, I don't need to go through every song, do I? You get the idea, Forgotten Suns covers roughly the same territory as a Rush album would, though their vocalist (who sings in English) sounds nothing like Geddy Lee and tends to growl a lot during the more Metallic sections. Perhaps a bit fresher and more Progressive (and with flashier keyboard solos) than Rush's latest few offerings. This is a good CD, well worth a listen for those who like their Prog on the metallic side. -- Fred Trafton

Links

Click here for Forgotten Suns' web site Click here to order CD from Galileo Records

Largos Sueños (81)

Flamenco prog.

Discography

The Forminx (76, re-issued on CD in 1998) The Ultimate Greek Pop (?, only on 1 CD of 5, same songs as above plus bonus material)

Reviews

The Forminx The Forminx was a '60's Greek pop band that would have no place in the GEPR except for one reason: it was Evangelos Papathanassiou's first band. (Just look at these guys ... are they a bunch of Buddy Holly wannabees or what?). Of course, he's better known as Vangelis. The Forminx had a hit single in 1965 and disbanded in 1966. They didn't release any albums during their active years, but there was a later release of archival material as listed in the discography. They mostly performed at parties and never got paid much. After this band broke up, Vangelis formed Aphrodite's Child and began to explore more progressive waters. By way of warning, don't buy one of these albums just because Vangelis is on it without knowing what you're getting into first. This is '60's pop, not prog. -- Fred Trafton

Links

[See Aphrodite's Child | Jon and Vangelis | Socrates | Vangelis] Click here for Elsewhere, a Vangelis fan web site with information on The Forminx

Signals (89), Blue (92)

Another band influenced by Marillion, contributing to the resurgence of the "prog" sound in the nineties.

Formula is a six piece from Germany, featuring the basic four plus flute and vocals (in English). Their sound blends elements of mainstream and progressive rock, jazz, and just a touch of classical and blues into a synthesis generally characterized by long instrumental passages, to-the-point lyrics, plenty of nice guitar-keyboard-flute correlativity, and a vocalist who will remind of Peter Gabriel. I've heard a second album is out now.

Dies Irae (70), Formula Tre (71), Sognando E Risognando (72), La Grande Casa (73)

A trio, although not really resembling the usual, their guitarist Alberto Radius would go on to help form the great Il Volo. They put out four early albums which are all different in style. Probably the only one worthy of high praise is their third Sogrando E Risognando a highly inventive album who's styles are very diverse.

A good band delivering commercial prog, where the best LP (more prog) is Sognando. After this group split, Alberto Radius and Gabriele Lorenzi played in Il Volo. Alberto Radius is now solo.

Alberto Radius was a leading light on the seventies progressive scene in Italy, and he was the guitarist for this band, whose last two releases were very much in the early PFM vein, with mellow guitar/keyboard melodies. La Grande Casa is possibly their best release, and should appeal to those who enjoy PFM, Le Orme, and Il Volo, which Radius formed after the demise of Formula 3.

Italian prog-pop. I've only heard La Grande Casa, and while it has its share of nice songs ("Rapsodia di Radius," "Liberta per Quest'Uomo"), it's really very commercial, and quite a letdown when compared to all the other great Italian prog out there. "Cara Giovanna" and "Bambina Sbagliata" sound like something your parents might listen to if your parents happen to be Italian, while "La Cilegia Non E Di Plastica" is a straight rock song with grunting vocals. Guitarist Alberto Radius has shown much more in his subsequent work with the infinitely better Il Volo. To be fair, Sognando e Risognando is supposed to be more progressive than this, earlier albums more psychedelic. -- Mike Ohman

Bambi Fossati E Garybaldi (90?)

More direct blues approach than Garybaldi.

[See Bambibanda E Melodie | Garybaldi]

Discography

Arrival (96, as Joe Bergamini) Gravity (98) Radio Waves Goodbye (02)

Reviews

4Front - Zak Rizvi (guitar), Joe Bergamini (drums) and Frank LaPlaca (bass) 4Front seems to be drummer Joe Bergamini's baby, even though he's "only" the drummer. Joe and the other two musicians in this band are all excellent, and Radio Waves Goodbye is the album where they all get to show off their chops in a slickly-produced jazz-rock format. The drumming is mixed in a dominant position on this CD, but it's intricate and melodic enough to deserve this spotlight ... in the 4Front, as it were. If you're interested, Bergamini also plays in a Rush cover band named Power Windows, emulating Neil Peart's intricate drum stylings, so this should give you some indication of his prowess as a drummer. Bergamini told me that "the music will appeal to fans of Rush, Genesis, Dream Theater, Dregs, Yes, Satriani, Vai, Dolby, Marillion, etc (as well as fans of New Age)". Well, while I agree that this album will have some appeal among prog fans, some of these bands are too far afield for me to think of them as good comparisons. 4Front would be too fusiony for Rush or Dream Theater hard-rock fans, not proggy enough for Genesis, Yes or even Marillion fans, and I don't even know what this has to do with Dolby (Thomas, I assume) or New Age. On the other hand, Dregs isn't that bad a comparison, though 4Front has no country flavorings, and Satriani and Vai aren't bad comparisons either, though this album isn't quite as much about super-flashy guitar work. Excellent guitar work, don't get me wrong ... actually, this is a complement since I find this album to be better balanced among the band members than the Satriani and Vai I've heard. This CD might be a bit too much "L.A. slick night club" sound for some progressive rock fans ... these guys would make a great band for The Tonight Show, for example ... but there's no denying the tight musicianship and complexity on this album. There's also nothing the slightest bit threatening or difficult here. Fine with me. I get tired of threatening and difficult sometimes, and this is just great high-energy melodic jazz-rock. I'm occasionally reminded of Toto or Steely Dan, though Radio Waves Goodbye is less ballady than their albums tend to be, and also has some interesting breaks for special effects and hot soloing from each of the members, making it seem more progressive and less commercial than those guys. Still, there's at least as much of Dave Brubek here as of Weather Report. Most of the songs on the album were written by guitarist/keyboardist Zak Rizvi except for one by bassist Frank LaPlaca, and their cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity" (you know, "Ground control to Major Tom") with an ending chorus from Elton John's "Rocket Man" ("and I think it's gonna be a long long time ..."). This is the longest cut on the album and is an excellent interpretation of this chestnut ... perhaps better than Bowie's original. Certainly more progressive. Bottom line ... an excellent fusiony jazz-rock album, which should have wide appeal among those looking for this kind of music. -- Fred Trafton News 2/9/04: Joe Bergamini has disbanded the previously-mentioned Power Windows band and has now joined Happy The Man as their new drummer. This will delay the release of the next 4Front album, as Bergamini is working on a new HTM album. Expect a new 4Front album late in 2004. -- Fred Trafton

Links

[See Happy The Man] Click here for Joe Bergamini's web site

14bis II (85), Performance (88)

14BIS is one of Brazil's premier progressive pop bands. Drawing on diverse influences from the Beatles to Pink Floyd to South American folk themes, these guys have put together a unique sound which is very positive and uplifting, with catchy tunes that stay with you all day long, demanding another listen. They have several albums out spanning the last decade or so. Performance is a "Best of" combined with some excellent live material, for a total of 65+ minutes of their absolute best stuff. Lyrics are in Portuguese.

[See Terco, O]

Discography

Fourth Estate (88, 5-song demo cassette) Edge of the Shadow (89, 10-song demo cassette) In Phase (90, 5-song demo cassette) Finesse and Fury (92) See What I See (95) Joy in Rock (97, Live)

Reviews

Colorado, U.S., area instrumental band on the Hapi Skratch label that offers complex guitar-oriented rock. The first album is more straight- ahead a la Steve Morse/Dixie Dregs while the second offers more soundscapes and ethnic textures. Definitely has shades of Rush. -- Anthony DeBarros

Links

Click here for a very outdated Fourth Estate web site

The Fourth Way (69?), Werwolf (70), The Sun and the Moon Have Come Together (71?)

Not a progressive or fusion band, per se, but a seminal early electric jazz group (Mike Nock - keyboards, Ron McClure - bass, Michael White - violin, Eddie Marshall - drums) based in the San Francisco Bay Area. They issued three recordings, two of which are on Capitol's "Harvest" subsidiary. The Fourth Way's sound was a plugged-in version of late '60s hard bop (e.g Horace Silver, Art Blakey, etc.), plus some avant-garde stylings thrown in. Overall, The Fourth Way's music was much less aggressive and experimental than that of the far better known fusion groups that followed one or two years later (e.g., Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, etc.). Their first album features the compositions of keyboardist Mike Nock, and is a pretty straight-ahead modern jazz record with funky, bluesy and avant-garde flourishes. Werwolf, a dynamic live set, is a vast improvement over their first record for several reasons. The playing of the entire ensemble (especially drummer Eddie Marshall) is unusually spirited, and several fine compositions ("Brown Rice," "Mesoteric Circle," "Spacefunk," and "Tierra del Fuego") provide a springboard for solos by Nock (excellent on highly distorted Fender Rhodes piano) and White (whose violin sound is a bit tinny). Their final album, also a live recording, was pretty much in the same vein as Werwolf, albeit a bit more subdued. Mike Nock has recorded a few solo albums which are mostly in the straight-ahead acoustic jazz vein. However, one of Nock's records (Climbing on the now-defunct "Tomato" label) is a really fine jazz-fusion effort which would appeal to the more adventurous prog-rock listener. -- Dave Wayne

A Shadow Of The Past (84, released 89)

This band hails from Norway, and has only one release entitled A Shadow of the Past. Despite their name, they remind one much more of later Camel (ala Stationary Traveler) than old Genesis. Their music is very melodic and pleasing to the ear, with excellent vocals and instrumentation. Highly recommended if you can find it!

Audion implied that this was one of the very worst neo-prog albums, and that all they were was a "shadow of the past"! :-)

If you don't expect this to sound like the Genesis album it was named after then you won't be disappointed. Actually it's not bad, weighing in somewhere near Pallas, the songs are quite good and, while not the most originally styled sound around, these guys sound far better than the average neo-prog. Actually the band was from Norway and had some other name when they were together, but their album never got released. Years later when they finally found a record deal, the record company decided to renamed the band....

Discography

Frágil (79) Note: This CD is listed on several Frálgil discographies, but not on their official discog. Avenida Larco (81) Serranio (90) Frágil (92, CD compilation of first two albums) Cuento Real (94) Alunado (95) Sorpresa del Tiempo (02)

Reviews

Frágil - Jorge Durand (drume), Luis Valderrama (guitars), Octavio Castillo (synthesizers, flute, steel guitar), Andrés Dulude (vocals, acoustic guitar), Cesar Bustamante (keyboards, 6 & 12-string acoustic guitars) For more than twenty years, Frágil has been and continues to be the most prominent progressive band in the rather wane Peruvian rock scene, though their musical production per se has been quite inconsistent. Having started their musical career as a Yes/Genesis cover band in the mid 70's, the band learned to forge and foster their own symphonic style, seasoned with diverse South American folk and acoustic touches. During their seminal years, the band earned an ever increasing number of devoted fans, who were mesmerized by the charisma and theatrical personality of lead vocalist Andrés Dulude. He also wrote almost all the lyrics, which usually dealt with social and introspective issues. The other members were: Octavio Castillo on keyboards, flute, steel guitar, mandolin and vocals; César Bustamante on bass, additional keyboards and vocals; Luis Valderrama on lead, acoustic and classical guitars; and Arturo Creamer on drums and percussion - all of them working together effectively as a well oiled ensemble. Of course, the presence of guitar, synth and some flute solos was here and there, but the general norm was to keep the ensemble working as a musical unit. Their melodic sense may remind the listener of other South American bands such as Espíritu, or even the typical Italian sensibility of Locanda delle Fate or PFM. This line-up released their first album Avenida Larco in 1981, being very well received both by fans and critics. Numbers like "Oda al Tulipán", "Mundo Raro", "Pastas, Pepas y Otros Postres", "Hombres Solos" and the title track were specially featured in their repertoire. The album, as a whole, exhibited the best musical qualities of the band, as described above. Regrettably, the record label stopped to support the band, which eventually led to Dulude's departure, and a long time of low profile, even bordering on break-up. Fortunately, in 1988 Dulude reunited his old band mates, who also welcomed a new, younger drummer/percussionist, Jorge Durand. Old fans recovered their enthusiasm, and new ones were gained, so their second album Serranio was quite successful. More rock-oriented than their debut, still their progressive leanings were present in tracks like "Cuánto Hay", "Inquietudes", the semi-folkish instrumental "Huarmy", and the eerie ballad "Aquella Niña". All in all, the same old financial and management problems resurfaced. Having recorded new material in 1992, they weren't able to release until 2 years later, under the title Cuento Real. This work is more genuinely progressive than its immediate predecessor. The title track, "Historia de Adelaida", and "Mirando a Través del Cristal", as well as a couple of brief folkish instrumental themes, reflected a more conscious back-to-roots attitude in the compositions. But by then, Dulude had left the band once again. Heading on into the future, a new vocalist named Santino de la Tore was recruited. His glamour-rock personality seriously affected the band's direction, which eventually led to the recording of Alunado, their most irregular and least inspired work to date. Even though there are a few notable tracks that sound really progressive (including the title track, an electronic-ethnic number a la Peter Gabriel), most of the album consists of rather uninspired mainstream rock numbers. ... But in 1999, Dulude returned to the fold, and soon after, the band played a number of concerts with the support of musicians of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Lima, to full houses. The first of these concerts was registered and edited in the 2002 CD entitled Sorpresa del Tiempo, which also included two bonus tracks: the namesake, a beautiful acoustic song, and "Fotograma", a rockier number with intricate time signatures. The live material consists of almost all songs from their debut album, plus three tracks from ulterior records. The result is quite good. The performances of all band members is impressive, and so is the fluid musical dialogue between band and orchestra. Hopefully, this will be an indication of more good things to come from this talented emblematic band. -- Cesar Mendoza

Having only heard their latest outing on the Musea label, Sorpresa del Tiempo, I can't help but be imnpressed with this band. This live album has an extremely symphonic sound ... well, it can hardly help it since they're playing with a 29-piece orchestra. Yet, the arrangements are all quite nice, with the orchestra sounding like a really good extra keyboard, and not struggling to fit in with the rock instruments at all (as they were for, say, Rick Wakeman's Journey to the Center of the Earth and countless other attempts at rock band/orchestra fusions). Musically, they remind me a bit of Genesis with occasional outbursts of ELPish keyboards and soft, Camel-like passages (especially when Octavio Castillo is playing the flute). There are some ballady cuts that flirt with Arena Rock for their anthemic sincerity, though they never quite cross over into Styx-like pomposity. There are also sections that remind of Italian-style symphonic prog, perhaps a bit like Uomo di Pezza-era Le Orme. Although there are echoes of these and other bands, Frágil doesn't really sound very derivative of anyone, though their sound is somehow familiar and comfortable. Sorpresa del Tiempo is a CD of a really nice prog band playing an excellent, well-recorded concert. It's amazing to hear the audience all singing along with these songs ... they're obviously well-known in Peru. An enjoyable album, and a great intro to this band. -- Fred Trafton

Links

Click here for Frágil's web site Click here to order Sorpresa del Tiempo from Musea Records

Rock and Blue (??)

Keyboard-oriented.

Discography

Mary, What Have You Become? (69, 7 inch single) Haverjack Drive (70, 7 inch single)

Reviews

A multi-styled band with strong progressive sensibilities, though I'm not sure just how progressive they are. It's worth noting that their recordings were all produced by Rod Argent and Chris White at the same time that the two ex-Zombies were working for Argent. I had a friend listen to Free Ferry's stuff, asking him if it sounded progressive; he basically shrugged but said that they reminded him of early Yes (whose work I have not yet heard). The B-side of their second single is in the Fields / Cressida / Greenslade vein. Regardless, the two singles put out by this group are pretty interesting. The first has a mournful ballad with a string quartet and lyrics similar to Brian Wilson's "Caroline, No" on side A, whilst the B-side, facetiously titled "Friend", is an agressive garage rocker. Both are executed in an unconventional style that smacks of prog rock. Most striking is a part of "Friend" where the instruments sputter to a halt as the singer solemnly intones "Help me get back what is rightfully mine"; this moment sounds like it was pulled from a prog tune of prophetic implications rather than a simple garage rock piece. Their second, Haverjack Drive, has a pleasant but conventional rocker on the A-side, but makes up for it with a B-side, "Flying", which is undeniably prog, albeit rather moderate prog. It opens with a symphonic crescendo before relaxing into soft vocals and electric guitar behind a steady organ beat. Though "Flying" only clocks in at 4 minutes, it accomplishes a fair deal in that time. A nice symphonic prog piece. Sadly, there's no information on who Free Ferry actually were, and when I asked Rod Argent he said he couldn't remember. All their songs were written by a Jeff Martin, who one source claims was the organist/lead vocalist, and that Justin Scharvona was the bassist/pianist. However, I don't know how trustworthy that source is. Free Ferry are a group that has delved intensely into prog ideas without quite letting themselves be categorized as a prog group with a capital "P". It would be most interesting to hear an album by these guys; as it is, however, I'll just have to settle for listening to the singles and guessing at what it was they were trying to accomplish. If you have a spare moment, I recommend you to do the same. Whatever their progressive standing is, this is good stuff: strong, energetic performances given to ingenuous compositions. -- Robert Orme

[Editor's note: Here's another one of those cases where I'm going to violate my rule about band members not being able to provide content for the GEPR. Sometimes only a band member can really tell you anything about a band, and this is one of those cases. So thanks to former Free Ferry drummer David Hempstead, I can now pass along some good info about this band. I'll just cut and paste his e-mail to me here as-is with no further comment (I've reformatted the album titles, song names, etc. using the GEPR standards).] Hi, I was a member of the group Free Ferry, which changed it’s name from Edwick Rumbold, which was deemed a bit too 'wierd'! . I notice that Robert Orme has kindly written reviews of our 2 singles as Free Ferry, but has no idea who we are ! Well, the band was Jeff Martin : Lead guitar, lead vocals and songwriter Dave Gyngell: Bass guitar and vocals Rob Chidley: Organ David Hempstead: Drums Robin Laws: Percussion We were based in south east London and used to rehearse in the pub "Roupell Arms" in Charlton. And had a residency for some years at the pub Trafalgar in Blackheath, every Thursday as I remember! As well as gigging nationally on the college and club scene. We won the Melody Maker "Search for Sound" competition in 196? Which led to us working with all sorts of bands in the late 60’s early 70’s. We met Rod Argent and Chris White via a former 'Big L' DJ, John Edward, and they produced several recording sessions for us, but only released 2 singles: Mary, What Have You Become? and Haverjack Drive. There is also an unreleased album, which sadly certainly is not prog rock! More blusey standards. I have a copy on acetate. But somewhere there is/was a master of a magic 20+ minute, very prog rock, rendition of "Light My Fire" intermixed with "America" from West Side Story. And our very best single never made it to the presses either, "On a Magic Carpet Ride". Sad. I still have a few promo photos etc. if ever you need them ! Memories! Good times were definitely had! Kind regards, David Hempstead

Discography

Apocalypse (06)

Reviews

Free Love is a Japanese 60's-styled psychedelic band with only one release I'm aware of, Apocalypse. They seem to have no web presence at all, so I have no way of checking up on that. However, their (debut?) album was released on Musea Records and sorta sounds like a mixture of Led Zeppelin (there's even a barely-recognizable but nicely re-imagined cover of "Kashmir") and Magical Mystery Tour-era Beatles, but with Deep Purpleish organ work and maybe a dash of Uriah Heep as well. I have a tough time calling this album "prog", but it's not bad in spite of that, if you like trippy psychedelic rock complete with phase-shifting, backward drumming and "somebody shut off power to the tape machine" slowdowns. Not what I'd expect from a Japanese band at all. Unexpectedly interesting. -- Fred Trafton

Links

Click here to order Apocalypse from Musea Records

Discography

Freedom At Last (69) Freedom (70) Through the Years (71) Freedom Is More Than A Word (72)

Reviews

Here's their Freedom is more than a word lineup: Roger Saunders - piano, guitar vocals (ex Washington DC), Steve Jolly - guitar (ex Sam Apple Pie), Pete Dennis - bass, acoustic guitar, vocals, Bobby Harrison - drums, congas, vocals (ex Procol Harum). According to th CD-sleeve, the group was formed in 1967 by drummer Bobby Harrison and guitarist Roy Rogers (both from Procol Harum, where they appeared on "Winter Shade Of Pale" single). Bassist Steve Shirley and organist Robin Lumsden joined the band and they released a single. Since then the lineup changed several times, in fact all albums have different staff. In 1972 the group split. They played on stage with Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, Curved Air, ELP and Soft Machine. I have only their last album - Freedom is more than words. In general it sound rather bluesy, has much in common with early Allman Brothers Band, features nice guitar solos. The first track has some folky Fairport Convention-like strings. The forth 8-minute composition named "Brainbox Jam" sounds very progressive, it reminds of Faust. The fifth track, "Direction" features Renaissance-like piano solos. "Dream" and "Ladybird" (the last two tracks) also have piano and strings but sound a bit poppy IMHO. As Freedom mixes blues with prog it may be compared with Colosseum. -- Pothead (from Moscow)

Discography

Fate Not Choice (88, Cassette EP) Surface Tension (89, Cassette EP) Deus Ex Machina (90, Cassette EP) Thrown (91)

Reviews

Freefall (original line-up) - Simon Godfrey (drums), Andy Lovatt (vocals), Paul Worwood (bass), Jim Harris (guitar) and Jem Godfrey (keyboards) I've seen many prog bands in my time, some big, some small, some good, some bad and there were many contenders among them for the title of "here today, gone tomorrow". I believe that Freefall come closest of all to grabbing that particular prize. Freefall were neo-prog of the first order. They were formed from a London (UK) college covers band in 1986 around the talents of Jem Godfrey and Jim Harris who were both eager to stretch the prog envelope as far as it would go. Their songwriting incorporated elements of heavy metal of the kind that would later prove successful for bands like Queensrÿche and Dream Theater. For me, the sound of Freefall in the first few years was an open battle between their prog and metal roots. "When The Heart Beats Faster" from their first cassette EP Fate Not Choice was a blend of 80's staccato riffing and walls of DX7 strings. As the band's identity matured however, their arrangements became increasingly sophisticated. Their eponymous track (for example) demonstrated an urge to extend themselves through many different styles. The guitars chugged Metallica-like through a maze of Genesis-esque chord progressions while Andrew Lovatt's Gabriel-influenced singing told the story of a man's last moments after jumping from his stricken WW1 bi-plane. Their brief but bright live existence began by supporting a blues band at a local pub. Eight weeks later they opened for IQ at the Marquee, only their third live gig. Over the next three years, they went on to support such prog luminaries as Ark, Jadis, Galahad and Geoff Mann, gathering a small but loyal following and even some national press attention (in UK Heavy Metal magazine "Kerrang!"). The band's tour de force in the early days, was a "metalized" rendition of Peter Gabriel's "On The Air" which was a crowd pleaser and earned them an encore at their Marquee debut. I did notice that the band seemed to have a loathing to step foot outside London and apart from the odd trip up the M1 to the Midlands, they were virtually unknown in the rest of the UK. In addition to their dislike of travel, Freefall's natural suspicion of the studio was self evident by the poor production quality of most of their recordings. The cassette format did not flatter their sound and even when the band eventually recorded a CD (Thrown), the result was thin and lacked presence. All in all, the band produced three cassette EP's: Fate Not Choice (1988), Surface Tension (1989) for which they are best known; the title song (an Anthrax meets Rush hymn to the powers of deception) became their signature track, Deus Ex Machina (1990) and finally the full length album Thrown (1991). All of their releases were self financed and distributed either through gigs or mail order. Sadly, the acquisition of management in 1990 signalled the beginning of the end for the band and led to Jim Harris leaving under a cloud followed swiftly by Andrew Lovatt. Their replacements, John Boyes on guitar and Jean Paul Orr on vocals led the band to a more hard rock sound in the style of Led Zeppelin or Living Colour. A prime example of this was "Hellstate", a guitar led behemoth, which describes a society enslaved to consumerism that gradually decays into chaos. The track was never recorded in its entirety but the main theme appears in the Thrown CD track "It's Not A Game". Jim Harris' departure signalled the beginning of the end of Freefall's potency as an effective songwriting unit however and although John Boyes was more technically gifted, Jem Godfrey slowly realised that the chemistry was no longer there. At the end of 1991 he followed his old writing partner into a new non-prog outfit Charlotte's Web. The remaining Freefall members toyed with the idea of replacing Jem Godfrey but with the last of the original writing partnership gone, they called it a day in early 1992. Overall, I think that Freefall can best be described as a brave but flawed attempt to cross the boundaries between prog and metal which, although never properly captured on record, enabled them to carve a unique (albeit short-lived) niche in the 80's neo-prog movement. I miss them but due to their ultra low profile worldwide, I'm sure no-one else would have even noticed their passing. -- Robert Ramsay

Links

Click here to order Thrown from Lazy Gun Records

Discography

Thinking Out Loud (89)

Reviews

Another obscure release from yet another obscure American band, this time from the 1980s. Thinking Out Loud was a 1989 cassette-only release, but this CD re-release (InEarVisions Music IEV-9503-2) has four extra tracks from earlier and later sessions, as well as extensive liner notes. Hence recording quality varies from rough studio shine to flat-out garage grunge. A guitar-heavy quartet from North Carolina, they were known to play covers of King Crimson, Happy the Man, UK and various fusion bands. Those influences are never far from the surface in their own, primarily instrumental compositions. "Kinetic Eggs", for example, is a virtual pastiche of KC 1974 and 1981, alternating surging powerchord riffs with clean-picked rock gamelan ostinati. "Mirkwood" is an ambient piece in the style of "The Sheltering Sky" and "Nuages", using a percussion loop almost identical to the latter, but it also weaves a nice patch of folky melody and silvery 12-string to its web of guitar pointillism and synthesizer abstractions. Happy the Man is more evident on "Camels Dance", which consists of a sparkling carousel-like synthesizer riff in 7/8 underpinned by an effectively sparse bass figure and overlaid with long, fusionesque guitar lines. "RH Factor", which is really a succession of keyboard, guitar and sax solos over episodically shifting instrumental backgrounds, also highlights a basic problem with Freehand's approach to constructing their songs. Fashioned out of jams and modulated with fusion's preference for creating musical structures as vehicles for virtuoso playing, many of the instrumentals seem static and aimless underneath their busy surfaces, lacking in focusing melodic ideas and developmental drive. On the other hand, the four vocal tracks seem to serve as intentionally comic diversions, from the funked-up "Elephant Talk" copy "Mastodon" to the tad overplayed powerballad "Another Way to Survive" and the progressive pamphleteering of "3 Chords of Something", which groans and stutters under the weight of its rhythmic complexities and melodic obtuseness. This album has lots of excellent playing, especially from bassist Brian Preston (future Smokin' Granny), whose lines are always creative and illuminating, but the band rarely manage to transcend their influences or to create interesting enough compositions to showcase their virtuosity on. Fans of Crimson and fusion may still find it fun to listen to. Though Freehand dissolved in 1990, they reformed for a string of concerts in 2004. -- Kai Karmanheimo

Discography

French TV (83) After A Lengthy Silence (86) Virtue in Futility (94) Intestinal Fortitude (95) Tonight In Concert: French TV "Yoo-Hoo!!!" (97, Live) The Violence of Amateurs (99) The Case Against Art (02) Pardon our French! (04) This is What We Do (06)

Reviews

French TV (The Violence of Amateurs line-up) - Chris Vincent (drums, in front), Mike Sary (bass, behind him), Dean Zigoris (former guitarist, back left) and Warren Dale (keyboards & woodwinds, back right) Really neat Louisville fusion band with a serious Canterbury leaning. I really liked their first one, and am looking forward to their second one which is supposed to be more in the symphonic realms. This band from Kentucky employs a HEAVY bass and strong rhythms, with possibly some influence from Magma. The styles range from roaring pounding complex-rock to disjointed artsy pieces, with plenty of jazz influence thrown in ... although one probably wouldn't call it fusion, all of those elements are present. Maybe closer to the Canterbury sound of Soft Machine and others. French TV is the recording moniker for Louisville, Kentucky bassist Mike Sary and friends, including Fenner Castner on drums, Artie Bratton and Dean Zigoris on guitars, Paul Nevitt and Bob Ramsey on keyboards, and Reid Jahn, Richard Brooner and Bruce Krohmer on brass and woodwinds. The music on Virtue in Futility draws from a variety of influences including fusion, more traditional jazz, the Canterbury scene, Yes, classical music and Frank Zappa, all mixed with no small sense of humor. Diverse, yet cohesive, most of the seven songs are supported on foundations of strong, engaging compositions built by talented musicians. Often, one song will tread across many different styles. For example, "Clanghonktweet" opens with violin, piano and bass in classical rigidity, overlaid with a fusionesque rhythm, later followed by a somewhat melancholy Wind Synth solo, bound together in a matrix of proggy synth. After the Wind Synth solo, the band jumps into a groove ala Jean-Luc Ponty. "The Family That Oonts Together, Groonts Together" works through tight, twisting riffs characteristic of Zappa's excellent fusion work. "I'm Whining For That Baby of Mine" sounds like an improvisational blow across Henry Cow and Soft Machine fields. "Empate," after a "contemporary" trumpet solo, plows headlong into an oncoming train of progressive fusion. Sary, no slouch on the bass, has coupled himself with a superb and tasteful drummer; the two make a powerhouse rhythm section to propel the music through the many surprising hairpin turns. There are a few blemishes in the finished product, however. The most obviously flaw is "Friends in High Places," Sary's political statement. A mash of tapes extracted from the Iran-Contra hearings, infused with synth and drum machines, the song portrays Sary's anger with the covert deal gone awry, but will severely date the album and will be ignored beyond the initial listen by most listeners. The above-mentioned improv gets a might tedious, lasting for over six minutes but never developing a groove. "Slowly I Turn ... Step By Step ... Inch By Inch" is a mixed bag of aimlessness and purpose. Overall, though, Virtue in Futility as a lot to offer with few flaws. French TV seems destined to languish in obscurity but undeservedly so. -- Mike Taylor The new French TV album is not only as outstanding as their previous masterpiece The Violence of Amateurs, but also, it clearly shows that the words like "repetition", "stagnation", and not to mention "decadence", aren't applicable to such true Heroes of Prog as French TV. The Case Against Art is another remarkable example of these veterans' indefatigability in searching for new ways in their creation. Each of the five compositions that are featured on the album, contain very diverse and complex arrangements, all of which are filled with seemingly endless and often atonal interplay between various soloing instruments, constant and mostly sudden changes of tone and mood, etc. Also, it must be mentioned that there are not many musicians on the contemporary Progressive Rock scene who would be as masterful by all means as the members of French TV. As for the stylistics the band presented on this album, don't expect to hear something typical for their previous works. Here, you won't find even the slight traces of RIO and real Jazz-Fusion (let alone Canterbury, which has nothing to do with the creation of French TV). On the whole, the music on The Case Against Art represents a very innovative manifestation of Classic Symphonic Progressive. Just the elements of Jazz-Fusion and Prog-Metal (yeah) that are also presented here, are nothing else but the usual components of that genre, aren't they? You can easily find them in the early (classic!) albums by Yes, ELP, Jethro Tull, etc, etc. It's quite another matter that on The Case Against Art, all of those notorious genre constituents were used in such an original way that the album sounds as innovative and futuristic as, for example, Yes's Tales From Topographic Oceans had sounded at the time when it was released. In that way, the most correct definition of the new style of French TV would be not just Classic Symphonic Progressive, but a unique blend of Classic Symphonic Art-Rock and Fifth Element. Despite the title of the album, this music is real Art - in the truest meaning of the word. In other words, with such strong lawyers (the new lawmakers of Prog) as French TV, Art won the case against it. -- Vitaly Menshikov My original review of The Case Against Art was so lame that I embarrassed myself. So, now that I'm ready to review Pardon Our French and FTV's latest This Is What We Do, I'll remove the stupidest parts of my old review and only keep the parts that don't sound quite so brain-damaged. The first French TV album I ever heard was The Case Against Art. After reading the above reviews, I expected to hear a fusion album. Not hardly. While there are some fusiony bits and pieces, I was more frequently reminded of the so-called Canterbury bands. In particular, there are parts that recall National Health because of the crazed non-harmonies and also because of the almost Gongish sense of humor (without the drug-induced psychedelic leanings). The themes slip easily between serious jazzy parts, an outburst of blues for two measures, sections of cartoon chase music and finally ending up with a warped 3/4 oom-pah beat (with a female vocal rapping something in German). It's not really like anything you've heard before, but there's also nothing that will make you gasp and reach for the bottle of Motrins. You may want to have your Ritalin handy, though, this is definitely Attention Deficit Disorder music for people who can't stand to be doing one thing for more than thirty seconds at a time. Not at all predictable, yet somehow very comfortable for the experienced prog music connoisseur. Mostly instrumental, The Case Against Art never pauses on any theme long enough for it to get boring. The mood varies from solemn to silly to pastoral and relaxing, then on to teeth-grinding angst as fast as you think you've figured out what's going to happen next. The music is not as rhythmically precise as you might hear from a fusion band, but is instead more layed-back, sometimes almost loose in its orchestration. Also, despite what others have said, I do not consider the bass to be super-heavy or Magma-like at all ... it is merely excellently played and in exactly the right place in the overall sound mix. I must say, however, that this album fails to make its "case against art" ... it has instead made a case for how great art can be! Highly recommended! The next album is Pardon Our French, also known as FTV8 (being their eighth album of course). Guitarist Dean Zigoris no longer contributes on this album, but has been replaced by Chris Smith, who also plays electric violin (Smith had already contributed to FTV7 as well). Pardon Our French has some sections that are more subdued and fusiony than The Case Against Art, but also goes more far afield into RIO territory. Or perhaps I should say "avant-prog" ... lots of rhythmically and harmonically "difficult" passages. I say "difficult" as in "hard to listen to", though I'm certain the same applies to playing this stuff. But like many other difficult things, the effort to get through the first listening or two reaps huge rewards as your brain reorganizes and rewires itself to be able to hear this strange stuff. It suddenly starts making sense after the second or third listening. And then you wonder why you thought it was so difficult the first time. That's prog. All the cuts on Pardon Our French are great, but "The Pardon Our French Medley" deserves special mention. This is a tribute to French bands, and includes motifs from Ange, Pulsar, Shylock, Carpe Diem, Atoll and Etron Fou Leloublan, each given the French TV "treatment". They even invited a female vocalist (Natalie Nichole Gilbert) to sing in french for this medley, which almost certainly has more of Sary's composition in it than the remains of the originals. Another excellent album, and again highly recommended. This brings me to French TV's most recent release, This Is What We Do. Wow. Even more difficult. Even more rewarding. On the first listen to this album, I must say it didn't quite "click" for me. But after a couple of spins, I think this is the best thing I've heard from French TV, and I like the previous two albums a lot. If Zappa had been able to write music as complex as The Grand Wazoo during the time he was recording We're Only In It For The Money or Uncle Meat, it might have sounded something like this. I'm frequently reminded of Zappa because of the frequent outbursts of triplets, pentuplets and whatever-uplets of "gnat notes" that cause what passes for melodic lines to suddenly stumble a few steps, then stagger back into sync again. It would sound like a mistake except that all the instruments do the same thing all at once, which means it's scored this way! My best advice would be: don't try to dance to this! As if you were planning on doing that anyway. Just listen ... after the first couple of times, it will all sound perfectly natural. Really. I had a couple of e-mail exchanges with Mike Sary late last year, and he talked to me a bit about the band and his feelings about the status of French TV. One of the ongoing issues has been that half of the band (Mike Sary and Jeff Gard) reside in Louisville, Kentucky, while the other half (Warren Dale and Chris Smith) reside in San Diego, California. This has made it tough to work together, especially on music of this complexity. Further, it has made playing in front of an audience a huge logistical problem. So, at the beginning of last year, as This Is What We Do was being finished, Warren Dale let Mike Sary know that he felt he had said all he wanted to say in the context of French TV, so the two halves of the band have split (amicably). Mike is trying to put together a French TV line-up who are all in Louisville so that they can practice together and gig together. But, while he's "cautiously optimistic" about this prospect, he also told me that, "for the past few months I've been having that 'long dark night of the soul' and am beginning to conclude that if I don't get a touring version of FTV together soon, it might be time to hang it up. If I'm not out there rubbing elbows and getting a buzz about the band going, this is beginning to feel uncomfortably like a vanity project whose resources ought to be poured into something more useful, like skyport windows or hardwood floors for the living room & dining room." I understand how he feels. It's tough to be a musician playing this kind of music, with a small (if adoring) audience, and relatively few venues in which to play it. So I gave it my best try, telling him that playing this kind of music is a calling ... those of us bitten by "the prog bug" are forced to create this kind of music whether we want to or not. It's in our blood. We'll go mad if we don't. Yadda yadda yadda. His response was, "... food for thought. I guess the point I'm making is that the lack of pay-off (not so much money as bouncing these creations off an audience, or even playing the tunes as an ensemble) is putting a real damper on sitting in my studio writing these things. Initially, I was happy in the process of proving to myself that I could create tunes and see them thru from sketchy idea to finished product. After 9 CD's and the 4-5 future projects I've got going, I'm not impressing myself any more. Being a basement genius (well, relatively speaking ...) is for the birds." Mike and I talked again (via e-mail) in the last few days, and he's said that he is working on FTV#10 (no other title yet) with Steve Katsikas of Little Atlas. He thinks it should be finished up by the end of 2007. However, he also says that this will probably be the last studio French TV album. If French TV continues, it will be as a live unit. Mike is writing charts for a set list of FTV songs so he "can then throw scores in front of some decent readers and say 'PLAY THIS!'" In the meantime, Mike has been recording with a new band called Distinguished Panel of Experts, who should have their debut album ready very soon. This sounds exciting, see their entry for what I know about them at the moment. -- Fred Trafton

Links

[See Distinguished Panel of Experts | Little Atlas | Trap] Click here for French TV's web site

Discography

No Pussyfooting (73, w/ Brian Eno) Evening Star (75, w/ Brian Eno) Exposure (79) God Save the Queen/Under Heavy Manners (80) Let the Power Fall (81) The League of Gentlemen (81) I Advance Masked (82, w/ Andy Summers) Bewitched (84, w/ Andy Summers) God Save the King (85, Compilation, re-issue of League of Gentlemen material) Network (85, Compilation, EP) Get Crafty I (88, Cassette only, w/ Guitar Craft) Live II (90, Live, w/ Guitar Craft) Kneeling At The Shrine (91, as Sunday All Over the World) Show of Hands (91, w/ Guitar Craft) The First Day (93, w/ David Sylvian) The Bridge Between (93, w/ Trey Gunn & California Guitar Trio) Damage (94, live '93 w/ David Sylvian) FFWD>> (94, w/ Kris Weston, Thomas Fehlmann & D.A.R. Paterson) 1999: Soundscapes - Live in Argentina (94) Intergalactic Boogie Express (95, Live, w/ Guitar Craft) A Blessing of Tears: 1995 Soundscapes, Vol. 2 (95, Live) That Which Passes: 1995 Soundscapes, Vol. 3 (96, Live) Radiophonics: 1995 Soundscapes, Vol. 1 (96, Live) November Suite: Live at Green Park Station (97, Live) The Gates of Paradise (97, Limited Edition) The Gates of Paradise (98) The Repercussions of Angelic Behavior (99, w/ Bill Rieflin & Trey Gunn) A Temple in the Clouds (00, w/ Jeffrey Fayman)

Reviews

Robert Fripp Apart from leading King Crimson for much of his musical career, Robert Fripp has released some great solo material. He has worked with countless other people like Debbie Harry, The Roaches, The Giles Brothers, Andy Summers, Toyah (his wife) and has contributed to a lot of albums as a "guest" (early Van Der Graaf Generator, Peter Hammill, David Bowie etc). Most notably, he has collaborated with Brian Eno to produce No Pussyfooting and Evening Star which are beautiful showcases for Eno's ambient tastes and Fripp's incredible "Frippertronic" guitarwork which involves long Reevox tape loop delays and seemingly permanent sustain. Let the Power Fall is an album of Frippertronics and, IMO, is superb. It is meant for improvising guitar too and is a real challenge ... you can't just sit and play pentatonic scales over this! Exposure was supposed to be a companion album to a Hall and Oats album and a Peter Gabriel album. It has Gabriel's "Here Comes the Flood" with Frippertronics wrapped round it and versions of tracks that appear on Hall and Oat's albums with different lyrics ... all very confusing. All in all though, Exposure is a great album ... very varied, intense and as a bonus, Peter Hammill sings on a couple of tracks. The "League of Gentlemen" material is rather idiosyncrastic and involves peculiar timings, prominent bass and some lovely Fripp guitar work. Especially the "God Save the King" track which makes the hairs on my neck stand up when it fades into Frippertronics with Fripp improvising over it. Recently, he collaborated with Toyah and Trey Gunn to release Sunday all over the World's Kneeling at the Shrine. Some great guitar on this. Also, he has released an album with David Sylvian called The First Day. Fripp is certainly one of the most original and pioneering of all guitarists ... he uses his own tuning (has done since the mid seventies), has set up his own guitar school and has avoided all of the nasty guitarist pretentions. You owe it to yourself to hear at least some of his material.

The Bridge Between presents another project based exclusively on guitar work, as The Robert Fripp String Quartet. The quintet includes Fripp (guitars and Frippertronics), Trey Gunn (stick) and the California Guitar Trio (acoustic guitars). This lineup offers a certain variety of arrangements. Some tracks areacoustic (by J.S. Bach), some receive a more electric treatment, while others a based on Frippertronics. The selections offer a good sample of Fripp's recent projects with the Guitar Craft. A disc full of sonic explorations with guitars of different kinds. -- Paul Charbonneau

Robert Fripp surprises again with one of his numerous projects. The League of Crafty Guitarists is a peculiar ensemble formed by over a dozen guitarists (mostly acoustic). The short pieces of Show of Hands are in a style that goes back to J.S. Bach (counterpoint) but the execution is more typical of contemporary King Crimson. It features disciplined execution of melodic as well as rhythmic phrases. This innovative production, part of a concept that reaches beyond the music, offers a very rich sound. The arrangements are astonishing and push the use of guitars in new territories. -- Paul Charbonneau

Links

[See Belew, Adrian | Brudford, Bill | California Guitar Trio | Eno, Brian | Gabriel, Peter | Giles, Giles and Fripp | King Crimson | Levin, Tony] Click here for Elephant Talk, the official web site for all things related to Robert Fripp and King Crimson Click here for First World Music to order The Repercussions of Angelic Behavior

Discography

Guitar Solos (74) Strings and Springs (78, w/ Hugh Davies) With Friends Like These (79, w/ Henry Kaiser) Gravity (80) Speechless (81) Live in Japan (82) Cheap at Half the Price (83) Live in Prague and Washington (83, w/ Chris Cutler) French Gigs (83, w/ Lol Coxhill) Who Needs Enemies? (83, w/ Henry Kaiser) Nous Autres (87, w/ Rene Lussier) With Enemies Like These, Who Needs Friends? (87, w/ Henry Kaiser, Compilation) The Technology of Tears (88) The Top of His Head (89, Soundtrack) Live in Moscow, Prague and Washington (90, w/ Chris Cutler) 20000V Live (90, w/ Kazuyuki K. Null) Step Across the Border (91) Dropera (91, w/ Ferdinand Richard as Fred and Ferd) Guitar Solos II (91) Live Improvisations (92, w/ Tim Hodgkinson) Helter Skelter (93, w/ Francois-Michel Pesenti) Subsonic 1: Sounds of a Distant Episode (94, w/ Marc Ribot) Quartets (94) Middle of the Moment (95) Allies (96) Eye to Ear (97) Ayaya Moses (97, as Fred Frith Guitar Quartet) Improvisations (97, w/ Jean-Pierre Drouet) Reel (97, w/ Noel Akchote) The Previous Evening (97) Etymology (97, w/ Tom Cora) Pazifica (98, compositions by Frith, he does not play on this recording) Upbeat (99, as Fred Frith Guitar Quartet) Friends and Enemies (99, w/ Henry Kaiser, Compilation) Stone, Brick, Glass, Wood, Wire (99)

Reviews

Fred Frith British multi-instrumentalist (guitars, violin, bass, keyboards, tapes, drums, samplers, etc.), and one of those rare musicians who is an adept songwriter and lyricist, and a stunningly original improvisor. Frith is at home playing the twisted pop of Cheap at Half the Price as he is in the avant-garde improvisational arena with cohorts such as Henry Kaiser (With Friends Like These, and Who Needs Enemies), Chris Cutler (Live in Prague...), and Rene Lussier (Nous Autres). He has also composed film scores (The Top of His Head) and music for modern dance (The Technology of Tears). In short, Fred Frith's recorded output is so varied and so unique that I cannot do it justice in a few paragraphs, but here goes nothing ... Fred Frith was first known for his work with British RIO band Henry Cow. After the demise of this excellent group, he formed Art Bears with Henry Cow drummer Chris Cutler and vocalist Dagmar Krause. Musically, Frith's solo records have a tangential relationship to either of these well-known bands. Avant-garde free improvisation dominates several of Frith's solo records (e.g., Live in Prague and Washington and With Friends Like These), while others are odd, twangy, ethnic-sounding pop music (e.g., Cheap at Half the Price). I find both approaches very rewarding. To my ears, Gravity and Speechless are the most similar to Frith's earlier work with Henry Cow. On Side 1 of Gravity, Frith is backed by his "favorite dance band," Zamla Mammas Manna and on Side 2, the Muffins do the honors. Anyone who likes any of these bands will enjoy Gravity, even the screwy instrumental cover version of the old pop chestnut "Dancing in the Street." Speechless has Etron Fou Leloublan on Side 1, and Massacre (Frith's excellent avant-noise power trio with Bill Laswell and Fred Maher) on side 2, and seems a bit darker and noisier than Gravity. Again, if you enjoy either Etron Fou or Massacre, Speechless will deliver the goods. Unlike Gravity and Speechless, Cheap at Half the Price (Frith's final recording for the Ralph label) is essentially a pop record. Frith plays all instruments, and sings every track. The lyrics are very politically oriented, and in its own way, Cheap... is as uncompromising as everything else Frith recorded. With Friends Like These and Who Needs Enemies are duet recordings with Henry Kaiser. The earlier With Friends... is quite a wild and wooly avant-garde improv affair, with both Frith and Kaiser playing mostly electric guitars. Although no less adventurous, Who Needs Enemies is a very lovely and melodic record, with Frith and Kaiser doubling on guitars, bass and drum machines. Frith also contributes some violin, and there are even two acoustic blues tracks. Nous Autres, a live duet recording with Quebecios guitarist Rene Lussier with guest shots by Chris Cutler and several vocalists, is very varied with some moments that recall Frith's earlier work (both Gravity and Speechless), some guitar noise sections, a track ("J'aime la Musique") that sounds like very warped disco with shouted lyrics, and some quiet pastoral sections. Technology of Tears is very rhythmic, with lots of samples, wordless vocals, horns, and odd percussion. Some of it reminds me of Gravity, but it's a pretty unusual record. The Top of His Head, a movie soundtrack, has a dark, but delicate, almost ethereal sound. Some of it sounds almost like chamber music, with prominent cello, guitar and violin, but there are some tracks with vocalist Jane Siberry that sound strangely poppish and conventional. All of Frith's recordings are great, but if I had to choose, I'd say that Who Needs Enemies, Speechless, and Gravity are my favorites. Fred Frith has recorded with several fine groups, including Massacre, Skeleton Crew (with cellist Tom Cora), Curlew, and John Zorn's Naked City. -- Dave Wayne

Fred Frith, formerly of Henry Cow and the Art Bears, certainly rates as a cult figure. Best known as a guitarist, he also excels on bass, violin, and keyboards. His records range from tune-packed group excursions to fairly arid free improvisation. Gravity, recorded with members of the Muffins and Zamla Mammaz Manna, and Speechless, with members of Etron Fou Leloublan and Frith's power-noise trio Massacre, are both full of tunes, creative and odd but fairly accessible. (Commercial? Certainly less abrasive than Naked City, but I think the typical pop or rock fan would consider them pretty strange.) Cheap at Half the Price has Frith's response to punk - a low-tech, straightforward approach to writing and singing songs. Unfortunately, Frith's singing and lyric-writing are not terribly impressive. (The two records by his group Skeleton Crew are from this same period and have a similar approach.) Guitar Solos and Live in Prague and Washington are examples of his free improvisation - very good, but be warned - there are no tunes on these records. Step Across the Border is a good introduction to Frith - it's the soundtrack to a film about him and includes examples of a variety of his approaches, from solo improvisations to compositions played with different groups. -- Dan Kurdilla

Frith started as guitar and violin player in the British RIO band Henry Cow. After their split in 78 he played with Chris Cutler and Dagmar Krause in The Art Bears, another classic of the British experimental rock scene. In the early eighties, after playing with the Belgian Aqsak Maboul, he recorded 3 solo LPs (Gravity, Speechless and Cheap at Half the Price), on which he is accompanied by former Henry Cow and Aqsak Maboul members, the Swedish band Zamla, Etron Fou Leloublan and the Muffins. The music on these three is similar to Henry Cow or Art Bears stuff, more or less complicated RIO-rock with some experimental moments (tapes and samples, prepared guitar) and mainly dominated by Friths guitar playing. While staying in the USA he not only played with the aforementioned Muffins, but also with Bill Laswell in the band Massacre and he met the cello player Tom Cora. With him he founded in 1984 Skeleton Crew and recorded two LPs. Technology of Tears is quite complicated stuff, Frith playing all instruments except J. Zorn on sax and a weird Japanese vocalist. A good introduction to Frith is Step Across the Border, a film soundtrack with recordings from 80-90, thus a compilation of his work in the 8ties. Dropera features Ferdinand Richard from Etron Fou, and is similar to Richards solo works. Helter Skelter is an opera, with many instrumentalists and singers, very experimental and very hard to listen to. With Quartets Frith entered modern classical music. Here you find two quartets, one for strings and one for electric guitars (here he is joined by Nick Didkovsky from Doctor Nerve, Rene Lussier and Mark Howell). Allies is very quiet Chamber rock, with John Cartwright from Curlew, Tom Cora and Joe Byron (from Bill Frisells band), very nice but strange, a bit like his early 8ties stuff. The Top of his Head and Eye to Ear feature various pieces written as soundtracks. Pazifica is a huge ensemble work. With this one Frith definitely entered the contemporary classical music world. Gravity, Speechless and Cheap at Half the Price are definitely classics of RIO and can safely be recommended! -- Achim Breiling

Links

[See Aksak Maboul | Art Bears | Etron Fou Leloublan | Henry Cow | Massacre [USA] | Residents, The | Richard, Ferdinand | Samla Mammas Manna | Skeleton Crew | Zorn, John] Click here for Fred Frith's web site Click here for a Fred Frith bio

Discography

Dreams (96) Behind the Walls of Imagination (97) Space Music (98) Cyberspace (00) Mythology (01)

Reviews

Eloy Fritsch creates a patch on his Roland System-700 Keyboardist from Apocalypse (Brazil).

Links

[See Apocalypse (Brazil)] Click here for Eloy Fritsch's web site