Verbal Delirium are a Greek progressive rock band who formed in 2006. They have released four albums to date ‘The Imprisoned Words of Fear’ (2016), ‘From The Small Hours Of Weakness’ (2013) and ‘So Close And Yet So Far Away’ (2010), with ‘Conundrum’ being the latest, and second with Bad Elephant Music. This release is definitely interesting, mixing heavier elements with articulate vocals and sounds to create great music. This is my first exposure to the band and here are my thoughts on the album.
The album has eight tracks which vary in length and in style, ranging from brief vignettes like Falling with its Saga like sounds, especially in the vocals by Jargon, through to epic pieces like The Watcher and Neon Eye Cage, which are both over nine minutes in duration. Musically the sounds range from semi-choral to Beatles-like parts, elements of prime Queen through to jazzy inspired sections with saxophone and clarinet and violin and epic, partially ambient, soundscapes all tied together with a solid rock beat and groove. All this together makes for a unique and satisfying listening experience. The team of Jargon on vocals, George Pagidas on bass, Stratos Morianos on keyboards, Vasilis Armaos on drums and GeorgeKyriakidis on guitar are a sensationally tight and focused unit who together bring this great music to life.
This jazzy element is most clearly espoused in title track Conundrum which really has a bounce and a spring in its step. Likewise, The Watcher also impresses with its use of Hammond Organ to swell the sound along with its Saga like vocals and the fiery guitar of George Kyriakidis, whose playing enlivens and grabs the attention throughout the track. The song is epic in style with a growing intensity that runs through the track. It’s a song you need to hear for yourself as it really makes a statement for the band, showing their dexterity in the composition and their skills to realise the piece. It really is a slow burner of a track but certainly impresses me, as does Neon Eye Cage, which opens with gentle electric piano and a graceful vocal from Jargon sounding not unlike Mika on this section. The song gains both pace and power with a unique guitar and keyboards exchange taking the song forward. I really like this sound, it’s different and fresh sounding, adding great dynamics to an already intriguing sound palette, there is also a fine guitar break at the six minute point which I find very melodious. This ends with strong bass and keyboards before resuming again to reach greater heights with more doubled guitar lines moving to the piano to take us to the end. The return of the electric piano tones and even more ‘Mikaesque’ vocals conclude this most fascinating piece.
Fall From Grace is the album’s last track, this reintroduces the Saga like vocals over graceful piano lines and orchestrations before a sturdy drumbeat begins. This song is a slower paced track but it has a strong melody and is very impressive sounding with another scorching guitar break lifting the track significantly. The guitar is very expressive and striking with lots of space and time allowed for it to soar as the song plays, it is all rather fine really. The vocalist Jargon is fabulous on this album and his vocals are both clear and strong with great phrasing and articulation and these really do make an impression.
I would say this album is rather fine indeed and is a grower that warrants attention and one that really is deserving of a wider audience. The prog world can be very insular at times and its fans can sadly be closed to great new music. Hopefully they will discover that which can be heard on this very rewarding album. I was certainly taken with it and can recommend it to open minded music lovers, it is highly impressive and deeply rewarding.
This album has been quite a long time in arriving so its title, ‘Evolver’ is very apt. In real terms this is the follow on from the Valdez album, ‘This’, from 2017. Their plans for recording the follow up were drastically altered, initially by a line up change and then followed by the impact of the pandemic, which meant everything changed. The result being a name change for the band to Tribe of Names. ‘Evolver’ is the delayed result and what an album it has turned out to be, the new line up and name seem to have worked out well as this album is full of genuinely progressive music and some fine tracks.
Opener Tribe Of Names begins like an 80’s synth pop number but this is soon replaced by some solid bass lines and jangly guitar then latterly by some solid, meaty guitar riffery and an epic soaring guitar line which is all underpinned by that funky bass line and that’s all in the initial 3 minutes of starting! This is solid and exciting music to hear, it has lots of Rush type elements and guitar playing reminiscent of Alex Lifeson. I believe guitarist Karl Eisenhart started by learning Rush songs and still plays in that style, well he certainly learned his chops! The song is a great one with lots of odd time signatures and a great solo from Karl that plays toward the end of the track, a very strong opener. They Live To Cry is a more subdued piece, again this has elements of Rush running throughout but is all so well handled that it doesn’t really matter, This in not a tribute though, more it feels influenced by Rush, although not overly so. The song has great melody and music and I really like it.
Liar Liar has a strong and dominant bass part with touches of guitar arpeggios and linear playing. This is a shorter but no less interesting track and is great sounding too. Everyday Hauntedis another brief track filled with sustained guitar tones over a swelling keyboard, an echoed vocal adding menace and interest. This is an intriguing piece of music with tremolo guitar notes adding to the weirdness, all very strange but brilliantly so. We are then back in somewhat familiar territory with White Nile, a track that builds in intensity with lots of drum crashes and rumbling bass over guitar tones that could be straight out of La Villa Strangiato, another great track to be influenced from. The strident opening part gives way to a more mellow section of moody music, this is a highlight of the album thus far, excellent performances and solid and inventive playing from all parties.
The Last Unsung Girl is slightly different with a quirky sound, rhythm and melody. Coupled with its mixed time signatures this is certainly distinctive and yet oddly compelling with a great guitar line after which we get a funky bass and guitar section leading to a fine solo from Karl. This is an album whose songs will creep up on you and take a real grip on you, it’s certainly stirring stuff. Mayfly is another guitar led piece with more crunching guitar lines underpinned by a sympathetic bass. There is much beauty to enjoy here, it is very accomplished and well delivered by the band and another somewhat satisfying song. The final and longest track, Dirt On The Inside concludes this excellent album with its extended run time giving lots of room for the music to evolve without constraints, the slower opening section being allowed to build in its intensity for the initial four minutes. This leaves you waiting for the track to explode into life, which it does around the four minute mark where the guitar line surges forward with power in a dramatic manner before some solid bass runs are joined by guitar unison lines with tremolo again. The pace increases again to another excellent solo with the band firing on all cylinders. This is a most impressive track with lots going on musically and it all sounds really effective, there follows a slower, less intense, part which allows guitarist Karl to play some sustained guitar lines before reprising the earlier solo as the song draws to a solid close.
This album should appeal to folks who miss Rush as it explores similar territories. Overall, this is a very strong and musically diverse album with powerful statements and an excellent sound. The sleeve by Mark Buckingham is also very noteworthy and interesting, I heartily recommend this great album.
For those who don’t know, PsychoYogi are a jazz fusion / progressive rock band led by the incredibly talented Chris Ramsing who plays guitar, writes the songs and also sings them! Chris is clearly influenced by the likes of Frank Zappa and many other left-field musicians. He is a very skilled player and uses the band’s musicality to express his thought and viewpoints. The music can be a bit cerebral and clever and can take a while to get into as it requires the listener’s effort too, what can seem to be a bit obscure will eventually begin to feel familiar and friendly, if you are prepared to make the investment of time and effort.
PsychoYogi have joined the roster of artists that appear under the Bad Elephant Music label banner, which is a good home for them and should expose them to a far wider audience. Their talents should begin to get the recognition that they deserve, after several years of self-released albums like ‘Accident Prone’, ‘Consumption Wheel’ and ‘Chase the Bone’, along with last year’s ‘Dangerous Devices’.
The latter was a good template for this new album ‘Digital Vagrancy’, a release on which, you will be glad to hear, the band’s normal wackiness and weirdness continues unabated, which, in the madness of this present age, is certainly both a boon and a relief and is very welcome. This is music to challenge and to experience for yourself, in amongst the weird time signatures lurks a good sense of both humour and of the absurd. This is clearly shown on tracks like Wonderful Place with its strong bass lines and with Chris’s fluid guitar taking centre stage, its freewheeling form scoring highly. There is also a deft lightness of touch to many of these tracks which shows how well the band are gelling as a unit these days, brass, horns, bass and guitars are drawn together, all underpinned by the bass of IzzyStylish and the drums of Justin Casey.
The album opens with Guiding Light, all gentle noodling from Chris along with good syncopation from Justin’s drums, which splash gently across the muted tones of the sax of Toby Nowell. This is all very eloquently overseen by all concerned with a strong jazz fusion leaning and a jaunty tone, yet it’s still accessible listening and not just for jazz buffs. A Dangerous Path opens with some horn interplay, which sets the scene well for the languid jazzy rhythms at play. Here the music and vocals actually put me in mind of Greenslade for some odd reason but, if so, that’s a good comparison to have really, as they are nothing like each other at all but the mind is a strange thing at times and I guess years of stored music came to the surface there.
The River follows and has prominent bass to open followed by eloquent sax. Again, this mellow song works well hinged on bass and delicate drums with guitar chords at play and a brief jazzy guitar break from Chris really hits the mark. Wonderful Place is up next and opens with a long, fluid guitar line laid over busy drums and more of those strong bass lines. Shimmering guitar chords play over the track and are joined by more sax lines, add in an almost ethnic sounding percussion segment and it becomes very jazzy. This is sublime and superb at the same time, an enjoyable track with lots happening in its three-minute window.
Distant Bell follows with more delicate guitar lines and subtle bass lines, the horn and sax parts helping this sound really swing. This album gets better the more you play it and you begin to realise just what a joyfully crafted it really is as well as being imaginative and boldly creative. Everyone gets a chance to shine, and they all do throughout this fine track. Next Track Salvation has a smoky sounding opening, murky and effective sounding, before the vocals start. The song is all about faith and belief and the entire system of such things, it’s an interesting song that asks a lot questions land leaves you to your own conclusions.
Love and Sanity is about the lack of compassion in today’s world, how we are worse for its lack in society, and how we all avoid it as individuals today. It’s an honest, challenging and sobering song at times. Much to Dream About follows and is another questioning song about how yesterday’s dreams have gone and how those dreams have been replaced with negativity, fear and loathing with everybody affected by this change. This is social commentary about the world today and how it has not gotten better but has taken a step or more in the wrong direction.
Innocence for Fear is the last vocal track on the album and offers the observation that we exchange ‘Innocence for Fear’ in this modern age and that we all suffer as a result. Chris is quite forthright in his observations and questioning and why not , these things should be spoken of far more than the subservience and blind obedience that is expected of us these days!
It’s good that albums like this can offer a platform for such views to be considered and, as such, this is an important album and one that is worthy of consideration with its excellent musicianship and challenging lyrics and themes. This music could be described as left-field punk-jazz and I think that is pretty accurate.
This album is the fifth, and latest one, from the internet based & curated band, Fractal Mirror, which is comprised of a couple of Dutch and US members, amongst others including British local Boy Gareth Cole on guitars. Brett Kull of Echolyn acts as both a backing vocalist and as a creative muse or foil to the members to the band, perhaps to stimulate and enhance their creativity?
The album also marks a return to the longer tracks in which their progressive leanings can be unleashed fully, an element perhaps missing from their last two albums. Well, this release rectifies that issue conclusively as this allows for two of the album’s six songs to come in at well over the ten-minute mark and it really works on this record. Ashes is over seventeen minutes long and Borders runs out at just under thirteen, both songs benefitting from this extended running time as they have chance to expand well, allowing various themes and sections to emerge that are embellished and reworked during the running of the track.
There are also some exceptionally fine musical segments to these songs, especially in the guitar lines of Gareth Cole and in the mellotron of Leo Koperdraat, which really adds to the mood of the piece. I find the track to be very evocative and with its fabulous guitar lines from Gareth Cole, to be something a bit special sounding really. Even the shorter songs do not lose the progressive elements entirely. This is especially the case on Shadow Man which twists wonderfully with a very serpentine guitar line that threads through the final sections of the track.
The album opens with the brief Instrumental, Beyond, as is often the way in prog albums. It starts with swathes of keyboard sounds and textures, also there are some graceful acoustic guitar lines at play and then, latterly, some smooth electric guitar. It is all very pleasant and sets the album up perfectly for what is to come.
Ashes, the first of the two epics, is one to really get yourself immersed in as, over its duration, you will be taken on a voyage of sorts. Lots of ominous sounds and effects and a strident tone emerge and, again, it is very pleasing to the ear. All the while the sound is underpinned by the sounds of the rhythm section and also the electric guitar of Gareth Cole The vocals commence and work well, they are certainly strong enough on this song which also has some nifty bass runs from Ed, Leo’s Mellotron showing itself to be in fine fettle here too. This song talks of ‘ashes all around me’, and I suppose the song is about a relationship and about making it right. Relationships can be hard going at times and, as I’m sure we all know and agree, the key is commitment and communication, both of which will give a stable footing to build upon.
The lyrics go on to speak of another day wishing you weren’t here, another day of living in fear so I guess there might be an element of abuse within this relationship. Very sad words really and, overall the song has a melancholy feel and its subject matter is dark but, the music is very strong, the final solo from Gareth being suitably epic in both tone and nature, in all, a really good track.
Kingdom Of the Lost is another shorter piece but one with great vocal harmonies. This piece sounds very much like a song of loss and, as such, it has traces of slight melancholia at certain points. In contrast, it also has subtle slide guitar lines woven through its grooves, which work to create fine effect and impact.
Borders concludes the album in a lengthy workout, during which there are several great instrumental passages that unfold gracefully, as does the song itself. This track calls for holding the border one last time but what this really means is not clear. Even so, this sentiment is clearly expressed at various points in the track and with some power presence and influence.
When you add all this together what emerges is another fine album from this band for whom bigger things, audiences and shows must surely beckon and, with the power of Bad Elephant Music behind them, their future certainly looks very promising indeed. So hop on over to their bandcamp page to find this fabulous modern prog album and see what you think.
Big Hogg hail from Glasgow, which is over 550 miles from their spiritual, musical home of Canterbury in Kent. Or so it would appear to be, based upon hearing this album, ‘Pageant of Beasts‘, that was released this July on Bad Elephant Music.
This album bears significant reminders of the thriving musical scene that Canterbury gave to the world through bands like Caravan, Soft Machine, Kevin Ayers and many others. It also has a heady mix of jazz leanings and and avant-garde feel, which makes the music different as well as memorable, taking in psychedelia and jazz influences along the way.
The first piece, Golden Beasts, is a solo trumpet fanfare which opens and closes the album and upon hearing it I was strongly reminded of 80’s jazz luminaries Working Week as they ploughed a similar cross-genre furrow back in the late 1980’s, rather successfully too. Next track Here Come The Moles is a little left of centre and hinged on a hypnotic bass motif from Martin Beer which, alongside Justin Lumsden’s guitar and vocals from him and Sophie Sexon, makes a rather impressive impact. Man Overboard brings a distinct west coast USA vibe to the party. Imagine the Beach Boys with trumpets and you’ll get the idea! It is another very interesting track, the brass section sounds fabulous here, adding much colour and impact to a fine track along with sweet flute from Sophie.
Smoking Again starts out like a Faces outtake with a raspy vocal from Justin and some fine fuzz and wah-wah guitar lines. There is a lot going on in this track but it manages to avoid sounding shambolic, in fact, along with Here Come The Moles, it is one of my favorite tracks on the album . This is followed by Willow’s Song which is a lot more atmospheric and ethereal sounding. It comes from The Wicker Man and this version is fabulous. Red Rum has a nod to folk group Pentangle, especially in the bass department.
All Alone Stone really wears its Canterbury credentials on its sleeve proudly and puts me in mind of Greenslade with its keyboard stylings. This track is very impressive sounding indeed and is the longest track on the album. It is a gentle, yet exciting, musical progression, making it a great listen. I am really impressed by this album and I’ve enjoyed discovering its treasures slowly as they unfold over multiple listens. Magistellus is next and this offers a great interplay between flute and guitar in the middle section and is another very fine track.
The Wyverns is Big Hogg at their most proggy, almost space rock sounding at points and follows the pattern of the latter half of the album where the band really up their progressive side and offer some highly unusual pieces and some excellent musicianship, Bouffant Tail being a case in point, wildly unhinged and all very strange indeed. This is a short track that is rapidly followed by Cat Fool, which sounds like a long-lost track from the early days of King Crimson, albeit with added brass, very interesting and different and it also has a lovely guitar break from Justin. The album ends with the return of the trumpet fanfare, entitled Too Much Belly Not Enough Paw, which brings the album full circle to end as it began.
This is a remarkable musical journey taking in jazz, psychedelia and other influences along the way and is a testament to crafting different, yet still vibrant, music for today’s age. This album will take a while to seep through and sink into your brain, however this is so very worth it. Big Hogg are certainly mining a very interesting seam on this album and they will hopefully be able to create more marvellous music in this style soon. I certainly hope that they continue in this manner as this band have a lot to offer and will appeal to lovers of modern progressive music.
Greece is not massively known for its contribution to the world of progressive music. Apart from Vangelis, Aphrodite’s Child and, more recently, Verbal Delirium, most people think of either Zorba the Greek, bouzouki music, Demis Roussos or Nana Mouskouri as Greece’s contribution to modern music. Well, be that is it may, this group are from Greece and this, their third album, has been picked up for distribution with Bad Elephant Music here in the UK and I have to say, I think that BEM have picked a winner here as this is a fabulous album. If one can imagine a cross between Gryphon and Gentle Giant, all with a touch of Fairport Convention or Steeleye Span style folk thrown in, you would not be far off the mark.
This is an album steeped in the Folk tradition but one that also embraces electric instrumentation and progressive flourishes in order to create something that is different and new. All the better it is for those decisions too, the album begins with a very folky song entitled Eniania (which is predominantly used as a girl’s name in Albania) opening with a delicate acoustic guitar motif and some haunting flute flourishes that lead us gently into the vocals that repeat “Eniania” before the rest of the band join in all with a fluid saxophone line being played. This is all exceedingly pleasant and effective, certainly the use of unorthodox instruments makes for a distinctive and impressive sound to the music. This is a lovely song which picks up it’s pace at the 3:20 mark with a more urgent and more muscular pace to the proceedings. The interplay between the sax and the other instruments, including the flute, is very impressive and the guitar plays some wonderful lines in accompaniment. The track then returns to the original melody that opened the song for its closing section, the flute taking up the melody used for the vocals to bring the piece to a climax. This may be gentle, but it is certainly highly effective.
Next is Open Wings which is another gentle, guitar led, piece with more, bass and drums along with excellent folky vocals that sound fabulous, all very breathy but when combined with the guitar and keyboards, they sound most agreeable indeed. The third, and longer track, is The Old Man And The Butterfly, which is another jaunty excursion for this group. The piece opens with acoustic guitar, flute, keyboards and bass before an electric guitar line is introduced which builds in momentum and energy, coming to a peak before returning to more of the mellifluous flute and keyboard. There is a lot happening within this track, a very Pink Floyd type guitar and some excellent musical counterpoints between keyboards guitar that are spectacular sounding. I especially like how the song switches between softer and harder passages and how the guitar player uses different tones in his playing to excellent effect.
No Man’s Land opens strongly with Hammond Organ with a solo guitar line floated over it, all very Floydian sounding indeed. There follows a ‘marching beat’ type sound over which flutes are overlaid with more great bass underpinning the whole sound. The song then steps back to a softer passage with vocals and woodwind, the interaction between the voices is mesmerising and sounds great, as does the guitar that underpins proceedings so fluidly.
The shorter Who’s To Decide opens with a properly funky bass line with flutes playing over the top along with a funky wah-wah guitar part. Along with the breathy, impish vocals, this takes the song far beyond folk and into a far more progressive sound. It’s great to hear the sax and flutes playing away happily whilst the keyboards and synths add their own unique textures. The final section of this piece is brisk and captivating enough for you to realise that this group can all surely play very well and that their compositions are strong and musically interesting. There is much that will appeal to progressive rock fans here and it marks this group as one to watch out for in the coming years. I think this is a fabulous track that really shows the essence of the band off to great effect.
This leads us to the last song on the album, Queen of Wishes, which is also the longest track on the album, coming in at over twelve minutes. This gives the track room to stretch out a little and it is all the better for it too. Proceedings open with oboes and sax to create a very woody sound passage before acoustic guitar and vocals join in. This all sounds very ethereal and spacious in sound, added to by superb keyboards, before some crunchy guitar chords are played over the rest of the music. It is all very atmospheric and appealing with synths and chunky guitar being added whilst an organ plays underneath it all. Once again I have not got a clue what the song is about but it is one to enjoy the sound of and to admire the interplay that is within its structures, really capturing the listeners attention throughout. Its softer and heavier parts are well balanced and realised, there is a lot going on here and it all sounds effective and interesting. We return to the woodwind elements before some more rocky guitar parts and some quick-fire drumming briefly take centre stage. Then a somewhat manic organ solo is played and that fabulous woodwind riff is repeated, a riff that, if I am honest is very appealing indeed. This leads to the final moments of the song where ensemble voices sing beautifully and effectively.
This closes the album is exceptionally fine style and you are left with thinking what the hell have I just listened to? One is left with a sense of satisfaction that a group you have never heard of have made such a remarkable, intriguing album and one that you know you will want to listen to again and again. This album is spectacular and will really grow on you if you make the space for its fabulous songs.
Oxford’s finest sons make a very welcome return after quite a lengthy absence. After 2018’s ‘Now We Have Power’ this new album is a little different to what has gone before, allow me to explain, if I may.
Firstly, ‘A Trace Of Memory’ was recorded during the first lockdown period in the UK. As a reaction to, and a step towards preventing further outbreaks of, the Coronavirus, this meant recording remotely and in a segregated manner. In fact that the album got completed is a wonder in itself! As a result of that difficult period, the music they offer this time around is a little less frantic and a lot more ambient in nature. Don’t worry, it still has lots of familiar sounds and the fine voice and guitar of Joff Winks and the elegant keyboards of Matt Baber although, this time around, the sound is more expansive and wide screen and possibly more open and uncluttered.
The album opens with New Light, a shorter ambient track full of keyboards interspersed with guitar lines and runs. This is a very musical piece with a great feel and mood to it that certainly impresses and the wonderful guitar tones throughout set you up for what is to come, namely The Yellow Ship, the album’s longest track at 13:07. This impressive song opens with keyboards, shimmering cymbals and lightly strummed guitars. Joff’s vocals are measured and pleasant, Matt’s keyboards are highly effective, as is Wink’s guitar as he plays a lot of circular patterns here, albeit highly effectively. Some might feel that this song has lots of atmosphere but may lack a certain sense of direction or that could just be my interpretation of it. It is, however, all wrapped in a very lush sound that gets a bit more aggressive towards the end as the guitar starts to sound a bit more metallic sounding offset against the keyboards. Towards the close there is a return to a calmer sound and more of that strummed guitar that is exceptionally fine and effective.
Pyramids features field recordings of birdsong and other noises as it opens, this is followed by some tasty plucked acoustic guitar and more ethereal keyboard sounds and textures. These textures are interspersed with more distorted guitar chords and there is a nice touch of electronica in there too if you listen out for it. Thin Air is another lively soundscape track with more superb guitar lines woven throughout its short running time of 3:16. It also contains some strong bass parts to flavour the sound and the atmospherics of the album.
Unstable Ground has some delightful keyboards and short guitar runs that together create an atmosphere of longing for something lost or unavailable. This could well be a veiled reference to the lockdown period. Lyrically this is a darker composition, but the vocals add much to the power of the piece. Still As The Sea is next which is another somewhat whimsical song with echoes of the Canterbury sound of the likes of Caravan and early Soft Machine, again subtly effective guitar is employed to give the song its pace and setting making this a shorter song a highly effective one.
We then arrive at the final track on the album, Automaton, the albums second longest at 8:06. It opens with keyboards and electronic blips and pulses before gaining a slow burning momentum when the guitars segue in, playing more ascending chord patterns before a jazzy piano sound takes over. This piece is an instrumental song throughout but there is enough variation and imagination used to make this very strong sounding, the guitar being powerful and commanding of attention. This is a good finale to what has been a very interesting album that may not resonate with everyone on first listen but is definitely worth persevering with.
One must be grateful that Sanguine Hum are still around and continuing their own brand of whimsical Canterbury influenced progressive music. They certainly are not afraid to take chances and they should be acknowledged for doing so on this album. If you like bands like Caravan or early Soft Machine and the whole Canterbury sound or scene, then I am certain that you will find this to your liking.
Released November 20th 2020.
Order on CD or vinyl from Bad Elephant Music here:
I must confess that until he was signed to Bad Elephant Music, I was not familiar with any of Simon McKechnie’s otherwise extensive back catalogue. This is perhaps a good thing, as one comes to his work without any preconceived ideas or expectations.
This new album ‘Retro’ is his debut for BEM and rather an interesting one it is, the album consisting of four main pieces, three long and the other one an abbreviated piece.
The longest track is The Origin of Species and is a piece inspired by the writings and recollections of one Charles Darwin made during the five years he spent in the southern hemisphere and how those journeys on The Beagle both affected and influenced his Theory of Evolution, encompassing such elements as survival of the fittest and natural selection.
If I were to sum this song up in a couple of words I would say it is expansive and intriguing, there are many facets and sections to the track that make it an impressive listening experience. The song uses the actual words written by Darwin and this gives weight to the lyrics as they espouse findings made by the great man himself. There are also some lively guitar passages in between The Beagle and Natural Selection segments of the song.
The Natural Selection and Struggle for Existence segments are accompanied by some often stark rhythmic elements which nicely offset the words being sung , the song then moving onwards into some keyboards before a strident guitar riff. These sections end with a part called The Struggle which is a drum solo but possibly not as you would expect, as it is in enclosed in keyboards and concludes with some excellent guitar that is wailing almost to the point of feedback. This ushers in what could be considered a more curious segment that is supported and accompanied by woodwind.
This is one album that you will appreciate the lyrics to hand to fully grasp what is going on and what is being sung.
The section called Contemplate features a recurring sound effect leading to the lyrics. These words speak of what Darwin has seen and his thoughts as a result. This leads into the final section of the piece, Laws of Nature, which seeks to draw his conclusions as he speaks of things created that are now being evolved and is backed by a great guitar motif and solo that bring the song to a close accompanied by a gentle piano. This track is certainly different, lyrically impressive and definitely worthy of consideration, a fine opener,
The shorter, title track, Retro opens with some distinctly odd keyboards and an early 1980’s drum program, the lyrics evoking days gone by. The song has a lively beat to its and vintage (i.e.. old!) keyboards and tones and a decidedly retro rock and roll type guitar section and solo, all of which work together to create an almost olde world sound to the piece. Simon has vocal phrasings that are reminiscent of one Freddy Mercury before that beat kicks in again with its strong guitar lines running through it before the song ends with massed voices singing the word Retro, again highly effective. It’s quite an excellent and catchy little number and I really like it.
The third track is another longer Piece, The Enchantress of Number, which is a song about Lord Byron’s daughter, Ada Lovelace. Ada was a mathematician who considered that pure calculation could have other applications beyond mathematics. She had a difficult upbringing, living in Byron’s shadow, beset with illness. At the age of 17 she went to a ball and meets Charles Babbage who introduced her to his ‘Difference Engine’, a trial design for a calculating machine.
So enthralled was she that she threw herself into the task of translating a paper about ‘The Analytical Engine’. In her notes she wrote examples of its use and in doing so introduced the world’s first computer program. All in all she was a remarkable woman and this song tells her tale eloquently and with true style.
The last song is called The Return of The Beagle and is an instrumental piece in which Simon imagines Darwin’s journey back home, going through his notes whilst the wind is blowing through the sails as the boat travels across the sea, homeward bound. This piece works as an excellent closer to what has been an imaginative and illuminating musical journey in the company of Simon and his friends.
This really is a fine album, and the future looks bright for Simon if he can keep delivering intelligent, articulate, and multi-faceted music like this here on ‘Retro’. It is one that will take time to digest, enjoy and ultimately appreciate but, in any manner, it is a very well-presented record with much to recommend to listeners.
Antenna, the diverse fourth album from The Gift signals a significant change in direction and style for this London based band, driven by a fresh and accessible impetus. In a recent interview Mike Morton of The Gift summarised their new album as focusing on the ‘Difficulty of being Human’, and added that it was about ‘communication missing the mark’ which he encapsulated in the metaphor ‘Broken Plugs and Sockets’.
This is an ambitious and brave project, leaving behind their
previous leanings towards more ornate ‘prog’ sounds so one has to ask did they
succeed in the communication hitting the mark and connecting?
What is very clear right from the start is that this is a band that has chosen not to stand still or remain in a comfort zone. We are Connected is a striking opening song, with slight echoes of INXS, riding on an insistent guitar riff and threaded throughout with a popping synth backing, indicative of the subject of electronic obsession with social media. Mike Morton sounds angry as he spits out:
A myriad of souls, We
have abandoned all controls,
Naked to the core,
exposing our emotion
We are connected – we
are one – we are connected
The songwriter, David Lloyd, explained in the same TPA interview :
‘It’s about the way in
which people have sold their soul to social media… the way people can be
damaged or manipulated without really realising it, just through participating
in it. It’s got a corrupting side to it.’
This opening is important as a cracking introduction to the album but also as a very clear marker that this is The Gift like you’ve never really heard them before, and they have moved a long way from the expansive and mythically influenced previous album ‘Why the Sea is Salt’. If that album’s lush oil painting like artwork by Mark Buckingham reflected their epic musical canvasses of ornate, multi-layered passages, then Antenna’s more angular, ‘Metropolis’ film graphic based artwork by Brian Mitchell is indicative of the new album’s more direct but carefully constructed contemporary songs. For instance, there is an impressively flowing but understated guitar solo by David Lloyd in We are Connected, but whereas previously it may have been more lengthy and elaborate, on Antenna it is brief but consequently stands out all the more on a song filled with memorable hooks and straightforward lyrics.
The Gift are blessed with a combination of four songwriters in Mike Morton, David Lloyd, Gabriele Baldocci and Leroy James, who all bring something different to the table. Long Time Dead is a song which has appeared occasionally in The Gift’s live set in recent times and this ‘road testing’ has probably helped hone it into an outstanding song. Song writer Leroy James evokes a Wild West atmosphere with a Spaghetti Western type harmonica intro and then we are transported by atmospheric distorted wah wah guitar sounds. Evocatively played ensemble playing conveys a swagger befitting the feel of the song. Gabriele Baldocci even struts into the musical saloon with a dash of bar room piano. Morton carries the ‘carpe diem’ no regrets message of the song perfectly:
So come now raise your
head – you’re a long time dead
Love the life you’ve
led – you’re a long time dead
In contrast the following song Snowfall exemplifies the differing aspects that characterise The Gift. Over a delicate piano backing which brings to mind images of softly falling snow Morton touchingly sings about a lost relationship. Lyrically and melodically this is simply heart-breaking, and it is imbued with pure emotion and truth. Similarly, the instrumental piece Hand in Hand, the title of which echoes a Snowfall lyric, is also a thing of lovely subtlety, featuring guitarist Lloyd alongside bassist Stef Dickers, showing his versatility on acoustic guitar.
Snowfall and Hand in Hand bookend the far more angular piece Far Stranger, with a staccato, robotic feel appropriate for its subject matter of synthetic humans, with references to ‘Rachel and Roy’ (of the film ‘Bladerunner’) and ‘Pinocchio’. This song does not fully connect for this reviewer – it feels like a song which The Gift would have expanded upon in previous albums to convey the full story, but to me here it sounds like rather a lot of ideas and narrative squeezed in to a shorter piece. This is disappointing as it’s a fascinating theme, possibly fitting an earlier abandoned idea for the album title about being ‘Almost Human but not quite’, and the song and theme may have benefited from a more ambitious, expansive setting. On Far Stranger it is almost as if The Gift were caught between two stools in their transition from their previous ‘proggier’ style into a more succinct approach.
As if to underline that thought the extended piece Changeling is altogether more successful in conveying a narrative as it tells the story of the rise and fall of a politician corrupted by power in three distinct phases, which could easily be separate songs in themselves. This treatment gives the music and narrative time to develop and breath… but this is no extravagant, lush 70’s style ‘prog’ extravaganza. The sparse synth and programmed percussion of opening section A Saviour’s Shoes echoes 80’s era Japan (surely a good thing) with a finely judged vocal from Morton introducing a politician starting out with sincere intentions. This fascinating opening descends in to much darker territory on the much more ‘rock’ oriented The Shadow Behind part with Neil Hayman in spectacular form on powerful and precise drumming alongside Dickers’ deft use of bass in the driving sections or more contemplative passages. Baldocci throws in a great twisting synth solo to convey the insidious effect ambition has upon the politician’s initial integrity. This outstanding piece then takes a definite ‘left turn’ in the closing Finest Hour section which is a pure glam rock stomp with Morton, acting out the fall of the politician in to total corruption, at his most dramatically camp on vocals and Lloyd and James on great form on guitars. The Gift premiered this section as a stand-alone song at the Fusion Festival in March and it went down a storm with the crowd, getting them to their feet. Curiously, it could be argued that this nearly ten minute piece demonstrates that The Gift remain very much in the mainstream ‘Prog’ world, but trust me, you won’t think that when you hear it. It’s an interesting melding of different musical styles not normally associated with classic rock tropes, skilfully moulded in to a song cycle conveying the changes of the main character.
Perhaps as a ‘palate cleanser’ after such an extended and thematically dark piece The Gift follow it up with the optimistic rock/pop of Back to Eden, which rolls along brightly. This is in stark contrast to When you are old, with words by poet W.B Yeats. This slow and sombre piece of reminiscence and regret has hints of ‘Low’ era Bowie – some may love it’s melancholic atmosphere, some may find it a rather depressing drone… but one has to wonder about it’s sequencing directly after the remarkably rocking Wild Roses.
The highlight of Antenna for this reviewer is definitely Wild Roses, which announces itself with ‘Art of Noise’ like synth effects and percussion before plunging straight in to pure Thin Lizzy territory. Leroy James and David Lloyd really rock out on the guitars and Dickers and Hayman thunder along brilliantly in the rhythm section, whilst Baldocci throws in occasional keyboard stabs and synth runs… but the real surprise is Mike Morton’s vocals – he really throws himself in to a powerful ‘Rock’ vocal, with more than a little resemblance to Phil Lynott! The Gift truly excel in a live setting and one can only imagine just how much they will rock the audiences when they pull that one out of the drawer.
Antenna concludes appropriately with Closer about relationships, which commences with bright jangling guitars over a cool bass line and Hayman in almost funky form on drums in the Where all Roads Divide section. However, for this reviewer curiously for an album which focuses so much on connection this is a song which does feel a little disconnected as that opening section quite suddenly jars in to the rocking instrumental Out of Reach section with synth and guitar soloing. It almost feels like The Gift felt compelled to pull out some ‘Prog Stops’ before the end of the album. As a section alone it sounds fine, but it did not flow naturally from the first part. Similarly, after a significant pause the emotional Closer finale does not flow on from the previous passage. Nevertheless, as a piece in itself Closer impressively builds and builds with delicately picked, almost bluegrass guitar, organ and then a lovely fluid piano. A lyrical soaring guitar solo elevates the piece to even greater heights as Morton proclaims:
If our journeys ever
synchronize, Let’s be thankful for whatever, Brings our Universe together
We can be Closer….
Closer…. We can be Closer
On this album Closer feels ironically a little disjointed but as a live piece it may mature, and the excellent closing section will certainly stir the soul.
Well, as asked earlier, did The Gift succeed in communicating and connecting?
For this reviewer the answer is a qualified ‘Yes’.
There are some truly outstanding pieces on this album, but for me some songs did not quite hit the mark or fully connect. In essence some of the ‘plugs’ did not seem to quite fit some of the ‘plugs’. In truth The Gift were never a ‘full-on’ ornate ‘Prog’ band, and each album had more accessible, less musically ambitious and unashamedly ‘catchy’ pieces alongside their epic forays. However, the clear main direction was down well-trodden progressive rock paths, and with classic songs like The Willows they really did it so well. In contrast Antenna feels like a band trying to break out of what may have started to feel like a pigeon-holing musical straightjacket. There may also be a sense of liberation for the wide range of song writing talent within the band, which has added a wholly different and fascinating range of musical colours to their spectrum. The great qualities that marked out The Gift previously are still there in the DNA of their material but maybe inevitably this album does have the feel of a ‘Transition’ album. Sometimes in a transition process older ways of doing things do not always sit comfortably together with new paths. However, that is not a bad thing – transition means growth and ‘progression’ in the true sense of the word. The Gift should be commended for having had the balls to significantly change their sound – as Morton said in a recent interview that change may ‘piss some people off and disappoint’ but ‘that’s just the way it is…’ It will be fascinating to see where they go from here.
The hope is that their previous fans remember the core of what made The Gift worth following before and remain on board, whilst the undoubted high quality of the different range of largely more accessible songs on this album also justifiably attracts other new fans who like … well just rock music, whatever the label.
Antenna sends out a strong signal from The Gift – they do not stand still so leave your preconceptions at the door, open your minds and explore their changing world.
The Great War of 1914 to 1918 has been, for many artistes, a rich vein of material, inspiring songs that detail the heroism, suffering, sacrifice and fear that all soldiers must have felt and experienced in those Flanders fields of mayhem, chaos, death and destruction. The war itself is beyond the comprehension of most of us, making the creation of any piece of art, I’d imagine, one of the most difficult tasks to do, ensuring that true and proper record is made. It can only be expected that any work needs to be a labour, work that needs the fullest detail to be sought. The work needs to be exhaustive in it’s research, it’s execution and it’s intentions. And it is work that will be held to the highest of standards by people who will have factual, historical and emotional attachment to this most emotive of subjects.
What cannot be denied is that Bristol multi-instrumentalist, Saul Blease, has undoubtedly set out to create apiece of music that does pay that fitting tribute. But this reviewer is one of those people who will set the high standards, being, as I am, someone with a deep interest in the history of the Great War and that, I’m afraid has coloured my view of this album. For me, it doesn’t reach the standards I expect as a whole.
On my first listen I was intrigued by what I was hearing. I found the percussion in particular emotive, reminiscent as it was, on occasions, of machine gun fire. There were heavy parts that felt like a bombardment going on, with the impression being of being a soldier sat in a trench waiting for battle to start. And then the music would quieten, with lilting piano pieces perhaps reflective of the quiet before the storm. But through out this, there was this little nagging thought in the back of my mind, something that wasn’t sitting quite right, something that was jarring on my knowledge of the Great War itself. Another listen back only served to strengthen that thought, a thought that needed corroboration from a source with more knowledge than mine.
And it is thanks to Martin Hutchinson that he, on behalf of Bad Elephant Music, allowed me to share this album with a friend who is both a fan of progressive music but also an experienced Great War battlefield historian. The files were sent without comment, with the reply coming back that confirmed what I thought. The problem with this album comes lyrically; the historical inaccuracies that grated on me were only magnified with particular glaring errors being descriptions around the battle at Mons referring to trenches, barbed wire and mud -this never happened until a long time after this battle with the army at Mons in full retreat in open warfare, the trench warfare occurred sometime later once a stalemate was reached.
Now I am fully prepared for this review to be slated for not allowing a bit of artistic licence, for it to be said does it really matter? To which my justification is that, yes it does for two main reasons. Firstly, as I explained in my opening, this subject is so very important that it has to be right, there is an obligation on the artist, when taking on such a subject, to be absolutely true to those who experienced. On its own there could be an element of allowance, but the second issue I have with this album is the reliance on cliché; for both of us involved in this review the lyrics felt very much like a rushed and lazily written history essay. With reference to ‘brass hats’, ‘do or die’ and ‘dying for England’ this was very much in the stereotypical viewpoint of the First World War that was trotted out in 1960’s and 70’s school class rooms and perpetuated by Blackadder and far less worthy than the war poetry of the Wilfred Owens and Seigfreid Sassoons, for instance, whose voices are a much more genuine and authentic chronicle of this war.
Take this album as just a piece of work and there is plenty to enjoy, least not the quality of the musicianship. However, if you are a student of, interested in or, indeed, seeking to extend your knowledge of the Great War this is, unfortunately, an album that will infuriate, annoy and perhaps even, anger you. And in this conclusion I feel for Saul Blease as I’m sure he has spent many valuable hours trying to create a fitting tribute and chronicle of the Great War; unfortunately, for this reviewer he has only succeeded in pandering to popular perception rather than achieving a better researched reality.
