Sinevibes has released version 1.2.2 of Gateboy, an advanced rhythmic modulator AudioUnit plug-in for Mac OS X.

Gateboy is an advanced gate sequencer which allows to add motion to any audio. It includes a swing-capable sequencer with up to 16 steps having individual levels and two working modes. Each step can trigger the flexible envelope generator with multiple forms and unique shaping options such as lag processor and modulation saturation. Gateboy’s intuitive interface, smooth controls and clear sound build up to a tool that always delivers superb musical results.

Changes in Gateboy v1.2.2

• Improved smoothing algorithm for the sequencer pattern.
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• New factory presets.

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Visit Sinevibes for more information.

Issues of wordless vocals, environmental effects of rolling waves and gulls (on Sounds Of The Sea) and minimulistic use of a variety of percussives such as shakers and bongoes create serene, lofty atmospheres throughout this spirited work. The ghosts of JS Bach and SV Rachmaninov also lurk from time-to-time, complimented by subtle consummate drumming and lucid bass lines that provide smooth rhythmical backdrops. Haslam`s salient, otherworldly vocals illuminate the work and shine with indescribable luminosity whether singing harmonies with bass player Jon Camp or pushing the higher registers on the two incantations which book-end the work. East Indian influences make an appearance on the final piece Rajah Kahn complete with tablas and an electric guitar substituting for the more traditional sitar. A final section of this piece where the electric guitar really makes it`s voice heard may come off to be a bit obstruse at first but actually adds to the dynamics of this neat little prelude and fugue which marries eastern and western sensibilities.

A superb example of early seventies English folk rock with a progressive slant which is much more in league with the male fronted Strawbs or Camel rather than other harder edged contemporary female led bands such as Babe Ruth and Curved Air. Repose in your favourite comfy chair and become lost in the dreamy hypnotic vestiges on one of the most uplifting folk-rock albums of the glorious seventies while marvelling over the spacey cover artwork by Hipgnosis.

by Vibrationbaby


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If Sach O found a bag of weed on the floor, motherfucker. you know what the fuck he’d go and do: pick it up, pick it up.

So I’m at the local Caribbean spot, half blunted, picking up some roti for a lazy Thursday night when Freddie McGregor’s Bobby Bobylon starts blaring out the stereo. Now I’m not about to enter any sound clashes, but I’m no slouch on the reggae tip either: I can live without ever hearing Legend again, I’ve given obligatory props to the Congos, I know that busting out Night Nurse gets the panties off and can tell Augustus Clarke, Johnny Clarke and Augustus Pablo apart. I’d heard Freddie McGregor’s work beforehand but this was the shit. That bass heavy hard rock music mixed with the soulful sensitivity that makes dreads break down and cry into their Red Stripes. Suffice to say, this required some investigation.

Released for the mighty Studio 1 label, Bobby Bobylon was McGregor’s full length debut but he was no novice on the mic, beginning his career at the tender age of 7 and releasing a multitude of singles. Collecting some of this older material and adding newer tracks, the album is surprisingly cohesive with tough production that sounds far grittier than its 1980 release date would suggest. Which isn’t to say that the album’s nothing but fire n’ brimstone: the first half is mostly lover’s rock at its best. Tomorrow is like today is the immediate stand out with one of the most pained, soulful vocals ever committed to tape. A lament to loneliness, the song doesn’t break any ground but the incredible performance and superb horn charts lift the song into that rarefied space where the music grabs your emotions and doesn’t let go until it’s done. Plus I’ll put lines like it’s a sad sad feeling to be sitting all alone, with people walking past me…I might as well be stoned up against anything cooked up at Motown or Stax. On the harder tip, I’m a Revolutionist hits with enough righteous fury to satisfy even the snottiest college communist while the warm, glowing production wraps the vocals up like a blanket.

McGregor’s a true OG with a career spanning an amazing 5 decades, a career I’ll probably never be in a position to summarize. As one of Reggae’s few living legends though, he’s certainly one of people that’ll be benefiting from my (ever dwindling, recession addled) musical budget. That is, if I can get past Bobby Bobylon. The album’s that good.

Download:
MP3: Freddie McGregor-”Tomorrow is Like Today”
MP3: Freddie McGregor-”I’m a Revolutionist”

Bizarre doesn't even begin to describe this album. A blend of progressive punk and almost pastoral music with a mean violin, vocal stylings that baffle even the Peter Hammill initiated, quirky, though generally brilliant, lyrics... the list goes on, and the bizarre melding of standard musical elements and a freakishly experimental mindset works overtime. Really, there is no way to describe this album effectively, it'll probably take a while to catch on as a whole, and any preconceptions you have about Van Der Graaf Generator probably do not apply to this album. Consequently, it's a bizarrely essential album: I really enjoy it, I appreciate there are a lot of people (particularly the pretty vocals crowd) who probably won't get it (not a bad thing, just different tastes), and I think it was really pushing the barriers in a way that the other classic prog bands had rather given up on by 1977. Graham Smith and Nick Potter give the album a great deal of attack, Hammill's experiments with all sorts of vocal ideas have jumped off into the deep end in a way that you'll either love or hate, Guy Evans is solid as ever, and the pianos and guitars are used with a lot more confidence and detail than most previous Van Der Graaf Generator efforts. I think it's a masterpiece, sure some others take the opposite opinion. Lizard Play exhibits the rather Van Der Graaf Generatorish (well, in this case, Van Der Graafish) of having some sort of anti-catch value. On the first listen, it made virtually no impact on me, either lyrically or musically, but now, I can call it nothing less than amazing. The first Meurglys III notes lead us into a little, slightly jazzy intro a bit reminiscent of When She Comes, before Hammill's light-hearted, very cleverly harmonised vocals come in, using a full range of high wispy overdubs to counterbalance low, gritty multiple vocals. Evans is fantastic, of course, providing all sorts of rolls in addition to some absolutely beyond-belief unusual hollow and tingly percussion inclusions. Hammill's lyrics are metaphorical, assertive and extremely potent once you actually see the whole picture, and allow for a couple of clever spins which you somehow never quite expect even when you know they're coming up. Potter's thorough, thick basslines provide the real backbone for the piece, as well as a sort of bestial feel to the piece. The Graham Smith violin is characteristically unusual, and includes a couple of rather neat subtleties that provide a little more weight to the acoustic. A song full of weirdness, shamanic rhythms, a general refusal to accept the standard terms of what rock is, and a touch of whimsicality that works really well for Van Der Graaf.

The Habit Of The Broken heart is another somewhat eclectic song, moving from a fairly basic acoustic riff to a subtle bitter bit of reflection to a full on burst of rock to a small vocal coda. The lyrics are a touch less sharp than I'd expect from Hammill, though they still contain a couple of great lines, and a basic message, which is more than a lot of bands manage to do. The lyrical vulnerability of the song relative to the rest of the album is more than outweighed by the superb musical content and the rather odd mood in Hammill's vocal. Guy Evans and Nic Potter provide a weird bass-driven riff for a fair amount of the piece. The dashes of organ fit in quite nicely, as does the lush background viola. A lot of the punk ethos thumping in again, along with a few elements of dissonance and the rather curtailed melodies than characterise much of World Record. The conclusion is nicely done. Not an absolutely perfect piece, but a lot of redeeming features, and a particularly top notch performance from Evans.

Siren Song features the album's finest lyrics, and some of the finest lyrics in rock, and the closest thing to a conventionally pretty vocal on there. The piano is absolutely lovely, and supplemented by a tragic violin, Guy Evans' very emotional and delicate percussion and the unusual Potter distorted bass sound. The mood changes of the song are distinctive, involving and feature a rather more upbeat, folk-inspired violin part, as well as an example of just how mobile Van Der Graaf Generator can make a song. Nic Potter never did a weirder bass part than that in the middle of this song, and it pays off fantastically. Anyway, the best way to describe this one is with a bit of a lyrics quote. It has reduced me to tears on occasion, and not many pieces can do that.

Laughter in the backbone laughter impossibly wise that same laughter that comes every time I flash on that look in your eyes which whispers of a black zone which'll mock all my credos as lies, where all logic is done and time will smash every theory I devise

The six minute Last Frame could well be the highlight of the album for a lot of the more prog-by-the-books listeners. A hollow atmospheric introductory solo on viola (I think) from Graham Smith leads us into the song proper, coupled with a couple of very dark, full jabs on bass and a tinkle of percussion, takes us onto the tragic retrospective vocals, coupled with a savagely bleak and determined set of lyrics. Hammill provides an acoustic (on occasion surprisingly unusual in sound) pretty much throughout the main part of the song, which is quite a nice change, and it fits in neatly both at the higher-tempo sections and the more introspective low-key parts. A sort of freakish guitar or violin solo backed up by a dab of Meurglys III riff takes up prime position in the instrumental mid-part. The song's conclusion is particularly awesome, with a distinctly rocking bass riff mixing itself in with dabs of percussion, classy lyrical bite and a distorted guitar. As always, Evans is a solid drummer, controlling his sound, volume and feel quite precisely and adding a slightly human feel through the drumming. Fantastic stuff.

The Wave is probably the most daringly introspective of the songs on this album, with quirky, and yet quite moving lyrics about the point of analysis and the effect of that on nature or feeling. The lush, but quite delicate, interplay between Hammill's piano and mellotron (it's probably actually a viola, listening to it a bit more closely) and the strings is extremely well-written, and Hammill's vocals are simply amazing in a way that only they can be. The tension is available, and a mixture of grandeur, uncertainty, high and low and whispered vocals, and selective self-harmonies adding a sort of ebbing feel to the piece. The rhythm section is again excellent, with Guy Evans' fitting in his own sort of style quite softly, accomplishing a number of subtle cadences that other drummers often seem nervous to add into soft songs, accomplishing the same sort of rolling line with no intrusion at all. It did take a while to catch onto me, as one would sort of expect a soft song like this to simply head for plain lyrics, but in the end the combination seems simply more and more right. Unusual soft songs are one of my favourite features of the classic 70s prog rock bands, and this fits that description perfectly. Masterful.

If one track can be described as driven, it's probably Cat's Eye/Yellow Fever, this piece rivets itself into the mind, frantically and schizophrenically leaping off its own ideas. Hammill's lyrics and vocals have a wonderfully reeled-off-on-the-spot tint, albeit not a lot of conventional beauty to counterbalance that. The jarring aggression of the vocals is in the vein of Nadir's Big Chance rather than Arrow or La Rossa, relying on an innate menace, speed and rhythm over volume or arrangement, and yet they are actually surprisingly fitting for the song, ramming in uncertainty, panic, menace and rage without pausing for breath... a burst of vocal dubs only heightens the frantic mood. The exhausted final vocal line is a complete contrast to this schizoid personality... one of the best worst vocal performances ever. Graham Smith's violin and viola provides truly berserk emotionality, reeling off a pulsing, tense riff as well as an array of off-the-wall solos, counterbalanced by the utter catharsis of the concluding solo. Nic Potter has never sounded better, with pulsating, demanding, insistent bass-lines complete with mixed-in sort of bass groans, as well as a bass-sound or two I haven't heard used in that way before. Even under that incredible violin solo at the end, he fits in a tasteful, obvious bass sound. The guitar is equally superb, providing a sort of picked-electric sound that lends a lot of character to the piece, as well as some blitz-on-the-ear wails. One of the big standouts of this piece, though, is Guy Evans. His combination of sort of trapping drum sounds, solid, aggressive beats, tasteful leaves, hard, flat rock beats and manically fast, yet comprehensible, fills, which sort of overspill all the parameters of the song, providing a sensation of real vertigo and being off the edge.

Anyway, I've gone into a bit more detail than I usually do on shortish songs for this one, but it was entirely worth it. An incredible song, one that really both pushes the parameters of rock and yet builds on existing traditions. As Peter Hammill would say, the 'exciting stuff'. It's a sample at the moment, so take a listen to it on the appropriate volume. If you don't like it, the album might not be for you (there's a wide range of material covered, and the lyrics, here, are probably not as strong as the rest of the album), but if you do, really, the album might be your thing. It's the song that brought me to going beyond the obligatory four VDGG albums.

The Sphinx In The Face is another oddity, complete with a particularly anarchically arranged set of lyrics, a range of rather clever musical quotes from previous pieces incorporated into the main piece. Opening with a cheerful guitar riff, backed up by the appropriate groove from the bass. A couple of rather reggae-ish moments are juxtaposed with a general pushing-rock-feel, amazing mellotron/viola, as well as possibly the most remarkably moving harmony in rock. The musicianship, as always, is incredible, and though the 'concept' of it all... the unifying theme of disunity, of a search... is a bit hard to grasp at first, once it kicks in, it sinks below the surface, and a range of exclamations that first seem trivial become extremely moving. Also brilliant, though I can imagine that the harmony ending won't hit anyone until you've really wrapped yourself in the album.

Chemical World is another piece of particularly good writing disguised by a bit of general chaos, noise, and lyrics which alternate between whimsical and acidic. Aside from a surprisingly Spanish guitar melody from Hammill, the song's softer moments are highlighted by Graham Smith's fascinating sax/flute-'imitation's on violin. The noisy, distorted-out-of-this-world mid-section is probably the high point of the piece, with an explosive Evans and a number of tense melodies and more 'psychedelic' ideas, which perhaps resemble that rather haunting section of Nine Feet Underground a little. Nic Potter's bass is very effective, again, handling a couple of lead guitarish licks on one occasion. Amazing stuff, and extremely progressive.

The Sphinx Returns concludes the album proper, with a rocked up version of the outro to The Sphinx In The Face, somewhat sealing up all the themes of the album in one range of bizarre musicianship and a fade to indicate that they continue.

Onto the bonus material. The Door is another great piece, with a killer riff. Rocking everywhere, a high-range thumping bass and a couple of hilarious keyboard effects. The demo version of The Wave is actually very moving and effective even without the lyrics, and it places a little more emphasis back on the individual music parts. Potter is probably a bit more effective (think it's that he's a lot more conspicuous with a quieter piano) on this one. Anyway, it illustrates that Van Der Graaf really could do instrumental extremely effectively... almost as incredible unpolished as it is finished. Ship Of Fools truly kicks, with a hammering riff, neat lyrics, and a sort of electric fire that reminds me a bit of a couple of the things 80s Crimson and Tull would go on to do. The vocals are truly off the wall, or off the charts, depending on how you see it, and Hammill gives a great guitar burst or two. I'd probably call it hard rock, more so than any of the Deep Purple and Uriah Heep stuff I've heard.

So, all in all, a collection including pretty much exclusively absolutely fantastic songs (The Habit Of The Broken Heart is a tiny bit weaker, but not much so), which I would consider among Van Der Graaf (Generator)'s list of finest achievements, and that really does mean a lot, coming from me. The album is characterised by subtlety disguised as blatancy, which is a pretty standard VDGG feature, so if you don't get H to He or Godbluff or something like that, you probably won't get this. The lyrics are typically . Nonetheless, vital for fans of Van Der Graaf Generator, aggressive progressive music, later, but still very progressive albums, or quirky, obtuse concepts. A masterpiece of progressive rock, and (and I say this even with Starless And Bible Black, and Brain Salad Surgery close in mind) Guy Evans' performance on this is perhaps my favourite percussion on one album ever.

Rating: Five Stars... seems a bit standard fare for VDGG and my ratings, but that's alright... Favourite Track: Very, very difficult choice. Cat's Eye/Yellow Fever or The Siren Song if I had to pick.

(oh, a couple of considerations)... I'm sure some of the times I reference saxalike/flutealike violins it is actually Jaxon, but I think at others they are, in fact, actually violin sounds that correspond to how I'd expect some of the saxes on World Record to sound. I'm not great on violas, so my exact terminology for string instruments may be horrifically wrong. Finally, the cover art, it's amazing, don't you think?

by TGM: Orb


VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR Music Online:
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Vice versa 'Vein Melter' is a sort of strange song that remember me Isaac Hayes. Strange no? But because, maybe... 'Vain Melter' is not Funky or Jazz Rock. 'Vein Melter' is a song of... Traditional Jazz with slow rhythms and march drums!

This album is good for the work of keyboards of Herbie, that is superb in 'Vein Melter' (Fender Rhodes) and (in 'Vein Melter', especially) for the sax of Bennie Maupin. But who love the African percussions... The song is 'Chameleon' with the African percussions of Bill Summers.

In conclusion 'Head Hunter' is a great album of Fusion, mediocre album for Rock, good album for Prog... And good album for Jazz. Easy to listen... But good.

by Mandrakeroot


HANCOCK, HERBIE Music Online:
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Every couple of months or so, I spend a few hours running my e-fingers through the iTunes' "bins" looking for jazz gems that have been quietly added to the store's inventory. At iTunes, it seems, albums are flipped in abstractly, like baseball cards, barely promoted and sometimes even mislabeled. That happened with a James Moody collection I found recently. As jazz lovers know, iTunes doesn't do much to market jazz titles, preferring instead to plow the glitz into rap and rock. This means many jazz albums enter the iTunes "bins" like faceless immigrants arriving at Ellis Island. Until now.

Here are 10 superb jazz downloads that I plucked from the digital masses recently. (For links to my earlier lists, go to the search engine in the upper right-hand corner of this page and type in "Hidden Jazz Downloads"):

Gil Fuller—Monterey Jazz Festival Orchestra (2008). This new download is comprised of two Pacific Jazz studio albums from 1965. Recorded when arranger Gil Fuller headed up the Monterey Jazz Festival Orchestra, the album features Dizzy Gillespie, who was touring at the time, and tenor saxophonist James Moody. What makes this CD particularly special are the snappy Fuller arrangements of originals and 1960s pop tunes, like Our Man Flint and The Shadow of Your Smile. Musicians on first eight tracks of download: Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hill, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Melvin Moore, John Audino (trumpets), Lester Robertson, Francis Fitzpatrick and Jim Amlotte (trombones), Herman Lebow, Sam Cassano, David Duke and Alan Robinson (French horns), Buddy Collette, Gabe Baltazar (alto saxes), Carrington Visor and William Green (tenor saxes), Jack Nimitz (baritone sax), Phil Moore (piano), Dennis Budimir (guitar), Jimmy Bond (bass), Earl Palmer (drums). Remaining tracks: Conte Candoli [Chuck Foster replaces Candoli on 17-Mile Drive, Latin Lady and Tin Tin Deo]  Melvin Moore, Al Porcino and Jimmy Zito (trumpet), Lou Blackburn, Bob Enevoldsen and Ernie Tack (trombone), Sam Cassano, Alan Robinson and Gale Robinson (French horns), Gabe Baltazar and Bill Green (alto saxes), James Moody, Ira Schulman and Clifford Scott (tenor saxes), Bill Hood (baritone sax), George Samper (organ on Sweets for My Sweet), Mike Wofford (piano), Chuck Berghofer (bass), Chuck Flores (drums) and Francisco Aguabella (percussion).

Lenny Breau—Guitar Sounds (1968). This is quite an interesting album by Breau, a Canadian guitarist who was strangled in 1984 and discovered in an apartment complex swimming pool. The download includes unusually compelling and tasteful interpretations of the day's pop songs. Included here is one of the smartest jazz interpretations of a Beatles song: A Hard Day's Night. Breau takes Music to Watch Girls Go By as a ballad, which completely changes the chemistry of the song for the better. And Call Me is more jazz-minded than bossa nova. Breau knew how to capture new beauty in almost any pop song. The guitarist was backed by Ronnie Halldorson (bass) and Reg Kelln (drums).

Benny Carter—Alone Together (1952). Recorded for Verve, this album features a large string section arranged by Joe Glover. There are serpentine originals on here, like Key Largo and Blue Star, as well as standards. What I like about this album is that Carter's out there with his fabulous tone, happily running through a field of strings. This is an often-overlooked Benny Carter entry that pre-dates Clifford Brown with Strings by three years and likely served as its model. Joining Carter and strings are Oscar Peterson (piano), Barney Kessel (guitar), Ray Brown (bass) and Buddy Rich (drums).

Woody Herman—Woody's Heat, Tito's Beat (1958). Even ardent Herman fans are unfamiliar with this one for Everest. As far as I'm concerned, it's one of Herman's best recordings from the period. Doubt me? Go sample New Cha Cha or Tito Meets Woody. Arranged by A.K. Salim and Al Cohn, the album features Ernie Royal, Steve Lipkins, Nick Travis and Marky Markowitz (trumpets), Frank Rehak, Billy Byers and Bill Elton (trombones), Woody Herman (clarinet and alto sax) Sam Marowitz (alto sax) Al Cohn, Pete Mondello and Paul Quinichette (tenor saxes), Danny Bank (baritone sax), Bobby Rodriguez (bass), Ray Barretto (conga), Gil Lopez and Ray Rodriguez (percussion) and Tito Puente (timbales).

Tito Rodriguez—Tito's Hits (1990). This roundup of Rodriguez's hits from the late 1950s and 1960s is a must-own. For those hip to the history of Latin music, vocalist and bandleader Rodriguez was considered the Frank Sinatra of mambo. His passion, delivery and enthusiasm was electrifying. Sadly, I don't understand a word of Spanish, but every note on this album goes straight to my heart because I can hear and feel Rodriguez' message and art. Even if an entire album is too much for you, download at least Cara de Payaso and Mantequita, and dig that band. Unfamiliar with Rodriguez? Catch his charisma on this video clip from the 1960s (and note that this monster band is playing without music).

Bobby Hackett and Jack Teagarden (1957). This download combines two Capitol albums by the dynamic duo from1957, and the download fidelity is terrific. What's more, you get 10 tracks for $5.99. Bobby and Jack were sublime together, no matter the year.

Art Pepper—With the Marty Paich Quartet (1956). This one originally was recorded for the Tampa label and featured Pepper on alto, Paich on piano, Buddy Clark on bass and Frank Capp on drums. It was the third recording Pepper made right after being released from Los Angeles' Terminal Island prison, and it was the LP he recorded just before The Return of Art Pepper for Jazz West. There's a lot of lingering jailhouse blues in Pepper's playing here.

Horace Silver—Rockin' With Rachmaninoff (1991). This odd album is virtually unknown in Silver's discography. The concept was a stage show in which Duke Ellington meets Sergi Rachmaninoff in heaven, and Duke hips Sergi to jazz. Silver's show was performed only a few times in 1989. Fortunately, Silver had the good sense to record the music, complete with vocal tracks. As you'll hear, this is something of a funk opus.

Sammy Davis, Jr.—I've Gotta Be Me (1996). This is one of my favorite Sammy compilations of Reprise recordings from the early 1960s. This download proves that when Sammy dropped the pretense and cared about what he was singing, he could tear the tiles off a studio ceiling. Sammy opens the vocal throttle on Stranger in Town, Once in a Lifetime, I Want to Be With You, What Kind of Fool Am I, Who Can I Turn To, Someone Nice Like You and all the rest. What's more, the download's sound is vivid and rich. If Sammy was never your bag, you'll likely have a different opinion after hearing this collection.

Eddie Bert—Studio 102 Essentials (2008). Here's another one of those misnamed gems. This album by trombonist Eddie Bert originally was called Like Cool and was recorded in 1955 for the Trans-World label. Why iTunes has it listed as Studio 102 Essentials is beyond me. Eddie had and still has one of the most cool, penetrating and hip sounds on the trombone. He was joined on this date by Dave Schildkraut (tenor sax), Hank Jones (piano), Barry Galbraith (guitar), Clyde Lombardi (bass) and Osie Johnson on drums. For more on the legendary Eddie Bert, see my interview series with him.

The first thing I noticed about this album the first time I heard it (and I've yet to hear Babe Ruth's debut) was that both the production and musicianship were impressive.

Unfortunately, the payback decreases with every subsequent listen - the Wow factor quickly rubs off, and leaves the listener feeling a bit short-changed. So this is a good album for a couple of listens - and well worth hearing.

Listening is another matter - as soon as you start digging deep, you realise that it's all surface.

That doesn't mean there's nothing to like - it's a reasonable album, with a strong line-up of songs and some very interesting touches in the arrangements. All of which turn out to be colour by numbers, not particularly heavy, and definitely not Prog in any sense of the term - so don't come in looking for Heavy Prog - it's barely Prog-Related. It's 1970s rock music with some interesting and different twists:

The thing that jumps out of the opener, Lady, is the uncanny similarity to music you'd normally hear on those Library compilations, such as those on the famous KPM label, featuring such unsung maestros as Alan Hawkshaw and Keith Mansfield (although, sadly, without the Hammond).

The energetic yet laid-back reggae puts me in mind of the Police (specifically, Walking on the Moon), each instrument in the arrangement precisely in place - a bit too precisely for rock and roll, especially the finger-clicks, and the orchestral arrangements perfect to a t. The modulation for the chorus and flute melody interlude are drop-dead gorgeous, but still there's that suspicion of artificiality, and the guitar solo simply imitates the melody without developing it before going off onna light jazz tip noodle. There's plenty of evidence of good musicianship - but not of the musical development that is a feature of Prog.

Broken Cloud continues in this KPM vein - if you're not familiar with that label, then check out KPM 1044, The Big Beat, KPM 1123 (Friendly Faces) and KPM 1131 (The Trendsetters), but this one *sounds* a lot more proggy, with an orchestral arrangement that would be superb, if it wasn't so thin- sounding generally.

Gimme Some Leg is a slow groove rock number, again, too utterly precise to truly rock, and, at this tempo, somewhat lugubrious. The song construction is so obvious that this is a good one to skip over unless you like drawn-out pentatonic scales, of which there are two extended portions. Neat and without fries.

Baby Pride starts with a nice jazzy guitar flurry and again, sounds a little proggy, Janita Haan attempting to extend her rather limited vocal range down into uncomfortable singing ranges. Some might perceive the breathiness as quite sexy, I find it a bit constipated. The progression gets rather repetitive by about halfway through, but there are some nice details in the arrangement - again, inserted at precisely the right times, emphasising the by numbers feeling.

The cover of Cool Jerk annoys the crap out of me, so I won't cover it in any depth - the precision thing is way overplayed - the thing that makes this track work is looseness and funkiness, and this roadkill has neither.

We Are Holding on continues the alternation of up-tempo and down-tempo pieces, and is a sonic feast - it sounds absolutely fabulous. But musically, with everything slotting perfectly into place just like an MFI kitchen unit, it's functionally perfect, but very boring. Well worth a second listen, but not a third.

Up goes the tempo, predictably, for Doctor Love (another possible interpretation of this album's title). This quirky funky track could be really cool if the funk lived in it. But it doesn't. Back to the KPM albums.

The 3-part title track, then, is the biggest nod towards Prog Rock. But who wrote those lyrics? Nasty! The quasi-Spanish guitar works reasonably to paint the portrait of the knight in the court of Queen Isabella - but what a dreary sod he must've been! I prefer the Guitar bloke that follows, lifting the tempo in a merry dance in the loosest (and hence strongest) piece so far on the album, continuing the Spanish flavours, and grooving strongly - but maybe overdoing it a bit, stringing it out for a good couple of minutes longer than it needs to be with nothing new to say or any interesting developments in the music. The applause is really overdoing it.

El Testament De Amelia is a relief when it comes, then - but really a kind of slower restatement of El Caballero De La Reina Isabella.

So this promising 9-minuter is, in fact, 3 separate pieces, linked by the Spanish feel of the acoustic guitar, not a logical (or even illogical) progression, and the album as a whole has no coherent concept.

As I said, definitely one to hear - indeed, one to hear more than once - but not really a keeper in any Prog collection, as it loses its patina pretty quickly, like the chewing gum on the bedpost overnight.

File under Sort-of Prog Related.

by Certif1ed


BABE RUTH Music Online:
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