Anteater

9.

Yes - Relayer (1974)

1. Gates Of Delirium (22:55)
2. Sound Chaser (9:25)
3. To Be Over (9:08)

Introduction:

Well, anyone who knows that I'm a progressive rock whore should have been expecting an album by Yes somewhere down the line, and this is the place it happens to be. The best stuff is always saved for last after all!

Now though, just for a bit of perspective; unlike most of the Yes albums some of you have may come into contact with already, such as The Yes Album, the awesomely bass-driven Fragile, majesty-personified Close to the Edge or the extremely polarizing Tales from Topographic Oceans, I will go ahead and point out that Relayer is a very different beast from each and every one of them for several reasons:

1. Rick Wakeman left town after the whole Topographic Oceans affair (can't blame him really), and in response Anderson and co. brought in Swiss keyboardist Patrick Moraz, whose rather jazzy approach to playing contributes greatly to Relayer's unique sonic balance.

2. Bikes and pedals are used in place of drumsticks in many places. Weird, but pretty freakin' sweet.

3. Steve Howe is on Telecaster instead of a Gibson like usual. Not bad!

Combine these elements with some good weed and the rest of the band in top form, and you've got yourself an album for the ages and beyond.

The Album:

Like CttE, Relayer is a three track whole which flows together in an odd yet fitting manner, beginning with a pretentious epic "Gates of Delirium", hitting its stride nice and hard with "Sound Chaster" and topped with some delicious Oriental calm in the form of "To Be Over"; its almost the musical equivalent of a parabola.

But anyway, time for a song-by-song:


1. Gates of Delirium: The whole thing's based on Tolstoy's War & Peace, so you know its going to be pretentious, but its still cool because this is about as dark and violent as Yes would ever get lyrically, and it stands out because of that.

In true epic fasion we begin with Howe's awesome licks melded against a twinkling cacophony of spacy synth-work which builds and builds with volume, drums growing ever more vibrant over the course of two minutes until Anderson and Squire come in with vocals, a section which becomes more and more intricate/distorted with a quieter moments along the way until a bit past the 10 minute mark, where the whole song goes into a near hard-bop state of crazy against Howe's guitar followed by some Hawkwind style space-rock until the 16 minute mark where Anderson begins singing magnificently against a near vacuum like quiet in the aftermath of the battle that's waged its war across the suite. Howe and the rest then come back in over the last three minutes with a great outro and we're done!


2. Sound Chaser: This is what happens when Yes crosses over into Mahavishnu Orchestra territory and a classic, 'nuff said.

Everything goes nuts right from the beginning, blasting forth with some free-jazz keyboards and Alan White's furious drumming before Howe charges in with the vocals close behind. Interplay over the next minute or two with the chorus before Howe's guitar gets one hell of a spotlight up until the 5:30 minute mark or so, where Anderson followed by the rest of the band return to jazz-fusiony territory and begin to pick up speed until the song's near explosive final moments (with cha' cha cha's included). Ladies and gents, Siberian Khatru has met its match!


3. To Be Over: The single most laid-back 9 minutes this band has ever laid to posterity, and with coherent lyrics of all things!

Mood and lyrics aside, To Be Over has a rather distinctive approach going for it that's best described as Oriental raga-rock meets Hawaiian and filtered through the 'Yes sound'. Its mellow, arranged beautifully, and horribly underrated among the fanbase, and ultimately the best way this album could end. The synths are particularly uplifting here near the end, and I couldn't imagine it being any other way.


Conclusion:

Really, there's no way to describe how much I love this, even if its not particularly accessible at times. For one thing, its very much the dark mirror of Close to the Edge in spirit and a breath of fresh air for those who find Yes's usual mysticisms and kum-ba-yah a bit predictable. Secondly, Relayer is what got me into the band originally and also first record I ever owned by them (even if I normally recommend other albums for first timers). Nowadays, I recommend it to anyone and everyone; there's nothing else like it in the world!

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boo boo

A lot of people seem to hate To Be Over but I think it's just as strong as Gates of Delirium and Sound Chaser.

This is in my top 4 Yes albums for sure, and I have to agree, it's their weirdest album by far. I really love Howe's guitar work on this album, it's him at his most over the top, and I love how he could do all this stuff with a pedal steel that no one has even thought of doing before.

Fantastic review for a fantastic album.

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Anteater

8.

Island - Pictures (1977)

1. Introduction (1:28)
2. Zero (6:13)
3. Pictures (16:51)
4. Herold And King / Dloreh (12:13)
5. Here And Now (12:15)
6. Empty Bottles (23:35)

Introduction:

Once upon a time in the year of 1977, in an era where jazz-oriented rock was commericially going the way of the dinosaur, a black-hearted little album that trumped King Crimson at their darkest and most delirious was born in Switzerland from the workings of a one-shot ensemble dubbed Island that formed out of the wreckage of a crazy psychedelic Krautrock group known as Brainticket, and boy is it a doozy. They say you can't always judge a book by its cover, but lets be honest here; anything that H.R. Giger designs a cover art for is most definitely awesome without exception.

Simply put, what we have here folks is a very sinister, yet amazing and well-presented blend of ideas; one way of describing the result would be as if King Crimson and Comus combined lineups and went to a bar together. Another analogy would be Bartok headbutting the Canterbury Scene bareskulled, and the creepy piano, organ, sax, flute, oboe, Mellotron, drums and bass sound like they're trying to claw their way out of wormy graveyard soil on Halloween. Even better are vocalist Benjamin Jager's whispery voicings; reminiscent of Gabriel or Hammil, yet farrrrr more menacing than anything those two would have thought to belt out.

Yet perhaps the most amazing thing is how it maanges to be densely heavy, enchantingly played and quite sharp...all without guitar. That's right - it's a progressive rock band without a guitarist!! Oh noes!!!

The fact there's no guitar here, however, should not dissuade any of you from looking these guys up. Rather, it makes their sound and approach all the more stand out. For even though Pictures would be the only chapter they'd release in their short career, it stands on its own two feet just as well, if not better, than many of the supposed classics of the progressive rock movement. It's production values aren't too bad for the time period either (better than VDGG's by far), so that's always a plus!

But anyway, onto the song-by-song!


The Album:


1. Introduction: We are greeted with the sound of the undead groaning form some crypt of another, followed by a bit of orchestra and offkey piano and whispering. It then erupts into a percussive craziness that ends almost as abruptly as it started. Nice!


2. Zero: A killer instrumental and a poster boy for the whole "evil" Canterbury sound I mentioned earlier. We begin with some very jazzy sax and drum work with creepy sliding piano on the forefront, which then quiets down after about two minutes leaving drum and bass to lead an almost distant organ backdrop which sounds like it came straight out of a haunted house. Slowly it picks up volume as the sax comes back in, culminating nicely in an almost upbeat manner near the end..awesome! Basically, a great track and the perfect leadoff for a record like this.


3. Pictures: The title track also happens to by my favorite, and is in my opinion the catchiest on the album. Starts off with the boom of cymbals and some Eastern-styled percussion. The bongo and flavourful piano arrive next, followed by Benjamin's melodic yet creepy vocals for the first time. Although he doesn't remind me of anyone in particular, it suits the music splendidly. The rest of the song flows brilliantly, with particular nods to the drums and sax, and to sum it up lightly, I'd say tracks as quirky as this one are hard to come by. Seriously now, where else are you going to get a chorus crying "gastric juices"? xD


4. Herold And King / Dloreh: Two and a half minutes of opening delicate piano, followed by an eerie recorder and Benjamin's voice set against dissonant oboe and strange noises is certainly an odd way to try hooking a listener, but it works for me! I like how the drums are front in the mix after the five minute mark also.


6. Here And Now: Heeeerrreee comessss the evillll synths!! Oh, and Benajamin proves here he could have been part of Comus no problemo, what with the crazed dramatic vocals and murderous sounding lyrics. The sax is oddly squeaky here, which reminds of some of Sun Ra's material. Near the five minute mark the song suddenly become really damn pretty and idyllic, like the sun coming out from behind a cloud for a brief instant before the greyness swallows it back up again, and its a contrast that unfolds tip-top here.


7. Empty Bottles: Wasn't on the original LP, but became a bonus track when it hit CD. Empty Bottles is basically a 23-minute tour-de-force that funnels all the various elements of this band into one big finale/push. Some real groovable moments here all in all, but trying to piece it all together would ruin the experience for those who hear this for the first time. :P


Conclusion:

This is a great dark progressive rock album and would be considered among the best releases of the latter 70's even if it wasn't a one-shot. Although its true that King Crimson and Van der Graaf Generator have both done plenty of great jazz-tinted dark prog. (and deserve being recommended), the occasional schizophrenically creative approach to that sort of music like Pictures here is also quite something too, and hence I rank it highly within my collection despite some pretentious song lengths. When it comes to almost romantically demonic music, this is about as good as one can get.

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sidewinder

^ I've heard that album twice but don't remember it really grabbing me. It initially appealed to me because I heard it was dark and I may like it since I like King Crimson and VdGG. I'm thinking it's probably the less-than-desirable production that keeps it from really doing it for me. I gotta play it again soon.

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I'd love to see your signature/links too, but the huge and obnoxious ones have caused me to block all signatures.

sidewinder

I am listening to Island's Pictures right now and I take back what I said about the production. There is nothing wrong with it, it's on par with most 70s prog. I'm liking this more than previous listens.

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I'd love to see your signature/links too, but the huge and obnoxious ones have caused me to block all signatures.

Anteater

7.

Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage (1965)

1. Maiden Voyage (7:53)
2. The Eye of the Hurricane (5:57)
3. Little One (8:43)
4. Survival of the Fittest (9:59)
5. Dolphin Dance (9:16)

Introduction:

Heading out on a ship at dawn, the sea sparkles in a silent way, nothing more than a wet calm around you in the wake of the rising sun. Perhaps there's a sense of anticipation in reaching the eventual destination, but the time you spend looking out upon the water can seem, in many ways, a memory that you will look back upon with fondness and perhaps the tiniest bit of longing...

Well, that's merely one sort of feeling I get when I pop in this modal classic from the mid 60's, released by everyone's favorite Cock in a rather good year for jazz, though Coltrane's A Love Supreme surely overshadowed this album at the time of its release. Regardless of how much more important or beloved other releases of the classic jazz decade(s) are though, I always end up coming to the conclusion that this is among the most awesome releases above them all. Hell, it's perhaps my favorite jazz record of all time when all is said and done, and that in and of itself is a tall order considering how much I collect.

But why is this my favorite? Well one one hand, I love the general, sorta spacious atmopshere; the mood is very laid back, authentic, tranquill and features piano sometimes prominently even when I normally hate it (see Thelonius Monk). The sax is rarely harsh, the drumming quiet oftentimes, and all in all it is simply unlike the majority of hard-bop releases. It stands out sharply in a year where nearly everyone was beginning to experiment with jazziness in some way or another.

On the other hand, I find the tidal-esque instrumentals and song titles compelling in a way that's a bit iffy to discern in words. For me I guess, Maiden Voyage feels like a really cool concept album without being one in name. The motifs flow like water and continually come back to one another through the five tracks. The whole package is, in a word, fantastic.

Here are my impressions of each piece:

The Album:

1. Maiden Voyage: Piano, drums coupled with some very chill and memorable trumpet work kicks this record off on a high note, with more emphasis given to the trumpet as the atmosphere reels you down into the sea. Sax peeks in every so often, providing a nice touch, and the piano near the end is wonderfully fragile. Conclusion: its a jazz staple for a reason!.


2. The Eye Of The Hurricane: The most swingin' track of the five and noticeably nimble. Trumpet is strong here, but the crazy sax work that comes up after the two minute mark and beyond is where its at. Drums aren't full blown but noticeably a bit higher in the mix. Great piece from start to stop!


3. Little One: A drumroll echoes from a distant place as sax and trumpet entwine with a definite melancholy edge. The two take turns over the next few minutes as the drum comes back into audible range. A little around halfway the piano quietly takes first seat, leading off until the interplay comes back, making the track a full circle. Not too bad at all!

4. Survival Of The Fittest: Longest track. We're led off at the beginning with drumming thats a bit more energetic and heavy than we've heard so far. Piano is erratic, trumpet marches and twitters and sounds frankly fun whenever its around. Overall this is a fairly frantic and tense affair, but that's why it's awesome!


5. Dolphin Dance: And we now return to a track very much in the vein of the opening track, except perhaps a bit less introspective and more hopeful in tone. If there's a better closer for a work like this one, I certainly can't think of it, haha.

Conclusion:

The ship has sailed, and now you are once again on land. Standing on the glittering shore you sigh with something like regret. It's been a long day; already the sun is growing darker than the ocean that's swallowing it up. The feelings of awe and quiet you felt on your journey and the sight of the deep ocean waves are no longer quite clear in memory. You are ready to return to life and movement and productivity. Slowly, but with conviction, you turn from the shore and head back to what's familiar.

But, every once in awhile, when the night is long and you cannot sleep, you set 'Maiden Voyage' to play and it all comes back again as if you never left. It is wonderful to behold with every listen, even if each song lasts only for but a moment within the span of your busy, busy lifetime.

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Antonio

love this album, great review

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6.

Dir En Grey - Uroboros (2008)

1. Sa Bir (2:00)
2. Vinushka (9:35)
3. Red Soil (3:24)
4. Doukoku to Sarinu (3:48)
5. Toguro (3:57)
6. Glass Skin (4:27)
7. Stuck Man" 3:34
8. Reiketsu Nariseba (3:33)
9. Ware, Yami Tote... (7:01)
10. Bugaboo (4:43)
11. Gaika, Chinmoku ga Nemuru Koro (4:22)
12. Dozing Green (4:05)
13. Inconvenient Ideal (4:23)

Introduction:

Among the more eclectic groups to achieve international recognition from the Land of the Rising Sun (AKA Japan), Dir En Grey have grown quite a bit since their poppy debut back in 1999, mixing up and incorporating industrial, nu-metal, and even progressive rock influences into their oddly arranged yet accessible way of playing music over their following three or four albums, never content to sit around and recycle the same ideas over and over again like the majority are content to do.

Anyway, I've come to favor these guys more and more since I was introduced to them last year, (to the extent where they've crawled to the top of my list here) and it is this here latest work Uroboros where everything they've cultivated comes together uncannily into a face the rest of the world can look upon in wonder. It's among the most varied of their efforts (you hear everything from post-hardcore to ambient here), and as a result it's my favorite from their discography. Hell, it even charted here in the U.S. despite the fact its mostly sung in Japanese...how's that for crossover appeal?

On another point of interest, Dir En Grey are in possession of one of the most frighteningly talented frontmen in contemporary music today, Kyo, who could be best described as a Japanese Mike Patton in terms of vocal range coupled with the emotional sensibilities of a less whiny Thom Yorke.

Lyrically, he's also a rather deviant in his songwriting; it's sometimes catchy and accessible, abrasively complex, and usually very disturbing no matter which category a song falls under. From the story of a guy running from a nymphmaniacally corpse to falling in love with a fish, this guy's got one hell of an imagination. But whether or not you bother to pay attention or look up what the words may mean, the music speaks for itself regardless on the instrumental front. Guitarists Kaoru and Die shred things up nicely when necessery, Toshiya's bass is quite jazzy, and Shinya the drummer holds everything together with his insane energy and precise percussive sense. Basically, everyone here is phenomenal.

And for those that may not have noticed yet, the cover art here was inspired by King Crimson's Lizard, so that's worth extra cool points in and of itself.

Track review time!


The Album:


1. Sa Bir: Eastern percussion, heavy beats and a bit of sitar that's straight out of Arabian Nights provide a wonderfully hypnotic introduction to my favorite metal album of the last five years.


2. Vinushka: A top class 9 minute prog-metal excursion into the subject of reincarnation and a decent indicator of the Dir En Grey's style for those who haven't heard them before. Kyo's vocals are almost mournful even when he growls or scats like some kind of monster. The acoutics near the 6 minute mark among the first of many memorable moments that follow rank across this record.


3. Red Soil: Mid-tempo/ATDI-esque fun that features some especially wicked drumming half-way through. Would have made one hell of a single!


4. Doukoku To Sarinu: Nothing special, but Kyo's voice is like the elevator of awesome here.


5. Toguro: A pseudo funk-metal escapade about the rise of chaos or somtehing like that. Some nice electronic influences come into play after the 2 minute mark.


6. Glass Skin: Opening with a fantastic dose of piano, this is my favorite track from the Uroboros and something of a throwback to this band's alternative-pop debut. It's sung in English, though unless you look up the lyrics you most likely won't understand them, haha. A very catchy ballad from start to finish!


7. Stuck Man: Funk-death metal-jazz-trip hop-hardcore in a green tea blender with extra punk. A highlight of the album and something that must be heard to be believed.


8. Reiketsu Nariseba: Kyo sounds really pissed off here, what with the hardcore breakdowns and carnival keyboards dancing around. Midway through we're treated to something like tribal jazz-ambient with the screams of the damned all around.


9. Ware, Yam Tote...: Here the listerner is treated to yet another side of this band. It's almost folky, with 7 minutes of flamenco guitar, heartfelt singing with occasional piano and drums. All in all, another prominent peak on an album with so much going for it already.


10. Bugaboo: An explosion of death metal anger presented uncharacteristically straightforward. Ideal for headbanging!


11. Gaika, Chinmoku Ga Nemurukoro: Ambient noises lead into carnival drums and a series of wazoo breakdowns. I like how it dissolves into something like audible mist near the end!


11. Dozing Green: The big single, a freakish love song balancing precariously between the soft and loud while still remaining of interest to those who pay attention to complex guitar work. Memorable moment: Kyo's screams of pain in the last minute that would make Patton proud.


12. Inconveniant Ideal: The album closer and among the best of this album. It starts of pretty and builds up ever so sharply to explosion, followed by some surprisingly proggy keyboard and guitar work before returning to the chorus. An...ideal end I'd say to an ideal album, hahahaa.


Conclusion:

Uroboros is a wonderfully violent album, vivid with spite and hopelessness even at its most idyllic. It exceeds and even laughs at genre boundaries in a world full of generic hardcore/metal bands who, along with their fans, tend to look down on anything that makes you think a bit. This album will certainly appeal to those kind of people, because it has its fare share of tracks that certainly get your blood boiling...yet still, it does more, tries more, and succeeds in ways that few others do.

For those open to something compelling, perhaps even taste-altering, this is certainly one hell of a place to start. For me, at least, the listening experience has always been worthwhile.

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SATCHMO

This is quickly becoming one of my favorite threads. Keep it going. Iv'e gotten a lot of great albums from this thread.

Anteater

5.

Genesis - Trespass (1970)

1. Looking For Someone (7:06)
2. White Mountain (6:42)
3. Visions Of Angels (6:50)
4. Stagnation (8:48)
5. Dusk (4:13)
6. The Knife (8:56)

Introduction:

The ever underrated and oft-dismissed sophomore record released before Phill Collins and Steve Hackett turned Genesis into one of the key bands which would define progressive rock during the years of its popularity, Trespass is nevertheless a curiously compelling musical assemblage and one of my two most beloved progressive rock album of all time, and a unique experience to those more familiar with their classic period (Nursery Cryme through Lamb Lies Down on Broadway).

For one thing, the sound is noticeably folksier/moodier thanks to the presence of an exceptionally talented 12-string guitarist by the name of Anthony Phillips and the atmospheric John Mayhew on drums (the latter of which unfortunately died earlier this year; R.I.P!). Peter Gabriel's love of soul music is more apparant here than on later Genesis releases, as his vocals at times are noticeably rougher and even bluesy at times, while Mike Rutherford rapes on bass and cello. This is also where pianist Anthony Banks started using his Mellotron for the first time, and his enthusiasm sizzles to dizzying temperatures many a' time here in all the right places.

Secondly, Sceptics take notice of the song lengths and lyrics as you listen; this is about as straightforward as Genesis ever got in the songwriting department without sacrificing instrumental prowess or their distinctive pop sensibility. Although they haven't completey shaken off the amateurisms of their debut yet, unlike that particular work its actually a chore to dislike anything here. In fact, although if follows the coattails of King Crimson's legendary debut, this is arguably one of the two or three major albums which shaped progressive rock into a force that would be quick reckonable for the next five years, and even today you will find people who are influenced by the songs on this album.

Oh, and I think the album cover is fantastic! It's a perfect "cover" for this sort of book.

Introduction:

1. Looking For Someone: "Looking for someone! I guess I'm doing that." belts a Peter Gabriel from thirty-nine years in the past, thus kicking off this album on a fantastically bluesy note, before the guitars and drums come busting in. It fades in and out between guitar and Mellotron between Gabriel's lyrics, changing tempos sharply but not jarringly so. The track's got quite a gallop to it at times, but with the drums and keyboards on display more often than the organ-based rock n' roll sound that was common at the time. There is also some wonderful flute and piano dispersed about, with nary a note wasted. The last minute is particularly bombastic, and overall you can see the blueprints of many a progressive rock track from this one song alone. Still, a fantastic opener nevertheless.


2. White Mountain: Mid-tempo track that is closer in spirit than anything else here to the Genesis of Foxtrot and SEBTP; quieter than 'Looking For Someone' but not as much as some of what will come later on the record. Gabriel's vocals display the more dramatic direction he would take in later albums and his solo work, backed by the vocals of his bandmates and generally superb playing all around.


3. Visions of Angels: A song about lost love and how people can spend their whole lives without ever looking for it and yet call themselves alive. It's straightforward but beautifully done, and the execution is epically so.


4. Stagnation: Oooh yeah, now we're cooking. Stagnation is my absolute favorite song on Trespass, dealing with the story of a guy who wishes to cut himself off from the world around him. It starts off with Gabriel at his most beautiful, and has one of the best-worked musical build-ups this band would ever commit to record. I also love the lyrics here:

"Here today the red sky tells its tale
But the only listening eyes are mine.
There is peace amongst the hills,
And the night will cover all my pride,
Blessed are they who smile from bodies free-
Seems to me like any other crowd
Who are waiting to be saved."


5. Dusk: Something of an acoustic piece that bleeds gorgeous from it's twinkling start to strumming finale, and my third favorite overall. Highlights go to the brilliant flute around half way through.


6. The Knife: Beginning with some heavy organ and drum interplay, this is the only track that Genesis kept on their setlist after changing lineups for some reason. Gabriel spats in full blast here through this minature epic, a power hungry revolutionary on a bloody conquest to attain freedom. In particular, the sequence from the middle of the four minute mark up til the end of the song makes this one of the best album closers I've ever had the pleasure of hearing, and a real treat for first-timers especially.


Conclusion:

Although many would disagree with me, I consider this a masterpiece on par with Foxtrot or Selling England..., if for nothing else than the fact they never quite sounded like this again. Everyone was in top form here, including Anthony Phillips who would have an incredibly awesome solo career after leaving Genesis due to stage fright. It's only a shame that my favorite Genesis record is also their most underrated, but I guess thats part of what makes it special for me.

So whether you love or hate progressive rock, this is definitely something to sink your claws into at some point. For of the many albums I love from the genre, few get my regard to the degree this one does.

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