Trollheart

I’ve focussed on a few songs in this section which really do take everything back to basics, but really, could there be anything more straightforward, both in terms of music and message, than John Lennon’s anthem to peace? I mean, it’s just one line mostly, and really the same melody all the way through, and yet somehow it doesn’t come across as lazy or contrived, possibly because the man believed deeply and fiercely in what he was singing about. Perhaps he just thought to himself: who cares if the song sucks? (It doesn’t by the way) I jsut want to get my message across, using the medium I have defined my life by.

Give peace a chance --- John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band ---1969
Music by John Lennon, Lyrics by John Lennon and Yoko Ono


And so we have one of the simplest, yet most elegant, beautiful and above all honest songs in quite possibly the history of music. Lennon is even peaceful with the one line in his chorus. He doesn’t try to shove peace down your throat --- if that’s not a contradiction in terms --- or go on about how we should all be nicer to one another (though of course that never hurts). He doesn’t even lay out the barest blueprint for how this peace is to be achieved --- because frankly I’m sure he was as clueless as to how that could be done as we are today --- and yet, again, this does not come across as someone preaching peace but avoiding the issue of how it is to be attained. It’s jsut the simple wish of a sincere man who wanted us all to stop hating and kicking the **** out of each other over everything from territorial boundaries to whose god is the right one.
And who among us could quarrel with his message? Well, perhaps the likes of Assad, Hussein, Bush, a few others. The ugly minority who are or were too filled with hatred and prejudice to ever see a clear path to peace. But the vast, vast majority of humanity all really want one thing, deep down, and that is a safe and peaceful world for their children to grow up in.

And back in 1969, one man said it best, not the loudest, but in a quiet murmur that was taken up by the American anti-war movement and peace organisations across the globe, so that even now, over forty years since it was written and twenty since his untimely death, “Give peace a chance” still rings out across the world as an anthem, a hope and almost a demand as the planet hovers ever closer to extinction, threatening to forever silence the voices that chorus out those nine most simple words before Lennon’s dream can ever become a reality.

Let’s just hope the people who can make it happen are listening, before it ends up being too late.

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Trollheart

Time to cross back over into Eastern Europe, and take a walk on the slightly wild side beyond what used to be the Iron Curtain, into a land which was once the powerhouse and engine room of what was the USSR, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which contained many countries and territories which are now autonomous – Kazakhstan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine --- and which has never really been seen seriously as a home for progressive rock. In fairness, nothing about Russia has ever been progressive: they were one of the poorest countries, even after World War II, stuck in a post-Stalin era of repression and paranoia and mistrust that led to the Cold War and the world coming close to the brink of destruction in 1963. Change came slowly to the Soviet Union, mostly thanks to the efforts of Mikhail Gorbachev, and with the fall of the Berlin Wall a new era had seemed to dawn for the people on the wrong side of that awful eyesore.

But now Russia seems to have regressed rather than progressed, as Vlad the Impaler reaches out his long arms and starts to grab back territory that had been ceded years ago as the Soviet Union split up and Communism collapsed, and more and more of what were Soviet citizens clamoured for release from the yoke of Mother Russia, aching for independence and desperate to chart their own future. Can you think of any big Russian bands? Me neither. I'm sure they're there, but let's be honest, Russia is not the first country that comes to mind when you think of any music, least of all progressive rock.

Which is what makes this latest album in our countdown even more special.

Megadream --- Azazello

Originally beginning life (it says here) as a thrash/death metal band, Azazello have released a total to date of eight albums, of which this is the latest. As they began to leave the death metal influence behind more on each successive album, elements of progressive rock and metal began to creep into their music, along with other genres like funk, jazz, fusion and of course traditional Russian folk melodies. I haven't listened to their other albums --- I wasn't even aware of their existence until now --- but from what I can hear it seems like they may have achieved their zenith here. This album is full of all the kind of music you would expect, and a lot you would not. It alternates between heavy progressive metal and almost classical at times, with a healthy dose of jazz and straight-ahead rock too.

“Zero hour” stars us off with a slow piano and mournful violin before a nice little guitar line joins in and then a thick bass line from guest Kerry “Kompost” Chicoine starts the main melody as the drums come in hard and fast courtesy of Vladamir Demokov. Much of this album is instrumental, and the opener is the first of these, with hard guitars warring with strings-like keyboards as band founder and main composer Alexandr Kulak fences with his brother, I assume, Vladamir, before the whole thing piles into the first vocal track. With a great progressive metal feel reminiscent of bands like Kamelot and Shadow Gallery, “A losing game” showcases Alexandr's many talents, as on this album he not only plays guitars (including seven-string ... seven string??) but keyboards, flute, percussion and bass. A real all-rounder.

Vocals are handled by Yan Zhenchak, though Alexandr is credited as “voice”, so I wonder if his is the dark growly vocal going on in the background? Very metal indeed. Very death metal. I've been racking my brains trying to think who these guys sound like and now I know, though it will mean nothing to you, unless you read my review of their album way back when and had the good sense to pick it up. Though they only ever seemed to release the one album, Silent Edge impressed the hell out of me with “The eyes of the shadow”, and this is exactly the same effect this album has had on me. I'm not saying Azazello are copying the Americans, far from it, but there are similarities certainly. Of course Silent Edge are virtually unknown and will probably remain so, and it's entirely possible that the Russian lads have never heard of them. Still...

There's great power and drama in the second track, with some fine keyboard work from Vladamir and chugging guitars both from Alexandr and guest Bill Berends, and it's one of the two longest tracks on the album, just over nine minutes long. You can hear the jazz influences coming in here, sort of a little freeform at times, then the title track is another instrumental, allowing a chance for breath to be caught in a nice little laidback tune with overtones of West Coast America in it, before it gets a little more dramatic and heavy thanks to some doomy synth from Vlad, choral vocals and dark guitar leading to a nice organ line with surf effects bringing in some more lovely violin and flute, very atmospheric.

“Across the frontier” kicks it all back up again with another longish song, seven minutes plus, utilising talk box guitar and powerful drumming, a burbling, skittering keyboard line before the vocal comes in, and the harmonies here are a joy to behold. I believe Azazello used always sing in their native Russian on previous albums, but here, any vocals are in English, which is always a plus. Mind you, with music this good I wouldn't have minded had it been in Russian. “Across the frontier” really rocks, with some savage guitar from Berends and a dark synthy backdrop against which Vlad peppers some jumping keys. You can certainly hear the legacy of their death metal roots here, and these guys definitely know how to play. But they have definitively left their thrash/death days behind them now for a more technical and indeed progressive approach to their music, though I would have to catalogue this as more prog metal than prog rock.

Another short instrumental follows, the shortest track in fact at less than two minutes, but “Between two worlds” leads into one of the other longer tracks, again just over nine minutes as “Nothing but a shade” hits, and it's something of a cross between Manowar and Bathory at their Viking best. A real workout on the guitars from both Alexandr and Berends takes us into a marching bassline that almost comes within a whisker of Genesis's “The colony of Slippermen”, then the hard guitar punches the metal back into the track, and it's well over two minutes before the vocal comes in. When it does, it's a joint vocal, adding some female and some unclean vocals in too. Very effective. I can see crowds headbanging to this: my own head is nodding as I type.

This is probably the most progressive of the songs on the album, building into a multi-layered melody that just awes me. And yet it remains heavy as a neutron star fragment. A great keyboard line from Vlad rides along the main melody line, but it's the guitars that mostly drive this epic. The vocals alternate between clean and unclean, keeping a sense of darkness and doom about the piece despite its mainly upbeat tempo. The almost harpsichordal piano then that opens “Live to see tomorrow” is something of a relief, the song itself a mid-paced almost ballad with some really nice restrained guitar and a yearning vocal from Zhenchak. I hear Arena, Pendragon and even at times It Bites in this song, and it's much different to what has gone before.

That in fact seems to be one of the strengths of Azazello: they can fuse different genres and subgneres, pull in disparate influences and shape them to their own needs, so that it's very hard to pin the band down or pigeonhole them. You sort of really don't know what's going to come next. “Live to see tomorrow” is a case in point: it's almost commercial, something you could in theory imagine hearing on the radio, while much of the rest of their material, despite being excellent, would never grace the airwaves or anything other than a specialist show. Some lovely high-octave piano work from Vlad here really adds to the melody, taking us into “Carnal caravan”, where the boys kick out the stays once again and rawk the house.

It's the last long track at just over seven minutes and runs again on a hard angry guitar line, and speaking of angry the vocal is dark and ragged, with much of it taken by the unclean vocalist. Some very technical guitar is displayed here and a lot of energy, much of it dark. In contrast, a forlorn piano line and haunting violin take “On the other side” in a soft lament very much rooted in the Russian folk song style. Some exquisite guitar here too, very soulful and intense, and a quite gorgeous acoustic guitar and piano combination close what is the last instrumental on the album, leaving us with ... well.

If I have one bad thing to say about this album it is this: it ends on “Run in parallel (Leo)”, which features a great James Taylor-style laidback guitar but utilises the sound of a baby (presumably the Leo in the subtitle) giggling, and hard-hearted old fuck that I am, the sound of a baby laughing sets my teeth on edge and is like poison to me. I'm just like Moe. There's some nice sort of choral singing but I think it may be on the synth, a la-la-la-la sort of thing. It's interesting certainly, and I'm sure it's one of the guys celebrating the birth of his child, but for me it's just too weird and I hate that it ends the album. It's like Stevie Wonder's “Isn't she lovely” --- great song but I just hate the baby noises. Urgh.

TRACKLISTING

1. Zero hour
2. A losing game
3. Megadream
4. Across the frontier
5. Between two worlds
6. Nothing but a shade
7. Live to see tomorrow
8. Carnal caravan
9. On the other side
10. Run in parallel (Leo)

I guess this just proves, as if more proof were needed, that I need to expand my knowledge of prog rock beyond the usual national boundaries I stick to. We've already heard some amazing music from Greece, The Ukraine and Argentina, and will soon experience the delights of Spain, Mexico and more. There is a wealth of talent, obviously, waiting out there beyond the horizon, and from these shores I've set sail to discover and uncover it. My voyage has so far been very successful, and I can only look forward to the tales I'll have to tell when I make landfall back home again.

Which is a very pretentious and Trollheartlike way of saying I need to stop restricting myself to bands from the countries I usually listen to music from, and also stop worrying too much about songs being sung in English. Azazello, to be fair, do sing in English here but as I said even if they didn't I'd still think this is a great album. It certainly deserves the term progressive, even if it is more on the metal side than the rock, and without question deserves its place here on the list.

The final track impacts a little on my rating for “Megadream”, though in fairness although it bugs me it doesn't come close to ruining the album for me, so it's not going to take too much off the final score. I therefore believe this album is very much entitled to a rating of 8.8/10.

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Trollheart

Liminal --- Exivious

So what do I know about Exivious? Like many of the bands here, I know nothing about Exivious. But I can find out! Just amuse yourselves till I get back ... I'm back! Okay, so the story behind this Dutch progressive metal band seems to be a long and confusing one. And here it is. Exivious appear to be the band that died twice and came back to life, er, three times. This birth and rebirth seems to have some tenuous connection with US band Cynic, which is odd as they are or were a brutal death metal band, although it seems they mellowed and changed their focus later in their careers. Even so, these guys are from Holland and while some of the members of Cynic appear to have Dutch or Dutch-sounding names, I can't find any evidence of there being any connection between the two.

At any rate, Exivious appear to have been together since 1997 but not have released anything until a two-track demo in 2001, and with little or no exposure for them they broke up and then again in 2006 got together with a new lineup which released, well, nothing again until 2010 when their debut album hit, but shortly afterwards they broke up again and seemingly the two founders joined Cynic (?) but left at the end of the year to try to resurrect Exivious. Again. Confused yet? I know I am!

The point about all the above is ... what is the point? Nothing really. I guess in the final analysis (hah hah Trollheart! You said anal!) No I didn't: I said analysis! Really, how old are you? So AS I WAS SAYING the above doesn't really matter all that much because we're not terribly interested in charting the history of the band and more focussing on the music. I say this in the clear knowledge that I am dodging the issue of my not being able to really tell you who these guys are. So sue me.

What do you mean, subpoena for you, Mister Trollheart?

This, then, is the second album from Exivious, a total I guess of three years in the making after their debut, and it's entirely instrumental, as was their debut. It opens on “Entrust”, with rising low synth line and chiming guitar, a slowly pulsing bass that seems to be building to something, the guitar getting louder until on the back of rolling percussion it takes off in, yes, a very progressive rock way. It's a little unfocussed for my tastes, their fondness for jazz fusion perhaps leaking through here. It does settle down a little after the first minute though, much of the tune driven on that sumptuous fretless bass handled by Robin Zielhorst, one of the originals. Actually I may be in error about that synth line, as no keyboard player is shown in Exivious.

There's a screeching guitar solo in the fourth minute as founder Tymon Kruidenier puts his axe through its paces, and honestly if that's not synth then he is one hell of a guitarist, though I know this effect can be achieved. I would definitely have said it was on keys however. The album has a mere eight tracks and unlike you would expect, no epics. The longest of them don't even push the seven minute mark, and there are three under five. One of these is “One's glow”, just four and a half minutes, another good showcase for the guitar, with some thunderous drumming from Yuma van Eekelen; in fact, he (or she) gets to perform something of a solo here, backed by Zielhorst on that fretless.

“Alphaform” is a more slightly laidback and slower track, with a nice guitar line and some measured drumming, a kind of jazzy feel to the guitar and another hypnotic bassline, and it gets more intense as it goes along. I'd say it's my favourite so far, but to be honest I haven't exactly been blown away by this album up to this point. Mind you, instrumental albums are always something of a tough sell to me. “Deeply woven” is much more frenetic and uptempo, with machinegun guitar and some that's almost reminiscent of the great Carlos Santana at times. Pretty impressive. There's definitely some sax here, I don't care what anyone says. Otherwise this guy is just a genius on the frets. No, it's got to be sax, and it's all over the place the way I hate with free jazz, but to be fair it sounds really well.

I'm assuming that's the fretless bass opening “Triguna”, which picks up on some frantic and urgent guitar and some almost Waitsesque bass. It bounces along nicely then the guitar takes the tune with a very clean and crisp passage. Some very nice fretless on the sweet and gentle “Movement”, very relaxing, though like it seems most of Exivious's work it can't stay that way for long and kicks up with hard guitar and strong drumming. It does quieten down again though as it heads into its final section. “Open”, meanwhile, is again a little too rooted in jazz to excite me, though it does have its moments. The album then comes to a close on “Immanent” (their spelling, not mine: back, fellow grammar Nazis, back! I am still one of you!) which is another heavy number but to be honest at this point I've lost interest. It's okay but nothing special and nothing particularly different.

TRACKLISTING

1. Entrust
2. One's glow
3. Alphaform
4. Deeply woven
5. Triguna
6. Movement
7. Open
8. Immanent

The thing about instrumental albums, as I've said a few times before, is that they're tough to review and they really have to hold my interest. Progressive rock, as much as I love it, is a real culprit when it comes to instrumental albums, as they can often be nothing more than an excuse for showing off and displays of technical brilliance which, while undeniably well played, become boring after a while. There's another album coming up later with yer man from Dream theater in it, and as I find them one of the principle proponents of “technical wankery”, I expected the same from his band. I was not disappointed. Or I was, depending on which way you look at it. Suffice to say I began to dread when one of their tracks would come up on my playlist.

Exivious fall it would seem into the same category. There's no questioning the fact that they're all great musicians, but an album of technically perfect music can be terribly boring, as I found out with the last album from Journey's Neal Schon. There needs to be some spark about it, something to hold the attention, and on this release these Dutch proggers have failed to exhibit that. To be honest, I was bored from about the third track in and it didn't ever pick up after that. I find myself wondering why they're even on this list, and can only really award them a fairly paltry 4/10.

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Be afraid! Be VERY afraid....


It's coming. And there's not a thing you can do to stop it....

Coming Soon to this Journal.
You have been warned.

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Isbjørn

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Trollheart

What part does Spock’s Beard play in the evolution of one of the most exciting new talents to come out of American progressive rock? None really. But Neal Morse certainly had a hand in the rise to notice of this Philadelphia band. Morse wanted interesting and of course talented bands to support him on his latest tour and so took the perhaps unique step of allowing bands to submit YouTubes of their music to him for consideration. After viewing this particular band Morse was sufficiently impressed to fly down to meet them, and in short order they were playing to massive crowds, warming the audience up for the ex-Spock’s Beard frontman.

Which is pretty amazing when you consider that The Twenty Committee have only been together since 2012, and this is their debut album. Not only that, but it was apparently written and recorded over just two weeks. You certainly would not think that, given the musical excellence here, which lands the album, according to ProgArchives, squarely at number


A lifeblood psalm --- The Twenty Committee

Now before you ask, no I don’t know what the band name means and also no, there are not twenty of them in the band! This is a five-piece, and the music is based mostly around compositions written by frontman and keyboard player Geoffrey Langley. There aren’t any huge prog epics --- though there is a ten minute song --- but the fifth and final track is a suite of five movements, which together make up about twenty-two minutes. The band are also one of the few I have seen, even in the progressive rock sphere, to utilise that most celtic of instruments, a harp, in their music.

“Introduction” opens proceedings with taped conversation snippets that cross over on top of each other, getting a little confused before piano breaks through and then the vocal comes in with attendant guitar. It’s a short track to start and ends by returning to those multiple voices, then “How wonderful” is the first proper track. The vocal of Geoffrey Langley sort of reminds me of those seventies soft-rock singers like David Cassidy and Christopher Cross, with a rich, full tone and a lot of emotion. Nice vocal harmonies which put me in mind of the early work of the Eagles, and the song mostly rides along on again a piano line, helped by guitars, of which there are two, one played by Steve Kostas, the other by Justin Carlton, while Langley handles the keyboards and organ work himself.

Good solid percussion from Joe Henderson and the song itself is a sort of mid-paced effort with some nice strong guitar at times. Great bubbling keyboard solo in the fourth minute, then a guitar riff very reminiscent of Steely Dan’s “Reeling in the years”. Things kick up a little more for “Her voice”, with a sort of funk/jazz style, and of the single tracks here this is the longest at a few seconds over ten minutes. Some really nice guitar work here, parts of which sound like they have heavy reverb or some sort of distortion on them. It gets a bit freeform and edging over the precipice of space rock even into experimental at times around about the midsection, and in truth the period from the fourth minute or so into the sixth is pure instrumental but really to me seems to be almost pure indulgence.

This makes the song certainly two to three minutes longer than it needs to be, which is a pity as in general it’s a good track and reminds me of Jadis at their best, but there’s a little too much self-congratulatory “look-at-me!”-isms on it for me to take it all that seriously. An opportunity missed I feel. And just as Kostas and Carlton had to have their moment on the guitar, so too Langley must show how great he is on the keyboards as the song winds to its close. Too much in the way of egos taking over from the music. A real pity. “Airtight” is a slower, acoustic number on which the band seem to settle down and put their egos away in (rather large, one would assume) boxes and just get down to it. I hear the harp of Richmond Carlton --- whom I assume is the brother of the guitarist --- who usually handles bass but here puts in a nice turn on the infrequently used instrument.

It’s a lovely little ballad and to be honest the best I’ve heard from The Twenty Committee so far. Langley’s vocal is almost lullabylike here, though that’s not to say that the song would send you to sleep. Far from it: it bounces up a little on funky guitar in the third minute and also seems to owe much of its melody structure to the Alan Parsons Project in places. A nice almost twenties-style piano takes the final minute before the rest of the band come in for the finale. I could have seen this be a decent single, even if it is slightly too long for radio at just over five minutes.

That takes us to the suite, which runs under the umbrella title of “The knowledge enterprise” and starts off with the “Overture”, a bouncy, uptempo piano-and-guitar piece quite reminiscent of mid-seventies Genesis. Some truly spectacular harp from Carlton gives the music its own unique identity though, and then the guitar goes almost metal as keyboards join the mix. Part two is “Conceivers and deceivers” and rocks along nicely with a great hook and a piano that reminds me of Hothouse Flowers at their best. The Jadis influence is still strong though and I can hear the guitar work of Gary Chandler and the keys of Pete Salmon in there. Langley’s vocal comes in and again it’s crystal clear and powerful. Halfway through it slows down, so much so that you would expect this is a new movement but not so. On gentle piano the tempo reduces but only for a short while before it kicks back up again. A very Genesis riff near the end, then we’re into part three.

“Tonight” segues directly from the previous and slips in quietly on acoustic guitar and a soft vocal with some exquisite piano and what sounds like violin but is I think synthesised. There’s a certain Country style about this, some really nice vocal harmonies adding to that feel. It gets a bit heavier then as it heads towards its close, taking us into part four, “With these eyes”. This is a much harder, rockier piece, jumping along and causing the feet to tap. There’s a lot of staccato guitar and machinegun percussion offsetting the quieter moments, and it’s a pretty good song, or section, or movement, whatever you like. Good guitar solo there near the end before the suite closes with the final part, appropriately titled “Finale”.

TRACKLISTING

1. Introduction
2. How wonderful
3. Her voice
4. Airtight
5. The knowledge enterprise
(i) Overture
(ii) Conceivers and deceivers
(iii) Tonight
(iv) With these eyes
(v) Finale

The first time I heard this album I quite liked it. The second time I liked it more. The third I began to wonder what I had heard in it the first time. As I reviewed it now I realise that perhaps it’s not as great as I had thought it was originally. Oh don’t get me wrong, it’s a good album. But is it good enough? I actually at this point still don’t know. There are good, even great moments but to balance that there are some equally meh moments and I’m not sure whether the album manages to transcend itself and become more than the sum of its parts, or whether it relies on the better tracks to hold it together.

I guess Neal Morse saw enough potential in this almost embryonic band to afford them their big break, so maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about. It would certainly not be the first time. However I really find it hard, now that I’ve listened to it through for the review in one sitting and not as part of a playlist, to get that excited about it. I find myself wondering if their next release will be more cohesive, and really think the best I can do on this one is give it a rating of 5/10.

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Trollheart

Here's a prog-based riddle for you: when is a Mexican band not a Mexican band? When they split, reform and head to the USA changing their name. Yeah, it's not a great riddle really is it? But such are indeed the circumstances of the next band in our countdown, who for apparently legal reasons had to change their name from the perfectly understandable and quite proggish Radio Silence to ... well, you'll see in a moment. But whatever name they go by these days, you'll find them at number



Winter soulstice --- Sonus Umbra

I guess it probably translates as “dark sound” or “shadow sound” or something, and with a title on the album like that you'd probably expect this album to be dark, introspective, melancholy, depressing. Their four previous outings (the first under their original name of Radio Silence) don't exactly make cheery reading either --- “Laughter in the dark”, “Snapshots from Limbo”, “Spiritual vertigo”, “Digging for zeros" --- so is this the sort of music you listen to when you're looking to cut your wrists? Let's find out. But first, just to be on the safe side, put that razor down, huh?

We're on the “Last train to Kimball” as the album gets rolling, appropriately or perhaps predictably enough with train sounds and announcements, then a single acoustic guitar slips in. It becomes electric then, and the vocal is clear and soft yet insistent as with a certain Roger Waters quality Roey Ben-Yoseph takes us into “Insomniac blue”, with lines like ”Television watching me again” which strike you as rather clever. The band is an eight-piece, boasting among their number two acoustic guitarists, one of whom also plays the drums, a flautist and a cellist. The song gets a little more intense as piano and keys join in and the percussion of Andy Tillotson drives it along. A nice solo effort on the piano from Brian Harris as the song moves into its final minute and he's joined by Luis Nasser with some slick bass.

“Palestinian black” opens with some reflective guitar and bass before Harris's organ moans in, giving the tune something of an early seventies vibe. Rich Poston then rips off a really cool solo --- Sonus Umbra make sure to differentiate their guitarists, with both Tillotson and Tim McCaskey handling only the acoustic ones --- then a super little synth run is added to by the peppy flute of Steve Royce, and I think it's pretty clear this is an instrumental; a long one at that, running for almost seven minutes. It's actually slipped into the next track without me realising it, and this one is the epic on the album. With a running time of ten minutes, “Wounded animal” starts off slowly on piano and vocal with the story of a boy who finds himself abandoned by everyone. I think. There's a reference to “bastard son”, so I guess he's cast out. Or something.

On frantic organ and riffing guitar it takes off then, with an extended Hammond passage as the story continues. You know, it's a decent epic but every time I listen to it I kind of lose interest, and this is no exception. I don't mean to be bad to these guys because they are a good band but I just find that an unnecessarily long song. “Let it rain” is better; lots of shimmering flute, a nice guitar line and a lower vocal line, sort of a ballad that develops a nice waltzy rhythm later. Very Floydesque guitar taking “Silence kills” then it picks up with harder guitar and thumping percussion, some wailing keys joining in and it's another long track, just short of nine minutes, with nearly three of those taken up by the instrumental intro. When it gets going vocally there's what sounds like acoustic and Spanish guitar and then some really soaraway electric. Some very impressive piano comes in then around the seventh minute, but I am finding it hard to care. There's something missing about this album and I don't know what it is, but it's definitely not holding my interest. Plus despite there being a cellist I have yet to hear any cello.

Royce on the flute is certainly doing a good job though, and some excellent Hammond from Harris rides alongside more piano as the song moves into its final moments. Sad to say, “It's only fear” just kind of comes and goes, though I do note a pretty sweet guitar solo near the end. It's just getting a little hard to concentrate and, you know, care. “Bar at the end of the world”, despite its encouraging title, turns out to be a short instrumental and takes us into “Haunted”, a slower, sort of mid-paced effort driven on nice guitar lines. It's another nine-minuter though, and given that I'm having problems lasting through this album that's not a good sign. It does however contain the title of the album, if you care. I don't.

Man, I really feel like I'm not doing these guys justice; maybe this is just a bad album and the rest of theirs are great. But it just is not grabbing me in any way shape or form. Not that it's bad per se, just not interesting me. Bland perhaps, or is that too cruel? Maybe it's just me; but I can't see why this came higher in this list than, say, “Ego” or “From the small hours of weakness”, or even “Ulisse: l'alfiere nero”. It seems vastly inferior to any of those albums. Oh, at the end of this track they mention “wounded animal” again, so maybe it's some sort of concept album? Meh, I just find it hard to care. Nice acapella ending, though it goes on for far too long. Still, at least it ends.

Holy Christ on a pogo stick! Another nine-minute track! It just is not my day, is it? Okay let's try to see what we can find nice to say about this. Decent gentle acoustic guitar opening and finally, finally there is the cello, just as I was about to write “still don't hear any cello!” with a fine performance from David Keller, and he's joined by Steve Royce, the two of them really complementing each other as the acoustic guitar continues its song. The vocal comes in after the second minute, as the flute drops out and “Rebuke the sea” gets going, the cello staying to accompany the guitar and it seems quite a nice song. It's a slow --- so far --- ballad style, very laidback; probably the first song of theirs that has made me sit up and take notice.

Tempo ups halfway as the guitar gets faster and harder and rippling piano joins in, but then it slows back again for the conclusion and then the cello takes it to the end with attendant rain and surf sounds. Yeah, I really liked this. Pity the album is almost over. Or maybe it's not. A pity, that is. We close on “Adrift” --- possibly tying into the sea theme of the previous track, possibly not, but the sea sounds are still there in the background --- with again nice acoustic guitar in a slow to mid-paced vein. It turns out to be a really relaxed instrumental to end the album, which gives it at least a strong finish, even if most of what has gone before has passed me by without making any real impression. Pity this wasn't earlier in the tracklisting; maybe I would have paid more attention.

TRACKLISTING

1. Last train to Kimball
2. Insomniac blue
3. Palestinian black
4. Wounded animal
5. Let it rain
6. Silence kills
7. It's only fear
8. Bar at the end of the world
9. Haunted
10. Rebuke the sea
11. Adrift

Yeah, I don't know what it is with these guys but I'm just not feeling it. The closing tracks were good but I just couldn't get into anything really prior to that. They're all great musicians, though I think the cello should have been used a lot more; might have added some sort of different flavour to the album. In the end I just wasn't that impressed and can only really muster, based mostly on the last two tracks, a relevant rating of 5/10.

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Trollheart

There's great power in music, and with great power should come great responsibility. Music can move us, inform us, galvanise us, excite us, repel us and in some probably too isolated cases, be a real catalyst for change. This is what protest songs, mostly popular in the sixties and early seventies, are all about: men and women speaking out against what they see as injustices, inequalities or prejudices and trying to change the world's mind through the medium of song. Some of these have of course been massive hits, and some have quietly sunk into the mists of time without making all that much of a mark.

But their intent remains, and although these days we don't really hear too much in the way of protest songs, I'm willing to bet they're still out there, with the world in the shape it is and human frustration and anger growing as tolerance and patience begin to run out, both with our leaders and with the general direction the human race is headed in.



Sun City --- Artists United Against Apartheid --- 1985
Music and Lyrics by Steven Van Zandt

Thankfully the spectre of apartheid has now long vanished, as South Africans try to learn to live in peace, black with white, and with varying degrees of success. As in any such situation where a long-oppressed people are suddenly faced with freedom, old scores get settled and they who were once brothers turn upon each other. Humanity, it would seem, always has to have its divisions and someone must always be the scapegoat for someone else's hatred. But it's getting better, and it's certainly better than it was under the regime of Botha and later De Klerk, when black people were treated not even as second-class citizens, not even really as citizens at all, but more like a lower form of life. Want to see how the Jews were treated in Nazi Germany? You only had to visit Johannesburg or Cape Town or Soweto. A very sad and painful part of human history which we hope is gone forever.

But back in the eighties apartheid was flourishing and with no sign of its end, musicians stepped forward to do what they could. Well, some did. The whole central theme of the song “Sun City” is aimed with a disgusted and accusing finger at the artistes who closed their eyes to the plight of black people in South Africa and played the infamous Sun City. This was a resort in a supposedly free state --- one which was not recognised outside of the country --- to which black people had been forcibly resettled, where artistes more concerned about their profits than justice played in direct contravention of a cultural boycott laid down by the United Nations, in an effort to draw attention to the heinous practice of apartheid and force the South African govenment to rescind their white supremacist policy. Described as “A fantasy island in the middle of Hell”, Sun City was seen as South Africa's defiant two-fingers to the UN and to all those opposed to its policies.

“Miami” Steve Van Zandt, a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, wanted to highlight the injustices being perpetrated against blacks in South Africa and so together with journalist Danny Schrechter he set about writing and producing the song “Sun City”. To ensure there was maximum exposure --- Van Zandt himself would be largely unknown by other than Springsteen fans --- they invited other musicians and celebrities to join the recording in a sort of reprise of the USA For Africa project “We are the world”, itself a spinoff from Band Aid's “Do they know it's Christmas?” and secured the services not only of Springsteen and saxaphonist Clarence Clemmons, but also Peter Gabriel, Herbie Hancock, Jackson Browne, U2, Ringo Starr, Afrika Bambaata, Hall and Oates, Ronnie Wood and a whole host more.

The song was not a huge hit and indeed many today may not even recognise, remember or even know of it, but personally for me it was the first real experience of the horrors going on in that country, and a wake-up call to my ethics and principles. Truth to tell, the first real impact any sort of apartheid had on me was Peter Gabriel's “Biko”, in 1980, though at that point it was just a song and it wouldn't be until 1987, when I would watch the tragic story of that man as seen through the eyes of journalist Donald Woods in the movie “Cry freedom” that I would really start to get it. Things were not right with the world, and just because these injustices, imprisonments, rapes, tortures and mass killings were happening thousands of miles away did not absolve me of my responsibility to care about them.

“Sun City” may not have had the huge impact it could, perhaps should have, but then there were vested interests working against it. Much money no doubt changed hands on both sides in order for bands and artistes to play that shameful resort, and they surely had friends in high places, among them radio stations and television. I'm not suggesting some big conspiracy theory whereby the sales of the single were blocked or resisted, but at the same time, if something is going to damage your profits and your standing, well, these are the sort of men and women who would not be expected to stand idly by and let that happen.

Nevertheless, the song raised over a million dollars to be used in the building of schools and hospitals for disadvantaged black children, and if it wasn't quite the wellspring of outrage and opposition to apartheid that it could have been, it certainly planted seeds that, only five short years later, came to fruition and led to the dismantling of the system with the release of its staunchest opponent, who went on to become the country's first ever black president. Perhaps the song is something of an anachronism in today's world which is free of the curse of apartheid, but in some ways, though it surely would have happened anyway, this is where that terrible system began to teeter on its pedestal, a little less sure of itself, until finally, inevitably, it fell to the ground in a cloud of dust and a shout of “Mayibuye i Africa! (Let Africa return)”

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Trollheart

It’s a rare movie that survives its sequel, or to put it another way, some movies should be one-offs. especially successful ones. I mean, can you imagine Casablanca II? More Unusual Suspects? The Matrix 2? Oh, wait …. A decent movie has quite often been ruined by one, two or more sequels, or in the case of one, a trilogy of prequels (cough!). But Hollywood is Hollywood and worships the Yankee Dollar, as Matt Johnson once wrote, and if there’s money in a sequel then hell, let’s make one.

“Speed” was a great movie. The idea was new, the acting was pretty superb and the action was more or less nonstop. Set onboard a bus which will explode if its speed drops below a certain rate, it was a big hit. It was not meant to have a sequel, but money talks and so Fox, in their wisdom and seeing dollar signs in their eyes, emulated Captain Jean-Luc Picard and said “Make it so.”

And they did. Though Keanu Reaves had at least the good sense and taste to refuse to reprise his role from the original move, co-star Sandra Bullock wanted the cash so agreed to star. The movie was a mess. Set this time aboard a cruise ship (yeah, you heard that right!) it was doomed from the beginning. The whole idea of “Speed” was based around the fact that the bus had to go fast. Cruise ships don’t go fast. That’s why they’re called cruise ships and why in a previous era they were known as pleasure or leisure liners. They attract the kind of people who want to take it easy, get there slowly, go the scenic route and have a lot of fun getting there.

But enough about the movie. It’s already earned enough “reverse awards” to justify the claim that it is one of the worst sequels in cinema history. It does however have one saving grace. Can you guess what it is? You can’t? Seriously? Look at the title. Yeah that’s right: it has a bitchin’ soundtrack, which is what we will be concentrating on here.

“Speed 2: Cruise Control” Original Soundtrack --- Various Artists --- 1997 (Virgin)

With contributions from Shaggy, Jimmy Cliff, Maxi Priest, UB40 and others, it’s got a lot of heavyweights on it, God knows why. Maybe they assumed the sequel would be as successful as its predecessor and hoped for maximum exposure. Maybe they saw the movie and rightly sussed that it would bomb (pun intended) and so would need at least a decent soundtrack to save whatever shred of dignity the writer, producer, director and cast could.

We kick off with UB40 and “Tell me is it true”. Now I’ve never been a fan of these guys, but given the Caribbean link with cruise ships I suppose it’s inevitable that much of this soundtrack would be based around reggae music and artistes. For what it is, it’s okay; uptempo and quite a bit of fun, though I have always had a problem with a white guy singing reggae. Probably just me, but it’s like a white guy rapping: just doesn’t chime with me. Marshall who? Shaggy is up next with “My dream”, but am I going mad or does he sound like Macy Grey there at the opening? Ah yeah, there’s the “Mister Bombtastic” voice I remember! Again it’s a decent enough song, though again as you all know reggae’s not my thing. But if it’s yours then this is going to (sorry sorry!) float your boat.

Tamia I do not know, but apparently she’s Canadian and here she puts in a fine performance on “Make tonight beautiful”, the first ballad on the album. Very sensuous voice I must say and the soft percussion is really nice. Not too much digital piano; I hate it when ballads are swamped by digital piano. And this one is not. Swamped by digital piano, that is. Some sentimental acoustic guitar which of course will never be credited, as on these soundtrack albums only the singer gets named, unless it’s an instrumental and a musician is playing it. Effective backing vocals too, one of the better tracks on the album.

Mark Morrison brings us “Crazy” and to my untrained ear sounds like Larry out of Cameo in a mid-paced disco/dance number heavy with bass and ticking percussion. Apparently this is the twelve-inch mix, but given that it only runs for three minutes and forty-two seconds you have to wonder what length the regular mix was? I definitely find the melody very like “Word up”, but again, what do I know about this genre? Tetsuya Komuro, who goes under the name of TK, is a Japanese composer who was very influential on the pop scene (it says here) and wrote soundtracks for anime and films. However, “Speed TK remix” is exactly the kind of music I hate: uptempo, upbeat trance/rave dance. Urgh. But if you like it then this will be right up your alley. Still, as it goes on I kind of find myself getting into it despite myself. Catchy certainly.

I have absolutely no idea what “A namorada” means, but it’s the title of the next track by Brazilian musician Carlinhos Brown, and as you would expect it’s not in English. With it being the national language of Brazil I can only assume it’s Portugeuse, though it could be Spanish or Mexican, as I wouldn’t know how to differentiate one from the other. Lots of peppy horns and they don’t annoy me; it’s very cheerful and celebratory. Given the eventual fate of the movie, perhaps a premature celebration? Reggae star Maxi Priest does a passable rendition of Blondie’s “The tide is high”, which is written in a reggae rhythm anyway, so he hasn’t exactly got to work too hard to interpret it, and it’s followed by another cover, this time of Carole King’s “I feel the earth move”, rendered by Leah Andreone, whomever she may be.

It’s in fairness a pretty uninspiring version, and Common Sense’s “Never give up” is fairly pedestrian too, then the great Jimmy Cliff kicks it up with “You can get it if you really want”, some fine hornwork and a nice upbeat message in the song. Nice soft organ and kettle drums and it’s bright and breezy, a nice change after two pretty substandard songs. Despite the few cover versions that litter this soundtrack, “Some people” is not the Belouis Some hit, but Shaggy’s mate Rayvon delivering another nice midtempo Marleyesque song which is actually a love song. I must admit I like this a lot. The album then closes on one more cover, the Police’s classic “Every breath you take”, interpreted by seventies soul icon Betty Wright, and does she do a smouldering version of it. Great way to close what’s a pretty damn fine soundtrack.

TRACKLISTING

1. Tell me is it true (UB40)
2. My dream (Shaggy)
3. make tonight beautiful (Tamia)
4. Crazy (Mark Morrison)
5. Speed TK remix (TK)
6. A namorada (Carlinhos Brown)
7. The tide is high (Maxi Priest)
8. I feel the earth move (Leah Andreone)
9. Never give up (Common Sense)
10. You can get it if you really want (Jimmy Cliff)
11. Some people (Rayvon)
12. Every breath you take (Betty Wright)

As I say, reggae is not my thing but even I found something to enjoy here, so if this is your music then don’t let the fact that the movie was so piss-poor put you off checking out the soundtrack to “Speed 2: Cruise Control”: it’s the only decent thing about the whole film.

Which is, after all, sort of the point of this section.

So why not just get the soundtrack (it’s available to stream on both Spotify and Grooveshark, no need to shell out), turn up the volume, pour yourself a Pina Colada and try to forget this movie was ever made? I bet the actors wish they could!

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Plankton

^I remember that one^

Some real early use of green screen in that video too.

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