Embor (79), Katebegiak (80)

Basque Folk/Prog group, female vocals.

Opal (70), Embryo's Rache (71), Father, Son and Holy Ghosts (72), Steig' Aus (73), Rock Session (73), This Is Embryo (74), We Keep On (74), Band Heads and Bad Cats (75), Surfin' (75), Embryo Live (76), Apo-Calypso (77), Embryo's Reise (79), La Blama Sparrozi? (81?) Zack Gluck (84), Africa (85), Embryo and Yoruba-Dun Dun Orchestra (85), Turn/Peace (89)

Embryo is basically Christian Burchard, and whomever he's with at the moment. They started out as a pretty classic space rock band and then got very jazzy in a fusiony period very heavy on vibes, and then Burchard started traveling around the world recording lps with african bands and middle eastern musicians and such. Covers a pretty diverse spectrum of music. My favorite is probably a tie between Embryo Live, a not extremely well recorded but excellent performance type lp with lots of keyboards and vibes and Charlie Mariano on sax and some woman singing, and a double lp - La Blama Sparrozi - that has some wild african pseudo-jazz with acoustic bass and other tracks with middle eastern sounds and mouth harps and synths.

I have three of their albums. Opal, their Ohr-label debut, is a tad on the raw side, but as far as spacy jazz-fusion is pretty interesting. Tracks like "End Of Soul," with its dry prose reading, hint that a number of chemical substances may have been used to inspire the musicians. ;) Easy to see them as a jazzier offshoot of the Amon Düül nucleus. Surfin' is much later, and most of their psychedelic tendencies have been tempered for more respectable, less dated flirtations with East Indian music. Very jazzy, so fusion fans take note. Best track: "Dance On Some Broken Glasses," which features guitarist Roman Bunka on saz (apparently some sort of stringed instrument, like a sarod) and American sax player Charlie Mariano on nagaswuram (a sort of reed instrument). Bad Heads And Bad Cats adds the pretty jazz-inflected voice of black American singer Maria Archer to the lineup, as well as full-time keyboardist Dieter Miekautsch, ex-Missus Beastly (on earlier albums, most keyboards were played by drummer/vibraphonist/leader Christian Burchard). There's greater use of vibes and marimba by Christian Burchard on this album, as well as double sax/flute ideas developed on Surfin'. Here they begin also to experiment with African music, most audibly on the 12-minute "Nina Kupenda." Some songs, like "After The Rain," toy with impressionistic soundscapes. The soaring "Road Song", features a beautiful lead vocal by Roman Bunka, who proves himself to be quite a convincing jazz vocalist. Also of note is "Layed Back" [sic], with its fine piano and organ soloing. A fine hunk of German fusion. -- Mike Ohman

Embryo take too long to describe, but are basically a jazz rock band that went from spacey to ethnic over the course of years. Nothing by them has really grabbed me, but Rock Session and Steig Aus are pretty good. Their rare first has been reissued on CD on Materiali Sonori (Opal).

[See Between | Snowball]

Lights Of The Ivory Plains (84), Catspaw (86)

Boring "pretty" New-Age crap.

No Compromise (74)

A German jazz/rock/prog band, No Compromise is a fine album issued by the renowned Brain label. The title-track is a stunning jam with magnificent solos by sax-player Hanus Berka, guitarist Frank Diez and keyboard player Veit Marvos. The song opens with drummer Todd Canedy playing a moog-controlled bongo backed by Berka's [sic] mellotron, and climaxes with a hot improvised (apparently) sax/synth duet. Vocalist Peter Bischof approaches a scat-singing style on this one, his voice acting as an instrument, though there are lyrics to the song. "Time Can't Take It Away" is another fine number starring Marvos' keyboards. At one moment he's playing baroque-styled harpsichord, the next he's playing fast fusion scale-runs, then a rocking organ solo. Drummer Canedy really comes into his own on this track as well, his fills are exquisite. Elsewhere, there is jazz-funk ("Smilin'"), dreamy fusion ("From Here To N.Y. City") and a bluesy Jethro Tull soundalike ("Let Us Now Praise Famous Men"), all rendered superbly thanks to Bischof's versatility and the rest of the band's virtuosity. "Goodbye to a Friend," a somber duet between Berka on sax and Diez on guitar, closes the album. Highly recommended. Random notes: most of the lyrics on No Compromise were written by King Crimson associate Richard Palmer-James. Palmer-James later played with Diez, Bischof and John Wetton in Jack Knife. Keyboardist Marvos hails from the legendary Twenty Sixty Six And Then.

[See Diez and Bischof | Orange Peel | 2066 And Then]

Sortie et Secours (76)

Fusion prog in the vein of Soft Machine, King Crimson and Magma.

Emerson, Lake and Palmer (70), Tarkus (71), Pictures at an Exhibition (71), Trilogy (72), Brain Salad Surgery (73), Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends (74), Works Vol. 1 (77), Works Vol. 2 (77), Love Beach (78), In Concert (79), Emerson, Lake and Powell (86), Black Moon (92), Live at the Royal Albert Hall (93), Return of the Manticore (93, compilation), Works Live (93, Remastered In Concert with many additional tracks), In the Hot Seat (94)

ELP pioneered the keyboard "power trio" that was imitated by many bands. Keith Emerson was in the Nice where he was noted for his renditions (torturings?) of classical works while stabbing his Hammond organ with knives. After The Nice broke up, Emerson joined forces with Greg Lake (ex-King Crimson) and Carl Palmer (ex-Atomic Rooster). Together, ELP blasted into the '70s with a keyboard-heavy bombardment of incredible proportions. ELP debuted at the 1970 Isle of Wight festival where they ripped into their now famous rendition of Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition," an orgasmic moog workout pushing the bounds of anything previously heard by a rock keyboardist. Emerson's sheer mastery of the moog and flamboyant technical ability were incredible; his talent along with the dynamo drumming antics of Carl Palmer, won the band a legion of fans. Their first self-titled studio release was a quieter work where Emerson displayed his brilliance on the piano in the wonderful "Take a Pebble." With Lake's rich tenor wrapped around an extended piano improvisation, "Take a Pebble" was to become an ELP concert standard. Emerson also had a penchant for lifting classical pieces without credit and making them his own, e.g., "The Barbarian" on ELP is taken from Bartok's "Allegro Barbaro" while "The Knife's Edge" is Janacek's "Sinfonietta." ELP also contained "Lucky Man," often cited as the first use of the moog synthesizer on a rock album. Tarkus followed in 1971. The side-long "Tarkus" featured the moog extensively. "Are You Ready, Eddy?" is a tribute to reknown studio engineer Eddy Offord, whose name graces many classic Yes albums. Tarkus was followed by the LP release of Pictures at an Exhibition show, a marvellous live performance recorded in Newcastle City Hall, 26 March 1971. The next studio release was Trilogy which contained the wonderful "From the Beginning." "Abaddon's Bolero" has Emerson building layers of keyboards while "Hoedown" is an excerpt from Copeland's "Rodeo." After Trilogy, ELP formed their own label, Manticore. In addition to releasing Americanized versions of classic Italian Prog (e.g., PFM, Banco), ELP released their magnum opus: Brain Salad Surgery. BSS contained the 30 minute suite, "Karn Evil 9," that featured Emerson in all his splendor working his Hammond, moog and grand piano against Palmer's furious drumming. Also featured is Palmer's attempt at synthesized percussion on Ginastera's "Toccata." BSS was quickly followed by the live Welcome Back My Friends.... It contains what I feel to be the definitive version of "Tarkus": aggressive and energetic. It also contains nearly all of BSS and wonderful piano improvisations. After these excellent works, ELP ran out of fresh ideas and went into an extended hiatus. In '77, ELP released the 2LP Works Vol. 1. This reunion album contained three sides of individual works (one side/member) plus two group efforts. Emerson's side is a classical piano concerto and Lake contributes several love ballads. Palmer's contribution is the most ELP-like but suffers from poor composition. The excellent "Pirates" and a perfunctory rendition of Copeland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" highlight the album. The album sold to dedicated fans but paled in comparison to the glory of previous works. This LP was followed by the forgettable Works Vol. 2 and Love Beach. The latter is marred by terrible love ballads and an overall lack of enthusiasm. The band called it quits after the lackluster In Concert. In 1986, Emerson and Lake enlisted Cozy Powell (ex-Rainbow, Jeff Beck) to fill the drum slot. Though better than Love Beach, ELPowell was a weak effort rehashing stale ideas. It does contain a passable version of Holst's "Mars." After a tour, this version of ELP folded. Emerson joined with Palmer in '88, Robert Berry stepped in as singer and they called themselves 3. Bad name for an equally bad album. They too folded. In '92, a reunion of the original ELP was realized in the form of Black Moon. Following their tried and true format, it sold well to fans but otherwise failed to draw attention though it is a fairly solid effort. ELP were a bastion of early '70s progressive rock and many bands are compared to ELP as a point of reference, thus you should become familiar with their style. So, to the potential ELP listener, I suggest you get The Atlantic Years which contains nicely remastered versions of their best works and serves as a fine introduction. If you'd rather not buy a 2CD set, check out ELP or Brain Salad Surgery. -- Mike Taylor

Keith Emerson (keyboards), Greg Lake (guitar/bass/vocals), and Carl Palmer (drums) are a trio who put out 10 albums in the 1970's, broke up, and reformed in the 1990's to put out two albums (so far). I will describe the 1970's ELP only, except for a few sentences at the end. ELP was one of the giants of 1970's progressive rock, along with Yes, Genesis, and a handful of others. In fact, they really helped define progressive rock of that era, particularly by their keyboard playing. Every progressive rocker should hear some ELP! How to characterize ELP's sound? Imagine a Hammond organ playing melodies, jazz/rock solos, and complex chords, on top of very tight drumming and bass. Occasional bursts of lead synthesizer are heard as solos and sound effects. I'd describe the musical style as powerful, occasionally bombastic, complex rock, heavily influenced by classical music and jazz. They also wrote some tender ballads though. Emerson was widely regarded as one of the most talented keyboardists in the history of rock, and Palmer one of the finest drummers. If you want to hear some virtuosic playing, "Karn Evil 9" from Brain Salad Surgery and "Tarkus" from Tarkus are very impressive. Lake was a good enough bassist and guitarist to keep up with Emerson and Palmer, but his strength was singing ballads such as "Lucky Man" from their self-titled debut album, "From the Beginning" from Trilogy, and "Still You Turn Me On" from Brain Salad Surgery. Lake has a mellow, pleasing voice in the earlier albums, though his later singing has been criticized as being overly dramatic and a little less on-key. The first-time ELP listener should buy Brain Salad Surgery. Except for the very dissonant "Toccata", the album is very accessible. You may even have heard the famous words, "Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends..." on the radio: this is from "Karn Evil 9." Next, the more adventurous listener might try Tarkus; other fans might try Trilogy or ELP's self-titled first album. But make sure you hear them all!! In my opinion, these four albums form the core of ELP's best material. Other good ELP albums include Pictures At An Exhibition (a live rendition of Mussorgsky's classical piece of the same name) and Welcome Back My Friends To The Show That Never Ends, a triple-live album (now on double-CD) with some absolutely stunning playing. Works Volume 1 also has some very good tracks, including a classical piano concerto (written by Emerson), a rendition of Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" (the "Wide World of Sports" theme, for you non-classical listeners out there :-)), and the epic "Pirates." But in my opinion, Works Volume 1 has a bunch of mediocre tunes as well. ELP suffered a terrible downslide near the end of their 1970's career, releasing Works Volume 2 and Love Beach, both of which (in my opinion) are mostly horrid, or at least forgettable. Completists should check out these albums last. Their final album of the decade, In Concert, is pretty decent but not spectacular. Between 1980 and 1990, the three former members of ELP bounced around in various other bands. Emerson did some movie soundtracks and solo albums. Lake did a few solo albums. Lake joined Asia. Emerson, Lake, and Cozy Powell formed "Emerson, Lake and Powell" for one album. Emerson and Palmer joined with Robert Berry to form "3", releasing the album "To the Power of Three." Except for Emerson's solo albums, all of these hybrid bands had more of a pop-rock feel than did ELP. But fans may find it interesting to explore these albums... many of which can be found in vinyl "bargain bins" in used record stores. (I do not mean to imply that these are bad albums. But it is true that they are easy to find in bargain bins.) ELP reformed in the early 1990's and released Black Moon to mixed reviews from its former fans. It is evident that E, L, and P have been influenced by pop music (and perhaps the cash it brings). But following that, they released the wonderful Live At The Royal Albert Hall, containing many of their best pieces in glorious digital sound. A hits collection called Return Of The Manticore followed that, containing a half dozen unreleased tracks as well. ELP's CD's were remastered in 1993, so you should consider this before buying a used ELP disc. On the other hand, ELP used discs are probably in great supply right now, as fans are upgrading to the new versions, so you can probably get a good price on an "old" disc if you want to try them out. The old discs are of good quality, but reports say that the remastered versions are somewhat better. -- Dan Barrett

[See Asia | King Crimson]

Sphere (96)

The self-produced Sphere is that of a composer, arranger,programmer and keyboardist. The style is a very symphonic rock that showcases Emond's classical training. The music is presented in the typical keyboards, bass and drums format that is usually associated with ELP. It features the rich compositions and the expert performances of the keyboardist. The supporting bass and drum tracks are carefully programmed. A quality production that should please those who appreciate keyboard driven symphonic rock. -- Paul Charbonneau

Back to Knowledge (94)

This is a three piece band consisting of the keyboardist (Edo Rogani) and drummer (Paolo Sburlati) from italian band Syndone and a singer, Rosanna de Luca. The music hass a lot of the ELP style, with fast and complex keyboards. There are many really good moments on this album. When I heard the first song begin, I thought, "This is going to be one of my favorite albums." Unfortionately, its not. The keyboards are great, the drums are very good and the singer is also very good, so why isn't it my favorite album? Because when Rosanna starts to sing it all turns to pop music (IMO)! She sings very good but a combination of ELP and Maria Carey isn't what I like. But still there is much to enjoy here. The album also contains (another) version of Mussorgsky's "Night on a Bald Mountain." The album was produced by Beppe Crovella of Arti E Mestieri, contains 9 songs and is 54 minutes long. -- Andre Hagberg

[See Syndone]

Le Sauccison De Mer (89)

On Musea. I don't understand it - it's sort of like cabaret jazz mixed with comedy or something. Maybe someone fluent in french could get something out of the lyrics, but the music seems fairly unremarkable.

Saat (72)

Quoted as being a classic folky progressive duo, Saat for me does not live up to this expectation. nice, vaguely cosmic, yet not grabbing.

Enchant (91), A Blueprint of the World (93)

Bay area band with a very busy, complicated sound, sort of like Animator. They produced a bunch of cassettes before undergoing lineup transitions and released A Blueprint of the World in Europe and Japan (US release in August 95 on Magna Carta).

Uomini Umili Popoli Liberi (72, released 91)

Good progressive rock that had to wait 20 years to be released. The music is typical Italian with a lot of melodic songs that contains a lot of different moods. The music has some really good parts with complex heavy rock but also contains quiet and beautiful parts. There is a lot of good interplay between the guitar, keyboard (mostly Hammond but also moog) and flute. Eneide reminds me of Osanna and Nuova Idea mostly with some hints of The Trip. The album contains ten songs between 1 to 7 minutes and is 35 minutes long. Recommended music for lovers of Italian progressive rock. -- Andre Hagberg

Garden Shed (77), The Last of the Jubblies (??)

England released just one album, Garden Shed, on Arista UK in the 70s and if ever any band acheived a perfect fusion of Genesis, Yes, and Supertramp, this is it. Brimming with mellotron textures, keyboard and organ leads, and variant time signatures, this is classic progressive rock.

[The Last of the Jubblies is some sort of "leftover" material recently released?]

L'île où Vivent les Loups (??)

Quebecois ensemble incorporating strings, brass, piano, tuned percussion and acoustic guitar. Rather folky, but mainly light classical/ chamber-music styled. Some light male vocals here and there cut through the microcosmic-orchestral arrangements. On the whole, one of the nicest French-Canadian chamber-prog. -- Mike Ohman

The Enid (76), In The Region Of The Summer Stars (77), Aerie Faerie Nonsense (77), Touch Me (79), Six Pieces (79), Rhapsody In Rock (80), Something Wicked This Way Comes (83), Live At Hammersmith Vol.1 (84), Live At Hammersmith Vol.2 (84), The Spell (84), Fand (85), Salome (86), Lovers And Fools (86), The Seed and The Sower (87), The Final Noise (89)

Very clasically influenced but sort of lightweight. Sparse vocals but a little annoying at times. Recommended: Touch Me.

The Enid are probably one of the most underrated progressive rock bands out of the UK. Their music is a hybrid of orchestral classical and rock compositions, with an undeniable tilt towards the dramatic. All the CDs have extra tracks that did not appear on the vinyl releases, and have, in many cases, been remixed. The music is very proficiently orchestrated, and the tracks have the complexity that should appeal to the progressive rock aficionado. Final Noise is their last release as The Enid, and contains live versions of many of their best tracks. This would be a good CD to check out as an introduction to the band. Story Of The Enid contains over 2 hours of music by The Enid, and contains the tale of the band, narrated by Robert John Godfrey, in the form of a reminiscence. It is pretty interesting, more so to those who have heard and enjoyed their music. It can also serve as an introduction to one of the most underrated classical, symphonic bands of the late seventies/early eighties.

Reviews of The Enid that I have seen usually read to the effect of "they attempt to mix orchestral themes with rock, but lean far more to the classical edge than bands like ELP." The songs I have heard by The Enid pretty much fit this description.

The Enid are a couple of guys who independently produce their albums. They have some great stuff such as Something Wicked This Way Comes and The Key. They have an interesting style of composition which can be a bit Wagnerian at times, as well as being nursery-rhyme like. The music is not perhaps the most interesting, but for people interested in a Very English style of progressive rock (but not to be confused with Yes or Tull) might enjoy the adventure. Imagine Clayderman playing Pink Floyd with someone from a Gilbert and Sullivan production singing.

Most of this could hardly be called rock, as these guys play an impressionist type of symphonic music that has no standard rhythm section as such to anchor it down. Some of the earliest albums have some passages that hint at a rock rhythm, but for the most part the albums have a heavily orchestrated sound, all created using the standard guitars, basses, keyboards and drums. Most of the first two albums were completely re-recorded during the 80's. Nearly all of the albums are 100% instrumental. Start w/ Region or Aerie Faerie and work forward in time. The 76 and 77 albums contain the same music, only the title was changed. There's also a bunch of fan club stuff that's been released over the years.

[See Craft | Godfrey and Stewart | Godfrey, Robert John]

No Pussyfooting (73, w/ Robert Fripp), Here Come the Warm Jets (73), June 1, 1974 (74), Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy (74), Another Green World (75), Evening Star (75, w/ Robert Fripp), Discrete Music (75), Before and After Science (77), Desert Island Selections (??, comp.), Ambient 1: Music for Airports (78), Ambient 2: The Plateux of Mirror (80, w/ Harold Budd), Music for Films (81), My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (81, w/ David Byrne), Possible Musics (??, w/ Jon Hassell), Ambient 4: On Land (82), Apollo (83), The Pearl (84, w/ Harold Budd), Thursday Afternoon (85), Wrong Way Up (91, w/ John Cale), The Shutov Assembly (92), Nerve Net (92), Neroli (93)

Brian Eno is not a (musical) household name, but he should be! Eno has been on the leading edge of Progressive music (in many genres) since the late '60's. Eno has produced and worked with such artists as Robert Fripp (of King Crimson fame), Roxy Music, David Bowie, DEVO, U2, and the Talking Heads. During college, Eno had a fascination for (classical) Electronic Music. He began experimenting with studio and compositional techniques that included electronic and tape effects; similar to those of John Cage and Steve Reich. Eno also notes La Monte Young as a major influence. Many of Eno's early recordings dealt with his own experiments in Electronic Music, often in collaboration with Robert Fripp; Eno would lay down that basic synthesizer background and Fripp would improvise his own unique electronic guitar lead. Such explorations included the albums: No Pussyfooting and Evening Star. Eno's solo work, Discrete Music, demonstrates what Eno calls "process music." As Eno puts it: "I have gravitated towards situations and (musical) systems that, once set into operation, could create music with little or no intervention on my part.." Discrete Music was also a precursor to his Ambient series of compositions of the late '70's on. Beyond Electronic Music, Eno loves rock 'n' roll; he recorded four progressive rock albums between 1973 and 1977. Eno's first progressive rock album, Here Come the Warm Jets, is an extrodinary collection. It defined Eno's rock style as a mixture of bizzare lyrics and quirky vocals with a menagerie of electronic sound-effects. For example, he suggests to his lover that "you'll have to choose the Paw Paw Negro blowtorch, or me..." or that his "baby's on fire/ better throw her in the water/ look at her laughing/ like a heifer to the slaughter." Hmm? In between the electronic pieces up pops an occasional (mostly) acoustic work; "On Some Faraway Beach" and "Some of them are Old" include mostly piano, drums, and vocal harmonies. The latter tune makes splendid use of (electric?) steele guitar (by Lloyd Watson) and near the end takes on an almost mystical sound when the wind chimes come in. This becomes the background to the finale track, "Here Come the Warm Jets," which is a rolling little ditty lead by a minimalistic fuzzy guitar sequence and followed by a drum line and some obscured vocals. This is such an indescribeable album that I can only recommend borrowing a copy of it to see if you like it. Shortly after the release of Here Come..., Eno was asked to perform live a group of avart-garde artists including: Nico, Kevin Ayers, John Cale and the Soporifics. This remarkable performance occured on June 1, 1974, and is the title of the album that captures the evening. It is hard to tell from the liner notes how much Eno performs on the individual tracks, but the first two songs are his own compositions from Here Come...: "Driving Me Backwards" and "Baby's on Fire." These are straight forward renditions with no surprises. The other tracks include work mostly by Kevin Ayers (with some fine guitar work by Mike Oldfield) and are more on the bluesy side. On Taking Tiger Mountian, Eno continues to explore the style(s) he created in Here Come the Warm Jets, but eases (a bit) off of the electronics and distortion. There appears to be some connection among the songs relative to a spy theme in the first three tracks, but it may just be a coincidence. This album sports a few interesting extremes: "Third Uncle" is a hardcore tune that is at least eight years ahead of its time; whereas, "Put A Straw Under Baby" (the following track) is quite simply a lullabye. This is my favorite of his first two rock albums. About half the tracks on Another Green World are definitely rock influenced. "Sky Saw" is quite reminiscant of the swirling electronics of the first two albums; but "St. Elmos Fire" and "I'll Come Running" are rather sedate and sing-song in comparison; none-the-less pleasant. The non-vocal works often hint to Eno's future ambient music. Furthermore, most of them carry over the humorous and twisted nature of the lyrical compositions. Finally, the '77 release of Before and After Science is Eno's last rock album of the seventies. Like Another Green World, it blends ambient sounds with traditional rock forms. The first track, "No one Receiving" is a funky little ditty; and "Backwater" is pure rock 'n' roll. Most of the rest of the album is enjoyable, but not exceptional. With Discrete Music, Eno virtually created a brand new musical genre: Ambient Music. In his Ambient series (see discography), Eno creates a semi-musical experience that is at once melodic, yet spatially disjoint. The effect of such sound can be very soothing and is often used in meditation. Some of the pieces are simply process-like, but others attempt to create a scene or space. The latter is very true of On Land, where says Eno: "The choice of sonic elements in these pieces arose less from listening to music than from listening to the world in a musical way.." These early explorations allowed others artists to expand on these concepts in a musical field called New Age. Recently, Eno has release several new albums. On Wrong Way Up, Eno collaborates with John Cale on a (progressive) rock album. The Eno works on his album remind me of his work on Before and After Science; interesting lyrics and quality music, but little spark and pizzaz. I'm not very familiar with Cale, but I found his compositions also of top-notch quality; their joint efforts are often the most interesting. Nerve Net is also an album that includes some progressive rock material, but I only recently acquired it so I will not review it at this time.

I have two albums. Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy is an obscure set of ditties using synthesizers and electronics to make them quite bizarre. Sort of like Kevin Ayers filtered through a weird Dadaist world, the song are at once catchy and askew. Highlights: the title song (a haunting sing-along), "Put A Straw Under Baby" (a creepy lullaby-type song with out-of-tune strings and harmony vocals by Robert Wyatt), "Mother Whale Eyeless" (featuring Phil Collins on drums) and "The Great Pretender" (with dramatic use of synthesized cricket-sounds at the end. The other album, Another Green World, opens with "Sky Saw," a song with weird droning guitar tones, but most of the album is dedicated to delicate piano and synth instrumentals. Very pleasant. The haunting "Spirits Drifting" is the best. I also heard his two songs from the June 1st 1974 live LP. The two best songs on the album. -- Mike Ohman

[See 801 | Roxy Music]

Key Figures (94)

Ensemble Nimbus, yet another Swedish band, is described as the "second generation of European...RIO." The first generation is, of course, defined by Henry Cow, Univers Zero (and offshoots Daniel Denis and Present), Art Zoyd and Samla Mammas Manna. Ensemble Nimbus has one member with a connection to the preceding generation, that of former Samla Mammas Manna drummer Hasse Bruniusson. Anyone into Samla, as well as Present or Daniel Denis should certainly get into Key Figures. The other members of the band are Håkan AlmKvist: guitar and bass; Lars Erik Björk: clarinet, bass clarinet; Stefan Carlsson: keyboards; and Kirk Chilton: violin. AlmKvist is the leader of the band and he is responsible for most of the compositions. Though his guitar is frequently heard, he has provided good balance for all members to "strut their stuff." "Bo i Bingen" (lazy bones) has a bouncing bass clarinet rhythm over which lyrically light keyboard (bell-like tones) and lazy (of course) violin melodies are heard. AlmKvist provides nice bass support for it all but leaves the guitar at home. But, like Roger Trigaux of Present, when AlmKvist slings the axe, he's a force to reckon with. On "Änglamakerskan" (the baby farmer), the violin and electric guitar duel with angular slashes of controlled fury amidst the rhythmic clarinet ostinati and shifting drum meters. "Förmaningen" (the exhortation) is a good showcase for Bruniusson's drumming talents. He uses his electronic drums to pound out a wide variety of percussive offbeats and measured trap work. There is also a bit of a Crimsonish feel (mostly in the guitar work throughout) and a zeuhlish feel, such as in the bass of "Skrapan" (the schramscraper). The album is mostly instrumental but there are two (Swedish) vocal works. Ten of the eleven songs are in the three to nearly six minute range. The eleventh song,"Ekivoka Vänningar" (indecent turnings) weighs in at 8.5 minutes. This was, for me, the best song on the album. The length allows the band to slowly develop their musical thought. Very sparse instrumentation and good use of silence at the beginning created a taut atmosphere that Ensemble Nimbus then sustained and exploited to full ability for the duration. Great tune! I found that I enjoyed Key Figures a great deal, moreso than Daniel Denis's Sirius and the Ghosts and as much as Present's two albums. Strongly recommended to any RIO fan or any Prog fan who enjoys a good musical challenge. -- Mike Taylor

Very good Rock In Opposition or "Tivoli Fusion" near to Von Zamla in style. The music is composed by Hakan AlmKvist, the guitar and bass player. Featuring Hans Bruniusson from Samla Mammas Manna on drums. -- Gunnar Creutz

This Swedish band has a peculiar sound. Key Figures features guitar/bass, clarinet, drums, keyboards,violin and occasional vocals (in Swedish). Their eclectic style involves, amongst others,elements of rock, jazz, chamber music and traditional music. The guitarist writes all the material which makes sustained use of the electric guitar, but doesn't reduce the rest of the band to a support role. Quite the opposite, the tracks involve original arrangements of melodies and rhythms where all members make an important contribution. An excellent production that primarily appeals to those who like to experiment. -- Paul Charbonneau

[See Samla Mammas Manna]

Quelques Pieces Detaches (93)

[See Debile Menthol]

Earthly Paradise (77)

Genesis fans will absolutely love the album Earthly Paradise by a very rare German band, Epidaurus, who put out just one album, in the late seventies. It doesn't necessarily sound like Genesis per se, it's just that the dual keyboards/mellotrons have a sound that reminds me of that lush Tony Banks sound, yet remaining underivative and original. Epidaurus have an intensely symphonic sound with an excellent female vocalist (who for the most part rarely sings anyway) that combine to make some incredible music that everyone on this net should love hands down. Quite a classic.

This band was recommended to me over the phone by Ken Golden of The Laser's Edge. It was his prediction that Earthly Paradise would be one of his best sellers from his next catalog (and it was). Being the adventurous sort, I decided to order it. I have not regretted that decision at all. The five tracks on the CD are of moderate length, ranging from five minutes to nearly eight minutes long. The German Epidaurus is a keyboard oriented, progressive band. The band features two keyboardists, both of whom play Hammond, Moog, and Mellotron. Ah, bliss... The female vocalist sings with a very weak, soprano-style voice that is hard to understand. Fortunately, she only sings on the first two cuts but she's easy enough to listen through. I prefer vocalless songs, but have gotten used to hearing her sing on these songs. The main thrust of all the music is the fantastic interplay betweeen the two sets of keyboards. The first two cuts sound, to my ears, like they have more of the Tony Banks touch, particularly in the musical phrasings. The last three cuts have more of an ELP feel, but maintain their own identity. Though all the cuts are good, I feel the last three are the strongest, though they are the shortest. Earthly Paradise is a strong album and I feel that it is definitely worth a listen. I grow to like it more with each listening. If I were to fault this CD, is would be because it is too short. I can listen to the moog/mellotron combination over and over and over and.... -- Mike Taylor

This German band has a proyotypical 70's melodic progressive sound, replete with dual keyboards, plenty of mellotron (in some cases even two!), taurus bass-pedals, colorful melodies, fluid dynamic changes, elaborate arrangements, and a beautiful female voice in Christiane Wand, that will surely remind one of Jane Relf of the original Renaissance. Their album contains five long tracks, mostly penned by the keyboard team of Gunther Henne and Gerd Linke.

You know all of those great keyboard solos that Tony Banks did with Genesis on Selling England By The Pound and The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway? Well, Epidaurus has taken those ideas and expanded them onto an entire album. Not that there are any direct copies of Genesis here (well, the end of "Wings of the Dove" is a heck of a lot like the end of "Cinema Show," and one bass riff in it is very similar to the end of "The Knife"), but the influence is quite noticeable. The first thing you'll notice is that their are no electric or acoustic guitars. Instead, the lead instruments are two keyboards played by Gunther Henne and Gerd Linke. They just bounce off of one-another while the bass and drums fill in the rhythm in the background. You might think that this sounds a bit boring, but it's actually quite enjoyable. There's really nothing all that complex about the music, so it is very accessible. I liked it upon first listening. And, of course, like all good Progressive Rock, I discovered a bit more to the songs the more I listened to them. The only real problem with the album is that it is too short (only 32:28). There are two drummers, one for each side of the original album. I prefer side two, and the drummer for that side, Manfred Struck, may be part of the reason. He evens out the music a bit more by bringing the drums into the front more. Still, drums aren't a focal point of this band -- the focus is the interplay of the keyboards. This is not a completely instrumental album. There is a female vocalist that sings on two of the five songs in a soprano-style voice that is basically not understandable. But, she doesn't take away from the enjoyment of the music. -- Clark Ray

I've got to go against the flow on this one. Sure the album has lush, proggy keyboards, good vocals and occasionally some musical inspiration, but the repetitive Kraftwerk-like rhythms go nowhere and the drumming throughout 3/4 of the album is very weak. If you're into bands with great feel and not much musical complexity, this could be for you. -- Mike Borella

German progressive band who made one album in the mid-70s, originally only available on a tiny private pressing, but recently reissued on CD. That album, Earthly Paradise, is very much in the line of other German bands of the era (Ramses, Eloy, Streetmark), with the same piercing German synth tone. Two keyboardists make the keyboard textures full and prominent. In addition to the synthesizer, mellotron and the omnipresent Hammond organ round out the sound. They also have a nice female vocalist on two of the tracks, the first two in fact. Fans of the aforementioned will not be disappointed. -- Mike Ohman

Genius Of The Original Force (77), Feel Me (90?)

Genius Of Original Force, with its madrigal-like vocal arrangements, twanging clavinets and tooting recorders, is inevitably compared to Gentle Giant. But Epidermis have a unique sense of German angst which sets them immediately apart. Except for the last song, "Feelings," all the music is in minor keys, with bleak, depressive lyrics abounding. Not for the suicide-prone, but otherwise a very good album. -- Mike Ohman

How you feel about the German Epidermis depends on how you feel about Gentle Giant and clone bands. One of the closest to a true GG clone I have ever heard. Gentle Giant's influence runs rampant through both the vocals and instruments, but Epidermis only partially succeed with the voices, and less so with the instruments. Epidermis use four and five part voice melodies (English lyrics), but they just don't seem to intertwine like GG. Instrumentally, Epidermis just don't quite deliver the detailed counterpoint and superb instrument/instrument and instrument/voice interplay that is GG's trademark. Epidermis could never pull off Gentle Giant's more complex pieces, for example. But, Epidermis are not a bad band. They have respectable chops, if not originality. There are no credits on the CD booklet but the photo indicates they are a five piece, with bass, drums, electric and acoustic guitar, keyboards, and vibes. They probably all sing. Overall, not bad but not spectacular.

A German quartet with a symphonic oriented sound. They create a moving sonic dreamscape with keys, bass, acoustic and electric guitar, winds, percussion and vocals (usually in German). Very difficult to draw comparisons with, although traces of Mike Oldfield, Gong, and possibly some Canterbury traces can be detected as well. Genius is the better of the two, a little more colorful and melodic, Feel Me is the newest w/ a slightly more modern sound.

Genius Of Original Force was released on a private label and now commands high prices in the collectible LP market. The CD reissue rescues the sounds of a band who combine music and vocals with three-part harmonies in ways very reminiscent of Gentle Giant. Vocals are in slightly accented English, but work well within the musically complex framework of keyboards and guitars operating in non-standard time signatures.

Fourtunes (85), Into the Epicenter (90), Edge of the Sky/Echoes (91), Starlight Tales (93)

Good chops musically (Yes-like) but female singer is a little annoying. Try Into the Epicenter

Edge of the Sky is the best thing they've done. Epicenter is weak. But this is one of the best up and comers. Let's hope they pull through.

To quote Nick Peck, current keyboardist, this band plays and composes "sweeping, grandiose works in the tradition of Yes and Procol Harum with a nasty King Crimson-esque streak.." Peck is by far the stand-out in the band, being both a very good keyboardist and writer. He puts much attention to detail and keeps current with the technology so their arrangements are often fascinating. Their last two albums featured Tom Finch on guitar, whose playing resembles (very loosely) Satriani. He adds much needed bite to the sound and is an outstanding player. Tom recently left the band and has been replaced recently by Gary Morrell (of the band Now), whose guitar work is much more influenced by Jerry Garcia. Expect a fairly different (though not necessarily worse) sound in the future. On the flip side, I find the sound somewhat unemotional and timid. They would also do well to find a competent vocalist.

Episode is one of the better bay area progressive bands. They have several cassette releases, and maybe one LP. In their sound one may hear hints of Meddle era Pink Floyd, Tales period Yes, and some fusion influence as well. Because their songs run the wide gamut and the band has plenty of fresh and original ideas, these influences are hardly detectable within the scope of their music. Vocalist Roe Tyler's original style lends even more credibility and uniqueness.

Episode are a five-piece California-based band with a few cassette releases under their collective belt. Starlight Tales is their most recent release and, I believe, their first CD. Episode are Tom Finch (guitars), Nick Peck (keyboards, vocals), Gary Scheuenstuhl (drums, percussion), Don Tyler (bass, 12-string guitar, vocals) and Roe Tyler (vocals, flute). Starlight Tales consists of nine songs, from three minutes to 25 minutes (26 if you want to tack on the 49 second "Wind and Watering" instrumental closer). Episode draw from obvious influences, such as Yes and Genesis and less obvious influences like National Health, which they combine with a small degree of accessibility (particularly in the shorter tunes), some jazzy touches and enough of their own ideas to come across as fresh and mostly original. One characteristic that I found especially pleasing was that, even in the shorter tunes, Episode have a fine sense of musical development. Middle sections are quite different from the opening and closing sections, creating a feeling of movement to each song. These differing sections don't sound thrown together or forced but instead as logical developments of the opening theme. Of everything that is good about Episode, I would have to say this ability is their greatest strength. "Bobby in the Bushes," a five minute instrumental, is perhaps the best example of this ability. Starting with Steve Howe-like harmonics and lead guitar, and occasional Wakemanesque flourishes, Episode quickly take the theme across a variety of styles, refusing to merely repeat and rehash, instead developing through a middle section that, for a few moments reminds of National Health, and ending up with a dash of humor as Finch sounds the familiar "the horse race is about to start" theme on his guitar. This all takes place comfortably in the space of five minutes. Even better is the 15 minute "Edge of the Sky," the track I feel to be the strongest on the album. Again, Episode traverse a variety of [no pun intended] episodic themes, starting with gentle acoustic guitar, digital piano and ethereal voice, moving into both obvious and vague Yes (circa Close to the Edge) and Genesis (circa Nursery Cryme) references, and a nice middle section including "sitar" and tablas. Acoustic guitar is generously featured, which adds nice texture. Peck's tenor is nicely matched with Roe Tyler's lovely voice. In rare instances, I thought Roe was pushing the edge of her range but, overall, I found myself wishing her vocal passages would go on much longer than they did. I really would like to hear her featured more often as a lead vocalist. The other short tunes is where the accessible side of Episode shows forth. Not commercial per se, these songs, such as "Barriers of Attitude" and "The Ship" are easy-going songs that are nice but somehow not quite fulfilling. "Dead Fish in the Tank" is an innocuous little ditty that, at 1:40, is merely filler. "Hesperates Rising" is a 25 minute, four-part piece that reveals both the best the band has to offer, both in compositional and playing abilities, as well as highlighting some flaws. At this length, it takes a lot of ability to keep the song interesting, and the band succeeds only partially. Though, once again, Episode display their talent at logical development of a song, I felt this song was a little slow in developing and perhaps went on a little to long. I think they could have trimmed about five to seven minutes of music here and there, strengthening the song through conciseness. Though not lacking in substance (there was a little too much), ultimately, I think "Hesperates Rising" lacked overall strength, which brings me to this: The one thing I kept thinking was that Episode should try to "push the envelope" more, pressing their musical abilities to the limits. I had the feeling that the band was playing well within their talent, perhaps to turn out a consistent album. Though a good album, I think Starlight Tales would be greatly improved if the band went all out, or at least gave the impression of such. For example, Scheuenstuhl and Don Tyler work well together as the rhythm unit, providing a stable foundation, but I felt they were too reserved, and should have been driving themselves, and Peck and Finch, to greater heights. I haven't heard Episode's earlier material so I can't judge how much they may have improved since, but Starlight Tales leaves the impression of a talented band that hasn't realized their full potential. Still, as a whole, Episode's Starlight Tales is a solid album, accessible without being commercial and shows an excellent sense of development and progression within songs. I think many of you would enjoy this album very much. -- Mike Taylor

[See Peck, Nick]

Epitaph (71), Stop Look And Listen (72), Outside The Law (74), Return To Reality (78), See You In Alaska (80), Live (81), Danger Man (82)

Ilya (??)

Symphonic prog with ethnic tendencies.

Epsilon (71), Move On (72), Epsilon Off (74)

A couple of members of this band joined Tony Carey's Planet P Project. Some are supposed to be progressive, others grungy hard-rock.

Antologia (73)

The album has an acoustic sound.

Mexico (72)

Ergo Sum is generally lumped under the zeuhl category because they have some loose ties to the Magma camp. Mexico was produced by Laurent Thibault and originally released on his Theleme label. Thibault also contributes acoustic rhythm guitar to Mexico. Ergo Sum contributed to Puissance 13+2 compilations and Lionel Ledissez (Ergo Sum's vocalist) participated in the Univeria Zekt project. Jean-My Truong passed through Ergo Sum before joining Zao but he's not on this album. Francois Breant also passed through the band late in it's existence. If indeed Mexico is a zeuhl album, the band approach it from a very jazzy direction, much less so from a fusion perspective. I almost think of Ergo Sum as a mellower, less frantic Moving Gelatine Plates crossed with Laurent Thibault's solo album. In addition to Ledissez, Ergo Sum are: Jean Guierin (flute, electric & acoustic pianso, organ), Michel Leonardi (electric & acoustic guitar), Roland Meynet (violin), Max Touat (bass) and B.B. Brutus (drums, percussion). Musea rearranged the tracks from the original order, putting the title track first, and also including four bonus tracks. Two of the bonus tracks are a- and b-sides of a single released after the LP was released. Gentle, sophisticated arrangements of flute, acoustic guitar and violin make Mexico a wonderful late-night listening album. Even the electric guitar is subdued yet it too is an instrumental voice with statement. Vocals appear on most tunes and take a bit of getting used to. Ledissez sounds quite a bit like Ritchie Havens but his voice fits in oddly and equally well with the delicate jazz arrangements and the more uptempo songs. Although this is quiet and refined, we're not talking about ersatz jazz-lite. The music is powerful and graceful, an album of finesse. -- Mike Taylor

[See Breant, Francois | Cruciferius | Nemo]

Rings Of Earthly Light (91)

Bright, Colorful, Melodic and Romantic are appropriate words to describe the debut album by Italian band Eris Pluvia. Their sound is an elaborate quilt of electric and acoustic guitar reciprocation, outbursts of melodic keyboard color, soaring woodwinds and beautiful vocal harmonies. Their influences appear to be baroque, medieval and classical music, Italian folk themes, as well as the classic Italian progressive rock of the seventies, like Banco, PFM and others. The vocals (in English) are shared by guitarist Alessandro Serri, and guest vocalists Valeria Caucino and Sabrina Quarelli. The seventeen minute title track is no less than astonishing.

I have not personally listened to Rings Of Earthly Light, but, from the various reviews that I have read, this is classified as one of the best progressive bands of the eighties from Italy. The music is supposedly quite strongly reminiscent of Camel and Rousseau, which would put it squarely in the melodic, symphonic, progressive rock camp.

Rings of Earthly Light is based on the work of guitars (often acoustic), flutes and vocals (in English). The lineup also includes keyboards, bass, drums and saxophone. Consequently the compositions are based on acoustic-folk influences (guitars and flute) but also feature symphonic keyboard work and developments with a more electric sound. The music has a light, often romantic flavour that is barely betrayed by the richness of the production, the warmth of the arrangements or the precision and efficiency of the rhythms. -- Paul Charbonneau

I bought Rings of Eartly Light because of Alan Freeman's Audion review, not because of the corny title :-). Again I'll have to disagree with Freeman's opinions. While he is often very accurate when describing re-releases and older material, he grades the modern bands too easily. While Italy's Eris Pluvia is a step above most neo-progressive, it still isn't anything special. It's nice. Just nice. Not wonderful. Nice. Their influences are many but obvious: Reniassance, ELPowell, and Minimum Vital, among others. They are largely based around acoustic guitar strumming and low-to-mid level rhythm complexity combined with recorder, keys and guitar leads. Another comparison that comes to mind is the extremely obscure Fireballet (anybody else like them?) The music is pretty, the vocals pleasing but too straight ahead to keep my interest. But they aren't bad either. Their combination of styles is unique, though every time the sound changes I sit there thinking, "This sounds so much like...who?" There's a familiar tune or feel around every musical corner they turn, but none are concrete. Unlike other Italian contemporaries such as Men of Lake and Nuova Era, Eris Pluvia has a modern sound, but they lack the majesty of the former and the technical prowess of the latter. Worthwhile for those looking for a melodic, mellow and even thoughtful CD to buy. Otherwise, don't run out looking for it.

[See Ancient Veil, The]

Eroc (75), Zwei (76), 3 (79), 4 (82), Wolkenreise (8?), Changing Skies (??)

Eroc was the percussionist for Grobschnitt, one of the better known symphonic/space bands from Germany. I have two of his releases, 3 and 4. The former is a very uneven album showing a wide variety of influences. There are some songs that obviously remind me of Grobschnitt (circa Solar Music Live), however other influences include Dave Gilmour and Richard Wright of Pink Floyd, the heavy German underground scene, and psychedelia. There are also strange vocal interludes, a boring "boom-chic with variations" drum seque, and even a bootleg-sounding blues jam. If anything can be said about this album, it would be about its unpredictability. You never know what'll come next. In comparison, 4 is far more consistent in style but is even less exciting. The silly voices are still present, though not as common. The Floyd influences seem stronger and there's also an occasional reference to late '70s Tangerine Dream. There's also quite a bit more acoustic guitar. The album fails to please, however, because of its lack of rhythmic diversity. In a few brief moments, a couple of really neat synth sounds burst forth, but they are hardly enough to redeem the album. Of these two releases, I'd give the nod to 3, but I'd say spend your money elsewhere first. -- Mike Taylor

Eroc, a.k.a. Achim H. Ehrig, was the drummer for Grobschnitt. His first solo album is an interesting mix of different types of instrumental music. Some songs are gentle, electronic tone etudes ("Kleine Eva," "Des Zauberers Traum"). Other tracks are spacy guitar rock a la Ashra. Also included is a nightmarish tape-collage piece ("Horrorgoll") and an offbeat synthesizer tune ("Die Musik vom 'Oelberg'"). I haven't heard his other solo albums, but the third one is supposed to include music from a 1969 lineup of Grobschnitt, which had been together in one form or another since 1966. Wolkenreise and Changing Skies are compilations. -- Mike Ohman

[See Grobschnitt]

Siegfried, Il Drago E Altre Storie (76), Mappamondo (??)

Polished mellow progressive was the style of Errata Corrige and their only album Siegfried, Il Drago E Altre Storia is proof of this. Showing Italian elegance to the extreme, EC's music is quite beautiful and as a quartet they show amazing versatility with the instruments they used. The music works very well as a whole and is very soothing and spacious.

A relatively obscure Italian band that had only one release Siegfried, Il Drago, E Altre Storie. They offer a rich blend of progressive folk-rock, jazz and classically influenced themes, using multi-guitars, piano, cello, synthesizers, bass, flute and drums. Their superb, gentle vocal harmonies (in Italian) are complimentary to the music, and may remind of early Simon and Garfunkel at times. An exceptional concept album. Recently some previously- unreleased stuff from the vaults has been released, haven't heard it yet.

Errobi (78), Gure Lekukotasuna (78), Ametsarem Bidea (79), Bizi Bizian (??)

Two-guitar band from the Basque country. On Ametsaren Bidea, they display that unique Basque talent of making a lot with a little. Though there are no keyboards, the sound is very full and layered, the long title track and "Andere" especially display the striking group synergy well. You don't have to be a fan of guitar-based music to like them. -- Mike Ohman

Betonganglar (82)

Vicolo (76)

They sound like Arti+Mestieri style jazz-rock.

4 Visions (79), Ardeur (80), Fiction (83)

The moment you put on Eskaton's 4 Visions, one word spews forth: Magma. "Eskaton," the disc's opening track is rife with Magmaisms. In fact, the line-up of Eskaton is very similar to Magma circa Live (Hhai). Eskaton are Paule Kleynnaert and Amara Tahir (vocals), Andre Bernardi (bass), Gerard Konig (drums), Alain Blesing (guitar), Gilles Rozenberg (organ, synthesizer), and Eric Guillaume and Marc Rozenberg (electric piano). Replace Magma's violinist with a third keyboardist and the male vocals with a second female vocalist and Magma becomes Eskaton. OK, so Konig is no Vander...he's still quite a capable drummer. To call Eskaton a Magma clone would be be entirely untrue; however, by the second song, "Attente," a few zeuhl layers are peeled away to reveal more of Eskaton's own perspective. The CD booklet is rather emphatic in pointing out that Eskaton doesn't sing in some esoteric, made-up language but instead sing in French, for the People, about the People. Regardless, the undeniable influence of Magma is never far away. Undoubtedly, some listeners will dismiss Eskaton as a Magma clone but I think Eskaton does have something to offer. The music is demanding, daunting and challenging, regardless of who is playing it. That Eskaton can and do is a testament to their talent. To me, 4 Visions is essential listening. The four visions, according to the booklet, "paints an angry picture of Man in his Concrete City ("Ecoute"), in his Destiny ("Eskaton"), in his response to the nuclear bomb ("Attente"), and in his facing up to Death ("Pitie"). "Angry Picture" sums up this tension-filled music. -- Mike Taylor

Esperanto Rock Orchestra (73), Danse Macabre (74), Last Tango (75)

Last Tango is excellent. It opens with a particularly murderous version of "Eleanor Rigby." Purists, who want covers to stay near the original, will simply die, while those looking for original interpretation will be slayed! =8) Except for a brief statement of the theme, which is buried in the complexity, you won't positively recognize the song until the lyrics start. Excellent. Esperanto have the usual drums, bass, keyboards, and male and female vocals, but also use two violins and a cello. ELO? No way. These guys are fairly complex (but we're not talking UZ or Art Zoyd) and build good intensity. How to describe? Not easy, really. Strong string presence obviously. Kinda classical, kinda fusiony, kinda proggy, pretty unique. Six songs, three per side. Three of these are longer (7-12 minutes) and three shorter (3-4 minutes). The shorter songs are kinda "singlish" and coulda been heard on the radio in the mid-'70s. That's not to imply they are bad songs, but the longer cuts are much better developed. I'm doing a hack job here. Oh well. Good stuff. Danse Macabre is also very good.

On Rock Orchestra, the band consists of 12 members playing lots of instruments, including three vocalists, flutes, violins, guitars, keyboards, drums and bass. The music is sometimes like standard '70s rock and nothing special and sometimes really complex progressive rock. The album is about 60% AOR and 40% progressive. The band sometimes shows potential on what was to come on later albums like the good one Last Tango. On Last Tango the band is reduced to eight members and the music is a lot better and more progressive than on Rock orchestra. There is some killer stuff on Last Tango. -- Andre Hagberg

Espiritu (7?), Crisalida (7?), Libero Natura (7?)

Potentially one of the very best Argentine progressive bands (am I repeating myself) and an excellent example of one of the world's most fantastic yet unkown progressive scenes. Their music is much like the Italian 70's bands, yet there is definitely a strong Southern cultural influence, and the mix of these influences with those of Gong, Yes, Osanna, and Genesis makes their second (and only available CD) Crisalida a must have. One of the best ever.

Excellent Argentinian symphonic progressive. The closest comparisons would be the blending best of the 70's Italian progressive bands. Plenty of melodic synth and rhythmic acoustic guitar that suddenly shifts to heavy electric guitar, the back to synth and vocal harmonies, typical of many Italian bands such as Semiramis and Balletto di Bronzo. Espiritu, however, seems to have a little more of the lyricism evident in other Italian bands such as PFM. Don't be fooled though, because the music gets intense... very intense. GREAT synth work abounds! This has to be one of the best symphonic South American progressive albums ever.

Crisalida is well worth your while, with some unbelievably fast guitar and synthesizer runs which will take your breath away. The music shunts between a melodic Latin American version of P.F.M., to heavy sections approaching a sort of Il Balletto Di Bronzo style. One minus point, their singer, who sounds okay during the rockier parts, but gets on my nerves in the softer sections. I really can't describe why, perhaps it's just a personal dislike on my part. Otherwise, I'd recommend running out and getting this. -- Mike Ohman

Ocells (79), En Concert (79)

Jazz-rock, ex-Máquina.

[See Máquina]

Esquire (87)

Totally overrated pop band led by Chris Squire's daughter. There's a few decent pop tunes on the album, but hey folks - this is NOT progressive in any way, shape or form.

Yes' Chris Squire produced this band which features his wife Nikki on vocals. Don't expect a Yes sound-alike here. More poppy stuff. Nikki has a decent voice, but this is primarily bargain-bin material (that's where I got my copy).

Más Allá de tu Mente (78)

Symphonic prog.

Et Cetera (76)

Very Gentle Giant sounding prog, with a nice female lead vocalist. This is really a GG singing in French, with a female voice! :) I only know Et Cetera by them. I wonder if they have any other releases...quite good overall. -- Luis Paulino

[Is the band called Et Cetera (two words) or Etcetera (one word) or Et Caetera (with an A)?]

Apertuna (??)

Chants de l'Eternité (77)

Ardour (76), Open Up (77)

Pretty reasonable prog rock band with two releases Ardour and Open Up. They were quite derivative of the Genesis/Yes sound, but did a good job with their compositions.

Seventies band from Fort Wayne, Indiana that proved that progressive rock can exist in the Midwest. Very heavily influenced by early Genesis and in fact had their support and friendship.

Mid seventies US progressive band that seemed to be influenced by a variety of styles, their sound was a little folky at times, poppy at others, even a little jazzy at times, loosely in the shadow of Kansas, Yes, Genesis, early Crimson and others, with lots of vocals everywhere. very solid compositional skills and tight playing, a five piece featuring guitar/mandolin, bass/pedals, drums and dual keyboards. The album Ardour is excellent. Cool cover too.

Of their two releases, I like Open Up best. Their first, Ardour sits squarely in the mid 70's Yes influenced camp but tends to get too "warm, fuzzy and cute" (the songs "Space Traveller" and "Starry old man") for my taste. On the other hand, Open Up sports a somewhat harder edge, streamlined 4 piece lineup (bass/kybd/guit:vox/drum), a great rhythm section (including a drummer whose kit is mostly roto-toms and odd percussion devices) and more experimental arrangements (similar to Gentle Giant/Yezda Urfa with a dash of Nursery Cryme-era Genesis). -- Dennis Montgomery

Great keyboards, good guitar, decent bass and drums, weak lyrics, crappy vocals. Overall a good album, but over-rated.

Etna (75)

The first name of the band was Flea. A jazz-rock band.

[See Flea | Uovo Di Colombo, L']

Batelages (77), Les Trois Fous Perdegagnent (78), En Direct Des Etats-Unis d'Amerique (79), Les Poumons Gonfles (82), Les Sillons De La Terre (84), Face Aux Elements Dechaines (85), 43 Songs (91)

One of the more important cultural offshoots of the RIO sound along with Aqsak Maboul, Henry Cow, and Samla, EFL were a French quartet who made stunningly interesting music in the vein of "where no man has gone before" type of music. Not for the musically timid and conservative, EFL will be very rewarding to those who like the Henry Cow theme. Their three CD - 5 album compilation 43 songs has just been released and is the ideal way of listening to this band.

French progressive rock. Complex strict composition and wild improvisation. Boy can they play.

2 (71), Ausschuss (72)

Political rock music. Matthias Thurow was once a member.

[See Jonathan]

Eurhybia (90)

Paradoxes (93), Flood (95)

Neo-Progressive band that plays a mix of Rush and New Marillion. They had their first album, Paradoxes, out on the SI music label and it was a great production by Eroc.

Everyman Band (82), Without Warning (85)

New York-based fusion band (David Torn - guitars, Marty Fogel - saxophones, Bruce Yaw - bass, Michael Suchorsky - drums) which first came to prominence as Lou Reed's backing band in the late '70s and early '80s (around the time Reed's albums The Bells and Street Hassle were recorded). Their two albums, both on the German ECM label (Without Warning was available only as an import), are visceral, edgy and excellent creative fusion records featuring David Torn's effects-laden guitars. Both are excellent, but I prefer Without Warning as it has a more adventurous, experimental feel and Suchorsky's expertise in playing odd time signatures in a totally unprecedented fashion is used to great advantage on several tunes. David Torn also recorded with saxophonist Jan Garbarek (It's OK to Listen to the Gray Voice, also on ECM) at about the same time Without Warning was recorded, and Torn joined Garbarek's group (...or may have already done so) and later went on to play with Mark Isham, among others. Despite some rather serious health problems, Torn has stayed at the forefront of electric guitar innovation, and has released several fine recordings under his own name on the ECM and CMP labels. Marty Fogel released one CD on the CMP label (Many Heads Bobbing, At Last) in 1989 with Torn, bassist Dean Johnson, and ex-Santana drummer Michael Shrieve. -- Dave Wayne

First Album (71)

Prog

Exchange (??), Between Places (??), Into the Night (88)

Exchange is the Canadian keyboard duo of Gerald O'Brien and Steve Sexton. Their original sound was a blend of lively acoustic and electronic keyboard driven pieces, with electronic percussion added, reminiscent of Synergy without the classical influences. The first two albums Between Places and Into The Night were OK, but then they started going in the insipid poppy new age direction, with mellow vocals, flugelhorns and all that. I listened to a few cuts from their latest in the store, nearly made me puke.

Exchange is a Canadian duo who make instrumental pop, sometimes sounding a little bit like Vangelis. Much of their music is enjoyable, but is sometimes overblown. Exchange has vocals on a few songs and Roger Whitaker has whistles on one song on Between Places.

[See Nightwinds]

Insubmersible (95)

This French quartet offers a music that is sometimes hard todescribe. The band features double guitars, bass, drums/percussions and vocals (in English). Guests also contribute saxophones and keyboards. Influences include recentKing Crimson but also, various other pop and jazz elements. Insubmersible features efficient guitar interaction are developed along with groovy rhythms, full of nuances, but the delivery remains light, sometimes humorous. An excellent production, solid performances, but a touch of avant-garde that could offend those who would rather stick with conventional symphonic rock. -- Paul Charbonneau

Exit (76)

Goldball (74)

Another one of those very strange, undeservedly obscure, hippy-dippy German space-jazz groups. They recorded one excellent record for the French "Urus" label and disappeared. The group consisted of Andy Goldner (guitars, bass, sax, percussion, voice), Thomas Balluff (keyboards, trumpet, flute, voice) and Fred Braceful (drums, percussion, trumpet, voice), who are depicted on the album cover as having extremely long legs. Detroit native Braceful is a jazz drummer of some significance, and has appeared on recordings by Wolfgang Dauner, Michael Hornstein, and many others. The music on Goldball is very jazzy, but extended improvisations are largely eschewed in favor of brief (2 to 5 minutes long) multi-sectioned pieces with unexpected and abrupt changes in tempo, feel, time signature. A few cuts have a very trippy space-rock feel. The vocals (one track) are strictly tongue-in-cheek, and are delivered in accented English, so they have an almost Bonzo-ish air of silliness. Totally original and still refreshing two decades after its release. -- Dave Wayne

[See Dauner, Wolfgang]

The Most Beautiful Day (79?), Supernova (81)

This is the best Polish prog band, IMHO. The sound of the first album is quite good, showing some Yes influences, the singer being particularly amazing, like Jon Anderson, but not bad at all! There are a couple of other influences on their first album, some hard rock, but the side-long suite is a masterpiece, with good work from all members. Their second album, Supernova, is *very* weak. They jumped straight into poprock/new wave, and so there are only a couple of good pieces, mainly acoustics, thanks to the presence of the very good singer. Apart from these two records, they've released a couple of singles, that is compilated on a new CD, released in Poland, but I don't know the exact name of this compilation. Overall, this is a very good band, and the best from Poland, from the ones I've heard. -- Luis Paulino

The Most Beautiful Day is a fairly typical example of high-tech, synth-based East Euro prog. They mix classical themes with bristling, Wakeman-esque synth leads, Floydian guitar leads, all upon a bed of peerless, metallic synth strings. Supernova is similar, but more song based and commercial. -- Mike Ohman

Crisi (72)

The album is very hard to find, the A side of this LP has an "italian melody" sound, the B side has a sound like Trip or Garybaldi.

Extradition (??), Hush (??)

The Myth Of The Chrysavides (88), Ancient Afternoons (90)

One of the very best new progressive bands. Their second album Ancient Afternoons should go down in history as one of the best symphonic progressive albums ever. Features a guest appearance by ex-Le Orme bassist Aldo Tagliapetra. In fact, along with Nuova Era's Dopo L'Infinito, this may be one of the very best albums to ever come out of the last fifteen years and is an absolute MUST if you like refined and beautifully crafted progressive rock. Their debut and very hard to find The Myth Of The Chrysavides is also worth the find.

One of my absolute favorite bands. I believe they have two releases at present. I only have Ancient Afternoons. This is truly a classic of symphonic progressive. It is a work that plays to many different moods and levels...from intricate classical guitar and flute to a bold fanfare theme. I find it truly hard to compare them to others. However, while they use a classical styling in is not in the heavy-handed way of an ELP. It is a much more subtle influence. Strongly recommended.

Beautiful and sometimes subdued progressive music. Ancient Afternoons features subtle melodies, and like all excellent releases takes a few listens to fully appreciate its depth. Quite an original work.

I have Ancient Afternoon and it's a fine example of current Italian progressive rock. They have taken the best of the lyrical Italian progressive from the 70's (e.g., PFM), brought out the flute and acoustic guitar, added some sax and a modern day touch and have succeeded in creating a rather unique piece of work. The vocals have a soft, dreamy quality to them. There are some fine fluid electric guitar solos throughout the four long tracks. Classical influences are evident, though not in the bombastic ELP sense, but more as influences and subtle shadings evident in the music. A fantastic work that is sure to be classic.

Ezra Winston deserves more from their label than this LP-only release. They are one of the most promising up and coming bands from Italy. If this, their second album, is any indication of where they're heading, I hope their further releases see the light of CD. Another of the new-progressive (notice I didn't say "neo-progressive") Italian bands, they don't approach the artistry and magnificence of their 70's counterparts but they are one of the top three currently recording in that country. Their music has been described by other reviewers as "gorgeous" and "beautiful." I can see where these comments come from. Led by guitars, keyboards and flute, they evoke a magical soundscape. The non-accented English vocals add to the symphonic majesty of this release. The major observation that I can make from listening to this album (and the only caveat I have) is that each musician is quite proficient and plays complicated parts well. However, only one bandmember plays a complicated line at a time. In other words, the individual tracks have complicated parts, yet when taken as a whole, the writing is straight-ahead. For example, while the drummer is playing fills, the other musicians bang chords. Compared to other bands, Ezra Winston is something of a Misplaced Childhood era Marillion / Step Ahead / Men of Lake combo with "Fanfare For the Common Man" styled Emerson keyboards thrown in. Ancient Afternoons will please most prog-heads, neo-fans and otherwise. If you can find it, get it.