Demonoid

You should definitely give Algarnas Tradgard a listen Jack although I find that their release drags on a bit at times, but that shouldn't deter anyone . It does feel kind of weird at first, but it's definitely a grower. Great review too, although I tend to find that generally, you're a bit lenient when it comes to album ratings.

Anteater

Meh; all that means is I have to revamp my grading scale some, which I'll go ahead and try out on this upcoming review.

1: Excrement
2: Trash, but there is the potential of promise in an area or two.
3: Average
4: One or two great tracks, but otherwise unexceptional.
5: Very good. Anything at this grade or higher is worthy of recommendation.
6: Classic status/exceptional. Not quite flawless, but milestones nevertheless.
7: Perfection. Transcends the genre to become something of potential universal meaning.

I'll be re-evaluating all my past reviews with this scale, and will also be posting this back on my first post.

Anyway....all that aside, I've got an album today that gives Leaf Hound's Growers of Mushroom a run for its money. Sorry Comus!! xD


T2 was a hard-rock band trio with a remarkable, if rather brief, resume to go with before the recording of their one and only record It'll All Work Out In Boomland back in 1970. Keith Cross, only 17 years old and fresh out of playing at the Isle of Wight Festival with Hendrix himself, had proven that despite his young age that he was a cunning wizard with the guitar, and together with bandmates vocalist Peter Dunton and bassist Bernard Jinks managed to land a recording session with the influential Decca Records (who, interestingly enough, own the recording studios where Wishbone Ash did most of their studio work).

The result of Keith Cross's efforts, an almagation of Cream, Hendrix and the sort of looseness you'd expect from some jazz outfit of the era, is an album that rings powerful and full of weight while still being remarkable in it's seamless ability to shift tone on a dime into acoustic psychedelia. Each track turns in on themselves a number of times, possessing the rare quality of smooth transition from one movement to the next. Take the 21 minute side-long 'Morning' for instance; it rises from an acousting dream over the first few minutes, gradually picking up the pace as the guitar's wailing shreds nicely, slows, shreds. But then, suddenly around the 10 minute mark, the drums and guitar have switched roles, with fantastic rythyms a'la Santana at the forefront of your mind while the guitar and bass morph spacily in the background. It's awesome!

An album like Boomland is interesting for several reasons. It approaches things more experimentally at times than the usual hard rock album of the late 60's, but never forgets its roots while pursuing these tendencies. It remains fun, heavy and head-banging even with longer than 4-minute songs and a 21-minute suite. T2 were a band, that even if it was only for one album, knew exactly what they were doing and what they wanted to do; they wanted to take the kind of rock n' roll Cream, Hendrix and the rest had pioneered and make it a bit more interesting.

Whether or not they succeeded, Keith Cross and company, is up to those who hear this album to decide. Could this have been among the most promising debuts of all time or a one-hit wonder that deserves it status in obscurity?

Either way, the awesomeness of Boomland is indisputable in my book, and hence I recommend it to lovers of all that is hard and rock in the years when it was done best. Thumbs up!

On a final note, here is Circles, the first track, for the curious on YouTube. Enjoy!

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Comus

Great album this, gets regular rotation on my playlist. Never decided to review it since I couldn't tackle the review properly. And because it pisses me off so much that T2 is some random *** techno fail.

Great review though.

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Anteater

"Acquiring the taste is the second phase of sensory pleasure. If you've gorged yourself on our first album, then relish the finer flavours (we hope) of this, our second offering. It is our goal to expand the frontiers of contemporary music at the risk of being very unpopular. We have recorded each composition with the one thought - that it should be unique, adventurous and fascinating. It has taken every shred of our combined musical and technical knowledge to achieve this. From the outset we have abandoned all preconceived thoughts on blatant commercialism. Instead we hope to give you something far more substantial and fulfilling. All you need to do is sit back, and acquire the taste."



And so we begin with a pretentious proclamation and a giant tongue salivating, along with the music industry's ginormous ass sticking up towards the tongue. The year is 1971, a year often overlooked by progheads (bar Yes's Fragile) in favor of the the next few when many staples in the genre would hit shelves everywhere. Weirded out yet? Well don't be; Gentle Giant's sophomore record, Acquiring The Taste, just happens to be what the title infers...a flavour that may freak you out at first lick, but with time grows over you like moss. Strange, angry in a Bartok way, and sometimes even quirky in its medievel styling blues/jazz-rock layerings, this is high-grade stuff even when compared with the works of other bands in the same ballpark, though it is somewhat inaccessible. Still, like Demi Moore, this is the kind of stuff that gets better with...well, more listening!

In regards to the tracklist itself; Gentle Giant's musical approach has oftentime thematically borrowed ideas from French satirist Francois Rabelais, such as the character Pantagruel for "Pantagruel's Nativity", and their appreciation for that man's views shows in the music itself. The opening section is particularly awesome, as the keyboards and Moog actually sound like guitar here. You also have several meditations on melancholia and the night here in the tracks "Edge of Twlight" and "Black Cat", both wonderful; the former is thoughtful, the latter something like R&B crossed with chamber music. The title track is another high point; although real short, it manages to milk freaky keyboaring for all its worth; it'd be perfect for some Atari game soundtrack back in the arcade days. And this is only the beginning!

Overall, I am of the opnion that this is a particularly striking album and recommended to people who are looking for something less than conventional from a band already quite well known for being offbeat. Like it or not, at least you'll be impressed, if not surprised.



Pantagruel's Nativity (Opening track)

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