I've been listening to this album since I first bought it for 50p, in 1974, from a class mate in school, when I was 14 years old. Sadly, that original 1973 pressing is long gone. I think that I sold it on to another mate around1978/79 for £1. Nowadays, I've got a very nice 1977 vinyl pressing which still sounds fantastic, as well as a 1994 digital remaster on CD and both the 2016 remaster and the 2023 50th Anniversary remaster on vinyl. I've also got another digital version downloaded from Apple Music onto my phone. My 1977 reissue is probably the best sounding version of all the versions that I've got. I've consistently maintained that this is probably the most cohesive and coherent album that any rock/pop artiste has ever created. From start to finish, it's musicality, electronic invention, melody and social relevance remains unmatched. The manner in which it flows, from soft to loud, from slow to fast, from vocal to instrumental, and all else in between, was never achieved before and hasn't been since, by any other artiste. (Several have approached this level of perfection but none have ever actually reached this zenith - e.g. the utterly magnificent The Lamb Lies... by Genesis, CTTE by YES, Aqualung by Jethro Tull and perhaps a few others, despite their brilliance, still remain in the shadow of DSOTM). As well as all that, the time period (early 1970's) just happened to be the perfect time for this album to be unleashed upon the world. If it had been released in the 1990's or in the 2000's etc, it possibly wouldn't have had the same impact on the world. But ironically, because of it's quality and because it was so successful in the 1970's, that has meant that it has endured up to now in 2025. This is an album which, I suspect, will never go out of fashion or sound tired. It will endure and will still be listened to for a long, long time to come.

Sometimes patience repays. Initially the music in this album sounded too much off-the-wall to me, plus the vocals didn't quite captivate me. Yet there was something in it...Every now and then I used to give it a spin, but nothing improved demonstrately in my mind, until one day everything clicked and ever since it is a regular visitor in my CD- player. Nikitas Kissonas, the mastermind behind Methexis, goes deep in the progressive hole, laying out some sinister and unusual tracks. The opener Eradicated Will sets pretty much the stage for the album: clausterphobic surroundings and diversity. The heavy-prog Track the Saviours follows the piano-driven 'ballad' Lines on a Bust (on the piano is his former bandmate Jargon from Verbal Delirium) which has followed the cinematic Those Howling Wolves. Impossible to get bored in here! Nikitas uses quite often his voice to create atmosphere (These Howling Wolves, The Aftermath), but, to my ears, not too successfuly. The tetralogy The Fall of Bliss that bookends the album stretches out and takes us through a beautiful prog journey where we are accompanied by wonderful melodies. When the music permits, the performance of Nikos Miras on the drums adds some truly interesting touches. Having witnessed Jargon sharing the stage with Nikitas Kissonas singing Lines on a Bust I couldn't help but think that had another, more appropriate voice was considered for the album, the result would be spectacularly better, but Nikitas wanted to realize his musical vision almost single-handedly.

I am in a dither about giving it 3 or 4 stars, since 3,5 is closer to my taste. I have no reservation at all in recommending it with all my heart.

One of the best-kept secrets of hard rock is the short-lived but immensely influential American supergroup Captain Beyond, carrying a name penned by Chris Squire upon seeing Larry Reinhardt descend from a tour bus once, as the story goes. The group was composed of ex-alumni of Iron Butterfly as well as the original Deep Purple vocalist Rod Evans, the man appearing on the first three albums, the band's Vanilla Fudge-inspired early psychedelic era. However, Captain Beyond is a completely different musical outlet, and a rather unique one that is, as their music could most suitably be credited as heavy psychedelic prog rock. A lot of great riffs, very technical and unpredictable playing, tons of experimentation even within the shortest of songs, a solid and inventive rhythm section that takes equal amounts of inspiration from jazz and Latin rock, as well as a bombastic, raspy and pitch-perfect performance from Rod Evans, the kind of performance Deep Purple never got from him but could have dreamt of.

The band's self-titled debut album is arranged in a somewhat complex way, consisting of several suites divided into shorter segments, in-between which there is no lag time, something that had become a recognizable trait of many other progressive albums. The playing is straightforward and focused, yet always very hypnotic and impressive, there is a very fine quality to the riffs on here, together with the vocal melodies, which makes this album truly special. The first big piece is formed by the first three tracks on side one, and that would be 'Dancing Madly Backwards', with its gnarly, scruffy hard rock sounds, soon transitioning into a psych-prog carousel of massive guitars. Two excellent shorter tracks complete side one of the album, while side two opens with the 'Thousand Days of Yesterdays' suite, a more experimental labyrinth of influences is on display here, reaching the final and most excessive five-part piece 'I Can't Feel Nothin'', simply a blazing heavy prog sound that blows Rush off the stage. A hidden gem that deserves to be unearthed and appreciated in its entirety. 'Captain Beyond' by Captain Beyond is a unique album that is undoubtedly ahead of its time, anticipating the courageous and daring marriage between hard rock, prog and stoner rock, a record that would go on to influence many important bands of the following decades.

The quintessential Deep Purple? Perhaps yes. 'Machine Head' is an album which is either beloved by most, or completely discredited as an overblown and overhyped recording, but what it most likely is in reality is a very well-curated collection of timeless hard rock anthems, most of which have withstood the test of time and are not only genre-definitive but have become part of the zeitgeist and are justly seen as some of the best compositions of Purple. Not to mention that 'Machine Head' was recorded by the phenomenal Mark II lineup, arguably the most significant incarnation of the legendary British rockers. As for the music on the album itself, 'Machine Head' carries all the signature elements of that classic DP sound, making this and the two preceding albums the most characteristic LPs of the early 1970s.

This one is packed with monstrous riffs from Blackmore, certainly some of his most memorable and effective licks are to be heard on 'Machine Head', while the keyboard master Jon Lord delivers some of his most audacious and ballsy leads as well, the flashy Hammond organ sound on this album could hardly be seen as anything less than monumental and immense, technical and fiery at all times, there is a stiff competition between the two for the most dazzling performance on this album. Then comes the rock-solid rhythm section of Ian Paice and Roger Glover, both of which are in top form here, delivering some of that delightful DP boogie groove, and finally there are the wailing screams of Ian Gillan, whose unrestrained performance binds together the various different elements making up the energetic sounds of 'Machine Head'. All-time rock anthems grace the tracklist of this LP as well as underrated but no less epic tracks like 'Maybe I'm a Leo' and 'Lazy' - this entire record delivers the full spectrum of the Deep Purple ambition and atmosphere as speed, feel and instrumental pyrotechnics come in spades.

In 1975 Led Zeppelin was probably one of greatest band around. Their manager Peter Grant came up with the idea of an own record label called Swan Song. The band immediately agreed with this idea, because this would allow the band to release the songs as single they wanted to or don't release any single and the fights about album covers, they had with Atlantic Records would have been over. Furthermore an own label was a status symbol in the seventies; only a couple of bands like the Rolling Stones had their own labels.Swan Song had a deal with Led Zeppelins former record company Atlantic Records. The label was answerable for the distribution of any Swan Song release (Not only Led Zeppelin, also Detective and Bad Company released a couple of records via Swan Song).

In 1974 the band was ready to record their fifth album, so they went to Hedley Grange in East Hampshire with the mobile studio of Ronnie Lane (was cheaper than the mobile studio of the Stones). Peter Grant also booked a hotel for the band near the old former poor house, because it was too cold to stay in the house during the night. The guitarist Jimmy Page loved the house and slept there. In May 1974 they had recorded enough songs for an album, which would have easily become one of their three greatest records. But the band decided to go back in to the studio to record a couple of tracks, left from older sessions.It was Jimmy Pages idea to record a double album and he thought the time was right, because artist like Bob Dylan,

The Who and Jimi Hendrix had already released double LPs and they were a big selling albums. If you think the songs from the old sessions are fillers, than you're wrong because "Physical Graffiti" is surely one of the best Led Zeppelin albums of their entire career. The album has many different kind of tracks and that's the main reason why its so great.There a couple of riff oriented tracks like "The Rover", which originally was an acoustic piece, "The Wanton Song", the final "Sick Again" and the opener "Custard Pie". As contrast they also have put a handful of acoustic songs on the album like the instrumental "Bron-Yr-Aur" or "Black Country Woman", which was recorded 1972 in the back garden of Mick Jagger's home.Two of my favorite tracks of the album are the soft "Ten Years Gone", which includes some of Jimmy Pages best guitar work and the mystic "In the Light".

The most famous track of the album is of course the epic "Kashmir", which is based on a signature chord progression composed by guitarist Jimmy Page, but this piece of art could also be composed by Bach or Beethoven. Also the drumming by John Bonham on this track is beyond words and Robert Plant said about the song: "This the best Led Zeppelin song of all time, I wish people would keep us in mind due to this song and not due to "Stairway to Heaven"." The band needed three years to bring this song to perfection. . This album is really one of my all time favorite albums and don't matter how often I've heard it, I listen it over and over again, because the music is timeless and never gets old.5.0 my favorite Zep record.

it was a decision by inside out music to put two uber-talented forces of prog nature together,it was a wise decision in my opinion.The mission they stated to capture genuine prog, in terms of adventurousness, rather than 'sounding like prog' seems to have been accomplished, it resembles some of the Flower Kings and Yes work blended. It does feel new and old at the same time. I love when generations meet. I wish Stolt went even more over the top but he serviced it nicely. They lay this down in such detail and extravagance, like a painter using three magnifying glasses, then you step back like, 'whoa' seeing the full form. But that's to a fault as well that it's endless, infinite. It's hard to wrap your mind around it. Maybe Jon Anderson gets tiresome, like doesn't he ever run out of things to sing about? . I would be interested in hearing a second collab, and believe this along with Fly From Here with the Trevor Horn vocals are exciting modern day Yes worthy of their talent.4.0 I feel the potential here.

Innuendo is one of the masterworks by the Queen and to me, the best album since the 1980's The Game. It is marked by a great level of professionalism, some degree of urgency and anxiety well understandable from the context and its era. Despite only two years after the "Miracle", the band penned enough material to fill 54 minutes. Mercury had hard time recording but mastered it exceptionally. Compositions are very solid, occasionally adventurous ("Innuendo", "All god's people" and "Bijou"); there's one filler only ("Delilah"). Guitar is more dominant than ever since Queen started using synthesizer. May really tries hard to fill space with powerful riffing or melodic soloing. Both May and Taylor have updated their sound to the late 80's hard rock wrapper with the 70's rock in the core. Taylor provides versatile drumming from the fast "Ride the wild wind" to the masterful "Innuendo" with effective fills.

The title track goes back to the indulgent mid 70's days of Bohemian Rhapsody it only is heavier and more dramatic with ominous vocals and riffing. The classical guitar by Howe brings temporarily relief from the doom but then May repeats the solo on his guitar in a heavy metal atmosphere. The transition from the heavy/speed metal solo to the ultra heavy hard rock is fantastic mainly thanks to the Taylor's inventive slow down.

"I'm going slightly mad" offers the trademark vocal harmony in the verse section. Noteworthy is the deliberately sloppy "wow" guitar solo with great finishing melody.

"Headlong" is the second hard-rock contribution and the first traditional one. It retains the groovy rock'n'roll feeling with a typical Mayesque rolling solo.

"I can't live without you" is a surprising title for another hard-rock song or let's say a rock song with a heavy riff. Drumming and riffing accentuate the heaviness. To some extent, the spirit, eccentricity and nod to the late 80's hard-rock reminds me of "Walk this way".

"Don't try so hard" is a super-emotional ballad with inspirational lyrics, Mercury reaching the maximum height with his effective vocals and instrumental intermezzo a bit reminiscent of "Who wants to live forever". "Ride the wild wind" has a peculiar speed rhythm, a good 70's Moog-like motive and is Taylor's baby.

Then we come to the gospel inspired "All god's people" which isn't a masterpiece as such but proves how versatile could Queen get. The composition starts abruptly at full speed with a powerful vocal and indulgent guitar which, in this song, gets a bit too noisy. We also get to hear some blues and boogie moments to come back to the gospel part. The song doesn't have a fix structure and repetitions which increase its value.

The best known ballad on this album "These are the days of our lives" may be a philosophical piece but its melodic and poignant solo isn't.

The filler "Delilah" could be considered silly and yet it demonstrates Mercury's strength in such a situation. Note the creative and playful staccato solo on the guitar.

"Hitman" is a derivative but last hard rock number on the album. Nowhere else has May so much space for his guitar which he uses amply until the steam runs out at the end.

"Bijou" is May's masterpiece on subdued colourful guitar - you ask yourself is the guitar or the vocals feel more heart-broken. This is a tranquil moment before the eruption on the final "The show must go on". There are many superlatives to this song - brilliant songwriting, composition development, sense of drama. May provides one of his trademark solo. Mercury proves why even at this age, he was one of the best singers in rock. The echo ending in the song is ingenious and you feel both moved and energized to carry on the message and legacy of Queen.

The Norwegian band's first album since their 2013 debut, Lighthouse, sees the quartet amidst the departure of founding guitarist Ole Michael Bjørndahl. Here OMB plays on two songs while new and future stable mate (and former PYMLICO and future CALIGONAUT guitarist) Stephan Hvinden settles into his new role. (OMB, collaborator with PYMLICO, ARIBAG, BJØRN RIIS and CALIGONAUT will go on to work with all of the above except OAK.)

1. "We, the Drowned" (5:24) Nice opener. That voice of lead singer Simen Valldal Johannessen is so intriguing! (8.875/10)

2. "Claire de Lune" (7:16) NOT the Debussey version! I feel, hear absolutely no connection between this and the iconic classical piece. (13.125/15)

3. "False Memory Archive" (4:47) a bit of a boring, one-dimensional let down--especially for the album's title song! (8.75/10)

4. "Lost Causes" (8:30) Simen here starting out with a LEONARD COHEN-like deep singing voice to talk-sing his opening lyrics. (17.5/20)

5. "Intermezzo" (1:42) the real "Claire de Lune"! How funny! But then it's "damaged" or intruded upon by electro-static buzzing sounds before being totally immersed and finally quashed by the buzzing. (4.5/5)

6. "The Lights" (10:34) An unusual and creative song design--which is good--explores a darker, almost disturbing mood. The synth and sound effects work on this is brilliant--and the droning play of other instruments (bass, guitar, sax, vocal) really helps to drive home that mentally-desturbed/deranged effect. (17.875/20)

7. "These Are the Stars We're Aiming For" (4:19) traipsing into prog metal territory, as if just testing the waters but deciding to not commit fully, this is another interesting song (with banjo!) (8.875/10)

8. "Transparent Eyes" (4:59) a nice sound palette provides the setting for one of Simen's more sedate vocal performances. Nice jazzy-pop song. I like the added aural effects and pretty jazz-pop piano foundation (and solo work at the end). (8.875/10)

9. "Psalm 51" (7:25) soft-picked acoustic guitar and droning radio samples in the low end precede the piano foundation and entry of Simen's delicate, touchingly tender vocal. Though not quite as proggy--or jazzy--I find myself fully engaged and enjoying this song very much. The instrumental buildup in the fourth minute is awesome and enticing, but then there is a sudden flip of a switch and we're down to a beautiful two-chord PINK FLOYD-like vamp over/within which volume-pedal-controlled guitar solos for a bit before being usurped by the sound of television voices. But the end of the sixth minute sees the return of the lead guitar--playing some awesome tremolo notes--while full band (including rock drums) and saxophone join in to take the song to its finish. Cool song--probably my favorite on the album. (13.75/15)

Total Time 54:56

I'm fascinated by the unusual/eccentric Mark Hollis/Finnish band Khatsturjan-like tone/timbre of lead vocalist Simen Valldal Johannessen. While I enjoy the music and creative song constructions on this album, I am not ready to climb on the Oak bandwagon. But, I will be waiting to check out and see if the band grows when their next release comes out.

B-/3.5 stars; a collection of very creative, wonderfully-atmospheric songs that heralds tremendous potential. Another Norwegian band to watch!

By the time The Beatles had finished recording Let It Be in early 1969, there had been many conflicts in the band, such as George Harrison's lack of input on albums and John Lennon's very close relationship with activist Yoko Ono. With this tension surrounding the group, they knew for sure that their release in the fall of 1969, Abbey Road, would be the last recordings they would make together. This time (unlike on Let It Be, which he refused to produce due to contract problems), their producer for every album since 1963's Please Please Me George Martin took part in the recordings' production and helped ease the mood in the studio. Now focused on their album ahead, The Beatles were able to write 16 brand new tracks, the two of them from Harrison being his best with the group.

Abbey Road, released September 26, 1969, was released a few months before the band would announce their break- up. It's production is among the smoothest ever in rock history, with the final medley by Lennon and McCartney segueing together beautifully. The album is surprisingly upbeat, considering the extreme pressure put on The Beatles at the time. Tracks such as Ringo Starr's "Octopus's Garden", McCartney's silly personality at work in "Maxwell's Silver Hammer", and Harrison's great, synthesized "Here Comes the Sun" each set a playful, relaxed mood. The band also shows their dark side with songs like Lennon's bluesy "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" (whose brooding, winding end is a thing of sheer amazement) and the melodic, almost sad "Because" that has a revolutionary melody led by a Moog synthesizer, before the instrument had become popular. The two huge hits on the album, Lennon's other blues piece "Come Together" (which has and Harrison's greatest song he would ever pen "Something" each are defining moments in the band's reign as the greatest rock band of the 20th century. But the best part of the album is the medley; an 8-part set of corresponding songs that makes Abbey Road Abbey Road. Taking up most of Side 2, it consists of mostly McCartney numbers, like "You Never Give Me Your Money", "Mean Mr. Mustard" and the wonderful lullaby "Golden Slumbers", but what makes the medley is the Lennon written "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" and the memorable Lennon-McCartney composed "Carry That Weight" and "The End", a track that would mark their end with possibly their most famous lyric "And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make."5.0 top five albums of all time.

Increasingly melodic and distancing themselves from the harsh sonorities of rough and raw rock, with Ken Hensley playing an almost exclusive role in the composition of the songs, Uriah Heep deepened the tendency to make their approach more accessible with the release of "Wonderworld" (1974), their seventh album.

After a promising start with Hensley's moog and David Byron's plethoric voice in the moving "Wonderworld", the album is a hard rock of common places, lacking in explosiveness and fantasy, even though at least some doses of agility and a certain aggressiveness appear in Mick Box's guitar riffs in "Suicidal Man", in the rushing rhythm of "So Tired" and the boogie joy of "Something or Nothing", but not in the bland "The Shadow and the Wind" and Byron's excessive histrionics, the dreary "We Got We", and least of all in the inoffensive and mellow orchestrated ballad "The Easy Road".

The final section raises the level with the bluesy half-time of "I Won't Mind" and the guitar display of the always diligent Mick Box accompanied by the great bass of Gary Thain, and with the interesting approach to space rock in the conclusive "Dreams", surely among the best moments of the album.

Once "Wonderworld" was finished and showing signs of exhaustion due to the frenetic rhythm of releases and tours, the most stable of the Uriah Heep line-up (four albums in a row with the same musicians), began to dismember with the dismissal of Thain (who unfortunately died a year later from a heroin overdose), replaced by John Wetton (King Crimson/Asia, etc.) for the two subsequent albums.

3 stars