LADY LAKE

GNIDROLOG were a British Prog-Rock band with a sound that is somewhat hard to define, so they've inevitably found themselves in the Eclectic Prog section of Prog Archives. The band were most notable for not including a keyboard player in their line-up. So, how did they come up with that bizarre bandname? Well, a little bird called Google tells me that they mixed together the letters of the band members names (a bit like Scrabble) and arranged them to form the name Gnidrolog, which just happens to sound like a fantasy world inhabited by goblins, elves and trolls. Their first album, the bizarrely-named "In Spite of Harry's Toenail" (1972) passed by vitually unnoticed at the time of its release and this album "Lady Lake" (1972) didn't fare much better either. The "Lady Lake" album with its distinctive album cover, is by far the better-known of the two albums and it's now gained something of a cult following with the advent of the Internet. The band broke up shortly after the release of "Lady Lake", due to disappointing sales, but they made a comeback with a third album "Gnosis" 27 years later in 1999. A remastered CD version of "Lady Lake" was released in 2012 with a bonus track added to the original six songs on the album. So, without further ado, let's step into the fantasy world of Gnidrolog.

We begin with the anti-war song, "I Could Never Be a Soldier", the longest song on the album at over 11 minutes long. It's a proggy folky number, sounding like a cross between Van Der Graaf Generator and Jethro Tull, so if you like those two bands, then you'll probably like this band too. In fact, the singer sounds remarkably like Peter Hammill of VDGG and there's an accomplished flautist very much in the mould of Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull. The horn section, particularly the tenor sax, also reminds one of VDGG, so any fans of Van Der Graaf Generator will feel right at home with this offbeat album. Sailing on now with "Ship", another song with the sound of the tenor sax very much at the forefront. This uplifting and upbeat 7-minute-long piece of music is a real highlight of the album. This is exuberant and exhilarating music, which will transport you back in time to those heady and wonderfully proggy days of the early 1970's. We come to the end of Side One now with a short and sweet gentle ballad, "A Dog with No Collar", a sad and maudlin acoustic number, which might bring a tear to the eye, but don't get too sentimental, because we still have Side Two to come yet.

Side Two beckons us with the 9-minute-long title track "Lady Lake", which, dare I say it, does sound slightly discordant in places, but that shouldn't put off fans of Van Der Graaf Generator, as this is precisely the kind of experimental and Jazzy rock we've become accustomed to hearing over the years from VDGG. Yes, this track is definitely in VDGG territory, so you'll know pretty much what to expect here. You might even hear elements of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" in this song if you listen VERY carefully. We're in romantic balladeer mode for the next song, "Same Dreams", a beautiful piano piece with these emotionally- wrought and heartfelt lyrics:- "We share the same dreams, the same hopes, the same cigarettes. They said we had a lot of growing up to do, Well I've done some without you, But I wish that you could have been here, And I wish that you could have been here, Yes I wish that you could have been here too." ..... Yes, it's an emotionally appealing good old-fashioned love song where the singer unashamedly pours his heart out to the listener in time-honoured tradition. You can put the hankie away now though, because the final song "Social Embarrassment" is a raucous and rambunctious uptempo number. The song barrels along at full-pelt with the horn section in full flow for six and a half minutes of lively and energetic, bright and breezy Jazz-Rock. A suitably uplifting finale to a superb album.

A Prog-Rock album with elements of Jazz and Folk which should appeal equally to fans of Van Der Graaf Generator and Jethro Tull. If you've listened to all of your VDGG albums over and over again and you want something in a similar style, but at the same time, a little bit different, then this could be just the album you're looking for. It *almost* sounds like a missing VDGG album from the classic early 1970's era. "Lady Lake" is a worthy addition to the progosphere, so dive in and give this memorable and long-lost album treasure a listen.