MIND VOLUME 1

I see a lot of reviewers here referring to this album as chamber rock, and I guess I'd agree with that definition - but dial it back a bit, don't jump to the conclusion that this is the sort of horror- influenced RIOish chamber rock practised by the likes of Univers Zero, Present and Art Zoyd. Instead, Isildurs Bane approach the idea of adapting the principles of chamber music to a rock context from the perspective of a symphonic prog band, yielding an atmosphere of intricate beauty as opposed to the jagged horrors of the other bands I've cited - the most avant touch here is the occasional use of Zappaesque percussion.

By and large this is an all-instrumental affair, aside from Holistic Medicine, in which the narration describes a complete chess match, the action of which is reflected in the music (much as on Gryphon's Red Queen to Gryphon Three), and which is probably my favourite track. But there's plenty to enjoy here with these epic, sweeping compositions, and on the whole this is the album where things really came together for Isildurs Bane. I'm inclined to try and pick up a few more pieces of the extended Mind series to see if they measure up to this one.