JAZZ ROCK/FUSION

Dans ma discothèque !

Ce Groupe de jazz rock de Metz de la fin des années 70 jusqu'au milieu des 80, dans la mouvance Cobham, Eleventh House avec quelques petits clins d'oeil à Magma se déplaçait dans un vieil autocar Saviem Chausson SC1 qui affichait dans sa baie de toit le nom du groupe "Catastrophe" en lieu de destination. Imaginez à l'époque la perplexité des gens au passage du vieux bus tonitruant. Un hommage lui est rendu d'ailleurs en ouverture du premier morceau ou on l'entend klaxonner puis vrombir, prêt à dévorer la "Longue distance". Tout l'album est développé autour de leitmotivs très funky scandés par les riffs de saxo . La basse est enregistrée très en avant , très musicale et virtuose elle impulse une énergie incroyable à l'ensemble. des phrasés à consonnances afrocubaines sont semés ici ou la par la guitare qui dispense ces rayons de lumière dans un style qui rappelle parfois Larry Coryell en beaucoup plus sobre ( ce qui est plutôt une qualité) , dans " Noche de Marcha" notamment ou dans "Rouge mer outre vert". Le début de "pas si sérieux" est empreint d'une ambiance à la Coltrane avant de replonger dans le feu du funk. J'apprécie le jeu fluide et léger du batteur, dommage qu'il fasse parfois les frais d'un enregistrement de qualité bien moyenne qui masque un peu les détails de son jeu. Dans le titre éponyme "high dynamic" au rythme hypnotique, après une montée en tension crescendo le Saxo se lâche dans des circonvolutions free auxquelles succède un chorus de guitare effréné. Un disque chaleureux qui porte bien son nom et que j'écoute aujourd'hui encore avec un plaisir intact, contrairement à des groupes du genre même très connus à l'époque comme "Uzeb" pour ne citer que lui, dont le son typé années 80 et une virtuosité froide ont très mal vieilli. Le groupe a continué après la sortie de cet album mais en trio, suite au départ du saxophoniste qui ne fût pas remplacé. Il travaillait sur de nouvelles compositions d'un très bon niveau également, poursuivant ses tournées. Malheureusement ce disque demeurera à la fois le premier et l'ultime de leur carrière. Mais quelque part, un album comme ça peut remplir toute la vie de ses créateurs et une partie de celle de ceux qui l'ont écouté ou l'écoutent encore.

This album was released in 1969 and it has no title, but it is commonly referred to as the "Fur" album. Simply because the first word at the top of the album cover is "Fur", which is German for "For", and that is followed with a long list of names that the album is dedicated to. And no band name either, as they just went with the names of the four musicians. And who are these musicians you ask. Well, Wolfgang Dauner is the leader here, composing all but one track. He plays keyboards mostly but adds a little trombone and violin. His buddy Eberhard Weber is here on bass and cello. Both would be a part of ET CETERA, a band who released their debut in 1971.

And the drummer here is Fred Braceful who was also part of ET CETETRA, and later he would also be in EX MAGMA. The unknown for me was Jurgen Karg also playing bass. In fact on one track both he and Weber play bass. What fascinates me is that the only track on here that Dauner didn't compose was that third song called "Karg", which of course was a Karg composition. Fascinating because it's the only electronic piece on here. And Karg would drop his bass not long after this 1969 recording to focus on electronics, and becoming quite influential with his only solo release in 1978.

These four guys had already played together on Dauner's 1967 solo album called "Free Action" which was a Free Jazz record. It's also interesting to me that half of this band which included Braceful and Weber, would make an album in 1971 called "The Call". Karg and Dauner were replaced by two keyboardists, not needing two bass players this time. Again they went with their names as the band name, and we get Mal Waldron, a legendary electric piano player in the Jazz world leading the way. And speaking of legendary how about Jimmy Jackson from Pennsylvania on organ. And this is a straight-up jazz fusion album I gave 4.5 stars to. An incredible album! Jimmy has played in bands like AMON DUUL II, EMBRYO, PASSPORT and more.

Now I have to say that "Fur" is a tough one for me. Very experimental with lots of improvisation going on. It's like an extension of Dauner's 1967 record which was Free Jazz, and with a dedicated sax and clarinet player. It's interesting that that album has two drummers playing on it. Besides Braceful we get the future GURU GURU drummer Mani Neumeier doing his thing. And also Jean-Luc Ponty on violin! All playing Free jazz. Anyway, back to this 1969 album which is not for the faint of heart. Not much in the way of melody or even structure here. This is a very experimental album that one would probably want to keep in their Avant section. I wish "The Call" was on this site. They added "Fur" to Weber's discography thankfully.

I really dig this album. With the exception of the second song, "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum" I consider each one of these songs to be supreme examples of the sublime, melodic jazz that bridged jazz's Kind of Blue and My Favorite Things era with the melodic beauty of albums like Bill Evans' Conversations with Myself and Vince Guaradli's A Charlie Brown Christmas (all for being very important, seminal albums for me). Also, I don't really know why, but I've never heard MIles Davis' trumpet as an engaging sound-maker, but I've always had an easy and very positive connection with the playing of Freddie Hubbard. Though I've had a lifelong love-hate relationship with Ron Carter's styles of bass playing, I've always respected it. Same for Herbie: his journey deep into the realms of electronic sounds and effects were never as engaging or alluring for me as his exquisite piano playing. And Elvin Jones is among the very best to every sit behind a kit. The most surprising thing about this album is how much I love the compositions: especially Wayne's amazing "touch" with creating long, drawn-out, BEAUTIFUL melodies. (Like Miles' trumpet play, Wayne's sax play within the Weather Report discography have never impressed or engaged me.) This combo makes for such a great unit, it's no wonder that three-fifths of them transferred so easily (so telepathically) into Miles' "Second Great Quintet" (right after the recording of this album!)

While this might not be deserving of a five star rating for its contributions to progressive rock music, it is undeniably a masterpiece of incredible music.

Review Nº 841

The Argentinian prog rock band Alas was founded in 1975 when the trumpeter Gustavo Moretto, after the end of his previous band Alma Y Vida, returned to his keyboard skills and teamed up with bassist Alex Zucker and drummer Carlos Riganti. The Argentinian band combined elements of the progressive rock like Emerson, Lake & Palmer with fusion along the lines of Return To Forever. There are also tinges of Argentinian music, especially Astor Piazzolla. They released three albums, a self-titled debut in 1976, "Pinta Tu Aldea", which was recorded in 1977 but not released until 1983 plus a reunion album called "Mímame Bandoneón" in 2003. Their untitled debut album, which is the object of this review, combined Emerson Lake & Palmer influenced keyboard bombastic with jazz rock and Argentinian influences.

So, "Alas" is the eponymous debut studio album of Alas and that was released in 1976. The line up on the album is Gustavo Moretto (vocals, keyboards, synthesizers, flute and trumpet), Alex Zucker (bass guitar) and Carlos Riganti (drums and percussion).

"Alas" has only two tracks, two extended suites, one for each side on the vinyl version. The first track "Buenos Aires Solo Es Piedra" is divided in six parts: "Tango", "Sueño", "Recuerdo", "Trompetango", "Tanguito" and "Soldó". This opening track is a hymn to Buenos Aires. The key role is played by powerful fusion with an emphasis on keyboards, performed with the highest degree of virtuosity with many transitions, a combination of Hammond organ sound with the electric piano and Moog synthesizer, a suggestive fascination of Alas with the early sound of Emerson, Lake & Palmer. This is an avant-garde psychedelic track with generous polyphonic elements of a symphonic rock plan with changeable dynamics. Also surprisingly are the light trumpet solos by Moretto and the chaotic percussion and keyboard cavalcade of chords, at the end. An Emerson keyboard opens "Tango", which offers us a very progressive instrumental theme, which leads to "Sueño", a beautiful song where the voice is accompanied by the electric piano. The most minimalist side of the band arrives with "Recuerdo", which serves as a parenthesis until "Trumpetango", a dynamic part, with the keyboards as protagonists, reminding us of both, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Return To Forever. The bass is very present, and at the end we can enjoy a beautiful trumpet solo. With an air of tango, "Tanguito" enters. The electric piano reminds me of Emerson or Dave Stewart. With the Hammond organ comes "Soldó", the last part of this fantastic piece.

The second track "La Muerte Contó El Dinero" is divided in seven parts: "Vidala", "Smog", "Galope", "Mal-ambo", "Vidala Again", "Amanecer ? Tormenta" and "Final". We can say that the second suite has a great choral introduction. The technical synth is played in a manner similar to Emerson with the Moog and Zucker's jazz guitar. The performance of the ARP 2600 synthesizer, the prolonged break of the Hammond organ, the rhythm section that doesn't slow down for a long time, the astral sonic effects, the hot drum brakes of Riganti and some other nuances, give to it an extensive concept mosaic, embodied with due skill and talent. It begins with "Vidala", the most beautiful vocal part on the album, wich has a wonderful electric piano accompaniment. The next three parts of the suite, "Smog", "Gallop" and "Mal-ambo", which will delight lovers of the 70's prog, are based on keyboards and jazz rock with lots of changes of rhythm, solos from Moog, Hammond organ and synthesizer. After the verse of "Vidala", the atmosphere is filled with sounds of nature, heavenly keyboards and flute. It's on "Amanecer" with the input of bass and drums that becomes "Storm". The drum solo takes us to the great "Final", with all musicians in their full power emulating again Emerson, Lake & Palmer.

"Alas" has also two small bonus tracks. They were recorded by the members of Alas a year before the main release. "Aire" is a light hearted prog fusion with keyboard flamboyant passages and a perky mood. "Rincón, Mi Viejo Rincón" is in the complete opposite of the previous track. Here we are dealing with a sensual ballad that develops smoothly, without pedalling and kinks. It has a moderate portion of jazz, little symphonic, with a melancholic Moretto's singing.

Conclusion: Alas is an historical band, one of the best artistic projects that Argentine rock has produced. The debut album of Alas is admired by Piazzolla and by all connoisseurs of the good music around the world. This is another band of the 70's, another trio with just keyboards, bass and drums (plus occasional guitars) working in a well known style. So, the comparison with The Nice, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Triumvirat and Le Orme, is obvious. However, Alas is more committed to the playful, complex part of the Emerson, Lake & Plamer oeuvre, which means the mainly instrumental workouts on the organ and lead synthesizer classical gesture in many thematic variations and reprises. There's singing here and there, but little and inconspicuously. Besides, Alas brings to the style a jazzy bent, beyond also an American Latin touch here and there, setting them apart from the bands mentioned. So, this is a great addition to any prog lover.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

This band began as a duo of drums and bass impressing all who saw them play live. They would add a guitarist before the fortunate turn of events when Maria Archer and Dieter Miekautsch, freshly returned from a trip to Africa were looking for a band to play in. Some "cred" here with these two as Maria sang briefly in both EMBRYO and MISSUS BEASTLY. While Dieter was previously the keyboardist for both bands, and that during their classic periods. So as a five piece they go into the studio and record this album in Switzerland at Sunrise studios over seven days in late June of 1977.

All things considered I was so looking forward to hearing this once I got my hands on it. I knew it was obscure being issued only once on cd in 2001, but I had hoped it would be Jazz/Kraut in that MISSUS BEASTLY style. Nope! More like EMBRYO's World music style with a Jazz base. But the key is Maria's vocals. Great singer but I don't want to hear a soul singer from Africa on what I was hoping was a Krautrock record. It just doesn't sound right to my ears, and I couldn't get past it, hence the 3 star rating.

Some great pictures in the liner notes and info, but as far as the music goes there was really only one track I could connect with and that was "Mark Spitz". A name I remember well from the Olympics back in the day. It's the bass and flute that I really dig on that one. We get ten tracks worth 40 minutes by the way.

I have followed these guys from Chicago for years, their albums have never disappointed me, on the contrary they are a guarantee that I will face a great musical adventure every time they release a new album. Their sound mixes jazz metals with strings that seem to come from Chamber-Prog and guitar-bass-drum bases that seem to come from Math Rock.

Their structures abound in odd time signatures, elegant syncopations and in general capture the listener's attention with the great variety of elements that enter and leave their songs.

If you don't know them, give these guys a chance who are really consolidating one of the most solid discographies in recent years in the avant-prog scene. Guaranteed!!

How wonderful that this Armenian continues his ambitious exploration project that surgically fuses the essence of jazz, math rock, avant-prog and music from his place of origin to give rise to works that brim with a unique sound that is already a trademark recorded by this virtuoso pianist who delights us in 2024 with this bird with a thousand voices. Long live musicians like the great Tigran Hamasyan.

The way in which he weaves the base structures of his compositions through intricate piano lines that become sonically entangled with an exquisite selection of instruments is definitely amazing from a musical but also mathematical point of view, because despite the complexity, Tigran manages to amalgamate everything in a way that is pleasant and friendly to the ear without needing to be an expert in these progressive genres.

However, and it must be said: it is not at the level of his best works, although we can trust that this bird is a period of rest or transition that will allow us to soon listen to another masterpiece of the Armenian genius.

The great 60's quintet released their second brilliant album. On the surface, it's still an acoustic jazz rooted in post- bop but each member steps out of their comfort zone to create a then futuristic jazz album. "Orbits" has a conventional rhythm section with Miles and Shorter providing capturing solos but it is Hancock who blows me away by his choice of solo notes. "Circle" is a slow but I feel a positive tension in the music in the chord structure. "Footprints" is one of this quintet flagship pieces with its free flow and Afro-fusion (sounds to me) rhythmic inspiration. Williams is doing a great job with many inspiring alterations and Shorter shows why he was the most important composer of the quintet. "Dolores" is a jazz-attack upbeat number. Hancock and Williams, in particular shine through. "Freedom jazz dance" has an inventive foot jazz drumming (busy too) with Miles providing lyrical solo and dueling with Shorter. If you considered the music content to be too non-conventional, then you return to the traditional post-bop structure on the last track, "Gingerbread boy". Excellent album by excellent musicians and players. Intelligent and label-defying piece of jazz.

Sloche was a jazz fusion band that made a mere two albums, with both of them being highly regarded by many on the progarchives. This, combined with the Wikipedia page naming it one of the best progressive rock albums from Quebec, got me interested in what magic this band had in their music that made it so highly regarded. And even though it wasn't as good as people said, it was still an exceptionally strong album. For the personal of this album, it includes Caroll Bérard on all guitar, Réjean Yacola on most of the keyboards, Martin Murray on the rest of the keyboards and saxophone, Pierre Hébert on bass, and Gilles Chiasson on drums. I specifically enjoyed Réjean's work on keys and especially piano on the second track.  

The album opens with an electronic soundscape in my personal favorite song on the album, C'pas fin du monde. This passage of the evoked into an incredibly progressive form of funk, of course with the extra touch of jazz. Right from the start, you can tell the musicians are playfully skilled, being able to stay calm throughout some incredibly difficult structures to play. There are very few lyrics, with there being only one phrase in the entire song that they repeat for around one minute. The next song, Le karême d'Eros, is the most progressive sounding on the album. It opens with a nearly four minute classical piano performance, and as I mentioned before, I was incredibly impressed by the talent Réjean had in the beginning. When the rest of the band comes in to play, I must admit that I am not a big fan of their soft vocal style. The instrumental parts still make this song great, and the final riff of this song for the last two minutes is just incredible. Overall, side one is great, with plenty of progressive and jazzy music that will make any listener of the two happy.  

Side two opens with the title track, which itself opens with another pleasing riff alongside the keyboards. This song has some phenomenal musicianship with a perfect balance between flashy talent on each of the members respective instruments and progressive virtuosity to keep the listener engaged. It unfortunately doesn't have enough energy for me to praise the song at a high level, simply being another great addition to this album. Algébrique is the weakest song on the album, in my opinion. This song has some great instrumental bits (which I'll get to soon), but the first half is lacking, to say the least. The opening riff is cool, but the weird, funky vocals and playing just don't sit well with me. I can handle funk music, but it can get a little bland at points, this song being a good example. The second half of the song, on the other hand, is filled with instrumental excellence, with a perfect balance between clean progressive structures and avant-garde experimentation, all the while having a strong fusion sound woven into the music. Potage aux herbes douteuses is the last song on the album, with it being the most polarizing song on the album. It opens with this 80s disco sounding passage, which is also influenced by funk, as with most of the album. I am not a big fan of this beginning, but it gets better later. I do like this cool illusion the band makes by creating this sequence within the song that sounds like it's 5/4, when in reality it's 4/4. From here on out, it's just progressive and jazz music that sounds not exactly like an improvisation but sounds like something the band would invent during a jam session in the studio.  

In conclusion, J'un Oiel was generally a strong album and great debut. It incorporates funk, jazz, progressive rock, and experimental music in ways only the great Miles Davis had come close to. They built their unique sound, which stands today as one of the innovative projects from Canada, but to me, I feel it's more deserving of a 4/5 rather than a 5/5. My reasoning is that while this album does push the boundaries, it is far from the best fusion album, and for me personally, it took a while for me to actually appreciate and enjoy this album.

Muck Groh was the guitarist for IHRE KINDER one of the early Krautrock bands, releasing their debut in 1969. He would go on to form AERA in the seventies, before recording this lone solo album in 1979. And the third band worth mentioning is GROTESK who released their debut in 1980 the year after "Mucke[%*!#]". And that band like this solo album features plenty of AERA members. Muck has always been involved with bands singing in German and that continues here with his solo record. Eva Gruber sings on a couple of tracks and to be honest I'm not fan. And the male vocals on the opener also disappoint, in fact three of the first four songs do little for me.

I love that Alto Pappert is playing sax on here. He was on KRAAN's first four studio albums and is a legend. He brings a jazzy vibe for sure, plus there's another sax player on here, Klaus Kreuzeder from AERA and GOTESK. I'm glad this is mostly instrumental but it doesn't all work. That eighth track with the very long title is the one song I like from start to finish. And I appreciate the violin on that one. Some guest bongos too. I'm surprised to see Groh playing harmonium on "Liebeslied" and organ on "Psychochinese Im Stanzwerk".

Most seem to like this record more than I do. As far as Groh related albums go, I'll stick with AERA's "Hand Und Fuss" and GROTESK's "2" record. I can't go higher than 3 stars here.