Quicksand - "Home is Where I Belong" (Dawn 1973)

This Welsh band released their album of song-based progressive rock in 1973, only to disappear quickly right after its release (f**king surprise considering they were an obscure 70's progressive rock band!). "Home is Where I Belong" is a fine and respectable album, featuring melodic songs that occasionally go into complex and symphonic structures. The opener "Hideaway My Song" is a catchy and straightforward rocker with a good feel and nice 70's sound. But things do get more seriously progressive in "Sunlight Bring Shadows". It starts very tight and quirky with some intense drumming. From there it evolves into complex, flowing parts featuring good melodies and arrangements packed with organ, Mellotron and guitar. The simpler songs on the record, such as "Empty Street, Empty Heart" and "Time to Live" reveal a slight American West Coast-influence with nice vocal harmonies. But it's of course the progressive songs that make the LP worthwhile. "Overcome the Pattern" features some distorted organ, but it's kept well within a melodic format. The use of the Moog is sparse but tasteful, making a repeated appearance after each verse. "Flying" is the most experimental track, starting with sinister and distorted sounds before some surprisingly psychedelic vocals appear and finally climaxing into a Mellotron-crescendo with a high-pitched voice above the band's vocal harmonies. The title-track has a quite straightforward and simple structure, but the melody is really good and the arrangements have the needed progressive 70's feel. "Season" is a song pretty typical for the record, and floats into the instrumental "Alpha Omega" that undoubtedly is the symphonic highlight. It's based in a majestic Moog-theme surrounded by grandiose Mellotrons, surely a mighty and powerful combination. The closer "Hiding it All" is an atmospheric ballad, a pleasant and moody way to round off a good album.