As my older lengthy Triumvirat thread has been closed for some time, and it is exactly 50 years since the band was formed, I thought I would start a new Triumvirat Appreciation Thread.

           It is hard to believe that this group was started so long ago, and has gone through so many changes over the years, in personnel, musical focus, popularity, and status.

            As you folks know, I have tried my best to keep the flame of this prog band alive with my Triumvirat focus on the net, and this thread hopefully will continue to keep people listening to, and talking about, what will always be my favorite band.

             I encourage those who read these opening words to join with me in keeping alive Triumvirat and it's music.

             

They're Czechs, right? 

AFlowerKingCrimson wrote: I think they are that band that sound just a tiny bit like ELP.

 

According to Doug, they do NOT. They sound like T'rat. 

I recently revisited the first three albums.

Mediterranean Tales was a bit of a chore, I'm afraid. Yeah, it's not an outright ELP lampoon album, but you know Jurgen wants to be Keith. 

Illusions on a Double Dimple is a bit better, but for me, it lacks some oomph.

Spartacus — a clear winner as far as symphonic keyboard trio prog goes.

Ditto for Old Loves Die Hard.

So, Spartacus and OLDH remain the ones I'll hang on to. I'm not interested in anything they did post-OLDH.

richardh wrote: Illusions is the album. Better than all ELP albums bar Brain Salad Surgery and Trilogy and should be a top 50 prog album. Never cared for Spartacus though and that was a real sticking point for me initially. It is original (perhaps except for a few cheeky Keith Emerson keyboard refrains) but I find it all a bit too cheesey ( and I like cheese!) . BTW Jurgen did an excellent solo album Hard To Be God in the eighties a little bit in the style of Vangelis. Try to track that down if you can!

 

I don't hear anything as compelling as "Tank," "Take a Pebble" or especially "Knife-Edge" on Illusions. 

Logan wrote: Jurgen compares pretty favourably to Keith. Nothing wrong with that.

 

That's right.

It is hard to say in a few words or sentences why I consider Triumvirat so special. Frankly, they do things for me that ELP don't, that no other group does, really.

        But the capability of appreciating and sensing something of value in music is a subjective analysis, I realise.

           Give me any of their first four albums over their colleagues in prog rock any day of the week! There is something so refreshing and vital in that early Triumvirat music that it floors the competition.

            And they never needed any theatrics in getting that across to audiences when they performed live; just the music sufficed.

                  

Doug, I admire your loyalty to your favorite band!! 

I'm still trying to figure out the best way to send you what I promised, hang in there!  You'll like it!

Best, Chuck

I'm talking about whole albums and the first couple of ELP albums are hit and miss as far as I'm concerned even as a fan. Triumvirat were so much more organised and the music is impressively fluid . ELP were perhaps just too ego based (cliché number 133) but Karn Evil 9 and Toccata raised ELP to a level that few could follow (all in my opinion of course)

chopper wrote: Well, I've tried listening to them but I'm afraid they do nothing for me. ELP trounce them in all departments for me - songwriting, musical ability and probably crucially the vocal department. Not a patch on Lake.

To each his own. I admit the vocals on the debut album are no great shakes, but on Illusions and Spartacus, Helmut Koellen's vocals are superb, as are Barry Palmer's on OLDH, Pompeii and A La Carte. David Hanselmann and Arno Steffen's subsequent vocals are good, but of course, the music is not classic Triumvirat, unfortunately, on the last two albums.

I didn't know up to a few minutes ago that this guy had been a member of Triumvirat at some point:

This was a hit single in Germany in 1983, quite funny and original, but pretty annoying at the same time.

ELP's debut is fantastic, IMO. I don't think T'rat's writing is as robust till they hit Spartacus and OLDH, which I regard together as their zenith.

kenethlevine wrote: ^ I think you hit the nail on the head.  One can complain about going mainstream on OLDH but it's the songwriting that more than makes up for that questionable accusation

 

OLDH also has a killer instrumental in "Panic on 5th Avenue." 

Bravo Magazine's issue of the 15 May, 1975, where they list their 12 top German rock acts, and Triumvirat is included

presdoug wrote: Bravo Magazine's issue of the 15 May, 1975, where they list their 12 top German rock acts, and Triumvirat is included

I see TD is in there, as they should be.

I assume Eloy is one of the other six. 

Haha, I was joking!  (And that post's a couple years old!)

I love Spartacus and OLDH and have no use for Pompeii (too watered down compared to its predecessors).

And here's a hot take for everyone: I don't like Mediterranean Tales. T'rat sounds like a half-cooked ELP wannabe on their debut. I'm glad they sorted things out and found their "voice," so to speak!

verslibre - love your avatar.  Stuntman is one of my favorites by Froese.  Epsilon in Malaysian Pale is my top favorite of his solo stuff, but Stuntman is a real gem.

Well let's see if we can keep it moving along then...

I first heard T-Rat when i was in a small indie record store on a second level location in London ON. I was browsing when all of a sudden I heard the opening riff from Mediterranean Tales. I immediately stopped browsing and headed right to the counter. I bought the only copy they had, which had just come in that morning. It was an import so I think it cost me $15 or so (it was opened after all).

I saw/see the reasons for comparisons but I tend to agree they have their own voice. Far more Classical Jazz then ELP's Classical Rock format. But I love them both.

So I haven't read back all the posts here, but has anyone listened to or have any opinions of the Live at Ultrasonic Studios, NY 1974 recording. I understand there's not a lot else in this area.

 Right on!

Hrychu wrote: Have you noticed Mister 10 Percent ends with a very similar piano motif Illusions on a Double Dimple opens with? That's pretty awesome.

     You know, I had not really noticed that; pretty cool, indeed. I have a live boot of the band taped in Chalmette, Louisianna from the fall of 1974, and Juergen adds some of the solo piano music near the beginning of Mister Ten Percent later used in "A Day In My Life" on Old Loves Die Hard. I thought that was pretty awesome, as well.

Controversial opinion, I even quite like 'A La Carte' and 'Russian Roulette'. 

verslibre, thanks for that. I am facebook friends with the director of Friday Music, who knew Doug Fieger, and he explained the connection to me.  Hrychu, I don't bs about Triumvirat.....

Is this anything to do with the 'gated reverb' affect that was used by Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins on PG3 and later just by Collins on In The Air Tonight? It seems that Steve Lillywhite and Hugh Padgham are credited with developing it as a production technique in the late 70's and early 80's. 

Different sound for sure but was just wondering of the production techniques were in anyway similar 

Hi Dylan; I also enjoy Triumvirat very much. Whilst I think Dimple is their finest offering (Spartacus not far behind), I would actually say Mediterranean Tales (debut) is a very good place to start, to get into their sound; it's not quite as complex and I think it's quite underrated.  It's also usually the one you can pick up cheapest!

^ Interesting, so yes, please, keep us posted.

Can also become something very disappointing, with so much time passed since (either too retro or too distant...), but it will be interesting anyway to hear it if something new will be released.

One for you Doug. I'm currently de-cluttering and came across a number of music mags I used to read. Most have articles about ELP (my fav band). However I did see this.

From the Jan. 1976 Issue of Circus magazine