LOOKING FOR JOHN MADDOCK

Between 1997 and 2011 many progheads from a wide range of countries have attended the exciting Dutch Progfarm festival, Flamborough Head used to be the support act for the headliner because it was their home game in Friesland. The band got a lot of appreciation and that can also be traced in the many reviews and ratings about Dutch progrock pride Flamborough Head on Prog Archives.

Well, on their acclaimed album Looking For John Maddock (four years after their previous studio album Tales Of Imperfection) the combination of the flowing guitar work with beautiful flute sound and the lavish Hammond organ and frequent Minimoog-like synthesizer flights often brings Seventies Camel to my mind. And during the synthesizer solo halfway Don't Forget Us, prime mover Edo Spanninga even sounds as 'the second coming' of the late Peter Bardens!

But I don't mind because Flamborough Head plays wonderful, very melodic and harmonic symphonic rock: flowing shifting moods, pleasant accelerations and exciting work on vintage keyboards and guitar (from moving and howling runs to a delicate duel with a tin-whistle in Don't Forget Us).

The absolute highlight on Looking For John Maddock is the epic final composition that showcases Flamborough Head in its full splendour. It also features the most variety and musical ideas on this album: a bombastic climate with an up-tempo rhythm ... a Solaris-like part with flute and classical orchestrations ... beautiful electric guitar work ... lush vintage keyboards (including an eruption with a Moody Blues Mellotron sound) ... and finally a sensitive guitar solo with soaring Hammond organ. What an exciting conclusion of a very good album.

Another four years later Flamborough Head released their swansong entitled Lost In Time .. or isn't this their final effort? Well, read this info I took from their website.

"Between 2014 and 2016 Marcel and Gert decided it was time to move on; on bass we welcomed back our friend Eddie Mulder and on guitar Hans Spitzen joined the band. Hans was no stranger; on earlier occasions he had helped the band out. In the autumn of 2016 this new line up will work on a new album which we hope to release somewhere next year."

More news from their website:

"Twenty years after the first edition of ProgFarm (1997) OSKAR will release Flamborough Head - Live at ProgFarm 2006 (& Northern Prog Festival 2015) as a reminder of our fine festival. As a bonus disc our gig at The Northern Prog Festival 2015 is included. This double live cd will be available November 2017."