RADIO GNOME INVISIBLE VOL. 2 - ANGEL'S EGG

Angel's Egg, the second volume of Radio Gnome Invisible, is the definition of Gong and all things around it. Steve Hillage's fuzz guitar sound combined with Daevid Allen's drugged up vocals, with Didier Malherbe's atonal trumpet playing, and on top of that, Pierre Moerlen insane drum parts ARE THIS ALBUM! Each song has a creepy and weird sense of psychedelia to it, sort of Magma-ish, in a fun sort of way. This album is one of the little albums that feature the classic Gong line-up which is Allen, Hillage, Moerlen, Malherbe, female vocalist Gilly Smyth, keyboard player Tim Blake, and bassist Mike Howlett.

Starting with the line, "you are an egg", the album begins with the 8-minute long, instrumental, Other Side of the Sky. You, the listener, is stuck in a world of random motions, waves, and sounds, moving slowly, and slower, and slower. The looping keyboard part slowly hypnotizes you and drags you into a world where everything is colorful, funny, and exciting. The pixies are green and the land is too, the buildings are colorful, and everything goes by with a smile. You see a sign as you go in this mysterious land, and that sign says, "welcome to planet gong". You are still captivated by these mysterious sounds and waves, and are slowly dragged further and further into the mysterious planet. You pass by flying teapots and pot head pixies as you make your way further into the center of the planet, until you suddenly stop, and cue:

Gong once, gong twice, sorry, I mean, going once, going twice, and SOLD, to the highest buddah! You spot a few pixies playing a song, and you come closer to realize what this celestial music is. You hear Hillage's fantastic fuzzy guitar solos, Moerlen's insane drum fills, Allen's strange chants, and Malherbe's odd atonal trumpet parts. The lead pixie tells you to "hang on to your head", while you keep moving on, and encounter a strange, castle,

Castle in the clouds. The mysterious fog surrounding the place just makes you want to go inside, and then, you go inside, and find out there is no way back. Inside the castle, you see an odd pixie talking to what seems to be a prostitute. You want to see what's going on and why they are talking but then again you are afraid to interrupt the

Prostitute's Poem. You look at the pixie and notice he is looking funny, and you then reminisce of what the leading pixie told you, "hang to your head". Malherbe's trumpet sublimes you into a drug-induced joruney. You feel like anything is posssible in your dream, but you are now trapped in the body of somebody called Zero the Hero, who is apparently the "pixie" you ahve been looking at. Malherbe's trumpet keeps guiding you, and the further you go, you understand you have been sucked into a planet and have become obsessed with a certain pixie, called the Cock Pot Pixie. You find out that the reason the "pixie" you see, which is actually you, looks drugged, is because he was drugged by a cat which was really, in the end, a witch. You find planet gong under the influence of the drugs, and meet a moon goddess called

Selene, a great song. It features a great chord sequence, and no matter how cheesy love lyrics are, these are wonderful and fun. When listening to this song you feel like everything is yours to be found and nothing can possibly go wrong. You feel like you're in a surreliastic kingdom with a boombox playing godly music while you jump on your bouncy castle, laughing all the way through.

"You know what then? Where is it?" Oh, the smart words of wisdom coming out of Allen's mouth are the start of a fantastic, or should I say, flute-tastic track based on only 2 instruments, which are the flute and the synthesizer. Creepy psychedelia is what the theme of this track is, until a wonderful flute riff starts and we go down the

Oily Way is a rhythmic, drug-influenced song. Zero the Hero is heavily drugged and is now going down the oily way, with all those pot head pixies, riding out on their teapot taxies. Moerlen is essential in terms of "ESSENTIAL", on this track. Gong would have never been the same without the power trio of Malherbe/Moerlen/Hillage. Down the oily way we go until we reach the

Outer Temple, a short mystical song, with the funny vocals Gong is infamous for. "Would you like some tea?", says the templar of Planet Gong's temple. Zero goes inside and reaches the

Inner Temple, a song similar to Outer Temple in terms of tempo. Malherbe's trumpet solo is used to emphasize Zero's wonderous mind as he enters the inner temple and discovers the hidden treasures which lie within. Near the end of the song, there is a gong, and as the end of the song is near, the drumming on the can is what you will hear.

I never, never glid before! Glidding: How the flying teapots fly. Amazing track that is the definition of gong, and should be linked to on nay site referencing Gong as the band, or as the instrument. Catchiest Gong track I have yet to have heard, and boy is it awesome. If you want to get the overall feel of Gong this album along with Flying Teapot, listen to this track.

"What you gonna do? Eat that phone book" Even though Allen did not eat that phone book, Eat That Phone Book Coda is the final stand. Moerlen takes the lead on this track with insane drum fills, while Allen's nasal tone fills the remaining space. "At the end, of the day, when there's nothing left to play"...you turn off your speakers and go to bed, knowing, Gong is a band that will live in your mind forever.

5/5, best Gong album yet!

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