UK

In 1978, progressive rock declined very much. UK was a rare band to keep alive this musical genre. With Eddie Jobson on keyboards and electric violins, Allan Holdsworth on guitars, Bill bruford on drums and John Wetton on bass, the supergroup UK is a sure value and the listeners must have great expectations. Indeed, most of those musicians have a natural predisposition to create and play fusion music, so that many excellent fusion parts are present on this record. Jobson's modern keyboards for the year are often futuristic and very dramatic & expressive; his electric violin is often floating, creating spacy and floating atmospheres like on "By the light of the day" or "Thirty years": his electric violin reminds the Jean Luc Ponty's one. Wetton's lead vocals are very good; Allan Holdsworth's electric guitars are often discreet, although he has wonderful & complex electric guitar solos like on "Thirty years" and "Mental medication", on which the Jobson's keyboards sound like a floating Vangelis of the early 80's. Holdsworth's electroacoustic guitars on "Nevermore" are particularly elaborated and impressive. Wetton's bass is much more elaborated than his work with Asia, especially on "Mental medication". "Presto vivace" has a fast, complex & synchronized bit a la Frank Zappa's "Echidna's Arf". Bruford's drums are as usual: complex and professionally played. Jobson's keyboards are sometimes vintage, like the rhythmic organ on "Alaska", sounding a bit like Triumvirat. The "fusion" term takes all its sense on tracks live "Nevermore" and "Mental medication". "Mental medication" has amazing & complex rhythm changing parts with excellent electric violin parts. Eddie Jobson is a rare musician who MASTERS 2 disparate instruments: violin and keyboards: he clearly shows it here!

EXTREMELY RECOMMENDED!