SEPTOBER ENERGY

The most endearing thing about this album is the time period from whence it came and the freedom musicians were allowed. To approach a record company with the idea of bringing 50 people together and record a double LP containing something in the vein of jazz rock, just barely (if that) able to attract the main stream audience... That is crazy. And wonderful! CCS with it's tens of musicians fell way into backwater when Centipede produce twice the amount and then some. The cover attracts me, the idea brings a smile to my face and the effort makes me bow in awe. So far, so good.

The music, then, is a totally different thing. The "Part 2" is actually the only track I enjoy. The track is a groove, chugging along pleasantly. The groove is interrupted by small variations in riff and texture but is basically a groove where the band is allowed to play a solo or two. I like it, though I rarely listen to the whole thing. I get kind of lost after a while. Maybe even bored. The other tracks range from more or less free form jazz to sort of structured pieces.

It's really a feat digesting the album as a whole. Basically it is intelligent noise and that is not really my cup of tea. Chaos can be amazing but not over four sides of vinyl. Not for me, anyway. The melodious parts are not enough in numbers to amuse me.

I admire the effort, as I wrote earlier. I suppose that only true artistes care less for their audience than their ambitious ventures and that I appreciate. As a listener, though, I wish they could have evened it out a bit, making the album a little more accessible. I love jazz rock and the way the instruments sound on here makes me happy but the experience as a whole is a letdown.

Conclusion: the music gets two stars and the effort four, which I round down to a decent three star. There's enough intelligence and musicianship on here to make you crazy. Too bad it is lost in a haze of chaos and noise, rather than being a true master piece of epic proportions. It glides by like a led balloon. Sorry.