THROUGH AND THROUGH

The title of the debut album by The Underground Railroad is 'Through and Through', and the band was formed by Bill Pohl and Kurt Rongey. Both Bill and Kurt have graced these pages before, with their debut releases 'Solid Earth' and 'Book In Hand' respectively. In fact, they have been playing with each other for over ten years, but it was only in 1994 that they joined forces in the Bill Pohl Group. By 1997, they had the album written and felt that it was time to change the name of the band.

The album was not completed until the end of 1999, and was named after the longest piece on the album, 'Through and Through", which is over twenty minutes in length. This is a very complex and complicated album, which takes a great deal of listening to. They have obviously been influenced by the UK Canterbury scene, and have also taken on elements of King Crimson's more experimental work and some jazz. The result is an album that while undoubtedly clever, sometimes takes the listener into areas that are unexpected. While this is not in itself a bad thing I did sometimes get the impression that this was complexity just for its' own sake instead of following a musical thread.

A difficult album, but one that someone into experimental/jazz-based prog may enjoy.

Originally appeared in Feedback #60