IMPROG

The title of the album is taken from combining two words, 'improvisation' and 'prog'. It is at this point that some people will leave this review, shaking their head sadly, while others may be a little more intrigued. Yes, this is a fully improvised album, divided into four 'songs', where this Japanese trio certainly kick up a storm. In fact this album has much more in common with jazz than it does with prog, and the freeform style that they portray will certainly find more fans with the former than with the latter. There is no doubt that they are all extremely proficient musicians, but does that in this case make for interesting music? It is certainly more challenging than it is enjoyable, and is hard work. Does the listener get much out of it apart from a headache from the amount of concentration that is required? Probably not.

Originally appeared in Feedback #78, April 2004