THIRD EAR BAND

This was the soundtrack to a Roman Polanski of Macbeth, from back when you could collaborate with Polanski without having to consciously overlook his sex crime conviction. Whereas Third Ear Band's self-titled album found them expanding the sound of Alchemy into long, dreamy suites, the requirements of soundtrack work meant they had to condense their music down into shorter, tighter compositions.

The end result sounds an awful lot like a prototype for Univers Zero. That isn't something you might expect given the musical influences that feed into their work - medieval folk, traditional Indian music, a touch of psychedelia here, a larger dab of free jazz and avant-garde classical there - but between the dark atmosphere, the "chamber rock" instrumentation, and the unconventional approach, it very much feels like a prototype for the sort of territory that Univers Zero, Art Zoyd, and Present would eventually explore.

Third Ear Band's bizarre variety of raga-influenced ambient medieval folk is taken a few steps further on their self-titled album, consisting of four long suites themed around the classical elements. If their debut, Alchemy, was a rough draft of this musical vision, this is their magnum opus - with better production, richer compositions, more layered instruments, less sparseness. The use of repetitive percussion is reminiscent of some flavours of Krautrock, whilst the foreboding mood evoked manages to bridge the world of the darker sorts of drone ambient and the more sinister flavours of folk.

Careful listeners may also detect elements of avant-garde classical music and free jazz deep in the DNA of this bizarre musical chimera, but really there is little precedent for Third Ear Band besides the group's own debut album; Univers Zero or Art Zoyd would later revisit some of these territories (listen to the start of Water, for instance, and tell me you can't imagine those ROI stalwarts doing something similar). Like its predecessor, astonishingly ahead of its time.

Compared to other attempts to blend experimental/progressive rock and folk from the same era, Third Ear Band's debut album sounds astonishingly ahead of its time. Comus might steer for similarly dark and bleak territory, Tangerine Dream on Zeit might use cello to a similarly doomy effect, but all that came later; I'm not aware of anyone in 1969 doing anything remotely similar to this.

There is a certain raga influence - right down to Glen Sweeney using tabla for much of the album - but it's far more artfully handled than the usual "add a bunch of sitar to some psychedlic pop" approach that the Beatles-imitators of the era would run to. Instead, the band use the repetitious and hypnotic aspects of Indian music as merely one tool in their portfolio, with aspects of free jazz, avant-garde classical, and folk music all blending together.

The downfall of a lot of experimental music lies in becoming so obtuse as to be inaccessible, or so technical as to lose sight of feeling. Not so here; Third Ear Band clearly have a very specific mood they wish to evoke here, and they communicate it adeptly. At the same time, the material is intricate enough to reward mutiple listens. The overall impression is of a free jazz band transported to the medieval era, and that's an intriguing enough proposition to keep the album interesting for its running time.

The British group THIRD EAR BAND were forerunners of ethnic fusion music -- or "world music" -- in the late sixties. In the summer of 1970, when they had released two albums, they played some concerts in Germany and made the music for a German TV drama Abelard and Heloise. In fact the music remained an unavailable obscurity until the late nineties when it was issued on CD.

I'm citing the liner notes of the 3-disc compilation Elements 1970-1971 (Esoteric Recordings, 2018): "The drama was directed by George Moorse, featuring psychedelic, overexposed colourful drawings by painter Herbert Fuchs: it told the dramatic, contrasting love story between Peter Abelard (1070-1142), French philosopher and theologist with a troubled life, and Heloise, a French nun and niece of a Canon, Fulbert, who to hinder this passion between the tutor and his pupil, recruited friends to attack and castrate Abelard." Cellist Ursula Smith recalls: "We first reached the movie though on a TV screen and then it was played in front of us while we improvised the music."

The raga-flavoured improvised music for oboe, violin, viola, cello and percussion flows rather peacefully, at times almost hypnotically. Oboe and cello are throughout the soundtrack the most heard instruments. The six tracks are unnamed; the first part lasts nearly for 14 minutes while the others are shorter. The slow second part is especially medidative, and on the more dramatic third part the strings are constantly see-sawing the same frantic riff. Because of its improvisatory nature the music becomes at times quite vague and unshaped. Sonically it's a blend of raga-rock and the early/mid 20th century chamber music. Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire (although it features vocals too) has something similar in the introvert and estranged atmosphere.

I don't know how to rate this work. Third Ear Band is not much up to my taste in the first place, or the raga-rock genre in general. I certainly prefer listening to the classical chamber music that is composed, not improvised. Or the Finnish Piirpauke when it comes to ethnic fusion. But for the friends of this group, Abelard and Heloise is undoubtedly fairly interesting. A bit later they made their other film soundtrack, for Macbeth directed by Roman Polanski (which album I probably prefer if I had to choose between the two).

Ethnic ambient music lead by well played lead instruments.

Every song on here sounds the same so there isn't any point reviewing song by song. From the first song you know what to expect good beat and various soloes. Nothing offensive yet nothing amazing. As background music it IS pretty good, although it isn't something I'd listen to alone, ergo three out of five

This bands calling card is definitely as soundtrack music, I am quite glad they actually did contribute to films as their music is perfect for that, especially historical set films as the band captures an mythical past age.

Third Ear Band, or the elements album as you might call it is The Third Ear Bands second studio album which released in 1970. The songs on this album are the names of the elements (air,earth,water,fire) which gave it the nickname elements. I was hoping this album would represent the elements with good music, but no, it doesn't, the instrumentation is bad most of time, the production is bad, and Its just not fun to listen too. I will give this album a 1/5, unless your a collector of music like this, do not buy it or even listen to it.

— First review of this album —

A bizarre compilation whose history is perhaps more engrossing than its content, "Songs from the Hydrogen Jukebox" is NOT the THIRD EAR BAND (TEB) precursor from the late 1960s with the same name, but more of an offshoot led by percussionist Glen Sweeney which recorded an 8 track album in 1972. In typical TEB fashion, it was shelved until emerging in 1991 as "Prophecies". That release seems rare enough, but 6 of the tracks were merged with 3 numbers from early 1990s TEB albums "Brain Waves" and "Magic Music". That of course leaves 2 orphans from the original album but I'm going to guess they weren't that different from the chosen 6, since they all sound pretty much the same. While bearing a resemblance to the TEB "Magus" album from the same period, which didn't see release until well into the 21st century, they unfortunately co-opt the dirge of that lost classic without the pre punk urgency that offset it so well.. It sounds more like the vocalist (credits not readily available) is reciting a form of existential poetry merely to give the bubbling jazzy rhythms something...er... under which to bubble. According to some, it bears resemblance to GONG's work should you find that a drawing card.

Luckily the remaining 3 tracks are more captivating. "Behind the Pyramids" belies influences of 1980s rock, boasts colorful wind instruments over an unwavering infectious guitar riff and sounds better with each of its passing 7 minutes. It definitely entices me to seek out the "Magic Music" recording as I'm curious how this instrumental managed to slip onto a vocal oriented collection by essentially a different band. "Dances with Dolphins" is similar but attenuated. "Water into Wine" finally closes the loop with a similar musical arsenal, a bit heavier on the percussion and with vocals that are entirely complementary this time, thanks to Lyn Dobson. It recalls earlier JADE WARRIOR or DAVID SYLVIAN, that is to say I'm quite delighted with it. So add "Brain Waves" to the list of TEB entries to sample. I guess this compilation has served its purpose!

In somewhat of a role reversal for lovers of early prog, the 1972 tracks are simply outclassed by the 3 from the 1990s. How often can one say that around here?

For every hundred-ish long unreleased archival recordings deemed lost classics, perhaps one can claim that honour. Recorded in 1972 yet lovingly sequestered for 32 years by THIRD EAR BAND piano/percussion and sound man Ron Kort until it was finally liberated, "The Magus" is that authentic artifact. Some sources imply that it was initially instantiated as "Prophecies" in 1991, but their only similarities lie in their vocal orientation, which makes them anomalies in the "Third Ear Band" discography.

Gone are the raga inspired lattices of earlier works, and, while Mike Marchant's DONOVAN meets ROBIN WILLIAMSON voice does assume lead, the oboe and recorder of Paul Minns, the violin of Simon House, and the drums of Glen Sweeny swirl about Marchant's fiercely lyrical narratives, vying for attention without a hint of clutter or selfishness. Synthesizer is introduced as organically as its acoustic cousins. The meters of the songs are most hypnotic, materializing as incantations, offering a glancing nod back to the band's origins.

Apart from the unfettered urgency of the delivery and the virtuosity of the players, "The Magus" is even more striking for the list of bands it could have influenced, and I say could have because herein lies the blueprints for punk, industrial, dark wave and neo folk music to name a few genres that didn't really exist at the time of recording. Yet all were well underway and, in some cases, interred, before "The Magus" appeared. In particular, I want to cite DEAD CAN DANCE and CURRENT 93 as would be benefactors. It's true that THIRD EAR BAND too claim influences, among them the Krautrock and the "Lizard/Islands" period of KING CRIMSON particularly in how they capitalize on flourishes of the wind instruments. But this is very much a sui generis of prog folk. It might be a challenge for fans of their early work to adapt to what is laid down here, which is deceptively accessible yet stratified with the same perfectionism that marked those earlier projects.

Where uniformity of mood and multifariousness paradoxically mingle, all 8 tracks are luminous, but I want to especially underscore the Native American sounding "Hierophant", the apocalyptic title cut, and the poetry and music of "The Phoenix". But "The Magus" is an opus, and any over emphasis on one part is mere distraction. Therein lies its wisdom.

If THIRD EAR BAND tends to be aggregated along with the progressive rock movement, the association has far more to do with their period of activity and tendency to experiment, though to a degree that most prog bands of their day could not or would not engage. I would add another quality that they share with the more prototypical artists of this period: elitism, and in fact their first few albums are projections of an exclusivity that relegated them to the commercial margins , though their debut did shockingly brush the lower rungs of the UK charts. More sound than music in the general sense, they, and perhaps most listeners, pleaded for a modicum of the mundane, perhaps a note held for less than 30 seconds followed by another note that belonged with the first. But alas, such was not to be...until they briefly transformed themselves into a stringy Anglo analog to GOBLIN.

It began with the soundtrack for a German made for TV movie, "Abelard and Heloise", and followed just 2 years later with their scoring of a score for Roman Polanski's "Macbeth", and then they inexplicably disappeared for almost 2 decades. The comparison to GOBLIN isn't just for the movie connection but for the morbidity of the motifs, depicted on string and oboe rather than organ, which imparts a demented and twisted atmosphere. This clutches the listener fiercely even without knowledge of how Macbeth yields to his innate and hitherto suppressed evil spurred by the naive and skin deep musings of his Lady.

The shorter track lengths offer a shred of accessibility as well, but this is still far from an easy listen, though the opening "Overture" does scratch that Gothic itch, and "Lady Macbeth" breathily heralds the relative vivaciousness of "Inverness". But it's on the trio of "Court Dance", "Fleance" and "Groom's Dance" that they actually sound like a medieval string and wind ensemble, or at least what I imagine one would sound like. Paul Minns' oboe is especially versatile, though it's his recorder that ushers in "Fleance" and swirls about the guest boy soprano Keith Chegwin throughout. This is a staggeringly lovely number embodying a spirit distant in time and place. Interestingly, others seem to agree based on the frequency with which it is conjured on streaming sites.

Unfortunately, the remaining tracks, apart from the "Going to bed" suite and the foreboding closer "Wicca Way" , offer a more soporific mix of the band's own tendencies while neurotically trying to avoid overpowering the scenes in which they are instantiated. This is a common issue with soundtracks, but, since so much of this one was sliced and diced by Polanski, I'm not sure there is a setting for, say, "Prophecies", that hasn't disintegrated in a landfill.

The remastered version has original takes of the three aforementioned centerpieces, none of which are especially different, but they do reinforce the significance of this path rarely trod by THIRD EAR BAND, and given up before it could flourish. But I suppose THIRD EAR BAND wasn't about compromises, and all told their rendering of Macbeth is no tragedy.

Third Ear Band's second album is music on the border between the West and the East, between light and cultured classical music. It is instrumental music, from start to finish, played by a chamber musical ensemble, which has little to do with rock, except for the fact that some instruments such as violin or percussion are part of the Western rock repertoire.

The album, dedicated to the 4 elements, opens with Air, an impromptu suite with many due to improvisations mainly of oboe (Minns) and viola (Coff), while the tablas (Sweeney) produce a basic rhythm in Indian style very fast but that acts as a background carpet. Wind noise opens this first movement that looks like a jazz improvisation but the sound is completely different because it is conducted by the viola (and violin?), then at about three minutes takes over the oboe that dialogues with the strings in a continuous reference of dissonances that describe a landscape disjointed, very abstract, held together only by percussion, which give a constant basis to which the other instruments return after their overlapping solo scrolls. It is a magnificent piece and unfortunately the other movements (especially those on B- side) of the disc will no longer reach these heights. The piece will fade and again with the noise of the wind. Rating 9.

The second piece, Earth, is more synchronous between the rhythm of the tablas, which changes in speed, and the sound of the instruments. There is an increasingly sustained progression, a pause and a return of fast pace. More narrative piece, less abstract. It's like a folk dance but you can't say what kind of folk: Irish? Arabic? Chinese? Etruscan? Renaissance? We don't know. Another great piece. Rating 8.5/9

End of a wonderful A-side.

The B-side opens with Fire, which produces an orgiastic sound where all the instruments are engaged in high volume dissonances, we are close to the cacophony, you can only identify the odd rhythm of the tablas. The high notes of the strings and oboe are dubbed on both speakers producing extreme almost random dissonances that after a long time make it ardous to listen. Surely it is the most divisive piece, it seems a satanic ritual where you can just avoid paying attention to the ear (the third) and throw yourself into the dance by moving with your bowels. The ears may be annoying, the sounds are unpleasant, this piece should be taken as a tribal dance without listening to the single instrument but only the overall result. Frankly I can not love it, the more time passes the more I hope in a variation that does not arrive and then the song begins to annoy me for the endless racket. I recognize, however, that again the band has found an unprecedented musical fusion. Rating 7,5.

Water. Rain noise in the distance that bathes the fronds of the trees, soft sounds then come from the percussion of Sweeny, then it is the oboe (Minns) that leads the melody while the viola (Coff) occasionally doubles it and the cello (Smith) produces dissonances in the background. Quiet movement, without particular peaks or falls, is more than anything a variation on a dominant melodic theme with percussion to beat a rhythm in three times. Over time it becomes less and less melodic. Rating 8.

This is an essentially folk-fusion album, completely original and without possible comparison. It has an exceptional first side for both arrangement and music, which could make this album an absolute masterpiece of folk-rock (or chamber music?) but a much less successful second side where the arrangements are still sensational but the music is not of the highest level and then the record is takes "only" a 9+.

Five stars.