EBU GOGO

"Worlds" is a fun sophomore effort from the Providence Rhode Island-based 3-piece band, Ebu Gogo. Ebu Gogo was formed as an offshoot project of the band "Gruvis Malt" by Justin Abene (Bass), Gavin Castleton (Keyboards), and Brendan Bell-Leonard (Drums). I probably would've given this album 3 stars if there was less filler and more of their definitive sound on the tracks. I feel like It could've been an album with only 10-13 songs instead of 20 or they could've grouped some songs together. The band has a super unique sound of a combination of Heavy Prog that sounds like a video game soundtrack. There are a lot of catchy songs on the albums yet there are so many complex songs with odd time signatures and rhythmic intensity.

The album wastes no time getting right into an intense opener with the ELP-ish "Torch of the Olympiad." This is about as Progressive as the song titles get on the album. Most of the song titles on here are ridiculously hilarious, resembling those of "Yezda Urfa." The synthesizer work on "DsurfNA" is really great, coupled with a lot of rhythmic intensity. The best instrument on this album is by far the bass though. Justin Abene's work is impeccable. "Neo-Uranium Mattress" is very Daft Punk-Esque and is filled with spectacular Moog work from Gavin Castleton along with amazing bass lines.

The fifth track "Waterworld 1" is the beginning of the Waterworld suite on this album. It features some epic distorted Fender Rhodes and is very complex. Definitely one of the better cuts on the album. "Training Montage" is a 1:20 minute blast of a proggy version of the Rocky soundtrack which I just love. The hilariously titled "Late Due to Sweatpants Boner" is another very short proggy yet very catchy tune. I feel like with all of the ludicrous song titles there needs to be some lyrics, but since they are all so short I guess it would be a bit redundant.

Side 2 opens with the prog metal song "Son of the Rancher of Neverland" which goes through some crazy time signatures and ideas. It is also about 4 minutes which is long for this album and is a massive highlight. "British Knights in Miami" goes through a few late Genesis passages that are pretty nice. The 58-second "Pomp-Adorned" is another total video game song just with some very cool bass lines.

"Waterworld (2, 3, and 4)" are all under 3 minutes and combine for a total of 7 minutes. They are not too similar to part 1 and feature a less prominent Fender Rhodes, though it is still there in the background. Part 4 especially contains a few very impressive musical sections. The closer, "Aussie Chips" is by far the longest on the album at 9:00. It is also by far the worst song. Filled with 5 MINUTES STRAIGHT of silence. Super disappointing.

Overall an album that I would recommend to fans of progressive metal and video game music. A lot of really good stuff on here even though it is a little long-winded and has some filler. With albums such as "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway," there is a story to be told thus the number of tracks, but the filler on this album is just that. Still a fun album, and also a really cool cover.

A friend of mine gave me this album to listen to. I was rather discouraged by the band name, thinking of an alternative hardcore band coming out of it.

What you can is an advanced set of instrumental adventure with dominating keyboards. The first overture reminds of ELP synths. The second track has strong bass/drums leading the pack just like you would expect it from the modern loosely defined instrumental prog. All this on a short time as tracks are usually short. Other interesting elements are alternative rock/metal and 80's pop mainly on the synth side. "Neo-Uranium Madness" stands out in terms of catchiness thanks to its lead baroque-inspired synth but also disco rhythm. Also pay attention to the diligent bass. The album is a collection of seemingly random short ideas perhaps meant as witty experiments. It is an original set of songs but due to less focus on the compositions and the disappointing 9-minute last track that has much silence in it, I can't give it 4 stars.

[4,5 - 5 stars] Let me start things off by saying that usually I don't have too much interest in albums with large amounts of tracks (say, over than 10). I definitely prefer my music long, and my "ideal" prog album would probably be around 3-5 tracks. It might be so because I feel like many short tracks usually don't grab my attention enough, and blend into one, unspecified mass in the end. However, Ebu Gogo's "Worlds" is one of the very few exceptions to this rule. I love that record despite the whooping amount of 20(!) tracks in total. Seems to me that where many other bands didn't succeed enteirly, Ebu Gogo managed to keep every track interesting, catchy and different from the previous one. Every one on them has something interesting to offer: a catchy hook, wonderful atmosphere or technical skill.

I'm not really sure as to why is the band listed here as RIO/Avant-Prog, as they seem like a perfect example of the Eclectic category. In its music, Ebu Gogo combines many different genres and flavours, although there isn't much in terms of avant-garde writing. While quite fast and complex at times, for the most part the music is rather laid back, relaxed and just straight up super cool. Sometimes it kinda reminds me of Cardiac's adventurous and humorous spirit.

As for the band itself, each of the members is quite skilled and plays very well, although Justin Abene on the bass guitar shines especially bright. If I still were a bassplayer, this guy would be a huge inspiration for me! The rest of the band deserves attention as well though: Brendan Bell-Leonard keeps the drums heavy and busy, and Gavin Castleton's keyboards (rhodes and synths) are responsible for the majority of the album's charm.

Overall, for me 'Worlds' is a fantastic collection of 20 little musical treats, all of which are full of joy, playfulness and character. Laid back, cool, silly, atmospheric, complex, heavy ' 'Worlds' is all of the above, and much, much more. This record is one hell of a ride, and deserves a warm recommendation to any proghead out there.

Damn, i had to write this review again because it didn't save itself. But well, i ended up lowering the rating to 4 stars so maybe now i have a different general view of this work. At first i was very very impressed and particularly happy because the compositions sounded, imho, like a completely new prog subgenre: video game prog. After like 10 listens i wrote that review and gave this album 5 stars. Now i feel like the album, despite it's big originality, lacks a little seriousness. Contradictory in fact, because if you just read the song titles you will notice the humour they have. But the seriousness i'm talking about is that i think they should have been more selective. In between the more fun, original, groovy, even cute musical moments/songs (i'm hardly ever a specific reviewer, apologies) there are many boring and uninspired ones. That, i suppose, is the only "problem" i have with this album. This is a video game prog album with its roots in video game music, jazz/fusion and prog metal. The Final Veredict is 4 stars because: -I am SURE that this is a new prog subgenre. -The music is very original. -Impressive grooves. -Unique tones in the keys. -Performance is perfect; one of the most tight basses i've ever heard (comparing to jazz/fusion experts here, believe me).

I was turned onto Ebu Gogo through a good friend of mine, who claimed that Worlds is one of his top 5 albums of all time. I didn't even listen to more than 5 songs before I decided to buy it. The music is adventurous, active, and just the right level of intense mixed with beauty to cater to my emotions. This is a modern instrumental Emerson Lake and Palmer for fans of video game music.

Let me first mention the importance of the bass tone in this record. The bass tone is perfect. There are plenty of distorted chords being played yet every note is audible. Either the bass player or the engineer truly knew what they were doing.

Sometimes this music is very catchy and might make you want to dance, other times the music is drenched in so much rhythmic complexity, you have to listen to the album several times to catch it all. There are plenty of beautiful melodies, heavy moments, and more symphonic ones.

In all honesty, this band seems to be listed in RIO/Avant simply because it is not definable, yet it would have had just as much reason to be in Eclectic. This is not along the "weirder" side of avant music... but it is still full of strange elements.

Let me mention the bass one more time. Justin Abene is a bass player's bassist. He WAILS yet every note feels entirely necessary. Some of his bass riffs are complex enough to be bass solos, yet you never lose the feel of a groove. The keys and drums are not simple either... You will just have to listen to the record to fully understand what I mean. Don't worry about the lack of guitar work on this album... as a guitarist I was still fully satisfied.

This album is a masterpiece. I have no qualms saying this. This record is up there with "Palace of Mirrors" or really any other modern avant rock album. Check it out. :-D