How many complete discographies ?

Indeed this album often glides between Santana, B Auger's Oblivion Express, Jeff Beck albums (Wired and BBB), which in itself is no flaw, but surprising. With the organ-dominated, but Carribean-beating All In The Family, Narada Walden is in full form, making this 100MPH track a very enthralling opening cut with unfortunately Mc playing the guitar synth, thus taking some of the bite of his sound, but not affecting his playing. Miles Out sounds like Beck's best torture of a string set on a neck, but Mc uses synths to enhance the cosmic sounds, before Armstrong introduces a riff, easing Narada's arrival and the quartet cruises from one galaxy to the other. While very expressive a track (especially during those days), this type of space rock sounds a bit dated, today. Narada sings the next tracks, In My Life and Gita, something that would give a very late 70's/early 80's Santana feel and on other tracks of this album, close to Auger's Oblivion Express. I certainly am not saying Walden's voice resembles Litgerwood's, but the tracks he sings on have that kind of feeling. In either case, all of the sting of the previous MO album are gone, and it is certainly not the short bagpipe tune played on dumb guitar synth (interestingly, Narada is on organ here) that would change things.

The flipside starts on the more convincing Way Of The Pilgrim, but Mc (sometimes) exaggerates with his technology frenzy, helped by Goldberg's mini-moog, but nevertheless, it's one of the album's better tracks. River of My Heart is to bunch with In My Life, where Narada proves that his ideas (this is the only non-Mc track) are not that easy to absorb on an MO album. The ultra funky Planetary Citizen, then the more reflective Lotus Feet, which is from far the proggiest track, loaded with mini-moog and (unfortunately) Mc's guitar synth, are giving a bit of substance to the album, before the two-part title track takes us again in outer space, sometimes taking Jeff Beck tonalities as in Freeway Jam. This ultra bizarre up-tempoed, partly improvised and completely crazy is not a bad outro for an MO exit.

Clearly not MO's best album, Inner World doesn't really deserves all 100% of the bad rap and rep it endures (but 50%, certainly ;o)), many MO fans are may be a little harsh on it, but had it comes with a better artwork (ala Emerald), I'm sure it would've better better with them.

Send comments to Sean Trane (BETA) | Report this review (#158630)
Posted 4:25:53 AM EST, 1/15/2008

You're the most prolific reviewer, of course.  Even if you don't physically own complete discographies, you managed to hear them. We don't all have a handy library resource like you do (or subscribe to Napster and the like) so owning the album (as much as one can own copyrighted material) is sometimes the way to hear them.  Like with GG, I might dispense with albums that didn't do it for me.  Many have theirs on big harddrives (and don't pay for all, any, or most of them), but just don't delete them even if they don't much care for them.

I wouldn't wish to part with any of my Magma, Univers Zero, Present, or Robert Wyatt albums.  I return to all of them.  I'm very big on Art Zoyd, but I don't plan to ever get or hear the complete discography.  I have many complete discographies, but mostly for bands with few albums.

One might pity some of those obsessive completists wallets (the ones who paid for all of 'em, including albums they didn't really like), but as time is money, I might pity PA's most prolific reviewer.  You've listened to such an amazing amount, I wonder what percentage has really made an impact on you and really got under your skin.  If I like something, I like to listen man times.  I'm not being serious about pitying you, we're all different, and I guess you really enjoy hearing lots of new albums and spending the time on reviewing them (sometimes you do it more on memory and I'm sure you've been into prog for a very long time).  Magma's Merci is not a well-liked album, but I'm really glad I got it and kept it.