ALL DIE WEIL ICH MAG

First major departures occured in Ougenweide's history after their debut with both female singers Renee Kollmorgen and Brigitte Blunck quiting.Their replacement was Minne Graw, who was also an accomplished flutist and keyboardist.The band jumped from the Zebra label to Polydor, which prooved to be a commercially clever move.Next album ''All die weil ich mag'' was recorded at Maschen Studio with Gesine Schroeder guesting on cello, released in 1974.

Another offering by Ougenweide, which mixes rearrangements of traditional songs and original compositions, but this time with deeper instrumental growth and some tricky moves in the process.The style remains largely acoustic with a touch of rockin' context in the bass and some scarce guitar parts, but now the band seems compositionally more mature, tight and focused, having evident Medieval influences adapted in a Folk Rock content, characterized by extended instrumental exercises and diverse mood colors.The atmosphere ranges from pleasant and joyful to more professional and mellow with acoustic strings, flutes, piano and bass in evidence.Of course the depth of this work comes also from the additional violin, cello, keyboards and drums, which appear every now and then.For the first time the progressive leanings of Ougenweide become apparent through the quirky acoustic instrumentals, the changes between uptempo and more Medieval-styled themes and the light interplays between the instrumentalists.Vocals are now pretty balanced compared to the previous release, not capturing the bulk of the album, and even the addition of Minne Graw seems to have occured mainly due to her instrumental talent.

This is some very nice Medieval/Folk Rock with strong proggy underlines.An excellent album for fans of Acoustic Prog and a good purchase for all lovers of demanding acoustic instrumentals.Recommended.