FLASH

After his departure from Yes in mid-1970 and some brief appearances with Blodwyn Pig and Chris Harwood, Peter Banks met with singer Colin Carter and decided to form his own band.It was found in London during the summer of 71' under the name of Flash and the line-up became complete with Ray Bennett on bass and Mike Hough on drums.Original Yes keyboardist Tony Kaye was sucked by the band around the same time and was asked to join Flash, but he only appeared as a guest in the debut's sessions, before forming Badger.Flash'es first, self-titled album was recorded in November 1971 at the De Lane Lea Studios in Wembley with Martin Birch and Derek Lawrence as sound engineer and producer respectively, both were long-time collaborators of Deep Purple.''Flash'' was eventually released on Sovereign Records in February 72'.

With ''The Yes album'' already out, having a trully captivating sound, you can only think that Banks was partially influenced by his former band's innovative work, as the debut of Flash draws resemblances with the legendary album of Yes.The sound is dominated by tons of electroacoustic interplays, irritating Jon Anderson-like vocals, multi-vocal singing lines and frenetic changes between tempos with the guitar in the forefront.On the other hand Flash'es debut was much guitar-oriented with supporting performances on keyboards with Tony Kaye as a guest and Banks even handling some ARP synth flashes.So expect a YES-like style with lots of complex themes and shifting moods, showered by light acoustic flavors and discreet psychedelic moves.Flash combined the poppy sensibilities and some intense organ and synth runs with the emerging power and charm of Progressive Rock, the result was captivating compositions, always highlighted by Banks' complicated guitar lines and the trully dynamic bass playing of Bennett.The long tracks are quite great with more keyboard emphasis towards a more balanced sound and lots of jazzy plays on guitar, maintaing the rock component in a high level but also delivering a unique atmosphere filled with tricky plays.

Great debut by Flash, on the same level as ''The Yes album'' to my ears.Dense, guitar-driven Prog Rock with minor Pop and keyboard-based stylings, very interesting and strongly recommended.