ADVENTURES IN UTOPIA

Initially, UTOPIA was the boundary pushing vision of POP Icon Todd Rundgren - for sure his solo work is superb, interesting Pop/Rock-music (though his Soul-inspired material of the late-80's loses this listener) - For Utopia, Todd enlisted a troupe of experienced musicians to fulfill his complex musical ideas (at the time, Todd was obsessed with the Yes album 'Fragile', particularly the song 'Roundabout'). A few years on (and minor line-up shuffling), the option of commercial radio/video priveleges and his own growing popularity as a solo artist won him over. This 1980 release, 'Adventures In Utopia', offers a fine melding of accessible tunes, with the instrumental integrity of well-seasoned musicians, enabling some of the tracks to go beyond the average fare. I have always thought highly of this record, (by chance, being the first red coloured vinyl LP I acquired) and with the focus on catchy arrangements (some bordering on cheezy - 'Love Alone' and 'The Very Last Time' are pieces I've never really appreciated...), each member sings lead on various tracks and their respective instruments can be heard clearly, courtesy of Todd and his band-mates production know-how. This record can be enjoyed by many music-lovers regardless of their pre- conceptions of Prog-Rock. I am only stating this because this album veers on the overtly 'Pop' side of things, with light Proggy touches here and there, but I certainly can vouch for Roger Powell's varied Keyboard playing (especially on 'Caravan'), Kasim's melodic and busy Bass-playing, the solid, punchy Drum-work of John Wilcox (albeit more straight-forwardly approached, but he's previously proven he can tackle complex patterns with a degree of ease...) and Todd will always be a marvellous, profound Lead-Guitarist/Vocalist and quite sentimental to me. 'Adventures In Utopia' may not be as reknowned as it should be, but features tremendous musicianship, and a handful of memorable and fun tunes, regardless. 3 stars