MOVIN' ON

What if the Charisma label's prog powerhouses - Genesis and Van der Graaf Generator - had endured a horrible accident on tour in 1970, and had to finish the tour as a hybrid band incorporating members and musical motifs of both groups? The end result might sound something like this second album from Circus.

Band leader Roland Frei manages to combine Peter Gabriel-esque theatrical vocals, dirty-ass David Jackson saxophone, and acoustic guitar bridging the styles of Anthony Phillips and Peter Hammill (with bassist Marco Cerletti aiding on the Anthony Phillips end of the spectrum with some magnificent twelve-string acoustic guitar), Andreas Grieder likewise adds further saxophone touches and also has a delicate style on the flute reminiscent of Peter Gabriel's oft-overlooked flute contributions to early Genesis, and Fritz Hauser's percussive backing can switch the mood of a track from peaceful and pastoral to haunting and menacing at the drop of a hat.

i was surprised to see that this came out in 1977, because it's reminiscent overall of an approach to prog from substantially earlier in the decade - still rooted in a psychedelic, esoteric underground - and there's a spooky edge to proceedings suggesting that if this were a real circus, it'd be one of those creepy abandoned ones attended by ghosts in the dead of night. Magnificent stuff.