DWELLERS OF THE DEEP

I've been an avid follower and champion of these Norwegians for over ten years, however I think they may have overstayed their their adherence to the choice of YES imitation. As skilled as they are, as remarkable are the "new Yes songs" that they produce, I think it has gone too far. I want to hear more original sounds and more original ideas. Though Rick Wakeman, Chris Squire, and Jon Anderson (and to a lesser degree, Steve Howe and Alan White) should feel flattered, I'm afraid that no one will ever hear of Andreas Wettergreen Strømman Prestmo, Marius Halleland, Lars Fredrik Frøislie, Kristian Karl Hultgren, or Martin Nordrum Kneppen because everyone who hears a Wobbler album will only be hearing and comparing them to Yes.

1. "By the Banks" (13:49) My daughter's name is Persephone. I'm not sure yet whether this song is worthy of sending to her. The main rhythmic pattern and rising and falling chord progressions that the song returns to over an over throughout is memorable enough in a kind of Uriah Heep-approach-to-"South Side of the Sky"-kind of way-- and it is intra-dispersed with many divertissements and stylistic and instrument choice deviations to keep it interesting, but I'm not sure what element or aspect of the Goddess of the Spring and Queen of the Underworld they were going after, cuz I'm not feeling it. The most interesting part of the song, for me, is the unusual (and modern) instrumental bridge from 12:27 to 12:36. The end seems reverential but also quite final due to its abruptness--which, again, leaves me unsure as to what they were trying to express. The construction and instrumental performances are all top notch, it just lacks some (26.5/30)

2. "Five Rooms" (8:28) Wow, that was an odd opening: portentous organ preceding a racehorse start (a bit too wild and frenetic)--like Drama YES. things settle down in the YES-like third minute, and then feel solid YES until the frenzy continues--this time more controlled and smooth than the first time--at the end of the fourth minute. The first "new" (non-YES) idea comes in the middle of the fifth minute (though the drumming style may be non-Yes throughout). (17.5/20)

3. "Naiad Dreams" (4:24) opens with 90 seconds of solo classical guitar. The voice of Andreas Wettergreen Strømman Prestmo enters, singing a verse over the solo guitar before other instruments (bass, glockenspiel, pedal steel electric guitar) finally join in. Thank goodness for the fact that Andreas's voice is distinctive and different from Jon Anderson's, so that a song like this can take on it's own identity instead of being categorized as a "Yes imitation." The addition of the "female(?)" vocalist in the second half is awesome. (8.75/10)

4. "Merry Macabre" (19:00) opens with piano, which is then joined by cymbal play, glockenspiel, and bass before the full band breakout in the second minute. It almost sounds like an opening for a MAGMA Zeuhl song. But then the band launch into a full-forced heavy YES onslaught with Andreas singing over the top with the passion of PETER HAMMILL. I really like the STEPHEN STILLS lead electric guitar meandering around over and within the weave during the second and third minutes of this one--and then the 1980s rhythm guitar arpeggi in the instrumental fourth minute. The organ play is wonderful. A sparsely populated section in the fourth and fifth minutes provides a little respite before the next (jazzy) full band section at 6:25. There is an interesting bounce to the Hammond in the eighth minute. Then it gets a little jazzier (ANDY TILLISON-like) in the ninth and tenth minutes before softening into a gorgeous early-KC/ANEKDOTEN- like portentous weave at 9:30. Andreas joins in briefly to offer some simple words in the eleventh minute before an excellent (and wholly original) instrumental passage with psychedelic-treated voice mixed within ensues. It's almost REINE FISKE/PAATOS-like here. Awesome as the craziness builds and builds well into the fourteenth minute before a MiniMoog at 13:30 leads a shift toward a less-pleasing more rock section. At 14:30 everything drops out for piano and Andreas singing. This sounds like German band ANYONE'S DAUGHTER! The solo piano runs off into a very classical-sounding passage until an old synth joins in during the seventeenth minute and then the whole band jumps back in with an insistent pace reminding me of MOTORPSYCHO. Nice keyboard and cymbal work in this passage as the vocalist(s) try to wrap it up. Overall a pretty cool journey into the "darker" side of Wobbler (which really isn't very dark). (35.25/40)

Total Time 45:41

The mastery of composition and performance is still there. The sound production is superb. The YES-sound and - style patterns are still dominant, but there may be a little more variety on display here than on previous Wobbler releases. Though the multi-voice vocal harmonies are excellent (probably even better than those of YES), I feel too often that these guys are going too far to try to replicate the Yes weaves. Also, this album, for me, lacks the memorable melodic hooks of the two previous albums.

B+/4.5 stars; an excellent addition to any prog lover's music collection--especially if you adore 1970s Yes music.