PSYCHILLIS OF A LUNATIC GENIUS

One of the greatest missed opportunities of the early 1970s surely belongs to the Belgian collective of talent known as PAZOP. Too eclectic, too cleverly creative and too removed from the major progressive rock regions of the world during the early era of prog, PAZOP was teased with all the promise of carving out a career in the blossoming world of the 70s prog scene but thwarted at the last minute at every move. Despite giving it all a veritable effort from every possible angle, PAZOP had disbanded a mere two years after forming in 1972 despite having recorded two complete albums worth of material. Sadly these classic recordings would sit quietly on some undisclosed dusty shelf awaiting a reawakening some two decades later.

The band formed in Brussels in 1972 and was forged out of a group of talented musicians who had ties to various previous musical acts. Flautist and vocalist Dirk Bogaert, drummer Jacky Mauer and keyboardist Frank Wuyts all emerged from the Brussels based Waterloo, an early Belgian band making a transition from the world of 60s blues based psychedelic rock into the more progressive styles that were blossoming all across Europe. Bassist Patrick Cogneaux on the other hand emerged from the short-lived Arkham which was one of the first bands to emerge out of England that was dabbling in the world of Canterbury jazz that had practically just begun with bands like Caravan and Soft Machine a few years prior. The fourth member, the Polish born classically trained violinist Kuba Szczepanski had his connections with the Brussels Opera Philaharmonic Orchestra before joining the Baroque psychedelic pop band the Wallace Collection in 1968.

Starting out without a name and eventually settling on Pas Op, the Flemish word for "Warning," the quartet stylized the name to PAZOP which gave it a rather unique moniker which also added an air of mystery. The name actually perfectly matched their idiosyncratic blend of progressive rock that was as inspired by King Crimson and the zany avant-prog whimsical antics of Frank Zappa as it was with the jazz-fusion sounds of England's Canterbury Scene. Having proven themselves as a popular local live band in the local Belgian scene, the band was wooed into a contractual agreement with the Barclay label and allowed to begin recording sessions on their debut album titled PSYCHILLIS OF A LUNATIC GENIUS, the PSYCHILLIS part referring to a species of peacock orchid native to the West Indies. After recording a total of eight tracks that were to be the debut album, the label rejected them based on the fact that weren't commercial enough for the market they were aiming for.

Completely dismayed but not totally demoralized, PAZOP continued on by delivering well received live performances that showcased the band's exquisite compositional flair of writing clever musical scores, some vocal based and others completely instrumental but each with a unique spin on the world of progressive rock which gave the band its own distinct unique style from the very beginning. Adding insult to injury the band was approached once again by the musician Sylvan Van Holme who wanted them to adapt musical scores from classical artists such as Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, Mozart and Verdi to the world of modern progressive rock so once again the band was off to the recording studio and recorded a "second" album of innovative arrangements that offered an even more demanding spin on the band's already quirky stylistic approach that it had developed on the unreleased debut. Once again the band's efforts were completely rejected due to the fact Van Holme as aiming for a more pop-oriented watered down approach to such musical hybridization.

That was the final straw for a completely deflated PAZOP. Financially and emotionally bankrupt, the band called it quits in 1974 leaving two phenomenally brilliant albums to collect dust for more than two decades until the prog revival of the 1990s found labels like Musea scouring the rubble of the past in order to salvage the lost treasures that should've materialized during their day. The two albums emerged together in 1996 as the compilation PSYCHILLIS OF A LUNATIC GENIUS which featured eight tracks that were intended to be the first album and an additional eight tracks that were created to be the second.

Musically speaking, PAZOP were top dogs in the world of prog with an amazing display of compositional fortitude fortified with seasoned instrumental interplay and dazzling virtuosity. The band's eclectic sound is hard to pigeonhole. The potpourri of influences range from the world of classical legends and Canterbury jazz rock to the quirky whimsical brilliance of Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. On vocal tracks Dirk Bogaert showcased a wide range of singing styles ranging from an emphatic well pronounced huskiness to utterly off the wall wailing and complete irreverence to established vocal norms. The first album is a bit more conservative with more emphasis on established song structures and singing styles but by the time the band recorded its second album, the members had garnered a true sense of musical freedom and went for the jugular as far as delivering some of the most far out music that existed in the world of whimsical prog. Amazingly enough the band consisted of a vocalist / flautist, keyboardist, violinist, bassist and drummer and yet delivered their whole enchilada without a trace of guitar.

PAZOP was one of the Belgian greats that was obviously too far ahead of their time to be recognized in their region of Europe. The band did everything right. Lyrics were in English. The melodic elements were instantly catchy and the hooks were irresistible. Soloing and progressive elements were cleverly constructed in a logical cohesive manner and the band exuded a charismatic delivery of tracks that all stood out from one another by offering a limitless expansive creative edge over pretty much anything going on in the Belgian scene during the timeline of 1972-1974. A lost gem perhaps but one that finally has gotten the recognition it deserves and if you ask me PAZOP was one of the most creative and talented bands to come out of the entire Belgian prog scene before the darker avant-chamber prog bands like Univers Zero and Present came onto the scene in the latter half of the decade.

To make things even more confusing, the French based Replica Records also decided to release the band's two albums only as separate units. This label would release the archival first album with the same title as this compilation by Musea and then would release the second album as a self-titled release. Both albums are fairly irrelevant considering everything you could possibly want from PAZOP is on this sole Musea compilation. This album really delivers it all! Outstanding tracks that range from a proto-prog stage that features more standard vocal and songwriting techniques to the utterly bonkers tracks such as "In The Army (Devil Likes Smoke)" and "Airport Formalities And Taking Off / Stewardess And Breakfast." PAZOP really delivered the highest caliber of early 70s prog and suffered one of the greatest injustices of the entire era perhaps. This is a must for fans of Canterbury infused progressive rock that indulges in wild excessive creativity, hilarious jocularity as well as top notch instrumental elegance. I wouldn't call it an understatement to claim that the record companies committed one of the greatest prog crimes of the century by ignoring PAZOP.