CATAPILLA

Part of the extensive Vertigo stable of jazz-prog bands travelling in the wake of the mighty Colosseum, Catapilla's debut album is notable mainly for the vocals of Anna Meek, who this time around tends towards adopting a powerful Janis Joplin/Grace Slick roar as opposed to the Gilli Smyth-style space wails that would dominate the band's second album. The group as a whole is tight, but this time around show a certain lack of polish - there isn't much distinguishing them from any other group working this particular angle at this stage of their development, beyond Meek's vocals and the admittedly diverting sax playing from Hugh Eaglestone and Robert Calvert (no, not the Hawkwind Calvert, a different one).

The group would undergo some lineup changes and tighten up their style for the next album, which is generally superior; I'd only recommend this one to people who are absolutely in love with Changes, or to people who simply can't get enough of the Vertigo jazz-prog sound.