PENTWATER

In 1970 in Chicago, Illinois a bunch of schoolkids formed Pentwater River.Led by Mike Konopka (guitars,violin,flutes) and Tim Morsi (drums), next to bassist Marty Sachs, keyboardist Ken Kappel and guitarist Phil Goldman, Pentwater initially played Psychedelic/Classic Rock, before meeting the material of Yes, Genesis, ELP, King Crimson and Gentle Giant around 1972, when Sachs had already left the city and was replaced by Ron LeSaar, while the band was now simply called Pentwater.Gigs, radio broadcasts and several tracks followed, before Goldman quits in 1975 to be replaced by Ron Fox.This new five-piece line-up produced, recorded and released the band's self-titled debut in 1977 on their own Beef Records.

The album presents a very young and promising group, playing along the lines of ETHOS, YEZDA URFA and MAELSTROM, somewhat complicated Progressive Rock with multiple changes, polyphonic harmonies and sudden breaks, emphatically influenced by YES and to a lesser extent by KING CRIMSON and GENTLE GIANT.The performance of the band is usually sufficient and classy, though trapped in their own influences, but the general feeling is quite positive.The compositions have a strong YES flavor with deep bass work, STEVE HOWE-like guitar lines, while the use of multi-vocal harmonies among the soft symphonic passages is another proof of the Pentwater's major influence.Still the band lacks the unique talent of their English idols.The keyboard work is quite satisfying, though a bit dropped in the background for most of the album's length, with smooth piano parts and heavy mellotron/organ themes.Sometimes they even allow a slight Psychedelic Rock taste surface among their complex ideas.While Pentwater had little personality, their arrangements remained bombastic, atmospheric and really adventurous with both calm acoustic textures and captivating interplays dominating the musicianship.

A very interesting piece of the 70's US Progressive Rock scene.The 2003 CD reissue of the album contains four extra, previously unreleased tracks close to the style the band's presented in the original LP and the album comes strongly recommended to all fans of 70's Classic Prog...3.5 stars.