PROG FOLK

Nevertheless, this 1987 release remains a great example of how spiritual and transcendent music can get, effectively divided in half between the vocal performances of Perry and Gerrard, the former of the two providing a warm, caressing and profound tone of solemn wisdom, while the female counterpart anticipates the great heights of the uplifting, enchanting elements of the Dead Can Dance sound, together forging a carefully-curated balance between opposites, bound by the orchestrated dignity of the music, performed with great panache at all times, embracing and idiosyncratic. This is a dark and atmospheric album of great quality, from the cryptic enchantments of opening track 'Anywhere Out of the World' to the haunting tones of the instrumental 'Windfall', or the complex soundscapes on 'Xavier', taken on and elevated by the second half of the record with ominous and ritualistic compositions like 'Dawn of the Iconoclast' and 'Cantara', or the absolutely triumphant closing opus 'Persephone', an exercise in orchestrated melancholy, bathed in medieval bliss. Simply an album without confinements, a work that stands on its own with its magical overtones and meticulous grip over the listener, there is an unparalleled scope to this record that renders it incredibly special and unique.

We do know the pair co-wrote half the songs and it certainly sounds like the PINK FLOYD guitarist's melodic style on several tracks. One of these is "Short and Sweet" which appeared on Gilmour's first solo album in 1978, and is one of the highlights here. "You" is a solid collaboration with KATE BUSH, but my favorite here is the gossamer and poignant "Fly catcher", one of Harper's most successful ballads, with kudos to the perennial wisdom of DAVID BEDFORD.

Unfortunately, like many a 1980s album from a 1970s (and early) artist, "The Unknown Soldier" lacks some in consistency and quality, particularly on the lazy lyrics marring "I'm in Love with You", which could have been a centerpiece with reduced apathy; and the final two songs, both stylized and virtually taste-free attempts to modernize. However, "Playing Games" works in a BE BOP DELUXE meets early 1980s CAMEL manner.

This isn't an album I'd go to battle over, but it's still insightful enough to avoid ignominy, even 40+ years on.

Curious Ruminant starts with "Puppet and the Puppet Master". Its opening passage is peppy and folky, with ample acoustic guitar and accordion. This is better than most of the band's recent output, and it strongly calls to mind Tull's output in the mid-to-late 1990s. Anderson's sing-talking isn't great, but with the state of his voice, this is really the best he can do.

The title track comes next, and it slows things down. There's a steady, crunching guitar line, and Anderson's flute playing is great. The band does a good job at keeping things tense, and this is more reminiscent of something off Broadsword and the Beast. I also like that the band's new guitarist has more character to his playing than the last one. He's still no Martin Barre, but it's an improvement. Despite everything positive I have to say about this song, it doesn't need to be six minutes long. Four-and-a-half would have been fine.

"Dunsinane Hill" returns to a folkier sound palette, with flute and accordion taking the lead in its opening. It is, however, also a step down from the prior two songs. Its glacial pace and unsubtle sing-talking makes me think of certain Roger Waters-penned songs. In its second half, the instrumental backing gets a bit more interesting, but this still isn't my favorite cut on the album.

The band returns to their '90s sound on "The Tipu House". It's a fun, high-energy cut, and I especially like the dark and swirling chorus. In contrast, "Savannah of Paddington Green" is a slow, sweet acoustic song. It's not bad, but it doesn't do much to stand out. Ian Anderson has written a lot of songs that sound like this one.

"Stygian Hand" sticks with the overall sound of the preceding cut, but it's got a lot more pep in its step. Mandolin, accordion, and flute give this cut a strangely pirate-y vibe, but it's not goofy. It's just got that "vaguely old-timey British nautical" feel to it, if that makes sense. However, it probably could have been trimmed down by about a minute.

The mood on "Over Jerusalem" is mellower and more whimsical. It's also a bit sappy, and the melody is somewhat awkward and unnatural. This isn't exactly Tull's strongest work.

"Drink from the Same Well" is the band's longest song since A Passion Play. (It clocks in two full seconds longer than "Baker St. Muse"!) The opening passage is a classical-influenced bit of piano, flute, and bass, and it's a pleasant instrumental moment. That introduction is followed by some bouncy folk flavors with the occasional bit of new age-y ambiance. It's pleasant enough, but some of this drags on for longer than it needs to; parts of this huge song can feel repetitious.

The instrumental first half of this song shifts abruptly to a verse. It's a bit wispy for my taste, but there are some good melodic ideas here. A bit more instrumental punch would have been nice, but Anderson's voice doesn't have the strength necessary for that. He needs the backing to be relatively light, or at least deliberately-paced. 

The second half of this song is unnecessarily dragged-out. Its length could have easily been trimmed to about 10-12 minutes without losing much. It kills the momentum of the album up to this point, and much of it just left me bored.

The final song on the album is also its shortest, "Interim Sleep", a brief spoken-word piece.

Curious Ruminant is both the folkiest and the best of Tull's post-reunion output. They sound a bit more like a band, rather than an Ian Anderson solo project. Anderson's voice is still a major hurdle for the band to overcome. He's learned to work within his limitations, but it's still a limitation. Aside from the overlong "Drink from the Same Well", the songs here are mostly focused and generally enjoyable.

Review originally published here: theeliteextremophile.com/2025/03/10/album-review-jethro-tull-curious-ruminant/

Malabriega, the progressive flamenco band from Seville, presents 'Frippada Andaluza', an album that stands out among the most interesting of the year. Although it inevitably brings to mind Triana due to its blend of flamenco and rock, the truth is that Malabriega doesn't remain in the shadow of its predecessors. This album feels fresh, without nostalgia or attempts to recreate what has already been done, but rather with a common root that connects them to the tradition of the genre. The result is an album that has its own voice, modern and relevant to these times.

One of the album's strengths is its fluidity. Each song unfolds naturally, as if everything was designed to flow as coherently as possible. There are no awkward moments or abrupt changes that break the rhythm. The instrumental passages are perfectly balanced with the vocal sections, creating a harmonious and well-connected whole. The music moves freely between different moods, from the most introspective to the most intense, without ever losing its pulse.

The production is another indisputable success. 'Frippada Andaluza' is characterized by a raw yet warm sound, without excessive polish that mars the authenticity of the ensemble. Each instrument has its space and is heard clearly, but at the same time there is a sense of closeness and humanity, as if the band were playing directly to the listener. This direct approach is part of the album's charm and gives it an emotional dimension that captivates from the first moment.

The voice, meanwhile, is one of the album's highlights. There's no need to boast or show off grand artifice to stand out. The performance is precise, without falling into excess, and conveys each word with the necessary intensity. This ability to say a lot with few vocal resources reinforces the album's honesty and allows the music to take center stage without detracting from the lyrics.

Overall, 'Frippada Andaluza' is one of the most solid and original offerings of this year. Malabriega has achieved something truly remarkable: an album that breathes on its own, that explores and takes risks without losing its essence. It's undoubtedly an album that will make more than one person stop and listen.

Music: 4 stars

Lyrics: 4 stars

Execution: 4 stars

Emotion: 5 stars

Production: 4 stars

Artwork: 4 stars

Average: 4.16

I'm not sure where Strawbs leader Dave Cousins dug up this great sounding live artifact that was recorded at the same time as the Just Collection Of Antiques And Curios live album from 1970. This single CD is twice its length for starters and really shows off new boy Rick Wakeman much better than the Antiques And Curios album. Standout tracks include "The Man Who Called Himself Jesus", "The Battle", another excellent take on "The Antique Suite", and a stunning 9 minute version of "Where Is This Dream Of Your Youth". The last song featuring a 5 minute organ tour de force by Wakeman.

The band at this time was Cousins on acoustic guitar, electric guitar and lead vocals, Tony Hooper on acoustic guitar and co-lead vocals, Richard Hudson on percussion and sitar, John Ford on bass and vocals, and Wakeman on organ, grand piano, harpsichord and celeste.

Wakeman is, of course, stellar on organ and piano. Something that faded into the background with his future synth and mellotron workouts with Yes, whom he joined shorty after recording with the Strawbs on the From The Witchwood album, which followed the aforementioned Antiques And Curios album. 4 stars.

From all three recent additions to the discography of Jethro Tull, this 2025 offering might as well be the most consistent and successful one, speaking of the overall impression left off by the album, the flow and the architecture of the work as well as the quality of the music and the engagement of the listener with the compositions. Beautifully complex and quirky, at times really folklore-ish and playful, this album has some truly solid numbers, which shall be a fine treat for dedicated fans, like the title track, 'Stygian Hand', 'Over Jerusalem', and the 17-minute-long epic 'Drink from the Same Well' (a piece necessarily evoking the grandiose 'Baker St. Muse' from 1975), containing some delightful instrumental sections in its first half. Yet going back to the age-old dispute of what is progressive nowadays, 'Curious Ruminant' probably hardly qualifies as such, since this album barely diverges from the musical musings already established on the two preceding releases. Nevertheless, this album will make Tull fans happy and while it is nothing groundbreaking, it is a good, well-curated and well-performed recording by a legendary classic band.

Structured as a classic album, with its twelve track-tracklist, 'RökFlöte' presents an interesting resurgence of those traditional J-Tull antics and sounds, much beloved by fans of the band's late 60s/early 70s period, with leading flutes, swiveling all over the place, around which the other members virtually play the music of Ian Anderson, supporting him in the crafting of the various pieces. Stylistically, this album certainly qualifies as folk-rock with progressive tendencies, and quite frankly, there are plenty of joyous, marvelous and exquisitely well-written instrumental passages, eventually supporting the idea that this might have been a gorgeous instrumental Tull release. Songs like 'Ginnungagap', 'Hammer on Hammer', 'Wolf Unchained', 'Trickster', 'The Navigators' and 'Ithavoll' all offer a daring amalgamation of the heavy and acoustic guitar riffs, the lovely mandolin, and Anderson's spiky, warm flutes, generally reminiscent of albums like 'Heavy Horses', 'Aqualung', and even 1969's 'Stand Up'. But while the music is excellent all throughout, the vocals hardly impress as it had been noticed on 'The Zealot Gene', somehow collapsing the overall experience of this album, which is good, coherent and enjoyable at large.