Outer Music Diary

Firyuza – s/t (1980 Turkmenistan). I once joked that if it was from Turkmenistan, it had to be good. Of course I was talking about the Gunesh Ensemble, and didn’t realize there was a second group from the same place and time. Three long tracks adorn this one of a kind album. Seven piece group with guitar, sax, flute, keys, violin, bass, drums and percussion. While not as hot or as entirely unique as the almighty Gunesh, this is still a fascinating fusion, one that relects the unique culture of the Turkmens. I’m constantly amazed at some of the subversive sounds coming from the old Soviet Union. I’m surprised Boheme Music of Russian didn’t reissue this with all the other great ex-Soviet albums formerly on Melodia. Cool cover featuring the band, with instruments in hand, proudly wearing their traditional telpeks (tall fur hats).

Jumbo – Bigger and Better! (197? USA) Label: Leonard Productions. Pretty cool mix of Blood Sweat and Tears inspired horn rock and a traditional college level stage band. Not a lot of this kind of stuff available on the open market, and worth a few spins. No date on the album anywhere, but hair styles and clothes point to 1970 or so. Can’t find any info on the web about them either (which is why I left the label info here). No CD obviously.

Guntram Pauli + Christian Kabitz + Klaus Haimerl – Rock Requiem: Concert For Orchestra Choir And Band (1980 Germany). One of the many Christian progressive rock albums coming out of Germany at this time (Eden, Credemus, Yavanna, Gloria’s Children, etc…). Typically varied album with uplifting tones and lyrics. Nice flute (some nice echoing towards the end of the album) and acoustic guitar. Some latin mass overtures. And some regular rock tracks with early 80s digital synths. Naturally there are some full orchestra classical bits to sit through. A hit and miss affair, but better than you might think. No CD exists.

Heaven – s/t (1969 USA). Underground horn rock / psych album with delicious fuzz leads and cool roller rink organ sounds. Nice trumpet and trombone horn charts. Also some standard blues psych tunes as well. Interesting cacophonous freak out ending. This Nebraska band is not to be confused with the brass rock group from England. No CD exists.

Round House – ‘Scuse Me (1972 Germany).
Round House – Down to Earth (1973 Germany). German group who spent a lot of time with their Chicago Transit Authority album collection obviously. And they do a pretty convincing job of their variation of the horn rock sound. Some good grooves and they veer towards the jazzy side, always a plus in this genre. Much better than the more known Brain label horn groups like Emergency and Creative Rock. I wrote those words having heard only the debut “‘Scuse Me”. Followup album “Down to Earth” is more adventurous and includes a near side long suite similar to Chicago’s ‘A Girl from Buchanon’, but less pop oriented. Both albums lack consistency, but plenty of great stuff here, especially the Terry Kath inspired wah wah guitar. The Freeman’s say the album is ‘lightweight’ and of ‘marginal interest’, but I disagree with them here (for the record, I normally agree with them). No CD for either.

First Born – s/t (1973 Italy). I can find nothing about this band. Definitely one of the many instrumental Italian film library albums out there, and some of them contain different pseudonyms, as this might. Cool 60′s jet-set jazz funk tracks for the martini drinking James Bond crowd. Presuming this is rare as hens teeth, or it may just exist as another, more common, title. I only have a CD-R, so we’ll go with what I know. No surprise here, but no CD that I know of.

Soular System – Birth of Paradise (1971 Canada). Not much is known about this mysterious electronic album. The only name associated with it is James Bolden, and the album was released in France, thus the deduction of it being a Canadian affair. The music sounds more late 1970s than 1971, as the electronics have a late 1970s sound especially the electronic percussion (though the computer drums are primitive sounding, similar to Klaus Schulze’s “Picture Music”). Some psychedelic guitar on Side 2 adds much needed variety to an otherwise mundane album. Similar to Didier Paquette or Alain Renaud’s first album. No CD exists.

F.G. Experimental Laboratory – Hope (1977 Switzerland). One man electronic show from a gentleman named Frédy Guye. Good haunting electronics with some wordless voice. Akin to Jean-Baptiste Barriere though not quite as dire as those two albums. Guye should’ve added more variety to his keyboard selection to add color and tone to a pretty monolithic release. The Thors Hammer label (Garden of Delights) has already reissued “Journey Into a Dream”, and this album is scheduled to be reissued soon by the same label.

Francesco Cabiati – Mirage (1979 Italy). Rock / synth-based electronic hybrid that recalls artists such as Francesco Buccheri and Baffo Banfi’s 70′s works. The synthesizers of choice were modern for the day, but pretty thin sounding to modern ears, with the exception of the odd Moog solo. A very rare album that is much sought after by electronic collectors especially. Never reissued on CD.

Piano Conclave (directed by George Gruntz) – Palais Anthology (1975 Germany). Hard hitting fusion album on MPS from an all-star cast of Europe’s finest ivory ticklers. A mix of funky fusion, Canterbury rock and piano jazz. A nice surprise and not an album one would likely buy if they saw it – except for the marquee names, which is more than impressive: Gordon Beck, Wolfgang Dauner, George Gruntz, Jasper Van’t Hof, Joachim Kuhn, Martial Solal, John Lee, Alphonse Mouzon. Yea, pretty ridiculous lineup right there. Since the MPS label is starting to be reissued, I would imagine this would be a high priority for fans.

Jun Fukamachi 21st Century Band – Rokuyu (1975 Japan). Keyboardist Fukamachi made many fusion albums throughout the late 1970s. Supposedly this is his best and most progressive oriented album. Parts are great heavy fusion with smoking electric guitar, and one could see a band like Kenso getting wind of this prior to launching their career. One track is a pretty mundane, standard 70s jazz, that would later be known as “smooth jazz”. Side 2 is more varied and includes some experimental bits, electronic rock (mellotron, el. piano, synths, rock drums) and blistering heavy fusion. Pretty cool record. I haven’t seen on CD so I’ll presume it is in need of a reissue.

Patrice Meyer – Racines Croisees (1983 France).
Patrice Meyer – Dromadaire Viennois (1986 France). Two solid instrumental albums from guitarist Patrice Meyer, who recruited some famous Canterbury names like Pip Pyle, Hugh Hopper and Didier Malherbe (from Gong) to participate on the latter solo effort. “Dromadaire Viennois” has some Zeuhl bass and is the more interesting of the two albums. When Meyer plugs in, he can be quite kinetic. Both albums are rooted in jazz, and possess a tranquil side to offset the more energetic pieces. Not essential, but very good for the era, especially the latter album. Neither are available on CD.

Frantz – Peut Etre Aux Yeux Silence (1970 France). Interesting French pop psych album, with female vocals/narration, organ, guitar. Not a lot of albums like this coming out of France from this era. If France Gall went underground, I could see this being the result. Fans of Popera Cosmic should check it out. Pretty cool album. No CD.

Nemo – s/t (1973 France). A mix of funk, rock, jazz fusion. Mainly instrumental. Good stuff and features Francois Breant, who later had some success as a solo artist. They also have a second album, “Doin’ Nuthin’” from 1974, that I have here but haven’t heard yet. No CD exists.

Arc – Maquette (1980 France). Earnest attempt to recreate the Ange / Mona Lisa style of dramatic French language prog. Similar to other such efforts like Elohim’s “Le Mana Perdu” (1983), Trefle (1979) or Elixir’s “Sabbat” (1987). It’s a distinctly French form of rock, and for what it is, it’s pretty good. Don’t expect Ange though. Again, no legit CD exists.

Fairchild – s/t (1978 USA). Minneapolis based AOR progressive rock band. Strong overtones to the top acts of the era like Kansas, Boston, Journey and Styx – especially the latter. Though the album is private, it looks and sounds like a major label effort. For those that love the classic 70′s arena rock sound, this one is an all-timer. Never reissued on CD.

Hot Flash – First Attack! They’ll Never Take Us Alive (1977 USA). Boston area prog / AORish blend. Not that dissimilar from the Fairchild album, though this one has a bit more complexity to it. Better than other locally produced Beantown prog bands like Blind Owl and Marianus. There’s been some buzz on this album of late, but it’s strictly third tier stuff. Good, but certainly not astounding. No CD exists.

Omega – The Timekeeper (1979 USA). Not the well known Hungarian bunch, but rather a mundane US amateurish hard rock, with some odd electronic soundscapes that are more sophomoric in execution than atmospheric. Overall, a pretty aimless record. But fans of US private presses will enjoy, as this one is pretty much extinct. No CD exists.

Crypto – s/t (1974 Netherlands) Known as the Dutch Placebo, though I found this more funky and less “cool” than Marc Moulin’s outfit. Fairly typical of the era, especially the synth work. The guitar and Rhodes playing is a bit more exceptional, however. Overall a good example of the European instrumental funky fusion sound. File next to Saluki. Never issued on CD.

Spektar – s/t (1974 Croatia). Heard this at a friend’s house about 3 years ago, and nice to finally have a copy for myself. A keyboard trio, Spektar’s sound vacillates between funk (lots of clavinet), progressive (with organ featured) and straight ahead rock with some marginal vocals. There’s definitely some weeds to clear here, but underneath is some prime turf. All the 8 tracks are short. Probably the most obscure album coming from the former Yugoslavia, even more so than Izvir. Adding to the obscurity factor, Suzy was generally known for releasing straight pop music, and Spektar was sort of the odd album out. Not on CD.

Cry Freedom – Volcano (1976 Germany). One of the earlier entries in Germany’s huge fascination with everything jazz fusion. By the 1980s it seems there were dozens of such releases. Primarily instrumental sax/guitar/organ/synthesizer driven numbers, with a stronger than usual emphasis on melody. Not quite at the level of Embryo or Missus Beastly, but more thought out than Kraan, Headband, Morpheus, etc… File next to Katamaran. They have two later albums, but I’ve been told they aren’t quite up to standard. Another one that lacks a CD issue.

Continuum – End of Line (1984 USA) On the Schmizz label. Heavy American fusion featuring John Redfield on keyboards and Robert Baglione on guitar. Nope, I don’t know anything about them either, but that’s the ONLY references I could find on this album. Baglione is primarily featured, though there’s some mean synth soloing as well. The jazz sequences featuring piano also light it up. Has some of the most insane guitar runs I’ve ever heard, and this is prior to the shredder movement! There’s much more meat on its bones than most 1980s era fusion albums. Not quite as angular as the Inserts “Out of the Box” for example, but that kind of aggressiveness. A very welcome development and a window to what the 1980s could’ve been. Never released on CD. Not related to the 90s US group Continuum.

Jean-Claude Gaupin – Anatheme (1984 France). Fairly typical early 1980s era light, sunny and breezy funk fusion. The great exception being the edgy guitar work from Xavier Piton, his one and only venture into recorded music (that I could find anyway). Other than that, it’s the usual sax, Caribbean drums and warm / funky bass that push these harmless cruise ship style instrumental tunes along. Never issued on CD.

Agharta – s/t (1981 Canada). Light and breezy instrumental fusion with piano and various woodwinds (sax, clarinet, flute) mixed up front. Lead by keyboardist Jacques Mignault, and released on his own label, with the help of other local Quebec jazz musicians including Michael Seguin. Very much a product of its day, with strong overtones of same era Weather Report and Spyro Gyra. Well done for the style. Another one without a CD issue.

October – s/t (1979 USA).
October – After the Fall (1980 USA). October are a Detroit, Michigan area based progressive band. Their sound is a unique combination of symphonic prog rock with a pronounced fusion flair, probably due to the abundance of electric violin. The vocals have that late 1970s “private press voice” that is found on many albums from America during this time. Strangely, the vocals remind me a bit of the guy from Babylon, though not quite as Gabriel-esque. “After the Fall” is more symphonic rock oriented, and a bit looser in structure. Long passages are reserved for jamming and other instrumental experiments. Both albums have stood the test of time well, and are certain Tier 1 CD reissue wishlisters. I’ve had the self-titled album on LP for well over 15 years. “After the Fall” remains as probably the single rarest US progressive rock album, with supposedly only 25 pressed, each with a hand painted watercolor cover. I can honestly say that in all the years I’ve been collecting, I’ve never seen one actually for sale. A good friend of mine paid dearly for one, and it’s a site to behold. Neither have been reissued legitimately on CD to date, though bootlegs abound. Syn-Phonic owns the master tapes, so I think eventually they will reissue both.

Mutha Goose – I (1975 USA). Typical Midwest prog, this time from Indiana. Recalls the southern Illinois group Thunderpussy in the compositions, though there’s a strong presence of keyboards here. Other reference points are Albatross, Ethos and Vindication. Better than most US private prog albums. No CD exists.

Sailor – s/t (1974 USA). Sometimes known as Sailor Band, though we could find no evidence of that on the LP itself. From Minnesota and surprisingly sophisticated for such a private release. Most privately released progressive albums from 1974 have a strong hard rock element, and there’s little of that here with this jazz and classically inspired album. Plenty of jazz guitar and piano. All instrumental. A nice surprise. Another one without a CD issue.

Pocket Orchestra – Knebnagauje (1984 USA). These go hand in hand with two other groups I’ve been checking out lately: Uz Jsme Doma and Begnagrad. This is “neener-neener” music to the neener-nth degree. A bit of a geek-fest, but insanely complex and the musicianship is way above standard. A walking definition of the term “avant progressive” as I know it. The 1983-4 material is much more in the avant prog zone, and you have to think they were well versed with the French AYAA label. Whatever the case, they were completely out of place in Phoenix, Arizona. The namesake title era of 1978-1979 shows their affiliation with the other famous Phoenix band, Cartoon. Both had a penchant to break out into a tuneless improve after cooking on some great grooves. Too bad they insisted on that, since some of this is outstanding material. Still I found this era to be better for the band, with a stronger rock element and more grit to the playing. Overall, not necessarily a favored style, but I can get into this with little effort.

Rebekka – Phoenix (1982 Germany). Been awhile since I heard this Musea CD, but my impressions haven’t changed a bit over the years. Part of a small cadre of German bands from the late 70s and early 80s that combined female vocal led soft rock, some folk, Eastern sounds and an occasional prog rock outburst. Werwolf, Yavanna, Credemus and Eden are a few bands that come to mind. One could throw Emma Myldenburger in here as well, but they were a bit more special. Anyway, good stuff overall, recommended to fans of Renaissance and other similar acts. Unusual as it is, but the CD bonus is the best track – a 12 minute Eastern journey “Lotus” which had to be left off the LP for time length reasons.

Melodic Energy Commission – Time… Is a Slippery Concept (2005 Canada). With these guys, time is a slippery concept. In 1979, MEC sounded like 1971. In 1980 they sounded like 1971. And 25 years later they sound like…no door prizes… 1971! When I say 1971, I don’t mean production styles and era instrumentation, but rather a certain adventurous composition style, completely non-linear and skewed, beyond the scope of rational imagination. Add to that about a baker’s dozen different instruments and a distinctive psychedelic sound, and you have one of the great modern space rock albums. Instant classic with plenty of room to grow from there. File Don Xaliman next to John L. as true modern geniuses who will be discovered long after they’re gone.

(originally posted Sep. 2005)