Klaus Schulze - Mirage (2005)

Twenty-eight years ago, they didn’t really even have a name for this stuff. “Space Music” wouldn’t enter into the shared consciousness of the music world until the mid-to-late-80s and although it has since branched out into various sub-genres of the electronic music tree, it remains a decidedly cult phenomenon. Although musician/producer Brian Eno is often mistakenly considered the father of space music due to his tonal experimentation in “ambient” music, the truth is that electronic music pioneers like Kraftwerk, Cluster, Edgar Froese and Tangerine Dream and Faust cleared the path for Eno years before.

Of the many musicians whose work would further the evolution of electronic music, perhaps none were as adventuresome or tireless as Germany’s Klaus Schulze. Schulze recorded with both the seminal Tangerine Dream and the psych-rock collective Ash Ra Tempel before abandoning the band format in favor of a solo career in 1971. To say that his subsequent output was prolific would be understating the truth – Schulze released an amazing fourteen albums in the first ten years of his solo career. Even more incredible is that Schulze has released over 80 albums in the thirty years since he broke from his previous bands, each one a significant work of composition and style.

Released in 1977, Mirage was Schulze’s eighth album and what many critics and fans consider to be his best. Schulze had mastered the possibilities provided by synthesizers and studio technology with a trio of early-70s albums – Cyborg, Picture Music and Blackdance – and would go on to experiment more with tone and emotion on future releases. With Mirage, Schulze attempted to create a “winter landscape,” recreating the bleak white and gray tones of the season with the instruments at hand. The resulting album is sparse, eerie, meditative and a masterpiece of form and performance in every aspect.

The original 1977 release of Mirage, restricted by the vinyl LP format, featured two extended cuts, one on either side of the album. Each composition consists of several passages, which often change the direction of the piece. The first, “Velvet Voyage,” is a hypnotic twenty-eight minute essay, subdued in nature and playing to the listener’s sub-conscious. It is minimalist and quite beautiful, if challenging. The second track, “Crystal Lake,” clocks in at slightly more than twenty-nine minutes. Embellishing the basic underlying track with chimes, synth washes and other electronic wizardry, Schulze creates a breathtaking musical soundscape that is both ambitious and thought provoking.

The Inside Out Music reissue of Mirage includes deluxe packaging, liner notes, photos and an additional bonus track, “In Cosa Crede Chi Non Crede?” The nineteen-minute coda extends the sonic soundtrack of the first two tracks, its subdued electronic instrumentation causing one to strain to take it all in. With a myriad of colors and sounds, however, it is well worth the effort. A journey, of sorts, inspired by Italian novelist and philosopher Umberto Eco, the song’s title translates, roughly, as “in what it believes who does not believe?” The composition is every bit as daunting as its title; Schulze composing music much the same way as Eco composes literature.

For music fans inquisitive enough to want to discover more about electronic music, the work of Klaus Schulze is essential. Although I personally would not recommend Mirage as a starting point – Picture Music may be less challenging an introduction – I would heartily recommend it as your second or third dalliance with Schulze, if only to experience what can be done by a master painting with notes instead of colors. (Inside Out Music)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Mirage from Amazon.com)

Klaus Schulze - Picture Music (2005)

One of the godfathers of contemporary “space music,” composer, musician and visionary Klaus Schulze was experimenting with electronic tones, synthesized music and ambient sounds while Eno was still playing the role of rock star. One of the leading lights of the late-60s/early-70s “krautrock” movement, Schulze was a member of the seminal German outfit Tangerine Dream, playing drums on the band’s influential debut album, Electronic Meditations. Schulze went on to form the psych-rock collective Ash Ra Tempel with Manuel Göttsching, recording a single album with that band before striking out on a successful solo career that is now in its fourth decade.

Recorded in 1973, but not released until 1975, Picture Music was actually the third album recorded by Schulze, although it would be the fourth solo album to be released. Some have said that this is Schulze’s first true “synthesizer” album and I would have to concur. While Schulze’s contemporary Walter/Wendy Carlos used Robert Moog’s pioneering technology to dabble in pop music and film scores, Schulze’s muse took him down an entirely different path. Schulze envisioned sounds as an expression of emotion and thought, using a battery of synthesizers – along with whatever studio wizardry was available in 1973 – to rewrite the rules of musical composition with Picture Music.

While others were content to remain earthbound and chase after traditional musical forms, Schulze had his eyes on the stars with Picture Music. Predicting Brian Eno’s ambitious experimentation in ambient music by a half-decade, and furthering the trailblazing work of his sophomore effort Cyborg, Schulze would tinker with tone, rhythm and the concept of spaciousness on Picture Music.

The album opens with the almost twenty-four minute piece “Totem,” a subdued meditative piece that shows Schulze tentatively incorporating the abilities of the synthesizer into his work. Fragments of rhythm and melody swirl in and out of the piece, lost beneath bubbling electronics and a fragile painting of distance. “Totem” acts as ‘ying’ to its companion song’s ‘yang,’ the twenty-three minute “Mental Door” a more aggressive, percussive piece. The composition starts out dark and quiet, before building to a crescendo of Baroque keyboard riffing, clashing cymbals and jazzy, often tribal drumming. It is a breathtaking piece, as invigorating and energetic as “Totem” is contemplative and introspective.

Due to Schulze’s importance in the field of electronic music, Picture Music has been reissued countless times, mostly by various European labels and often with different cover art and song indexing. This American reissue, by the exemplary prog-rock label Inside Out Music, offers deluxe packaging, rare photos, informative liner notes and best of all, a thirty-three minute, previously unreleased bonus track. “C’est Pas La Meme Chose,” according to Schulze, is actually an extended, more involved reading of “Totem,” taking the original song’s meditative theme and extending it towards a new horizon. It is a fitting bookend to Picture Music, punctuating Schulze’s influence in the genre and providing a fitting coda to this important and often overlooked entry in the canon of electronic music. (Inside Out Music)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Picture Music from Amazon.com)

Redemption - The Fullness Of Time (2005)

On paper, Redemption’s pedigree couldn’t look any stronger – vocalist Ray Alder and guitarist Bernie Versailles hail from the legendary band Fate’s Warning while bassist James Sherwood and drummer Chris Quirarte are on loan from up-and-coming prog-metal band Prymary. Multi-instrumentalist Nick van Dyk is the glue that holds it all together, molding the contributions of these various talents into a cohesive sound and sonic texture imbued with his unique musical vision.

Any questions of a “sophomore slump” are quickly laid to rest with the opening notes of The Fullness Of Time, Redemption’s second album. “Threads” kicks off with blazing guitar riffs, waves of sound leveling everything within sight until the quieting piano begins to seep in around the edges of the song. From this point, it’s full-scale madness, galloping rhythms supporting Alder’s soaring vocals as the song takes more instrumental twists and turns than a dark country road. “Parker’s Eyes” is a chilling take on the loss of innocence, using the tragedy of September 11^th as a backdrop to illustrate the effects of hate and violence. Alder’s vocals impart a certain weary worldliness to van Dyk’s intelligent lyrics, while cacophonic instrumentation swirls behind him in the mix. “Scarred” is a battle of self-doubt and reflection, the song matching industrial-strength arena-rock riffs with classic prog keyboard wizardry behind Alder’s impressive vocal gymnastics. “Sapphire,” a tale of love lost, or perhaps the path not taken, begins as a subdued ballad before van Dyk’s keyboards take flight and the drums begin to pound and the entire band kicks in and the song leaves the stratosphere on wings of divine noise.

The second half of The Fullness Of Time is a conceptual song suite, lyrically divided into four themes. As you might guess from the titles of each section, the song describes a spiritual journey, of sorts, from the betrayal and loss of “Rage” and the subsequent abject loneliness and hopelessness of “Despair” to forgiveness of “Release” and the freedom of “Transcendence.” It’s an ambitious lyrical suite that stumbles now and then but succeeds in the end, describing both a personal sojourn as well as that of the country in a post-911 world, all wounds healed by only “the fullness of time.” The four songs, clocking in at a healthy 20 minutes altogether, are also an excellent showcase for the instrumental prowess of the band that van Dyk has assembled. Over the course of the four sections, everybody has a chance to shine, and the various inspired combinations of vocals, guitar, bass, drums and keyboards stun the listener with both the creative mastery and the technical proficiency of the players.

Progressive rock and metal may be about the least “hip” genres on the entire musical planet, kissing cousins holding hands, snubbed by alt-rock indifference and ridicule. As fans of the two faces of prog realize, though, there’s some great music being made in the trenches, bands like Redemption leading the charge out of the underground. Incorporating elements of everybody that has come before, from Kansas and Rush to Dream Theater, Fate’s Warning and Spock’s Beard, Nicolas van Dyk has brought his considerable vision and talent to bear on The Fullness Of Time and it shows. If you’re bored by the cookie-cutter kiddie-metal and rote hard rock being crammed down your throat by the major labels, take a walk on the prog-rock wild side with Redemption. (Sensory Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy The Fullness Of Time from Amazon.com)

Porcupine Tree - Deadwing (2005)

If any band leads the charge, bringing progressive-rock back to the great unwashed masses, it may well be Porcupine Tree. For almost a decade and a half, the English band, led by singer, songwriter and guitarist Steven Wilson, has forged a career by tempering prog-rock tendencies with hard rock sensibilities. Unlike other leading lights in the modern prog movement such as Spock’s Beard or the Flower Kings, bands that take their cue from ‘70s-era progmasters like Yes or King Crimson, Porcupine Tree instead follows a path more similar to Pink Floyd. Throw in a strong measure of NWOBM reliance on startling guitar riffs; add elements of lush, ‘90s-vintage 4AD label atmospherics and stir well with Wilson’s self-taught musical genius and you’ll have the sound of Porcupine Tree.

The eighth studio effort from Porcupine Tree, and only the band’s second album to receive any sort of significant stateside distribution, Deadwing is a magnificent collection of songs with easy appeal to both the mainstream music fan and the diehard prog-rocker. The album opens with the nine-minute-plus title cut, a stunning musical tour de force that never loses steam no matter how many twists and turns the song takes. Infected with an overall moody ambience, Wilson’s somber lyrics are supported by taut leads and blazing riffs, tribal drumbeats and Richard Barbieri’s magnificent keyboard wizardry. The wiry guitar solo in the middle of the song is provided courtesy of Adrian Belew, a well respected fretmaster with credentials from both the prog-rock and art-rock worlds.

Deadwing gets a little heavier with “Shallow,” a riff-happy rocker that edges into industrial territory, swinging back towards sanity before Trent Reznor comes knocking at the door. Alternately both brutally electric and gently melodic, the song’s theme of technological alienation stands in stark contrast to “Lazarus,” a pastoral composition with fine vocal harmonies and beautifully constructed instrumental passages. “Halo” ventures into horror-rock territory, echoed vocals and monster rhythms counterbalanced by a harmonic chorus with its roots in hard-rocking ‘90s-era grunge.

The band is at its most progressive with the twelve-minute “Arriving Somewhere But Not Here,” the song’s breathtaking instrumentation incorporating elements of swirling psychedelica, Eno-styled ambient electronics and classic, ‘70s-vintage prog-rock song structure. The punchy “Open Car” may be as close to a single release as Deadwing ventures; with its monstrous riffing and larger-than-life vibe the song sojourns into prog-metal territory and would fit perfectly into a modern rock radio format.

Handling vocals, guitars and some secondary keyboards, Wilson’s talents are abundant. Every wunderkind needs players to push them towards greatness, however, and Porcupine Tree offers an impressive collection of instrumental virtuosos. Richard Barbieri, who cut his teeth with groundbreaking ‘80s-era new wave art-rock band Japan, brings a classical element to the band, his keyboard and synth creations providing the underlying structure for Wilson’s complex, extravagant compositions. Bassist Colin Edward is more than mere background scenery, his fills and occasional leads providing the band’s sound with a heavy bottom end while drummer Gavin Harrison brings an explosive hard rock mentality to the material. Altogether, the band’s musical chemistry is quite impressive, the foursome creating a tapestry of sound and emotion that is ambitious in scope and invigorating in its results. Poised on the brink of U.S. stardom, Porcupine Tree is ready for you…but are you ready for Porcupine Tree? (Atlantic Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Deadwing from Amazon.com)

Spock's Beard - Gluttons For Punishment (2005)

The remaining members of Spock’s Beard had a lot to live up to when founding member and songwriter Neal Morse left the band a couple of years back. The major architect of the trademark Spock’s sound, Morse’s departure forced the other band members to step up and take the reins of the popular prog-rock trailblazers. With drummer Nick D’Virgilio assuming lead vocal duties and underrated guitarist Al Morse stepping into the spotlight more often, the band took on a harder, rock-oriented edge with its two post-Neal albums, Feeling Euphoria and Octane. The band developed a collective approach to songwriting that took advantage of their individual strength’s, bringing in friend John Boeghold for lyrical assistance where needed.

All that was missing was for the “new” band to establish its identity as a top-notch performance outfit, a questionable goal they seem to have rapidly achieved. After all, this is basically the same batch of guys that recorded such classic modern prog albums as The Light and Beware Of Darkness. Morse’s abdication changed the band’s sound and, perhaps, its focus but the talent and instrumental creativity remained in place. As documented by Gluttons For Punishment, the first live set from Spock’s Beard, version II, any questions about the band’s performance skills were absurd from the beginning.

Recorded during Spock’s Beard’s Spring 2005 European tour, Gluttons For Punishment, Live In ‘05 effectively recreates the recent Octane album almost in its entirety and in virtually the same running order as the studio original. Although it’s unusual for a band to release a live disc in such close proximity to a studio album, the clamoring of fans evidently tipped the band’s hand. There is some embroidery provided the studio versions of the Octane songs, albeit very little, and although the performances are dynamic and multi-layered, one can’t help but wonder what a little more time might have added to these songs in the way of instrumental interpretation.

The band all but ignores its recent Feeling Euphoria album, covering only two of that disc’s songs in “The Bottom Line” and “Ghosts Of Autumn,” alongside a sparse selection of songs from earlier Spock’s releases. “Harm’s Way,” from 1998’s The Kindness Of Strangers, provides an ample dose of keyboard wizard Ryo Okumoto’s mad riffing while also offering an excellent showcase for Al Morse’s understated and elegant fretwork. V’s “At The End Of The Day” kicks off the second disc, D’Virgilio’s vocals taking the song in different directions than Morse’s original reading, the tune benefiting from some improvisational jazz-rock fusion styled passages. Since taking over as the band’s frontman, D’Virgilio vocals have steadily improved, the talented drummer also forging a distinctive vocal identity around the band’s evolving sound.

Nowhere is D’Virgilio’s confidence more evident than on the album-closing, nearly twenty-minute revisiting of “The Light” from the very first Spock’s Beard album. The vocalist stretches his talents to their limits in recreating the roller-coaster highs and lows and dangerous curves of the song’s lengthy and varied performance. Given new muscle by the various players’ more aggressive direction, “The Light” is both a reminder of the past and a bridge to the band’s musical future. Spock’s Beard remains one of the most intriguing and innovative bands on the modern progressive rock landscape, a wonderful match of talents and musical chemistry that has continuously moved forward for over 20 years. Gluttons For Punishment, Live In ’05 is a fair snapshot of this moment in time for Spock’s Beard, an entertaining and exhilarating performance from one of the guiding lights of the current prog-rock movement. (Inside Out Music)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Gluttons For Punishment from Amazon.com)

Trey Gunn Band - Live Encounter (2001)

Multi-instrumentalist Trey Gunn made his bones as a student in Fripp’s League of Crafty Guitarists and subsequently became a member of King Crimson in 1995. Since then, the master of the enigmatic Chapman Stick has developed a following of his own through a handful of adventuresome albums with his Trey Gunn Band. Although his work with King Crimson has no doubt exposed Gunn’s considerable instrumental prowess to a larger audience, it is his personal work, such as Live Encounter, which has earned the artist a solid reputation.

Culled from tours in September 2000 and February 2001, Live Encounter revisits previous Gunn compositions in a live setting, allowing the band members to stretch out and experiment. A new song – “Hierarchtitiptitoploftical” – is sandwiched in between four songs from Gunn’s 2000 album The Joy of Molybdenum and his 1996 release The Third Star. For listeners unfamiliar with Gunn and company’s considerable chops, Live Encounter serves as an excellent introduction. Playing a 10-string Warr guitar, a remarkable instrument created by California designer Mark Warr that allows a skilled user to play both percussive rhythms and straight melody (if I understand correctly), Gunn creates a rich tapestry of sound.

The instrumental sound sculptures crafted by Gunn are complimented by the efforts of collaborators Joe Mendelson on 8-string Warr guitar, Tony Geballe on electric and 12-string acoustic guitar and percussionist Bob Muller. Together the foursome create a magnificent noise, incorporating Eno-inspired ambient passages and Eastern-influenced rhythms with an electric jazz/rock fusion undercurrent that draws as much from King Crimson as it does John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana. Defying musical genres and critical pigeonholing, the Trey Gunn Band are gamblers taking music to the edge, challenging the boundaries of live sound much as jazz artists like Miles Davis and John Coltrane did half a century ago. Making music that is both entertaining and thought provoking, Trey Gunn and crew solidify their reps as instrumental virtuosos with the amazing Live Encounter. (First World Records)

(The Live Encounter disc also includes a pair of Quicktime videos that you can view on your computer, including a full-length performance of “Kuma” that allows you to see these incredible instrumentalists at work.)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Live Encounter from Amazon.com)

Wetton-Manzanera - Wetton-Manzanera (1998)

As the driving instrumental force behind Roxy Music's biggest hits, Phil Manzanera developed a reputation as a top-notch axeman. Bringing a fluid, melodic musical current to play beneath Bryan Ferry's often bittersweet lyrics, his contributions to that band were acclaimed critically but sadly overlooked when the pundits were crowning the next big guitar hero. As shown by this decade-old effort with fellow Roxy alumni John Wetton, Manzanera is a superb pop songwriter.

The Britpop tunes collected on Wetton Manzanera are full of the sort of wonderful six-string flourishes that the guitarist brought to Roxy Music's material. Manzanera's clean lines and flowing chords breathe life into Wetton's light-hearted romantic lyrics, providing a musical backbone for the material. A small part of the legacy of one of rock's most accomplished guitarists, the reissue of this self-titled collaboration is worth another look if only for a glimpse of the soul and talent of Phil Manzanera. (Renaissance Records)

(Click on CD cover to buy Wetton-Manzanera from Amazon.com)

The Strawbs - Concert Classics, Volume 6 (1999)

Progressive rock, or "prog-rock' to its many fans, never really went away at the close of the '70s – it merely went underground, where it continues to ensnare adolescent males with its fusion of folk, psychedelic rock and classical influences. In any discussion of prog rock as an art form, the same names are always thrown about – Pink Floyd, Yes, King Crimson, ELP...even obscures ones like Atomic Rooster – but seldom will the Strawbs' name be brought up.

With relatively little chart success in the United States, Strawbs did somewhat better in their British homeland, marking up a succession of hit singles during the early-70s. With a sound that derived more from the folk side of the prog rock equation, Strawbs had a rich history, counting among its early members a pre-Fairport Convention Sandy Denny and a pre-Yes Rick Wakeman. The band released better than a dozen original albums from the late-60s into the mid-80s, a recording legacy that is in sad disarray. The band has mostly disappeared from the musical landscape, a sad situation only partially addressed by the domestic release of Concert Classics Volume 6 by Renaissance Records.

The lively performance captured by Concert Classics Volume 6 is not credited as to date and venue, but I'm guessing that it's from a late-70s show, judging from the tracklist, and possibly taken from a radio broadcast. It serves as a solid introduction to the magic of Strawbs, the band delivering a strong acoustic-based set. Originally formed as a bluegrass trio called the Strawberry Hill Boys by guitarist David Cousins, the band went through several changes in members and artistic direction before solidifying as Strawbs in 1969. Cousins could be considered a minor visionary, an adventuresome artist who pioneered the blending of folk roots and hard rock. Concert Classics Volume 6 showcases this musical style, with Cousins leading the band through eight songs drawn from at least five different albums that I can find. A few of the cuts here were bonafide hits, including the grand, eclectic "Hero And Heroine;" the powerful, hard-rocking "Heartbreaker," with its rapid-fire keyboard washes; and the eerie "Ghosts." The more pop-influenced "Simple Visions" is a stand-out track, sounding as fresh today as it did almost twenty-five years ago, Cousins' jangly guitar sound and sing-along verses a precursor to a lot of the college radio rock that would follow in the '80s.

As mentioned above, the entire Strawbs catalog is in significant disarray, with only this live disc and a couple of various greatest hits retrospectives available domestically. Strawbs were an important part of the prog-rock movement, an original and unique band that sounded like nobody before them and nobody since. If you're into progressive rock, you owe it to yourself to check out a different facet of the genre. Strawbs' Concert Classics Volume 6 is as good a place as any to begin familiarizing yourself with the band. Also, a handful of the band's original albums are available as import CDs from England, Germany and Sweden, among them their 1973 breakthrough album Grave New World, 1975's Ghosts and a twofer that combines Deep Cuts and Burning For You from 1976 and 1977. A fair amount of their recorded output can be found on vinyl, however – if you're interested, check your local used record store. (Renaissance Records)

(Click on the CD cover to buy Concert Classics, Volume 6 from Amazon.com)

Adrian Belew - Side One (2005)

Latter-day King Crimson guitarist and former Zappa sideman Adrian Belew hasn't released a solo album in nearly eight years, preferring to work with Robert Fripp as part of legendary prog-rockers Crimson, and with his own band, the Bears. When he hits the studio to do a little solo work, Belew does so with a vengeance, recording three -- count 'em -- three solo albums for release this year. Side One is the first of these efforts, a magnificent showcase for Belew's original and highly unique six-string skills. To put it bluntly, Belew's jagged guitarwork has more sharp edges than a broken bottle.

Belew recruited Les Claypool from Primus and Tool's Danny Carey to accompany him on several cuts, including the Hendrix-flavored "Ampersand," composed of syncopated rhythms and angular riffs, and the funky, distraught "Writing On The Wall." Belew's breathless vocals on the dreamy, drifting "Matchless Man" are supported by a fluid lead with a Moroccan flavor while "Madness" offers exactly that, a descent into darkness with cacophonic, swirling guitars and recurring riffs. The experimental "Elephants" uses found vocals and plodding, heavy leads approximating an elephant's cries to describe the plight of this endangered animal.

There are few vocals on the album, Belew preferring to let his guitar do the talking for him. At a mere thirty-three minutes, Side One may seem a bit brief, but the songs here are complex and quite intense. Side One is the work of an innovative instrumentalist not the least bit above experimenting with sound and composition. (Sanctuary Records)

(Click on CD cover to buy Side One from Amazon.com)