Aural Innovations Issue #4 — Album Reviews

Escapade — Citrus Cloud Cover

(Mother West, 1998 MWR010698)

Jerry Kranitz

On the back of the CD case Escapade proclaims: "All Escapade music is composed spontaneously and collectively. No overdubs are utilized". An appropriate phrase indeed as the band's improvised music more often than not does seem well thought out, if not actually composed..

Escapade is a five piece and on this 2-CD set consists of Paul Hilzinger and John Ortega on various keyboards and synths, Joey Murphy on bass and percussion, Paul Casanova on guitar, electronics, and percussion, and Hadley Kahn on drums and percussion. Though firmly in the space realm, Escapade is more like a fusion band that got turned on to Hawkwind while listening to the likes of Miles, Sun Ra, and King Crimson. The band plays extended improvs that come across not so much as jams than as continuously developing ideas and themes. The music can be abstract at times but is always accessible.

Some highlights include: "Undermine" and "Overmine", together totaling about forty minutes, were both recorded during the Orion SpaceRock Festival in October '97. "Undermine" features a slow exploratory jazz journey that becomes a bit of a jazz-psych freakout. This may be a stretch but the guitar at one point reminded me of James Blood Ulmer, an interesting effect combined with all the swirling synths. The music eventually calms and the musicians play away seemingly independent of one another, though the result is neither confusing nor chaotic. I guess that's what good improvisation is about! "Overmine" is another cosmic fusion workout that prominently features the synths and percussion. Both concentrate on steady theme development and the guitar almost works like a synth in parts.

One of my favorite tracks is "It", a dark, somewhat avant-rock, King Crimson/Univers Zero-sounding piece. The bass has an extremely low zheul-like sound that gives the music a Magma feel. Of course the electronics help keep the whole thing in orbit placing Escapade in their own little corner of the SpaceRock domain.

"Turtle Chase" is far more ambient than the rest of the tracks. Spacey, but still with jazz and avant touches, this is like the soundtrack to a sci fi movie in which the action is driven by the music. The tune ends with a pounding rock bass and a mini synth freakout. Similar to this is the thirty minute "The Sunlight Hurts My Eyes". On my first couple cursory listens to this track I felt that the ideas had been played out long before the music ended. But closer listening reveals what really could have been a composed work. Truly a space symphony that takes the musical scenic route. Highly recommended to space fans who like improv, jazz, and creatively adventurous instrumental music.

Anubian Lights — Let Not The Flame Die Out

(Hypnotic, 1998 CLP 0340-2)

Jerry Kranitz

Yet another project from the Pressurehed gang, Anubian Lights plays heavy electronic, often danceable, space music. The principle players are Tommy Grenas and Len Del Rio, with guests like Nik Turner, and barely noticeable contributions from Simon House on one tune, and Gilli Smyth on one track. A lot of this actually reminds me of some of the more ambient moments from Pressurehed's "Explaining The Unexplained". Pressurehed without the heavy guitars perhaps?

Most of these tunes have some kind of techno beat, but the band usually has more going on musically to keep things interesting. As the band name and CD cover suggest (an alien popping out of a flying saucer and shooting at the Sphinx), the music explores Middle Eastern styles, which when combined with the synths make for a pretty far out sound. Tunes like "The Fire Breathes" and "Ali Mamoun's Broken Entranceway" use these styles to good effect, while others like "Our Man In Baghdad", and "Visions Of A New Homeland" incorporate traditional Egyptian singing and chants to make for a wild world-techno experience.

While the theme is fairly consistent throughout, a few tunes break the mold to keep things interesting. "South Of Dashur" sounds like some pop tune from one of those 60's pseudo-psych flicks. Very 'groovy'. "Atoms Of The Gods" is a jazzy piece that could be part of a James Bond soundtrack. And "As Seen In 822 A.D." has a salsa rhythm combined with Middle Eastern chanting. Freaky!

In summary, this will certainly appeal to those who like to follow the various projects the Pressurehed boys are involved in. SpaceRock for toe tappers.

Monster Magnet — Powertrip

(A&M Records 1998, 31454 0908 2)

Christian Mumford

Six albums into their career, three so far on A&M, and the possible numerological arrangement conspicuously fits perfectly with the commercially viable post-modern, hedonistic freakrock of the future that this New Jersey band delivers, interestingly bringing underground acid rock onto corporate airwaves in the 90's without selling out creatively, yet still hopefully making the band lots of bucks. For those who instinctively equate a successful 90's hardrock band (in broad terms) with the standard alterna-grunge fair or gender-bender industrial shock, know ye that Monster Magnet are in a league of their own, operating beyond the unconscious media symptoms of zeitgeist, having evolved into something unique, and, arguably, outshining their moderately successful and arguably similar 'stoner metal' or 'space sludge' peers such as Fu Manchu, Sleep, or Cathedral, and arguably packing more originality than all of them combined (possibly excluding the disbanded Kyuss).

And now, self-made psychedelic rock deities Dave Wyndorf, Ed Mundel, Joe Calandra and John Kleiman descend upon us once again, this time via the luridly packaged "Powertrip". Despite their move away from the deep-space-miasma of their previous album, "Dopes To Infinity" (1995), or the extended freakouts of the early material, leaning more towards their Detroit-infused power rock side, they still strongly retain the psychedelic edge and the 70's and occasional 60's hook-sensibilities. The CD opens with the heavy "Crop Circle", a driven, spacey slab of cosmic self descriptive, while the equally awesome title/single track, and "Temple of Your Dreams", both are instant classics in similar mold with a fair bit of advice too! The first single "Space Lord" is more of a conventional metal tune with a spacy break and more SF like lyrics, but not all that representative of the albums' overall style. The eerie "Baby Götterdammerung" becomes another example of Wyndorf decoding himself with Marvel comic-book cosmology. One can also hear an uncanny resemblance to Hawkwind's "Time We Left" guitar riff on "Bummer", and though their heavy influence (Monster Magnet have recorded "Brainstorm" more than once) is more subdued on this album than last, it is still very strong in places. "19 Witches" takes on an odd Morricone-like western-movie flavor without seeming out of place, with a very spacey break, and followed by yet another future classic, "3rd Eye Landslide" - where else but in the world of Monster Magnet can a phrase like that be sung with complete authority! "See You In Hell" is a sinister suburban tale set to a groovy Farfisa organ driven 60's pop tune. And we get the old bad-trip standard "Tractor" updated too, not sounding too different from the 1990 version. From here on the lumbering "Atomic Clock" and the spacey horror atmospherics of "Goliath And The Vampires" carry us onward, but the disappointingly trite "Your Lies Become You" suddenly brings this otherwise perfect hour way too far 'down', with its earthy twang, lazy bossanova-like shuffle and clichéd lyrics. Still, it doesn't detract much from the overall charm or staying power, gaining visual bonus points for the hidden chaos symbol and gratuitously Satanic marketing tactics.

A few space-fans might not be as attracted to this album as their previous offerings, though if you are into The Stooges and/or Hawkwind and psychedelic and/or good music in general, it's an essential purchase. Also recommended is the "Space Lord" single which has a great version of "Kick Out The Jams" and the epic, driven, "Big God".

Amoeba — Watchful

(Lektronic Soundscapes, 1997 LS97008 CD)

Jerry Kranitz

Amoeba is the work of Robert Rich on percussion, synths, steel guitar, winds, and vocals, and Rick Davies on guitars and bass, with guests on cello, saxes, percussion and vocals. The two have been working together off and on since 1980, and Rich, in particular, has an extensive catalog of what I gather are mostly ambient works.

The music on "Watchful" is dark and dreamy. Throughout the eleven tracks the music is easy going with a trademark sound of repetitive bass and percussion beats with spacey vocals by Rich that remind me a little of a male Gillli Smyth. The closest comparison I can think of is a cross between Shadowfax and Michael Hedges (without the guitar pyrotechnics), and that is mostly due to the rhythms and similar use of wind instruments. But Amoeba actually gets far freakier than either of those artists.

Among my favorites on the disc are the opening track, "Inside". The song opens with eerie chanting and a somewhat Middle Eastern percussion beat which remains constant throughout. The guitar takes the tune a bit into orbit with some Manual Gottsching type freakout playing. This guitar isn't representative of the rest of the disc but the overall sound is. "Desolation" is a very dark tune with more spacey guitar that serves as a background to the vocals. The vocals sound somewhat dissonant against the instruments and the effect is pretty wild as the acoustic guitar is new agey while the electric guitar more space freaky. Overall a very interesting collection of dark mind music.

Walk On Water — Solvent Based Melodies

(Indie release 1998, distributed by Small Stone)

Keith Henderson

A quartet from Detroit, Michigan, Walk On Water plays up-tempo, heavy psychedelic rock in the manner of Dead Flowers or like a somewhat kinder, gentler Monster Magnet. However, that description doesn't tell you what you really need to know, and that is that SBM is absolutely brilliant from beginning to end. OK, so it's merely a mini-CD collection of six tracks totalling 27 minutes, but you could tack on 20 minutes of shrill feedback on to the end of this release, and I would still give it strong consideration as full-length album of the year!

'This Planetary Exploration Plans' opens up the album with crunching low-end guitar/bass and unbridled energy. Vocalist/guitarist Mark Kahaian has a strong voice with a clear tone, a nice respite from the gruff sound you'd normally expect. 'Moving Faster Than Light' covers similar territory, but here we discover that Billy Reedy can put forth some lilting guitar licks and phase-shifted leads in addition to the heavy riffing. Kahaian belts out, "Faster than light, experience audio sight." Well, I like what I see! What first starts out as a change of pace, the beautiful and totally cosmic 'It Will Burn Out,' then segues into the instant classic track 'The Vortex Inside.' WOW! This one really smokes, and brings to mind other such psych masterpieces as Kingston Wall's 'The Real Thing' or Dead Flowers' 'Altered State Circus' (or 'Hammer Rash' for that matter). To wrap up the album, 'Highway 80 to...' leads directly into 'Armenia, City in the Sky' (accent on the third syllable of Ar-men-I-a), both tracks sounding retro by recalling 60's psychedelia stylings. (Made me wonder if these guys were direct descendants of the MC5.) Still, all nostalgia leanings aside, both tracks keep me interested and are downright fun. Armenia actually contains a bit of a bonus section of ambient music that's tacked onto the end, and is a nice way to finish up a masterpiece that through its brevity provokes the patented Teletubby response, "Again! Again!"

SBM is the third release from Walk on Water, following another mini-CD (1993) entitled "Carotid" and their 1996 full-length release "High Fi," currently on the top of my 'to get' list. This band needs to be at next summer's Strange Daze Festival (for my sake as much as theirs), and I'm going to do my best to make sure it happens. Even if they simply reproduce what they've recorded here, it would be a delectable treat to hear. But I'm guessing they're even more energetic and psychedelic live.

We — Wooferwheels

(Voices Of Wonder 1997, VOW063)

Jerry Kranitz

Norway's We play driving metallic rock that has a heavy psychedelic edge. The band consists of Don A. Dons, Thomas Felberg, Geir Anders Jensen, and Kristian Kirkvaag. The CD provides no instrument listing but it sounds like duel guitars, bass, and drums.

While We's music is certainly metallic there is an undefinable quality that makes calling them a metal band give the wrong impression. The guitars do not blow you away with the solos characteristic of metal bands. Rather, there is much hard driving intensity that is metallic, but also blazing acid guitar that is even ambient at times.

Songs like "Wooferwheels", "Last Argument Of Kings", and "In Between The Days" feature this interesting mix of hard psych and metal that gives the band their sound. The band often alternates between subtle buildups and kick ass rockin'. One of my favorites tunes, "Stuks Of Khun De Prorok" carries this metal/acid mix to its extreme. At ten minutes the band develops a slow intensity and all the musicians really stretch out including the vocalist who screams dementedly along with the musicians.

"Chase Vampire" and "Im Dschungel Von Kraut" are the tunes that would most appeal to AI readers. Still heavy, but psychedelically dreamy, the guitarists seem far more concerned with mood and atmosphere than flash as they produce a banquet of sounds and effects. I don't think there are any synths here so they are really wringing a lot out their guitars. A heavy, but exploratory sound that I found very appealing and the closest to SpaceRock found on the disc.

The only song I didn't like was "Out There" and this was mostly due to what I assume was a different vocalist than on the other tracks. My plea to the band is that they've got a good thing going with the singer on the other tracks so leave this one at home.

Ebeling Hughes — Transfigured Night

(Zero Hour 1998, ZER CD 1240)

Keith Henderson

Ebeling Hughes are, well, Ebeling and Hughes. Bob and Charles, respectively, that is. Specifically, a duo of multi-instrumentalists from Detroit, Michigan that derive their inspiration (don't we all?) from 70's masters Pink Floyd and the like. Oddly, Ebeling got his start working on albums by rapper Kid Rock, a friend from high school days. Once he'd gained valuable experience in the music studio, which I suspect he now considers a laboratory, Ebeling Hughes was born in order to create experimental mood music in the psychedelic/space realm. An early four-track cassette simply entitled "Space" was then followed up by the 1996 full-length debut "The Little Bugs Glow." Now comes "Transfigured Night," a 14-track journey into the world of texture and sonic experimentation.

Heavy, synthetic-sounding bass and broad organ tones from Hughes provide the tapestry for the opening track 'Transfigured,' which turns out in the end to be one of the strongest tunes. Hughes also provides the vocals, normally softly delivered in a slick, pseudo-Britpop manner, as you discover during the next track, 'Butterfly,' which is reminiscent of No-Man (the one with Porcupine Tree's Steve Wilson). Here we hear Ebeling's acoustic guitar (revisited often) and some really boomy bass sounds. Like many tracks to come, this song has the feel of Floyd's "Obscured by Clouds" album, one that I quite like despite it's stifled tempo. Unfortunately, most tracks on 'Transfigured Night' are irreparably spoiled by plodding pace. Ebeling's drumming accurately keeps the time and provides dimension to the sonic extravagancy, but mostly it reminds the listener just how slow we're moving forward.

Things don't really pick up until late in the album with 'Twinkle Little Star,' a melodic track with soothing vocals and harmonizing Turtles-style. 'Please Thank You' then provides some highlights with phased guitars, synths, and effects, recalling Steve Hillage at his best, but it's all too brief as this one is only two minutes long. The album's best song is the finale 'Night,' a quicker, heavily-syncopated instrumental piece, with more of that great boomy bass and thick swashes of synth. All-in-all, this is an album heavy on the experimental side with loads of studio wizardry and slick production, but lacking enough substance in the music to support it all. Perhaps, as in the case of Alan Parsons, the future of Ebeling and Hughes is in engineering and production rather than as performing artists (although I could imagine success in the film soundtrack arena). And I say that recognizing that Bob Ebeling did just that on the latest album by fellow Motor City madmen Walk on Water, reviewed here also.

Korai Öröm — 1997

(Vad Palmak Ltd 1997, indie release)

Keith Henderson

You could say that this band is HOT, but then that could mean either of two things... first, literally that Korai Öröm performs blazing hypno-trance rock, or secondly, that they are the 'Hungarian Ozric Tentacles'. While the second definition may hold some degree of truth, I'd prefer to say that this large congregation of musicnauts (with numbers ranging from nine to eleven!) has something quite different to offer. For starters, I'm not certain that any other space rock group has featured clarinet solos before. But there's more strangeness beyond that. Percussion is a particularly emphasized component of the music, and the line-up for this particular release (their third CD, fourth overall) credits four members (apart from the primary drummer Viktor Csanyi) with percussion as their primary function. Needless to say, the base rhythms are exceptionally well defined, and for most compositions provide the foundation over which all the other instruments are layered.

Korai Öröm has this strange habit of not titling any of their works, and that includes both albums and the individual tracks within, so I'll make up my own. Track One I'll call simply 'Hoo! Haa!,' as that's what you hear chanted over top of the music for a spell. Here, as in many tracks to follow, the bass lines of Zoltan Kilian are irresistible though hardly complex. Track Two ('Rasta,' because that's the only word I recognized in the lyrics) is a nine-minute rave-style piece embellished by screaming guitar, flute and some blaring trumpeting all by Peter Takacs. Keyboardist Emil Biljarski takes center stage at the outset of Track Three ('Space Battle') with some crazy phaser-like synth noises against a quick staccato beat. Later, a clever effect is produced when the music suddenly becomes muted that makes it seem as if you went out to the kitchen for a moment. Just as quickly, the trance-inducing onslaught returns. 'Gilmour' is next, with Takacs' guitar parts recalling the arpeggiated leads of the current Floyd headmaster on his solo hit 'Blue Light.' 'Kookaburra' (or Track Seven) features Vilmos Vajdai's didgeridoo, an instrument for which they seem to have a particular fondness. The album ends up with the 15-minute epic 'Trance or Consequences,' building atop a cool bass groove with droning synths, multiple guitar solos, both flute and clarinet solos, and female-voice mantric chanting. A definite highlight, but the lone track that I thought went on a bit too long.

Whereas previous albums (get those, too) were less up-front, '1997' really comes at you with 'in your face' dynamics and punctuated beats for 70 trance-inspiring minutes. Amidst their light/slide show (credited to yet another four persons), I'd imagine that a present-day Korai Öröm performance is quite a memorable event (not to say that it wouldn't have been before). At least it's something I'd very much like to witness. On one hand, this new album offers many of the same qualities as most techno or rave music, but then it also avoids that common stale, over-programmed quality by instead sticking to more 'earthy' instrumentation. (Perhaps that's the wrong adjective, because it's downright spacey.) The reason to buy '1997' is not just so you can boast to your friends that you listen to Hungarian space rock (and hence are cooler than they are), but rather because this music is truly unique. Strongly recommended to spaceheads everywhere.

For more information, visit the Korai Öröm website.

Kadura — From The Depths Of The Other Space

(Charnel Music, 1997 CHCD-26)

Judge Trev and Nik Turner — Judgement & Thunder: The Greatest Hits Of Judge Trev and Nik Turner

(Music & Elsewhere, 1998 M+E 440, Cassette)

Jerry Kranitz

With tunes from the Atomgods, Imperial Pompadours, and Inner City Unit, this collection contains ten songs from the past 15 years of Trev/Turner collaborations that apparently were just sold at gigs until now.

Five of the tracks are from ICU. "Solitary Astrid", "Bones Of Elvis", and "Polythene" could almost be called novelty songs. Catchy rocking tunes. "Bones Of Elvis" is my runaway favorite. The song is an absolute riot with its snare drum march, E.L.V.I.S. cheer, and demented lyrics. ICU also does a punked out version of "Masters Of The Universe", and the high energy "Watching The Grass Grow" which, if I didn't know better, could be straight off Bill Nelson's Red Noise.

The heavier rocking Atomgods contribute three tracks. "Atlantic Waves" features some great Nik flute making this the closest to SpaceRock these tunes get. "Oh Yeah" rocks like the Ramones. And "China" is pure bone crunching 'bang yer head on the stage' metal.

The two Imperial Pompadours tunes are the wildest of all. Freaked out vocals, banging pots and pans, drills, moaning guitars, and in the middle of it all melodic piano are the order of the day. Very strange indeed. Short but very sweet, this collection shows the different directions Trev/Turner music has gone.

Simon — Writing on the Cosmic Wheel

(Hometown Records 1998, indie release)

Keith Henderson

Alright, what we've got here is a group of teenage kids from the east suburbs of Pittsburgh, PA thinking that maybe it'd be cool to form a band and be a bit more popular around high school, ok? So no chance then that Simon's music could actually be interesting to someone like myself who's twice their age, right? Especially when the music is heavily grounded in (gasp) hip-hopdom! Well, somewhere along the line, these precocious youngsters must've been poisoned by exposure to some cool space rock, because "Cosmic Wheel" is truly cosmic. It's about as new and different as spacerock (?) can get...and more than that, it's actually quite professional...and best of all, it's actually very enjoyable music.

The album starts out with the requisite countdown to take-off (10...9...8...etc.)...ok, so far, so good. But then the opening track 'Oxygen' kicks in with its deliberate hip-hop beat and obligatory 'clap snare' (for lack of a better term), and I immediately wonder if this CD is mispressed with the latest Boyz II Men offering. But then I hear the lyrics, "Oxygen, a substance we all need," so I guess not. My initial reaction is one of confusion as I thought I'd purchased a space rock CD, although I did note some cosmic-sounding light guitar work on this track. 'Zones of Loneliness' then chimes in with nearly the same hip-hop beat (uh oh!), but then some of the coolest bubbly guitar lines start up, and we're soon off to distant galaxies at warp speed! That sort of basic formula is repeated (with various space:hip-hop ratios) a total of twelve times, with over half of them coming through as real winners. In a single listen, I'd become a big fan of both Matt Tomayko's spacey guitar work (sounding like a Roye Albrighton protégé) and Paul Luc's intoxicating voice. OK, the rhythm section (Abe Nehrer on bass, and Sal Pennachio on drums) doesn't quite win me over exactly, but then again, they're the ones responsible for making this music (let's call it 'space-hop') so different.

Here and there, Simon also incorporate some other stylings into selections from "Cosmic Wheel." 'Violet' is 90's style reggae, with a taste of scratching a la Herbie Hancock. 'A Bit Strange' sounds for all the world like one of those Mallorca-penned ditties by Gong's Daevid Allen (especially with the glissando guitar), though here it seems as though the vocals were done by...I dunno, help me out here...Coolio? Puff Daddy? The finale, 'In the Sky,' is the most ambient track, with synthesizer taking over the lead melody duty. My favorite track, though, is 'Superstition,' another simple and deliberate rhythm, but the fabulous guitar leads and wonderful drifting melodies carry this tune to great heights. Making good music is easy no matter what 'formula' you use as long as you write good songs, and Simon composes music that belies their few years (well, maybe the lyrics aren't quite so deep). The result is that these kids have made 'space-hop' a reality and so if you're daring enough to try something really new, then get yourself a copy.

Skye Klad — Extreme Vacuum Person

(Hermetic Recordings 1997, CD)

Jerry Kranitz

On this 5-song (30 minute) CD, Minnesota's Skye Klad plays a dreamy, ethereal form of spacerock that is backed by complex instrumentation, and some wonderfully freaky guitar sounds. The band consists of Adam Backstrom on vocals, Jason Kesselring on guitars, synths, and theremin, Matt Zaun on percussion and samples, and Tim Donahue on bass (the promo material and web page say Dave Onnen is now the bassist).

The disc opens with "The Somnium". Musically this reminded me a bit of Architectural Metaphor, though even more psychedelic. The promo material compares the band to Can and after revisiting some early Can recordings I can say this is fairly accurate. A banquet of guitar sounds and effects produce a subtle intensity that reveals something new with subsequent listens. "Journey To Inner Space" combines simple, but psychedelically eerie guitar notes with wildly busy electronic percussion and a pounding bass. "Song II" is more of the same with Backstrom's simultaneously dreamy and harsh vocals.

The band begins to stray into King Crimson influenced territory on "The Amplification Of Stephen Hawking's Brain". A repeating robotic voice says 'Dark mystery of time and space' throughout the song backed by tribal percussion, guitar attacks, and low-end bass. The pace soon picks up and then veers into a still very spacey, but 80's-era funky Crimson jam. The Crimson influence is even stronger on "The Theory Of Creating Artificial Lifeforms". More like a mid-70's Crimson jam, the tension builds slowly as percussion, bass, and guitar jam away distinctly from one another. Kesselring's guitar is Frippoid but far more acidic. I want to emphasize that despite the obvious Crimson influences these guys manage to stay well within the realm of spacerock. This music begs to be heard live and I'll bet the band thrives when able to stretch out on stage.

In summary, I find Skye Klad's use of complex instrumentation and Crimson-like jamming style within a spacerock context refreshing. Hopefully the band is working on a full-length follow up to this short introduction to their music.

Spacecraft — Spacecraft

(Lektronic Soundscapes 1997, LS97009)

Jerry Kranitz

Spacecraft's music addresses the question, what does it 'sound' like to be in space? This is a CD for fans of early-mid 70's Tangerine Dream. Electronic journeys with detailed attention to each sound and its placement in the music.

In fact, the music was inspired by recordings of data transmissions from the Voyager spacecraft exploring Jupiter that were downloaded from the NASA internet website.

Spacecraft's members are Tony Gerber, John Rose, and Diane Timmons, all on synthesizers, and Chris Blazen on sampler and electric sustaining koto (a homemade instrument).

The band has performed a number of times in planetariums and will soon release a recording of a show at the Hummel Planetarium. Over an hour of slowly traveling through the cosmos for fans of electronic spacescapes.

Mazinga Phaser — Cruising In The Neon Glories Of The New American Night

(Aether Records, 1996 AELP-002 LP)

Jerry Kranitz

From Ft. Worth, TX, Mazinga Phaser play a totally cosmic blend of genuine SpaceRock and sonic mind assaulting psychedelia. The group on this release consists of Wanz Dover, Eric Hermeyer, Jessica Nelson, Cole Wheeler, and Travis Williams. No instrumentation is listed but I hear guitar, bass, various keyboards and synths, drums, and trumpet.

"Katia", the opening track, begins as a laid back atmospheric piece with slowly repeating bass and synth lines. All this is soon joined by various jolting synth sounds, vocalizations, and a few found sounds. A loud jarring static sound abruptly leads into "Ling Ling And Pepper" which becomes a sort of psychedelic drone. The bass is like a heartbeat that pounded in my chest and the whole thing gets very cosmic with static, fuzz guitar, and an all out jumble of sonic space madness that is clearly not designed to facilitate relaxation. "Dub Sonic At The Jelly Kubota" has a somewhat jazzy trumpet sound that combined with the heartbeat bass and slowly tripping guitars and synths makes for a still intense, but more ambient mood.

My personal favorites on the album are "Glass Of Glycerine", New Journey To The Edge Of Rom", and Infinity For Now". All feature Jessica Nelson's celestial vocals and though more song-oriented, feature even more sounds than the instrumental tracks. On "Glass Of Glycerine" the guitars are heavier and more overtly psychedelic than previous tracks, as are the sonic SpaceRock elements. "Rom" has a very 60's feel and the trumpet, guitars, and synths produce a hard to describe, but generally cosmic sensation. "Infinity For Now" is one of the more mind expanding rather than assaulting tracks, though there is enough harshness to keep the listener from getting too comfortable. Acoustic guitar and orchestral mellotron sounds give this a different edge than the other songs. Highly recommended to both space and psych fans.

Vocokesh / ST 37 — Vocokesh / Derobe

(RRRecords, 1996 LP)

Various Artists — Soundscape Gallery Series One

(Lektronic Soundscapes, 1996 LS96007)

Fonya — Perfect Cosmological Principle

(Kinesis, 1997 KDCD 1024)

Jerry Kranitz

Fonya is a complete DIY effort by Colorado-based musician Chris Fournier (Get it? Fonya... Fournier?) who plays all instruments including guitars, bass, and a variety of keyboards. This is his fifth release.

I wouldn't call Fonya's music SpaceRock. Its more symphonic progressive along the lines of Jeremy and other orchestral prog bands. However, his music has that magical quality that makes this mind expanding enough to be of interest to Aural Innovations readers. The all-instrumental music is keyboard dominated, but there are loads of electric and acoustic guitars that serve to embellish the songs with soaring Hackett influenced licks guaranteed to carry you away on a cloud. Sythesized flutes add to the classic progressive feel and the fullness of the sound makes this an impressive work for one musician. Images of medieval times are conjured up and if you close your eyes you'll get that feeling of elation that the "pompous" and "bombastic" heavies of the 70's served up so well.

Chris has mentioned live performances so I gather he can do the octopus thing or has plans to put a band together. Despite my descriptions, in a live setting I think Fonya's music would fit in well with other space bands. Recommended to sympho proggers and spacers who like less than heavy space music.

Various Artists — A Homage to Neu!

(Cleopatra 1998, CLP 0300)

Keith Henderson

Half of the releases in the Cleopatra/Hypnotic catalog are seemingly credited to 'Various Artists,' so it's no wonder that they petitioned a tribute album to that duo of Deutsche wunderkind better known as Neu!. The word 'neu' (pronounced 'noi') means 'new,' but of course their first three classic albums are over 20 years old now. However, this tribute album shows how far ahead of their time Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother were in 1972, as the 10 remakes of this tribute hardly sound any more modern than the originals, except on the surface. The music of Neu! was proto-industrial, proto-trance, proto-punk, proto-ambient, proto-you name it, and Cleopatra has found present-day artists in most of these genres to demonstrate all of these innovations in their own separate ways.

Michael Rother himself contributed the first track 'Neutronics '98,' his personal tribute to the late Conny Plank, the man behind the scenes for this and many other legendary krautrock bands. Rother's new tune picks right up where they left off in the early 70's, even incorporating a bit of the guitar parts from 'Hallo Gallo' into this interesting nine-minute trancey piece. Download (featuring Skinny Puppy-alum cEvin Key) contributes the proper remake of 'Hallo Gallo,' a generally faithful version, although I didn't care for the goofy sound used for the linear sequenced beat. Manchester's Autechre takes greater liberties with 'Weisensee' (also from the first S/T album), since the slow, gurgling bass largely hides the synth melody that characterizes this song. Dead Voices on Air (like Download, from Vancouver, CN) chimes in with 'Funfundsiebzig' (literally '75') based on the track 'E-Musik' from "Neu! '75." Here we see another side of Neu!; instead of the incessant underlying rhythms, we get a stagnant 'electronic soup.'

Germany's Khan enters in with 'Fur Immer' from the second album, and ushers in the techno side of things, which continues with 'Hero' (by Sunroof) and 'Interstate' (by System 7). 'Hero' features some very pleasant female vocals and demonstrates how easy it is to extrapolate Neu!'s works to modern trance music. Using a sample from 'Hallo Gallo' once again, Steve Hillage came up with a new take on the Neu! theme with 'Interstate,' one of the strongest tracks presented. Here we get doses of both echoed staccato guitar and some guitar-synth 'whale sounds' from Hillage, nice additions to the layered synths and sampled rhythm. The next two tracks (both from "Neu! 2") explore the industrial/noise aspect of Neu!. Legendary Pink Dots offer 'Super,' with heavy fuzz guitar and 'agonized' vocals; perhaps a bit more chaotic than Neu! themselves. 'Lila Engel' by James Plotkin (of the band Solarus) features a choppy electronic beat, and is high on experimentation with a heavy dose of backmasking (a Neu! trademark). The 70-minute tribute finishes off with the excellent ambient piece 'Im Gluck' by Jeff Greinke (of Land, from the Hearts of Space family). Greinke covers the droning low-end base with a cosmic sea of delayed synth tones, and thereby brings about a gradual conclusion to the album.

As a Neu! fan, this is a nice item to have in my collection, but Cleopatra would be doing the band and all of us a bigger favor if they'd produce official CD reissues of their original three albums. Hopefully, this is in the works. In the meantime, Rother and Dinger are still active as solo artists, the former in a current partnership with longtime partner Dieter Moebius (Cluster/Harmonia), and the latter in la! Neu?. So the music of Neu! lives on in several ways.

Ash Ra Tempel — The Best Of The Private Tapes

(Purple Pyramid, 1998 CLP0299-2)

Nektar — The Dream Nebula: The Best Of 1971-1975

(Purple Pyramid, 1998 CLP 0301-2)

Jerry Kranitz

This 2-CD set compiles tracks from the "classic" Nektar period from their debut, Journey To The Center Of The Eye, through Recycled. Anyone who has heard all these albums knows that Nektar covered a lot of ground in their career from great SpaceRock to raw jam rock to progressive.

First covered is about half the Journey To The Center Of The Eye album, one of SpaceRock's true classics. They skip around tracks a bit and due to the album's continuity it probably would have been best to just do an entire side of the album. A Tab In The Ocean's side long title track is included and this sounds like a live version. Things get a bit out of sequence as "King Of Twilight", from the same album, is included later. Several tracks from Sounds Like This... are included which pleases me as I consider this to be one of the 70's best jam rock albums. Raw killer rock with phenomenal guitar work from Roye Albrighton.

What should have been done with Journey is thankfully done with Remember The Future and Recycled. An album side each is included. Sadly, only one track from Down To Earth was deemed fit for this collection ("Fidgety Queen"). Ask hardcore Nektar fans about this album and you'll get 50/50 responses on liking versus disliking it. I'm in the camp that feels that while certainly not one of Nektar's great works it is sorely underrated.

My only real beef with this set is that its too short. Just under fifty minutes on disc one and just over on disc two. Nektar's "best" from '71-'75 was most of their material from that period so I say fill the CD's up! Still a good starting point for beginners. The big news is that after over twenty years the original band members are seriously talking about getting together again for shows and recording. I for one would love to hear what a late 90's version of Nektar would sound like.

Kevin Leonard — Automatrix

(Space Monster Optional Entertainment, 1995 CD-0995-3)

Jerry Kranitz

According to the promo material keyboardist Kevin Leonard has been quite active having recorded a number of albums with the band North Star throughout the 80's, and four solo releases. "Automatrix", his fourth solo effort was originally released in 1992 and was re-released as a CD in '95.

An all-instrumental effort, "Automatrix" features intricate keyboard pieces that utilize piano and electronic keyboards to produce excitingly complex progressive rock. Throughout the disc's eight tracks Leonard displays both chops and inventive compositional ability. As musicians, Keith Emerson and Kit Watkins are fair comparisons, and a few of the piano parts reminded me of Tony Banks' playing from The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.

Musically, however, this is closer to much of what I've heard from A Triggering Myth, though having been recorded in '91, "Automatrix" predates ATM's recordings.

Leonard incorporates both classical and fusion influences with a piano/keyboard interplay that produces multiple layers of complex melody lines. Much of this has a frantic, quirky, 'edge of your seat' quality that keeps the music intense and gripping throughout. For someone who has been around so long Leonard deserves to be heard and I confess that Automatrix came as a pleasant surprise.

Vas Deferens Organization — Sweat Your Cheeses, But Not In My Salad

(Charnel Music, 1996 CHCD-29 CD) (Charnel Music, 1996 CHCD-29 CD)

Spaceship Eyes — Truth In The Eyes Of A Spaceship

(Hypnotic, 1998 CLP0248-2, CD)

Jerry Kranitz

Spaceship Eyes is the work of synth/electronics maestro Don Falcone (ex. Melting Euphoria and Thessalonians). While last year's Kamarupa was an ethereal, trancey instrumental effort, this new release is an interesting mix of techno dance beats, freaky space electronics, and ambient soundscapes. Falcone plays most of the music and is joined on most tracks by various guests including Harvey Bainbridge.

The opening track, "Mind The Alien", sets the tone for the disc by starting off with a spacey orchestral wash that soon launches into a techno beat. The ambient parts return periodically as well as lots of freaky gurgling electronics with the techno beat in the foreground, a combination that seems to be the CD's trademark sound. This is music that could appeal to a wide audience and indeed Falcone reveals his own varied interests when he says in the liner notes, "I'd like to welcome all lovers of ambient, dance, electronic, progressive, and space music".

Of note to readers of this magazine is that while on the surface this disc is more techno/dance than Kamarupa, in terms of sound exploration (and sound playfulness) I found it more adventurous. A cursory listen might put off some SpaceRock fans, but the more interesting space gems are easily missed. In fact, I had listened to the disc a few times, but I too heard the music in a new light after listening close enough to write about it. I have to confess that I'm partial to musicians who throw me for a loop from one release to the next and indeed this was a surprise after Kamarupa. Aural Innovations explored these differences in an email interview with Don Falcone.

Read the interview here