Issue 2025-011
With a musical history that started in the mid 1970s and included two albums with the band Softeis, keyboard player Eleonore Wittekind was never much interested in taking the spotlight. After a long gap where life events took priority over making music, only broken by an appearance on the third Anabis album in the early 1990s, the artist currently working under the moniker Aliénor made an unexpected but very welcome return with The Raven last year. One year on, a very different sounding EP was released, so either a musical road of discovery or a conscious decision? Time to ask a few questions on what happened!
Jerry van Kooten
Can you tell how you got involved in music, and how you got to play the kind of music you played?
My parents both loved music, so I was allowed to take piano lessons at the age of 12 but quit two years later after my piano teacher moved to the US. I started listening to rock music: Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, King Crimson, and my all-time favourite band Eloy.
One day, a friend took me to the rehearsal room of another local band Scrifis, which included the Eismann brothers. When they decided to leave Scrifis, they asked me to join their new band. I wasn't too exited since I was classically trained and used to play from sheet music only. But I agreed to do the job as a substitution until they had found a “real” keyboardist. Which never happened! ;) That substitution lasted four years.
With Softeis. Photos courtesy of Aliènor.
Your first recordings, as far as I could find, were with Softeis. How did that band come about?
When brothers Werner and Gerard Eismann left Scrifis, they started something new, together with Peter Bellendir (drums), who later joined X-Mal Deutschland and Eisenvater, and Gerald Schwarz, a blues guitarist from my hometown. That band became known as Softeis.
A woman behind the keyboards in this type of music was not very common. How was that?
That was totally OK. Sure it was more common to have a female singer than a female keyboardist, but I received positive reactions only. I'm also not the most extroverted person, so I guess many people didn't even notice there was a woman hidden behind the keyboards!
The first two Softeis albums were from 1978 and 1981. How was the musical climate at the time for a band playing this kind of music?
It was very good. There were many local bands playing all kinds of musical styles, each had their fan base. It was nice to have clubs and small town halls crowded. Besides the LPs, we also did some interesting jobs creating music for Super 8 film or commercials.
Some other prog-related part of your history but much later involved the band Anabis. How did you get involved with them?
They were practically neighbours and since there was quite some fluctuation of musicians between the local bands, people knew each other. Mike Morkel, drummer of Anabis, was Werner's friend. I remember there were many musicians involved in the production of Theatre, even several keyboardists, and I was asked to play some minor parts. Don't ask me which, I can't remember!
After Anabis you did not release any music. What happened?
I left Softeis in 1982, shortly after the release of the second album Eiskalt. The first time I thought about leaving was when Peter Bellendir (drums) and Gerald Schwarz (guitar) were replaced. It marked a turning point in the musical direction of the band. As the second album shows, the proggy vibes had all but gone, and we went into a more “commercially digestable” direction. I wasn't too happy about that. I finished studies, worked as a Special Education Teacher, had a child/family and my musical ambitions got buried under real-life challenges.
What brought you back to the recording and releasing of music?
That was in 2019. Recording and releasing music played no role in my thoughts at that time. At 66 years old, I had a feeling of having made not enough in my life, so I started looking for likeminded people to form a band again.
Photo courtesy of Aliènor
To be honest, it wasn't the best idea I ever had. Although I was already warned, musicians can be a very special breed! ;) My experiences during the next two years or so exceeded everything I was used to before! In hindsight, I feel like I must apologize to my former bandmates forever having called them “difficult”, sometimes!
I abandoned the idea of being in a band. Since I already had a collection of ideas, I decided to give it a try and start recording.
How was it, getting back into this world, at your age?
Regarding the physical aspect of age with a musician/keyboardist, the biggest problem was that due to not touching a piano for almost 30 years, my fingers had become less flexible. Unfortunately that's an ongoing process, so I have to hurry up creating more music! I have never been overly interested in the technical aspects of music so the first steps of working with a DAW and finding the right equipment to build a small studio have been difficult.
Photo courtesy of Aliènor
How did The Raven come about? Where did the ideas start, how was the style determined, etc.?
To be honest, I never determined a certain style. I had some ideas, played, tried sounds, and somehow it happened to be what it is now.
I think my musical taste is influenced by early progressive and hardrock bands, but I love to experiment and integrate other styles and little surprises into my music. Of course, I like my music to be heard, but I don't care about commercial success, just do what sounds right to my ears. That's freedom for me, even though it seems to be a problem for people who like to label or categorize music.
One year later we have an EP with quite a different sound. Was that deliberate?
Yes. I am interested in and listen to various styles of music (except jazz... 😉). I prefer being perceived as a musician, rather than a progger, hardrocker or folk lady, and I was curious to see what I can come up with in another genre. I had by chance found some very old lyrics, written in 1974, and came up wih the idea of writing some songs dedicated to important people in my life, plus things that are important to me personally.
What are your plans for the future? Are you going to explore the new musical direction more? Will there be more music?
Yes, I hope there will be more music. The Raven took me almost two years, learning curve included. Dedications took one year, roughly. Currently, I'm taking a break from composing, trying to reset my ears. Instead, I'm busy working on cover versions of two songs I like very much.
I've never done any covers before so that's a new challenge. Both songs will be in a similar style as the ones on Dedications.
Then there are already a few ideas for another project, kind of psychedelic prog, which I will start working on soon!
Aliénor — Dedications
When my colleague Thomas Otten reviewed Aliénor's album The Raven I was intrigued by the story and the description of the album. I've listened to that album a lot since. Late last year, Alienor released an EP titled Dedications.
From the very start it is clear that this EP has a completely different style. The change was what brought me to do the interview above, to get some clarity on this.
Little Leaves opens with piano and strings. Despite the minor chords, it is still contrasting with the overall darker atmosphere of the predecessor by its lighter mood. The cello adds a beautiful melancholy and the warm vocals fit perfectly. Most songs dwell in folky atmospheres, while none of them are clear folk songs. It's touches, like melodies in the vocals or one of the instruments.
Freedom has a touch of Melanie guitar picking and Joni Mitchell fragility over late 1960s psychedelic songwriting. Even in their lightness, multiple layers and a nice variety in arrangements bring more a fuller sound to explore.
A quite deliberate change in style, as you can read in the interview above. It shows a delicate side to Aliénor's voice and music, with everything holding up very well. A very nice and brave experiment that will provide a good listen when the mood calls for it, and clearly showing her songwriting skills. I can easily imagine some of these songs being played by a full band in fuller but not even very different arrangements.
My personal taste is more drawn to The Raven, and I am looking forwards to that psychedelic rock that might follow, as mentioned at the end of the interview. It makes Dedications a beautiful in-between EP. But overall, and on its own, this is a close-to-acoustic, and close-to-folk EP of melancholic melodies with not-so-hidden arrangements that come out beautifully when listening through headphones. For that reason alone, I would not have minded this EP to be a little longer.
Jethro Tull — Curious Ruminant
Once upon a time, I was a History and Religious Studies teacher. Many lessons were spent facilitating discussions about the big, or key questions of life. To hear and observe the range of viewpoints and sincere questions of thirteen-year-olds about things such as, why am I here?, what is the meaning of life?, does good always triumph?, and what happens when we die?, was a privilege and often a humbling experience.
In Jethro Tull's latest album, septuagenarian Ian Anderson ruminates, reflects, and ponders over a range of similar matters. His thinking in relation to these key philosophical questions is no less rewarding. The album considers a wide range of issues, including, the purpose of life, revenge/ betrayal, environmental concerns, and death and reconciliation.
The overall style and mood of the album is vastly different from the bands previous album RökFlöte. Gone are the chug-chug-guitar, metal-influenced flavours and head beating rhythms that dominated the leather-stained rock tunes like, Wolf Unchained and The Navigators in RökFlöte. Instead, Curious Ruminant offers an altogether much more interesting, intricate, and intimate approach. It is melodically rich and the compositions are beautifully constructed.
Flute, accordion, and various acoustic instruments are often to the fore. A range of outstanding electric guitar parts performed by Jack Clark add a swathe of bold intense colours when the need arises. This results in an album that is truly delightful on many different levels. It is undoubtedly Ian Anderson's most impressive set of tunes since The Secret Language Of Birds and is probably the best Jethro Tull record since 1995's Roots To Branches.
In fact, the overall style and feel of the album is for the most part, nearer to the approach found in the Secret Language Of Birds than any other Jethro Tull album. Curious Ruminant is an album that has many different layers and offers a variety of shades. It rewards repeated listens.
Clever diversions of pace and subtle melodic changes abound. Choruses are used to good effect, but these are never overused, hackneyed or one dimensional. A thoughtful twist in the lyrics, or a measured change of emphasis, or a shift in dynamics, always keeps things interesting. This, attention to detail, frequently creates a set of tunes which are catchy and easy on the ear. Satisfyingly, the arrangements frequently display a stimulating and impressive range of complexity.
The strongest pieces are probably, The Tipu House, Savannah Of Paddington Green, Stygian Hand, Over Jerusalem, and Drink From The Same Well. These tunes indicate that Anderson's creative powers are not on the decline. This sequence of tracks is very impressive.
The thoughtful ordering of the pieces, ensures that the album goes from strength to strength, as it progresses towards a thought-provoking spoken word conclusion in the atmospheric Interim Sleep. Compositions such as the magnificent Drink From The Same Well, and the busy, densely layered The Tipu House (which epitomises the essence and timeless pull of Jethro Tull in its opening moments), can certainly be judged alongside some of Anderson's most persuasive works.
There is great artistic maturity to much of the songwriting on the album; the supportive instrumentation and excellent production values are equally engaging. A sense of space pervades the music. The lyrics and chosen instruments complement each other, and have a distinctive place in the mix. Satisfyingly, nothing seems cluttered lyrically, or musically, apart from a few aspects of the textured instrumentation of the fast-paced The Tipu House.
(Promo photo by Ian Anderson)
A fine example of Anderson's talents as a songsmith can be observed in the compelling melodies of Stygian Hand. In this piece, Anderson calls upon many of the nuances, stylistic traits and ploys that have become synonymous with his most rewarding compositions over the years. Imaginative fluctuations in rhythm, and mood all have an emphatic part to play. Stylistically, it sits somewhere within the foot tapping, morphing patterns of something that could have featured in Anderson's SLOB release. If that was not enough to make some Tull and Anderson aficionados curl their toes in delight, Stygian Hand is also textured with hints and tints of the sort of riffs that made Heavy Horses' Acres Wild and Journeyman so engaging. Stygian Hand has many surprising and distinctive features. I just love the way that this jaunty tune's disparate parts fit so snugly together.
The band sound very cohesive and their empathetic contribution throughout the whole release is excellent. Their tasteful embellishments in Stygian Hand, coupled with Anderson's deft yet insistent mandolin lines, perfectly convey the atmospheric message of the tune. Anderson's stridently disconcerting and disturbing execution of the imposing line, "Crash! The Stygian hand, against my brow", adds to the overall impact of the piece. Indeed, Anderson's time ruffled voice; full of expression and aged gravitas works well in almost all the tracks of the album.
Over Jerusalem contains several different moods and has several distinctive melodic hooks. Overall, it is a fascinating piece. It begins with an acoustic passage and an astute lyric. The change of emphasis as Anderson emotes "Rocks upon rocks, ashes on ashes", is truly brilliant and must rank as one of Anderson's most beautiful transition points within a song. The delightful and gentle acoustic sections ensure, that when upbeat electric passages occur, they hit hard. Consequently, they have a stunning impact. The edgy heavier parts are truly fantastic. Anderson's flute spits notes with aggressive intent. A pause in the excellent guitar soloing is reminiscent of the atmospheric phrasing found in Warchild's Backdoor Angels.
Drink From The Same Well is the perfect offspring of Divinities and SLOB. It arguably takes the best ingredients from both releases to create a sumptuous feast for the senses. Without a doubt, it is the most satisfying tune on the album. Certainly, it is a showcase, for what might be, Anderson's best recorded performance on the flute. It's lengthy duration provides lots of scope for a variety of musical themes to be explored. It also enables the piece to move through a series of distinctive phases or movements.
The tune begins with an enchanting and beguiling flute motif. This darts, wafts, and cascades from speaker to speaker, to drench and clasp the room in a gently spiralling ear caressing melody. The double tracking and call and responding of a variety of flutes including the transcendent and ethereal tones of a bamboo flute, is one of the standout features of several phases of the piece. The accordion has a significant role. It is skillfully used to link sections of the composition together and to herald changes of pace, rhythm, and direction.
The sung parts of the tune are very enticing, and I was reminded at different junctures of the smile inducing melodies of Panama Freighter and the knee-tap, knuckle-rattle, jiggle–toe structure of the Habanero Reel. The piece uses a variety of clever choruses, with noticeable hooks and recurring lyrics. The overall effect is gripping, mesmerising and utterly enchanting. These earworm elements burrow and anchor themselves; to be hummed and mouthed long after the album has ended.
It is also a composition that portrays many different emotions. For example, the poignant, tones of the bamboo flute are vaguely reminiscent of the sadly reflective and evocative melody which soared skywards at the conclusion of Anderson's Old Black Cat that featured in Rupi's Dance. Every aspect of Drink From the Same Well works superbly, and it is a fine addition to Ian Anderson's catalogue of outstanding tunes.
Mention must be made of the high quality of Anderson's flute playing throughout the release. His tonal control is excellent. His ability to shape and bend notes really shines through. Overall, it's a flautist master class. If Curious Ruminant should prove to be Jethro Tull or Ian Anderson's final recorded work, then it is safe to say that this excellent album has enhanced and enriched that musical legacy.
During The Puppet And The Puppet Master, Anderson suggests that one of his purposes in life as a performer is to "live only to serve bring smiles to friendly faces". If that assertion is indeed correct, then Ian Anderson has certainly achieved that, and a great deal more.
With a friendly smile; all that is left to say is,
Thanks, Ian. Long may your art continue!
M'Z — Emancipés du vide?
M'Z is the work of one Mathieu Torres, a guitarist from France with a love for innovation, prog, electronic and everything from jazz to metal. His influences range from Aphex Twin and Frank Zappa up to other more eclectic artists like Magma and Mr Bungle. So with a wide range to pull from, and a desire to never be conventional or conform to the norm, it should be, if nothing else, and interesting listen.
Through the album, Mathieu shows off his chops for guitar. As an instrumental album, the focus is solely on the music, and as a guitarist that means it mainly focuses on the guitar. The drums and bass form a good backdrop, giving it a jazzy feel and helping mix things up now and then, as the guitars reel out solo after solo and intricate licks left, right and centre.
It doesn't take itself too seriously, with playful grooves coming into play at points in between more serious or thought-provoking fretwork. There is no denying his skill with the frets, as licks and solos are accompanied by tempo and key changes throughout. Unfortunately, it also suffers from the same issues a lot of artists like this do. 50 minutes of guitar solos can end up getting repetitive and sound more like an extended jam session and noodling, rather than a coherent piece of music.
While nothing wrong with the individual numbers, taken together as a whole it goes from “that is some fancy fretwork!” to “is this a repeat?” more than once unfortunately. If it was a 20–30-minute EP, I'd probably have enjoyed this far more regretfully.
For fans of Joe Satriani, Buckethead, Paul Gilber and Guthrie Govan
M.E.N. — Spillover
Three are the illusory moments of our lives. Those that the human mind usually creates to identify the passage of time: Past, Present and Future. Spillover is an emotional journey through these three temporal realities.
This is one of the statements made by the three men who have come together to remember, describe and dream about these sensations. Also known as the formation of M.E.N., who consist out of multi-instrumentalist Marco Grieco (vocals, piano, keyboards, bass, drums, guitar, orchestrations, vocoder, choirs, soundscapes), Vincenzo "Enzo" Lardo (vocals, guitars, keyboards, programming, choirs) and Nicola Cruciani (vocals, guitars, lap steel guitar, loops, choirs).
Inviting everyone along for the ride, they halt at nine stations to explore complex and current themes involving war and destruction, the manipulation of man and nature, humanities continuously endangered struggle for survival, and other contaminating effects that take place in the depths of our contemporary society. To finally arrive at a three-way junction where they offer a hypothetical way out of this brain flooding reality for those who embrace their reflections.
With recordings entirely in 8D holophonic techniques, which puts (headphone)-listeners dead centre at the heart of the overwhelming three-dimensional musical experience, its challenging end-result is a majorly immersive roller-coaster ride that takes time and effort to fully fathom and comprehend. Taking into account the songwriting credentials of Grieco, who has dazzled prog enthusiasts in abundance with an excellent trilogy of The Samurai Of Prog efforts in recent years, this lies in line of expectation. Yet for anyone also favouring those albums I must emphasize that the ultra-modern and highly contemporary Spillover do not sound like these 70s prog-inspired albums! The best I can come up with in terms of references are Pink Floyd, Ossi, The Ancestry Program (TAP) and the exuberant sound of the 80s. Although this is merely scratching the surface of this extraordinarily unique album.
World Wide Weird started the alarming conceptual wake-up call with trip-hop rhythms and emotive guitar lines, surrounded by a noisy 3D stream of planes, bombs, news broadcasts, and the angry words of a Swedish environmental activist. In Everything glances back at the world's past from the perspective of our creator. Incorporating engaging pop melodies, this view on creation quickly turns into a narrative that addresses materialism, greed and power. In a strange kind of Canadian FM way, it finalises in a soundscape delirious with expressions of decadent insanity.
Following this unsettling scene, M.E.N. proudly go on to present a captivating concoction of melancholic movements and epic moments with some delightful Gilmour-like guitar work. The gamely Mouth, which compassionately feeds the alienating senses with a monotonous machinery of multilayered structures. The depressive and melancholic Present Days strongly reminds of Pink Floyd's The Wall on any given day.
Nothing short of ideas, one during the ride also encounters several blistering synths solos. The finest example is to be found in the funky EM Human Eclipse. Through the use of vocoder, it prophetically envisions sterile futuristic memories of P'Cock's Mr Pollution, until a bombastic eruption of synths and soaring guitar leads melodies into a tantalising engulfing framework, reminiscent of The Ancestry Program. And at the same time is presented with distinctive, at times estranging, vocals that individually befit the songs.
Quite entertaining so far, there are also various flustering concept-reinforcing side steps and sound clip moments assigned to the music that can regularly throw one off-balance. The spiritual Tibetan praying intermezzo of Mother Earth and the orchestral symphonic sweetness of the pampered lullaby Keeping Safe come to mind. As well as Past Days which after classical opera fragments and recurring themes, heated by bluesy guitars and organ, pulls in at the three-way decision junction of The Choice.
If one at this stage chooses not to decide, this choice leads straight onto the disturbing reality of Hell. Not the actual place on the Cayman Islands itself that I once visited. But rather its eerie musical equivalent which in avant-garde Ossi-fashion steers past funky disco beats, modern pop weirdness, hypnotic melodies, industrial techno, and dissonant King Crimson guitars, and a sinister soundscape before it ultimately ends in truthful evil.
The second option, Purgatory, results in a cathartic experience that offers Floydian development fused together with an uplifting "Willy Wonka" disco rave and nice floating melodies in Bollywood synth movements. The third alternative, Heaven, initially proposes peacefully bright and serene symphonic atmospheres that temporarily shift towards dark-wave realms, and occasionally recalls Jethro Tull's Underwraps. After this, a carnival of musical diversions follows and the intense gratifying composition arrives full circle at its designated destination of completeness.
Overflowing with excess arrangements and provokingly completed in narrative by thought-stimulating AI art, all of the above illustrates that M.E.N.'s offering may not be suitable for everyone. However, open-minded prog enthusiasts with an insatiable desire and daredevil sense for adventure can look forward to many joyous exploration field days with the intriguing and highly recommended Spillover.