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Highlighting in album tracklistings denotes 'contains Mellotron'. On 'multi-part' tracks I've tried to indicate which parts contain 'Tron, although this isn't always possible.
Ratings:
The * rating (½-5) is my personal, entirely subjective and completely partisan rating of the music.
The 'T' ('Tron, of course...) rating (0-5) is an only slightly more objective indicator of an album's Mellotronness.
By the way, if you know of any Mellotron albums that aren't listed here, please look at my albums page first! Thanks.
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Sheryl Crow Crowded House Crucible |
The Cult Cultural Noise Burton Cummings |
The Cure Curved Air |
Cybotron Czar |
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The Globe Sessions (1998, 54.55) ***/T |
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| My Favourite Mistake There Goes the Neighborhood Riverwide It Don't Hurt Maybe That's Something Am I Getting Through Anything But Down Difficult Kind |
Mississippi Members Only Crash and Burn |
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Current availability:
Already in her thirties by the release of her third album, Crow had been in the business since the mid-'80s, initially singing backup for Michael Jackson on his Bad tour. The Globe Sessions is a fairly typical female roots rock album, being pretty standard singer-songwriter fare with a side helping of Americana and plenty of 'authentic' instruments, including keyboards. I'm not really qualified to comment on the quality of the songs, I suspect, as this isn't especially to my taste, but it's considerably less irritating than, say, Vonda Shepard, which could be taken as a recommendation of sorts.
Tape replay on one or two tracks, depending on which version you own, with the inimitable Benmont Tench (of Tom Petty fame) on Chamberlin solo violin on Crow's version of Dylan's Mississippi, and Crow herself apparently on Mellotron on track 12, Resuscitation, which my copy doesn't appear to feature. As a result, I shall re-review if I get to hear the offending track at some point.
So; don't go out of your way, unless my description of Crow's music floats your boat. Bugger-all 'Tron on the standard release, too.
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Temple of Low Men (1988, 38.12) ****/TT½ |
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| I Feel Possessed Kill Eye Into Temptation Mansion in the Slums When You Come Never Be the Same Love This Life Sister Madly |
In the Lowlands Better Be Home Soon |
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Woodface (1991, 48.13) ****/T½ |
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| Chocolate Cake It's Only Natural Fall at Your Feet Tall Trees Weather With You Whispers and Moans Four Seasons in One Day There Goes God |
Fame is All I Ask As Sure as I am Italian Plastic She Goes on How Will You Go |
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Together Alone (1993, 51.41) ****/TT |
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| Kare Kare In My Command Nails in My Feet Black & White Boy Fingers of Love Pineapple Head Locked Out Private Universe |
Walking on the Spot Distant Sun Catherine Wheels Skin Feeling Together Alone |
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Mellotrons used:
As far as I can work out, Neil Finn, younger brother of Tim, joined Split Enz for their second album proper, Dizrythmia, and ended up dominating the group by the time they split (ho ho) in the mid-'80s; please correct me if I'm wrong, but that's the impression I get. After a short break, he formed the immensely successful Crowded House, whose remit was obviously 'intelligent, timeless pop', in, which I have to say, they totally succeeded. I was put off hearing them by their reputation as 'wussy, mainstream stuff' - my loss; what an excellent band. Their debut, 1986's Crowded House (****) contains probably their best-known and loved song, Don't Dream It's Over, although they hadn't yet discovered the keyboard that was to have such an impact on their sound.
They released Temple of Low Men (an ironic gay reference, in case you were wondering) two years later, and it's immediately apparent that Mr. Tape Replay has called in the interim. Producer Mitchell Froom had obviously introduced them to the wonders of the Chamberlin by this time, and they responded by slapping it all over the album, or at least its first side (note the vinyl-length running time). Incidentally, a notable feature of Crowded House's entire career is a welcome lack of '80s productions', giving them a timeless (that word again) sound, without the usual horrible electronic drums, digital synths and gated reverb that ruined so many potentially good albums during that decade (although I can't think of any off the top of my head). That isn't to say there aren't any polysynths or sample-playback here, only that they're kept well in check. Anyway, Temple... is stuffed with great songs, highlights including I Feel Possessed and Kill Eye. On the Chamberlin front, Froom plays it alongside other newer and older 'boards, including a Wurlie (?) piano, with strings and flutes all over the first four tracks, with particularly nice flutes on Into Temptation.
Playing Woodface again reminds me of why I initially hated the band. Some years ago, I recorded a few backing tracks for a couple of guys who 'gigged' by singing over them, including a couple by the godawful Mike & the Mechanics and CH's It's Only Natural. I grew to hate the song over the lengthy (and ludicrously underpaid) process, and it's taken me until quite recently to get over the experience. Of course, the song's actually excellent, as is the classic Four Seasons In One Day, with several other minor classics dotted around. I believe it's Froom on Chamberlin again, with some upfront strings on Tall Trees and a variety of things, including flutes and female voices (?) on Fame Is. It's possible there's more Chamby on the album, but that's all I can hear. Incidentally, the album's notable for older bro' Tim's temporary membership of the band, apparently due to the album growing out of a duo project from the brothers.
Sadly, Together Alone turned out to be the band's swansong, with their eventual split following an emotional farewell gig in '96 outside Sydney Opera House, the band having become honorary Aussies by that point. The songwriting's as strong as ever, if a little more experimental, with highlights including Nails In My Feet and Black And White Boy. Although all guest musicians are credited, including no less than three ex-Split Enders, the band don't actually credit themselves, forcing the listener to do a bit of digging to find out they'd added a second guitarist/keyboard player to the lineup, Mark Hart. Depending on which source you believe, it's either Hart or Neil Finn on Chamby, the only certainty being that it's not Froom, with production duties falling to Killing Joke's Youth. Nails In My Feet and Catherine Wheels have some fairly standard strings, while Pineapple Head has an unusual fast flute arpeggio running through it, but again, only a handful of relevant tracks.
A final 'odds'n'sods' album appeared in '99, Afterglow (***½), but despite a couple of 'possibles', I don't think there's any Chamby on it, though I'm always willing to be proved wrong... Many of you will hate this stuff, but if you like intelligent pop, there's a good chance you'll go for it. The Chamberlin work is somewhat variable, and I couldn't really recommend any of these on those grounds alone, but there are several excellent Chamby tracks, so if you're going to buy the albums anyway, think of them as a bonus. The brothers Finn released a collaboration in '95, Finn (a.k.a. Finn Bros), before both heading off into solo waters. Neil still uses his Chamberlin (a Music Master 400 or 600, I believe) on his own albums, and it seems that just about anything with the Finn name on it is probably worth hearing if you like their style. Recommended.
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Tall Tales (1998, 61.49) ****/TTTT |
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| Over the Falls The Poet Liar Find the Line Lords and Leeches In Ancient Tongue The Salamander Land for Sale |
An Imp's Tale Twice Upon a Time Adrift Stone of the Wise The Mortal Flaw Nomad Brad Release the Imps Day of the Hunting |
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Curtains (2001, 42.22) ****/TTTThe SwordplayerI'd Rather Walk A Man of Two Minds Noble Rot Nuclear Apathy Worlds Apart Curtains |
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Crucible are that rarest of things, a modern progressive band who aren't either typical neo-prog, or that overblown style beloved of Ayreon, the Rocket Scientists collective et al., or even the halfway stage of Spock's Beard, The Flower Kings etc. The overriding influence here is '70s Genesis, although they're heavier in the guitar department, and bits of other bands can be heard, notably Styx (from when they were good).
Most of the songs on their debut, Tall Tales, are excellent, although we could probably have done without the 'radio rock' feel of Find The Line, especially given that at around an hour, it's hardly bereft of material. The sleeve design eschews modern styles, going straight for the 'fantasy art' look, and it's fair to say that this describes the album both lyrically and musically. You may consider this ridiculous in 1998, but I have to say it works excellently, as long as you suspend your sense of the ludicrous. For some reason, keyboardist/acoustic guitarist/flautist Tim Horan isn't credited with Mellotron, but I presume it's him playing the thing on most tracks present. He doesn't stint on it, either, with much strings and choir on most of the listed tracks, with highlights being opener Over The Falls and the relevant parts of seven-part epic An Imp's Tale.
I detect a slight stylistic shift on 2001's Curtains, although it's still recognisably the same band. The material is more mature, although their chief influences persist (listen to the middle section of Noble Rot for a textbook copy of Genesis circa A Trick of the Tail). Interestingly, and surprisingly, they chose to cover Crack the Sky's Nuclear Apathy, sounding similar, though not identical to the original, with a nice burst of 'Tron strings in the middle section. Horan's Mellotron use is rather less than on their debut, largely strings, with the odd burst of choir, but it's effective where it's used.
So, all in all, highly recommended for the progressive fan who wants a slightly updated take on the '70s style, with much Mellotron, particularly on Tall Tales. Buy.
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Sonic Temple (1989, 57.07) ***½/T |
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| Sun King Fire Woman American Horse Edie (Ciao Baby) Sweet Soul Sister Soul Asylum New York City Automatic Blues |
Soldier Blue Wake Up Time for Freedom Medicine Train |
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Ceremony (1991, 63.20) ***/T |
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| Ceremony Wild Hearted Son Earth Mofo White If Full Tilt Heart of Soul Bangkok Rain |
Indian Sweet Salvation Wonderland |
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I saw the Cult once. They'd just released their 'rock' album, 1987's Electric, and my brother and I thought it'd be a laugh to see just what exactly they were up to. We were right. The several thousand-capacity venue was full of goth kids, obviously expecting an evening of material from their first two Cult (as against Southern Death Cult or Death Cult) albums, Dreamtime and the highly successful Love, so much amusement was had as the band burst onto stage in full rock get-up. Er, it's AC/DC, isn't it? With Jim Morrison on vocals, assuming Jim Morrison had been British and had hair down to his arse? "Toonaaht, Matth-yew, I'm gonna be MISTAH MOJO RISIN'!! Did you see it? Did you see it?"*. The best bit was guitarist Billy Duffy's mid-'70s style solo spot, where he stumbled his way through as many rock clichés as possible, before lurching into the riff from Zeppelin's Bring It On Home (OK, so they didn't really write it, but you know what I mean), to ironic cheers and V-signs (this was before devil horns, of course) from ourselves and the other old rock contingent in the crowd. Thoroughly ridiculous - we laughed till it hurt.
Electric was actually something of a disappointment, with a weak-as-water production, sounding more like Bad Company than Led Zep, so their next effort, '89's Sonic Temple, had to be good. Maybe surprisingly, this is actually the first time I think I've ever heard the whole thing, and... despite its ludicrous, cliché-ridden lyrics - er, and music, for that matter - I kept finding myself grinning at its sheer audacity, pretending the squeaky-clean '80s never happened, or punk, for that matter. Oh, and the cover. Surely I should love this band? It's not that simple, unfortunately, but I can see them becoming something of a guilty pleasure in years to come. Opener Sun King is a joyous celebration of all things Rock, ditto Soul Asylum (that was a bit cheeky, wasn't it?), ditto, oh fuck it, this album ROCKS! Its Big Ballad, Edie (Ciao Baby), about one of Warhol's hangers-on, does everything that a rock Big Ballad should, and Ian Astbury (once referred to in the press in his early days as 'Dan', which has stuck somewhat around these parts) does his full-on pseudo-American accent, and everything's right with the world. The band were actually ahead of the pack in their keyboard use, sticking largely to vintage 'boards, with Hammond and Rhodes cropping up, presumably from either bassist Jamie Stewart or John Webster, not to mention some Mellotron strings on American Horse and Soul Asylum, although neither is the most overt use you'll ever hear.
Two years on, Ceremony's sleeve pic of a young Native American boy got the band into legal hot water, but musically, the song, er, remained pretty much the same. Saying that, although the album has the same number of tracks as its predecessor, and is only six minutes longer, almost every track drags, which would be a difficult rap to nail on Sonic Temple. Sounds like their Cocaine Album to me. OK, one of them. If the whole thing was trimmed down ten or fifteen mins, it would be a better record, although some of its predecessor's energy seems to've been lost, probably somewhere in the Midwest. Several slowies this time round, one of which, White, features a fairly subdued Mellotron string part from Tom Petty's keys man, Benmont Tench. Best bit of the album? Has to be the title of its third track, Earth Mofo. I mean, what?
So; two albums of ridiculous retro-rock in the era of sad-arse glam metal, making the Cult easily the lesser of two evils. Three 'Tron tracks in total, but none of 'em essential, so pick these up if you're in need of a laugh, with a side helping of Rock. Don't forget, V-signs, not devil horns. And get 'em the right way round.
* UK tribute act TV show 'Stars in Their Eyes' reference, for non-residents.
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Aphorisms Insane (1981, 40.33) ***½/TT½After the Selfdisintegration in TimePursuing the in Time Disintegrating Reality |
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In all honesty, I know next to nothing about Cultural Noise, other than what you see above, i.e. they were a turn-of-the-'80s synth outfit from Austria; I've never even seen the album's sleeve, although I'm assured that the Mellotron was played by Walter Heinisch. Other musicians? Not a clue. Aphorisms Insane is a fairly typical electronic album, with the usual bleeping synths and sequencer work, with the only obvious polyphonic keyboards being a short burst of Hammond on side two and, of course, the Mellotron.
The album opens with some distant choir chords in After The Selfdisintegration In Time, gradually moving to the front of the mix before disappearing, while some similar string chords briefly appear a few minutes later before a full-on phased string part towards the end of the side. Flip the record to Pursuing The In Time Disintegrating Reality, and block choir chords greet you within moments, followed by a flute melody, then a huge string chord... OK, side two's where the 'Tron action is, ladies and gents, although it isn't the album's main keyboard instrument, by any means. More strings later in the piece, and that's your lot. Very pleasant, but a little inessential.
Aphorisms Insane has never been issued on CD, like so many similar works, and it seems you're unlikely to find a vinyl original for below a three-figure sum, in any currency. Is it worth it? Probably not, to be honest, unless you're a fanatical EM collector who's got to have everything. The Mellotron work is very nice, but when you're talking about those sort of sums... It's bound to appear on a small shiny disc at some point (he says, hopefully); hang on, and you'll eventually get it for 15 quid or so, probably with bonus tracks. One day.
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Burton Cummings (1976, 35.25) **/TI'm ScaredYour Back Yard Nothing Rhymed That's Enough Is it Really Right Stand Tall Niki Hokey Sugartime Flashback Joys Burch Magic You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet |
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Burton Cummings was, of course, vocalist with Canadian stars the Guess Who for ten years, leaving for a solo career in 1975. His debut, Burton Cummings, is a typical mid-'70s soft-rock album, with few distinguishing features 30 years on (or probably at the time, to be honest). This is so Of Its Time it couldn't, er, be any more so; mid-paced, vaguely singer-songwritery stuff with lots of piano. A budget Van Morrison, if you will. Its only real saving grace is a hysterical, laid-back piano jazz version of former cohort Randy Bachman's (in)famous You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet, stutter intact, which almost (but not quite) adds a half star to its rating. Class.
Mellotron from Cummings on two tracks, with an opening flute part and chorus strings (alongside a Solina) on Nothing Rhymed, a Gilbert O'Sullivan song, and slightly more upfront phased strings on Sugartime Flashback Joys, neither of which makes this album even remotely worth the purchase, even for the whole pound I paid for a copy, You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet notwithstanding. Dullsville.
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Wish (1992, 66.20) ***/T |
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| Open High Apart From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea Wendy Time Doing the Unstuck Friday I'm in Love Trust |
Letter to Elise Cut To Wish Impossible Things End |
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Bloodflowers (2000, 58.00) ***/½Out of This WorldWatching Me Fall Where the Birds Always Sing Maybe Someday Last Day of Summer There is No if... Loudest Sound 39 Bloodflowers |
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Wish was The Cure's tenth studio release, and is (at least to my ears) pretty much Business As Usual, being a mixture of dark, 'difficult' music (Open, End), general sadness (Trust, From The Edge Of The Deep Green Sea) and incongruously lightweight jangly pop (the possibly sublimely Byrdsian Friday I'm In Love). Some reviewers have labelled it the 'last great Cure album' or somesuch, with one more perceptive voice noting that it's effectively a summation of their various styles to date, which seems pretty fair. Whether you personally will like it or not almost entirely depends on whether or not you like The Cure and their rather gothy pop; can't say I'm blown away by it myself, but it does what it does perfectly well, which is more than you can say for an awful lot of records. Trust has what sounds like Mellotron strings over a generic string patch and a pleasant piano part, but is ultimately slightly inconsequential, not to mention possibly sampled. Since three band members are credited with keyboards, including mainman Robert Smith, it's impossible to tell who may've played what could be a sample anyway.
Eight years and all of two albums later (mid-career slump, anyone?), and The Cure returned to their 'roots' once again, after the (apparent) relative disappointment of 1996's Wild Mood Swings. To my ears, I'm afraid it's Just Another Cure Album, doing all the things The Cure tend to do, i.e. rather gothy pop/rock with the odd memorable track here and there. Top marks for making track two over 11 minutes long, mind... Anyway, faint 'Tron flutes, played in the tried'n'tested 'Strawberry Fields' manner, on opener Out Of This World, but nothing you couldn't live without, to be honest.
So, two Cure albums, two pretty minor 'Tron tracks. Go elsewhere, methinks.
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Air Conditioning (1970, 45.21) ****/TT |
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| It Happened Today Stretch Screw Blind Man Vivaldi Hide and Seek Propositions Rob One |
Situations Vivaldiwithcannons |
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Second Album (1971, 42.13) ***½/TYoung MotherBack Street Luv Jumbo You Know Puppets Everdance Bright Summer's Day '68 Piece of Mind |
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Air Cut (1973) ****/TTTThe Purple Speed QueenElfin Boy Metamorphosis World Armin U.H.F. Two-Three-Two Easy |
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Airborne (1976) ***/T½DesireeKids to Blame Broken Lady Juno Touch of Tequila Moonshine Heaven (Never Seemed So Far Away) Hot & Bothered Dazed |
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Mellotron used:
Curved Air (named after Terry Riley's avant-garde late-'60s piece A Rainbow in Curved Air) were formed around vocalist Sonja Kristina, fresh from the London production of famed hippy musical 'Hair', other key members being violinist Darryl Way and guitarist/keyboardist Francis Monkman. Their debut, Air Conditioning, starting an intermittent run of crap puns, is excellent, with the band displaying their classical and jazz chops with aplomb. It Happened Today is a dynamic opener, while Vivaldi is as you'd expect, with Way ripping into the maestro's work on electric violin. Monkman plays Mellotron on a couple of tracks; Screw features mucho chordal flute work, while Situations has a flute melody in the verse, then full-on strings over most of the rest of the song. Not the greatest 'Tron album ever, but highly recommended anyway.
Second Album, with its elaborate fold-out sleeve, features rather less obvious 'Tron, and isn't quite the equal of its predecessor musically, either, which isn't to say that it's a bad album by any means. Known for their only UK hit, Back Street Luv (a startling No.4 in August '71), most of the rest of the tracks seem low-key in comparison, with too many rather ordinary songs, such as Jumbo and You Know, although an exception should be made for the piece occupying most of side two, Piece Of Mind, which is nearly as all-out progressive as Curved Air ever got. As far as Monkman's Mellotron's concerned, the only obvious use is the strings on Puppets, although both Young Mother and Piece Of Mind have uncredited brass, which may or may not be real. Interesting to note, incidentally, that side one was written by the Darryl Way axis, and side two entirely by Monkman. Well, I thought so, anyway.
The band's excellent third album, Phantasmagoria (****), is sadly 'Tron-free, but after some lineup changes which saw Monkman and Way's departure, the reconstituted band recorded Air Cut, with a very young Eddie Jobson on violin and keys, later of Roxy Music, UK etc. Opening with The Purple Speed Queen, an attempt to rewrite Back Street Luv, the 'simultaneous guitar and keys' normality of the track hits you, after the oddly schizophrenic Monkman approach. Jobson's first Mellotron injection is also the album's, and possibly the band's finest moment, Metamorphosis, a lengthy track that seems to tie all the band's strengths together, with great songwriting, superb musicianship and, er, some Mellotron. A short flute section in the middle, actually, although it's less overt than the strings in the (unusually) instrumental Armin and similar in U.H.F.. The album has its clunkers (I'd skip World, if I were you), but overall, well worth the effort.
Curved Air lost their way rather badly at this point, recording a deeply substandard album that only appeared twenty years later as Lovechild (**½), before bringing Way back on board and releasing Live (***½) and Midnight Wire (***), before their swansong, Airborne, featuring a pre-Police Stewart Copeland, long hair and all (that's him to the top right of the sleeve). Copeland later married Sonja Kristina, though it wasn't to last. The album falls mainly into the rather unexciting category of 'mid-'70s rock', being neither heavy nor progressive enough to fall into either of those camps, although side two's Moonshine is the one real 'prog' track to be heard, and is actually up there with the best of the band's work. For some reason, they elected to use a Mellotron on the album, although it's completely uncredited. Broken Lady has a flute melody in the verses, while Moonshine features the flutes more extensively, although all the strings on the album are either string synth or Darryl Way's violin.
So; Air Cut's the nearest any Curved Air record gets to being a Mellotron Album, but I'd recommend any of their first four for the music. Airborne isn't too exciting, but with one excellent track, is probably worth it for the committed prog fan. Give Lovechild a wide berth, though.
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Colossus (1979, 42.30) ***½/T½ColossusEclipse Medusa Raga in Asia Minor |
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Cybotron were Australia's answer to Tangerine Dream, although they varied the style with a full-time drummer, while one of the two synthesists played 'processed saxophone', too. The material's actually pretty good, although I couldn't see them making much of a mark in Europe. While not being Mellotron owners, they used one on their second album, Colossus, played by chief synthesist Geoff Green, with some choir chords on Medusa, and a flute melody on the lengthy tabla-heavy Raga In Asia Minor.
So; not a bad album, though only fairly committed EM fans should make the effort, to be honest. Not really worth it on the Mellotron front, but an interesting listen nonetheless. Amusing sleeve, too, with several pics of the band setting up their full rig (sans Mellotron) in front of an industrial complex, with their name written on the ground in several-feet high letters with what looks like LPs.
Incidentally, while researching Cybotron's background on the 'Net, I discovered something that made me chuckle. It seems that the name was subsequently used by an American techno pioneer, and a couple of sites have got the two acts confused. How I'd love to see the face of the techno-head who orders Colossus, thinking he's found a previously-unknown recording from the early days of the dance movement. Who knows? He might even like it!
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Czar (1970, 40.13/47.51) ***½/TTTT½Tread Softly on My DreamsCecelia Follow Me Dawning of a New Day Beyond the Moon Today A Day in September [CD adds: Oh Lord I'm Getting Heavy Why Don't We Be a Rock'n'Roll Band] |
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Revered by many as an early 'Mellotron classic', Czar's only LP is another one of those heavyish late-period psych/early prog efforts, only with rather less finesse than many of its contemporaries. Tread Softly On My Dreams isn't a bad track, but should've been at least two minutes shorter, and the same could be said for most of the rest of the album, really. On the positive side, there's loads of Mellotron to be heard, mostly Mark II strings and brass, along with the ubiquitous Hammond. In fact, almost all the relevant tracks listed above are loaded with 'Tron, so if that's your chief criteria, you really can't go too far wrong.
The CD reissue adds two tracks from a single, but they're not really worth the effort, if truth be told; formative blues-rock, bereft of any Mellotron involvement. I'm fairly neutral about this one, as I don't rate the music that highly, preferring Fantasy, Cressida or several other early prog outfits over Czar, but I know Martin Smith from Streetly Electronics (Mellotron UK HQ) loves this album to bits. Don't you, Martin! Martin?
