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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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The Marshall Brothers Band (1975, 43.25) **½/TTFalcon 1868-1912Bright Light Lady Pioneer Suite Mr 'L' Come Out With Your Hands Up Baby Flying High Summer Love Younger Now |
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The Marshall Brothers Band are lesser-known Aussie proggers, quite possibly due to their lounge-act name, but also quite possibly due to their lounge-act music, certainly when compared to the likes of Aleph or the mighty Sebastian Hardie. The Marshall Brothers Band (produced by noted 'Tronnist Chris Neal) could at best fit into the turn-of-the-'70s UK scene, sounding somewhat out of date in 1975, given that their Aussie contemporaries were actually quite, er, contemporary in comparison. Falcon 1868-1912 is a passable proto-prog piece, but Bright Light Lady is, unsurprisingly, a basic hard rock boogie that no doubt kept 'em happy in the pubs, but can't have sounded that good on record even at the time. Live favourite, no doubt. Pioneer Suite is also pretty dated, and by the time we get to Summer Love we're deep into mainstream territory. Closer Younger Now is a bit of an anomaly, being a lengthy Latin workout, sounding almost like an Antipodean Santana, pre-empting Sebastian Hardie's mutation into Windchase by a couple of years, but more, well, lounge.
As you can see, there's Mellotron (from Robert Scott) all over the place here, technically, with an in-yer-face strings intro to Falcon 1868-1912 (and the album), repeating later in the song, plus flutes, with more of the same on Pioneer Suite. However, the only other 'Tron part of any note at all is the strings on Flying High, but saying 'of any note' is stretching things a bit, I'm afraid. The rest of Scott's work consists of background strings of little consequence, heavily overshadowed by his nippy MiniMoog playing on several tracks, so no 'Tron classic here, sadly.
So; an album of some averageness, to be honest, barely worthy of the 'progressive' tag at all across much of its length. I suspect these guys were the proverbial covers band trying to make their mark, but essentially failing due to an inability to distance themselves sufficiently from their day-job, unlike the various aforementioned. Of course, Australia is renowned for its full-tilt boogie madness, but while such Practitioners Of Rock as Rose Tattoo or the wondrous AC/DC (Bon version, anyway) had only to get their live set onto vinyl to conquer the world (OK, not the Tatts), any outfit having pretensions to sophistication had better be bloody good, and The Marshall Brothers Band weren't. This isn't complete rubbish, but certainly isn't worth splashing out too much for, with only one really decent 'Tron track to its name. Incidentally, although this is on CD, beware: it's on the UK-based Radioactive Records, who are essentially rip-off pirates, so there's absolutely zero chance that any of the band are making an Aussie cent out of this.
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A New Life (1973, 41.49) ***/TA New LifeSouthern Woman Blue Ridge Mountain Sky Too Stubborn Another Cruel Love You Ain't Foolin' Me 24 Hours at a Time Fly Eagle Fly |
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The Marshall Tucker Band (there is no 'Marshall', or 'Tucker') can be loosely described as 'Southern Rock', but if you're expecting anything like Lynyrd Skynyrd, think again; this is more like a jazzier, (even) bluesier, more countryfied version of The Allman Brothers, with little real rock influence, at least going by their second album, 1974's A New Life. Mind you, it covers just about every other style popular at the time, possibly excepting soul; blues (Too Stubborn), sort-of jazz (Southern Woman), rock'n'roll (Another Cruel Love) and plenty of country. But is it any good? It could certainly be worse; the band seem to work best in jamming mode, maybe surprisingly, the title track and Southern Woman being highlights.
Producer Paul Hornsby plays Mellotron, bringing string chords into You Ain't Foolin' Me, most of the way through its near-seven minute length. It's also there, in the background, on 24 Hours At A Time and just possibly on Too Stubborn, but I wouldn't exactly risk my reputation (er, I have one?) on it. Overall, then, a decent enough country rock + album, dipping toes into several other styles and refusing to be pigeonholed. Not much Mellotron, but it's a bonus there's any at all, frankly.
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Arena (1971) ****/TTTPrelude to the ArenaPeace of Rome The Arena Time Shadows Spring |
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Marsupilami were a proto-prog outfit who, rather like the more successful Nektar, relocated abroad, though in this case to the Netherlands. Arena is pretty hard-hitting, actually, nearer to Van der Graaf Generator than Genesis, to be honest, with some sort of ancient Rome concept, at least on side one.
Leary Hasson's keyboard work is excellent throughout, with a fair helping of Mellotron on side one, mostly strings, given that there's a flautist also playing. Probably the album's best track, The Arena, also has 'Tron brass parping away at one point, among the general stop-start weirdness going on. So, a damn' good album, though not exactly symphonic prog. Good 'Tron work too, so probably worth it on those grounds alone.
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This is the Ice Age (1981, 42.01) ***½/T½SwimmingWomen Around the World at Work Casualties of Glass Boy Without Filters Jets Seem Slower in London Skies This is the Ice Age One Day in Paris You Sold the Cottage Three Hundred Years/Chemistry |
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Martha & the Muffins will always be remembered for the classic Echo Beach, a '60s-influenced noo wave hit with jangly guitars and parping Farfisa, although they've never actually split and at the time of writing, have a new album due. Of course there was always rather more to them than that single, although I doubt whether they ever matched it for its sheer joie de vivre.
1981's This is the Ice Age was their second post-major success album (their 'star' status lasted for precisely one LP), and is a far better album than you might expect a semi-washed up pop group to produce. Without sounding like Japan, it inhabits some of the same world as that band's contemporaneous work, flitting between serene soundscapes (the lovely Jets Seem Slower In London Skies), fractured, slightly Talking Heads-ish funk (the title track) and the kind of bouncy pop everyone expected of them (You Sold The Cottage). The album was produced by the up-and-coming Daniel Lanois, brother of band member Jocelyne, which explains the presence of a Mellotron, as he owned a red-painted M400 at the time. He and Mark Gane play it, with flutes on Casualties Of Glass, distant strings on Jets Seem Slower In London Skies, pitchbent ones on the title track and drifting ones on the Three Hundred Years part of closer Three Hundred Years/Chemistry, all to reasonable effect.
There's supposed to me more LanoisTron on their next release, '83's Danseparc, but I really can't say I hear anything at all, so without a credit, off it goes. It's a rather less exciting proposition than its predecessor, anyway, being far more of a Japan/Talking Heads steal than anything. This is the Ice Age, on the other hand, is a very worthwhile album, although I wouldn't get too excited about its Mellotron content if I were you.
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Reproductions (2007, 42.25) ***/T |
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| Angel Obstacle 1 Constant Craving Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town Chocolate Bizarre Love Triangle Cherry-Coloured Funk |
I Am Stretched Out on Your Grave Urge for Going Just Like Heaven Song to the Siren |
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Third (released) album in seems a bit early for Charlotte Martin to release a covers album; isn't that what washed-up artists do at the end of their careers? Martin clearly isn't washed-up; who says you can't release covers albums whenever you want, anyway? I'm slightly embarrassed to say that I only recognised one of the titles (it would've been two, but I thought Angel was the Hendrix track, not the Massive Attack one), but then, Martin is, musically at least, a whole generation behind my good self, with a totally different set of influences. It's a decent enough effort, vocal pointers being the ubiquitous Kate Bush (one of the album's two 'digital bonus tracks' is Cloudbusting) and Tori Amos, while musical ones include The Cocteau Twins (she tackles their Cherry-Coloured Funk here), other covered artists including Joni Mitchell (Urge For Going), Pearl Jam (Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town) and the one I spotted, Tim Buckley's Song To The Siren.
Martin and her husband, Ken Andrews, play Mellotron, with flutes and choir on k.d. lang's Constant Craving and probable flutes on New Order's Bizarre Love Triangle, with one or two other vague possibles. If you go for that 'intimate female singer-songwriter' thing (OK, I know she didn't write these ones), you'll probably go a bundle on Charlotte Martin. If not, stay away; you really won't like this. I can't actually compare many of her versions to the originals; suffice to say, she makes them her own, which is more than you can say for most covers albums. Not much Mellotron, though...
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Somewhere in the Middle (1998, 53.46) ***/T |
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| Fly on a Wall Wink and a Smile Don't Count Me Out Kisses Stain No One Said Goodbye Better Day Somewhere in the Middle That's What I'm Here for |
Somethin' From Nothin' Have I Been Here Before Over My Heart I Love the Way You Love Me |
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Eric Martin's best-known as vocalist with hair-metallists Mr Big, although when the band coalesced, he was already a decade into his career, having had some success with 415, renamed The Eric Martin Band. Martin has one of those soulful white-guy voices that can adapt to almost any style, so it's no great surprise to hear that on his third solo album, 1998's Somewhere in the Middle, he tackles a far bluesier set of material than Mr Big would ever have allowed, although most of it's a little overlong and trudges along without any great conviction, sadly.
John Philip Shenale plays Chamberlin, with strings on Kisses Stain and I Love The Way You Love Me, plus solo violin on Somethin' From Nothin', although none of the parts especially enhances its parent track. Somewhere in the Middle is by no means a bad album and should probably be taken as a vocalist's showcase, although the bulk of its material falls rather short, particularly by rock standards. Good at what it does, but not worth it on the Chamby front.
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Life (2005, 46.05) **/T |
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| Til I Get to You I Won't Desert You I Don't Care Stop Time Tonight Life I am It's Alright Drop it on Me |
This is Good Save the Dance Que Más Da (I Don't Care) Dejate Llevar (It's Alright) |
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Ricky Martin's recent coming-out came as no great surprise to yours truly (or probably anyone else), as I was a recipient of a music biz insider tale on the subject some years ago. Like so many other supposedly secretly gay public figures (Judas Priest's Rob Halford springs to mind), his coming out was greeted with the total indifference of a world to whom it really isn't news. All of which has little to do with his third English-language album, 2005's Life. Sadly for Martin, it contains nothing with the joie de vivre of his '99 hit, Livin' La Vida Loca, sounding more like several different producers' experiments in music software programming, making for a record that's undoubtedly technically proficient, but is almost unlistenable to anyone looking for, y'know, a good tune, although This Is Good has a decent stab at it, in fairness.
Patrick Warren plays Mellotron and Chamberlin, while Teddy Mulet adds more Chamby, with (Chamby?) strings on Stop Time Tonight and Drop It On Me, although where the Mellotron may be is anyone's guess, frankly. It's quite possible there's more Chamberlin, too, although several string parts appear to be the Arabic string section which is probably the album's only even vaguely interesting feature. All in all, then, this is one of a tediously increasing number of albums on this site about which you probably have almost zero interest, which makes me wonder why I even bother writing these reviews. All sensible answers on the back of a used Mellotron to the usual address.
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The Pillory (1978, 44.15) ****/TTTTTPart 1Part 2 |
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Jasun Martz is an American composer/keyboard player who, until 2005, had only ever released this one album, The Pillory, along with a cast of thousands, including Eddie Jobson and Ruth Underwood (Frank Zappa). The nearest description I can find for this is 'modern classical'; it's only on the furthest fringes of experimental progressive or electronic music, with dissonant voices, strings and brass slipping in and out of the piece. Part 2 is, if anything, even more 'out there', with dissonant percussion joining the orchestra in making a right old racket.
You're about twelve minutes into Part 1 before there's any Mellotron at all, at which point it goes completely berserk, with a ten minute Mellotron solo (!) following (real) orchestra and ('Tron) choirs, incorporating mostly string and flute chords, in one of the most full-on 'Tron pieces I've ever heard. How come this is so obscure? For Mellotron aficionados, this is almost the Holy Grail; unaccompanied mournful M400 strings - absolutely gorgeous. After Part 2's percussive weirdness, there's a lengthy church organ section (real, I think), followed by 'Tron choirs and strings in another unaccompanied piece. This is quite superb; I urge you to try to track down a copy. More than worthy of your time.
In 2004, word started circulating of a follow-up, finally released in 2005 as The Pillory/The Battle. Upon its release, however, it became apparent that the two tracks featuring 'Mellotron' actually contained samples, so please go here for a review.
See: Sampledelica!
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La Maschera di Cera (2002, 42.11) ****/TTTT |
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| La Maschera di Cera Il Tuo Volto La Tua Gente Il Tuo Rifugio La Tua Irrealtà La Tua Guida La Mia Fine... Del Mio Mondo Che Crolla |
Del Mio Abisso e del Vuoto Il Vuoto L'Abisso E Senza Più Peso Io Salgo Del Mio Volo |
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Il Grande Labirinto (2003, 65.34) ****/TTTTIl Viaggio Nell'Oceano Capovolto (parte 1)Il Grande Labirinto Il Canto Dell'Inverno Ai Confini del Mondo Il Viaggio Nell'Oceano Capovolto (parte 2) La Consunzione |
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LuxAde (2006, 62.25) ****/TTTT |
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| Porta del Cielo Doppia Immagine Un Senso All'impossible Teatro di Follia Il Ricordo Orpheus Nuova Luce Passato Sogno |
Presente Realtà Enciclica 1168 O Scena I: Preludio (Gennaio 17) O Scena II: Caduta/Visione O Scena III: Delitto O Scena IV: Coscienza O Scena V: Canto Pagano/Metamorfosi O Scena VI: Dopo la Pioggia O Scena VII: Sterminio |
O Scena VIII: Lumen in Coelo O Scena IX: Postludio ("Così in Alto è Come in Basso") Schema (v.s.d.) |
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La Maschera di Cera are a new Italian band who, praise be, act as if the whole '80s neo-prog scene had never happened, playing symphonic progressive rock as she should be (assuming, that is, that you consider the '70s scene to be the genre's peak). This isn't especially surprising, when you consider that the band was put together by Finisterre men Fabio Zuffanti and Agostino Macor, making them another of that outfit's side-projects, along with the excellent Hostsonaten. Their self-titled debut is an 'album-length' album, with four lengthy tracks, utilising all the compositional tricks you could wish for from a band hailing from that country, not to mention a raft of analogue keys. I know La Maschera di Cera will grow on me with repeated plays, given that it's caught my ear on a first hearing; there are so many also-rans out there that it's a joy to hear a band who know how to write for the genre, not just sticking bits together randomly, like a few I've heard recently (tip: avoid American outfit Akacia).
Macor's Mellotron work on the album is quite exemplary, with the first sound you hear being a 'Tron flute part on La Maschera Di Cera itself (originally written in 1991, apparently). After that it's mainly strings, on all four tracks, although with no timings for the individual parts on the relevant tracks, I've no way of knowing which ones have any Mellotronic input. Suffice to say, if your listening remit involves a) complex, melodic progressive rock and b) loads of Mellotron, you won't be even slightly disappointed here.
Il Grande Labirinto, like all good sophomore efforts, develops the band's style, while remaining true to their original intentions. There's a little more dissonance on display here, and they experiment with backwards tapes in a few places, although it's very recognisably the same band. I still can't decide whether or not the longer running time was a good idea; OK, more music, but a long CD can become fatiguing to the ears, especially when it's a 'difficult' listen, and is the quality maintained over the extra length? In this case, despite the album appearing only a year after their debut, it would seem so, which makes a refreshing change. Anyway, Macor really comes into his own on a couple of tracks, with some fantastic piano work on the brief Il Canto Dell'Inverno, although on reflection, I think the oboes on the track (and on Il Viaggio Nell'Oceano Capovolto (parte 2)) are probably real. On top of the standard strings and flutes, there's some 'Tron choir to be heard, too, with possibly the album's best 'Tron work being on the aforementioned lengthy Il Viaggio Nell'Oceano Capovolto (parte 2) (also possibly the album's best piece). All in all, another Mellotron classic, I think.
2006's LuxAde carries on in similar fashion, featuring a 25-minute concept piece, Enciclica 1168, that does everything you'd expect and want of such a thing. The rest of the album doesn't disappoint, either, although there are places where you hope for something transcendent to happen, only to hear the piece peter out rather than lift the listener to a new level. Macor is credited with 'keyboards', and Zuffanti with 'choirs', so who plays what is hard to say, although the only two 'Tron sounds on the albums are strings and choir. Plenty of both, although I haven't attempted to ascertain exactly which parts of the epic are more Mellotronically inclined. Yet another great album; why can't more modern bands be like this?
I think it goes without saying that I wholeheartedly recommend all these albums, particularly if you're already a fan of the Italian '70s scene. Conversely, if you don't like Italian-language vocals, you've come to the wrong place. Great music, great 'Tron; how can you lose?
See: Sampledelica! | Finisterre | Hostsonaten | Fabio Zuffanti & Victoria Heward
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Sunrise on the Sufferbus (1992, 42.38) ***½/T½ |
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| She Got Me (When She Got Her Dress on) J.B. Witchdance Jody Sings Rolling Green Ants in the Kitchen V.H.V. Bicycle 100 Years (of Tears on the Wind) |
T.U.S.A. Tilt-a-Whirl Rabbit One Madonna Gimme Water The Moon in Your Pocket |
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The cheekily-named Masters of Reality lurched into view in the late '80s with their debut, Masters of Reality (a.k.a. The Blue Garden) (***½), a total anachronism at the height of heinous hair-metal, and all the better for it. Surprisingly, they were critically well-received, making it all the more strange that it took them four years to follow-up with Sunrise on the Sufferbus, featuring the inimitable Ginger Baker on drums. In fact, if they hadn't been signed to Rick Rubin's estimable Def American label, they probably wouldn't even have got a first chance, never mind a second, so hats off to the man with the beard.
Sunrise on the Sufferbus is a bit of a mixed bag, but includes some great material, although Baker's T.U.S.A., a monologue telling Americans how to make a cup of tea (!), isn't honestly among them. Opener She Got Me (When She Got Her Dress On) rocks nicely, as does V.H.V. and much of the rest of the record. Mainman Chris Goss gets a 'keyboard' credit, so I think we can assume it's him playing what sounds like real Mellotron strings on 100 Years (Of Tears On The Wind), with more of the same on Tilt-A-Whirl. Actually, 'Tron samples weren't widely used until later in the decade, and it's rough enough round the edges to be genuine, so hats off again.
So; if you're into '70s-style hard rock, or possibly stoner stuff, you stand a good chance of being into the Masters. While Sunrise on the Sufferbus is no Mellotron Album, it's still well worth hearing. Goss is credited with 'Mellotron' on two subsequent albums, '99's Welcome to the Western Lodge and 2001's Deep in the Hole, but it seems they're samples (reviewed here).
See: Sampledelica!
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Crack the Skye (2009, 50.03) ***½/½ |
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| Oblivion Divinations Quintessence The Czar Usurper Escape Martyr Spiral Ghost of Karelia |
Crack the Skye The Last Baron |
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Mastodon are one of the most ambitious of America's current crop of power/progressive metal outfits, concentrating on semi-concept albums and amazingly, picking up an audience at the same time, which isn't a criticism, more wonder that some people still want to listen to something with even a little musical depth. They're actually pretty good at it, as long as you like/can ignore the occasional growled vocal or blastbeat and don't expect anything that progressive.
Crack the Skye is their fourth album proper; the obvious reference point (for me, at least) is Baltimore heroes Crack the Sky, although I haven't seen them mentioned anywhere else. The official line on the title is that it's a tribute to drummer Brann Dailor's sister Skye, who tragically committed suicide aged 14, crossed with a reference to feeling that the sky has cracked when in the depths of despair. Lyrically, the album has some bizarre concept involving astral projection and Rasputin; if you really want to know more, track down the lyrics. Musically, it's vastly more interesting than most modern metal (I had the bad luck to be subjected to Machine Head recently - quite appalling), although a long way from the best of the '70s bands, but then, that's not really where they're coming from, so it's probably not fair to judge them on those criteria.
Touring keyboardist Rich Morris is credited with Mellotron, but you'll need sharper ears than myself to hear it, I suspect. Mind you, no-one's credited with the Hammond that crops up on a few tracks; maybe someone doesn't know their vintage keyboards? Actually, a really close listen unearths a few seconds of a choir sound of some description on closer The Last Baron, which has to be what we're looking for. It's probably elsewhere, too, buried under layers of heavily-distorted guitar, which all seems a bit pointless, but there you go.
Overall, then, a decent enough modern metal album with a modicum of intelligence put into it, though no real Mellotron use to speak of. Buy if you're into the heavier side of things.
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More Than You Think You Are (2002, 50.11) *½/0 |
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| Feel Disease Bright Lights Unwell Cold All I Need Hand Me Down Could I Be You |
Downfall Soul You're So Real The Difference |
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I'm sorry, but what exactly is the point of this music? I know that's not a very positive way to open a review, but I'm most of the way through this thoroughly depressing album of Rock That Doesn't Rock (see: Train), beginning to wonder why I even bother. Ironically, for music that's often described as 'soulful', More Than You Think You Are has as much soul (and I don't mean stylistically) as... I dunno; I'm lost for words. Huey Lewis and the News? Actually, that's what I'm reminded of here; this is so unremittingly bland that it leaves no trace whatsoever, yet they're HUGE! That really says all I ever need to know about the taste of the general public (I don't mean you, dear reader). So; what do I hate about this? Where shall I start? Rob Thomas' infuriatingly touchy-feely voice, that makes me want to punch him out? The semi-gospel choir (is there such a thing?) on Downfall; why? To try to import some emotion into an utterly clinical effort? Oh, I give up.
Drummer Rob Doucette is supposed to play Mellotron on the album, Hand Me Down and You're So Real being the tracks most frequently referenced. Well, I'll be fucked if I can hear it, even in the 'quiet bit' in the latter. Plenty of Hammond and Rhodes for that all-important '70s credibility (read: sub-Counting Crows, in themselves not exactly an aural joy), but no audible Mellotron whatsoever. Please let me know if you can hear any, 'cos I can't.
So; I don't think anyone has any real idea how many albums have been produced that can loosely be described as 'rock'; a couple of million? Could be way off beam; I wouldn't even know how to find out. Whatever, most of them are better than this; not necessarily more professional, not necessarily with more memorable tunes, not necessarily better played or sung. But almost certainly made with a little more passion, a little less corporate arse-sucking and more genuine SOUL. This is truly horrible, and doesn't even have any audible Mellotron despite a credit. Just don't.
See: Rob Thomas
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Matching Mole (1972, 40.04) ****/TTTO CarolineInstant Pussy Signed Curtain Part of the Dance Instant Kitten Dedicated to Hugh, But You Weren't Listening Beer as in Braindeer Immediate Curtain |
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Matching Mole were a Soft Machine offshoot, named as a bastardisation of machine molle, French for 'Soft Machine'. Pretentious? Nous?! They fitted perfectly into the 'Canterbury Scene', such as it was; whimsical, jazzy progressive rock with a rather juvenile sense of humour (see: related artists Hatfield & the North). Matching Mole were, I believe, Robert Wyatt's last pre-accident band, with him presumably singing and drumming and while the style is definitely an acquired taste, Matching Mole is actually a pretty damn' good record.
As far as the Mellotron's concerned, Wyatt (for I believe it was he) switches between 'Tron flutes and cellos on the whimsical (again) O Caroline, then goes for a solo flutes part on Instant Kitten, before drenching Immediate Curtain in strings. This is actually pretty full-on stuff; I hadn't realised quite how much upfront 'Tron work there was on the album, leading me to say... Buy.
See: Robert Wyatt | Hatfield & the North
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...Berlino ...Parigi ...Londra (1981, 42.21) **½/T½ |
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| Lili Marleen Io Ti Voglio Adesso Passa la Voglia (Look at the Rain Fall) Che Canzone È Fortuna Fantasia Stella Polare Zeta |
Fuori Orario Astra |
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Matia Bazar seem to be a fairly typical Italian pop group, representing their country in Eurovision in 1979, although I suspect they've got a few prog skeletons residing in the back of their collective cupboards. 1981's ...Berlino ...Parigi ...Londra (was that wishful thinking?) is mostly pretty crummy; Antonella Ruggiero's vocals display a Kate Bush influence in places, but that isn't enough to rescue this collection of mainstream pop nonsense. In fairness, the album has its occasional better moments; the odd chord sequence veers away from the norm and the vaguely rocking Fuori Orario could be worse, but by far and away the best things here are Mauro Sabbione's short piano solo, Zeta, displaying his classical/prog chops for all to hear and lengthyish closer Astra, a six-minute instrumental prog effort, hidden away at the end so's not to offend their fanbase.
Sabbione plays Mellotron choir, with a distant part on opener Lili Marleen, more obvious swells on Io Ti Voglio Adesso, a handful of chords on Fantasia and a more 'standard' part on Astra, although none of it's exactly what you'd call essential. If you find a copy of this dirt cheap, it's almost worth it for the two prog tracks, but the rest of it's fairly dire and the Mellotron use is unlikely to excite the seasoned listener.
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Open Mind (2000, 44.22) ***/TTT |
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| Open Mind Regular Ray of Sunshine Ducking and Diving Sound of Swinging London Idiot Ambition Gimme Gimme Gimme Sad Meal for One |
Mugs Game Speed of Sound Catatonic Rattle Your Cage |
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I listened to the whole of (S)ex Pistol Glen Matlock's Open Mind under the impression it was a Mike Scott album, due to a mix-up on a long drive, and didn't realise my mistake until halfway through Scott's album, thinking it was Matlock. The confusion is understandable, as both records are largely mid-paced dad-rock, concentrating on 'the song', as against the sound, which isn't, to be honest, wildly exciting. Lyrically, the album references London a good deal, and you get the feeling the music's mainly there as a vehicle for the lyrics, although, sadly, Matlock lacks the biting wit of a Richard Thompson or an Elvis Costello.
Surprisingly, Matlock plays Mellotron on most of the album's tracks, with several booklet pics of an M400, just in case you weren't sure. To be honest, it's not the most exciting use you'll ever hear, with vaguely orchestral string parts on all the highlighted titles above, but it's nice to hear a real one used at all these days, so that's enough carping. So; an OK if rather unexciting album, albeit one with halfway decent lyrics. OK 'Tron, too, although also not the most jaw-dropping use you'll ever hear. Given that Matlock was the compositional brains behind the Pistols' best songs, this is a little disappointing, although I fully accept that he's moved on, and rightly so. One for Pistols completists who can't afford an A&M God Save The Queen, I think.
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Stand Up (2005, 56.21) **½/½ |
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| Dream Girl Old Dirt Hill (Bring That Beat Back) Stand Up (for it) American Baby Intro American Baby Smooth Rider Everybody Wake Up (Our Finest Hour Arrives) |
Out of My Hands Hello Again Louisiana Bayou Stolen Away on 55th and 3rd You Might Die Trying Steady as We Go Hunger for the Great Light |
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Having heard several Dave Matthews Band albums (a band name which can be seen either as unpretentious or shatteringly unimaginative), I'm at a slight loss as to understand why they're lumped in with the 'jam band' scene. String Cheese Incident: yes. Phish: maybe. But the Dave Matthews Band? Maybe they let rip on stage, but on record, they're a desperately unexciting mix of singer-songwriter and mainstream rock, with country and folk influences thrown into the pot, all fronted by Matthews' careworn voice that you'll either like or, er, won't. Stand Up is his/their sixth album, not sounding that dissimilar to the others I've heard by him, and certainly no more interesting. OK, the occasional track shifts out of Matthews' comfort zone (see: the hip-hop-lite beats of Stolen Away On 55th And 3rd), but that's hardly a recommendation, more an observation.
Mark Batson's credited with Mellotron, with a very brief burst of strings on American Baby, and while it might be elsewhere on the album, it seems more likely to be the real strings that crop up in places. Overall, then, a pretty dull album with next to no 'Tron. The usual advice, then.
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Lily (1992, 52.23) *½/TT |
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| Friday's Child Walk Away T.K.O. Mother Can't Do Quiet Art The Day You Went Away If Only I Could |
Homecoming Song By Suzannah Castaway Face of Appalachia Naming Names Inexorably Yours |
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Although Canadian-born and raised, Wendy Matthews is usually regarded as Australian, having spent most of her career based in that country. Lily was her second solo album, and although it pains me to say it, it's a pile of shite. This is the sort of bland rubbish that clogs up your musical arteries and kills off your taste, leaving you a hollow, dried husk of a former music-lover... Er, sorry, am I ranting? This is spectacularly horrible, despite the presence on the album of a Chamberlin.
Speaking of which, it's played by Matthews herself, Robert James and producer T Bone Burnett, with strings on opener Friday's Child, a complex flute part on Homecoming Song By Suzannah Castaway, with a simpler one on Naming Names and what sounds like flutes and cellos on Inexorably Yours. Despite the horrors of the album's music, Homecoming Song is actually one of the more inventive tape-replay parts I've heard for a while, although it's rather overshadowed by its utterly insipid setting. So; some interesting Chamby work, but appalling music. If I hadn't, I wouldn't.
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Another Dimension (2000, 69.27) **½/T |
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| Hell Crash and Burn Don't Chain My Mind Angel Blue Burn the Witch Burning My Soul Don't Lose Your Patience Another Dimension |
Road of Babylon In Both Ends Save Our Souls Memory Lane Wait for the Angels Cry No More |
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(Lars Eric) Mattsson, was discovered by the infamous Mike Varney, of Shrapnel Records, in the mid-'80s (thanks, Mike...), which should give you a pretty good idea of his style. Yup, it's 'neo-classical' metal, although I struggle to see in exactly what way this is 'classical'; all I can hear is sub-Rainbow moves, without an ounce of Blackmore's wit or talent. The ability to sweep-pick at 5000 m.p.h. doth not interesting records make, sir... Another Dimension is Mattsson's first album under his surname alone, after five credited to his full name and a handful with various bands. It's the expected sub-Rainbow/Yngwie J. Malmsteen (himself deeply sub-Blackmore) stuff; think: slightly more adventurous heavy end of AOR with slightly symphonic keyboards and adept, if clichéd guitar work. Fascinating. Even Ella Grussner's violin on Angel Blue can't drag this wildly overlong album up from the doldrums, I'm afraid.
Pär Lindh plays piano, Hammond and Mellotron, so at least we know it's real, for once. He's only credited on one track, but it's quite clearly 'Tron flutes on Angel Blue, unless that's Mattsson. Eric Norlander also guests on keys, but only the synth solo on Don't Chain My Mind, by the looks of it. The strings on Don't Lose Your Patience have a 'Tronlike feel to them, but are more likely to be generic, ditto the choirs in the title track and Memory Lane, leaving the heavily reverbed choirs in Save Our Souls as the album's other Mellotronic contribution.
Lars Eric Mattsson isn't a man to straddle genres or to go boundary-breaking. He's a neo-classical widdler and proud of it. As a result, it's dead easy to decide whether or not you're likely to find Another Dimension listenable: do you like neo-classical metal? It's as simple as that. Maybe if I'd been thirteen when this stuff came along, rather than over twenty, I would, too. Let's be thankful I wasn't.
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7" ( 1973) ***/TT Brother Louie Brother Louie (instrumental) |
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Although now seemingly only really remembered by the faithful, Matumbi were one of Britain's top reggae bands of the '70s, actually going down better than The Wailers at a concert in 1973, to their embarrassment. Although their first album didn't appear until 1978, they'd been releasing singles for several years by that point, the first (possibly) being Brother Louie. Falling somewhere between The Wailers' rebel-rousing and Dandy Livingstone or Johnny Nash's pop-reggae, it's a decent enough effort, deserving to do better than it did on its original release.
Organist Nick Straker played Mellotron strings on both sides of the single (the 'instrumental' version on the flip is actually the vocalists toasting over the backing track), with a nice, memorable part that should've helped to sell the record. The a-side's available on Trojan's Music in the Air: Anthology, but if you want to hear the flip as well, you'll have to track down a second-hand copy of Trojan's 1977 compilation, The Best of Matumbi.
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Stray Apparitions From the Mauve Sideshow (1991, 41.57) ***½/TTTBeneath the RoseStray Apparitions Lost |
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Mauve Sideshow (1993, 46.19) ***½/TTT½Golden SandBeneath the Rose Barricades Jet Girl Talks in Her Sleep Hide in the Rain Stray Apparitions |
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Mauve Sideshow are one of the earliest incarnations of a linked series of American 'darkwave' outfits, including Mistress of Strands, Torn Curtain, Angel Provocateur, Minus Infinity and Thistle, all of whom are supposed to have used Mellotron at one point or another. It seems they all highlight different aspects of their gothic inclinations, with one being more electronic, one more ambient, one more atonal, etc. I believe most (if not all) of the disparate outfits are essentially the husband-and-wife team of Dusty Lee (Mellotron, electronics) and Treva Dea (vocals, electronics), leading me to believe that Lee is the male half of the team.
Their first two releases were vinyl-only albums, 1990's Dark Flowers and Stray Apparitions From the Mauve Sideshow from the following year. The mere half-hour Dark Flowers consists of atonal-yet-ethereal soundscapes, for want of a better term, with mostly wordless female vocals and muttered threats drifting in and out of the mix, alongside echoed synths and other unidentifiable sounds. However, I'm pretty sure there's no Mellotron on the album, despite thinking I heard some flutes on opener Golden Sand, reiterated on their eponymous compilation, below.
Stray Apparitions From the Mauve Sideshow is a full-length LP featuring all of three tracks (hey, it's prog! OK, it isn't). More atonal madness, unsurprisingly, just in longer form here, just about the only thing distinguishing it from its predecessor being its Mellotron use. Lee adds cellos and strings to Beneath The Rose, while Stray Apparitions is the 'Tron classic here; cellos, flutes and strings all duel for the first couple of minutes of the piece, and various sounds (including choirs) dip in and out over the succeeding ten minutes, although the near-twenty minute Lost has to be the most challenging track on the album, but then we all like a nice challenge, don't we? DON'T WE??!
1993's Mauve Sideshow is a compilation of tracks from the above two LPs, with one new track. The compilation's probably best described as 'very weird shit indeed'; Mauve Sideshow are most certainly the 'atonal' part of the collective's oeuvre, and unless you're well into avant-garde oddness, you'll find this very hard going indeed. Lee's Mellotron appears at odd moments throughout the album, on the two tracks from Stray Apparitions and strings on Hide In The Rain, the one track unique to this compilation.
But seriously, folks... Mauve Sideshow are most decidedly uneasy listening, but if you're prepared to persevere with their stuff, it's (probably) worth it, and the 'Tron's good, too. They've made another three albums since: Meet Me in the Wasteland and The Girl (both '94) and Blood Will Tell ('97). More news when/if I get to hear any of 'em.
See: Angel Provocateur | Kangaroo Kourt | Steeple of Fyre | Torn Curtain
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The Mavericks (2003, 44.13) **½/½ |
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| I Want to Know In My Dreams Shine Your Light I'm Wondering By the Time Would You Believe? Too Lonely Time Goes By |
San José Because of You The Air That I Breathe |
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This is the second eponymous album by Florida's Mavericks, but thankfully, it's the first not to be stuffed to the gills with cheesy mainstream country'n'western. The Mavericks is more mainstream pop/rock, to be honest, with side helpings of Latin (they've been here before, apparently) and, would'ja believe, Sinatra-style crooning? Is doesn't start too badly, with I Want To Know being a breezy, uptempo sort of thing, but by four or five tracks in, they've descended into MOR hell, though at least it isn't bloody country. Many reviewers have detected a strong Roy Orbison influence on mainman Raul Malo's vocals, and I have to say, Too Lonely is a seriously Orbison-lite waltz-time ballad; well, no-one else much is doing it at the moment, are they? And I think we could all have done without a faithful cover of The Air That I Breathe, thank you.
Gordon Mote plays Mellotron, but not a lot; the only things I can hear that even might be the mighty 'Tron are the weird, muted strings on By The Time and The bloody Air That I Breathe. Another 44 minutes of my life flies by. Anyway; while this is along way from the country slop I was expecting, I still wouldn't go too far out of your way to hear it, especially The Air That I Breathe. And now I've got that fucking song stuck in my head.
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Max (1974) **½/½StephanieRolling Up Cell Block E Shapes and Spaces Witch Woman Troublemaker Dance of Death All I Know |
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It seems highly likely that the Max Handley who released what appears to be his sole solo album, Max, in 1974, is the same Max Handley who was involved with the iconoclastic International Times in the late '60s and wrote three bizarre SF novels during the following decade. The album's one of those mid-'70s 'rock' efforts that falls between the cracks, due to its lack of any definable direction and its refusal to fit into any of the genres subsequently imposed upon its era. Saying that, it's not an especially interesting record, probably made while its chief protagonist was completely off his tits on the finest Moroccan money could buy (see: Rolling Up), although the talking blues of Troublemaker raises a smile. Handley's careworn blues voice is the album's strong point, but both the material and the overall sound have dated badly, leaving the kind of album that seems unlikely to receive a CD reissue any time soon, or indeed, ever.
Drummer Chili Charles plays Mellotron on acoustic ballad Cell Block E, with a cello part that could easily pass for a real one if it wasn't credited. You're unlikely to find this easily or cheaply, although I stumbled across a copy in a charity shop for a quid (it happens), only missing its lyric sheet. To be frank, it's not worth splashing out all that much for, although if you get a chance to hear it, it's an occasionally interesting curio, albeit with very little Mellotron.
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Prometheus (2001, 38.42) ****/TT½Prometheus |
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Dante's Purgatorio: the Divine Comedy, Part II (2009)[Maxwell's Demon contribute]Avarice Atoned |
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Maxwell's Demon's debut album, Prometheus, is not for the faint-hearted; one 38-minute track, instrumental, angular, ever-changing... This is not an easy listen, and is all the better for it. Of course, music like this generally has to be given time to sink in properly, and a single listen absolutely does not suffice to review it properly, but given time constraints, it's going to have to do for now. Anyway, the facts: Maxwell's Demon are a trio, with Craig Beebe on keyboards, John Galbraith on guitars/bass/pedals/flute and what seems to be a rotating drum stool, so to speak; Dow Draper plays on the album.
Prometheus is all-analogue; analogue synths/electro-mechanical keyboards/'proper' amps (none of that 'modelling' crap here)/tape, although being pressed on CD slightly compromises their integrity, but what's a band to do? Play very difficult music, it would seem, although this isn't as far out as Henry Cow or Univers Zero, say; more like Crimson at their most awkward, or Änglagård being pissy. This is the sort of stuff that sends non-progheads running for the hills, being almost devoid of melody in its usual sense, replacing it with dense, intense arrangements that hold the interest if you're attuned to their style. I can't imagine for the life of me how they would ever expect to play it live; they'd need at least two extra musicians, maybe more. NEARfest 2007?
Anyway, Beebe's keyboard list (this time round) is:
I find it hard to tell which of the three polys he's using at any given time, although the other three 'boards are, of course, easy to spot. Not quite as much Mellotron as you might expect, to be honest, but it would be so easy just to drench the album in the thing that I really quite admire their restraint. The only 'solo' part occurs just before the 30-minute mark, with some stand-alone strings, including a bit of a playing glitch, which proves it's real, on the remote offchance you might not believe them (see pic).
So; if their angularity sounds like it might appeal to you, I'd go for it. It's less 'Tron-stuffed than it could be, but that's actually no bad thing, and there's still enough for the enthusiast. Buy.
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Room for Squares (2001, 54.14) *½/½ |
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| No Such Thing Why Georgia My Stupid Mouth Your Body is a Wonderland Neon City Love 83 3X5 |
Love Song for No One Back to You Great Indoors Not Myself St. Patrick's Day |
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Room for Squares was John Mayer's first major label album, after an independent EP. Although Mayer has apparently moved towards the blues in more recent years, this is a cheeso, 'acoustic rock' effort, i.e. acoustic-driven, poppy singer-songwriter stuff, like a more ballsy James Blunt. Cor, that's a bit harsh, innit? Never mind. This really is insipid stuff; Mayer's voice has that 'confessional' tone that usually only serves to irritate, at least if you take your music at all seriously. Yeah, that's what this is; to borrow a quote, 'music for people who don't like music'.
Brandon Bush plays Mellotron on the album's last two tracks. Well, they would be the last two, only for some bizarre reason, track 13 is a four-second blank. Superstition? Sorry, which century/millennium are we living in? Anyway, he contributes faint flutes to Not Myself that could have come from anything, frankly, and, er, something on closer St. Patrick's Day. Strings? Choir? Who knows? Bloody rubbish. It's a shame, as Mayer is actually a pretty good guitarist; let's hope his more recent work has upped the ante.
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Fallout (1998, 57.27) **/½ |
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| Shuddershell Suckerpunch Forfeit Always No One Nothing 12/31 Fallout Big Verb |
Realign Don't Walk Away Overflow Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) |
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Fallout is The Mayfield Four's first full-length album, and it begs just one question: why? Why have you made this soulless piece of faceless 'modern rock', stuffed full of fake emotion and non-riffs? About the only difference I can hear from one track to the next is its tempo and volume, although I admit that's probably being a little unfair. Not much, though... It comes as no surprise to me that not only did the band support Creed, amongst other similar empty, stadium-rock bores, but vocalist/guitarist Myles Kennedy has gone on to form the artistically moribund Alter Bridge with most of Creed after their split with frontman Scott Stapp.
I'm afraid I can't think of anything nice to say about Fallout, so as your mother probably told you, if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. A largely pointless record, only marginally alleviated by their cover of Marvin Gaye's Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) from his standout release, What's Going on. Kennedy is credited with Mellotron, but the only time you can even vaguely hear it is a few seconds of strings on Realign, so you not only don't need to hear this on musical grounds, but also Mellotronic ones. You'll probably be as pleased as me to hear that the band split after their second album, 2001's Second Skin.
Fan site (yes, they have one. Fan, that is)
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Summertown (1999, 47.42) ***/0 |
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| You and Me Just for Fun A Change in the Weather Ariel Maria 1:14 NYC The Apple The Stepford Wives |
Baby's Got Her Own Ideas Paper Dolls Summertown A Quick Look Ahead Down With Peter Green Someday You'll Say Good-Bye |
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Summertown was the Mayflies USA's second album (was there another Mayflies somewhere else, in the manner of 'The British Beat' or 'U.K. Squeeze etc?). Essentially, it's classic powerpop, although the songs just aren't quite as memorable as you might like and it just doesn't have the... oomph that one might expect from the best exponents of the genre. Perfectly pleasant, but just not quite there...
Producer Chris Stamey (the d.b.'s) allegedly plays Mellotron, but I'm afraid to say, it's not obviously audible anywhere. Buried in the mix again? Pity, as it would've sounded good on a few tracks. Anyway, a reasonable, if rather unexciting powerpop release. Not exactly Big Star, but then, few are.
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Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly (1977, 42.29) ***/TTTTime is on My SideHappy Feelin's Color Blind Lady of Magic While I'm Alone You Look at California |
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Maze were formed as Raw Soul by vocalist/songwriter Frankie Beverly as far back as 1970, protégés of Marvin Gaye, although that band don't seem to've released any albums. They became Maze in 1976, releasing their debut, Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly, a year later. It's a polished soul/funk album, including several jammed-out tracks, as funk bands were wont to do at the time, in keeping with that '70s ethos, I suppose. Most of the material's a little too slick for Planet Mellotron's tastes, although opener Time Is On My Side is a solid piece of mid-'70s funk and the second half of closer Look At California reminds me of Santana, percussion and all.
Mellotron on several tracks, probably from keyboard player Sam Porter, with orchestral-ish string parts on major hit Happy Feelin's and the lengthy You, with flutes and strings on Lady Of Magic and Look At California. So; perfectly respectable soul/funk, smooth as silk and utterly unsuitable for my typical reader, whoever s/he may be. A surprising amount of Mellotron, though, with well-played and arranged parts in a pseudo-orchestral kind of way.
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Mine & Yours (2001, 50.16) **/½ |
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| Flamin' Angel Mine and Yours Comfort Echoes of a Heart Standing Here in Front of Me No One Left to Blame Girl on the Roof Elodie |
What's on Your Mind What I Want to Do Venus Again Figure of Eight Only in the Movies |
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I haven't heard David Mead's debut, 1999's The Luxury of Time (with Carl Herrgesell on Mellotron), but his follow-up, 2001's Mine & Yours, is a drippy, ballad-heavy effort, although it's not quite as bad as, say, anything by James Blunt or Daniel Powter, not that I'd take that as any kind of recommendation. There's minor respite on Girl On The Roof, but even then, it deteriorates after a minute or two. This is pretty insipid stuff, I'm afraid; modern singer-songwriter stuff with its guts removed.
Mead plays Mellotron himself, with faint strings on Figure Of Eight, though it's hardly world-beating stuff, so really not worth the effort on any front, frankly. There's a third Mead Mellotron album, 2006's Tangerine; once again, review forthcoming when I get to hear the thing (I'm not trying too hard to find it, though).
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Satyricon (1992, 64.17) **½/½ |
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| Pot Sounds Mindstream Drop Original Control (version 1) Your Mind Belongs to the State Circles The Sphere Brainwashed This Way/Zombie/That Shirt |
Original Control (version 2) Euthanasia Edge of No Control pt 1 Edge of No Control pt 2 Untold Stories Son of Sam Track 15 Placebo |
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Subliminal Sandwich (1996) ***/T |
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| Sound Innovation Nuclear Bomb (trouble it mix) Long Periods of Time 1979 Future Worlds What's Your Name? She's Unreal Asbestos Lead Asbestos Mass Producing Hate |
Radio Mellotron Assassinator Phone Calls From the Dead Lucid Dream Addiction No Purpose No Design Cancer Transmission We Done |
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I'm not really sure how to best describe Meat Beat Manifesto; sort of proto-techno, maybe. They're certainly nearer to 'dance' than any other musical subdivision; I'm quite honestly not at all up on this field, and (to be honest) don't particularly wish to be, either. I'm told 1992's Satyricon and '96's Subliminal Sandwich are fairly good at what they do, and I can't deny there's some clever sample manipulation involved, it's just that I can't connect with the music well enough to accurately review it. Lazy reviews? We gottem.
As far as the Mellotron's concerned, MBM main man Jack Dangers plays what sounds like MkII on both, with left-hand manual 'moving strings' on That Shirt from Satyricon and left-hand rhythms on the minute-long Radio Mellotron on Subliminal Sandwich, and that appears to be that. If these were from just a handful of years later, I'd say, 'almost certainly samples' (as on Yes' The Ladder), but I don't believe there were any easily-available MkII rhythm samples around in '96, so Dangers probably tracked a real one down, or maybe sampled one. Anyway, try to hear the tracks for rare outings for the sounds, but I find it difficult to recommend the music one way or the other.
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Marathon (1971, 37.22) ***½/T½ |
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| I Got No Money Ragathon (part 1) Set on the Street Can't Make it Without You Got Together Trip, Trip Toodle Marstrand Juana, Juana |
Some Reason Marathon Ragathon (part 2) |
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One of Sweden's first psych bands, Mecki Bodemark's Mecki Mark Men supported Hendrix (who apparently loved them) in their own country, before undertaking a mammoth US tour which ended in chaos. 1971's Marathon was their third album and the last made by the original band, before their metamorphosis into avant-proggers Kebnekaise. It's a wild, jamming psych trip of a record, starting badly with the trippy blues of I Got No Money, before heading off into the stratosphere with the likes of the flute-driven Ragathon (Part 1) or the organ-heavy Can't Make It Without You, although top marks (ho ho) have to go to the fab Got Together and Some Reason.
Bodemark plays Mellotron, with strings on Trip, Trip Toodle and Some Reason, from machine unknown: a MkII? It's a bit early for an M400, but I suppose one could've found its way across the Baltic by then. Maybe it's the same one used on Made in Sweden's Made in England? Or was that album really made in England? Whatever. Anyway, this is a fine album of its type, with a couple of decent 'Tron tracks, should you be into that jamming psych thing.
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Combustication (1998, 68.37) ***½/T½ |
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| Sugarcraft Just Like I Pictured it Start/Stop Nocturne Hey-Hee-Hi-Ho Whatever Happened to Gus Latin Shuffle Everyday People |
Coconut Boogaloo Church of Logic No Ke Ano Ahiahi Hypnotized |
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The Dropper (2000, 51.13) ***½/TTT |
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| We Are Rolling Big Time Felic Partido Alto Illnization Bone Digger Note Bleu The Dropper |
Philly Cheese Blunt Sun Sleigh Tsukemono Shacklyn Knights Norah 6 |
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Uninvisible (2002, 50.25) ***½/T |
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| Uninvisible I Wanna Ride You Your Name is Snake Anthony Pappy Check Take Me Nowhere Retirement Song Ten Dollar High Where Have You Been? |
Reprise Nocturnal Transmission Smoke First Time Long Time The Edge of Night Off the Table |
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End of the World Party (Just in Case) (2004, 53.49) ****/TTT½ |
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| Anonymous Skulls End of the World Party Reflector Bloody Oil New Planet Mami Gato Shine it Curtis |
Ice Sasa Midnight Poppies/Crooked Birds Queen Bee |
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Let's Go Everywhere (2008, 39.13) ****/T |
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| Waking Up Let's Go Everywhere Cat Creeps The Train Song Where's the Music Pat a Cake Pirates Don't Take Baths Far East Sweets |
On an Airplane The Squalb Let's Go Old Paint Hickory Dickory Dock All Around the Kitchen We're All Connected |
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Radiolarians I (2008, 64.25) ***½/T½ |
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| First Light Cloud Wars Muchas Gracias Professor Nohair Reliquary Free Go Lily Rolling Son |
Sweet Pea Dreams God Fire Hidden Moon |
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Radiolarians II (2009, 51.15) ***½/TT |
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| Flat Tires Junkyard Padrecito Ijiji Riffin' Ed Amber Gris Chasen vs Suribachi |
Dollar Pants Amish Pinxtos Baby, Let Me Follow You Down |
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Radiolarians III (2009, 59.22) ***½/T |
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| Chantes des Femmes Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down Kota Undone Wonton Walk Back Jean's Scene |
Broken Mirror Gwyra Mi |
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Funnily enough, Medeski Martin & Wood are a trio, specialising in weird, Hammond-driven jazz-inflected material, influenced as much by hip-hop and funk as traditional jazz. Starting out as an acoustic act, they soon incorporated electric instrumentation into their sound, although John Medeski seems to prefer electro-mechanical keyboards to electronic ones (hurrah!). Combustication is their seventh album, shifting through styles like they were going out of fashion, with the more melodic (Sugar Craft, the self-explanatory Latin Shuffle) rubbing shoulders with the experimental (Whatever Happened To Gus, Church Of Logic), with turntablist DJ Logic appearing on three tracks. Definite Mellotron on two tracks, with strings on Just Like I Pictured It and Whatever Happened To Gus, particularly raucously on the latter, although I think the flutes on Nocturne are synth.
The Dropper is their ninth album, and the second to feature John Medeski's Mellotron work, which is as off-the-wall as just about everything else the band do. Resonant choirs on Partido Alto sound normal in comparison to the discordant strings on Bone Digger, along with (I think) 'Tron saxes, flutes etc. Tsukemono opens with what has to be the world's first attempt to make Mellotron strings sound like seagulls, followed by some seriously radical pitchbend work on flutes and strings, riding over a weird jazz trio backing. All in all, weird shit indeed. 2002's Uninvisible is probably slightly less weird, though there's not much in it; I'm actually at a bit of a loss to know how to describe most of this music, although they do 'normal out' occasionally. Far less 'Tron this time round, unless I'm not spotting some less common sounds; it finally kicks in with a string part on Where Have You Been? that sounds more like someone doing something explicit and probably highly illegal with a guitar, and some background church organ on Off The Table, but I couldn't spot anything else.
2004's End of the World Party (Just in Case) is, generally speaking, a funkier proposition than its predecessors, with fewer moments of balls-out weirdness and, er, more Clavinet. To my ears, it's a more accessible record all round which could be either good or bad, depending on your point of view. The first few tracks are extremely 'Tron-heavy, with mixed strings, cellos, choirs and flutes on Anonymous Skulls, with a skronky string part and choppy choirs on the title track. The string stabs on Reflector are 'Tron, with more mixed strings on Bloody Oil and a brief string part and an echoed flute melody on New Planet. The strings on Ice feature such a radical pitchbend that I suspect an external device, while the flutes on Midnight Poppies/Crooked Birds aren't dissimilar to the ones on New Planet.
Their first album of 2008, Let's Go Everywhere, marks new ground for the band by being a children's album, complete with vocals on several tracks. The title track sounds like it's from Sesame Street - it may actually be, as its composer is someone other than a band member - and the rest of the sensibly-lengthed album is full of clever, funny songs for kids that never talk down to them, often involving children in the recording. The Squalb is probably the best example, although Pirates Don't Take Baths runs it a close second. Medeski restricts his Mellotron use to a single track this time, with pitchbent strings all over Far East Sweets, although it would have worked well on two or three other songs.
The band's Radiolarians series are named for a type of amoeba that seems to grow in reverse, forming its skeleton outside its soft body. All three albums are played live before recording, in a process new to the band, though far from 'unique', as I've seen it referred to. Radiolarians I is where we remember that MMW are a jazz band, above all, all playing at the top of their game. Medeski's piano work on Professor Nohair (ho ho) is outstanding, ditto his Hammond on God Fire, while Chris Wood excels on (frequently upright) bass and Billy Martin's drumming rivals the genre's greats. Mellotronically, there's a relatively ordinary string part on Muchas Gracias, with more typical 'all over the keyboard' work on Reliquary, and while there are a couple of other 'is it/isn't it?' moments, they seem unlikely.
Radiolarians II is less fiery than its predecessor, although it certainly has its moments. I applaud the band's decision to take a fresh look at their creative process, although I have to say that, for the average listener, the end result is 'merely' another MMW album, its gestation an irrelevance. However, if their new approach keeps the band's creative juices flowing... Several 'Tron tracks, with distant strings on Padrecito, with more 'typically MMW' parts on Ijiji and Chasen Vs Suribachi, full of pitchbends, and is that their first use of 'Tron choirs on Amber Gris? Definitely cellos, anyway, although the solo cello on Dollar Pants is real. Radiolarians III is possibly the jazziest of the series, although the band incorporate a strong dub element into closer Gwyra Mi. Not much Medeski 'Tron this time round, with naught but a few string chords in both Broken Mirror and Gwyra Mi, making this one of their least essential albums on the tape-replay front.
So; several albums of radical jazz, with The Dropper and End of the World Party (Just in Case) being the best on the Mellotron front. Buy if you're feeling adventurous.
See: Auktyon | Chocolate Genius | DJ Logic | Steve Earle | Scotty Hard with John Medeski & Matthew Shipp | Charlie Hunter & Bobby Previte as Groundtruther | The Legendary Marvin Pontiac | Marc Ribot y los Cubanos Postizos | John Scofield | Jim Weider
