EFFETTO DOPPLER - “Indifferenticieli”
Welcome
to a 4 piece Italian band that produces a melodic progressive
rock with poetic lyrics sung in their native tongue. (The
words are translated into English on the pull out included
in the sleeve and are well worth reading)
There is a touch of Yes in the vocal harmonies in ‘Il
Silenzio’ the memorable concluding track and of Pete
Bardens’ synth playing circa early Camel in ‘Cometa’.
The guitar can be quite heavy, almost punkish on ‘Stato
di Grazia’ but it is on the rousing opener ’17
Febbraio’ (similar to ‘Il Silenzio’) and
the gentle atmospheric ballad ‘La Valle Dell’oro’
with its nice 12 string guitar courtesy of Fabio Agnesina,
intriguing piano notes and phrases from Maurizio Consonni
and wind effects in the background that Effetto Doppler
are at their best.
‘Inidifferenticieli’ is an engaging album of
melodic prog that’s well worth checking out. My thanks
to Antonetti Dario for introducing me to this excellent
band.
Contact:
and
(MIZMAZE Records MZ 012)
Reviewed
by Phil Jackson
CROWN POSADA - Nothing Is Ever As Bad As It Seems (3 track
demo)
Wrong.
Sometimes it is. Although naming yourself after a pub
on the Quayside at Newcastle guarantees you a review.
Aah, memories. Or lack of them.
Pounding
away in a melodramatic Muse style, with nods to the mighty
Faith No More, Crown Posada show themselves to be a band
of promise. Lifting themselves out of the morass, with
good vocals and dropping in the odd funk based bass riff,
they have the potential to become middling sized.
The
songs do need a bit of work, and if they have the ability
to turn good into great, then they should make it.
DAMASK
- Lagos Tunnel
According
to his promo, Damask is a madman that walks the fine line
between insanity and genius. He is a ticking human time
bomb waiting to explode. Unlike the suicide bombers of
the Middle East, his explosion does not kill or harm anyone.
Odd, I thought he was a dancehall reggae artist, but there
you go. Ragga, for that is what this is, has been a prevalent
form of reggae for quite some time, and as a fat, white
rhythmically challenged European, a bit mad.
Born
Adedamola Lawal to Nigerian parents in Washington, DC,
he is a product of the Diaspora. He lived in Lagos, Nigeria
for over a decade and is influenced by Fela, Supercat,
Barrington Levy, Peter Tosh and Buju Banton
And
as this was the best promo bumph I'd read in a while,
here's another; " Onstage he is the incarnate proof
of Isaac Newton's law of motion". Gotta love that!
And in classic 'on the fence stylee', it's pretty good,
although I'm no expert in this genre, but booties were
shaken in a rather haphazard manner, which is, allegedley,
a good thing.
SETH OSBURN - “Seven”
Two
years in the making, apparently the ‘Seven’
solo piano pieces have been receiving standing ovations
at live performances by Seth Osburn in the U.S. Depicting
the operations of alchemy (the seven stages of transformation)
as revealed in the ancient Emerald Tablet whose text is
reproduced on the sleeve, this music could be described
as meditative and perhaps even metaphysical and Seth attempts
here what Bach and Mozart did in earlier times- according
to the Alchemical Journal- to ‘perfect the soul and
spirit of the listener’. This may seem a rather lofty
and pretentious claim but there is definitely something
remarkable and ultimately inspiring in Seth’s music.
The deep resonating sounds that Seth teases from his keyboard
have been noted by others and this is one of the striking
features of this release- none of this happens by accident
of course as Seth explains in his informative and detailed
sleeve notes. For example in the first movement ‘Calcination’
Seth says he has ‘composed a dance of flame- relentless,
assaulting; knocking us off balance with its jagged 7/8
time signature’. Through the ‘beautiful sadness’
of ‘Dissolution’, a ‘celestial fugue’
towards ‘Distillation’ and finally’ Coagulation’
where there is a description of the descent and ascent
of the piano utilising the ‘so-called Prometheus
Chord’ arrtibuted to Alexander Scriabin, the late
19th/ early 20th century Russian composer and contemporary
of Rachmaninoff. Seth even quotes Pythagoras and the ‘sonic
model of Nature’ where sound and physics meet.
‘Seven’ is an intriguing work and don’t
be put off by the precision with which it was composed-
Seth Osburn’s music appeals on a visceral as well
as cerebral level.
Contact
or 
(reviewed
by Phil Jackson)
PLANKTON - same (Grooveyard Records)
Well
the best way to get reviewed round this way is to name
a song after me. And lo and behold, if track 7 isn't called
Zeitgeist. Good work, fellas.
Unusually,
Plankton is an instrumental band from Sweden. The unusual
bit is not that they hail from Sweden, but rather the
instrumental bit. And you'll be glad to know that they
don't go for the shredding nine hundred notes per second
disaster zone that is the norm. Instead it's baals to
the walls seventies guitar RAWK! And it is good. If you're
looking for an easy reference point I'd be looking Mountain-wards.
Again,
unusually, Plankton have actually composed songs (without
words, natch), rather than adopting the "hey, let's
jam" approach that has caused so much pain over the
years. It's blues, it's rock, it's psychedelic, and it's
a damn fine sound. Of course, having a percussionist as
well as a drummer does edge it in a jam band direction
but without the aimlessness. Top quality. And of course,
"Zeitgeist" rocks like a bastard, complete with
wailing harmonica. It's almost as if they knew!
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