Review by: Eric Pember
Assigned by: A. A.
This feels like some sort of Frank Zappa-style parody of prog. The vocalist sounds like a less-distinguished Jon Anderson. The songwriting is unstable to the point where the songs feel randomly assembled. There is a heavy use of vibraphones and similar unconventional instruments that have been traditionally beloved by prog. It’s so whacked that it should work just from that alone, and actually kinda does.
However, from what I can tell these guys were completely serious about the music they were making, and from there, you start to notice all the problems. While I honestly quite like Anderson and consider him kinda underrated, this vocalist doesn’t really add any spice at all. The weak songwriting undercuts any emotion they could elicit from the listener. Most of the instruments don’t really add anything to the songs.
It’s worth a listen just to know how whacked-out prog can get under the right circumstances, but you probably won’t want to come back to this again.
[Note: this album was recorded in 1976]
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