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Anthony Phillips - Private Parts & Pieces II: Back To The Pavilion - 11-Oct-09 11:45 AM
The second installment in Anthony Phillips' "Private Parts & Pieces" series, which now spans 10 albums, may be the best of the bunch. "Back To The Pavillion" manages to showcase the full range of Phillips' musical styles and yet hangs together as a cohesive whole.

The 15+ minute long "Scottish Suite" is perhaps the one piece where Phillips reaches back to his roots in the early days of Genesis most strongly. An instrumental, performed with former Genesis bandmate Mike Rutherford on bass and ex-King Crimson drummer Andy McCulloch has it's quieter moments but it also has a very strong '70s progressive rock feeling. King Crimson and Camel flautist Mel Collins also puts in a brief appearance later on "Tremulous".

Most of the rest of the album is considerably mellower. On "Heavens" and some parts of "K2" this album provided the first taste of Phillips' Eno-esque synth work which would later appear in full on the "Slow Waves, Soft Stars" album. There are also classical music influences scattered about as well as some of Phillips' signature acoustic guitar work, mainly on gentle pieces like "Spring Meeting" and "Nocturne". "Magic Garden" shows off Phillips' skills as a pianist. There are also some brief eclectic moments, like "Romany's Aria", a short piece which sounds like it was recorded and then played backwards.

If you enjoyed the first "Private Parts & Pieces" album or "The Geese and the Ghost" then you'll undoubtedly like "Back To The Pavillion" as well. If you're looking for more of the early Genesis sound then the first 15 minutes of the album are a treat. I'll admit that I'm a big fan of Anthony Phillips' work and, to me, this is one of the absolutely essential albums.

Harry Taussig - Fate Is Only Once - 27-May-09 02:07 PM
Fate Is Only Once is an absolutely beautiful instrumental guitar album, filled with folk, blues, and ragtime tunes. While Harry Taussig's guitar work isn't as technically complex or proficient as that of John Fahey or Leo Kottke there is some similarity to their works from the '60s. Taussig's style is gentler, if anything, and is just plain enjoyable to listen to. The three longest tracks are the most engaging, with the title track, which concludes the album, probably the strongest of the lot. Even if you normally don't get into folk or blues but liked the albums of guitar solos released in the late '70s by Windham Hill Records you probably will like this album. Of course, hard core folkies will definitely get into it. The original LP is almost impossible to find and I only know one person who has it. The 2006 reissue is highly recommended.

-Caitlyn Martin

Acqua Fragile - Acqua Fragile - 10-May-09 08:03 PM
Acqua Fragile was a relatively short lived Italian progressive rock band who had ties to PFM. PFM discovered them and produced this, the first Acqua Fragile album. Lead singer Bernardo Lanzetti would eventually leave to become PFM's lead singer on "Chocolate Kings", "Jet Lag", "Passpartù". Those of you who know those three albums know that Lanzetti's vocals are something of an acquired taste.

The music on this album is classic progressive rock strongly influenced by the band's British, German and American counterparts. The lyrics are entirely in English. The musicians are skillful enough and the music is decent enough. The main problem with this album is that Acqua Fragile never find their own voice. On "Morning Comes" and "Song From A Picture" they sound like clones of early '70s Genesis. "Comic Strips" feels like it was lifted directly from a Gentle Giant album with Lanzetti consciously imitating Derek Shulman on the verses. At least he sounds like himself on the chorus. "Science Fiction Suite" is a Crosby-Stills-Nash imitation.

The closest Acqua Fragile comes to something resembling originality follows. "Education Story" shifts, sometimes suddenly, from Deep Purple to Gentle Giant to Genesis. On the largely acoustic "Going Out" they finally meld some of the styles into something that is almost their own. The closing piece, "Three Hands Man" leans heavily on Triumvirat, Yes and Genesis.

If you're a fanatic for '70 progressive rock there is probably enough here for you to make the album worthwhile. Considering some of Lanzetti's later work I just wish Acqua Fragile had reached out a bit further to find their own sound and their own niche in the progressive rock of the time.

Brometer - Three Feet Of... - 19-Apr-09 09:01 PM
This collection of short pieces wasn't what I normally expect when I listen to a release on SEM Label. The music by Brometer is electronic. It's slightly off kilter and experimental. It's also, for the most part, decidedly pretty music. It's creative and somehow sweet at the same time. A couple of the pieces, "From One Two" and "Paper" do evoke the seashore pictured on the cover of Three Feet Of... It's only when we get to "Rotation" that we hear something of a darker side to Brometer's music.

All five pieces total less than 12 minutes of music. Pity. I'd like to hear more.

-Caitlyn Martin

Terje Paulsen - Twenty Feet For Buddha - 16-Apr-09 07:00 PM
"Twenty Feet For Buddha" is an interesting blending of two normally distinct ambient styles. This 20+ minute EP, suitable for burning on a 3"/8cm mini CDr, opens up as an ambient soundscape. Sampled field recordings are mixed with deep, almost dark ambient electronics. The first almost four minutes are somewhat reminiscent of works by Thomas Köner and Entia Non. Then a gentle acoustic piano melody is added. It's short, minimalist, repetitive, performed slowly, with subtle variations throughout. It's somewhat akin to some of Peter Michael Hamel's work, of perhaps acoustic Steve Reich in slow motion. This overlays the soundscape which also goes through subtle variations, with bits occasionally rising in volume to challenge the piano.

Later in the piece a few Asmus Tietchens style effects are added, a loud pop and then what sounds like surface noise on an old vinyl LP. This too is subtle and not overdone, simply adding to the subtle, quiet variations.

"Twenty Feet For Buddha" should appeal to fans of gentle, hypnotic ambient music. It's beautifully realized and somewhat mesmerizing. Since it's on the Resting Bell netlabel it is freely available for legal download. I suspect this is one piece which will inspire people to consider Paulsen's commercial releases as well.

-Caitlyn Martin

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