|
|
|
|
||
|
 |
 |
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.
 |
Dentro (1977, 40.54) **½/TT |
|
| Dentro Il Suo Sguardo, la Malinconia, la Mia Poesia Che Dolce Lei A Renee Canzone del Sole d'Inverno Quando una Donna Incontro Musicante |
Questa Sera e per Noi L'Ultima Storia |
|
 |
L'Avventura (1979, 36.03) *½/TL'Avventura4.280 Miglia Un'Emozione in Piú Via del Grano La Casa del Tempo Finisce Qui Ancora Solo Pescatore della Luna Un'Altra Storia |
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
I haven't yet been able to find any biographical information on the 'Net about La Bottega dell'Arte in English, possibly because lightweight Italian pop has little international presence (although I did meet one Swedish young lady who had a soft spot for it...). 
There's a reason for this; it's terrible. I've seen a copy of their third album, L'Avventura, on sale in London for over £20, admittedly at a second-hand shop run by an Italian guy with zero idea of what this kind of stuff is actually worth; thankfully I paid an awful lot less on eBay, but I'm still feeling slightly ripped-off. OK, my fault. Having already seen the sleeve, I should've known what I was getting into; terrifyingly naff stagewear, with the band members wearing matching thigh-length boots (!) and seriously crapola tops. So, what sold it to me? Guess. Yup, it was Piero Calabrese's band-logo'd Mellotron clearly visible on the cover pic, lovingly topped with a Polymoog and some less-identifiable keyboards. You sad bastard, Thompson. Although I'm sure the 'live' pics were staged, it seems likely that they used their 'Tron live, but that's hardly any guarantee of quality, is it? Wait until I track down some (I) Pooh albums...
To backtrack for a moment... Having now heard the band's first two albums, '75's self-titled debut and '77's Dentro, I can tell you that although La Bottega dell'Arte (***) has a couple of moments that could be Mellotron, I don't think they are, although the album itself isn't that awful, being at the 'pop' end of typical Italian prog. Dentro is, unsurprisingly, a halfway stage between its just-about-acceptable predecessor and its horrendous successor, with progressive moments including parts of Canzone Del Sole D'Inverno, Incontro, Musicante and specifically closer L'Ultima Storia, effectively a lightweight prog number. That isn't to say this is particularly good, mind... It has its (brief) moments, but will only disappoint Italian prog fans looking for a new fix. Piero Calabrese's Mellotron choirs pop up here and there, though never that loud, and never that interesting. Che Dolce Lei probably features the nearest this album gets to an overt 'Tron part, and it isn't that overt.
Back to L'Avventura... The album's keyboard input is rather less than exceptional, which is no particular surprise. Even the piano's obviously a Yamaha CP70, and the synth work sounds mostly like the Polymoog on its blandest settings, although that Mellotron does rear its ugly head on the odd occasion. Very odd, actually; Finisce Qui ends with a quite discordant synth part over distant 'Tron choirs, providing the album's one real (brief) moment of musical interest, although the choirs on Via Del Grano are the standard background stuff. I suspect Calabrese used it live to cover for the studio string parts, so it probably got a little more use than here, but somehow, I can't see the band suddenly breaking out into full-on prog territory once they hit the stage... So; can I recommend this album? Don't be silly; it's complete rubbish. BUT... unlike much bad music, there's actually some reasonable playing involved, and its ridiculous cheesiness did make me smile in places.
So; worth getting? Not really, no. Their debut's sort-of OK, and Dentro has its moments, but I really would give L'Avventura a wide berth if I were you. They made another album, Forza 4, released a surprising five years later, so I really hate to think what they sounded like by 1984. Mellotron-free, that's for sure (hah - famous last words).
 |
Old Home Movies (2008, 28.26) ***/T |
|
| Old Home Movies Stay With My Brother When I Call Up Against the Glass The Reviewer New Room Flashlight Tongue is Blue |
Who Are You Now Table By the Window |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
The Botticellis are a new Californian outfit who want to be a certain other Californian outfit very, very much, to the point of naming themselves after a surfing term, only they're not good enough not quite up to their standards. Their debut, Old Home Movies, is actually a perfectly acceptable (albeit extremely short) album, and it's possible that its material may grow on me given time, but while it's all perfectly pleasant, little of it particularly stands out, at least for this listener.
Matt Henry Cunitz (co-producer) and Zack Ehrlich both play Mellotron, with the rarely-heard Mellotron bassoon on When I Call and undistinguished cellos and flute on New Room; the cellos on Tongue Is Blue and the strings on Who Are You Now are real. Overall, then, not bad, not great, all rather second-hand, really, but better than a lot of the stuff I've heard recently. Next to no Mellotron, though, unless it's hidden away somewhere in the mix.
 |
24 Hours a Day (1997, 40.57) ***/T |
|
| Kit Kat Clock When I Was Dumb 24 Hours a Day Smokin' 100's Alone Slo Toms Indianapolis Things You Didn't Know One of You |
Perfect Far Away Waitin' on a Train Dohack Joe Rich Man Turn for the Worse |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
The Bottle Rockets have been described as 'the torchbearers for smart Southern-style rock', which seems a pretty good summation. Their third album, 1997's 24 Hours a Day, combines the aforementioned southern rock with Americana (listen for the banjo on closer Turn For The Worse), all with an indie tinge, though not enough to spoil the overall feel.
Eric Ambel plays Mellotron, with cranky string and cello parts on Slo Toms, although the album's other strings sound like (real) solo violin. Overall, then, a reasonably good vaguely Americana record, albeit with more of a rock element than usual. One decent 'Tron track, but not enough to make purchase worthwhile.
 |
7" (1970) ***½/TT½ Tarot Lulli Rides Again |
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Andrew/Andy Bown's first recording came out as early as 1964, and after spells in The Herd and Judas Jump, released Tarot under his own name in 1970. The theme tune to UK children's TV show 'Ace of Wands' (inspiration for Steve Hackett, I believe), it's a short, snappy, upbeat sort of song with a good Mellotron presence (brass and strings). I don't believe it's currently available anywhere, although I'd be more than happy to be proved wrong.
Bown went on to release a clutch of solo albums while playing sessions, ending up becoming Status Quo's permanent keyboard player. Now largely regarded as a joke, Quo were actually a ferocious live act as late as their 'split' in 1984, but I wouldn't bother with the current outfit if I were you. Anyway, if you get a chance to obtain Tarot on whatever format, it's worth the effort.
See: Judas Jump
 |
Distance Between Us (1972, 86.25) ***½/TTTT½Distance Between UsAutumn Mist Distance Between Us 2 Dance of the Goblins |
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Don Bradsham-Leather is widely regarded to be a pseudonym of none other than Robert John Godfrey, Barclay James Harvest's ex-orchestral arranger and future Enid leader, although other reports deny this, including Robert himself. It certainly sounds like his piano playing; concert standard, and very eccentric. Distance Between Us is an ambitious double album, relying heavily on avant-garde modern classical compositional techniques, with much musical experimentation, including considerable dissonance in places. Robert is notoriously unkeen on reminiscence, but I'll do my best to find out whether or not this actually was him.
The title track moves from an avant-classical piano part into a lengthy tribal rhythm section, with shedloads of 'Tron strings, doing a fair job of emulating real ones, something Robert's never been able to afford since BJH days, while Autumn Mist relies more on harmonic dissonance on various keyboards, particularly the Mellotron. Sides three and four are just as completely barking mad, making this one of the strangest Mellotron albums it's been my, er, pleasure to hear. The only reason it doesn't get the full five-T treatment is that much of the album is impenetrably weird, and many listeners simply won't be able to cope with it. Not to worry, though, as it's been out of print for thirty years, although there's supposed to be a Japanese CD version floating about, probably dubbed from crackly vinyl (again). But seriously, folks, if you stumble across a copy cheap (highly unlikely, I have to say), it's worth it for the weird 'Tron stuff, but be warned: this is not for the faint-hearted.
 |
Mermaid Avenue Vol.II (2000, 49.55) ***/½ |
|
| Airline to Heaven My Flying Saucer Feed of Man Hot Rod Hotel I Was Born Secrets of the Sea Stetson Kennedy Remember the Mountain Bed |
Blood of the Lamb Aginst th' Law All You Fascists Joe DiMaggio Done it Again Meanest Man Black Wind Blowing Someday Some Morning Sometime |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
In the mid-'90s, Woody Guthrie's daughter Nora approached the Bard of Barking himself, Billy Bragg, to ask him to put music to some of her father's unpublished lyrics. Bragg in turn asked Wilco for help, correctly ascertaining that their impeccable credentials would give the project an American edge that could've been lacking had the whole project been left to that very British of artists. '98's Mermaid Avenue is apparently excellent, leaving nearly enough material for another album, which, with a handful of newly-recorded tracks, became Mermaid Avenue Vol.II. To my ears, it's a good, if not outstanding album of semi-Americana, with several high-quality tracks, not least the guitar-heavy raunch of All You Fascists, although it's been unfavourably compared to its predecessor by some critics.
Wilco mainman Jeff Tweedy plays 'Mellotrons' on opener Airline To Heaven, although the only audible evidence is some very background, er, something; brass? Suffice to say, if it wasn't credited, you wouldn't know. So; decent enough album, in an alt.country sort of vein, but forget it on the 'Tron front.
See: Wilco
 |
Too Freud to Rock'n'Roll, Too Jung to Die (2003, 80.20) ***/T |
|
| Schizadelic K.O. My Pagan Ass Like a Motherfucker The Two Towers White Van Love, Peace & Fuck Get Back on it Messages Raising Power |
She Saw Me Coming Brain Donor Get Off Your Pretty Face Atomic Punk U-Know! Whole Lotta Loki Gimme Space Odin's Gift to His Mother |
|
 |
Wasted Fuzz Excessive (2009, 65.39) ***½/T½Gates of SkagerrakDeath Becomes You Dyslexia Rules K.O. Emerging/Shadow of My Corpse Frankenstein Fokkinger Slag/The Hanging |
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
Brain Donor are yet another Julian Cope side-project, this time with Doggen and Kevin "Kevlar" Bales from Spiritualized, specialising in (you guessed it) brain-dead jammed-out metal madness. So far, they've released a slew of singles and three full albums, the first of which, 2001's Love, Peace & Fuck, maybe surprisingly, has no Mellotronic input. Its successor, 2003's double-disc Too Freud to Rock'n'Roll, Too Jung to Die (very good, Saint Jules, very good...), consists of one disc of studio material and one of their set at Cope's two-day event, 2000's Cornucopea. It's pretty much as you'd expect: bonkers 'is it/isn't it' ironic metal and freaked-out jamming, with a little Mellotron on the studio disc, with high strings on Schizadelic K.O., while The Two Towers features some flute and wildly pitchbent strings interjections à propos of nothing at all, and there's a mental strings part on Messages. Best track? Possibly disc 1's Get Down On It, for its sheer verve, or disc 2's stupendous cover of Van Halen's ripping Atomic Punk, almost certainly unfamiliar to most of his indie-schmindie audience, to my (and doubtless his) delight. Downsides? The set goes on a little too long for listening comfort, assuming one is in an unenhanced state of mind, that is.
I've no idea if there's any Mellotron on their various in-between releases, including the fantastically-named Drain'd Boner (ho ho, and ho ho again), but 2009's Wasted Fuzz Excessive gets back to the 'Tron. The album seems better produced than its predecessors, although musically, it's more of the same, and why not? It's Cope's outlet for expressing this particular part of his musical personality; if they suddenly went acoustic, I'd start to worry. Again, not an awful lot of the old M400, with a brief string part entering nearly ten minutes into Gates Of Skagerrak, a full-on part in Frankenstein and some flute on the first part of ultra-lengthy closer Fokkinger Slag/The Hanging.
All in all, then, another bonkers Cope project with surprisingly little Mellotron (see: all the others). If you're a fan of the Drude, you'll almost certainly go a bundle on these, the rest of us should approach with caution.
See: Julian Cope | Black Sheep | L.A.M.F. | Queen Elizabeth
 |
Thought Horizon (1995, 24.45) ****/TTT½Dark HorseLake Effect Urban Sprawl VLQ |
 |
Wood of Thought (2002, recorded 1995, 57.56) ***/TTT½ |
|
| Daybreak La Danse des Cons Darkhorse Gene's Dilemma Urban Sprawl Brain Farce March of the Elves A Walk in the Sunlight |
Mello VLQ |
|
 |
The Thought Horizon Sessions (2004, recorded 1995, 65.36) ***½/TT½ |
|
| La Danse des Cons Alias A Girl Like You Lake Effect Rhino Country Urban Sprawl Darkhorse VLQ |
Bandit Big Whomper Diesel Truck Shadows Maybe |
|
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
Brain Forest were formed in 1993 by guitarist Phillip LeFrois and ex-St Elmo's Fire bassist Paul Kollar. After the usual lineup hassles, they held a four-piece together for long enough to record some material, releasing a four-song (as against 4-track) cassette, Thought Horizon, in spring 1995. It features solid, American-style prog, not a million miles away from St Elmo's Fire, but things conspired against the band, and the limited form of success accorded to the likes of Echolyn or Spock's Beard was denied them.
Back to Thought Horizon. Although the original tape is still available from Brain Forest/St Elmo's Fire's label, Sprawling Productions, it remains unfairly obscure, partly, it has to be said, due to Sprawling's failure to promote the thing in any meaningful way. It might not equal The Light for sheer invention, but there's absolutely nothing here to which fans of American symphonic prog would or could object, particularly closer VLQ, a high-energy blast of guitar and Mellotron duelling, underpinned by Kollar's bass and Taurus. Speaking of the Mellotron (as always), it's on every track, used with taste, if not restraint. Kollar and LeFrois both play it, as the band lost their keyboard player before they began recording; strings across the board, and a gorgeous flute part at the end of Dark Horse. For those of you without cassette decks, all four tracks are available on 2004's The Thought Horizon Sessions, which brings its own problems...
Said problems involve Sprawling's website containing conflicting information about Brain Forest's other two releases. The band's main page states that, despite putting in a good bit of work on the tapes in 2001, nothing was ever made commercially available, although the 'order information' page quite clearly lists, as well as the Thought Horizon tape, two CD-R releases, Wood of Thought and The Thought Horizon Sessions. What's a poor prog fan to believe? Since possession is commonly (though almost certainly wrongly) assumed to be 9/10ths of the law, the fact that I own these CDs makes me think that they are available, and the band page is out of date.
Wood of Thought, which apparently leaked out in 2002, is actually a bit of a rag-bag of material, to be honest. It opens with a pair of instrumentals that seem to go nowhere fast, and a couple of tracks (notably Gene's Dilemma) bear all the hallmarks of studio jams, dragging on far longer than their content really allows. There is some decent material here, although two of the best tracks are different versions of Darkhorse/Dark Horse and VLQ from Thought Horizon. Mellotron almost across the board again, mainly strings, plus flutes on possibly the album's best track, the folkish, harmonium-driven A Walk In The Sunlight. The 'oh what a giveaway'-titled Mello features, apart from a few cymbal swishes, nowt but flutes and strings in a pleasing configuration, with a few bursts of choir, finally, in another version of VLQ, making this rather more worth it for the Mellotron than the material.
Two years on, the Thought Horizon Sessions CD-R appeared, in a rather non-appearing kind of way. Unsurprisingly, it's an extended version of Thought Horizon, adding another eight tracks and 40 minutes to the original EP. It must be noted that there's a fair bit of overlap between these various releases, with four tracks appearing in two different versions, ignoring the repetition of the entire EP on this CD-R, which is actually quite welcome, probably adding up to the fact that the band only had a handful of really good pieces. To place this in context, that's a handful more than many 'progressive' bands who have released a whole slew of horrible, derivative, pseudo-commercial albums for two decades or more. Pendragon. Moving swiftly on... This album opens with a Mellotron-free (shame!) version of Wood of Thought's second track, La Danse Des Cons, working really well as an opener. The out-of-tune harmonies on Alias betray the album's origins as a set of demos, and the bulk of the rest of the 'new' material shows why the band chose not to release it first time round, to be honest. For a 'progressive' band, far too much of it falls back on a clichéd hard rock feel, to the point where LeFrois uses an Eddie Van Halen trick on Maybe (from Panama, for what it's worth). Also... Would'ja believe there are NO more 'Tron tracks than on the original tape? A couple of the unheard tracks aren't bad (La Danse Des Cons, Rhino Country), but the only real reason to get this album is to have the original EP tracks on CD, and they're the only reason it gets as high a rating as it does.
So; for $20 (26 outside the States) you can purchase Brain Forest's complete works, carefully sidestepping the 1995 cassette release, made redundant by the second CD-R, not that Sprawling's website actually tells you this. Do you want to? Well, you can compile a pretty good album from the two, taking four or five tracks from each, but neither of them really stands up on its own. In other words, you'll get one good album for $20 and the minimal cost of a blank.
Brain Forest page on the Sprawling site
See: St Elmo's Fire
 |
Second Smile (1973, 38.10) ***½/THirnwindHerbst My Way Affenzahn There Was a Time... Marilyn Monroe |
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Brainstorm were led by future Guru Guru saxophonist Roland Schaeffer, only making two studio albums. The second, er, Second Smile, covers quite a bit of ground sonically, from the complex prog of opener Hirnwind through the acoustic whimsy of Herbst to the jazz-prog of My Way or the near-free jazz of There Was A Time... You could never accuse this lot of being boring, although the diversity can sound a little uncohesive at times. Any bad points? Yup: the vocals. As so often with this type of band, they're only used occasionally, and aren't much good when they are, either stylistically or lyrically. I'm not sure what's with the spoken-word stuff, complete with Trapeze quote on closer Marilyn Monroe, either...
Mellotron on Hirnwind, probably from keys man Eddy Von Overheidt, with a great strings part, complete with multiple pitchbends, which can only trigger one question: why just the one track? Well, at least it's a good one... Overall, then, a more interesting than usual Krautrock effort, tipping into both prog and fusion, with one great 'Tron track. Worth it? Only you can decide.
 |
Rouge on Pockmarked Cheeks (2002, 61.16) ***/T½ |
|
| Motel Room Samurai Queenie 1980 Rainy Night Genoa Trona Xanax and Three Hours of TV |
High Life N. Koreatown Late Night Lullaby |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Formed by sometime Beck sideman David Brown in the late '90s, the LA-based Brazzaville have a world-weary air about them, (very) roughly analogous to the UK's St. Etienne, maybe, or Stereolab if you took away the cheap synths. Apparently, Brown is a seasoned traveller, picking up influences from South America, Africa and continental Europe, making for am eclectic stylistic mix, which is probably where the Stereolab comparisons come in. The excellently-titled Rouge on Pockmarked Cheeks is their third album, sounding like a lounge lizard's dream across most of its length, with the jarring exception of the full-on rock'n'roll of Queenie, a song out of place if ever there was one. One notable criticism I would make of the album is its length; this kind of music really doesn't lend itself to overlong albums, and several tracks are longer (far longer in the case of closer Late Night Lullaby) than their content demands.
Mellotron from Brown and pianist Mike Boito, with a lovely flute part on 1980 and more muted (mixed?) strings on Genoa. There are other possible 'Tron parts here, not least the high strings on Motel Room, but they could just as easily be a generic string patch, so the track remains unhighlighted until/if I should find out otherwise.
Rouge on Pockmarked Cheeks is an album for those who enjoy laid-back, faux-lounge music, who aren't frightened by the phrase 'bossa nova'. It is not an album for those who are looking for energy, complexity, or both, which loosely translates as 'progheads stay away'. Some of you may lock into Brown's sleepy vocal style, or the accordion and solo violin used on many tracks, but a lot of you, like me, won't. Three stars seems reasonable for something I don't particularly like which is, however, done perfectly well, and isn't actually offensive, I think. One good 'Tron track and one mediocre doesn't really make purchase on that front advisable, though.
 |
 |
The Booze Brothers (1989, recorded 1973, 36.47) **/T |
|
| Where Are You Tonight Roller Coaster You Make Me Feel So Good My Old Lady Sugar Baby Rock Steady Woman Louise What's the Time |
Midnight Special Dreaming |
||
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Brewers Droop were a good-time early '70s Cajun pub-rock band (!) from High Wycombe, near London, with no notable members, although several of them have a good name on the blues scene, apparently. So why the large picture of Mark Knopfler on the sleeve in his mid-'80s pomp (and terrible blouse)? Seems he played guitar on three tracks, before he developed his signature style. The legendary Dave Edmunds produced a few tracks, too (thus his smaller pic), while future Dire Straits (and ex-Spring) drummer Pick Withers also contributed. It seems the band released one album, 1972's Opening Time, then recorded what eventually became The Booze Brothers, with Knopfler, Edmunds and Withers; fast forward 16 years, an unscrupulous record company sticks that big pic of Knopfler on the front, and hey presto, er, a dullsville pub-rock album with no distinguishing features.
Harmonica whizz Steve Darrington doubled on keyboards, mostly piano(s) and blues Hammond, but on Roller Coaster he sat down at the doubtless studio 'Tron, and put down some flutes and strings, although I can't really say they add that much to the album. Unless you're a real nut on this kind of stuff, I have to say: avoid. They only reason I got through it was by judicious use of the 'skip' button, but then, I prefer my blues a bit leaner and meaner than this, to be honest. Dull, although at least the other sleeve has a modicum of wit about it. Incidentally, I'm sure there's no connection, given his limited involvement, but I wonder if Knopfler was thinking of this lot when he wrote the line "you've got smoker's cough from smoking, brewer's droop from drinking beer" on Love Over Gold's Industrial Disease? Probably not.
 |
Volcano (2003, 45.04) ***/T |
|
| Rush Around Oo La La I'd Be Surprised Songs We Used to Sing Once in a Blue Moon Volcano More Than Friends The Messenger |
The One Who Went Away Take a Walk Not Saying Goodbye Came a Long Way What Would You Do |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Edie Brickell shot to fame in the late '80s with the New Bohemians, leaving after two albums, marrying Paul Simon two years later. After her solo debut, 1994's Picture Perfect Morning, 2003's Volcano is only her second album on her own, and is pretty much what you'd expect; laid-back, acoustic-based singer-songwriter stuff with the occasional jazzy edge, not a million miles from an updated version of her husband's work in the '70s. To be honest, most of it slid by me without really impingeing itself on my consciousness until the very last track, What Would You Do, which features probably the best lyric and tune on the record; it was certainly the only one that made me sit up and take any notice.
Mellotron on the title track from Charlie Sexton, with a nice, real-sounding string part, though that's that I'm afraid. So; a reasonable enough album, if a little unexciting, but then, that's probably not the point. I'm sure it's an awful lot better than hubby's disastrous (if well-meaning) Capeman project, anyway.
 |
Fevers & Mirrors (2000, 55.11) ***/T |
|
| A Spindle, a Darkness, a Fever, and a Necklace A Scale, a Mirror, and These Indifferent Clocks The Calendar Hung Itself... Something Vague The Movement of a Hand Arienette |
When the Curious Girl Realises She is Under Glass Haligh, Haligh, a Lie, Haligh Center of the World Sunrise, Sunset An Attempt to Tip the Scales A Song to Pass the Time |
|
 |
Oh Holy Fools [split with Son, Ambulance] (2001, 40.31) ***/T½Brown Park (Son, Ambulance)Going for the Gold (Bright Eyes) Invention of Beauty (Son, Ambulance) Oh, You Are the Roots That Sleep Beneath My Feet and Hold the Earth in Place (Bright Eyes) On the Concourse (Son, Ambulance) No Lies, Just Love (Bright Eyes) Katie Come True (Son, Ambulance) Kathy With a K's Song (Bright Eyes) |
 |
One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels [Bright Eyes & Neva Dinova] (2004, 21.51) ***/TTrippedBlack Comedy Poison I'll Be Your Friend Get Back Spring Cleaning |
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
I'll be quite honest here; I really can't make Bright Eyes out at all. Are they named for that hideous Art Garfunkel song? Why are their song titles so much more interesting than their music? Are they really that miserable all the time? 'Net reviewers seem to be equally split between unstinting praise and utter opprobrium; brilliant or shite? Don't ask me, I don't get it. Mainman Conor Oberst seems to inspire fanatical devotion as much as he inspires utter loathing; maybe we've finally found the real 'love 'em or hate 'em' band?
Fevers & Mirrors seems to be pretty typical fare for the band; understated, ultra-melancholy low-finess, with Oberst's super-personal lyrics taking precedence, or so it seems, over the music much of the time. Personal; yeah, that's it - that's the appeal. The band's fans feel that Oberst is speaking to them directly, for better or worse; he's voicing their own hopes and fears, often almost choking up with emotion as he does so. I find it completely impossible to pick better or worse tracks; although it's really only singer-songwriter fare, this music is so far from my own understanding of what it's about that I really can't judge it at all. Anyway, plenty of 'Tron flutes from Andy LeMaster on The Movement Of A Hand, with an unexpected background choir part on Arienette.
The following year, Bright Eyes released an EP split with Saddle Creek labelmates Son, Ambulance, Oh Holy Fools, the bands taking the rather unusual step of playing alternate tracks. Son, Ambulance have a far less irritating singer in Joe Knapp, who doesn't whine and therefore can't be Emo, although his bright(-ish) folk rock still isn't particularly to my taste, and by the third or fourth track begins to set my teeth on edge. Flutes (again) on Going For The Gold, and a shrieky sort of string part on Kathy With A K's Song are the only 'Tron definites, possibly from LeMaster again, although two or three other tracks by both bands have a vague Mellotronic feel to them.
2004's One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels EP was a collaboration with Neva Dinova (a band, not a person); it seems 2004 was the year of Bright Eyes collaborations. Despite their input, the music's pretty much the same old same old, with Oberst's irritating voice holding sway. Nice 'Tron flutes yet again on Tripped, running most of the way through the song, played by [unknown].
In 2005, Bright Eyes released two contrasting albums, the rather dreary country/folk-rock of I'm Wide Awake, it's Morning (**½:) having little to do musically with the semi-electronica of Digital Ash in a Digital Urn (also **½:). I've seen various reports that the latter has some 'Tron on it, but the choirs on various tracks sound more like either generic samples or actually backing vocal 'aahs' to my ears, so I'd say no, no 'Tron here.
So; er, I can't really recommend anything by Bright Eyes, because I absolutely don't get what they're doing, although it seems they're pretty cool politically, refusing to deal with Clear Channel and touring with Springsteen. They may quite possibly be brilliant; I don't know. What I can tell you is that they've used a Mellotron on a handful of tracks over three releases, but none of them are worth buying on that account. Oh, and what I can also tell you (thanks for this, Emily) is that the band name is almost certainly a quote from Poe's 'Annabel Lee', referenced in Bright Eyes' Jetsabel Removes The Undesirables, available on some editions of Fevers & Mirrors, though clearly not the one I reviewed.
 |
Motion to Rejoin (2008, 49.16) **½/T |
|
| Introduction Hologram Buffalo Gathered Years Oppressions Each Another Reclaimation A Rainbow Aims Summer Hoof |
Past a Weatherbeaten Fencepost When Beads Spell Power Leaf |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Are Brightblack Morning Light 'slowcore'? 2008's Motion to Rejoin (apparently recorded using just solar power) is one of the slowest, most laid-back (in a very non-MOR kind of way) albums I've heard in a while. Some people will say, "Muted beauty", while others are more likely to go for, "Dreary old tosh"; I'm not quite sure where my loyalties lie, although I had considerable trouble engaging with the record in any meaningful way. Maybe it should be ten minutes shorter? It does seem to go on forever, doubtless due to its sluggish pace.
On the Mellotron front, producer Matt Henry Cunitz apparently plays his studio M400, but I can't say it's that apparent, not helped by his use of an Orchestron. Gathered Years has faint background flutes, while A Rainbow Aims has a more upfront part plus MkII brass, although it really doesn't sound like a Mellotron. So; very slow music that has trouble sustaining the (or at least this) listener's interest, with very little 'Tron. Next...
 |
Brighteye Brison (2003, 57.47) ***/TIntroductionOne Year Alone I) Aspects From Newborn Eyes II) Correct Information III) Music of the City IV) My Spirit Will Speak Take Good Care of My Heart In Disguise A Car Final Call |
 |
Stories (2006, 52.05) ***½/TTT½ |
|
| Stories Patterns Isolation The Battle of Brighteye Brison Elenah Late Life Inside All Love |
We Wanna Return Stories (Reprise) |
|
 |
Believers & Deceivers (2008, 68.01) ****/TTT½Pointless LivingAfter the Storm The Harvest The Grand Event |
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
Brighteye Brison are a newish Swedish prog outfit, taking their influences from several areas, including the 'modern prog' of Spock's Beard et al., '80s neo-prog and the 'intelligent pop' of the Beatles/Beach Boys, with hints of Saga and various widdly guitar merchants in places, too. Less Änglagård than A.C.T, anyway. While it has its strong points, Brighteye Brison has several failings, too, not least the vocals, which are not only not very good, but frequently out of tune, particularly in the harmony sections. The quality of the material varies wildly, with many impressive moments subverted by mediocrity; defeat all too often snatched from the jaws of victory.
Änglagård's Mattias Olsson was involved on the recording side, although I believe Brighteye's keyboard player Linus Kåse actually played the brief Mellotron parts on the album. All I can hear are a brief string part in Music Of The City, part three of the lengthy One Year Alone, ending in a pitchbend so drastic that it sounds like someone's leaning on the flywheel (is that you, Mattias?), and another brief burst of strings in A Car. The faint, background choirs on part four, My Spirit Will Speak, are more likely to be Orchestron, which I understand Mattias also provided for the band's use; to my knowledge, they took the largely-completed album to his Roth-Händle studio for 'treatments'.
2006's Stories is a lot better than their debut, which isn't to say it's that good, just better, with tracks of the quality of Patterns or All Love being slightly scuppered by a top-notch IQ impersonation on We Wanna Return and an irritating tendency to border AOR and/or generic neo-prog territory too closely in places. The album isn't overlong as such, but slicing a few minutes of unnecessarily-copycat material might have both tightened the album up and improved it. Kåse's 'Tron use is considerably greater than on their debut, with all but the album's two shortest tracks featuring it somewhere. You can hear the strings clearly at the end of Patterns, and there's a nicely upfront flute part opening Isolation, while Life Inside doubles 'Tron church organ with choirs, to pleasing effect. I presume that's 'Tron cellos on All Love, with all other highlighted tracks tending to feature strings and choir.
Believers & Deceivers is another slight improvement, but I wonder if the band have peaked, or whether they're happy with their uncommercial 'commercial' symphonic direction. In fairness, this may have been what they've been aiming for these last few years, and it isn't actually bad at all, just a little... safe, despite two very lengthy tracks. Two short(-ish) ones open the album, sounding like the better end of Stories (and is the Pink Floyd lyrical reference in After The Storm deliberate?), before they get stuck into the long-form stuff. The 20-minute The Harvest isn't bad, but is rather outclassed by the near-35 (!)-minute The Grand Event, which is probably the album's four star catalyst. The vocal gymnastics near the beginning pinpoint the Spock's Beard influence perfectly; even the title's reminiscent of some of their epic efforts, and musical nods towards Gentle Giant are just as likely to be via The Beard's own appropriations. Reasonable amounts of 'Tron, although After The Storm is completely clear of it, and The Grand Event goes for anything up to ten minutes at a time with no 'Tron input, although there's a lovely Theremin part at one point. By and large, we're talking strings and choir again, although brief bursts of flutes and church organ appear on occasion, this time from Per Hallman.
As far as Brighteye Brison itself goes, it certainly has its moments, but it's just too 'bitty' overall to really engage the listener, or at least me. Practically no obvious Mellotron, either, though knowing Mattias, there could well be some 'Tron wineglasses or Hammond hidden away somewhere. Their two subsequent efforts map a steady improvement, although whether or not the band will ever reach 'classic' status still remains to be seen.
 |
Meaningless (2000, 44.37) ****/TT½ |
|
| Gotta Start Somewhere I Believe She's Lying Meaningless Ruin My Day Walking Through Walls Trouble Hook, Line and Sinker Dead to the World |
Her Ghost Same Mistakes Voices |
|
 |
Sing Hollies in Reverse (1995, 7.52) ****/TTT[Jon Brion contributes]Sorry Suzanne |
 |
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, 22.13) ***½/T |
|
| [Brion contributes] Theme Collecting Things Bookstore Showtime Sidewalk Flight Howard Makes it All Go Away Postcard Peer Pressure |
A Dream Upon Waking The Strings That Tie to You Phone Call Down the Drain Row Drive in Main Title Spotless Mind Elephant Parade |
|
 |
I ♥ Huckabees (2004, 43.29) ***½/TTT |
||
| Monday Knock Yourself Out Strange Bath Cubes Didn't Think it Would Turn Out Bad Coincidences Over Our Heads |
You Learn Later Monday Ska Wouldn't Have it Any Other Way Huckabees Jingle (50's Version) Revolving Door JB's Blues |
True to Yourself Didn't Think it Would Turn Out Bad (String Quartet Version) Strangest Times Omni Get What it's About Monday (End Credits) |
|
Current availability:
Chamberlin used:
Known primarily as a sideman to the stars, Brion apparently has a long-running residency at the Largo, in L.A., where no two performances are ever the same, usually including his instrumental setup. Meaningless appears to be his first, long-overdue solo album, revealing him to be a deft writer of intelligent pop songs - rather like many of his clients, then. All the usual influences apply - you know, Beatles, Beach Boys, Big Star, all the B's; it's hard to pick out highlights, but Her Ghost and the lengthy Voices are particularly impressive. Brion has a decent enough voice, although it's his playing that really stands out, with the bulk of the instrumental work emanating from his fingers, with the remainder coming from various Famous Friends.
Brion is, of course, a Chamberlin master, going as far as to include diagrams of its internal workings in the CD booklet, making it surprising that it's not immediately apparent on more tracks, unless, of course, I'm missing it in the mix. Again. Ruin My Day has some orchestral strings, which almost sound like the real thing in places, while Dead To The World features a muddy flute part before the cellos and violins return, with a superbly cheesy end section, not to mention (apparently) the Mellotron tremolo guitars... Her Ghost has polyphonic flutes, oboes (?) and sax, oh, and strings - everything, really. Maybe he thought that smothering the album in it would be retro overkill. Well, it wouldn't - the tape-replay adds warmth and depth to the sound, which isn't to denigrate the rest of the tracks, but it might've been nice to have heard it a few more times...
Brion has also contributed to several film soundtracks and various artists efforts, including 1995's Sing Hollies in Reverse and the soundtracks to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I ♥ Huckabees, both from 2004. Links to full reviews are below; suffice to say, he does a good job on all, writing the entire score for the latter. So; Meaningless is an excellent little album, assuming you like the style, and lovely Chamby work on a handful of tracks. Buy, I think.
See: Fiona Apple | Murray Attaway | Badly Drawn Boy | T Bone Burnett | Jude Cole | Christina Courtin | Crystal Method | Eels | Marianne Faithfull | Peter Gabriel | Nina Gordon | Grant Lee Buffalo | Macy Gray | Grays | John Hiatt | Robyn Hitchcock | Lauren Hoffman | Indians | Love Spit Love | Taj Mahal | Eleni Mandell | Aimee Mann | Marjorie Fair | Brad Mehldau | Rhett Miller | The Mommyheads | Sam Phillips | Plain White T's | Miranda Lee Richards | Elliott Smith | Spoon | Taxiride | Rufus Wainwright | Kanye West | Wild Colonials | Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind | I ♥ Huckabees | Jerry Maguire | Pleasantville | Sing Hollies in Reverse | Mellodrama
 |
Chain of Command (2007, 49.13) **½/T |
|
| An Unwanted Child The Black Lotus Rogaar Beware Story of a Wicked Mind He Will Die Fire Within Royal Deathlist Vicious Light |
The End of Hope E.B.E.N. |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
I think you can probably guess into which overall genre Broken Dagger fall. Clue: it's not sunshine pop. It's a pity they have to use a monicker which has fascistic overtones, although I'm sure that wasn't their intention, as they don't give the impression they're church-burners. Chain of Command (more macho pseudo-militarism, sadly) is, frankly, a truly ridiculous album, albeit a surprisingly melodic one, full of massed male vocals, wild screams, Yngwie-alike guitar work and more blastbeats than you can shake a drumstick at. I've no idea if there's some kind of concept held within (sorry, slipped into Broken Dagger's histrionic vocabulary there for a moment), but they're getting terribly excited about something, and I just heard the phrase, "Penetrates his chest", so I think it's safe to assume the lyrical content has little in common with affairs of the heart, unless it involves cutting it out with said blade.
Urban Måsby plays keys, including (real?) Mellotron, with strings on opener An Unwanted Child and closer E.B.E.N., with the album's various choir contributions sounding either generic or real. Overall, then, a very silly power metal album (aren't they all?), with little Mellotron, even assuming it's real. One for the clenched-fist brigade, I think. And I bet they're insanely proud of that 'explicit content' sticker, too.
 |
The Bronx (2006, 33.43) **½/0 |
|
| Senor Hombre de Tamale Small Stone Shitty Future History's Stranglers Oceans of Class Dirty Leaves Transsexual Blackout (the Movement) Mouth Money |
Rape Zombie Around the Horn Three Dead Sisters Safe Passage White Guilt |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Confusingly, The Bronx have opted to name their first three albums eponymously, in true Peter Gabriel style. 2006's version is the second of the three and is probably best described as modern US punk with a weird country edge, notably on closer White Guilt. But is it any good? I expect they and their fans think so, but it left me stone cold, to be honest, but what do I know?
Joby J. Ford is credited with Mellotron, but I've absolutely no idea where it might be used. what's the point, eh? What's the point in using something, then keeping it so low in the mix that it's inaudible? Totally pointless. So; a punk album with no obvious Mellotron. That's it.
 |
Red Dirt Road (2003, 56.49) **/0 |
|
| You Can't Take the Honky Tonk Out of the Girl Caroline When We Were Kings That's What She Gets for Loving Me Red Dirt Road Feels Good Don't it I Used to Know This Song By Heart |
Believer Memory Town She Was Born to Run Till My Dyin' Day My Baby's Everything I Love Good Day to Be Me Good Cowboy Holy War |
|
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
Brooks & Dunn are apparently huge in the world of country, which shows just how out of touch I am with that oeuvre. Thankfully. I mean, Americana/alt.country is (usually) fine, but the full-blown Nashville variety either bores me to tears or turns my stomach. Maybe surprisingly, the duo's 2003 offering, Red Dirt Road, isn't too bad for a few tracks, but its (fairly minimal) appeal wanes as it ploughs through its near-hour length. Its most tedious features are semi-God-bothering lyrics like the title track or the openly offensive Holy War, not to mention their 'I'm just a country boy' schtick (although, in fairness, they are). It's not all awful, but it goes on rather too long and refuses to step outside its genre in any way, shape or form, for better or worse.
Steve Nathan plays Mellotron, although I have absolutely no idea where, as it's entirely inaudible. Which means... (you guessed it) don't bother.
 |
Bröselmaschine (1971, 35.46) ***½/½GedankenLassic Gitarrenstück The Old Man's Song Schmetterling Nossa Bova |
Current availability:
Mellotron used:
The sole Bröselmaschine album is a bit of an oddity; for the first few tracks, I was convinced that a mispressing had delivered an English folk record to me by mistake. The style was correct, the English-language vocals were unaccented; Schmetterling even borrows from the same source as Jimmy Page's White Summer. In fact, the only obviously Germanic influence anywhere on Bröselmaschine is the muttered German narration on the track, in amongst the sitars and open-tuned acoustics.
There's hardly any Mellotron on the album at all; a few string chords from Mike Hellbach in Schmetterling, and that's it, as the flute parts are real. This is obviously a stoner's delight, like quite a few German albums of the era (Wind's Morning and Witthüser & Westrupp's Der Jesuspilz/Musik Vom Evangelium spring to mind), and is actually a very good record, but don't bother for the 'Tron.
 |
Chisholm in My Bosom (1977) ***/TTNeed To KnowMonkey Walk Let a Little Sunshine (Into Your Life) I Put a Spell on You She's on My Mind The Lord is My Saviour Chisholm in My Bosom |
 |
Requiem (1982, 39.52/59.18) ***/½ |
|
| Chant/Shades Animal People Spirits Take Flight Gabriel Requiem Machanicla Masseur Busha-Busha The Fire Ant and the Cockroaches |
[CD adds: Tear Down the Wall Santa Put a Spell on Me Pale Stars Chromatic Alley Falling Up] |
|
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
After the dissolution of Arthur's Kingdom Come (see below), he slid into a sadly rather lacklustre solo career, with two albums on the long-defunct Gull label, '75's Dance (**½) and '77's Chisholm in My Bosom. Both albums hark back in some ways to Arthur's '60s apprenticeship, with blues, soul and funk influences abounding; a far cry from the fascinating experimentation of his previous band. This is the sort of mediocre mid-'70s 'rock' that kick-started a revolution; so bland that it almost doesn't exist, you can't imagine anyone getting especially excited about this music, although I suppose there's no accounting for taste. In fairness, it isn't all bad, with a slow-burning blues take on Screaming Jay Hawkins' I Put A Spell On You, and the side-long title track, but far too much of the album is thoroughly average fare. To add insult to injury, See for Miles' 2-on-1 reissue, pairing the album with Dance, slashes the 23-minute Chisholm In My Bosom to a mere eight minutes in order to fit both albums onto one disc. Useless.
Given that the CD version of the album is the only one I've heard, it's actually quite difficult to review it from a Mellotronic perspective, and I'll have to return to it when I track down a vinyl copy, hopefully for not too much money. The title track is the only one where someone (then-Strawb Robert Kirby?) plays Mellotron, with background choirs and a flute part appearing almost immediately, with the strings cropping up later on. Actually, it's entirely possible that more than one of the album's four credited keyboard players provide the 'Tron work on this track, but despite the fact that I've met Arthur more than once, I suspect it would be fairly pointless to ask him if he remembers.
So; a rather ropey album saved by what sounds like it's a really good side-long piece; if only I were able to hear it in full. These abbreviated 2-on-1s are a particular pet hate of mine; OK, so you get to hear most of two albums for the price of one CD, but what's the use in that? What if the missing track(s) is/are the album's best (as in this case), but get edited/deleted because some jobsworth compiler decides that they're inessential? Every now and again, an artist's history is correctly preserved on two-disc sets (see: Druid), but mangled versions of albums like this do no-one any favours, least of all the artist concerned. Anyway, I shall return to this when I get a chance to hear the full version; in the meantime, I'll give it a temporary TT rating until I'm able to assess it properly. Grrr.
Several years later, Arthur used a Mellotron for the last time on album, on his 1982 release, Requiem. Arthur's one of those artists who seems to fit in musically with whatever's going on at the time, viz psych (late '60s), prog (early '70s) and middling rock (mid-late '70s), so it shouldn't come as any surprise to learn that Requiem seems to have been recorded mostly on synth/sequencer and drum machine, with real drums in places. As with many early-'80s 'synth' albums, there's plenty of sonic experimentation here on the keyboard front, with some great ring-modulated sounds (Prophet 5?) and other out-there but up-to-the-minute stuff, although I'm not so sure about the material, which seems to be average at best.
Credited Mellotron on the title track from Sterling Smith, although the only sound that even might qualify is possible choirs subsumed in the massed backing vocals, although if you didn't know they were there, you, er, wouldn't know they were there. Overall, then, an interesting, if flawed album of synth-pop without the 'pop' bit, but essentially bugger-all 'Tron.
See: Klaus Schulze
 |
Kingdom Come (1973, 44.40/62.02) ****½/T½ |
|
| The Teacher A Scientific Experiment Featuring "Lower Colonic Irrigation" The Whirlpool The Hymn Water Love is (the Spirit That Will Never Die) City Melody Traffic Light Song |
[CD adds: Traffic Light Song The Hymn Experiment] |
|
 |
Journey (1973, 42.14/62.33) ****½/TTTTT |
|
| Time Captives Triangles Gypsy Superficial Roadblocks Lost Time Superficial Roadblocks Corpora Supercelestia Conception Spirit of Joy |
Come Alive [CD adds: Time Captives Conception Come Alive] |
|
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
Arthur Brown is one of those incredibly talented artists who had a brief burst of fame many years ago, and has effectively had to live off it ever since. Arthur's is, of course, Fire, recorded with his Crazy World in 1968; you'll probably have seen the insane b+w promo video for it with Arthur's flaming headpiece. There was much more to Arthur Brown than Fire, though. In the early '70s he put together Kingdom Come, to play a weird, twisted form of progressive rock quite unlike anyone else. Their first album, Galactic Zoo Dossier (****) is good, but they improved upon it with Kingdom Come.
This is definitely one of the oddest prog albums you'll ever hear, with Arthur expounding on school, religion, his bodily functions etc., mostly at some length. The music takes no prisoners, either, with some wonderfully dissonant organ passages in the brilliantly-titled A Scientific Experiment Featuring 'Lower Colonic Irrigation', among other highlights. The Mellotron isn't mentioned specifically, but is presumably played by Goodge Harris, with strings slapped all over The Hymn, an otherwise (relatively) straightforward number, and a few chords in Water, but not really enough to consider it a 'Mellotron album'.
Journey, however, is another matter. Arthur only retained the services of his guitarist and bassist, bringing in American keyboard man Victor Peraino, and electing to use the Bentley drum machine, actually a Bentley Rhythm Ace, later to give its name to a British dance-orientated act. The music is (slightly) less odd than on Kingdom Come, but makes up for it with its weird, mechanical feel, and the large amount of Peraino's Mellotron present. There's nothing on the first two tracks, but Gypsy is smothered in strings and flutes, before Superficial Roadblocks roars in with brass and choir providing the main chordal backdrop. This track has to be one of the most Mellotron-heavy ever, with an unaccompanied choir section on Corpora Supercelestia. Spirit Of Joy features that rarest of M400 sounds, the Mellotron Hammond (along with some strings), only distinguishable when Peraino attempts some organ 'chops'.
Peraino went on to front his own version of Kingdom Come, producing another Mellotron Monster in No Man's Land, but try as he might, he couldn't quite reach the heights of lunacy reached by either of these albums. The last I heard, these were both still available on bizarrely-packaged Voiceprint CDs, with loads of unlisted bonus tracks, and Arthur's story in the booklets, but told in the wrong order... Still, it's just good to actually be able to find them at all, and hopefully introduce another generation of listeners to the hidden delights of these strange albums. Barking mad, brilliant and wholeheartedly recommended musically. Oh, and Journey's a Mellotron classic. Buy.
See: Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come
 |
Golden Greats (1999, 44.58/55.33) ***/T½ |
|
| Gettin' High Love Like a Fountain Free My Way Set My Baby Free So Many Soldiers Golden Gaze Dolphins Were Monkeys Neptune |
First World Babasonicos [US version adds: Love Like a Fountain (US Version) Dolphins Were Monkeys (U.N.K.L.E. Vs South Remix)] |
|
 |
Music of the Spheres (2001, 41.09) **½/TT |
|
| F.E.A.R. Stardust The Gravy Train Bubbles Hear No See No Northern Lights Whispers El Mundo Pequeño |
Forever and a Day Shadow of a Saint |
|
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
Ian Brown's amusingly-titled second solo album, Golden Greats, seems to be attempting to carry on the sound pioneered by The Stone Roses, most of the album's material having a psychedelic dance/rock feel to it, not a million miles away from the band that made him famous. Opener Gettin' High sets Brown's stall out well, with its programmed drums, psych riffing and sitar, while Love Like A Fountain is more straightforward rave/rock, with most of the other tracks veering somewhere between these two styles, taken at a faster or slower pace. The bonus tracks on the US version aren't worth the effort: a 'yeah, whatever' version of Love Like A Fountain and a dance remix of Dolphins Were Monkeys, involving two Brown collaborators, U.N.K.L.E. and South. Tim Wills plays Mellotron, with nicely up-in-the-mix string and flute parts on Set My Baby Free and strings on So Many Soldiers. Given Brown's considerable Oasis connection, might it be one of their machines? Who knows.
Brown followed up, two years later, with Music of the Spheres (cue 'load of old balls' joke...). To be honest, it's less engaging than its predecessor, as if Brown had used up his best ideas (let's face it, it happens...). More Mellotron than before, though, player unknown, as it could be any of Dave McCracken, Mark Sayfritz or Robin Taylor-Firth. Anyway, phased strings on Stardust, regular ones on Northern Lights and wavery, echoed flutes on Forever And A Day, all nice to hear if slightly inessential.
Well, Ian Brown's taken a very different solo route to his old mucker John Squire's '60s thing, but given that they're barely speaking, that's hardly surprising. As far as these two go, they both have some passable 'Tron use, while Golden Greats is probably a little more listenable than Music of the Spheres.
See: John Squire
 |
Things May Come & Things May Go, But the Art School Dance Goes on Forever (1970, 43.30/69.34) ***/T |
|
| Things May Come & Things May Go, But the Art School Dance Goes on Forever High Flying Electric Bird Someone Like You Walk for Charity, Run for Money Then I Must Go and Can I Keep My Love's Gone Far Away Golden Country Kingdom |
Firesong Country Morning [CD adds: Prophet Country Morning (alternate) Living Life Backwards High Sorrow Raining Pins and Needles] |
|
 |
Thousands on a Raft (1970, 52.10/88.20) ***½/T |
|
| Aeroplane Head Woman Station Song Platform Two Highland Song If They Could Only See Me Now parts I & II Got a Letter From a Computer Thousands on a Raft [CD adds: Broken Magic |
Can't Get Off the Planet Flying Hero Sandwich My Last Band Dawn of a Night Wasp Aeroplane Head Woman] |
|
Current availability:
Mellotrons used:
Pete Brown is known chiefly as sometime lyricist for Cream, putting words into Jack Bruce's mouth on I Feel Free, White Room etc. After their split, he got his own outfit together, Pete Brown's Battered Ornaments, recording one album with them, A Meal You Can Shake Hands With in the Dark, before the rest of the band sacked him just before they played Hyde Park with the Stones (and, of course, King Crimson). Wasting no time, he formed Piblokto! releasing (deep breath) Things May Come & Things May Go, But the Art School Dance Goes on Forever within the year. Despite being optimistically described as 'one of the finest of the progressive era', it's a fairly typical slice of organ-driven proto-prog, with Pete's mad vocals as a bonus. While not bad, it'd be stretching it a little (OK, a lot) to call it a 'classic'; it certainly doesn't stand out from the pack, going by the contemporaries of the band that I've heard. One Mellotron track (from organist Dave Thompson?), with some orchestrally-inclined strings on High Flying Electric Bird (also the b-side of their first single, Living Life Backwards).
Later the same year, their second and final album, Thousands on a Raft, appeared, breaking Brown's run of ridiculously lengthily-titled albums. In case you're wondering, aside from the Titanic and Concorde, the sleeve depicts several slices of beans on toast floating in a pond (not sure how they managed that), the album title apparently being cockney (non-rhyming) slang for the aforementioned culinary delicacy. Several band members had changed in the months between the two records, the fresh blood making their presence felt immediately, as opener Aeroplane Head Woman's Cream-like tones assault your speakers. After a piano ballad, Station Song Platform Two, the album goes completely bonkers, with the 17-minute semi-improvised Highland Song, followed on side two by If They Could Only See Me Now Parts I & II, which is almost as long. Mellotron (definitely Dave Thompson this time round) on Station Song Platform Two, with some pleasant background MkII strings.
Do you buy these albums? Well, the over 2½ hour set is worth the dosh if you're into lesser-known UK bands of the era, and some of the music's well worth hearing. The two 'Tron tracks are less than essential, though both quite nice. Up to you. Incidentally, BGO's 2-CD set of these albums confuses the issue greatly by adding a total of 11 bonus tracks, spread over both discs, but as Pete requested, puts them in chronological order. Disc 1 starts with three bonus tracks, including their first single, with more between the two albums (Thousands... is irritatingly split between the discs), finishing with several more at the end, although this makes the expanded album timings somewhat irrelevant. As a result, I've added them after each regular tracklisting above, and none contain any 'Tron anyway. Pete is occasionally to be seen wandering around Crouch End in north London, sometimes muttering to himself, though surely his royalty cheque for the inevitable live album from the recent Cream reformation should boost his bank balance slightly?
See: Cream | Jack Bruce
