The Genius of the Maurin Brothers, Samuel and David

What do you know about the Maurin Brothers?

I've just today discovered that Annecy's Samuel & David Maurin founded three bands at the end of the 20th Century, NIL in 1997, THORK in 1998, and SYRINX in 1999, all of which have been received and celebrated in Prog World by a small number of music lovers. The interesting thing is that each band was created to express a different aspect of the Maurin Brothers' unique perspectives on three different sub-genres of progressive rock music: Nil to explore the "Eclectic" sub-genre; Thork to explore modern "Prog Folk"; and Syrinx to satisfy their "Jazz-Rock Fusion" fantasies. Remarkable, no?

How many of you knew that these three bands were the creations (at least partially) of one pair of brothers?

Does anybody have any more in-depth sources of information on the Maurin Brothers?

Does anybody know what the brothers have been doing since 2009 when their last albums came out (Syrinx)?

NIL Nil (1999)

Line-up / Musicians:
- David Maurin / guitars, flute, vocals
- Benjamin Croizy / keyboards
- Samuel Maurin / basses
- Frank Niebel / drums
With:
- Jean-Luc Ferreira / flute
- Marion De Saint Vaast / vocals
- Jean-Michel Gaude / vocals

1. "La misère "(11:27)
2. "First passage" (9:01)
3. "3 stigmata ... " 9:41)
4. "Bön-Glå-Glön" (14:23)
5. "Inner Mazed" (6:53)
6. "Nogegon" (8:22)

Total Time: 61:01

on the Fishscales = / stars;

THORK Undoxa (2000)

The debut album from Annecy's Maurin Brothers, Samuel and David. Often bass-centric and filled with dramatic vocal storytelling throughout, there is definitely a strong air of operatic prog throughout.

Line-up / Musicians:

- Antoine Auresche / guitar, vocals

- Sébastien Fillion / keyboards

- Claire Northey / violin

- Samuel Maurin / bass

- Michel Lebeau / drums

With:

- Audrey Casella / vocals

- David Maurin / guitar

1. "Tædium Vitæ" (16:30) hard rock Celtic music? The long suite amounts to something quite operatic in a SEVEN REIZH kind of way (despite there being only one main singer--Antoine Auresche). There are several totally separate motifs and movements within but they all seem to tie together within the "Tædium Vitæ" storyline and keep coming back to Celtic themes and instrumentation (especially the fiddle/violin). Samuel Maurin's deep-throbbing bass is quite distinctive yet also giving us a preview of the NIL sounds to come in the near future. Interesting if not thoroughly compelling. (26.5/30)

2. "Arche d'ebène" (8:50) though still infused by violin, there is a more insistent and noirish feel to this song The effect of Sébastien Fillion's cheesy church organ as well as Sébastien's saw synth are equally curious--adding to the eeriness of the song. Effective but not quite as memorable as the Nil stuff Sam and Dave will be doing soon. (17.5/20)

3. "Goupilette" (1:45) an electric guitar solo that sounds like something from the library of Classical music pieces. Sounds a bit weird with the electronic sounds/effects. (4.375/5)

4. "L'enlèvement de psyché" (16:00) synthesized guitar with a foreboding heaviness turns in the third minute into something more akin to the Pagan Folk music of German band FAUN. Even Antoine's singing voice might double for that of Oliver "Sa Tyr" Pade. Female vocalist Audrey Casella helps out with her pleasant style and we find Seb using his eerie Nemo-organ again (here referring to the crazed sea captain, not the French prog band). As with the album's opening song, there are a lot of completely different stand-alone movements in this suite, each adding its own "chapter" to the story as arias and movements do to any opera or stage musical. Some of the softer, more spacious themes (especially the piano/keyboard dominated ones) are quite lovely--and very effective, whereas the guitar and synth-saw filled ones can be a bit grating (like some of DAAL's motifs). Despite the back-and-forth play of contrasting motifs, this is probably my favorite song on the album. (26.875/30)

5. "Danse de la lune" (1:40) a solo from keyboardist Sébastien Fillion, here employing organ and keyboard synth chords interchanged and interlaced while waves of crashing cymbals rise and fall (these latter may be synthesizer generated). (4.5/5)

6. "Exil" (10:00) arpeggiated electric guitar chords with Antoine's solo voce occupy the first two minutes of this. At the two minute mark the music shifts into full band, then, around the three minute mark everything shifts into a very NIL/XII ALFONSO-feeling motif. Violin and synths take turns with keyboard chord fills over the drums and chunky bass before electric guitar wails and then, stop! We're back to the opening guitar-and-solo-voce motif (to which Samuel and Claire add their gentle magic). Like many of the songs from DAvide Guidano and ALfio Costa (DAAL), this song shifts back and forth time after time--kind of like Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde going through a real bender. It's good, with solid musicianship throughout; I just don't always like this style of music construction. (17.625/20)

7. "Danse du soleil" (2:40) a whole-band expression that has everybody firing on all cylinders, even embellishing and improvising a bit. Fun, upbeat song. (Must've been fun for the band to play.) (9.25/10)

8. "Requiem" (10:50) a single synth was chord slow-builds and then decays before Seb and his arpeggiated electric guitar chords start the song out, filling the opening 90 seconds before the guitar chords shift into upper registers and tom-tom hits and thrumming bass notes join in. At the 2:15 mark all of this shifts with the introduction of some electric guitar power chords, but then we quickly fall back into the previous motif of upper-range guitar arpeggi. This back and forth becomes a pattern until the fourth minute when the heavier theme morphs into forward motion with big synth chord hits and powerful drums and bass. This new theme now alternates with quieter passages to support Seb's rather dichotomous calm, quiet, even "gentle," vocals. Dream-like sequence occupies the middle from about 4:45 to 6:10 when choir swells and church organ signal the introduction of a new bass-and-drum-driven gentle motif within which Seb's heavily-effected voice sings plaintively. More bombastic power swells offset quieter sections that contain things like emotional violin riffs and Seb's vocal pleadings. Around the nine minute mark electric piano chords slowly march toward the horizon as the last of Seb's weak pleadings sound and fade. The bombastic power motif then finishes the song with some big Keith Emerson/ELP energy. Nice! Nicely done! (18/20)

Total Time: 68:15

The theatric and often cinematic music presented here is very much in the vein of the French progressive rock bands of the 1970s like Ange, Pulsar, Mona Lisa and even Magma and Clearlight (and, believe it or not, Anthony Phillips!) as well as modern French bands like XII Alfonso, Seven Reizh, Nemo, Taal, and Minimum Vital. The music is quite adventurous, quite dynamic, constantly shifting; one might even call it melodramatic or prog operatic. My only criticisms is that it does often feel a bit simplistic and what might be called immature (though perhaps "pre-mature" would be a better term). Great prog drama if that's the kind of thing you're looking for.

89.02 on the Fishscales = B/four stars; an excellent debut of highly-theatric "dark" prog--something that prepares us for the more mature, more sophisticated prog of future releases from both Thork and Nil (and Syrinx).

NIL Quarante jours sur le Sinaï (2002)

Line-up / Musicians:
- David Maurin / prepared guitars, flute, bass clarinet, gong
- Benjamin Croizy / synthesizer, Mellotron, church organ (St Pierre Cathedral, Annecy), Hammond, piano, MS-20, timpani
- Samuel Maurin / bass, Chapman Stick, vocals
- Frank Niebel / drums, percussion
With:
- Anne Cayrol / cello
- Hervé Franconi / soprano saxophone
- François Pernel / harp
- Roselyne Berthet / vocals, ethereal voices
- Eric Vedovati / vocals
- Samy Cyr / ethereal voices
- Audrey Casella / narrator

1. "Act I" (36:16)

2. "Act II" (26:42)

Total Time 62:58

Mostly because of the density of this album's two songs, each covering over 26 minutes, It has been a real struggle for me to get to know this amazing album. (I've owned it for over 15 years! I just never sat with it with my undivided attention like I did, finally, today.) My overwhelming response is that progressive rock music does not get better than this--in fact, has never been better than this; this is precisely the raison d'etre for a category of music we call "progressive rock" to exist: for the cinematic/theatric musical expression of BIG human themes.

The musical composition(s), instrumental performances, and sound production of this album, start to finish, are of the absolute highest quality. The confident use of melody and dissonance, virtuosic displays of instrumental prowess contrasted with passages of spacious simplicity shows, to me, that these band members are true masters of their craft.

Without hesitation this is a five star masterpiece of progressive rock music.

93.33 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a major masterpiece of progressive rock music and my Album of The Year for 2003.

SYRINX Reification

The first expression from the Maurin Brothers (plus Benjamin Croizy) as Syrinx, the media have assigned this band and its work to the Jazz-Rock Fusion subgenre but I have trouble with that  assignation due to all of the folk/acoustic work (David Maurin's contributions to the quartet are coming exclusively from an acoustic guitar) and Benjamin's proggy synth work--even many of the melodies injected into the songs feel far more proggy--or are delivered by instruments that the educated listener would consider more proggy--than what one might expect from any Jazz-Rock Fusion band. Perhaps the assignation came due to the music's sophistication and lack of vocals.

Line-up / Musicians:
- David Maurin / acoustic guitar
- Benjamin Croizy / keyboards
- Samuel Maurin / bass
- Philippe Maullet / drums

1. "Reification" (16:57) a long, proggy suite that definitely feels more aligned with prog's eclectic or crossover sub-genres than Jazz-Rock Fusion. Philippe Maullet's drumming becomes quite impressive in the Änglagård-like fifth and sixth minutes, but then we're slowed down to a cautious pace within which Benjamin uses an Ozric Tentacles-like bird-synth sound to cast talk-like arpeggi over the rest of the music. This lasts a while with Samuel Maurin becoming a bit more active with his fretless-sounding and ChapmanStick-sounding bass. Then the band falls into a pattern of alternating gentle arpeggiated acoustic guitar chord-centered theme with a more dynamic bass-and-drum-amped motif for the next couple of minutes before everybody pauses except for Benjamin Croizy's pattern of synth wash chords. The new motif that is next started has a very pretty smooth jazz feel to it as David and Samuel play off one another and Philippe supports the two with exquisite drumming. What a cool motif! All too brief! At the end of the 13th minute the band ramps back up into a more aggressive though still-upbeat motif and then starts alternating it with the pretty "smooth jazz" motif we heard before. Here both Benjamin and Samuel take it upon themselves to go into some improvisational soloing--at the same time! And it works! Both are awesome, even in "competition" with each other. Samuel maintains the solo mode much longer than Ben, eventually being faded out while Ben's dreamy synth washes carry us to the  playing the song's true, final fadeout ending. Great opener! (32.625/35)

2. "Emanescence" (8:35) a song that feels far closer to the NIL world despite the infusion of Ozric Tentacles-like "world music" sounds from Benjamin's synths. There is definitely a Crimsonian dark eclecticism and near-Math Rock feel to much of this music. A spacey interlude is positioned in around the four minute mark to give the listener a pause--to look around, I suppose--but then the full Math Rock motif is brought back and eventually speed-shifted up a notch or two for the next minute before the band falls into one of the Maurin brothers' signature patterns: that of alternative two motifs, usually one gentler and more spacious with one that is more aggressive and Crimsonian--only this time they've shown that they've matured--that they've learned from their previous albums (Nil and Thork's debuts) where they used to beat those alternating hard-and-soft motifs to death before giving way to something else. Here the yin-yang yo-yo is discontinued within a minute of its inception. The motif that finishes off the song (covering the final two-plus minutes) actually sees the introduction of a bunch of sounds that sound very much like the music that STEPHAN THELEN (SONAR) and DAVID TORN have been making together since 2017. I want more of this! (18/20)

3. "The Twentieth Circle" (7:34) here is a song that seems to be trying to figure out whether or not it wants to express a happy, optimistic perspective or one of sad resignation as the two dominating chords seem to alternate in equal proportion, back and forth, throughout the song while Benjamin's right hand and David's acoustic guitar try to help convince the Entity (is it a singular being or a collective?) to make a choice: to decide one way or the other. But then, suddenly in the middle of the seventh minute, the music stops and the band seems to come racing out of the cave of ambivalence into an assertive, action-filled motif reminiscent of  Great song. Well done, Syrinx! (14/15)

4. "Orbis Ubique" (14:43) for the opening motifs of this song David's near-Spanish/Flamenco-style acoustic guitar play steps into the leadership role--a very cool motif. Then, near the three-minute mark, David steps back, into a supporting role with some finger-picking, while Benjamin's organ and drummer Philippe Maullet's cymbal play carry the music forward. At the very end of the sixth minute another transition occurs, leaving us with a more-proggy motif that is driven by some awesome Bill Bruford-like drumming. Once a full band accord has been reached we find ourselves amidst the first truly Jazz-Rock Fusion motif of the album: with David's acoustic guitar playing some strums, riffs, and chord progressions (in tandem with brother Samuel's awesome bass echoes) that feel right in line with bands like Echolyn, Djam Karet, On The Virg, and all that the Coniguliaro brothers contribute to. Acoustic guitar, bass, and organ interplay, occasionally rearing one head to try some ascendency but usually falling back into a whole-band weave. I'm loving this! Then in the ninth minute the band slips back into a patient display of interwoven synth, acoustic guitar, and bass while Philippe expresses his own feelings through some more nice syncopated drumming. There several times over the motif switches in the last five minutes that I am reminded of Andrew Marshall's WILLOWGLASS project, but more, I find myself quite happy hearing such Bruford-like drumming. (27.75/30)

5. "The Hypostasis of the Archons" (7:00) the opening two minutes of this song seem to take the conflict between ambivalent ambiguity to another level as David guitar and Benjamin's keyboard work present two very different themes--as if to present two very different, two seemingly oppositional worldviews. The third minute sees the band joining in, drums and bass seeming to support dialogue, kind of arbitrating for civility, turn-taking, and other marks of open negotiations. I love the feel of what is being expressed (and accomplished) here: there may not be resolution of their differences but we are being left with a sense of respectful open-mindedness and awareness and consideration of the feelings and thoughts of others. (13.5/15)

Total Time: 54:49

With my third run through this album I've discovered many of the gems and jewels imbedded within along with the fabulosities that were evident upon first visit. I am now very pleased to remark upon the Maurin brother's wonderful growth and maturification since those first two albums (released in 1999 and 2000). 

91.20 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece that has me thinking very much of my delightful discovery of Beardfish's amazing Destined Solitaire--an album that continues to grow on me and reveal new and surprising treasures with every listen. While I do believe that Reification might be better labeled "eclectic" or perhaps even "crossover" instead of Jazz-Rock Fusion, it is a great album--and the launch of a great new (though, sadly, short-lived) venture for the boys from Annecy.

THORK We Ila (2004)

Nil's Maurin brothers' side project (or was Nil their side project?) come together with a large ensemble of collaborators to create some of the most difficult to describe music in the entire prog lexicon with this, their second album.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Sébastien Penel / vocals
- David Maurin / guitar, flute
- Sébastien Fillion / synths, piano, Fender Rhodes, programming
- Claire Northey / violin
- Samuel Maurin / bass, Chapman Stick
- Michel Lebeau / drums
With:
- Roselyne Berthet / vocals
- Antoine Auresche / acoustic guitar
- Sébastien Lacroix / sitar, dilruba
- Ian-Elfinn Rosiu / cello
- Renaud Burdin / dununs, djembé, güiro, bells
- Stéphane Lagarde / tablas

1. "L'origine" (11:40) sounding very much like a NIL song, this one opens up heavily before settling into a calm weave over which Sébastien Penel sings. The folk-ish instruments are interspersed within the heavy, almost metal musical soundscape--which only ramps up with a chorus. So many instruments! And only the cymbals and repetitive bass line to keep everything moving at a regulated pace. Big pause at 4:50 in which Sébastien moves into an operatic tenor for a powerful, theatric declaration. Lead guitar and cello bring us out of the stark stagecraft, helping to initiate a return to progginess--though it's still quite theatric in a kind of 1980s hair band (or NINE STONES CLOSE) kind of way. At 7:45 fast piano arpeggi rise out from the background to usher in a more tense passage of MYSTERY-like music. Switch to cello and jazzy support at 9:30 as Séb continues his Marc Atkinson-like performance. Excellent song--full of proggy unpredictability. (18.5/20)

 
2. "Délectable ennui" (9:07) again, the bass, guitar, mood, and rhythms of this sons feel quite like those of NIL sauf the at-times-dominating presence of Sébastien Fillion's keyboards and many incidental instruments representing many cultures of the World Music scene. Great guitar solo in the speeded up eighth minute which is then followed by a slowed down section in which droning cello is overwhelmed by kicking and screaming violin. (17.75/20)

3. "Errance" (1:07) like a little operatic interlude with Sébastien Penel singing in a That Joe Payne kind of way over some dissonant electric guitar picking. (4.25/5)

4. "Ea" (21:18) a very dark, plodding song with lots of avant garde and classical leanings. Seebastien Penel's theatric performance is quite dominating and diabolical. The music is quite intricate, spacious, and, again, avant classical in its derivations but turns toward a more funky Zeuhlish jazz-rock in the seventh minute as choral vocals pepper the background over the angular music. In the ninth minute Samuel's ChapmanStick and Michel Lebeau's bass drum mirror each other with a syncopated staccato pattern over which synths and Sébastien (and a little vocalise of Roselyne Berthet) Penel populate. The screaming guitar soloing in the 13th and 14th minutes are quite Fripp-like but then are then followed by some gorgeously pacifying violin play. This beautiful passage is then ended in the 17th minute with a propulsion into some high octane playing which is then culminated with Sébastien's reaching voice and every body playing very loudly. This then slowly decays into a beautiful almost waltz-like spacious strings-dominated section until we are left with a simple weave of bass notes and guitar arpeggi. What a ride! I'll have to listen to this another half dozen times in order to make sense of it all. (36/40)

5. "Errances" (1:04) another interlude of dissonant notes and chords, this time coming from effected electric guitar and synth strings and synth voices. (4.25/5)

6. "Danse de la terre" (10:48) deep bass thrum with synth percussion and synth cello with Aftrican hand instruments rising from beneath. Beautiful violin play within the African mood music gives this a kind of Cirque du Soleil kind of feel--until the two-minute mark when tuned percussion arpeggi pave the way for more NIL-like music with rockin' lead guitar playing over the top. Nice music. Nice soloing with some Steve Hackett-like moments. At the end of the fourth minute we shift into a faster gear while Sébastien Fillion displays his synth soloing skills. But the we are quickly broght back to a slow crawl while slow guitar arpeggi, mulitple vocalise tracks from Roselyne Berthet and rolling bass and swing drums carry us into a forest of faery magic. in the eighth minute we are brought to a complete standstill as an ominous synth chord conjures up the feeling of the presence of some mysterious shadow beast. We turn to run away with a furious display of jazz-rock fusion which somehow turns into Genesis instrumentalism at its finest. Wow! Another incredible journey! (19/20)

7. "Immanence" (11:26) opens with Asiatic stringed instrument and hand shakers before talking drum and sitar take over. All of the aforementioned World instruments congeal with a tabla as fretless bass and flute join in. Tribal chant voices seem to come out of some stringed instrument for a bit before the drums rhythm switches while cello and Tony Levin-like ChapmanStick display take the front. Impressive! In the fifth minute, strings synth and other keyboard sounds enter and take over, making the song turn a corner into an exposition of full on Arabian prog rock. Then, in the sixth minute, a lone Magma-like Fender Rhodes takes over while Sébastien Penel's effected voice sings plaintively over the top. Séb's plea made, we drop into a dreamy keyboard electronica soundscape in which Fender Rhodes and flute gently massage our ears and minds. At the end of the tenth minute we revert into an African-like tribal motif with tribal choral vocals before the fretless and Fender let Séb take us back into his pleading keening world. Hauntingly distorted solo electric guitar is echoed in a cave-like vacuum before drums and band rejoin to take us into the wild finale. Such is the unpredicatbility of life in the "Third World." So powerful! (19.5/20)

Total Time 66:30

Because of my previous exposure to the more atmospheric (and, at times, pretty) follow up to this album--2006's The music of We ila is far heavier, far darker and more avant garde than I was expecting.

91.73 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of eclectic dark avant progressive rock music. 

12/11/22: With this new posting of an older album that I've finally completed a review for we have a new Album of the Year for 2004! (In the end, a Top Five Album for 2004.)

NIL Nil Novo Sol (2005)

This is an album I've just stumbled upon and absolutely blown away by! Having just read all of the reviewers above, I have nothing really new to add except for "ditto" to all of the kudos and superlatives lavished upon this group--and that I agree: there really is no one else out there that this is really like (though there are obvious KING CRIMSON influences). Amazing song writing, amazing performances and virtuoso instrument playing and singing! I am especially fond of the two longest pieces, "Le Guardien" "Dérégénération," but find myself playing over and over the last song, "Dérives," cuz it reminds me so of KC's amazing skill and discipline as displayed on their "Discipline" LP.

1. "Le Guardien" (20:16) is a prog masterpiece that uses the extraordinary voice of Roselyne Berthet as another key instrument in the magical weave. This song surpasses any and all standards I've held prog rock to before. (38/40)

2. "Linceul" (3:23) is a haunting, beautiful, theatric song in which Roselyne Berthet's beautiful voice is accompanied by only a very slow synthesizer arpeggio from the lower (bass) registers and, later, single notes from the upper octaves of a piano and synthesizer. This song feels to me like the 'calm between the storms' or the 'eye of the hurricane.' (10/10)

3. "Dérégénération" (14:30) is an instrumental that masterfully weaves together the sensitive and virtuoso play of the four instrumentalists. The electric guitars vacillate between sounding like Robert Fripp's edgiest to Steve Howe's shredderest. The drums are BRUFORDish, The Chapman stick is barely treated and, thus, sometimes shallow--could be 'fatter'--but always the most melodic and anchoring sound.  The keyboard playing and sound choices are unusual and multiferous, with an almost-church-like organ being the only constant. An awesome song that grows on you with repeated listenings. (27.5/30)

4. "198" (8:40) is another instrumental founded on a treated guitar arpeggio and, then, a rather banal drum-supported keyboard arpeggio, but actually only hits full stride and once the keyboard riff is shed. The song, however, never really seems to be able to fully climb out of its kind of standard metal format--in fact, sounds as if it could be a RIVERSIDE or AYREON song. (15.5/20)

5. "Abandon" (8:10) sees the band returning to its own form: odd, shifting time signatures, alternating spaciousness with KING CRIMSON-like moments of frenzy and dissonance--and the return of vocals--though the vocals here are less like the band's fifth instrument and more like the French torch song singer's lyrical display. Wonderful singing and theatric presentation--not unlike some WITHIN TEMPTATION, EPICA, or NIGHTWISH song presentations. It makes me want to listen and figure out what she's singing about. The song has a lot of timing, tempo, and dynamic shifts and strangely benefits from the central section's "Exoricist"-like piano arpeggio and odd/eerie keyboard sounds. The intended overall effect is somewhat lost on me, but who cares! I just love listening to all of the many layers of interesting sounds and riffs. Great prog dénouement/ending! (12.75/15)

6. "Dérives" (6:04) like an ANEKDOTEN song, is not the most exciting musical journey, but can be extremely rewarding if one pays attention to all of its subtleties. The beautiful bass melody and keyboard washes begin to carry you away as you listen to all of the subtle nuances and flourishes occurring over the top. And then bang! It's over and you're mystierously left with the last minute of in which Roselyne's voice seems to be washing you off. "Donnes-moi"! I just play this song over and over and over! What a trip! (10/10)

93.0 on the Fish scales = A/five stars for this masterpiece of progressive music. In my opinion, this is one of the most remarkable album releases of the 21st Century--one of my Top Five Albums of 2005. More music like this, please! More, more, MORE!

THORK Nula Jedan

An album from the French mood-masters who created the band NIL, the leadership of the brothers MAURIN (one of which has by this album left the project) have given way to that of Sebastien FILLION (with the help of brother/cellist Arnaud) to produce this enigmatic collection of hard-to-describe songs. The music is modern, perhaps "ahead of its time" in its odd, sometimes ethereal, sometimes jazzy sounds and passages. It can thus be said with some confidence that this is truly progressive rock music as its songs take the listener to places and in directions that you have likely never travelled before. While listening through this album I find myself reminded at times of DEAD CAN DANCE, FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM, AKT, STING, LUNATIC SOUL, STEVE JANSEN and, of course, NIL.

Line-up / Musicians:

- Sébastien Fillion / vocals, guitar, bass, synths, piano, Fender Rhodes, programming, whistles, glockenspiel, percussion 

- Arnaud Fillion / cello, oud 

- Claire Northey / violin 

- Samuel Maurin / bass, fretless bass (8) 

- Philippe Maullet / drums, percussion (1,8) 

With: 

- Violette Corroyer / backing vocals (1,3,8) 

- Hugo Quillet / trumpet & flugelhorn (6,8) 

- Jérôme Blanc / trombone (6,8)

1. "Ex-Slave" (12:47) (24/25)

2. "Ici" (5:36) (8.5/10)

3. "La Lumière" (9:10) incredible blend of gentle approaches from voice, percussion, bass, background vocals, oud, strings, keys, even drums--all topped off with an awesome electric guitar solo in the second half. (19/20)

4. "J'aurais Pu" (4:37) wonderfully deep LUNATIC SOUL-like atmospherics with vocoder-treated voice. (8.5/10)

5. "Danse Des Airs" (6:20) gorgeous intro with keyboard weave and then powerful entry of bass and rest of band. Even the jazzier third section fits and retains the engaging beauty and allure. (9.5/10)

6. "Au Ciel" (7:09) awesome ethereal vocal from Sébastion Fillion over shape-shifting strings weave. (14/15)

7. "Revoir" (7:51) (13/15)

8. "01" (8:13) (12.5/15)

9. "Ces Rêves-là" (4:22) (7.75/10)

Total Time: 66:05

90.19 on the Fish scales. A refreshingly original musical journey--with amazing sound engineering. One of my Top 10 Albums for 2007.

SYRINX Qualia (2008)

Another one of the Maurin brothers' musical projects (to go with THORK and NIL), this album presents some very nice instrumental jazz-rock fusion from France, replete with church organ, woodwinds and power chords. 

Line-up / Musicians:
- David Maurin / acoustic guitar
- Benjamin Croizy / keyboards
- Samuel Maurin / bass
- Philippe Maullet / drums

1. "Liber Nonacris" (19:38) very proggy, even, at times, prog folkie, despite its jazz and avant baseline. (36/40)

2. "Acheiropoiètes" (8:40) more brooding over the first three minutes but then it becomes quite cinematic when the full band kicks into a cohesive in the fourth minute. In the fifth minute another turn is taken--as if running away and then slipping into a doorwell to hide from some pursuer. Very cool and effect journey-making. (18/20)

3." Le Grand Dieu Pan" (14:45) despite a slow, spacious start, this one turns into a kind of NIL/GENESIS blend. Quite satisfying. (27/30)

4. "Le Vingt-et-unième Cercle" (5:45) quite a different opening as it sounds like a NeoProg ballad for the first minute--until the change into a minor key sets up a more complex story to be told. The acoustic guitars add so much with that symphonic folk element: very welcomed! With 90 seconds left we are treated to a chorus of angelic female vocalists singing some "Ahhs". More of this would have been nice! The song ends in the sounds of an apocalyptic explosion. (9/10)

Total time 48:48

the softer side of the French Jazz-Rock Fusion scene containing some definite avant garde/RIO, Prog Folk, Symphonic elements and themes, the music is definitely more pleasant and engaging than some French prog bands--more like MINIMUM VITAL, HYPNO5E, or SETNA. I love the fact that David Maurin remains committed to the acoustic guitar throughout. 

90.0 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of instrumental progressive rock of the NIL-like vein. Too bad it doesn't have NIL's extraordinary vocals! One of my Top 10 Albums for 2008.

2026, Part 2: The Near-Masterpieces

 Somewhere beneath the level of timeless masterpiece status lies a group of albums whose quality and merit deserve categorization of something like "near-masterpiece." These are albums that have either achieved a Fishermetric score of between 90.0 and 89.0 or whose high points or quality level make it remarkable enough to remain affixed in my memory.

From the Year 2026, you will find below 9 album releases deserving, in my opinion, of the "near-masterpiece" designation. With this low number of Near-Masterpieces--coupled with my total lack of motivation (or interest) in listening to, much less reviewing, so many of 2026's releases--I've come to realize that my interest in Progressive Rock music is seriously waning. I'm just not enjoying the repetition of old sounds and palettes, the rehashing of old ideas and themes, as well as the homogenous sounds of so many of the favored bands and sub-genres of the 21st Century (NeoProg and retro-symphonic prog seems to win the day). Reading this you will probably be able to understand why this will most likely be the last year of my somewhat-disciplined curation of 21st Century releases.  

 The Near-Masterpieces:

(Ratings of 90.0 to 89.0)

AETHER III

The Milanese impressionistic prog/J-R Fusion band continues to grow and expand--this time in even more unpredictable directions! 

Line-up / Musicians:
- Andrea Ferrari / Guitars & Keyboards
- Andrea Grumelli / Fretless Bass
- Andrea Serino / Fender Rhodes & Keyboards

- Matteo Ravelli / Drums & Elettronics

1. "Oort Cloud" (6:21) etheric/ambient atmospherics open this one--a long, slow development as Fender Rhodes, heavily-distorted guitar, heavy bass notes and chords, and synthesized "bassoons," "flutes," and other atmospheric noises slowly populate and fill the sound scape. Amazing that this flute is not real (or else it would be credited, right?) Nice diversion but not quite what I was expecting and/or hoping for from this band's third album. (8.667/10)

2. "Vogon" (4:51) smooth Jazz-Rock Fusion that is more in the realm of what I was expecting--add the bonus of an appearance of the great theatric cabaret Jazz artist Claudio Milano to sing/recite in his Demetrio Stratos way the lyrics to a made up language that the Aether gang created themselves (inspired by Douglas Adams' Hitchiker's Guide to the Universe). I love the music! It's quite like that of one of my favorite 21st Century bands, UNAKA PRONG, from North Carolina. Much more sophisticated than the gentle/soothing-yet-dominant Fender Rhodes would reveal. Very happy-go-lucky and up-lifting. (9.25/10)

3. "Cinq Teintes, Quatre Cadres" (8:42) ambient electric guitar picking in a sonicsphere of lush reverb is thickened by the joinder of layers of keys and bass before orchestral drums and electronic keyboard and lead guitar enter to jazzify the music as if Andy Summers and Robert Fripp were together again playing with an electronica keyboard wiz. In the fifth minute things quite down as Andrea Ferrari's guitar work begins to lead the band into a kind of SONAR-scape of Minimalist Math Rock. At 5:20 then we move into a more spacious scape in which Matteo's tom-tom pattern provides the foundational movement for a jazzy Fender Rhodes solo and, later, a weave with Andrea Grumelli's heavily-treated bass and Ferrari's distorted lead guitar in the mix. The heavily-reverbed song ends with the instruments slowly dismantling and slowing down the weave, reminding me a lot of 4 AD's 1980s instrumental band DIF JUZ. Nice piece. (18/20)

4. "La Mélancolie Du Petit Prince" (4:37) over/within Andrea Serino's classical piano ruminations the other instrumentalists add their tracks of untreated fretless bass, computer glitch sounds, and natural and unnatural percussion sounds. It's as if Eric Satie was caught in a sombre-yet-romantic mood playing a piano in an empty French chateau while a group of construction workers and electricians were doing restoration work in and just outside other parts of the piano's salon or grand ballroom. (I can't stop picturing Chantilly.) Or one could compare this to Ruyichi Sakamoto's 21st Century (or life-long) fascination with sound recording glitches--the work he did with Christian Fennesz and/or Alva Noto. Pretty and suitably dystopian for our times. (9/10)

5. "Panta Rei" (8:00) more (a different kind of) piano-founded sound exploration: it's not always harmonically pleasing, always on the edge of being melodic in familiar Western ways, on the edge of being satisfying while never really hitting the "right" notes. It's reminiscent of 1970s exploratory jazz (think Keith Jarrett) and also Smooth Jazz (Ahmad Jamal) yet also totally pleasing--at least, until the fifth minute when Serino and Grumelli lock into a five-note, three-chord progression to support Ferrari's rock-jazz guitar solo (that reminds me of John Abercrombie, Sonny Sharrock, Larry Coryell, and Fred Frith channeling their most aggressive Jimi Hendrix and Ornette Coleman energies). The song ends with Serino's piano, all alone, gently tucking us into bed. Interesting--to say the least. I really like a lot of it, though I've never been a serious fan of the free and loose distorted guitar shredding that Ferrari uses here. (13.5/15)

6. "Swerve" (10:42) thought this song opens with simple, straightforward (almost child-like) Fender Rhodes play, other tracks of synthesizer and guitars soon join in, taking the music into more serious realms. Soon Ferrari seems to be relying predominantly on a heavily-treated (reverb) guitar sound--one that reminds me of Eef Albers on Focus Con Proby's "Wingless" and "Orion" as well as the "infinity" guitars of Michael Brook and Dif Juz. By the end of the fourth minute the song has become a serious Rock-infused Jazz of the 1970s variety, even incorporating time signature slow downs and speed ups, swaying shifts into more stereotypic Rock stylistics while and before re-incorporating more Jazz-expressive sounds, lines, and motifs. Matteo Ravelli's excellent drumming plays hugely throughout this one as does Ferrari's lead guitar while Grumelli and Serino's work provides more of the foundational work to keep this one on the rails. The final motif (presented in slow down mode) sees the blending and turn-taking of all four instruments before Ferrari's last notes sound, decay, and slowly fade away. (18/20)

Total Time 43:13

As a blend of old and new this album stands out as an excellent bridge--one that feels experimental and exploratory while, as alluded to, also firmly expressive, even honorific, of old "classics." This alone makes it a remarkable album but also the fact of the use of totally fresh and original compositions to do so makes it doubly so. Though it's hard for me to say that I like or love this music, I do find it fascinating and I do, very much, appreciate the labor and creativity that went into creating it. This has been a fun and enjoyable album to take my time getting to know but I don't know how much I'll be listening to it once the year passes. 

89.90 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of genre- and stylistic-blending Jazz Fusion. The band continues to explore and progress and I commend them and urge them to continue doing so.

PLANTOID Flare

The Brighton-based band returns with their second album of King Crimson/black midi-like music. 

Line-up / Musicians:
- Chloe Spence / vocals
- Tom Coyne / guitar
- Louis Bradshaw / drums

- Nathan Ridley / composition, support musicianship, production

1. "Parasite" (6:27) opening with more than a minute of dynamic guitar-chord ripping rock that sounds like something from a black midi album, in the middle of the first minute the band backs down to reveal the dulcet underbelly of the beast (a pattern that I've now come to know and almost expect from plantoid music). The music is gentle yet subtly hiding its mischevious potential energy despite the lulling into submission of Chloe Coyne's Siren-like voice (all of it shades of my favorite album of the 2020s. Then, just as she's got your floating off to sleep (around 6:25) the band comes pounding back with the machine gun blasts of the artillery to finish us off. Genius deception--like the deadly beauty of the great legends of mythology--most of whom were, of course, women. (9.125/10)    

2. "Ultivatum Cultivation" (5:20) more genius in the palette, structure, and delivery of this one--Chloe Coyne is such a vixen of allure and deceit: the way she can draw one in with her amazing voice despite the ambiguity of her (perhaps) devious meanings hidden in her lyrics. It's just such a clever sound! (9.125/10)

  
3. "The Weaver" (4:57) a very simple Math Rock weave over (or is it within? or under?) which Chloe declares her unwillingness to participate in the destruction and/or escape from the disintegrating planet. I really enjoy this song: it has a surprising comforting psychedelic-hypnotic effect on me despite its doomer message and having to work really hard to hear the message. (9.125/10)

4. "Dozer" (6:00) the first song whose setup turns me off a bit (I hate these one-two type of rock drum beats). Chloe and the guitars do their best to quell my aversion--her lyrics about how to personally act when "the sky starts falling down" ("golden" sleep). In the fourth minute the band switches their focus to theatric instrumental soundscaping--which is entertaining in a King Crimson-kind of way--even incorporating quite a long blank space (to imply the silence after the explosion of the "Big One"?)--but then they return to the abrasive Crimsonian palette for the finish before another period of silence ensues--which is soon filled with string quartet work (as if we're on the sinking Titanic!) Conceptually brilliant but not my favorite song. (I do so like a little more charm and marm!) (8.875/10)

5. "Good For You" (6:18) Chloe's delicate, almost child-like breathy soprano opens this as arpeggiated acoustic guitar chords support her. The main melody in her vocal sounds like a delicate post-apocalyptic version of the previous song's melody while the multi-layers of meaning in the lyrics seem to express the dream-like memory of romantic summer evenings with a loved one who . . . is probably not there and may no longer be available. Very interesting. And intriguing. I love the long, unnecessarily-protracted unchanging guitar outro. (8.875/10)    

6. "Worn" (3:46) gorgeous air-vocal over interesting undefinable world music hybrid. The intended meaning of the lyrics to this one are beyond the capacity of my puny little language-addled brain. (8.875/10)

7. "Splatter" (2:49) the punk rock side of plantoid. This one could be about werewolves, vampires, or other night creatures but I don't really know. It sounds like something that fits in with the Twilight movies. (8.75/10)

8. "Slow Moving" (4:38) slow rolling music befitting a gentle night on the veranda. This one definitely feels like relationship stuff: unresolved negative patterns or of dysfunction that keep repeating despite having tried to deal with them over. The singer is getting tired of the repetition but she appreciates the reset that day time routines afford and, in the end, admits that she's not dead or "empty"--not yet ready to give up--that she's just "slow," needs time to move. Beautiful and brilliant--both musically and lyrically. My favorite song on the album. (9.375/10)

9. "Daisy Chains" (7:26) an odd song whose lyrics cause me to get stuck on the imagery from the original Frankestein film in which Boris Karloff's monster encounters the little flower-picking girl beside the river/lake. Sorry! But that's how ambiguous the lyrics feel--and how heavy, dark, and noncommittal the music feels. (Moral ambiguity. Just as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley would have wanted.) The feelings of sadness and horror are revealed in the instrumental outro. (13.25/15)

Total Time 47:47

I've been listening to this album since the day it was released (no, not continuously, you silly!) hoping to find distinctive elements to each and every song but the plantoid formula runs deep, becomes predictable; it's all in the lyrics (to which I am often obtuse--unless I work really hard to. I get the sense that, like many of the young (Gen X & Gen Z) (prog) rockers out there, (as well as many of the young hippy-somethings in the 1960s and 1970s), Chloe, Tom, Louis, and Nathan are quite concerned for the urgent fate of this version of the human race. There is so much in this band's music that conjures up kindredness between some of my other favorite 21st Century bands, like iNFiNiEN (Chrissy Loftus), Oiapok (Melanie Gerber), Bent Knee (Courtney Swain), and even A Formal Horse (Hayley McDonnell). It is quite the concession on my part that I've made this kind of effort to find out what Chloe and Nathan are trying to say with the messages of their lyrics: I have no truer testament to my love and interest of a band than this effort.

89.87 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of King Crimson-invoking crossover prog that is, in my humble opinion, a bit too dependent upon the lyrical messages than the music or musicianship--especially when compared to their amazing debut album. At the same time I do not consider this a case of "sophomore slumping" just directional shift in focus. I feel strongly that this band has much more wonderful music to give us and they should know that I will always be coming back for more. 

ALIO DIE & AGLAIA L'oro di Kronos

Played and performed by Stefano Musso and Gino Fioravanti in 2024-2025. Released digitally by Hic Sunt Leones on May 1, 2026.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Stefano Musso / drones, loops, santoor, monocord, zither, field recordings
- Gino Fioravanti / synthesizer, programming

1. "The Eternal Cycle of Caterpillar" (15:12) this one definitely emerges from out of the primordial soup that was the world of Brian Eno circa 1980--which amazes me since it shows me that technological advances in sound rendering have not really progressed that much farther since that time (perhaps in "surround sound" imaging technologies). I do enjoy this song's cycling through the rainforest/jungle in the middle as well the addition of more immediate and in-front-of-you full-spectrum hammered zither with its low ends, but the deep bass "construction or bomb" thrums that start presenting themselves from 9:30 on are a bit unsettling, even off-putting. Otherwise, this is a very pleasant and enjoyable "Siddhartha in the Prosperous City Acting as the Merchant's Assistant" kind of experience. This is my favorite song on the album (despite its inability to free my spirit beyond the confines of my mind). (27.5/30)

2. "A Tactile Textures Imprints" (14:41) I am with this song reminded of Mark Isham's amazing soundtrack to the 1985 film, Never Cry Wolf--which shouldn't be a bad thing but when listening to Alio Die music I'm always hoping for a transportative experience out of my body, not one that keeps me firmly planted in my shoes. Pretty, beautiful, though at times when the human-generated sounds jump in, rather scary and alarming. Were sounds of the crackling forest fires, foot stomping military parades, and buzzing of electricity wires absent, this would be a perfect song! (26.75/30)

3. "The Ages of Crystals" (16:29) part Laraaji, part Fripp-Eno Evening Star, part Holger Czukay radio sounds and samples, this one has an interesting combination of sounds but, again, one that holds me back from leaving my body. The cumulative effect is to offer the listener a kind of temporal portal to the geological history of the our solar systems' Red Planet--which can be interesting if a bit lonely. (26.75/30)

4. "Raising Memories Suspended Forever" (22:00) there are some elements of this song that remind me of Thom Brennan, some that remind me of Star Wars sci-fi sound effects, and part that are droning along like time-space flight in any music inspired by Vangelis' Blade Runner soundtrack music. Overall, it works okay, I just feel as if I've visited Brawne Lamia's home planet of Lusus (in Dan Simmons' Hyperion sci-fi novel) for a Hallowe'en party. (You know: the planet where gravity is 1.3 times that of Earth.) (How was the party? It was fun but I'm exhausted!) (40.25/45)

Total Time 68:22

Unfortunately, these songs are too loaded with human sounds causing them to anchor my Light Being to constant awareness of my human bodymind. Not what I hope for in my Alio Die music listening experience--which is totally unfair to Stefano (and Gino) in that I do not hold many of my other favorite artists to this same standard. Also, I like my meditational travels to be a little less guided, less prompted, more loose and free-spirited than is the fare of this album: just set me free and my Spirit will know where to take me! 

89.81 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of visually-rich Ambient music from one of our 21st Century treasures (and his frequent collaborator).

VESPERO Tej 6.7

This Russian band's 17th studio album release! Can you believe they've been pumping them out since 2005! And, despite retaining a consistent core of musicians, they keep evolving.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Alexander Kuzovlev / Guitars, Saz, Mandoline
- Vladimir Ryabinin / Acoustic & Electric Guitars
- Arkady Fedotov / Bass, Noises, Synths
- Ivan Fedotov / Drums, Percussion, Wavedrum
With:
- Alexander Koryukovets / Button Accordion

1. "Cendo" (5:54) electrified and effected acoustic guitar, fretless bass, gritty synth washes, and waves of cymbal sounds open this before the band launch into a jazz-rockin' motif that is rooted in traditional folk forms and melodies (amplified when Alexander Koryukovets' accordion joins in). The two concurrent lead guitar lines are the song's most distinguishing feature (aside from the accordion and Russian folk feel). Overall, I like it though it feels, compositionally, a little loose and unpolished to me (and the fact that Ivan Fedotov's drumming during song's second half feels out of sync with the rest of the band). At times it's just a bit too messy and cacophonous. (8.75/10)

2. "Issero" (6:21) a very satisfying multi-motif song that starts out very warm and comforting--sounding like a blend of something from Robin Guthrie's chord bank and Paul Speer's atmospheric guitar world before Arkady Fedotov's antelope-like fretless bass enters with Alexander Kuzovlev's Steve Vai/Jeff Beck-like "floating" volume-pedal-manipulated lead electric guitar note play taking up the lead position. While at first I like Arkady's work very much, when he settles in the lowest registers of his sound capacity it muddies the song terribly--detracting from the rest of the weave. From there there are three other motifs, a brief bridge of synth-generated Ozrics/Kosmisches swirly sounds, a heavy fast-moving rocker over which Alex Kuz plays "mandoline" while rhythm guitarist Vladimir Ryabinin chugs along on some deep near-metal chords and then a final return (via folk instrument bridge) to Jazz-lite world music with gentle power chord strums of Vlad's electrified acoustic guitar and Alex Kuz's saz play. Overall I like this one pretty well. (9.125/10)

3. "Joreil" (5:30) Alexander's use of saz as the lead instrument in this is welcome: creating a very inviting, very warm melody within the thick featherbed weave of heavily-distorted and -chorused gentle electric guitar strumming, driving bass and drums and, soon, accordion. Switching to volume-pedal controlled electric lead guitar, Alexander continues some excellent melodic soloing with Arkady Fedotov's acoustic guitar and Alexander Koryukovets' accordion also playing some nice "secondary" melody lines within the rich weave. A very pleasant, pleasing sometimes Greek folk-feeling song. (9/10)

4. "Tio" (7:11) thought Alexander Kuzovlev's staccato lead guitar line provides the lead, I find Arkady Fedotov's bass play the most enjoyable and interesting thread of this song's first motif. In the early third minute the band switches into a new, smoother and more spacious motif as Ivan leads the way with brother Arkady providing the propellant for Alexander Kuzovlev's new approach to his Jeff Beck "Nadia"-like synthesized guitar lead. At the end of the fifth minute the band switches again onto a more forceful, Math Rock weave for a motif that has them traveling at a breakneck speed as Alexander shreds for a bit before settling into a mathematical melody pattern (even doubling it up with a second lead STEVE VAI-like electric guitar line) taking the song to its conclusion. Nice song! (13.5/15)

5. "Akcani" (5:47) a song that is infused with a Russian folk feel not unlike Uzbekestan prog band FROM.UZ's earlier material. I like the use of unorthodox drum and percussion sounds as well as the doubling up of Alexander's main melody line by Arkady and, sometimes, Vladimir and Alexander Korykovets' accordion. The prominent use of the saz in the second half only solidifies the "Eastern" feelings oozing from this song (which I like). (8.875/10)

6. "Plake" (6:53) the sound palette of this one has, for me, an almost-Caribbean flavor--like something one might have heard from world music artists Strunz & Farah or Govi back in the 80s or 90s but the hyper-speed pace provided by Ivan is much different than those artists, and then come the Kosmisches space synthesizer and mandoline sounds mixed into the weave. This is followed by another section with Alexander Kuz playing his volume-pedaled lead guitar followed by more straightforward axe playing for a bit before reverting to the "new" volume-pedal-controlled note playing. I like the world music feel of the first half but have to admit that this is one of those songs on which Ivan Fedotov's drumming just feels incongruous and unfit. (13.25/15)

7. "Capitli" (4:30) a cool guitar weave, acoustic and electric, with great bass and accordion worked into the weave quite thickly while Ivan provides a wave-like rhythm track beneath it all. Alex Kuz enters in the middle with his lead electric, culminating in a bridge of staccato-chord pulses punctuation to transition us back into the gentler domain akin to the opening. Arkady's fretless lines here are great--matching perfectly Alex's volume-pedal-controled lead noteplay. I like this one very much. (9.125/10)

8. "Far" (6:24) opening with more of Alex Kuzovlev's new Steve Vai/Jeff Beck-borrowed volume-pedal-controlled "centerless" note play, the band soon joins in providing another unusual world music (Caribbean/Yacht Rock) foundational weave for Alex to microtonally bend his notes over. The chorus "B" section finds the band traveling into some jazzier, almost heavy metal pathways while Alex continues his explorations of Steve Vai territory. The fourth minute is quite askew, feeling like a modern rock/metallized take on some of Dick Dale's 1960s Surfer Rock. Interesting! Never boring and, to be honest, not bad! (9/10)

Total Time 48:30

While I like the band's use of more regionally-traditional instruments (saz, mandoline, acoustic guitar, accordion) and the "world music" feels generated by such choices and combinations, I'm not as much of a fan of Alexander Kuzovlev's melody or sound choices. The Steve Vai/Jeff Beck like guitar tone/sound that he's now obsessed with is interesting but, in my opinion, is only a gimmick that should be used sparingly so that it doesn't get old or overwhelming, not on every song. As is not unusual, Ivan Fedotov's drumming, in my opinion, is occasionally unbefitting the music or weave: as if his sense of rhythm is different, even in conflict with, the rest of the band. The best and most consistently pleasing elements of this album's music, for me, are Arkady Fedotov's exquisite bass play and the enriching qualities of Alexander Koryukovets's accordion and Vladimir Ryabinin's comforting acoustic guitar tracks. Obviously, this album, for me, in no way reaches the heights of near-perfection that their 2023 masterpiece De ludo globi did. Still, this is another quite fine album: by no means a dud. 

89.58 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; another great collection of songs from these excellent musicians and unique craftsmen--once again defying categorization due to their idiosyncratic blending of diverse and eclectic styles and sounds. While not a masterpiece, this is not an album to be trifled with. Highly recommended. 

JUAN BELDA & THE BIT BAND Memories of a Loser

 I know nothing of this artist but I have had many encounters with idiosyncratic creatives like him, so I feel somewhat steeled, if not totally qualified (who is?), for the experience of listening to this album. 

Line-up / Musicians:
- Juan Belda / all instruments
with:
- Jorge Pardo
- Pelayo Arrizabalaga
- Enrico Barbaro
- Juanjo Ortí
- Javier Colis
- Markus Breuss

1. "I Had a Dream" (2:13) over a recording of a female student's English narration of a dream of hers a NuJazz multi-track weave of multiple horns, synth horns, pianos, xylophones, fuzzy electric guitars, and bass and drums and synthesizer noises all travel together like the start of a marathon race: with each instrument traveling an oscillating path of pitch, all at the same speed, each with their own individual, loose and idiosyncratic expressions of the same directional goal. Interesting. Reminds me of something Markuus Pajakaala would do (especially because of the prominent presence of low-end horns like bassoons or baritone saxophones mixed with multiple tracks of various tuned percussion instruments). (4.375/5)

2. "Memories of a Loser" (3:39) a kind of bleed-over from the previous dream song turns into a kind of loose jazz lounge (or airport piano and sundry instruments and sounds that happen to show up--including honking horns from taxis) all given motion by a rolling bass, drums and piano. There are appearances from quite a variety of "passer-by" guests, including multiple horns, all acting as if they're just walking by and happen to have an instrument to throw into the mix for a few seconds before moving on. Interesting.  (8.75/10)

3. "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" (4:04) Yes, that "I Want You (She's So Heavy)"--here rendered by jazzy-blues-rock combo with a very active drummer, multiple guitar, keyboard/synth, and horn contributors, each throwing their Fred Frith-Sonny Sharrock-like interpretations into the increasingly-wild mix. Interesting. (8.875/10)

4. "El lado oscuro de la calle" (3:31) synth- & electric guitar-generated noises, programmed drum/percussion, bass, and Holger Czukay-like random radio-recording tracks fed into the same David Torn/Stephan Thelen/SONAR-like Future Possible Jazz Musics mix. I happen to LOVE this! Sounds like the kind of music a self-assured terrorist might be listening to on his noise-cancelling headphones as he cased out a target airport, train station, bus depot or the like. (9.333/10)

5. "The Narrow Way" (3:53) faded in BRAINTICKET-like melody pattern of synth/organ and piano with drums and synth-saw bass line in which voices, field recordings, pianos, keyboards, eerie synthesizers, and other instruments weave in and out of each other's presence with almost violent and reckless abandon despite all somewhat following the rising and falling oscillation of the main bass and synth melody line. (9/10)

6. "La máquina de los sueños" (3:32) a cool jazz track that could easily occupy a soundtrack to a street-walking scene in a spy movie: there are tons of supplemental tracks woven in and out, panning across the soundscape, a lot of them treated field recordings of radio and/or passers-by voices. Very cool. (9.125/10)

7. "Ostinato en Em" (2:36) hypnotic left-hand piano pattern is congested with many other layers of horns, guitars, drums, percussion, more piano tracks, all spewing forth their vomit and excrement like a scene of exhaust plumes flowing thickly into the air from factory smokestacks, all moving synchronously in the same direction, same pattern. Excellent, though I wish it would've morphed or transitioned. (4.625/5)

8. "El trapecio" (3:16) jazz drums with descending chord bass line over/within which everything but the kitchen sinks thrown in from the listening drone flying around the airspace outside a busy mega-high-rise apartment complex. Okay as a dumping ground but under-developed. (8.75/10)

9. "Onda Media" (3:15) the soundtrack to an hour in the life of an airport's robotic floor cleaner/vacuum, all recorded, filtered through a high-speed playback feature so that the sound and visuals are moving in 3x speed. We're starting to travel beyond the boundaries of what is acceptable as dance and entertainment music: something that would be more appropriate to a 22nd Century Ornette Coleman, John Zorn, or Sonny Sharrock (which is beyond my tolerance or enjoyment capacity). (8.667/10)

10. "El final del camino" (2:57) the musical interpretation, capture, and/or expression of the cacophony of modern world mall life? (8.75/10)

11."Los platos rotos" (5:15) drums and drones: the first playing free jazz, the second providing stable observer perspective. This one actually grew on me--began making sense as well as achieving NEON HEART-like sublimity for me. Why this one and not some of the others I cannot explain. Perhaps the grounding, pacifying effect of the heavily reverbed Fender Rhodes or dreamy infinity notes coming out of the electric guitars helping to balance/offset the angsty drum play. (9.25/10)

12. "Ambient Loser" (1:57) gentle guitar and horn lullaby with glitch percussives. (4.5/5)

13. "Carnaval" (3:35) a Latin percussion display with incidental synth-generated noises thrown in every few seconds for spice and futuristic sci-fi effect. Interesting. (8.875/10)

Totla Time 43:42

I really enjoyed the journey arc through "real" modern world soundscapes that this album took me through. Though there are several songs I would call "keepers"--that I will look forward to when they come up in my random shuffle playlists--a lot of it feels like études or attempts to capture a single emotion or random life situation--which is not wrong or bad, just not universally appealing. 

89.46 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; an excellent collection of one artist's personal and very modern perspectives of the world as he sees/experiences it. Some of these often-unusual and hyper-stimulating songs are bound to connect while some are bound to rankle: each listener will experience it differently, according to his/her/their own personal experiences and moods. I do recommend the experience: who knows what you'll get out of it!

MYRATH Wilderness of Mirrors

The Tunisian prog metal band's sixth studio album since they burst onto the scene with 2007's excellent debut, Hope. The core remains intact as does their excellent compositional blend of djenty metal with sophisticated instrumental lines and vocal sounds and melodies coming from the traditions of their Arabian backgrounds.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Anis Jouini / bass
- Malek Ben Arbia / guitars
- Zaher Zorgati / vocals
- Morgan Berthet / drums
- Kevin Codfert / keyboards, piano, vocals
With:
- Elise Ryd / vocals (2)
- Charly Sahona / acoustic guitars (1-6, 8, 10), electric guitars
- Cheikh Diallo / backing vocals (1, 3)
- Radhi Chaouali / violins & qraqeb (8)
- Fehmi Mbarki / saz (10)
- Myrath Orchestra / violins and altos section
- students from Glanum Rock School (Saint remy de provence) / choir (4)
- Frank Serafine / choir (7)
- Wassin Bibi / choir (7)
- Galya Nikolaeva / choir (7)

1. "The Funeral" (5:36) sounds like old school (late 1970s 1980s power metal lite) with some Mark Truack, Ozzie Osborne, and Peter Gabriel's Lion King-like African interests. At 1:20 the band switches out of intro/overture mode and ramps up into a fairly standard metal vamp for Zaher Zorgati to do what he and Ozzie Osborne do so well. The choruses are a bit more developed though they do reincorporate the Disney themes and extra layers but also amplify the Ozzie reminders. (The band's video for this song is kind of cool.) (8.75/10)

2. "Until the End" (4:03) great power metal with the power of male and female duet vocals: Zaher and guest singer Elize Ryd. The two vocalists do a great job as the band casts forth the excellent Arabian-flavored djenty metal that Myrath excels at. Too bad the chorus borrows that "Enter the Sandman" riff Probably my other top three song. (9/10)

3. "Breathing Near the Roar" (3:34) more Lion King Africanisms with some other overly-familiar metal melody hooks. (8.875/10)

4. "Les Enfants du Soleil" (6:03) children's voices in choir singing in French with acoustic guitar support before Zaher joins in singing an emotional ballad-like vocal . . . until the end of the first minute when a Disco-Arabian hard rock motif takes over. Nice metal bass work! Interesting conglomeration that just doesn't do it for me. (8.75/10)  

5. "Still the Dawn Will Come" (5:01) group clapping pattern opens this before the djent-metal guitar riffs, percussion/drums, acoustic guitar, heavy bass and strings join in. Now this is what I've been waiting for--the kind of unique prog metal that Myrath has made uniquely its own. Excellent tune on all levels. 

The best song on the album. This is what I came here for. (9.375/10)

6. "The Clown" (4:46) another power metal tune that just sounds too generic to the 1980s Ozzie-era--with weak structure and very little instrumental excitement. The Arabic "background" singing in third minute is what I really came for. (8.75/10)

7. "Soul of My Soul" (3:38) a four-chord ballad that opens like a metal tune but then turns into an early Elton John-like piano-only song for Zaher's first verse. The choruses are where the music ramps up to prog Metal territory while the verses are strings-supported piano dominant, which makes for an interesting contrast--one that feels more familiar from a modern Country-Western or Christian Rock perspective. Overall, it's just a little too Anglo-syrupy. (8.75/10)

8. "Edge of the Night" (4:21) ramping it up again (finally) into the Arabian-infused power metal that I want from Myrath. Great keyboard work from Kevin Codfert. (9/10) 

9. "Echoes of the Fallen" (4:02) more of the music that have come to expect and deeply desire from Myrath--at least the opening. Then it goes 1980s techno-New Wave! Then metal orchestra. (8.875/10)

10. "Through the Seasons" (5:48) opening with some traditional ethnic instrument (saz) delivering the song's main melody before the full band takes it up and carries it forward until the choruses. Great orchestra and metal instrument mix. Again, this is more like the music I came here to hear. The choruses are my favorite parts due to the excellent melody lines and clarity of the instrumental palette. The instrumental "C" part in the fourth minute is excellent, highlighted by the Tunisian hand percussion and saz being represented so clearly within the exciting metal music. The song then ends with the solo saz supported only by a gentle harp-like keyboard, which is quite a contrast to the main body of the song but totally in keeping with the song's overall main melody. Excellent construct. Definitely a top three song for me. (9.25/10)

Total Time 46:52

While the quality of the compositions, performances, and overall production are still up to the excellent standards the band has established over their 20 year career, I feel that there is not enough new or refreshing innovation here to level it a masterpiece; there is a lot that feels old, rehashed, and/or reliant on old patterns and habits. 

89.375 on the Fishscales = B+/four stars; an excellent addition of ethnically-blended Prog Metal that should satisfy many fans and but for me strikes very little new territory. 

JUZZ (II)

Another of the exciting Spanish label aMARXE's recent revelations returns with a second album that is quite a bit different than their dynamic debut from ten years ago. They have seriously mellowed! (Not that that is a bad thing, just surprising when placed in the context of their far more sophisticated and jazzy debut.)

Line-up / Musicians:
- Rosolino Marinello / saxophone tenor
- Virxilio da Silva / guitar
- Álex Salgueiro / Vocals, Continental, Mellotron, OB6, DX7, flute
- Xan Campos: Rhodes Poly D
- Felix Barth / electric bass
- Iago Fernández / drums

1. "Das Cabinet" (7:34) quite simple, even as the layers are added to give the weave kind of mobius strip rondo feel, but then everybody realigns within a straightforward chord structure so that some of the individual instruments can actually render proper solos--none of which are too exciting or erudite until the guitar solo in the sixth minute (which reminds me a lot of the sounds and stylings of the Samsara Blues Experiment). Decent though it feels rather staid and conservative until the psychedelic final two minutes. (13.333/15)

2. "Nostalxia adolescente" (10:44) a song that starts out kind of dull and monotonous gradually builds up steam generating interest through great chord progressions, it's nice Yacht Rock sound palette, great bass and Rhodes play from Felix Barth and Xan Campos, respectively, as well as a really nice guitar solo from Virxilio da Silva. Xan's Rhodes solo is spoiled a bit by his sound choice being a bit too "dirty" (distorted). The multiple horn work and sophisticated whole-band chord work that follows is nice but the drumming just feels so unenthusiastic, even lazy. Emptying into a solo synth violin bridge in the eighth minute we come out with a gentle, dreamy guitar and flute-led motif that would sound really nice were it not for the rather annoying bass drum metronome beneath it all. Still, this is a song that I thought was going to bore me but ended up impressing. (18/20)

3. "Supernova" (7:55) reverbed delicate electric guitar notes provide a dreamy, spacey opening bed of star stuff for the drums, keyboards, bass, and sax to add their own sleepy-seductive contributions. There are roots here in some of the original experimentations and explorations of the Jazz-Rock Fusionists of the 1960s and 1970s as well as the early Electronicists (who became lumped under the New Age categories). At 5:50 you get the feeling that the song is coming to a close when the band chooses to leap into a more firmly-committed presence--which is exciting--but then it kind of fizzles and settles into something rather routine and ordinary. (Like a star?) (13.333/15)

4. "Alto do Paraño" (5:49) as I was first listening to this tune while not paying close attention I suddenly thought I was listening to something from Jesse Colin Young and the Youngbloods or a Jimmy Webb song. But then the synths and wordless vocals come in and now I'm in some Harry Nilsson soundtrack (though other minor artists from the 1980s and 2010s also flit in and out of consciousness--too quickly, unfortunately, to identify--Lyle Mays being one of them). In the fourth minute, the main chord progression, sound palette, and melodic themes are very well established, so it becomes time for solos: Rosolino Marinello's tenor saxophone, to be specific, the rest is just ear candy repetitions of the Smooth Jazz hooks already established. Very sweet. (9/10)

5. "Despois do final" (4:02) Xan's dirty Fender Rhodes opens this one with a chord progression that Virxilio soon joins, followed by the end of the first minute by the full band in a standard four-chord rock progression while Virxilio and Rosolino weave their repetitious versions of the main melody line. Nice but nothing so great to prompt me to write home. (8.875/10)

Total Time: 36:09

These are no more than simple pop/rock song constructs that are given a psychedelic Smooth Jazz-Rock coating. Nice, often beautiful, but, I have to admit, rather disappointing when compared to the tremendous energy and potential being displayed on their debut album. 

89.36 on the Fishscales = B+/four stars; a very pleasant set of relaxing background music songs that show a band that is growing and mastery a very engaging style of expression. I, however, hope they continue to grow--to challenge themselves with higher skill forms and more sophisticated compositions--as they seemed aimed at when they released their first album.

ANGINE DE POITRINE Vol. II

From my beloved Breton borough of Rennes, these two adventurists are grabbing hold of the live-looping and Math Rock world in a way that approaches avant-garde and Zeuhl! Ooo la la! Vive la France!  

Line-up / Musicians:
- KHN de Poitrine / electric microtonal guitars
- Klek de Poitrine / drums & percussion

1. "Fabienk" (6:31) opening with a chromatic sequence of oddly-effected microtonal guitar "notes," drummer Klek de Poitrine soon joins in with his sharp, syncopated staccato beats while the two take a minute to fit into each other's world. When the do, the settle into a near-funky, near-Maserati groove that also feels a bit like "My Sharona" meets The Cardiacs. The groove winds and wends away in a kind of polyrhythmic mobius strip with little injections of noise and riff flourishes but mostly staying mathematically-disciplined until the wordless vocal chord ending the song. (8.875/10)

2. "Mata Zyklek" (6:10) microtonal Surfer Rock! Something that also feels familiar from some of the sillier Japanese Zeuhl and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard forays into microtonalism as well as the klezmer-type of music recorded by Mr. Bunghole, Humble Grumble, Estradasphere, and Farmers Market. The sporadic group lyrics interspersed rather randomly in the background feel very Japanese, humorous, and Rock-in-Oppositional. (8.875/10)

3. "Sarniezz" (4:36) slow, heavy, plodding bass notes open this while Klek responds accordingly. Then after about 15 seconds the duo pick up the pace and establish a catchy little motif that grooves and rocks until a second guitar track enters playing some crazy mid-range arpeggios on repeat. Stop and starts and changes in the rhythm section pacing give off the illusion that the song is changing but the guitar parts are actually staying on rather constant rotation until 3:20 when they take a break for a funny little Japanese-like injection of quirky command foreign language vocals. The music intensifies a bit as more layers are looped in until the duo brings it to a close. (8.875/10)

4. "Utzp" (6:51) back to a motif that feels totally inspired by quirky klezmer-informed artists (like the ones mentioned above). Again, the weave gets a little more interesting as the layers are added, thickening nicely (at times reminding me of the guitar entwinement of The Outlaws' "Green Grass and High Tides"), but, in the end it's just the same rhythm loop they started the song with (speeded up at the halfway point). (13.25/15)

5. "Yor Zarad" (6:30) this one has a bit more spice to offer: changing melody lines, changing instrument palettes, changes in rhythmic configurations and speeds, and not quite as much microtonal expression--what little there is sounds more like the work of a sitar or some other un-fretted, suspended high-tension string. I wish there weren't elements that remind me of Kenny Loggins' guitar riffs on the song "Footloose." The hard-driving Zeuhlish final minute is my favorite part. (9/10)

6. "Angor" (6:17) with a title like that one can't help but think that this band is aware of if not inspired by the (Japanese Zeuhl) band Koyenjihyakki. But the music is a bit more rudimentary: yes, it's exploring some complex polyrhythms expressed through a minimalist mathematical weave, and, yes, there's an obvious effort to conjure up some Classic Rock dual guitar weaves (think Thin Lizzy or Lynyrd Skynyrd), and, yes, there's almost a primal Native American beat to its overall pattern, and overall it does feel more like an homage to American Classic or Southern Rock. (8.875/10)

Total Time 36:55

I definitely liked this music the first time I listened to it way more than I have in the successive listens. Probably because it was so fresh and refreshing. But over time the simplicity of the song constructs begins to become obvious. The weirdness of it all must have been masking this fact. In the end I feel strongly that this could easily become great music: with more collaborators, more tracks, less linearity and more winding and development. Their odd sound makes them feel sophisticated and virtuosic but they may in fact be fairly new to music, to their instruments, to their craft. They have a shtick (which you will see should you seek out their live performance videos) and ideas; I'd just like to see more dimensions added to both.

89.23 on the Fishscales = B+/four stars; an excellent collection of somewhat retro, somewhat futuristic/RIO Math Rock tunes that many will find quite entertaining, perhaps even enchanting.

THE BARDIC DEPTHS Some Things Are Worth Remembering

Peter Jones and his Bardic Depths collaborators are back with their fourth studio album release of this decade. 

Line-up / Musicians:
- Dave Bandana / vocals, keyboards, bass
- Peter Jones / vocals, clarinet, alto saxophone
- Gareth Cole / 12-string, electric & acoustic guitars, vocals
- Tim Gehrt / drums, vocals

1. "Islands" (8:37) excellent and fresh feeling music based on NeoProg sound palette and stylings. I really like the construct, feel, and flow of this song though it does lag a bit in places. (18.333/20)

2. "Fallen Leaves" (3:03) GENESISian 12-string-with-organ and anachronistic melody lines open this as harmonized vocal "doo-doo-doo" lines become woven within the instrumental weave. As this pattern continues--throughout the entire song--I find myself rather surprised--and delighted. It's a really cool and fairly inventive (if étude-like) piece. (8.875/10)

3. "Arribabok" (4:48) borrowing a lot from George Harrison/The Beatles' Indian-influenced soundscapes (which were later further developed by the likes of Daevid Allen with his GONG and other projects as well as Steve Hillage and even Peter Gabriel and David Torn). I love Gareth Gole's Torn-Hillage-like guitar tone and play in the third minute. The vocal and congestion and crescendo at the end of the third minute reminds me of both Peter Gabriel's world music and Karl Jenkins' ADIEMUS music. Nice sax play by Peter in the fourth minute and then a nice dénouement and return to the original palette in the final minute. (9.125/10)

4. "October Sun" (8:12) More excellent vocal-centric NeoProg music that reminds me of the fine fare of both FISH ON FRIDAY and TONY PATTERSON (as well as Dave Longdon-era BIG BIG TRAIN). Though the song construct and instrumental play is rather simple and sedate, the bass and vocal work is quite excellent. I understand how solid, comforting "bedding" of easy-to-digest music can serve as an excellent foundation for the exploration/expression of more sincere ideas above it--and this does happen in this song's second half--and I understand the talent and skill it takes to render such a "bedding"--so I am not as critical of this habit or tendency as I used to be (always looking for the sophistication and instrumental virtuosity in each song). I actually really appreciate the way the band has constructed and rendered this song. (17.75/20)

5. "From Empty Trees" (4:41) an instrumental opening that sounds like something Tony Banks would have done for Genesis (or himself?) back in the breakout period of the band's popularity. Gareth's guitar work in his lead time during the third minute is okay but nothing very innovative--and the ascending four-chord motif that follows feels so much like Tom Johnson's "Uncertain Smile" ending jam from his 1983 The The album, Soul Mining (with that amazing piano solo from Jools Holland). (8.75/10)

6. "A View" (6:18) a gorgeous NeoGenesis weave of arpeggiating keyboard and acoustic and electric guitars with solid low end support from well-coordinated bass and drums also sees some excellent synth strings orchestra and old Mellotron threads in the weave as Peter sings with his usual folk-bard-like approach. Nice weave of multiple other guitar and keyboard lines topped off by a nice heavily-reverbed sax solo from Peter in the fourth minute which is then followed by a fine electric guitar solo. Peter's voice and vocal styling is so classic, so powerful, so iconic. It's no wonder he's been the vocalist of so many 21st Century NeoProg classics. (8.875/10)

7. "Harder to See" (4:09) a little more sophistication, syncopation, and frequent key changing makes this an interesting tune--especially when attending to Peter's vocal (he's got to be spot on for this one!) Once the pattern of the four chord motif is established (almost Van Morrison "Moondance"-like), the music becomes more familiar and, thus, comfortable. The chorus and follow-up dénouement and fade out come easily but are not quite the finish one might hope for. (8.875/10)

8. "Rewind" (9:21) this one opens up as another acoustic guitar- and piano-dominated weave that incorporates a four-way vocal approach, lead and harmonies, reminding me of MOON SAFARI as well as bands like Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young or even Wobbler and The Beach Boys. Nice instrumental work in the instrumental section from the third minute to the fifth and then again after 4:40 when things switch to a more ambient/atmospheric palette. (Who's playing the flutes?) This is very psychedelic in its pastoral dream-like feel--very similar to some of Steve Hackett's best stuff ("Cinema Show," Wind and Wuthering, and his early solo albums). Interesting that the the rest of the song (and album) plays out with this atmospheric instrumental weave--five minutes of it (not unlike that odd prolonged ending to "Dancing with the Moonlight Knight")! Luckily, it's really nice! The boys are obviously serious students of the masterpieces of prog's Golden Age. (18.5/20)

Total Time 49:09

The band's NeoProg music has continued to develop, progressing into more sophisticated and original realms of prog--that remind me of both Peter Gabriel and Fish On Fridays. With any lineup that includes prog-savant Peter Jones one cannot help but have high expectations. The problem comes with the frequent disappointments that come with the feelings of "underdeveloped," "not fully-realized" or "falling short" of possible potentialities. 

89.1667 on the Fishscales = B+/4.5 stars; an excellent album of creative, top-notch NeoProg from some of England's most reverential and proficient veterans. Highly recommended--especially if you like the NeoProg sub-genre where it might be considered an essential masterpiece. 

The Metric Rankings

The Masterpieces:

1. ARNAUD BUKWALD Mars Caravan - 96.01

2. CROWN LANDS Apocalypse - 94.21

3. QUIVIRA Quivira - 94.04

4. ED O'BRIEN Blue Morpho - 93.17

5. ASCETA The Fool Leading the Blind - 93.08

6. SINGLELITO In Absence of Velocity - 92.94

The Minor Masterpieces:

7. FISTFIGHTS WITH WOLVES Sea Shanties for Future Sailors - 92.03

8. PAT METHENY Side-Eye III+ - 91.87

9. DOMi & JD BECK Who Asked? - 91.25

10. TOM PENAGUIN Tom Penaguin II - 91.18

11. OK GOODNIGHT Stop / Go - 90.46

12. OZRIC TENTACLES Harmonic Mind - 90.29

13. ADVENT HORIZON Falling Together - 90.26

14. ELDER Through Zero - 90.19

15. TELEGRAPH Topography of Mind - 90.15

16. THE EMERALD DAWN The Land, The Sea, The Air (Volume II) - 90.14

17. LAZULI Être et ne plus être - 90.06

The Near-Masterpieces:

18. AETHER III  - 89.90

19. PLANTOID Flare - 89.87

Other Great Albums:

JUAN BELDA & THE BIT BAND Memories of a Loser - 89.46

MYRATH Wilderness of Mirrors - 89.375

JUZZ (II) - 89.36
ANGINE DE POITRINE Vol. II - 89.23

THE BARDIC DEPTHS Some Things Are Worth Remembering - 89.17

Albums to Try for Your Selves: