In the mid-70s, Sensations' Fix relocated from Florence to California, eventually landing in Virginia in 1979. From their earlier experimental style, they moved towards a thick, otherworldly AOR sound on the later recordings. After recording Boxes Paradise, Vision's Fugitives, and Flying Tapes (I'm not sure if all three were recorded in the US, but the second was released there, as was this record), the group decided to change their name to Sheriff, and recorded this solid rock album at a studio in Fall's Church, VA in 1979. A second guitarist Frank Filfoyt is credited here, but I'm not sure if this is a pesudonym for Falsini (anyone know?). Otherwise the lineup is the same as Sensations' Fix. Falsini's guitar and vocals are unmistakeable here, continuing in the solid, spacey, bluesy rock mode of Boxes Paradise. This record is certainly the least 'prog' of the S.F. albums, but it's never boring, never predictable, ranging from cosmic blues to proto-metal. Uncredited synths bubble in the background, guitars echo and phase, Falsini shreds. If you approve of the later S.F. approach of Boxes Paradise, you'll be feeling Sheriff. I think I originally got this from Lamaraba back in the day.
Sheriff - s/t LP, Observatory, 1979 A1 Girl with Optional Eyes A2 Don't Let Go A3 Troublemaker Blues A4 Infall Defrauders and Audiphiles B1 Stranger B2 Sustain City B3 There from the Phantom Base (instrumental) B4 Transfixion Wait-In Link
Michel Madore is a painter, sculptor, and musician from Quebec. He recorded two albums of progressive music in the late-seventies. On this one, the first of the two, he plays guitar and "string synths," and is joined by Ron Proby on moog and soprano sax. The music is a distinctive take on prog: spacey, a bit jazzy, and very melodic. There is somewhat of a new-age bent here, but the music isn't trancey or catatonic—it's energetic (but not exhausting) and dynamic, consisting of shifting harmonic plates of layered sound. The crystalline, finger-picked guitar is stabilizing, metronomic, merging with the rhythm section, complemented by the swooshing synths and soaring woodwinds. Beautiful, refined, compelling, highly listenable Canadian music.
Michel Madore - Le Komuso à Cordes LP, Barclay, 1976 A1 Calligraphie / Mac A2 Ballade A3 L'Avant-Dernière B1 Stanley B2 Rush B3 Juggernaut B4 Bâli Link
This is somewhat to continue in the vein of the liminal musical space between 70s prog and 80s AOR audible in the Eskaton and Trevor Swadling posts. Here we have a solid and strange adult-rock album recorded by two legends of Italian prog: Paolo Tofani, the guitarist from Area, and Claudio Rocchi the bassist from Stormy Six. Tofani and Rocchi each pursued increasingly experimental solo projects towards the end of the seventies: the psychedelic cut-ups of Rocchi's Rocchi and the electroacoustic compositions of both Rocchi's Suoni di Frontiera and Tofani's Indicazioni. The strangeness of this collaborative effort lies partly in its normalcy: that after such far-out experiments, these two friends would turn towards traditional song-forms, harmonies, and instrumentation.
Because of the complications of the communal creative process, bands are never able to completely wipe the slate clean and start anew. Anyone who has composed music as part of a band knows how decisions are made that no individual member would/could ever make—and which are often the "right" decisions. When a musician breaks away from a band to do a solo album, that album is likely to be something original, innovative, or adventurous compared to the band's creative progression. This does not imply that solo albums are better, just that they should be seen as the expression of repressed creative urges that don't find their way into a band's musical development. Tofani's Indicazioni is the perfect example of this. Area were one of the most adventurous Italian prog bands, but there was no way they would be able to make the communal decision to make such an experimental record. Towards the end of the 70s, I've found that prog bands tend to continue in more or less comfortable musical territory, making less drastic alterations to their sound and style. The solo efforts from members of prog bands around this same time are often where you'll find the more avant-garde and experimental developments happening.
With this record Tofani and Rocchi—working collaboratively, but not as a band, with an established musical style to consider—make another drastic shift, towards conventional rock songwriting. As with most cases of prog-to-AOR conversions, there is a heavy presence of progressive ghosts amid the 4/4 rhythms. Laced with flashy synths and compelling harmonies, the songs refuse to slip into banal formulas. It is easy to dismiss this album as a "commercial" effort, but this notion is disproved by the heavy Krishna vibes permeating the album—culminating in the final song, a long and repetitive Krishna chant with sitar and guitar—which certainly weren't included to sell albums. Rocchi and Tofani both joined the Hare Krishnas during the late-seventies, I think, and Rocchi was apparently living in a Krishna commune when this record was released. The influence of Krishna doctrine on the lyrics and artwork of this record adds to its interest, further complicating the simple surface of these humble songs.
Unfortunately the sound quality of this rip (originally posted on Mutant Sounds back in 2007) is pretty bad. The sound resemble that of the Eskaton post—like recorded off a VHS. This one's real fuzzy, but if you're favorably disposed to lo-fi sounds you'll still appreciate it. (A nicer rip would be appreciated if anyone wants to link one in the comments...)
Paolo Tofani & Claudio Rocchi - Un Gusto Superiore LP, ISKCON Records, 1980 1 Jaya Srila Gurudeva Bhagavan 2 O Sei Parte Del Problema O Sei Parte Della Soluzione 3 Dio 4 La Macellazione 5 Un Gusto Superiore 6 Introduzione 7 Muoiono 8 Jiv Jago Link
Thomas Diethelm is a Swiss jazz/prog/pop guitarist and singer. He would later form the Thomas Diethelm Band and play in a duo with keyboardist Santino Famulari. Bruno Brandenberger was a Swiss upright bassist. I forget where I grabbed this (bad of me, I know) but it doesn't seem to be unavailable anywhere online now, so I'm putting it up here.
The music is somewhat reminiscent of Führs & Fröhling, in that it is melodic, moody, spacey progressive music structured around nylon-string guitar. Instead of synthetic accompaniment as in F&F, Diethelm's guitar is coupled here by Brandenberger's warm bass counterpoint. Guitar and bass are sent through various echo, delay, and phaser units, giving the album a simultaneously acoustic and electronic texture. Far from being jarring, the sound is insanely comfortable on the ears. On several songs the instruments are accompanied by Diethelm's surprising and strangely beautiful falsetto vocals, consisting of wordless vocables. Extremely listenable. Some parts of rare beauty. Singular sound quality.
Duo Diethelm Brandenberger - Didi L'Amour LP, Gold Records, 1978
A1 Didi L'Amour A2 Dvorak A3 Oktober A4 Basso A5 Maisprünge B1 Peperonata B2 Vergnügt B3 Tagtraum B4 Herbstwanderung B5 Toni N. B6 Viva La Marie
This was also originally posted on mysteryposter in 2006, then re-posted 2009 (according to Wayback Machine). Eskaton, from the Paris area, were one of the best Zeuhl groups towards the end of the 70s. Their three main albums (from 1979, 1980, and 1983) were all reissued by Soleil Zeuhl in the past few years. This record was their last effort, and was never released. A few songs were included as bonus tracks on the reissues, but the whole thing has only been passed around as a bootleg. I have no idea where the original came from (before it got to Mystery Poster), or how it made its way onto the internet as 320k mp3s, but I am pleased to have it, and happy to pass it on again. More info on Eskaton can be found in an interview with guitarist Andre Bernardi here.
This is real-deal 80s prog. If you're a 70s proghead ideologically opposed to 80s prog, this may not be for you. If you're open to 80s sounds but not that into prog, you might still be into this. I personally love 80s prog. Although much of it can be pretty bad, there are tons of gems to be discovered (Prog Not Frog has featured a few great ones recently). The good stuff usually shows a pop influence, giving up some of the more esoteric prog extravagances, highlighting some of the more melodic and groove-oriented features. The recordings often sound bizarre: 80s prog bands seemed to be really open to new synths and digital effects, but the way they used them sounds nothing like what you hear in new wave or disco music from the same time. This strangely affecting synthetic sound is definitely present on this recording, but is made weirder by the lo-fi transfer quality of this copy. Super fuzzy, always making me think of it as "VHS sound quality." The versions of these songs included with the reissues sound a lot clearer. I've also noticed that the versions on this copy are pitched up. The tracklisting is also a bit dicky, with the endings of two songs separated for no reason. I love the way this copy sounds, though.
The music is unorthodox prog with a pop tendency, without sounding commercial (at all). That is to say: mostly 4/4 rhythms, catchy hooks and nice riffs, but mixed with dissonant harmonies, strange chord voicings, spacey synth sounds, intricate fills, drones, strange lyrics. Synths, guitars, and dual female vocals are the prominent sounds. The lyrics are in French, and the mood varies from upbeat and joyous to hypnotic and brooding. Great album meriting deep listening.
Eskaton - Icare Unreleased, 1985 1 Marcel 2 Autant le temps 3 Le gros délire 4 Le bruit 5 New-York 6 Le chant 7 Le cri 8 Unknown track 1 9 Unknown track 2 10 Unknown track 3 11 Unknown track 4 Link
