Hello folks! Welcome to Bert’s Heavy Music Review. I Bert Spivey your Conservative troubadour have switched gears and have festooned my headphones to my knees and plan to deliver to you dear reader a guide to the worlds best music. I have booked you a ticket. A ticket to ride. Join me on my journey through the world of Progressive and Psycedelic rock, and whatever else lands in my mailbox. Let’s do it!!!!!
Bert
1971
Jim Deverell-: Organ/Electric Piano/Vocals
Faye Lewis: Vocals/Percussion
Terry Popple: Drums
Tony Joyce: Guitar
Benny Kaika: Bass
Another in a long list of Australian bands that never got the attention they deserved. Grooving prog rock hailing from Sydney released their sole album in 1971. This bit of excellence sounds like a cross between Frump and Affinity. Tough, husky female vocals, chunky guitar all driven by a plowing Hammond organ.
Seven tracks, mostly covers including Niel Young’s “Southern Man”. They attempted to cover Spooky Tooth’s cover of the Beatles “I Am The Walrus” but failed miserably. Stand out tracks are Ritchie Havens “Indian Rope Man” and the group original “Out To Lunch” Both include some fine instrumental work with excellent guitar and organ interplay.
The band comes off toned and tight. They work well together. Their musicianship shines on “Out to lunch” which is my favorite track but be warned, the song starts out really cheesey. Sort of like 1970′s AM radio where James Taylor, ABBA, Mamas & the Papas perform together at a rent party for Barbra Striesand. However at the 1:10 mark the band swings into high gear and the song takes off. Seven glorious minutes of Australian prog debauchery. This CD comes highly recomended.
-Bert
Diluvium 1973
Willi Kluter: Organ
Wolfgang Netzer: Guitar
Michael Kluter: Drums
Dark, heavy, and messy progressive rock from Germany. Think of a German Blue Cheer with a distinct organ sound. From start to finish the album lifts off the top of your skull and fills your head with pounding drums, monster fuzz guitar and a distinct organ sound that gives the record a doomy feel. Sloppy at times and the production value is non existant but that just adds to the overall feel of the album. Not bad for a trio of teenagers. It doesn’t bother me and I like the rawness.
Unfortunately they only recorded this one album with a limited pressing of 500 so the album now sells for top money. Overall these kids (Between the ages of 15 and 17) were able to craft long instrumental passages that never sound pompous or self indulgent like most Prog bands. Their heavy handed, simplistic approach has brought the album many comparisons to American garage and psychedelic bands of the 60’s. I can see that (or should I say hear that?) however these kids have their own sound and it will rattle the fillings out of your teeth.
Act One 1970
Martin Griffiths: Vocals
Alan Park: Hammond Organ
Ray Wilson: Drums
Ricky Gardener: Guitar
Marshall Erskine: Bass
Scottish Prog. Never thought you’d hear those words right? Well neither did I until I slipped Beggars Opera’s first album into the disc player.
What comes to mind is tighter, better rehearsed Nice. Alan Park was definately listening to Kieth Emerson and that is not a bad thing. In fact “Raymonds Road” is eerily similar to The Nice’s “Rondo ’69″. He may not be throwing knives into his organ but he obviously has been influenced by classical music and is definately Emerson’s equal.
The band likes to do everything over the top. Unfortunately their knack for pomposity overshadows the fact that they can rock with the best of them. Particularly lost in the pomposity is Ricky Gardener’s crunchy guitar work. This guy can play.
It’s hard to pick a particular track as they all are top notch. The band it tight, competent,and compliment each other nicely. They seemlessly move from Prog, to Psychedelia and back again from start to finish. as you’d expect from a Progressive release the songs are long with only one of the seven original tracks clocking in under 7 minutes with two lasting over 11. My disc has two bonus tracks from 1971.
Together 1972
Bernd Pulst: Vocals
Klaus Hess: Lead Guitar
Werner Nadolny: Hammond Organ
Charly Maucher: Bass
Peter Panka: Vocals
Just got this in the mail today. I couldn’t find any really helpful reviews on this band however I was able to find out who was in the producer’s chair. The legendary Connie Plank So I knew it had to be good. This is Jane’s debut album “Together” and it’s brilliant. There are so many elements to this that make it so worthwhile. We can start with the David Gilmour guitar and the echo laden vocals which give the album a Floydian feel (Thanks no doubt to Connie Plank’s penchant for knob twiddling). Overall the album reminds me of Pink Floyd’s second phase (1968-1971) Though not as psychedelic as Floyd but just as atmospheric.
Klaus Hess’ guitar dominates this album with it’s Gilmour like sound but Werner Nadolny’s keyboard work grounds the guitar with his drifting Hammond Organ. Always at the forefront and occasionally dominates but it’s swirling rather than riffing makes the band sounds larger than it really is. Over all this is supposed to be Jane’s finest album. We’ll see but I can tell you it is definitely a great bit of German Prog.
Well dear reader since we are in Germany and the beer is so good i figured we would stay on a bit and check out another German band. And this was a doozy. Bokaj Retsiem. Yep. Say it three times fast with a bottle of Belgian ale stuck in your navel. This may be the most obscure item in my collection. Other than the name of the producer/songwriter Reiner Degner (ex Rattles) there is literally no information on this band. My humble opinion dear reader is this was originally a producer album. In other words Degner assembled a group of musicians to cash in on the burgeoning psychedelic scene that had arrived in Germany.
So is this just a novelty album? Not in the least. Yeah the album cover artwork looks like a fourteen year old scribbled it on his notebook during math class, and yes all the psychedelic basics are covered such as distorted vocals, and lysergic lyrics, Yet the album more than kicks some kraut rock ass. Wailing guitars, pounding, swinging drumming, and this phased Hammond B3 organ drifting through a leslie cabinet permeating almost every song.
Lyrically the album is simplistic and repetitive. That’s okay. It’s the music.There are influences of Cream, Hendrix and even the Animals. The song “Bokaj Retsiem” reminds me of Deep Purple’s “Hush” (1968). With it’s muddy bass and organ.
There are some bizzare moments which are connected to the name of the band. A few songs are reworkings of “Three Blind Mice” Look at the name of the band and read it back to front. Bokaj Retsiem or Jakob Meister or Meister Jakob. look it up and figure it out. I have a headache.
Overall this is a great Proto-psych album that was a precursor of things to come from Germany. I haven’t any other psych albums from Germany…yet. this is a great place to start. Let’s be honest folks. Any downer rock with a weird German screaming in English over a leslied Hammond is worth the price of admission alone.
Bert
Well I figured I would begin this musical journey with a little something obscure from Germany called Weed. More of a Project than a band. Weed was in fact the German Progressive Rock band Virus accompanied by Uriah Heep Organist/Songwriter Ken Hensley.
I haven’t yet picked up the Virus CD so I can’t say for sure what their sound is like as Hensley contributed some keyboard and guitar work to this recording I can indeed tell you though the musicians are tight and talented. Strong guitar workouts backed up by one of Germany’s best drummers. Peet Becker. This is a good example of early German Prog Rock. Heavy, psychedelic and at times plodding. The album also has some surprisingly tight bluesy moments. The recording has an overall doomy feeling throughout. Something commonplace in German Prog from this period (1970)
If you’re a fan of Uriah Heep you will certainly like this. Hensley’s lyrics and strong Hammond organ remind you of the first few Heep albums. Even the occasional David Byron screech is included. Stand out tracks are “Sweet Morning Light” “Before I die”. The bluesy “Slowin’ Down”, and “Weed”. “My Dream” is also a strong track clocking in at 6:32. However the first 3:19 is nothing but some quiet piano noodeling that begins to get boring almost immediately.
