Absolute Zero
Crashing Icons
2001
private release
promotional CD from the band
Crashing Icons is the long awaited full-length debut album by Absolute Zero. Those who have been waiting for it the longest are probably the band members themselves. Absolute Zero has been in existence in one form or another since 1979, but the only release they have managed to produce until now is a two song EP recorded in 1990 on a VCR. The band's story is one of struggle and seemingly endless setbacks, but mostly of dedication to an uncompromising artistic vision.
Uncompromising is a good word to describe Absolute Zero and their music. This band refuses to stray from their own ways of doing things, whether it be the music itself or how, when and by whom their music is finally and officially released on CD. Probably due at least partly to this uncompromising nature, negotiations with various labels (labels one would expect to be sympathetic and supportive of this kind of music) have so far yielded nothing, and this CD is still unreleased at the time of this writing.
If you think "uncompromising" means that this music is difficult listening, you're right. The music on Crashing Icons is absolutely not in any way similar to the legions of overproduced, symphonic, pseudo-progressive tripe that's floating around out there these days. This is the real deal. This stuff is as unsettling and shocking from a purely musical standpoint as those first Henry Cow or 1972-74 King Crimson albums must have been for those who encountered them upon first release. To compare Absolute Zero to Henry Cow is actually a good way to start, as there's a lot of that same sense of musical anarchy at work on Crashing Icons. Several of the characteristics of the RIO school of progressive rock are in evidence here: heavy doses of dissonance, purposely non-catchy, almost anti-melodic female vocals, oblique lyrics and an underlying unconventional political bent. Avant-garde jazz and especially the zeuhl school of prog rock also exert considerable influence on Crashing Icons respectively in the form of the very cool muted trumpet solo of "Stutter Rock" and the ever-present huge, distorted six-string bass guitar sound of Enrique Jardines. Canterbury fans may be inclined to salivate over this album when they learn that former National Health, Gong and Hatfield & the North drummer Pip Pyle plays on this CD. His drumming is more aggressive than usual here, but excellent as always. One won't find much in the way of the famous Canterbury sound on Crashing Icons, however.
"Bared Cross" is the 14-minute opening track of Crashing Icons. "Bared Teeth" might have been just as apt a title. This is a ferocious tour-de-force that offers little opportunity for listeners to gently dip one proverbial toe into the bubbling hot musical spring that is Absolute Zero. The album begins with the sound of an orchestra tuning up and the conductor tapping his baton against the music stand to call the orchestra to order. The ensuing moment of brief silence is broken by fits and starts of frenetic drumming, elephantine bass guitar honks and seemingly random electronic piano and synth tinkling. The orchestra has begun. This frenzy of noise congeals eventually and the song – led by the bellowing vocals of Aislinn Quinn – begins in earnest. The song ebbs and flows in a series of different bass guitar ostinatos over which Quinn lets her keyboard meanderings fly. The middle section of the piece is mostly an instrumental free-for-all kind of affair, but the vocal passages that bookend the piece keep things grounded for the listener who manages to pay attention. At first listen, it's tempting to say "Bared Cross" is largely noise and chaos, but subsequent listens reveal the structure that the overwhelmed newbie may have failed to grasp originally.
The nearly 21-minute "Further On" is the second and longest piece on the album. It begins around another of Jardines' trademark forearm numbing bass ostinatos and lots of percussion in the form of marimba, various hand drums and synth xylophone. The percussion rhythms conjure up images of Indiana Jones-type adventures in the jungle. It actually sounds like it would be really good video game music. Later the piece offers some really nice (but too fleeting) acoustic piano melodies which are a welcome respite from the tinny digital synth sounds that unfortunately pepper most of this album. The piece leads to a closing section with various unknown sounds and tinkering by all three musicians, and it eventually gives way to a low, sustained organ chord that ends the piece on an ambient note. This chaos/ambience dichotomy is an interesting and unexpected turn. It would be nice to hear more of it from Absolute Zero in the future.
The aptly named "Stutter Rock" is one of the most easily accessible, most rock oriented pieces on the album, with its (relatively) catchy 7/8 bass riff around which Pyle's snare drum ghost notes artfully dance throughout the piece. "Stutter Rock" segues seamlessly into "You Said" to create an 11-minute instrumental which climaxes in a hail storm of distorted samples of various noises and spoken word (all in Spanish).
"Sueños Sobre Un Espejo" is the closing track. It is probably the most structured and most vocally oriented piece on the CD, though, like most of the other tracks, it offers a long semi-improvisational passage in the middle which is framed by the verses. This piece illuminates most clearly Enrique Jardines' Spanish background in the partially Spanish vocals and the unexpected tango-like melody that reprises throughout the piece. This is also Aislinn Quinn's most enjoyable vocal performance of the entire album. Here she sings daringly, but in a more conventional style than her usual angular melodies which are nearly as quirky and unpredictable as her keyboard melodies.
Crashing Icons offers little in the way of easily digestible chord sequences and memorable riffs and melodies. This is often scattered, schizophrenic music comprised of very unusual rhythms and melodies that clash, crash and bounce off of each other. The gravitational force that keeps things from going completely out of control throughout the album is the fantastic bass guitar of Enrique Jardines. Though Jardines can and does make his bass sing, soar, bark or burp, he most often keeps things pointed in a forward direction with his repetitive, "De Futura"-esque ostinatos. Aislinn Quinn's contributions are the most extreme on the CD, as she almost always seems to be going off in bizarre directions both on keyboards and vocals. Pip Pyle lends a muscular hand in either direction, whether it's to drive forward with Jardines or take off on a tangent with Quinn, but his drumming is always intelligent and interesting. While Crashing Icons often has a very live, loose, slightly improvisational feel, its best moments provide fierce, complex, heavy avant-rock jams that will surely please fans of intricate, highly composed heavy prog like King Crimson, Magma, Happy Family, Ruins and the like. Those who also like Henry Cow, Thinking Plague and the Art Bears will be doubly pleased. – SH
Visit the Absolute Zero website.
Listen to an excerpt of "Bared Cross" from Absolute Zero's Smashing Icons.
MP3 format. 1:08/565k
Birdsongs of the Mesozoic
Petrophonics
2000
Cuneiform Records
It's probably no understatement at all to say that Birdsongs of the Mesozoic is without a doubt one of the more original, complex, and interesting groups on the face of the progressive scene these days, or possibly even ever. Drawing influence from a range of various styles, Birdsongs has crafted a musical niche for themselves that touches on all of these influences while forming something which is in itself unique. This is a feat rarely accomplished even by the best, and yet Birdsongs seems able to pull it off easier than most of us are able to get up in the morning to make toast.
No exception to this rule is Petrophonics, the latest release from the boys from Boston, and their first since 1995. Petrophonics is in many ways a logical extension of the work Birdsongs of te Mesozoic has already made, and yet in other ways it is a work that brings something new to the table altogether.
The album starts out with a bang. Track one, the title track, is a fast-paced, complex piece that only gets more intense as it progresses. The signature sound of electronic drums keeps up with the odd time signatures and many changes – something few other ensembles have even tried, much less accomplished – and when it is over the album is already worth it.
The rest of the album really seems in many ways different. Birdsongs has always been known for complexity, and the rest of the album certainly is complex, but in a very different light. Where the title track is in-your-face rhythm and riff, there are quite a few tracks on Petrophonics that seem to be almost straightforward and basic as far as drums and time go. Not to say these songs are any less interesting, though. "One Hundred Cycles" is a very nice calypso-sound arrangement, and other tracks like "Birdhead" and "Dinosaur Theme" both have their fair share of complex arrangement and playing. Everything seems a bit more subdued on this album, though, and this is really nothing more than the result of growth. Most of the tracks are longer than pieces from the past, with a deeper understanding of both sound and quiet, of textures as well as rhythm.
One thing about this album that is different is the amount of time given to more unstructured or arrhythmic music, either pieces without drums or percussion, or pieces without a discernible beat at all. There is a lot of open space on this album, which really serves the listener by forcing a stance of actively listening, even more than Birdsongs releases from the past.
All in all, Petrophonics is a must for any serious student of progressive music. – CH
Jürgen Haible
Of Eagles & Prophets
1998
private release
Electronic music means different things to different people. To many it's synonymous with new age; bland, lifeless stuff meant to relax the mind and body, but not really intended to be listened to very closely. To many others, it's equated with dance, trance, house, jungle, techno, rave or some other microscopically different variation on mindless 4/4 beats and blips churned out of a Roland TR 808 or some virtual analog equivalent. These two forms of electronic music (or electronica, as is now fashionable to call it) have their enthusiasts and detractors. But fans and critics alike are often unaware of the roots of these styles. Electronic music has been around in one form or another for decades, but things really started taking off in the early '70s when synthesizers came into widespread use by rock musicians, and few at the time used them so well and so extensively as the members of the "Berlin School." This loosely knit group of German bands and individuals was typified by groups and individuals like Ash Ra Tempel, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Conrad Schnitzler and Michael Hoenig. Many have now forgotten about the classic period of the Berlin School, but new artists like Jürgen Haible of Nuremberg, Germany acknowledge its influence and carry on many of the characteristics that made this group of electronic artists so engaging.
Haible's music is closely connected to electronica's past, but is not merely a nostalgia trip. Haible utilizes an extensive array of analog synthesizers and other keyboards, but not the ones you might expect. There is not a single Moog or ARP product on Of Eagles and Prophets. In fact, six of the 20 synths and effects units listed in the CD's notes are JH originals custom designed and built by Haible himself. Likewise, the various styles of music found on this CD often have a classic feel, but they are not mere imitations of anyone's music from the past. In other words, Haible's music continues certain aspects of a nearly lost art, but it is not about clichés. Those who are fond of classic electronic music as practiced by the likes of Jean Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze will certainly find much to celebrate on Of Eagles and Prophets, but they will also find much to discover.
Of Eagles and Prophets shows a fairly broad range of styles of music. There are composed, melodic pieces like "October '96," and then there are amorphic monoliths of drone, drift and distortion, as in "Anthrazit," which consists of the same note played on four different keyboards, recorded forward, backward and at half speed. Covering all the bases is the 20-minute "Der ängstliche Adler," which offers a little bit of everything in six movements, including one sequencer heavy passage that is highly reminiscent of portions of Tangerine Dream's Ricochet. Haible is probably at his best on more abstract pieces, notably "A Summer's Thunderstorm," which offers some classic sounds harkening back to the earliest days of Kosmiche rock . Creepy organ chords gently emerge and shimmer (in good old-fashioned rotating Leslie speaker fashion) across the stereo panorama in the first movement, while part two finds Haible tickling the ivories up and down the keyboard and experimenting with throbbing slabs of distortion.
Haible's music can be very ambient and sedate at times and somewhat harsh and grating at others. This harshness is a small but important part of what keeps things interesting and helps to distinguish Of Eagles and Prophets from new age drivel. Haible's style is generally somewhere in the realm of classic Berlin School, though generally somewhat simpler and more up-front. There usually isn't quite as much going on in terms of multitracking and layering techniques as is common to this kind of music, but this is still good headphone music that will offer rewards to those who don't relegate it being to mere sonic wallpaper.
Whether you're a fan of Jarre or Schulze, Nodens Ictus or the Orb, chances are you will find something pleasantly familiar in portions of this CD while other parts may feel like unexplored territory. Of Eagles and Prophets is an excellent way to discover new realms in progressive electronic music without fear of making a bad purchase.
Of Eagles and Prophets and follow-up Dark November are both home-burned CDRs available directly from the artist. This is in no way indicative of substandard music, sound quality or presentation, however. This is very recommendable music made without regard for current trends and made by someone who obviously has a passion for the art and science of electronic music. – SH
Visit the Jürgen Haible website.
Listen to an excerpt of "Der angstliche Adler" from Jürgen Haible's Of Eagles and Prophets.
MP3 format. 1:00/468k
Mark 1
The Criminal Element
2001
private release
promotional CD from the band
The Criminal Element is the second album from Gloucester, Mass., based Mark 1, and in many ways it is a typical sophomore album. It shows this still very young band struggling to reach beyond the influences they wore so blatantly on their sleeves on their debut Absolute Zero, yet in some ways it falls short of the youthful enthusiasm of that first album.
This album boasts two nine-minute songs and a much broader scope in terms of composition, style and instrumentation. Unfortunately, these longer, more complex pieces occasionally falter under their own weight. Both long tracks suffer occasionally from different sections, themes and solos that seem to exist simply to elongate each piece. While none of these themes are particularly bad in their own right, they sometimes seem unnecessary and are not always strung together in the most efficient or convincing manner. The title track is a good example. This piece is one of the more compelling tracks on the album due to its sense of urgency, but it's marred by a lackluster guitar solo which seems tacked on after two piano solos. Also, the song has two false endings at 8:30 and 8:45. What's more, the final 23 seconds are filled with some pointless tinkering on guitar which seems to these ears completely unrelated to the rest of the song. This may sound picky, but this kind of cut-and-pastery is all too common in new progressive rock.
Another somewhat disappointing factor of this album is a certain lack of fun. Gone is much of the quirkiness and humor that made Absolute Zero such an enjoyable listen in spite of its weaknesses. With The Criminal Element, Mark 1 seem to be taking themselves a bit more seriously, and sometimes it seems they're trying a little too hard. Certainly the compositions are more daring, and the inclusion of acoustic guitar and piano on several pieces helps bring some much needed diversity of textures and sounds, but this album is darker and sometimes almost lethargic in its pace and in terms of execution. One notable exception is the 51-second "Captain Labrador's Unceremonious Disengagement," a silly vignette in the tradition of "Jeremy Bender" or "Harold the Barrel" that nicely serves to briefly lighten the load of the slightly oppressive tone of much of the rest of the album.
One of the higher points of The Criminal Element is "The Raven." This is the longest track on the album at 9:23, and it covers a lot of good ground. It starts out slow and depressing, but the band works in a few nice key and tempo changes and several different themes. The ghost of Genesis past is most obviously summoned on this piece, especially in the genuine ARP Pro Soloist solo. "The Life..." also stands out on The Criminal Element for being more original and providing some of the most memorable melodies on the album.
At 36 minutes, The Criminal Element makes the right move and doesn't wear out its welcome – a lesson many prog (or otherwise) bands could stand to learn. Just because you can fit 80 minutes of music on a CD, doesn't mean you should. All the songs on The Criminal Element are pretty good and none seem like fillers. Like Absolute Zero, The Criminal Element seems to be based on a concept, though more loosely this time. The lyrics read like the script of a movie with a romanticized view of rebellion and organized crime. Fortunately, this theme is not elaborated upon too much to be really irksome. At least it's a different kind of subject for a prog band.
While the Genesis influence has wisely been toned down a bit on The Criminal Element, it does appear unmistakably in places like the synth solo in "The Raven" and in Kyle Jones' reverent Peter Gabriel vocal imitations. Other places, a hint of Wind and Wuthering's melancholy seems to have pervaded the band's song writing and production. Even more so than on Absolute Zero, some of these Genesis-isms are so right-on that they might inspire goose-bumps for a few fleeting moments in certain listeners. Others might cringe at the obvious imitations. At least this time the band has moved on from The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Let's just hope Mark 1 finds a completely original voice before they get to We Can't Dance.
Regardless of the very unfavorable reviews some others have given Mark 1, their music continues to provide a fun listen with The Criminal Element. Yes, they can sound derivative and immature at times, but they also have a flair for creativity, and they seem to have a better grip on what made classic prog so good than scores of their contemporaries. Mark 1 remains a band to watch and a band from which to expect better things in the future. – SH
Visit the Mark 1 website.
Jasun Martz & the Neoteric Orchestra
The Pillory
1978
All Ears Records
Van der Graaf Generator
