This album has been on my queue for a couple of weeks now, and I’m finally getting around to it. I really dig the simplicity of the album cover, which along with it was in the suggestions for a recent album I have listened to, is why I added it to my queue. The band was a Swiss hard rock/psychedelic rock band that used many different antics to entertain the crowd, including the lead guitarist playing his guitar with his teeth. Their lead guitarist, Vic Vergeat, was in Hawkwind for a short period, and other members came from a different European psychedelic rock band, Brainticket. This seems interesting to me based on what I can find on the internet, so I’m going to go ahead and jump into the music.
“Cotton Wood Hill” has a really interesting, sort of dark groove right at the beginning of it. It sort of reminds me of Iron Butterfly, though less overtly psychedelic, and more prog rock at the moment. Oh wow, the acoustic guitar is super interesting, especially in combination with the changing tempo of the tune. I really dig the bass playing in this one. Oh wow, this song has some great flavor to it, and definitely gets a little more psychedelic while relieving some tension while doing so. This song gets pretty groovy at times. I’m really digging how the electric guitar almost has an edge to it at times, while getting almost cheesy at other times. Oh dang this song keeps evolving and I keep enjoying it more and more. The electric guitar, bass, and drums are all really going on the track at this point, almost getting a little funky. Oh dang, this electric guitar has me really grooving now. The vocals seem to peer through the ethos of the instrumentation at times, adding some accentuation to this roaring groove jam that’s taking place in the song. I’m hooked, and absolutely am looking forward to the rest of the album. There have been about 4 different movements in the song that I’ve counted since I started keeping track. It switches between different progressions and subgenres extremely well. Wow, the electric guitar comes in screeching, and is absolutely awesome when it does. This has been a heck of a journey of a song so far, I’m stoked for the rest of the album.
“A Life That Ain’t Worth Living” has an absolutely delicious flavor right away that relieves a lot of tension from the previous track. Dang, this song gets a nice bluesy rock groove happening, which almost has a bit of proto-punk energy to it at times. Wow, this is pretty sweet. I really dig the placement of the vocals in this one – almost isolated on the left. This song evolves so much from start to finish – I’m really digging this one.
“Tank” has some pretty melodic chaotic energy at the beginning, which almost feels unsure of where to go, yet the band continues to jam on forward. Oh dang, this electric guitar is absolutely awesome. It almost reminds me a little bit of Jimi Hendrix in the tone and effects. There aren’t any lyrics to this one, and the jamming from the band is absolutely awesome. It’s got an almost garage rock psychedelia energy served up on somewhat of a prog rock platter. Definitely a super sweet jam.
Oh wow, “They Say I’m Mad” has a super bluesy psychedelic rock feel to it with the drippy distortion from the lead guitar, while the drums keep a bluesy beat going, and the bass guitar grooves out a nice bluesy bass line. The vocals have that great bluesy guttural timbre to them. The electric guitar really lets some of those bluesy lines hang out there until it weaves them back into some super sweet licks. Oh wow, the lead guitar and bass are kind of moving about the soundscape and is keeping me on the edge of my seat. Oh wow, the guitar gets super chaotic and out there, and really unravels the jam to the point other instruments slow down, and then everything falls back together – absolutely awesome. Oh wow, this ending with just the guitar and vocals at the moment is super interesting, especially as the electric guitar goes in and absolutely squeals out, until all the instruments come back on for a nice finishing note.
“Life Goes On” has a really interesting ominous start to it, and really reminds me a bit of Les Claypool in a certain way. Oh wow, the lead guitar sounds like it’s coming through a different space for a moment. Oh wow, this one has a few movements in it already while only a bit into the song. It gets almost spacey, yet there’s a somewhat folksy acoustic guitar that comes in to keep things feeling grounded. The little taps from the drums keep things connected quite nicely. Oh wow, the song really picks back with some insanely tasty guitar work from both the acoustic and electric, and really relieves a lot of built up tension from the preceding movement. This song really changes so much throughout it, with so many orchestrated parts from the band – it’s super cool, honestly. Oh wow, this is super interesting. I’ve never really listened to all the much prog rock, but it’s really making me want to listen to some more. Dang the lead guitar and bass are absolutely going in on this one, while the drums keeps moving forward with smooth drum fills and the rhythm guitar continually elevates the jams to different levels. Oh wow, the song sort of falls back right the original movement from the beginning of the song – super sweet. This song is definitely one epic journey from start to finish.
“Pig’s Walk” has a super bluesy guitar intro, and reminds me of something like “Who Did You Think I Was?” by John Mayer, though with a little bit of psychedelia underlying it. Dang, this bluesy jam groove is firing on all pistons right now. The bass guitar is keeping things grounded to these really groovy drums while taking the jam further out there in it’s own way, while the lead guitar absolutely goes in on this track. I think there’s a wah effect on the guitar and it’s absolutely awesome. Dang, this jam just keeps going on and gives more and more. This one is one you can definitely jam out to, holy smokes. It’s making me want to pick up my guitar and jam along. Oh wow, it was just bass and drums for a moment, and now it’s just the drums going in on a genuine drum solo. This is sweet. The drums feel like they’re preparing this song to come in for a landing momentarily while still extending the jam further out there. Oh wow, the electric guitar and bass guitar come back on strong and absolutely wail on this one. If you dig blues rock jams, this song is definitely one worth checking out. Awesome song.
“The One I Mean” has an extraordinarily gentle feel compared to the rest of the songs, like things are gently getting wrapped up with the sweet acoustic guitar and the soft vocal performance. Oh wow, the acoustic guitar gets pretty intricate at times, and almost has a bit of a classical approach to it. At the very last moment an outro comes on that definitely perked up my ears, and definitely ends the album in a way that is befitting the rest of the album. Solid finish to a really sweet album.
Dang, this album was pretty sweet. Those 45 minutes absolutely flew by. I’ve never been one to listen to too much prog rock, but I was digging this album quite a bit. If you’re a fan of progressive rock and/or psychedelic tinged blues rock, this might be one you want to consider checking out. If you do decide to give this one a listen, I do sincerely hope you enjoy the experience at least as much as I did.
-A