UHF ~ USA

Timeless Voyager. 1981 Rofer

UMR review

Priority: 1

7/29/10

Schwarzarbeit ~ Germany

Schwarzarbeit. 1979 private
Traum oder Wirklichkeit. 1982 private

UMR review

Priority: 3

7/28/10 (new entry)

Ken Ramm ~ Canada

Dragon. 1981 private

A very fine, and professionally produced, early 80s instrumental fusion album. And, lo and behold, the entire FM team is playing on this, which should give this an instant built-in audience. Ramm apparently had the right connections, or a lot of money, as this sounds more like a major label release, than an obscure private.

---

The artist has resurfaced in recent years speaking of reissues, but nothing as of yet. Originals remain very affordable.

Priority: 3

7/27/10

Perfume Azul Do Sol ~ Brazil

Nascimento. 1974 Chantecler

UMR review

Priority: none

***Reissued on LP by Pedra Templo Animal (2017)

7/26/10 (new entry)

Foehn ~ France

Faeria. 1985 private

Many years ago I used a description to sell this album that compared Foehn to a mix of Zeuhl and late era new wave pop bands like Swing Out Sister. The customer who bought it, wrote back to tell me that he agreed completely with that comparison and it's why he bought it. That observation has held. Difference is that concept is far more appealing to me than it was in the middle 90s. There's also some fine guitar  here, an instrument that can sometimes be underutilized in the Zeuhl world. A very good album, that I appreciate more now that ever.

Priority: 2

7/25/10

Ocean ~ Germany

Melody. 1981 Tonstudio Bieber

Double Vision. 1984 TSB

This came as a big surprise, as most of these small German presses from the early 80s are best left alone. And with a moniker like Ocean, a band name that must have been used 269 times by then, the word "generic" couldn't slip my mind. Until I put the disc on that is. If you're looking for references, Symphonic Pictures era SFF isn't a bad place to start. It's not quite in that league, but it's not like the world is filled with similar albums to SFF's debut. Plenty of mellotron (including the much loved choir). Maybe Odyssee's White Swan is another good check point. On the same label as Nanu Urwerk. 

I have not heard Double Vision to date.

Priority: 2

7/24/10

Leucozyt ~ Germany

Rockjazz. 1982 private

Starts off with a big fat disco beat, and had me wondering if I'd fallen into yet another funky fusion album from Germany. Not this time - it was a red herring, as Leucozyt play a more melodic instrumental jazz rock with sax, flute, and guitar leads. Very nice album, that downplays the era's requisite funky business (though that component remains present). Neat cover.

Priority: 2

7/21/10

Iviron ~ Austria

Iviron. 1981 Silent Sun

UMR review

Priority: 3

7/20/10 (new entry)

News: Wounded Bird reissues Macondo album

Here's one I've had in the collection for years, but forgot to add to the CD Reissue Wish List. I don't have to worry about that now! Macondo is a fine example of the Latin rock craze of the early 70s, spearheaded by the success of Santana. It's not quite at that level (or even Chango or Dakila for that matter), but still a fine representation of the style.

First Light ~ Australia

First Light. 1978 MFS (Music Farm Studios)

UMR review

Priority: 1

7/19/10

Chakra ~ USA

Chakra. 1979 Brother Studio

Commercially oriented progressive rock album, very typical of the late 1970s American scene. The sound is more commonly found in the Midwest, but there were traces found on the left coast with bands such as Jester, Bounty, and Harlequin Mass. Plenty of complexity to satisfy most progressive rock fans, but there's a distinct AOR song craft at play here. Going For the One / Tormato era Yes was a major influence on these bands. 

Priority: 3

7/18/10

News: Wolfgang Dauner's Knirsch to be reissued by HGBS Musikproduktion

HGBS Musikproduktion is a label I'm unfamiliar with, but judging by their website it looks like they have quite an operation going. And no better place to be introduced to the label than via an Et Cetera album!

Nobuhisa clarifies for us: "HGBS stands for the MPS founder Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer.

This reissue is done by the same guy behind the Promising music MPS reissue series (apparently rights for some of the MPS titles are not held by Universal but by HGB-S's family and this one is a start of the reissue program on them)."

Thanks again Nobuhisa!

Didier Bonin ~ France

L'Arbre Verre. 1979 private
L'Air Lumiere. 1983 private

***L'Air Lumiere reissued by Creole Stream 2013

A very obscure artist from France who released these two introspective, tranquil instrumental albums. L'Air Lumiere has wordless voice and a bit more fire in the electric guitar work, making it the more desirable of the two. Both featuring quite a bit of acoustic guitar and electronics, and are overall very pleasant outings.

Priority: none

7/17/10

Agamemnon ~ Switzerland

Part I & II. 1981 private

Similar to other slow moving German/Swiss symphonic groups of the day like Waniyetula (known by most folks as Galaxy on LP), Albatros, early Faithful Breath, and Indigo. According to the liner notes of the LP, there was supposed to be a Part 3 & 4, but guess they lost interest in ol' Agamemnon...

Priority: 3

7/16/10

Aum ~ Brazil

Belorizonte. 1984 Bemol

At first hearing, Aum seems like a typical late 70s/early 80s fusion group that were a dime a dozen in those days. Then come the guitar solos, which are full of energy, complete with the compressed fuzz tone one would expect to come out of France at this time. Definitely a cut above the ordinary instrumental fusion album.

Priority: 3

7/15/10

Didier ~ Germany

Cptn. Coffee. 1981 KladielasMusik 

UMR review

Priority: 1

7/14/10 (new entry)

Bronin Hogman Band ~ USA

Bronin Hogman Band. 1975 Gamut

***4/2/25 update. Looks like Cult Metal Classics will be reissuing this album. Awaiting an official street date and then will move forward and mark complete.

UMR review

Priority: 3

7/13/10 (new entry)

Cool Feet ~ Luxembourg

Burning Desire. 1976 private

From Luxembourg, Burning Desire is one of the most expensive of the many underground albums out there. Regularly fetching four figures, it's not too hard to understand why Cool Feet has such a reputation. Blindfolded, you could swear you were listening to some newly unearthed private hard rock album from the US Midwest, say Toledo, situated perfectly on the road from Ohio to Michigan. It has that small dive bar vibe, as patronized by Local Number union members. A four piece, with dual guitars and a gruff vocalist, Cool Feet pretty much delivers kickass hard rock from start to finish. There are a couple of stinkers to endure, as they gave at least a little lip service to their commercial aspirations. Though for me the big surprise was the early Scorpions influence, primarily from Fly to the Rainbow through the Virgin Killer albums. Truth be told, there aren't that many continental European hard rock bands in this style (Belgium's Kleptomania and Vacation also came to mind), and certainly less that remind me of primo era Scorps.

There's a built-in audience for this album, and you know who you are.

Word down at the soup kitchen says that the album was apparently slated for a CD release on Garden of Delights and LP reissue on Amber Soundroom, but one of the members put the kibosh on it. 

Also reading that it's from 1978, so the back cover would appear to be a misprint.

Since 1992, the band has released no less than 14 titles. Strange...

Priority: 3

7/12/10 (new entry)

Fluence ~ France

Fluence. 1975 Pole

UMR review

Priority: 2

***Reissued on LP by Etats-Unis (2020)

7/11/10 (new entry)

Michel Moulinie ~ France

Chrysalide. 1978 Crypto

UMR review

Priority: 1

***Reissued on LP by WRWTFWW Jul 2024

7/10/10 (new entry)

Northwind ~ USA

Northwind (Last Day at Lokun). 1972 private

Northwind (The Woods of Zandor). 1974 private
Distant Shores. 1977 unreleased

Northwind were a Detroit area progressive rock band that is another fantastic representation of the Midwest music scene of the era. Hints of commercialism abound, but the group cannot resist the tricky compositions, while wailing on all that fat analog gear. Bands like Surprise, Starcastle, Ethos, and Albatross are all good reference points. These albums are available for free on Bandcamp, but I for one would love to see a full blown CD production with liner notes, photos, and a more detailed history. 

I haven't heard the 1972 album yet.

Priority: 2

7/9/10

News: Aquarelle's two albums to be reissued by Belle Antique in August

Following the exciting news regarding True Myth, we've also learned that Belle Antique is reissuing both the Aquarelle albums. I've been waiting for ProgQuebec to reissue these, and it could very well be part of their plans, but in the meantime, we do know they'll be coming out in Japan on the mini LP format.

We reviewed Aquarelle for Gnosis in 2006. I hadn't yet featured them here, so they beat me to it!

News: True Myth will be released on Belle Antique in August

Generally Belle Antique licenses from other labels, so not sure if there's a jewel case coming out elsewhere, but for now we at least have our first legitimate reissue of True Myth. One of the great ironies is that True Myth was the first all digital recording in Canada. Yet it had never moved past the LP stage. Not only that, but this will be released as a mini-LP with the exact gatefold cover of the original!

We featured True Myth last December.

Trefle ~ France

Reflet. 1979 private

From the Ange school of French progressive rock. More of an underproduced effort, recalling Grime or the first Synopsis album. One of the better examples of the style, with impassioned vocals and fine guitar work. The atmosphere here is rich. All the songs are short but segue nicely into each other.

There's no date listed anywhere on the album (cover, label, lock in groove, insert). There's quite a bit of dispute about it on Discogs, though 1979 looks to be reasonable.

Priority: 2

7/6/10

To Be ~ Germany

To Be. 1977 Brain

To Be. 1982 MMG

UMR review

Priority: 3

7/3/10 (new entry)

Patch ~ Australia

The Star Suite. 1977 Harvest

Features four long, slow, and drawn out instrumental soft rock pieces with the expected titles of Fire, Water, Earth and Air. Pretty relaxing actually, so a good one to finish the evening off with. Definitely not dull, and it's clear the compositions were thought out. 

Priority: 3

7/1/10