Clay Greens Polysorbate Masquerade Band in 3, By Request (2005 to 2017) RECOMMENDED

Here's a wonderful find / suggestion, very Zappalike but all-instrumental, classical and furious fusion, setting aside the silly titles, artist name, and album names.  Sparse information here, also missing the later 2 releases.  At times it reminds me of my old US Egg-imitation favorite, Radio Piece III, with the hammond organ being upfront a lot of the time, even a bit of ELP influence.  A lot of dissonance, rhythmic changes, and abrupt transitions, furiously aggressive riffs-- though I'm not too crazy about the silly astronomy / physics references in the song titles (e.g. 'Antimatter of Fact') which detracts a little from the whole.

Consider the first track from the first album which is the discogs-listed Bubbledroid one, Saturn's Orbit:

Surprisingly for this kind of late-version fusion, there are acoustic guitar tracks in there as well, though not many of course.

Equally shocking to me was the imitation Hatfield track called New Sheen, starting completely appropriately with a tritone, but notice how in the midpart of this (2-minute) song, there is a gorgeous transition with backwards chords that is followed by a very typical Dave Stewart-type keyboard pattern--what a shock:

Note the level of complex composition, with definitely some Bartok / Strav influence plus fuguelike patterns, on Avant Particle Piece from their 3rd:

So what exactly is the story of this (20 years old already) band?  At least its moniker is unique enough it's easy to locate some more information.

Progarchives says, 

Clay Green's Polysorbate Masquerade Band are an instrumental band consisting of Green on acoustic and electric guitars, who also organises digital transmission, and drum machine, affectionately known by the band as the Bubbledroid. He is joined by Edward Richard who plays bass, organ and other keyboards. The band have produced 2 albums with similar material, "Chronicles of Bubbledroid" and a collector's edition of this album is also available with extra songs. Green explains, "We had the original two-track masters redone and we've added a whole bunch of bonus tracks. The entire collection is just under eighty minutes, and it's really been an enriching experience to put it all together."

The band describe themselves on their websites as instrumental Progressive Rock presented in the style of the Early 1970's, with gritty organs, wah-wah guitar, intricate arrangements, and differing time signatures. The band pride themselves on not taking themselves seriously, and at first glance at their website, that features Italian for no reason, and the third member known as Bubbledroid, actually a synthesized drum machine, the band seem to be a parody. In an interview Green makes some cynical comments such as, "I'd describe our sound as a blend of Arthur Brown's Kingdom Come and Van der Graaf, maybe some PFM? but just the music parts, no singing of course" and "We like to think that we have something to contribute to our global society, and we've been experimenting with putting low-volume secret messages in our music, to boost sales of course."

Despite all these quirky touches, the music speaks for itself which is well performed and will appeal to those who like Camel, Focus, or other keyboard dominated instrumental music.

When you listen you'll realize they are way off the mark, it's not at all like Camel, Focus, PFM, VDG.  On the other hand, ELP is definitely an influence, but I think also Canterbury bands like Egg.

I was also shocked that the basement denizens of rym didn't give it higher ratings, since I thought it was really good, deserving a 4 or 5 rating, from me.  Good thing I'm not a part of that odd conglomeration.

A more appropriate, to the point review:

This is another one of those CDs where I had no idea what to expect. A weird title from an even weirder band name and one I had never heard of before. The band consists of two musicians; Clay Green (acoustic and electric guitars), Edward Richard (bass, electric guitar, organ, keyboards) and Bubbledroid (DNA sequencing, arrangements, drums and percussion). In case you were wondering, Bubbledroid is the name of the duo's drum machine.

If you dig instrumental progressive rock ala the '70s, with a dash of bands like Van Der Graaf Generator, King Crimson and Gentle Giant, sprinkled with a dusting of jazz fusion, you will probably want to hear Chronicles Of Bubbledroid. It may not be an instant classic but the musicianship is there in spades and the songs are well executed. Both guitar and keyboards get equal billing with some excellent lead and rhythms throughout the disc. I did find it somewhat amusing when Green states in the liner notes "And keep in mind, the best part of the Polysorbate Masquerade Band is that It's completely instrumental!" Yes, progressive rock does have its share of iffy vocalists!

The tracks vary in length from less than a minute to over eight with many being of the shorter variety. Some of the shorter tunes, like the intriguing "Sixty-Eight" with its pulsating bass line I wish were developed a bit more musically. In other words, some of these tracks end too quickly.

The album begins with "Saturn's Orbit", a nice slice of jazzy flavoured retro prog. Included are some biting guitar lines and pretty cool bass as well. The guitar work is very good, as it is on the entire album. The album also has some pretty good melodies such as "Dry Suites 94" featuring a sweet keyboard motif and excellent organ work. Another highlight is "Time Sun" with its delicate acoustic guitar, exceptional organ play and off kilter electric guitar patterns.

At over seventy-nine minutes long and eleven bonus tracks, the album may be a bit long in the tooth, but for the most part Chronicles Of Bubbledroid is a fine listen and am glad to have made its acquaintance. Recommended for fans of instrumental progressive rock with a heavy '70s flavour.

I'm thankful they did have the courage and heart to make these albums.  For us on this blog of course this is manna from heaven in a godsend all in one package or rather 3.  Would be nice if we could hear some more output now more recently.  Here's the 68 track referenced above, which features some really odd chord changes, it reminds me a lot of the US keyboard classics as I said like Radio Piece III or maybe Happy The Man, or the recent (and fantastic) Earthrise release I put back here:

Opa, from Uruguay in 3 albums: Back Home the Lost Sessions 1975, Goldenwings (1976) and Magic Time (1977)

 

Randomly found this thanks to the 'suggestions' (also random) on discogs of similar albums.  From there:

Fusion band from Uruguay. They mix a lot of South American cultural elements, sometimes adding funky and samba type grooves. The band name is sometimes spelled OPA but it's not an abbreviaton or acronym, making Opa a correct spelling ; the sleeve of OPA - Magic Time and other sources confirm this. "Opa is a Uruguayan slang greeting, a sort of "Hello" it says in Angel Atienza's liner notes for OPA - Back Home: The Lost 1975 Sessions.

For those curious, the band comprises 3 founding Fattoruso brothers (visible on this release page), two are on drums and keyboards. These 2 are responsible for most of the compositional credits, I think.  Note the involvement too of the great Hermeto Pascoal (flute, percussion) on the first.  Also note the drummer, Jorge Fattoruso, played in the later 1970s with Flora Purim.

Their music is so similar to other 1970s smooth, warm, tropical and perky latin fusion outfits, eg. Crucis, Tantra, Nuevas Aires, Sacba from this blog, or to hark back to one of the classics I still love and enjoy and return to periodically, Caldera which hailed from NYC.  Very similar to the latter, with some US influence I believe.

Pieces / Goodbye is so heartful it really pulls you in:

And the second album, a little less interesting, closes out with a nice longer track called Malisimo which reminds me just a little of the glorious and incomparable Argentinian Alas band:

Surprisingly there were unreleased tracks from 1975 that were subsequently dug up, and despite the not ideal sound, these turned out to be quite enjoyable, tragically left off any legit LP release, but here we are so many years later able to listen and appreciate today.  The early rendition of Goldenwings, title track of their first of course, is even better than the official version, being more raw, an unusual thing to see generally speaking. They do a cover version of the Jacksons' Never can say goodbye which is a little annoying, but really the sole annoyance to put up with.

The (unreleased) track called Casa Forte is so good, it's surprising it got left out:

Really nice, randomly found stuff. Another surprise!

World Music Meeting, 1986

Similar to other ethnic fusion albums posted here before, the genre should be familiar to you.  Unfortunately it's a bit infiltrated by free jazz or too much improvising in my view, but the playing is wonderful. Information here.  Note the shocking lineup, with Hozan (Houzan) Yamamoto, Charlie Mariano, Trilok Gurtu, etc. musicians definitely from all over the world, East and West.

Again and Again as a sample track, this was composed by Colin Walcott and is in memoriam to him as well (he passed away at the tragically young age of 39 from an accident):

Swiss fusion band Intergalactic Maiden Ballet in 3 albums [1987 to 1994]

The first album had a black cover at first, which was changed to the one with the colored figures falling, perhaps an improvement, while the square crate with chickens inside cover was reduced in quality and dimensions I believe for later, while the third features a purely generic image which looks like it could have been AI in the days before it even existed.

The music is very typical late funky fusion, all instrumental, with a kind of chaotic riffery on saxes and guitars.  A bit like a more wild and unrestrained version of my usual touchpoint the Brecker Bros and Step Ahead, who were so good at writing compelling and original, one-of-a-kind  funky fusion compositions in my opinion.

One track that does sound like them a lot, is Trap Dance, from the second album with John Zorn:

For the third album, which is perhaps the best of the 3, Blow:

Astonishing American Jazz Arranger/Composer George Russell in Events Part 2, more albums of note [1972 Living Time, 1982 Live in an American Time Spiral]

 

Living Time, with ultra-famous jazz pianist Bill Evans, is not quite as amazing as Vertical Forms.  I think if you know and are familiar with Claus Ogerman's collaboration with him called Symbiosis (1974), this definitely suffers in comparison.

Nonetheless it does have some moments of great beauty, but quite a bit of filler, surprisingly.

Living Time, Event VIII begins with solo Evans playing quite complex modern music, when suddenly the whole orchestra jumps in with a chaotic Alban-Bergian mess that sounds almost improvised:

On the other hand the live album Live in an American Time Spiral, in my opinion, has some stunning composition again very effectively melding big band and electric instruments, and very intricate at that. And a wonderful cover pencil drawing to boot (by Roy Smith).

There are only 3 tracks, so they're a bit too long to sample here.  But here's the 10 minute long D.C. Divertimento, which was "composed for the John F. Kennedy Jazz Festival held in Washington D.C., in 1962."  It starts off slowly but really gets into a crazy sound later on, like a bizarre radioactive mutation of a jazz chart:

The stunner on this one though is the 20 minute first track, called Time Spiral.  It has such an original oddness to its melding of electric piano plus acoustic piano, and later abrupt electric chord dissonances with furious percussion welded to the standard horn section, that it really made my jaw drop and everything else too.  Outstandingly appreciated too is the fact every 5 minutes it completely changes directions, rather than just throwing in a bunch of random jazz solos to fill 'er up like an empty gas tank.

Imagine if Miles Davis and Stravinsky had collaborated together to write out a concerto for electric piano / flute / sax...

I'm reminded too of my old favourite unknown work, Don Sebesky's Bela Bartok homage, here, and in some places, this other past Melodiya favorite of mine.

Incidentally, for those curious, the electronic keyboard albums I found, because they're entirely improvised, quite meandering.

Astonishing American Jazz Arranger/Composer George Russell in Events Part 1 [Vertical Form VI, 1977]

 

I was very surprised to find this one, randomly looking through discographies.  Let's start with the brief discogs bio:

George Allan Russell. Born: 23rd June 1923 Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. Died: 27th July 2009 Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

American composer, jazz musician (primarily on the piano but also mastered the drums), bandleader and music theorist.

From wiki:

George Allen Russell (June 23, 1923 – July 27, 2009) was an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger and theorist. He is considered one of the first jazz musicians to contribute to general music theory with a theory of harmony based on jazz rather than European music, in his book Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization (1953).^[1]

...

Two very similar jazz 'third stream' (combining jazz plus classical) arrangers are Gil Evans (of Miles Davis fame) and Teo Macero in his earlier (nonfusion) Blue Note days.  (I read a bit about Russell's Lydian concept, but I don't think it's really interesting, particularly since his own actual musical style is heavily indebted to European classical composers like Strav.)

George's first few albums were very jazzy, along the lines of early Gil Evans from Birth of the Cool, mixed with classical composition from the 20th century.  So stuff like the Othello Ballet Suite (1970)  I wouldn't say are interesting to the fusion fan.  However the 1972 album with Bill Evans called Living Time introduces a more fusionary, electric sound, which really gets fully developed in the 1981 album Vertical Form.  This last one is definitely his best (at least from our viewpoint, circling like a vulture above the carcasses of fusion, classical, and jazz-rock), in terms of its high energy and interesting dynamics.

Consider the opening Event (surprisingly) called Event I:

The compositional level is quite advanced, with really intricate polyrhythms and polytonalities, but the electricity of the instruments makes it all easy to absorb, unlike the earlier albums where similar structures get muddled up among the horns and brass sounds.  Even though the thumping brass chords are highly dissonant, the overall structure, pushed through by the percussion, feeds into a kind of crazy heavy narrative that I find really compelling, despite its being programmatic music without any reference to the 'real world.'  It's a music that stands on its own merits, in other words, like any programmatic composition with an abstract title (eg, symphony no. 1).

The wiki entry for this work states, accurately I believe:

The Allmusic review by Ron Wynn awarded the album four stars and states "This is a magnificent and critically acclaimed large band recording with the Swedish Radio Jazz Orchestra playing compositions and arrangements by George Russell, who also conducted. His music, with its intricate, unpredictable, and keenly structured pace, textures, and layers, are expertly played".^[1] The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide gave it five stars and called it "a live orchestral recording that captures Russell's innovative orchestration techniques in a stunning extended work".^[2]

Vertical Form VI is a live album by George Russell recorded in 1977 and released on the Italian Soul Note label in 1981, featuring a performance by the Swedish Radio Jazz Orchestra.^[3]

...

I've listened to this over and over again in the last few weeks, and can't get over how well written this is, and how deeply original and complex, while still compellingly emotional.

3 albums by Marc Guillermont, by request [1997 U Man, 2000 O World, 2004 Zappostrophe: Tribute to FZ]

 

Three albums from this French fusion guitarist, discogged here.  These feature instrumentals with a very typical late 1990s-2000s electric-guitar-based fusion style such as we've seen before, but interestingly some acoustic guitar pieces as well to alleviate the monotony a little.

The compositions on the Zappa homage album (2004) to which we direct our attention first and preferentially of course, are all from Marc, but they are great imitations of not only Zappa's style of writing but guitar-soloing as well.  For ex., Mothers of No Convention Part 1 legitimately sounds like something he might have penned and played:

Setting aside all criticism, I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed this release, and the impressive attempt at out-Zappaing the great composer.  I'll listen to that one over and over again for sure.

As for the 2 earlier fusion albums, they are quite what you'd expect from this time period in that same style of instrumental electric guitar-based fusion, frantically played in show-off virtuoso manner with numerous notes flying all over the place, for ex. I'm Late from the 2000 O World:

Angine de Poitrine in 2, FLACs limited time only

 

The band title refers to cardiac angina, the medical condition.  Information here (about the artist, not the diagnosis)

These guys, from Quebec, Canada, have specially built guitars which play quarter tones. (That is, compared to a normal guitar, there are frets halfway between to make the notes between semitones accessible for play.)  Way back when you might recall, or rather probably don't recall, I posted the 2 LPs from Americans Other Music, the best example I know of, and maybe the only one, involving progressive rock plus quarter tone music.  I can repost these if there's any interest.

My beloved Teo Macero, who I posted before on this blog, also made some quarter tone music, you can see here discogged.  Of course the music sounds very strange, and you could make a case that it's quite unnatural given the unnatural dissonances.  The reason it's unnatural for those who don't know is because the 12 notes of the scale are based on whole integer ratios, for example from C to G is a ratio of 3 to 2 (in vibration frequency), from C to C is double, etc.  Others would say it's a natural extension of atonal music or more dissonant music within the realm of the 12 note scale that we currently have.  But no doubt it does sound bizarre and not due to cultural conditioning, as you'd expect.  As well, it's difficult to make melodies with quarter tones, though I think Teo was most successful in that dept.  More straightforward is to do those angular Frippian repeated patterns, then build on those, which is what these guys do.

Despite the zeuhl-like titles to the tracks, which are all instrumental of course, there is not much Magma influence here, as well there are only the guitars and nothing more (though violins can also do quarter tones of course, having no frets) with repeat patterns and staccato arpeggios, plus a little bit of ethnic influence as you'd expect, because in some cultures eg Indian music these quarter tones are encountered, but not overly much.

From the first album, Tohogd:

From the second, Sarniez:

What about the masked disguise, what do people think about that schtick?

Longstanding Chilean band Congreso, Final Part [1992 Pichanga, 1992 Los Fuegos, 2022 Luz del Flash, and Santiago compilation]

 

Back to wikipedia (what a complex story they lived through!):

Conceptual music (1991-1994)

The 1992 album Pichanga was created together with the poet Nicanor Parra , for the Convention on the Rights of the Child .

Two concept albums, difficult for the general public to grasp but musically sophisticated, were their next works, both released in 1992. Pichanga was a work based on poems by Nicanor Parra , inspired by the Convention on the Rights of the Child , and involved institutions such as UNICEF , Raddabarnen of Sweden , Terranova of Italy , and the Chilean Ministry of Education . Los Fuegos del Hielo (The Fires of Ice) was composed for a modern ballet, referencing the extinction of indigenous groups in southern Chile such as the Kawésqar , Aonikenk , Yaghan , and Selk'nam . The work was performed at the Municipal Theater of Santiago , as well as at the Itálica Festival in Seville , Spain , and the Budapest Opera House in Hungary , among many other venues in Europe. Each of these works proved complex for the general public, confirming Congreso's limited commercial focus. While the group distanced itself from charts and sales lists, it maintained a loyal following.

To be honest, I didn't find the 1992 albums very complex or impressive, so I stopped listening at that stage.  Notwithstanding, a nice composition from 1992's Los Fuegos, Exterminio:

I wanted to listen to the most recent release, 2022's Luz del Flash, and in that one I was shocked to hear this lovely composition about someone with Alzheimer's, and I would love to know what the lyrics are saying:

I love how the basic verse part flows into a chorus section with completely broken up modulations of chords in different keys, almost unconnected to any specific tonic, as if imitating the fracturing of memory of that unfortunate and terrifying illness.

I believe that one song is a work of genius (among so many others in this oeuvre) and totally a fitting way to close out this review of Congreso, an unfortunately undeservedly unknown band.

Thank you to all those myriad members for the wonderful half a century of music here.

Longstanding Chilean band Congreso, Part 3 [1987 En Vivo Vol. 1 + 2, 1989 Para las arqueologos, 1990 Pure aire]

 

Again, from the wikipedia entry:

Sazo's return and the return to democracy (1985-1990)

Jorge Campos joined the group in 1986 and would participate for 20 years

A new album refreshed the band's style, becoming an essential reference point for the new Congreso: Estoy que me muero (1986), returning to a more popular sound, again with lyrics written by Sazo. Furthermore, drummer Sergio "Tilo" González, the band's leader, had recruited two young musicians from Fulano (keyboardist Jaime Vivanco and electric bassist Jorge Campos ), giving the band a third boost. Congreso leaned towards fusion with subtle touches of jazz , always in their own unique way, with songs like "Súbete a la vereda," "La isla del tesoro," and "Calipso intenso, casi azul," among others

The song "Calypso intenso, casi azul" was the emblem of the new stage, and the development and popularity coincided with the 1988 referendum that marked the exit of Augusto Pinochet from La Moneda, and the Chilean transition to democracy. In this context, Congreso edited Para los arqueólogos del futuro (1989), an album with some of the fastest-paced rhythms in the band's history, and in which they sang about racial freedom, they played, ironized and deployed all of their instrumental resources. According to Sazo, the album "touches on the ability to forget in Latin America, which ends with the dead, especially with those of this era." Songs like "En todas las esquinas" or "El trapecista" reached high radial diffusion, especially the former which became one of the iconic themes of the arrival of democracy. The album was the first in the group's history to reach the category of "gold" (for 15,000 copies sold). Congreso retained the formula on the next disc, Aire Puro (1990), but the mass echo was, this time, more moderate. The success of this period include themes that echoed those living with passion the Chilean transition to democracy, like in the song "Aire puro", which allowed them to participate in the legendary concert Desde Chile... un abrazo a la esperanza of Amnesty International in 1990 alongside renowned international artists such as Sinéad O'Connor, Sting, Peter Gabriel, New Kids on the Block, Jackson Browne, Luz Casal, Wynton Marsalis, Rubén Blades, and Inti-Illimani, among others.^[2]

etc.

En Vivo, from 1987, is well recorded and presents some original songs, I believe, but I haven't listened closely enough to be totally sure.

Para los Arqueologos continues nicely in the same progressive folk vein, not quite as insistently original however, consider Un Sueno Perdido:

However with 1990's Pure Aire, they begin to incorporate new age into the ethnic folk mix, and I believe from then on there is more and more in that vein, with a gradual abandonment of the fusion and progressive chamber that to me is so appealing and in fact addictive.  Was the return to 'democracy' a negative influence for them perhaps, who thrived under the former repressive regime?

For example, Musica para tu regreso:

Longstanding Chilean band Congreso, Part 2: [1981 Viaje por la Creste, 1983 Ha Llegado Carta, 1984 Pajaros de Arcilla, 1986 Estoy que me muero cassette]

 

It's unbelievable how beautiful the album covers get during this stage in their history, in keeping with the high quality of the progressive music.

Following a very folky series of records through the 1970s, this series of 4 albums features incredibly advanced compositions, one track after another, just a shockingly embarassing surfeit of riches.  We have chamber music, fusion, dissonance, vocal tracks, the gorgeous Italian-style (Genesis-influenced) flute prog, etc.  At times it reminds me of my old Mexican favorite Gerardo Batiz, all of whose albums I tried to collect, or perhaps the wonderful Sacbe band posted before. Not quite as ingenious as Carlos Franzetti or as fusionary, but it certainly comes close at times.

Again, wikipedia makes some good points here:

Change of members and shift towards progressive rock (1979-1984)

The departure of some members diminished the power of the group, which was deeply embedded in the dictatorship, with protest songs disguised as poetic lyrics and musical complexities. The three González brothers took more than a year to rebuild the group while working as backing musicians for television orchestras and with musicians like the Argentinian pianist Raúl di Blasio . It was through these connections that they met the young Chilean-Brazilian Joe Vasconcellos, whose Latin American interests and musical background they felt would breathe new life into the project. Together, they completed the new lineup of Congreso. The band had recently welcomed pianist Aníbal Correa and bassist Ernesto Holman , who was not only an old acquaintance of Tilo González from his university days in Valparaíso, but would also become one of the most representative figures of the group's new fusion sound. Vasconcellos then took over as lyricist, and with this arrangement, Congreso released Viaje por la cresta del mundo (1981), one of their strongest works, featuring some of Tilo's most challenging compositions such as "Viaje por la cresta del mundo," "Hijo del diluvio," and "El descarril," among others. However, public recognition came with the inclusion of a single song, the now-classic "Hijo del sol luminoso," written by Joe Vasconcellos. Congreso then took a clear turn toward progressive rock , but always retained their Latin American style.

Moving between the stages of the Nueva Canción Chilena movement , the emerging rock spaces of those years, and university circuits, Congreso solidified its name as a fundamental band of the Chilean music scene. With their album, Ha Llegado Carta (1983), they toured extensively and were signed by CBS-Argentina to record a new album. Vasconcellos' departure led the group to focus their repertoire on instrumental pieces, resulting in Pájaros de Arcilla (1984). That year, saxophonist Jaime Atenas, from Valparaíso and formerly of the jazz-fusion group Ensamble, joined the band . This album is one of the most critically acclaimed in Congreso's history; however, it received little distribution on this side of the Andes, alienating them from their local audience and generating a new crisis that was resolved shortly afterward with the return of Sazo (by then a PhD in Philosophy, after years of study in Europe).

Very interesting indeed, and I see they are putting forth my thesis exactly that the most progressive period for them was this early 1980s stage, and of course that's quite a surprise given the zeitgeist worldwide, from which they were evidently, and thankfully, completely insulated.  Viva los Andes!  Consider  Nuevo Intento, from the 1981 Viaje:

While the composition called Sur from Ha Llegado Carta, absolutely made me fall off my chair yet again, though after I recovered from my head injury I listened to it for the rest of the day:

I absolutely love the cover of the Pajaros, and here's Anden del Aire to musically impress you all further:

These are their masterpieces, let me assure you.  Sometimes reminds me of the formidable Argentinian Raul Porchetto.  A glorious period for this group wherein they pulled all the compositional creative stops and went all in for the (lost?) cause of progressive music.  Who would've thought, from Chile?  On this blog, I think only the wonderful hard fusion band Fulano has been featured before coming from that nation.