Re-release of epic timeless compositions from Boston supergroup made up of people from Mission of Burma, Roger Miller, Eric Lindgren, et al. Ever since this stuff slayed me when I got a tape of a tape of a tape of a tape of tracks 4-16 in 1985 I’ve tried to figure out how to describe/classify this music: “Prog” would burden it and smear it, “avante” would make it sound boring, “experimental rock” surely doesn’t fit, “classical” is close but not right. These guys utilize composition piano arpeggios, Frippian/Belew’ish guitars and jazz/tribal styled drumming that are played in loops, in a way that Stravinsky himself would approve. All instrumental, this material is so advanced, serious yet playful, techie yet accessible, fast yet slow, dissonant yet harmonic, relaxing yet intense. Fuck: 23 years later and I still cant describe this band besides saying its some of the best music ever put to tape. They are still active, release new stuff every year or so but it’s a real joy to hear all this old stuff crisp and fresh on cd (instead of that terrible tape that I still have to this day in my basement).

CD1:
1) fade in with upbeat almost krautrock feel
2) strange pensive dischordant feel for sure, piano led
3) pretty piano to start, falls into a chaos of percussion, etc
*4) fantastic piano arpeggios, sublime with somber cello/viola melodies
*5) abstract and avante and noisey at the same time, Mesozoic! 6) a sorta Krautrock drving rhythm a la Neu, cool guitar melodies and dissonant piano, almost poppy
7) nice loopy piano riff and cool feedyback guitar, feels so Stravinsky or something
*8) Stravinsky “cover”: very abstract, chill parts, but pounding pensive and hi drama in places as well, just composition at it finest 9) an almost Eno’esque piece, like one of the Music For Airports tracks compressed from 20 to 2 minutes
10) the intense piano arpeggios return, this for an onslaught
*11) maybe their most famous track at the time because it’s the theme to the Rocky and Bullwinkle show, but its so perfect that they cover it because its like the pure embodiment of this band
12) somehow just pretty and lovely
13) a study in dissonant piano and intensity
*14) ah, just the prettiest track maybe, a drum machine and lovely piano/guitar soar together
15) songlike with a definite beat and a “hook”
16) another lovely more serene piece
17) Different from previous in the synth really is in forefront
18) chill piece that uses samples from a bird call identification record
*19) strange, very evil sounding with vague triassic bird calls

CD2:
1) cool looped piano with lots of interesting guitar and moog
2) kind of meandering
3) regal somehow
4) more meandering with a chill interlude
*5) very tribal, an exercise in excellent percussion
*6) a great spoken intro to to the band in a live setting, setting the stage for all the remaining tracks, that are live 7) excellent dissonance, not urgent, a bit more relaxed for them
8) definitely not a cover of the famous hit, but a mellow and melodic thing anyway
9) a more collage like live thing that’s jumps around
10) marching beat gives way to advanced cerebralism
11) mostly piano, solo almost
12) chaotic and crazy, almost free jazz with the horns, then turns into a near rocker, huh?
13) more pensive meandering, but the live thing works well