By Mike James
Zen Carnival

Mel Huang and I have always listened to and talked about progressive rock. But I had never heard any progressive rock from Estonia and Eastern Europe. Well, I was in a for a big surprise when Mel sent me three tapes of it: Crazy stuff! The music ranged from symphonic prog to hardcore fusion to neo-classical prog to new age. Overall, there was quite a lot to like!

The problem with many progressive rock bands, in my opinion, is that they don't have a unique sound or atmosphere. Sure, they have chops, lots of weird time signatures, and over-the-top keyboard sounds. But the music doesn't do anything for me unless there is some sort of originality and cohesiveness. I think that I can hear some originality in some of these recordings. And even some of the stuff which sounds a bit more derivative is good too, because at least it is fun to listen to!

(One thing that I do regret is the fact that I was not able to understand or review any of the lyrics for these bands, since I only speak English, and a bit of Italian and German. My sincerest apologies.)

If you are looking for prog with some interesting instrumentation, not just the normal guitar, bass, keyboards line-up, definitely check out In Spe! I think I like In Spe a lot because their music is a wonderful mix of progressive rock and classical music. Erkki-Sven Tüür, who writes original 20th century classical music nowadays, led this band back in the 80's, and you can definitely hear his classical mindset on the three movement piece, Symphony for Seven Performers (1983). The first movement, Ostium, starts out with a great simple melody, but before you know it, a ripping fusion section comes out of nowhere! The second movement, Illuminatio, is very mellow, but it has a really great atmosphere. The tasteful flute playing really comes out on this one. Then Mare Vitreum ends the set with some more great atmosphere, compositional intricacy, and exquisite orchestration.

Overall the Symphony is somewhat mellow, so it was really nice to hear them rock out in the next song, Antidolorum (1983). There's a great guitar solo over a heavy groove at the beginning, and then Tüür's commanding vocals take over.

Now if you really looking for something wacky, check out Concerto for Typewriter in D (1985). In the cadenza, the typist utilizes the whole instrument, including the carriage return, the space bar, and that little bell sound that tells you you're at the end of the line(!). I just couldn't believe what I was hearing! The music is quite amazing, but it does sound quite silly at times: The beginning section sounds like you are listening to cartoon music. It's definitely neo-classical, but with some serious jazz/fusion influences. I was really impressed that, even though there are extremely complex melodic patterns and rhythmic changes, the piece seems to follow many of the conventions of regular Concertos: themes, development, and sonata form. And the whole time, the typewriter is perfectly in-sync with everything!

If you only have money enough for one prog. album this year, I would urge you to get some In Spe. You won't be disappointed!

Next up, Olav Ehala - 5 Scenes from 'Johnny'. After In Spe, this sounds more like "normal" prog. First, the good points: I liked the thematic composition that ran throughout the piece. There are also some really nice harmonies that are quite edgy and hip sounding. Now the bad points: It sounds pretty cheezy in places, especially the vocals. He sounds like one of those Spanish Top 40 singers, but with weird music in the background. Also, the Rhodes and the vibes at times sound too cheezy for my tastes.

Now if you had to find some progressive rock to play at a frat party, I might play some selections from the next band, Ruja. I really enjoyed the two tracks, Avanemine (1979) and Nii Ei Vaata Tagasi (1971). Their happy, catchy melodies make their music very easy to listen to, yet they still have the sophistication of the great prog bands. It just shows you how good bands can use simple chords and simple progressions, yet still make their music interesting.

The next band, Synopsis, has so many different musical styles in their repertoire. It is quite mind-boggling. At one point it sounds like some 70's fusion band, then the next moment it sounds like lounge music, and the next moment it sounds like some really ethereal spacey music, a la early Genesis. Definitely worth a listen. (Selections from 1980.)

If you're in the mood for some great fusion, check out Kaseke! Sometimes I don't like fusion because the overall texture sounds too dorky, wacky, silly. You know, with all of the over-the-top keyboard sounds... But Kaseke's music works anyway because it sounds like they are not taking themselves too seriously. (However, I could be completely misinterpreting them!) There are wacky keyboards , great guitar licks, great drumming, and a great use of flute and flute effects. And from a composition standpoint, there is definitely lots of good stuff going on here. (Selections from 1981, 1983).

Radar is one of the other bands I thoroughly enjoyed on these tapes. Although their 70's-80's fusion sound isn't completely original and innovative, their songs simply will blow you away with their grooves and solos. These guys are serious jazzers, and you can tell they've listened to their Chick Corea/Return to Forever albums religiously! Everything is over the top. The keyboards have some really great wacky sounds, and the grooves are really intense. One of my favorite selections, Päikesepiste (1987), starts off with this killer Latin groove and amazing slap bass technique, but then the song moves into this guitar soloing which is very reminiscent of John Scofield.

Ego is from Latvia and they have a lot of interesting stuff going on. (The selections I heard were from 1986.) They are quite successful at combining fusion with vocals and not making it sound really cheezy, which is a rare accomplishment. I also enjoyed a lot of the keyboard parts, which reminded me of some Tony Banks/Genesis stuff from the 80's (like Turn in On Again and Abacab). However, the singer sometimes falls into the trap of sounding too serious in my opinion.

I was very excited to hear Solaris on this tape, since I am going to see them for the first time at NEARFest in June. They are from Hungary, and they are not afraid to display their musical roots. Hungarian Dance (live, 1996) is a show off piece in the style of Keith Emerson, but with some obvious ethnic influences. The Hungarian melodies reign throughout this fast tempo piece, with the flute playing a major role. Almost reminiscent of Jethro Tull at times. Overall, Solaris is interesting, but in my opinion they lack the interesting complexity and atmosphere of some of the other bands on these tapes.

I am sorry to say that I really couldn't get into the next band, Zodiaks. It's new age stuff. I didn't mind listening to most of it, but parts of it were just so cheezy sounding that it was quite unbearable. Maybe it will grow on me if I listen to it more. There was one part which had lots of arpeggios which was quite mesmerizing...But overall, this music had to many unfortunate similarities to Yanni, John Tesh, and other New Age 'artists'.

Quidam - This is prog band that is quite accessible. Even my girlfriend liked it, and she hates most prog! This stuff was written in 1998. And, yes, this band has lots of flute as well! At first, the lead singer's voice (female) got on my nerves, but after a few listens, her style definitely grew on me. On the surface, they sound like one of those bubble-gum pop band, but when you listen to the details more, you can hear some very nice writing and arranging.

Well, I hope that you will try to check some of this music out for yourself. A lot of it definitely deserves a listen or two! -M.J.

Michael James is a progressive rock fan from Boston, Massachusetts. He is the keyboardist for the progressive rock band, Zen Carnival. Before Zen Carnival, he studied classical piano at New England Conservatory for three years, where he concentrated on 20th century piano music such as Messiaen, Ligeti, Shostakovich, and Ives. And before that, Michael studied Physics and Music at Cornell University, where he had the pleasure of playing in various musical projects with Mel Huang (bass). E-mail: michael_james100@hotmail.com

Notes from the Editor: Knowing Mike's music tastes quite well (we've been friends for almost 10 years), I figured he would enjoy a lot from the history of Estonian progressive rock. This is a good example that Estonian prog is just underrepresented and remains an undiscovered secret -- and that once discovered people will love it.

I sent him 3 tapes. The first two are exclusively Estonian, except for some material from Latvia's Ego. The third tape is from other countries. Most of the material on the first two tapes I sent him are available only on vinyl still -- though we hope some of the best stuff, such as the earlier In Spe, will be digitised and released soon.

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