Last Epic - A.C.T

A.C.T are a progressive rock band from Sweden. However, these guys are a little different from my usual choice of music. I would class them more specifically under pop-prog. That is, they write progressive material, but it's also accessible and dare I say... catchy? In fact, a few of these songs for the most part are pretty much just straight pop-rock. However, I guess since the ideas are a tad more interesting and engaging than usual modern pop-rock, I actually enjoy them.

A.C.T have released four albums since forming 1994, each of which have been incredibly consistent, something that I consider a rarity in what I've found so far. Today, I'm going to focus on their third effort, Last Epic, from 2003. This album contains some of their best tracks, in my opinion.

01. Intro (0:48)
Can't really say much about this track - it's some nice strings, and sets up for the next song. Moving on.

02. Wailings From A Building (4:21)
And now one of my couple of faves from the album - the whole song is exceptional. Starts out with a kickass riff supplemented by keyboards, and then we calm down to piano/keyboard. Almost sounds like something from ABBA, really, if it weren't for the punctuations of guitar and drums throughout. Chorus has a great chord progression, and is probably the catchiest part of the song, naturally. The song's structure is a predictable one, but this isn't trying to be some complex proggy thing - it's just pure fun. Just one last thing of note - guitar solo = best on the album. Just pure win.

03. Mr. Landlord (4:41)
Love the honkytonk in the first verse. Reminds me of something McCartney would write. In fact, putting aside the heavier instrumentation, this song is very Beatlesque. Another good solo from Andersson here.

04. Torn By A Phrase [Apartment 121] (4:21)
Another album favourite - starts out with an intro that wouldn't sound out of place in the 80's, really. The synth just has that vibe to it. The verses are the best in this song. Just excellent progression. The interlude is probably the first downright proggy thing in the album - got some quirky circus music going that is interspersed with strings or guitar or theatrical vocals - sounds like something from Queen, really.

05. Ted's Ballad [Garden] (3:47)
This is a predominantly piano affair, which sounds perhaps a little too cheesy. Not one of my favourites, that's for sure, but it's perfectly listenable.

06. Dance Of Mr. Grumble [Attic] (2:10)
An instrumental track, it's pretty cool. Solid guitar riffage backs the whole thing.

07. Wake Up [Attic] (4:28)
And for something rather different, ska takes over, although with A.C.T's now apparent customary string trio helping. Personally I'm not a huge fan of the verses, mainly because I'm not a fan of the genre as a whole. The rest of the song is fine, but not something I choose to listen to.

08. Manipulator [Apartment 121] (6:14)
The longest song on the album, it is also one of the more generic ones, unfortunately. Not much else to really say.

09. A Loaded Situation [Barbeque] (3:30)
The other main instrumental on the album, it's different in tone to Mr. Gumble. Other than that, description-wise it's pretty much the same thing.

10. The Observer [Surveying Room] (3:07)
This is similar in feel to Wailings From A Building. The progression in the chorus is nicely handled in contrast to the verses. Nice and meandering.

11. The Cause [Surveying Room] (3:27)
Another ABBA sounding tune with a twist, the chord progression at the start is one that I recognise instantly, but it's one of the underused ones that I love. This song really is sorta like something I would've liked to have been able to write years back, when I first got into composing. And so I enjoy it very much. Simple, but well put together.

12. The Effect [Surveying Room] (4:39)
The intro originally puts me off, with an 80's style vocoder going. However, then the strings come in, and things quickly change. The chorus is very anthemic, even for A.C.T. The last chorus is handled by the guest vocalist, Sara Svensson, which took me aback when I first listened. Another good song.

13. Summary [Surveying Room] (5:04)
A synth intro starts up, and another upbeat tune commences. I'm running out of things to say now, so I'll just claim that it's another decent track, and leave it at that. :P

14. Outro (1:15)
A very theatrical ending to the album, it lets the strings take centre stage. An excellent sendoff.

For those interested in giving this a go, I would recommend giving Wailings From A Building and Torn By A Phrase a go.

Overall album score: 7.9/10

Personnel:
- Herman Saming / lead and backing vocals
- Jerry Sahlin / keyboards, vocoder, lead and backing vocals
- Peter Asp / bass guitar, backing vocals, percussion
- Ola Andersson / guitars, lead and backing vocals
- Thomas Lejon / drums

Guest musicians:
- Sara Svensson / lead vocals on "The Effect"
- Thomas Erlandsson / percussion

Track Listing:
01. Intro (0:48)
02. Wailings From A Building (4:21)
03. Mr. Landlord (4:41)
04. Torn By A Phrase [Apartment 121] (4:21)
05. Ted's Ballad [Garden] (3:47)
06. Dance Of Mr. Grumble [Attic] (2:10)
07. Wake Up [Attic] (4:28)
08. Manipulator [Apartment 121] (6:14)
09. A Loaded Situation [Barbeque] (3:30)
10. The Observer [Surveying Room] (3:07)
11. The Cause [Surveying Room] (3:27)
12. The Effect [Surveying Room] (4:39)
13. Summary [Surveying Room] (5:04)
14. Outro (1:15)

California - Mr. Bungle

Mr. Bungle has written probably some of the weirdest listenable stuff in my library - they are known for their off-the-wall genre hopping and experimental structures and sounds. I think one of the major components that makes the band so good to me is their vocalist - Mike Patton. Widely regarded to be one of the most versatile vocalists in rock today, he displays an awesome range in this album.
California was their third and last album, and contains easily their most accessible material. It's my favourite album of theirs, as they showcase their take on pop, which is awesome.

01. Sweet Charity (5:06)
This has a surfer rock vibe, and mainly sticks within that spectrum. I'm not sure how I would describe the chorus, though. Pretty accessible, and decent, despite the description of surfer rock.

02. None Of Them Knew They Were Robots (6:04)
Starts off with an epic evil sounding metal riff. Then saxophone takes over, and we have some jazzy sections. The middle of the song sounds rather ominous, with what sounds like some latin being spoken. The song's structure then repeats. A trippy listen at times.

03. Retrovertigo (5:00)
My favourite song on the album, it's probably got the best explosion ever at its climax. It starts out with some very soft acoustic guitar and keyboard, and takes the form of a ballad, almost. The chorus does contain some electronic drumming, though. We then get a dissonant vibraphone solo, and then BOOM! Insanely awesome transition, with church bells ringing and drums pounding. Almost really does feel like a religious experience. Really took my breath away when I first listened.

04. The Air-Conditioned Nightmare (3:55)
Some cool vocals from Patton at the start, and then we get to... 60's pop?? And then a surfer rock thang again, and back forth etc you get the idea. About halfway through, a breakdown ensues, which is similar in style to the intro. The outro reminds me of the Beach Boys, due to the percussion and vocals. Good song.

05. Ars Moriendi (4:10)
And now we really get the first true avant garde song on the album. A very French sounding opening, the accent included. Accordian and clapping are also a component at points. Later on, we get some metal, interspersed with some nutty accordian work. Around this point, to my ears, Patton's vocals resemble Serj Tankian from System Of A Down. Frantic and fast-paced, this is fun to listen to.

06. Pink Cigarette (3:34)
This, along with Retrovertigo, is easily the most focused song - to be accurate, it sounds like a normal song. A waltz, unusually enough, considering the hell the previous song was. It's nice and calm, and comes with Patton sounding like almost like Elvis during the chorus. Of course, it comes with its little Bungle touches, such as the eretheal vocals backing the chorus, like a little alien chorus.

07. Golem II: The Bionic Vapour Boy (3:34)
This sounds creepy as hell during the intro. Then it thankfully becomes lighthearted - very electronic sounding. Reminds me of the 80's... good or bad, it's pretty cool.

08. The Holy Filament (4:04)
I love the intro section for this - the melody is melodic, yet unpredictable. Almost reminds me of African inflections at times. Also asthetically sounds beautiful, with the piano and synth backing.
Reinforcing my idea of Africa, we have what sounds like tribal drumming at points while the song builds up. And then back to the intro section. Beautiful song.

09. Vanity Fair (2:58)
This song is based around 50's pop, with vocal "ah"s and "oo"s backing, but don't you let that fool you for a second. This song is about castration. Yep. Awesomely catchy.

10. Goodbye Sober Day (4:31)
I really don't know at all how to describe the intro. Or the whole song, for that matter. It's not as nuts as that statement implies, but I can't think of anything to compare it to or any straight genre that it flatout belongs to. Halfway through, we have some awesome African-style singing again, but this is way more blatant than the last song that had that. And after that, some freaky Patton scat singing - it's really something to listen to. Then it's back to the preceding sections, and the album ends with noise.

All in all, a fantastic album, with enough pushing of the boundaries and odd genre-blendings to keep me fully engaged. I would recommend giving Retrovertigo and The Air-Conditioned Nightmare a go if you're interested.

Overall album score: 8.2/10

Personnel   

- Mike Patton - artwork concept, vocals, keyboards
- Trevor Dunn - artwork concept, bass
- Danny Heifetz - drums
- Clinton "Bär" McKinnon - saxophone, keyboards
- Trey Spruance - guitar

Track Listing

01. "Sweet Charity" - 5:05
02. "None Of Them Knew They Were Robots" - 6:03
03. "Retrovertigo" - 4:59
04. "The Air-Conditioned Nightmare" - 3:55
05. "Ars Moriendi" - 4:10
06. "Pink Cigarette" - 4:55
07. "Golem II: The Bionic Vapour Boy" - 3:34
08. "The Holy Filament" - 4:04
09. "Vanity Fair" - 2:58
10. "Goodbye Sober Day" - 4:29

Les Porches - Maneige

Maneige are one of my most listened bands on last.fm. What I find really interesting about them is the fact that they effortlessly fuse jazz, folk and classical music together in a way that is so far unsurpassed in my discoveries. A Canadian band, active mainly in the 70s, they were part of the Quebec Prog boom, where other bands such as Harmonium and Sloche also gained popular appeal.
Originally under the direction of Alain Bergeron and Jerome Langlois, they released two albums before Langlois left, and then the remaining albums had a much more percussive and jazzy feel without his influence. Personally I love both, but their second album probably wins as my favourite.
Les Porches, released in 1975, is probably the best example of what one might asthetically call chamber music, but it has all the stylings of progressive rock. Nearly everything is instrumental, apart from the climax of Les Porches de Notre Dame, where Maneige brought in a guest vocalist to do the job.

1. Les Porches de Notre-Dame (19:06)
Translation: The Porches of Notre-Dame.
I adore every second of this song. It's just so perfectly classical, and holds my interest every time. A particular section that I love is from 9:42 til 12:18. During that time, it's purely a piano solo, and it's perfect. There are simply amazing technical chops showcased here, but it isn't to the detriment to the song at all.
Another highlight is the climax, where the guest vocalist, Raoul Duguay comes in, and lets loose. He then provides trombone accompaniment til the end of the song. My favourite song on the album.

2. La Grosse Torche (1:23)
Translation - The Large Torch.
This is a beautiful classical interlude. Very short, so don't have too much to say about it, but I definitely don't miss it when I listen to the album.

3. Les Aventure de Saxinette et Clarophone (15:38)
Translation - The Adventure of the Saxophone and Clarinet.
Maniege's jazzy side comes out in this song. The percussion in this is incredibly varied, and the chord progressions heavily lean towards the jazz spectrum. The piano and vibraphone are essential components of this song, and together give a very unique atmosphere. And of course, mustn't forget the obligatory solos from the sax and clarinet. Probably the second-most challenging song behind Chromo, but still a good listen.

4. Chromo (4:11)
One of their more avant garde pieces, Chromo is built upon an interesting bass riff. The flute is the key instrument here, as it is essentially the main melody. This is quite different from the other songs on the album, as the phrasing and ideas used are more experimental. An interesting listen, but usually I prefer the other songs.

If you are interested in giving this album a go, I would suggest listening to Les Porches de Notre-Dame - that link there brings you straight to the piano solo, just because I want you to start there. :P

Overall album score: 8.2/10

Personnel

- Alain Bergeron / keyboards, flute, saxophone
- Jérome Langlois / keyboards, guitar, clarinet
- Vincent Langlois / keyboards, percussion
- Denis Lapierre / acoustic & electric guitars
- Yves Léonard / acoustic & electric basses
- Paul Picard / percussion, bongos, xylophone
- Gilles Schetagne / drums, percussion
+ Raoul Duguay / vocals, trombone

Track Listing

1. "Les Porches de Notre-Dame" - 19:14
    a) "Ouverture" - 3:03
    b) "Suite I" - 2:34
    c) "Suite II" - 0:45
    d) "Suite III" - 3:25
    e) "Désouverture" - 9:38
2. "La Grosse Torche" - 1:24
3. "Les Aventures de Saxinette et Clarophone" - 15:41
    a) "Chapitre I, épisode 1" - 3:47
    b) "Chapitre I, épisode 2" - 5:16
    c) "Chapitre II, épisode 1" - 1:31
    d) "Chapitre II, épisode 2" - 2:34
    e) "Chapitre III" - 2:33
4. "Chromo" - 2:36