A Gift of the Sea by Wayne Gratz (Reviewed 27 June, 1996)
For my money, Wayne Gratz is one of the finest, if not the finest, pianist playing and composing in new instrumental (new age) music today. His sense of melody and rhythm, his tasteful use of ensemble musicians, and especially his avoidance of melodramatic flourishes wins me over every time. His style has been called pop, but don't be put off by that. It is only pop in that his sense of song structure is firmly rooted in melody and rhythm. But his music's soul is much more than what that genre label usually signifies. His newest release on Narada, A GIFT OF THE SEA, may be the jewel in the crown of his career so far.

With this CD, Wayne continues in the same manner as his previous release, BLUE RIDGE, working in an almost totally acoustic instrument ensemble environment, with piano obviously taking center stage. While there are some electronic keyboards sprinkled throughout the CD, he uses restraint and unerring taste. In addition to Wayne's piano, the release features cello, bass, English horn, and percussion (although the latter is so lightly added that it's hard to tell where it is in the mix, so don't expect any thunderous drums). If solo piano CD's sometimes leave you longing for just a bit more, this release will definitely fill that void and yet not make you ask, "Where's the piano in all this?"

A GIFT OF THE SEA's song titles, as you'd expect, reflect the CD's title; and, in fact, Wayne himself in the liner notes writes of his love of the ocean and its calming influence and artistic inspiration on him. Upon hearing the CD, it's not hard to imagine how true this is. This is serenely beautiful music which ebbs and flows from wistful to happy, from calm to playful, from peaceful to adventurous. Much like the many moods of the sea, the songs are all different, but yet all share an unmistakable continuity. This is due, in no small part, to Wayne's expert production (he arranged and engineered the release as well).

Whether listening to the opening title song, with its gentle piano and English horn interplay rolling, almost wave-like, from my speakers, the happy and carefree combination of piano and pan pipe-like keyboards on "Steps in the Sand," or the reflective and gentle notes of "Two Solitudes," I found myself appreciating the warmth and beauty of this CD. I don't know that I can list favorite songs, since all of them are gems. What's funny is that, even though the mood varies from song to song, the CD plays very well as a "whole," i.e., where some CD's change of pace can knock me for a loop, this one seems refreshing. Again, in my opinion, this has to do with Wayne's production and song-writing ability. The predominance of piano helps to keep the listener "grounded" in the CD's theme revolving around the sea, while the ensemble musicians add just the right touch to each song.

The CD is mastered with the 20 bit technique that Narada has started using and it sounds like it. The amazing quality of the recording is showcases the wonderful music. I cannot recommend A GIFT OF THE SEA enough if you are a piano fan, or you are looking for beautiful relaxing music. Take a walk on Wayne Gratz's beach and bathe deep in the clear cool notes. You will be refreshed.

Halcyon Days by Steve Roach, Stephen Kent, and Kenneth Newby (Reviewed 19 December, 1994)
I'm a major Roach fan, but I must admit it took me many listens to get into this album. Once I did, I began to appreciate it but it is not an immediately satisfying album. Steve Roach is joined by two other musicians in this techno-tribal set. The title refers to a mythical time of perfect weather the week before and after the winter solstice (right now, on December 19th) when the sacred kingfishers would breed in calm waters. The phrase "halcyon days" has come to refer to a calm and idyllic time but this music is anything but calm and idyllic. I'll go through it cut by cut.

1. "Halcyon Days." This is the best of the lot, right at the beginning. It has a rousing rhythm in which the didgeridoo is used for percussion. It snorts, barks, howls, and burps. Also prominent in the percussion is a clay pot with a clear ringing sound, and a big gong. About three-quarters of the way through the piece Roach's synthesizers enter in a particularly nice moment. The piece ends in a lovely classic Roach floating chord.

2. "First Day." This is more in the style of Roach's other collaboration with Saiz and Reyes, involving a tribal-inspired dancing/chanting rhythm. The ponderous beat continues throughout this piece: BOOM-cha, BOOM, cha.....BOOM-cha, BOOM, cha.... and a Middle-Eastern style improvisation is played on what sounds like a primitive saxophone. It sounds like a mix of Middle Eastern and blues playing.

3. "Rainfrog Dreaming." Twirling wind sounds open this piece, which then continues, floating through an ambient mix of Indonesian gamelan sounds, rain, critters, those frogs we heard on ARTIFACTS, and that old honking didgeridoo again. This piece explores some of the waterlogged Southeast Asian territory of Robert Rich.

4. "Snake Brothers." It begins with atonal tweeting and piping, accompanied by rattles and noisemakers. It sounds like the noises that are made to call up hideous slime monsters in H.P.Lovecraft stories. (Tekel-li-li!) This resolves into yet another didgeridoo rhythm punctuated by clackers. The rhythm and tone color do not change that much throughout the piece. The "arrangement" is rather thin here and I miss the multi-layered "symphonic" sound of Roach's other work.

5. "Slow Walk at Stone Wash." It has some quiet thumping and droning, and some hooting winds. There are some long drawn- out synthesizer sounds which are reminiscent of Roach's MAGNIFICENT VOID. This piece doesn't go anywhere. This and cut #4 are the least successful of the album.

6. "Riding the Atlas." This has a good, exciting, fast-triple rhythm. The didgeridoo is back on percussion, and there is also more musical sounds contributed by a string bass and some creative synthesizer sounds. The piece is fast and energetic; this is good jammin'.

7. "Calyx Revelation." This is the most "New Age" sounding piece on the album. You hear spacy Roach chords with spooky cascades of electronic notes repeating every few seconds. It is quiet and chilling, but it doesn't change very much as it goes on. This fades into....

8. "Kingfisher Flight." It has the same nervous rhythm which we heard in the Roach/Obmana WELL OF SOULS. I liked it there and I like it here. The ensemble is accompanied by a mournful flute sound.

Graphically the packaging is appropriate for the "techno- tribal" theme though somewhat conservative. The cover is a computer-done collage of feathers, aboriginal sculptured heads, and water (or ice). Inside the foldout the liner notes are refreshingly clear and to the point. The photographs of the three musicians, though, are annoyingly blurred in an "artsy" manner. Neither of the three guys is a matinee idol at any rate, they all look rather scruffy and grim.

My general impression of HALCYON DAYS is that it is good, but not excellent. Roach's work with Saiz and Reyes (FORGOTTEN GODS , EARTH ISLAND) was brilliant and I keep comparing this new trio with that other one. I think part of the problem may be that Roach's collaborators play mostly the same instruments as Roach, so you get MORE percussion and didgeridoo, rather than a wider ensemble. As I remember, the Reyes/Saiz combo had an electric guitar which added some echoes from rock into this usually inaccessible type of music. Also there was singing or chanting on the other albums which I missed on this one. Nevertheless there is some top-quality material on this album and I will be listening to it again and again during, and after these December Halcyon Days.

Oceanic by Vangelis (Reviewed 3 February, 1997)
After nearly a two month wait, I finally obtained a copy of Vangelis' latest work, "Oceanic." And once again, I find Vangelis does not disappoint! What follows is my brief review; as always, your mileage may vary.

This is an album that represents well the breadth and depth of Vangelis' work. From the opening strains of "Bon Voyage" to the final notes of "Song of the Seas," Vangelis both turns over new ground while echoing past works at the same time.

I find myself gravitating to one piece in particular on every Vangelis album I hear, and Oceanic is no different. "Spanish Harbor" contains a back beat that would make it suitable for airplay on any number of "smooth jazz" radio stations. The chord alone would make it qualify as a lush tune, but the addition of Spanish/flamenco guitar stylings add a new twist.

And it's the subtle twists and surprises to each piece that confirm to me Vangelis' place as one of today's preeminent composers. Every chord change, every additional instrumental embellishment comes unexpectedly, but not unwelcome.

No look at the track listing was necessary to identify "Memories of Blue." Here Vangelis directly acknowledges his previous efforts, on Blade Runner and Themes, where "Memories of Green" may be found. Looking back and looking forward at the same time, Vangelis' signature is unmistakable.

I'm very satisfied with "Oceanic." It flows well, has enough hooks to justify its seagoing title (oops, sorry about the metaphor), and is sprinkled throughout with touches of the master's brilliance. There may be some for whom this album lacks one thing or another, but for me, it was worth the wait.

Review copyright 1997 by Fred Puhan

Star Signs by Cliff Stanbrook (Reviewed 17 August, 1995)
Writing music based on the 12 signs of the Zodiac may not be a new idea. However, British keyboard player Cliff brings as much variety to the music on this album as there are personality traits for each sign.

The first track opens with a majestic sweep into a melody both vibrant and forceful - which is exactly how Cliff describes the star sign of Aries. In fact there is a two word description for each sign which also matches the mood of each track music.

Pisces is "elusive and spontaneous" with its light melody augmented by a wonderful mix of modern keyboard sounds and hammond organ.

Cancer, 'pure and harmonius', bends the listener to and fro like wheat in a breeze - very spacey. And like all the tracks is uncluttered by unnecessary showmanship.

The Taurus decription of 'earthy and resolute' is just right for the rythm track of this more upbeat number. I love the odd samples used to create it!

And that's just a few of my favourite tracks...

At just over 55 minutes the variety of styles and excellent, unmuddled production make this album well worth a try.

For more information contact Cliff

On Solar Winds by Bob Czina (Reviewed 17 August, 1995)
Described by Bob as a series of 'synthonic' tone poems this is an album full of melody and impressive orchestral arrangements.

The opening dark, moody chords of 'To the Sun' is followed by the much lighter 'Mercury'. Both our are very full sounding which contrasts very neatly with the simpler arrangment of 'Venus'. Three different moods in the first three tracks and yet they and the rest of the album flow together really well.

'Jupiter' is one of the highlight tracks for me. Harp like background to a flute melody that rises, falls and builds with the gentle rhythm of tambla's until it drops to a piano outro. All the time I'm painting imaginary pictures of the hills surrounding a Rome.

At times there's a touch of Tomita and at others Rick Wakeman amongst the sounds and arrangements. But this style of album will always meet comparisons with them. It's Bob's strong melodies that really makes this album for me and when the final track, 'Pluto', bows out I always leave a few minutes for those final notes to echo 'round my head.

Bob Czina sadly passed away earlier this year so I can't tell him personally how much I enjoy this album. It's available through CMC at a very reasonable price though there are only a few copies left.

Perseids by Keith Snyder (Reviewed 17 August, 1995)
To paraphrase a well known UK sporting blooper "This is an album of two halves, Dave"!

Side one is one of the better collections of electric pop music I've heard for a long time and its the African style backing that lifts these tracks above the norm. My daughter and I love the infectious rythms and bass of 'KPO' (what does it stand for?). And if you want to know what ever happened to the humour of The Art of Noise well it's alive and well and living in 'Wyvern Eat Cooky' the final track of side one - found sounds to the fore!

Now we turn the tape to side two and we start to wonder if Keith has a split personality... Each of the four tracks blends into each other to make a very mellow 20-25 minutes. Simple, uncluttered arrangements with unusual sounds and textures. The melody lines are more subtle as is Keith's way of changing the timbre of the lead sounds as the tracks progress.

Another well produced, well presented, reasonably priced album (cassette only) available through CMC.