Review: In celebration of the 20th Anniversary of Naruto, 22d Music top up their excitations with a new, symphonic rendition of the music of the famous anime series. Beginning with a eureka moment shared between musician Jerome Leclercq and licensing company Mediatoon, the initial idea was to recreate the entire soundtrack for a live-streamable cinema concert in celebration of the imminent anniversary. Originally composed by Toshio Masuda, Naruto's OST is at its core a fusion project, blending traditional Japanese folk instruments such as the Shakuhachi and Shamisen with the familiar stylings of pop rock, effortlessly portraying the series' coming-of-age angst and ninja-starring energy and delivering it to an international audience, all while bottling the essence of the musical heritage of Japan. Reinterpreted by a 50-strong orchestra, and accompanied by an original montage of the best moments from the anime, this is a must-have for all the Naruto ultrafans out there.
Review: Released in July 1971, Harmony Row marked a bold step further into the post-Cream creative world of bassist Jack Bruce. Building on the stylistic breadth of his earlier solo release Songs For A Tailor, the album shakes up jazz, folk, rock, classical, and Eastern influences into a poignantly expansive, socially aware sound, with Chris Spedding (he of Sex Pistols demos fame) on guitar and John Marshall on drums. Bruce, meanwhile, assumed most other roles, from handling vocals, piano, organ, bass, and cello to sculpt what has since become known as one of his crowning achievements. This deluxe box set includes the newly remastered original mix alongside fresh stereo and 5.1 Surround Sound mixes by Stephen W Tayler, sourced from the original 16-track masters. It also features unreleased demos and session outtakes, a 1971 TV performance with Graham Bond, a 1972 German documentary, and an in-depth essay by Sid Smith.
Jeff’s Boogie No 2 (aka In Old England Town - Boogie No 2) (6:30)
Whisper In The Night (4:56)
Great Balls Of Fire (5:32)
10538 Overture (2:28)
Review: Jeff Lynne's Electric Light Orchestra famously blends symphonic rock with 50s and 60s pop influences and has long since been known for a sound that sets them apart from fellow West Midlands bands like Black Sabbath and the Moody Blues. London Calling showcases the band's earliest 1972 TV and radio broadcasts while offering a special glimpse into their original vision. This spectacular collection features remastered performances including classics like '10538 Overture' and 'Roll Over Beethoven' alongside insightful interviews with Lynne and Roy Wood. Complete with archival photos and detailed notes, this is a superb reissue job from one of rock's best.
Review: This remastered glimpse into the Brondesbury Road sessions captures a formative moment in British progressive music-when Robert Fripp, Peter Giles and Michael Giles were sketching out the vocabulary that would soon define King Crimson. Recorded in 1968 using a single Revox tape machine, the material is raw but revealing: two early takes of 'I Talk To The Wind' feature Peter Giles and Judy Dyble on vocals respectively, both casting the song in a more folk-inflected light. 'Suite No.1' foreshadows 'Prelude: Song Of The Gulls', while 'Why Don't You Just Drop In' seeds lyrical ideas later reworked into 'The Letters'. 'Passages of Time' stands out for its bolero pulse and melodic motifs that would resurface on In the Wake of Poseidon. The fidelity may waver, but the historical value is undeniable-this is the sound of a blueprint forming in real time.
Review: The Cheerful Insanity Of Giles, Giles And Fripp might not have made waves when it landed in 1968, but it's since become a cult curiosity for anyone tracking the tangled roots of King Crimson. The trio of Michael Giles, Peter Giles and Robert Fripp wove a quilt of psych, chamber folk, jazz daftness and classical eccentricity, within a spoken-word skit framing device (a la 'The Saga Of Rodney Toady', 'Just George'). It's less a precursor to In The Court Of The Crimson King than a sidelong step into the British art-pop twilight zone, with Fripp still years away from his feedback-drenched grandeur. Though it reportedly sold only 500 copies at first, reissues with bonus demos and singles have helped rescue it from obscurity, especially the 2001 Brondesbury Tapes, capturing home-recorded sketches that fill in the backstory.
Review: Kansas, America's legendary prog rock band, are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their second album with this vital reissue. Its year of release, 1975, was a monumental year for prog with Steve Hillage's Fish Rising, Jethro Tull's Minstrel in the Gallery and Frank Zappa's One Size Fits All out that year. Kansas were riding the crest of this high and beautiful wave of prog and hit the form of their life, with Song For America often cited as their best work. There might be only six tracks but there's no filler and of the lot the title track is a standout: the ten minute masterpiece veers between orchestral grandeur, jazz wig outs, virtuoso violin and close-knit vocal harmonies from Steve Walsh and Robby Steinhard, leaving you awe-struck and guessing at every turn.
Review: Following the 2023 reissue of Tubular Bells, another Mike Oldfield gem Hergest Ridge now returns in a special anniversary edition with new artwork and sleeve notes approved by Oldfield himself, The release marks the first time both the 1974 original and the 2010 remix appear together on vinyl. The album was created in rural Herefordshire after the unexpected success of Tubular Bells and so captures Oldfield's retreat into nature and introspection. It was composed when he was just 21 and blends lush, pastoral soundscapes into two immersive suites that reflect a young artist balancing musical ambition with a desire for solitude.
Review: On August 1, 1987, Tangerine Dream, with the lineup of Edgar Froese, Christopher Franke and Paul Haslinger delivered a legendary open-air concert at Berlin's Platz der Republik to celebrate the city's 750th anniversary. Performing near the Berlin Wall in front of the Reichstag, the event drew over 100,000 people and became a powerful moment in cultural history, as well as that of the band itself. With their iconic electronic sound, the trio created an immersive spectacle enhanced by visuals and fireworks that made it all the more unique and sensory. The performance's impact was so profound, it's said the music echoed across into East Berlin and blurred boundaries through sound. It's a magical set to relive on vinyl.
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