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ORIGINAL FIRST PRESS UNDERGROUND PROGRESSIVE ROCK MIRTHRANDER USA - MIRTH MUSIC INC - 2276 Beautiful TOP COPY - STILL IN FACTORY CELLOPHANE ACID ARCHIVES ...
USA UNDERGROUND PRIVATE PRESSING Original 1975 first pressing of a highly rare sought progressive rock collectible ...anyone into the likes of similar rarities: Yezda Urfa and Cathedral is goning to need to onsider MIRTHRANDER:::: Mirthrandir is one of those forgotten and overlooked USA s prog rock bands that reveales themselves as real lost gems of the genre.
Not unlike their compatriots Lift, Quill and Cathedral, this band sets the foundations for their sound with a close inspiration from the archetype of British symphonic rock, but definitely this one surpasses the aforesaid illustrious examples by delivering a robust sound and a clear musical scheme more successfully, always in control of the complex arrangements, always creating well structured melodies and solos, always keeping things tight at both a compositional and a performative level.
Rated as a lost classic and one of the masterpieces of 1970s North American progressive music, proves thee were great one off Lp s that measure up to the great Italian one off Lp s in the early 70s.
Mirthrandir create skilled arrangements, brilliant playing, passion, beauty - it is all here.
Lots of Gentle Giant influences along long with Cathedral s Stained Glass Stories , Yezdaurfa s Boris and Sacred Baboon - Mirthrandir deserves a special place in the ranks of progressive music, as one of the great but sadly short-lived bands that demonstrated that complex, intelligent music was also being produced by musicians in the U.S., again, certainly one of the finest classic prog albums we ve heard so far, and also one of the most sophisticated and challenging ones.
The band s quest for perfection certainly paid off - the music is outstanding, overflowing with creativity, great playing and memorable hooks.
It s true that it is at times a bit over the top as far as prog excesses are concerned: occasionally, the band appears to have over- exerted themselves through their attention to detail and vigorous rehearsals, as the music sounds slightly over-aranged in places.
But hey, that s the nature of prog rock, and it s silly to criticize this band for achieving levels of pretentiousness that myriads of other prog bands have only dreamed of.
The musicianship is certainly impressive, with every band member possessing admirable skills: the powerful vocals and impressive range of John Vislocky III are remarkable a major plus to the album and the drum work frequently challenging, as are the bass parts meanwhile, the skilled keyboard and guitar work showers intricate harmonies throughout the album.
And, despite all the tricky time signatures, the harmonic complexity of the compositions and the extremely dense arrangements, there is a whole lot of memorable material to latch onto , as the music is always melodic while never loosing it s complex tendencies.
The first few minutes of the opening title cut constitute one of the more challenging parts on the album, with plenty of compositional craziness which doesn t prevent one from liking it, mind you .
The track loosens up in intensity a bit as it progresses, with the last few minutes taken up by a beautifully melodic theme, which is a favourite section on this song.
A fast drum pattern kicks off Conversation with personality giver , which again exhibits Mirthrandir s incredibly sophisticated arrangements and compositional tendencies to great effect: the opening theme is excellent, and the complex bits are carefully balanced by more conventional and melodic ones though the music remains melodic even at it s most bizarre .
Light of the Candle begins in a pretty straightforward hard rock manner, driven by a fine, slightly quirky riff, but the synth around 1:30 signals a return into Mirthrandir s unique prog world, where fascinating harmonies and outstanding interplay reign supreme.
Once again, an impressive number.
A bit less impressive than Number Six , though even with the excellent opening melody, which serves as the main theme for this instrumental.
But of course, Mirthrandir s uncanny ability to shift effortlessly from one great musical idea to another without staying too long on any one of them is still evident, providing even more prog joy.
Yet it s perhaps For Four , the closing 14 minute track, that stands as the band s finest achievement.
All of the band s trademarks are present, and more.
It opens with a pleasantly peculiar piano part backed by bass guitar, soon joined by Vislocky he could ve been more creative here to be honest, instead of just following the piano melody .
This section is quickly replaced by the entire band playing some funky-ish riffs, which in turn are succeeded by a lovely major-key piano theme - one of the simpler moments on the album, but one of the finest too.
The theme prompts some nice jamming, eventually succeeded by another mighty prog excursion.
Around the 5 minute mark, an interesting marching band-style section is introduced, to be succeeded after about 2 minutes by atmospheric guitar arpeggiation that actually sounds very modern keep in mind that this album was released in 1976 .
The overall tone of the music at this point is solemn and moody, with occasional unsettling diminished-sounding guitar shapes.
Towards the end of the song, the band return to their intense brand of prog, also finding time to revisit earlier themes.
Overall, an excellent example of how a progressive epic should be done.
Along with other little known US bands like Yezda Urfa and Cathedral, this band deserved success more than many established prog legends.
Of course, the assault of punk rock and the completely uncommercial nature of Mirthrandir s music made this practically impossible, but the band s contributions to 70s prog cannot be overstated.
All said, this is one of those albums that requires very careful listening, but if you like complex prog rock, you may very well love this rarity.
- Robert Arace / drums - Richard Excellente / guitar - Simon Gannett / keyboards - James Miller / bass, flute - Alexander Romanelli / guitar - John Vislocky III / vocals, For You The Old Women 8:13 Conversation With Personality Giver 5:36 Light Of The Candle 4:22 Number Six 5:04 For Four 14:45 CONDITION: The cover: Stunning MINT in factory celophane, flat square with fresh original colors, no delete marks, no split seams, no bends, and no writing ...
collection worthy rarity ...
The vinyl: Clean and glossy over both sides, rated: M- TOP COPY expect very enjoyable all clean/clear audio play grade NO distracting surface problems ...
both private press labels are clean A cool addition to anyone s music library SEE: SELLERS OTher items for similar cool sounds for head people...
EFFICIENT/CAREFUL GRADING All imperfections are noted both cover record NOTE: All Items backed by money back guarantee IF you have a problem PLEASE let us solve for you BEFORE leaving ANY negative feedback.
Thanks GRADING SCALE: M, M-, EX, VG ,VG , VG, VG- M Completely clean, no marks M- Carefully used, looks clean, plays clean, shiny gloss, no marks EX Faint scuff or superficial mark, near M-, high gloss, plays clean VG Glossy with minimal scuffing or light mark playing very nice, clean VG a bit more scuff or markls still plays well with very minimal surface at worse VG more marks/scratches only minor, nothing deep, no loud clicks or pops this grade is abused by many, VG here does not mean trashed VG- surface noise present, will not have skips or jumps ALL PAYMENTS SHOULD BE MADE WITHIN 5 DAYS Of AUCTIONS END BIDDERS PLEASE Do Not Bid If You Are Not Serious About Following Through The Transaction ALL ITEMS GUARANTEED FOR WINNING BID - LESS SHIPPING
