Nowhere is
a nine track album lasting around 44 minutes, with the longest track, ”March On
Mars” opening the album and 7:47 minutes in length, and “Last Bus Home,” track
7 being the shortest track at under 3 minutes. (2:38)
This
is not quite an instrumental album as there are a few vocal passages to be
found, mainly on track 5, “Raindrops,” and track 8, “Shelter.” For those lovers
of early 70’s Pink Floyd and mellotrons this will be a very enjoyable listen,
with Carlo managing to serve up an excellent “tribute” to those styles, but has
also succeeded in sidestepping a straightforward copy of them.
The
long opening track, “March on Mars” is a great starting track which “grabs you
by the throat” in a sort of gentle manner, with the powerful bass, magnificent
organ and keyboards and if you add to that mix, a guitar style that “doffs its
hat “ to a certain Mr. Gilmour, you have the beginnings of a superb set of
tracks. At over 7 minutes it never outstays its welcome and is simply stunning.
As
you progress through “Lotus,” which is very atmospheric, with mellotron,
clipped percussion and a guitar melody that floats over the top, then on into
“Flood” with its very different drumming, plaintive piano, laid back organ and
a little quirkiness, you are very aware of the uniqueness of each track. At no
point in these opening tracks do you get a feeling of “deja-vu.”
“A Deep Breath,” is a superb acoustic piece
with those amazing mellotron washes, and very gentle. There is a change to a
slightly more jazzy feel to the next track, “Raindrops” with percussion which
keeps the track moving while the bass and guitar “chip in” as the pace
quickens. The vocals are very spaced out and dripping with echo effects, but
seem just right for the track. “Electric Sheep” starts with sheep bleating,
which seems an interesting touch, before settling into a stunningly simple
piano track with flute and trumpet adding to the atmosphere. There is a
magnificent guitar melody towards the end of what is a beautiful piece of
music.
“Last
Bus Home” heralds in another change of style, a more up-tempo synthesizer
piece, which has other effects swirling in and out. The next track, “Shelter,”
is another change of pace and is reminiscent of some of the material Camel are
so famous for. There are great vocals again on this track, seamlessly
dovetailing in, as they did on the other track. The main thrust of this track
is the superb guitar work of Carlo (who else?) which is beautifully melodic
creating a very romantic atmosphere to this penultimate track. The final track
on Nowhere, “Peace” has a very gentle
start with mellotron, piano and flute before the track builds in intensity with
more guitar work and keyboards as the track moves towards the end.
This
album has been played many times over the past week, and I will admit that on
the first hearing, I was not as impressed as I am now. It seems to have taken
one or two plays before I was aware of the majestic nature of this piece of
work. I am now convinced that this is an album definitely not to be missed and
gets one of my new double-sized, full color “One To Buy” stickers on the cover
and the “No Home Should Be Without One” sticker down in the corner.
5/5 Stars
Key
Tracks: March On Mars, A Deep Breath, Shelter
Jim “The Ancient One” Lawson-MuzikReviews.com Staff
March 16, 2013
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