Albumin "Corvus Stone II" arvioi Jan Mikael Ekblad - progea, rokkia ja kauhua

Note: This review is written in Finnish

Arvio ilmestynyt alunperin Facebook-ryhmässä "Jamex ja Outo Maailma"

Jan Mikael Ekblad

19. maaliskuuta

Hyvää kansallista naistenpäivää 19.3.2015.
Hyvää Minna Canthin päivää!

Corcus Stone: II
Julkaisu: 11 / 2014 (Suomi)
Julkaisija: Melodic Revolution Records (Orlando, Florida, USA).
79:23
80 / 100 (4 / 5)

Kappaleet:
01. The Simple Life
02. Early Morning Call
03. Boots For Hire
04. Sneaky Entrance in to Lisa
05. Purple Stone
06. A Stoned Crow Meets the Rusty Wolff Rat
07. Lisa Has a Cigar
08. Mr Cha Cha
09. Dark Tower
10. Scandinavians in Mexico
11. Mystery Man
12. Camelus Bactrianus (Tuolla tuonnempana)
13. Uncle Schunkle
14. Eternal Universe
15. Moaning Lisa
16. Campfire (Tulen luona)

Muusikot, grafiikka ja vierailevat tähdet:

Pasi Koivu: Koskettimet
Colin Tench: Kitarat
Petri Lemmy Lindström: Basso
Robert Wolff: Rummut ja perkussiot

Sonia Mota: Grafiikka

Andress Guazzelli: Laulu (5.)
Blake Carpenter: Laulu (3., 5., 9. ja 11.)
German Vergara: Laulu (15.)
Phil Naro: Laulu (1. ja 14.)
Sean Filkins: Laulu, perkussiot ja huuliharppu (10. ja 15.)
Stef Flaming: Laulu (2.)
Stef Flaming: Kitarat ja koskettimet (3.)
Timo Rautiainen: Laulu (12. ja 16.)
Victor Tassone: Perkussiot ja rummut (1.)
Matti Kervinen: Laulujen tekstit (suomeksi) (12. ja 16.)

Paljon on vettä virrannut marraskuun jälkeen Lohjan Maksjoessa...

Kuuntelin albumia jonkin verran tuoreeltaan, mutta tämän vuoden aikana tämä on ensimmäinen kerta. Nyt on aika kirjoittaa vihdoin ja viimein työn alla jo pitkään ollut levyarvio Corvus Stone II albumista.

The Simple Life: Hippiaika. 1960-luvun ja 1970-luvun vaihde. Hair musikaali.

Carly Morning Call ja Boots For Hire: Santana tyylistä iloista jamittelua kumpikin kappaleista. Tosin Boots For Hire kappaleessa laulu on ehkä enemmän synkkää Black Sabbath tyyliä. Sydänäänet lopussa ovat kiva lisä kokonaisuuteen. Myös Scandinavians in Mexico on suora pastissi Santanan alkupään loistaville albumeille. Myös Journey yhtye (- yksi suuria suosikkejani!) on koottu alunperin Santanan ensimmäisllä levyillä vaikuttaneista muusikoista.

Sneaky Entrance in to Lisa on pieni ja sievä alkuintro Purple Stone kappaleeseen. Suoria vaikutteita on kappaleesta vaikea hakea, mutta jotain tuttua Deep Puplemaisuutta tässä silti on esillä. Valitettavasti vain täytyy samalla myös todeta, että kaikkien soolojen lisäksi samaan raitaan on ympätty päällekkäin aivan liian paljon elementtejä ja koko homma tuntuu hajoavan ihan perusteellisesti käsiin. Vai oliko tämä musiikillinen kaaosteoria koko idean ydin?

A Stoned Crow Meets Rusty Wolff Rat on instumentaali, joka tuo mieleen Yes / King Crimson / ELP teokset.

Lisa Has a Cigar on pieni ja värikäs alkuintro Mr Cha Cha intrumentaalille. Lisa Has a Cigar on tietysti kunnianosoitus Pink Floydin Have a Cigar kappaleen kautta koko Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here albumille (1975, CBS). Mr Cha Cha edestaa iloista kokeilevaa ja melodista progressiivista jammailua ja senhän Corvus Stonen muusikot osaavat.

Dark Tower kappale toi jotenkin mieleen Stephen Kingin Musta torni(?) kirjasarjan ja hänen kauhukirjansa sekä 1970- ja 1980-lukujen klassiset kauhuleffat joita tuli ahmittua teininä Lohjan videovuokraamoista. Ymmärsinkö kaiken oikein? Ymmärsinkö kappaleen idean ja vaikutteet oikein? En tiedä...

Mystery Man kappaleessa laitetaan blues rock vaihde täysillä päälle. Tässä on mukana vähän Rolling Stonesin alkupään raivoa ja asennetta ja jopa Francis Goyan melodisenpaa pienimuotoista akustista tunnelmointia. Kappaleen loppupuoli on oikeastaan Ozzy Osbourne / Black Sabbath värimaailman sateenkaari. Ei voi muuta sanoa kuin, että todella monipuolinen kappale on tässä kyseessä.

Tuolla kauempana ja Tulen luona ovat suomenkielisiä kappaleita / runolaulantaa. Timo Rautiaisen (Lyijykomppania, Aku Ankkuli, Timo Rautiainen ja Trio Niskalaukaus sekä Timo Rautiainen ja Neljäs sektori) ääni sopii erinomaisesti kaikenlaisiin suomirock / suomi-iskelmä / suomiproge kappaleisiin. Hienoja teoksia kumpikin.

Uncle Schunkle on melodisen progeileva jammailu ja pitkähenkinen alkuintro Eternal Universe kappaleelle, joka on mielestäni kunnianosoitus niin Yes yhtyeen Jon Andersonille kuin Jethro Tull yhtyeen Ian Andersonille. Myös jotain klassista Kansas yhtyeen vaikutteita on aistittavissa tässä raidassa. Huilut ja orkestraalisuus kohtaavat loistavan rock asenteen aurinkoisessa Itä-Helsingin keskipäivässä.

Moaning Lisa Reneissance / Blackmore's Night tyylinen vanhankaltainen 1970-luvun alun tyyliin tehty ja toteutettu pitkä akustisviritteinen ja melodinen sinfoninen progressiivinen rock teos, joka on ilmeisesti koko albumin tärkein ja hallitsevin elementti, koska muutamat Lisa nimetyt kappaleet johtavat kaikki kohti tätä albumin loppuhuipennusta, joka tapahtuu tosin jo albumin toisessa viimeisessä kappaleessa.

Corvus Stone II on ehdottoman monipuolinen ja taitavasti tehty / toteutettu "vaikeasti kuunneltava ja omaksuttava" uusi progressivinen rock albumi

En osaa sanoa suoralta kädeltä sanoa onko tämä toinen albumi parempi kuin ensimmäinen.

Corvus Stone II on albumina ihan liian pitkä. Tuplana ja max 2x 45 min. pituisena tämä olisi toiminut huomattavasti paremmin ja näin mukaan olisi saatu toiselle levylle vielä bonuksena muutama uusi kappale, uusia versioita ensimmäisen albumin kappaleista tai vaikka suoraan pari vanhan albumin kappaletta ihmisille muistutuksena myös ensimmäisen albumin loistavasta musiikillisesta annista.

Kappalejärjestys on Corvus Stone II albumilla mielestäni hiukan väärä, mutta tämä on vain minun oma henkilökohtainen mielipiteeni. Itse olisin laittanut Moaning Lisa kappaleen koko levyn viimeiseksi raidaksi sen massivisuuden ja pitkän sinfonisen kestonsa (14:09) takia ja Timo Rautiaisen laulamat kappaleet ennen sitä.

Kiitos kuitenkin jälleen kerran loistavasti musiikista Corvus Stone. Iltapäivä Itä-Helsingissä kului näin hyvinkin rattoisasti.

Ja Petri Lemmy Lindström - Nähdään illalla On the Rocksissa Progelandin keikalla!

Some music taken from the forthcoming Corvus Stone album

Here are some bits of the new Corvus Stone music gathered together -these are really just little teasers!

The new album will be called "Corvus Stone II" (Melodic Revolution Records).

You can hear one of the special guests Sean Filkins (ex-Big Big Train) here - some other special guests will be revealed very soon!

We can, of course, already mention few more amazingly talented special guests to be featured on this album: Victor Tassone, Stef Flaming and Andres Guazzelli.

There are also usual Corvus Stone members appearing on this album: Colin Tench (guitar), Petri Lemmy Lindström (bass), Robert Wolff (drums), Blake Carpenter (vocals) and Pasi Koivu (keyboards).

Sonia Mota has once again created the artwork!

Enjoy the video!

Corvus Stone CD review by Keith "Muzikman" Hannaleck

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 2014

Progressive Rock Review: Corvus Stone-Self-Titled

Release Date: 6th November 2012
Label: Melodic Revolution Records
Website

This must be the longest time that has passed between an album being released and a review taking place, but as they say, “better late than never!” The album in question is from the band, Corvus Stone and is self-titled, being released back in 2012. This is not a new album to me as there have been several tracks aired on the radio show.

The band originally came together by the power of the social networks, when the core trio of the band started to work together and realized that they were producing amazing music through their collaboration. This original trio, Colin Tench (guitars), Petri Lemmy Lindstrom (bass) and Pasi Koivu (keyboards) expanded to include Robert Wolff (drums), Blake Carpenter (vocals) and, whilst not a musician, still an integral cog in Corvus Stone, Sonia Mota (artist). It is Sonia’s stunning artwork that adorns the cover and CD insert of the album. There are also contributions from Stef Flaming (vocals, guitars), John Culley (guitars) and Victor Tassone (drums).

One point that should be made, is that most, if not all, of the music on the album, was put together by musicians recording their parts in various places, before it was seamlessly “bolted together.”

There are many influences listed by the members of the band and include, Pink Floyd, ELP, Camel, Porcupine Tree, King Crimson, David Bowie, Riverside, Jeff Beck, Peter Gabriel and Deep Purple, which certainly indicates a background steeped in classic progressive music.


Corvus Stone is a 21 track single album release (with a further 2 bonus tracks on the early digital releases) with a running time that is only seconds short of 80 minutes, the maximum recommended to maintain the required sound quality. The track lengths are very variable, with four of them, “The Curtain Rises,” “Horizon,” “Intermission” and “Ten Inch Lisa,” all being less than 2 minutes in length, while track 18, “Cinema” is the longest track at 10:50 minutes.

The starting track of Corvus Stone, “The Curtain Rises” (1:32) is an aptly titled track, and is a short instrumental with some excellent acoustic guitar and a middle eastern instrument, which you are just settling into when it is gone and we are onto track 2. “October Sad Song “ (4.57) has some wonderful guitar work throughout and there is amazing synth/keyboard playing which means that this instrumental, together with the odd time changes and interjections by other instruments, maintains the listeners’ attention. Some heavy riffing guitar heralds track 3, “Highway to Emptiness” (2:28), the third instrumental, which motors along with some more superb synth passages. The fourth track, “Ice King” certainly changes the style, as for the first time, vocals appear, and are provided by Blake Carpenter (The Minstrel’s Ghost), which together with the excellent guitar work by Colin Tench produce an atmospheric track, which ultimately seems just too short.

“Corvus Stone” (8:20), the title track, being a longer track allows the ideas in the music to evolve a little more and there is more evidence of the amazing interplay of guitar and synth/keyboards. This is a hugely atmospheric track, shifting this way and that, and at times recalls the superb keyboard sounds produced by the (late) Bo Hansson, with those amazing grandiose swirling techniques. The guitar of Colin is always there, behind the keyboards of Pasi and they paint an amazing aural scene, and if you then throw in some subtle time changes, you have another majestic slice of progressive music.

The longest track on offer, “Cinema” (10:50) has some simply stunning guitar and keyboard passages, and as the track unwinds with similarly changing time shifts, some superb acoustic guitar work and beautiful electric guitar passages, which interchange frequently. This exudes a feeling of taking you on a journey with the music, allowing you to drift into the aural palette they are plucking the sounds from. “Cinema” also reappears as a bonus alternative version on the digital download early release.

It is not possible to detail all the tracks on this 21 track album, but to summarize there is a myriad of different styles on display encompassing more jazzy and blues styles from time to time. One or two of the tracks, especially the very short ones suggest ideas that possibly never really came to fruition and there is a feeling at times of patchiness. A real oddity in today’s musical world must be “The Rusty Wolff Attack,” which is a straightforward drum solo, introducing the new drummer.

After many plays, my overall impression of Corvus Stone is that the band have huge ranges of musical ideas which when they all come together correctly, result in pieces of sublime music, but at times the fusion isn’t perfect. The band were keen to demonstrate the range that they possess, but I feel that with more prudent trimming here and there, Corvus Stone could have been a simply stunning album, whereas, although there are some simply stunning tracks, some tracks don’t hit that musical peak.

As always, grab this album and give it several listens, as I am sure that my personal choices of the lesser successful tracks might not be what others think. I would still award the album a “One to Buy” sticker and I look ahead eagerly to the follow-up album, which has already had some video teasers released.

4/5 Stars

Key Tracks: October Sad Song, Corvus Stone, Cinema 

Jim “The Ancient One” Lawson-Sr. Reviewer Prog Rock Music Talk

June 25, 2014

Review Provided By Prog Rock Music Talk

Tracks:
The Curtain Rises
October Sad Song
Highway To Emptiness
Ice King
I’ll Leave It All Behind
Corvus Stone
Moron Season
Horizon
Intermission
Moustaches In Massachusetts
Pilgrims
Jussipussi
Iron Pillows
After Solstice
The Rusty Wolff Attack
Lost And Found
Scary Movie
Cinema
You’re So Long
The Ice King (Instrumental)
Ten Inch Lisa
The Stones Meet Cheryl In Soundtrack From Hell*
Cinema (Alternative Version)*
*Bonus tracks on early digital download versions.

Music news: Sean Filkins (ex-Big Big Train) on the new Corvus Stone album

• Posted by Corvus Stone on April 5, 2014 at 1:54am
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There are great news for Corvus Stone as Sean Filkins (ex-Big Big Train and now a remarkable solo artist) is singing on at least two songs on the forthcoming Corvus Stone studio album. The songs is question are "Scandinavians In Mexico" and "Moaning Lisa".

Corvus Stone includes Blake Carpenter (vocals), Colin Tench (guitar), Pasi Koivu (keyboards), Petri Lemmy Lindström (bass), Robert Wolff (drums) and Sonia Mota (artwork).

The special guests on the new album include Sean Filkins, Andres Guazzelli, Stef Flaming and Victor Tassone. 

The debut album "Corvus Stone" is available - the music is often compared to the bands like Camel, Pink Floyd and Deep Purple so if you like those bands you might give a try to Corvus Stone.

The second album will go into Santana territory on one song ("Scandinavians In Mexico") and there'll be hard rockers and real prog songs as well! It'll be fun!

Corvus Stone's record label is Melodic Revolution Records. ************************************************

Suomeksi (in Finnish):

Legendaarinen entinen  Big Big Train -yhtyeen jäsen Sean Filkins on liittynyt mukaan Corvus Stonen uuden studioalbumin äänityksiin! Seanin ääntä kuullaan ainakin kahdella raidalla ("Scandinavians In Mexico" ja "Moaning Lisa").

Corvus Stonen suomalaisjäsenet ovat Petri Lemmy Lindström (basso) ja Pasi Koivu (kosketinsoittimet). Lisäksi yhtyeessä vaikuttavat Colin Tench (kitara), Blake Carpenter (laulu), Robert Wolff (rummut) ja Sonia Mota (kansitaide ja grafiikka). 

Tulevan levyn vierailevista muusikoista mainittakoon Sean Filkins,  Andres Guazzelli, Stef Flaming ja Victor Tassone.

Corvus Stonen levy-yhtiö on Melodic Revolution Records.

Suomessa ensimmäistä albumia saa parhaiten tällä hetkellä kaupasta Levykauppa Äx. Levy on nimeltään "Corvus Stone". 

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Corvus Stone album review - from Zappaisms to King Crimson and Santana

• Posted by Corvus Stone on March 21, 2014 at 2:30am
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Here is a review by tszirmay originally published on Progarchives.

The album: CORVUS STONE - Corvus Stone (Melodic Revolution Records).

**************************************************************************

Bewildering volcano of sound!

Corvus Stone is an unfathomable quasi-religious foray into the essence of progressive rock, a delirious symphony of sound, atmospheres and structures where the compositions have merit both as sonic arrangements as well as showcasing individual performances by the musicians involved. They have elected to incorporate a wide array of influences covering the entire prog spectrum, avant-garde Zappaisms, profound psychedelia, pastoral prog -folk, bluesy rock, swirly space, euro- eclectic and the kitchen sink! The whole sonic buffet is rather difficult to assess on first listen, simply to cornucopaic to swallow at first but what a menu! Welcome to Snippetville! All aaaaaboard! Pull up your boxers, here we go!

What a crew this is, three masterful weirdoes surrounded by a few friends! Colin Tench is a sensational guitarist, full of dense invention and almost manic subtlety, displaying a multitude of styles and textures. The Wizard Pasi Koivu from Finland (do you play hockey by chance?) shows his mettle on assorted keyboards and bassist Petri Lemmy Lindstroem has the bass shuffling aggressively ahead. Drummer Robert Wolff is a phenom as well, while the Minstrel's Ghost leader Blake Carpenter shuffles the microphone when prompted.

But I am getting ahead of myself (which is entirely caused by the music within), so let's go back to the beginning then, with a rising velvet curtain, aptly named "The Curtain Rises", where sultry symphonic and avant-garde rock meet in introduction to the wild and wonderful world of Corvus Stone. Colin uses a lot of wah and even more wah-wah pedal on his majestically crafted solo on "October Sad Song" , a kiss ass piece of music than has a modern, proggier version of Traffic and some classic Robin Trower thrown in (not bad, eh?). Sustained beat and bright delivery, there is no way one can leave indifferent and skip ahead to the next one! This is a clinic of blues-based prog rock, swarthy, bellicose, suave and sassy, all in one. Twirling Moogs in sustained embrace with the lewd guitar (I mean "lead"), the bass keeps it all solid and then, outright slippery when coaxed into a jazzier groove.

Things get foxily creative with the swirly "Highway to Emptiness", loaded with sexy guitar meows and synth caresses that playfully excite and fascinate. It's short and it's brilliant with that masculine beat (think Diamond Head -era Phil Manzanera) and a little wisp of Latino influence, a backdrop of raunchy Cubanas dancing and swaying to the beat. Then comes the first real killer track, the galactic waltz of "Ice King" features the dancing duo of flat-out space bliss with colossal psychedelic winds, where flavors of Hawkwind, a touch of DiMeola and a weirdness bred by the likes of Robert Calvert coalesce in shuddering awe! Overwhelming influences and an execution to die for (pun)! The vocal from Blake Carpenter is simply put, chilling. I cannot help being reminded of the Stranglers tune of the almost same name ("The Ice Queen").

On "I'll Leave it all Behind" , the ivories take over on mainly the dirty organ with a little groovy piece of jazz-prog so predominant in Finnish prog, playfully juicy and loaded up with some blistering organ solos, and thrashing guitar , sounding almost like Manfred Mann's Earth Band meet Focus in a jam. Bouncy Helsinki! (Good name for a band).

Besides its moniker "Corvus Stone" should also be the band's outright anthem, a finely set jewel of multiple emeralds, rubies and diamonds. Thrown in some topaz, jade, opal and pearls! It all starts out lightly jazzy and then just blooms into a masterful composition that is an absolute emphasis on style and substance. Colin Tench displays his utter guitarring talent, bending notes like a madman, Koivu kills on synth, oozing like molten seed into every crevice and every orifice. The piano work adds exalted passion and the whole just cooks like liquefied foundry of steel. Bassist Petri Lemmy Lindstroem hangs around the guardrail, riffling along for the untamed ride. This will appeal to all fans of prog, its intense darker side toying with their innate zaniness.

The stellar "Moron Season" is stunningly fragile at first, one of those typical Brit folk-rock that feature Carpenter's woozy voice but then thunderously veering into an outright 'Highway Star' boogie, bass searchlights scouring the horizon (I haven't heard stuff like his since J.Geils) , slight adjustment near Canterbury and then , daring to lick "Smoke on the Water", tongue not just in cheek, if you see what I mean!. Nasty and clever, Mr. Wilson would love this! Growling organ dueling with the fiery guitar, now that's nice!

Little ditties also have a place in the nursery, as "Horizon" drives down the country road, "how y'all doin?" those funny Europeans. Cutesy! Almost Beatles 2012. "Intermission" has a pastoral acoustic barely 41 seconds long (Cutesy).

"Moustaches in Massachusetts" is hilarious take on DiMeola era, more rock-jazz than jazz- rock, with whiffs of Carlos Santana of the Caravanserai air, a universe where the sheer and elegant brutality of the electric guitar rules divine, adorned by looping organ motifs and some deadly bass propellers. The drumming is particularly effective, the atmosphere turning denser, heavier and more psychedelic. Slashing guitar throttles the bruising keyboards on the way out. Phew!

"Pilgrims" is a rumbling, clanking sympho-prog monolith with bruising keyboards and whirling dervish guitar solos, alternating delicacy and sizzle. Wolff's drumming is authorative and precise. A fine little workout!

"Jussi Pussi" is lewd in an almost Zappa with Steve Vai way, proposing a playful, "kani'kani boo-boo" carousel in the circus ground, goofball Canterbury silliness. This is nutty, bizarre (some Gong-isms in the vocal effect department) but bloody delightful!

"Iron Pillows" ratchets it up, careening into a King Crimson groove circa "Red" but with some slippery Phil Manzanera-style axe playing, churning organ adding luster and fluster. Rock solid drumming from Robert Wolff keeps this firmly entrenched in your mind. The sense of eternal progress is quite evident in the arsenal-like delivery; these guys are really into it, darn! Nothing soap commercial or sappy fodder here! Just real creative music, played to the hilt breathlessly.

"After Solstice" gets weird, oblique and slightly dissonant, a tortuous slither of strangeitude and deflection, Colin's weeping instrument carving nicely into the ivory whirl. I guess the best way to describe this is a prog-aerobic soundtrack (one-two-three-four, and repeat sideways). This segues nicely into a Robert Wolff little drum solo and a mournful vocoded piece, "Lost and Found".

"Scary Movie" is a highlight track, an absolutely ominous slab ob hulking heavy prog-rock, with a cinematic, Panavision-style grooming, nice binary bulldozing riff that slowly emanates virile from the ambient din. Boom!

"Cinema" is the epic, sweeping orchestral adornments abound, now deadly serious in their melodic approach, settling down a powerful groove (that delicious bass again) and sprinkling some fabulous acoustic guitar soloing and then positively exploding on lead guitar , evoking cloudy cellars and gritty streets, decadent cafes with blasé faces, clowns tossing oranges in the midnight sky. Cinematic is correct in my books, dreamy sections wash over the loudspeakers, the raven-haired beauty in the red dress slurps her mojito in languorous flicks of her tongue. The bartender worried about how late he will be home, the pilfered scotch bottle already wearing its kilt, kneeling at the shrine of girlie magazines stashed akimbo. A phenomenal piece of music, instrumental genius and what a mood! The soloists shine brightly, Tench ripping off one for the ages, tortured, sanguine and resolute. Power and delicacy, what a combo! Koivu paints and Lindstroem rumbles. Darn, this is classic terrific!

Following that monster is no easy feat "You're so Wrong" plays it safe, flute quivering gracefully and the only vocal from Blake Carpenter of the amazing Minstrel's Ghost shows its face, very much like something early Caravan would create, a relaxed symphony of accessible folky pop. Pleasant and fluffy.

"The Ice King Instrumental" only confirms the brilliance of the song, the instrumental prowess on display is second to none. Lush, deviously crafty, seductive and utterly charming, this one burrows very deeply into your soul, yummy!

The lewdly titled "Ten Inch Lisa" is a sprightly wee ode.

Bonus track 1= The silly and confused paranoia of "The Stones Meet Cheryl?" is evocative of circus-like insanity, bizarre effects, brutal noises, marshaling beat, doom keyboard slams, brash guitar rams and pulsator flexing drums. Heavy bombs here and I love it, Bonus track 2= "Cinema- alternate version"

I have rarely heard such a long (70 minutes worth) and lustrous premiere album, with so many gargantuan yet condensed compositions, stellar playing and endless cheery spirit. Some will be turned off by all the stylistic changes that wrongly give the sense of under- development; they just don't like to overstay their welcome. But if you listen to it as a whole, the enjoyment is enhanced by the breathless procession , as weird as it may seem at times. This is Nuggetville, so many gems to choose from. Who cares if it's a tad helter- skelter? That's their style, eccentric, iconoclastic, eclectic and adventurous. They have musical balls and so do you.

A band to follow intently. A glorious debut with so much to enjoy.

Instant gratification, racing pulse, visions of Emerald Beyond, tongue sticking out etc...Please be civil

5 galaxies

Corvus Stone meets Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, Cressida and Can - the review on Clair & Obscur

Corvus Stone album review on Clair & Obscur / Corvus Stone arvostelussa

• Posted by Corvus Stone on January 13, 2014 at 7:04am
• View Blog

Corvus Stone album review by Bertrand Pourcheron originally released on Clair & Obscur. 


Corvus Stone - Corvus Stone (Melodic Revolution Records 2012)

An international outfit called Corvus Stone is formed by Colin Tench(guitar), Pasi Koivu (keyboards), Petri Lemmy Lindström (bass), Robert Wolff (drums) and Blake Carpenter (vocals). Corvus Stone released this selftitled debut album late last year (2012) but it didn't reach Clair & Obscur until early December (2013).

This is hard progressive rock deeply in early 1970's style. Far removed from the cold sterility the combo is actually a mixture of Deep Purple's "In Rock" and "Fireball" albums on tracks like "Purple Stone" or "October Sad Song" with particularly enjoyable keyboard parts worthy of the late Jon Lord. Pink Floyd's "Meddle" comes to mind when hearing six-string work echoing the guitar playing of David Gilmour (especially on the epic "Cinema"). Also there are melodic touches of less well known bands like Cressida ("Ice King"), Murky Red (their excellent guitarist Stef Flaming composed the song "JussiPussi" in true Monty Python style) or Can (the title track including an improvised jam session). This album compiles no less than 21 tracks in 79 minutes. You'll understand this album doesn't care about current trends. 
More music to follow soon so we'll follow what happens next to Corvus Stone...
Bertrand Pourcheron (7/10)

Suomeksi (in Finnish):
Corvus Stone - Corvus Stone (Melodic Revolution Records 2012)

Kansainvälinen yhtye Corvus Stone koostuu seuraavista muusikoista: Colin Tench (kitara), Pasi Koivu (koskettimet), Petri Lemmy Lindström (basso), Robert Wolff (rummut) ja Blake Carpenter (laulu). Corvus Stonen yhtyeen nimeä kantava esikoisalbumi julkaistiin jo vuoden 2012 lopulla mutta Clair & Obscuren albumi saavutti vasta vuotta myöhemmin. 
Corvus Stone on rankkaa rokkia 1970-luvun alun tyyliin progressivisin lisämaustein. Poissaolollaan loistaa steriili teknillisyys. Deep Purplen albumit "In Rock" ja "Fireball" tulevat mieleen kappaleista "Purple Stone" ja "October Sad Song". Erityisen mainio kosketinsoitinten käyttö tuo mieleen edesmenneen herrasmiehen nimeltä Jon Lord. David Gilmour-tyyppinen kitarointi tuo mieleen Pink Floyd-albumin nimeltä "Meddle" (erityisesti eeppisessä sävellyksessä "Cinema"). Näihin tunnelmiin kun ottaa vaikutteita vähemmän tunnetuilta yhtyeiltä kuten Cressida ("Ice King" on eräs tähän tyylisuuntaan vihjaileva laulu), Murky Red (jonka erinomainen kitaristi Stef Flaming sävelsi kappaleen "JussiPussi" taattuun Monty Python-tyyliin) ja Can (nimikappale "Corvus Stone" osittain muistuttaen improvisoitua jamia). 
21 raitaa ja 79 minuuttia! Corvus Stone vähät välittää trendeistä eikä kumarra kenellekään! Jäämme mielenkiinnolla odottelemaan seuraavaa albumia ja uusia seikkailuja... 
Bertrand Pourcheron (7/10)



In French:
Corvus Stone - Corvus Stone (Melodic Revolution Records 2012)

Groupe international formé de Colin Tench (guitares), Pasi Koivu (claviers), Petri Lemmy Lindström (basse), Robert Wolff (batterie) et Blake Carpenter (chant), Corvus Stone signe, sur ce premier opus éponyme publié à la fin de l’année dernière, mais qui n’est parvenu que début décembre à la rédaction de Clair & Obscur, un hard rock progressif profondément ancré dans les early seventies. Loin de tout étalage outrancier de technicité glacée et stérile, le combo se situe en effet à mi-chemin entre le Deep Purple de "In Rock" et "Fireball" sur des morceaux comme "Purple Stone" ou "October Sad Song", avec en particulier de délectables parties de claviers dignes de feu John Lord, et du Pink Floyd de "Meddle" pour ses envolées de six-cordes au dessus desquelles plane l’ombre de l’immense David Gilmour (la pièce épique "Cinema"). Ajoutons à cela l’apport de touches mélodiques évoquant des formations bien moins connues comme Cressida ("Ice King"), Murky Red (dont l’excellent guitariste Stef Flaming a signé la chanson "JussiPussi", en hommage aux Monthy Python) ou encore Can (le titre éponyme, aux allures de jam-session improvisée). Compilant pas moins de 21 titres pour une durée totale de 79 minutes, vous comprendrez aisément que cet album, aux allures de carte de visite, se fout royalement des modes et du politiquement correct et constitue un galop d’essai plaisant, qui appelle tout naturellement à être transformé dans les mois à venir. A suivre, donc… 
Bertrand Pourcheron (7/10)

http://www.clairetobscur.com/article-corvus-stone-corvus-stone-1218...

Hard rocking surprise - Jerry Lucky reviews Corvus Stone (hard, heavy and gentle flirting with Progressive Rock)

"Corvus Stone creates its own little mini-movie with its own ebb and flow of emotions".

Jerry Lucky - a true legend - has reviewed Corvus Stone. Read it yourself here: http://www.jerrylucky.com/reviews-abc_013.htm

You propably want to check Jerry's site www.jerrylucky.com - you'll find lots of interesting reviews! There are also links showing the way how to order the books Jerry has written!

Corvus Stone will release its second album in 2014. The sound is very original but we can reveal the music will appeal to the fans of Von Hertzen Brothers, ELP (Emerson Lake and Palmer), Opeth, Camel, Deep Purple, Kingston Wall, Uriah Heep, Progeland, Moonwagon, Murky Red and King Crimson (to name a few!).