Customer Reviews

Buried Alive

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I actually steered clear of Anglagard and groups like them for a long time because their music has so frequently been characterized as "dark and brooding". (Plus their only two studio cd's are hard-to-find and expensive!) On this more affordable and accessible "farewell concert" recorded in 1994 in Los Angeles, I was surprised to find a lot of beautiful mellotron and flute passages (ala early Genesis) permeating their music, punctuated by bombastic angular outbreaks of polyphonic virtuosity (reminiscent of King Crimson and Yes). To me, their overall sound comes closest to Cathedral's "Stained Glass Stories". The vocals are sung in Swedish - not the group's best feature - but they only show up sporadically in a few songs, so no big deal. Other than the flute, there really is not much dominant soloing; instead, the group relies on a strong interplay among all instruments. The heavy Chris Squire-like bass is a real treat, and the drums are excellent. Unfortunately, some of the keyboard passages are mixed rather quietly here - I found the first four minutes of this cd almost tiresome.

I like this album, as uneven as it is in spots. You get all four songs from their studio debut "Hybris", plus three from the follow-up "Epilog". Probably not as clean as the studio versions, but well-done nevertheless.

Ideally, I like my prog a bit more on the melodic side, and with more vocal harmonies. But this is a very good complement to that style of prog, and proves very exciting in places; doesn't strike me as all that "dark and brooding" either! It was probably very fresh sounding when the band first came out in the early 90's; I question the near-cult status that many reviewers of their music attribute to them. There have been many, many bands both past and present with comparable playing and songwriting skills. But I have no trouble recommending this album as a worthy addition to your prog collection.

I value interesting music that is played and recorded well. This cd's rating was based on:
Music quality = 8.7/10; Performance = 8.8/10; Production = 7/10; CD length = 10/10.
Overall score weighted on my proprietary scale = 8.6 ("4 stars")

Since this seems to be the only disc available by these folks, without having to pay a fortune anyway, I thought I'd give it a shot. And I'm not disappointed. It's probably fortunate that I've only heard one studio version of the tracks performed, "Jordrok" (I swear I'm adicted to this song!!!) I say that because many times live renditions are quite anemic compared to their studio counterparts. But the tracks are very well performed, the band sounding quite tight. My only complaints are the first two tracks being so quiet (the levels set low.) The crowd almost drowns out the opener "Prolog," which could be due to the microphone placements. This is rectified on later tracks, where you may find yourself dialing- down the volume knob. But the sound quality is good. A little bass- heavy at times and the guitar gets somewhat buried in the mix (why do they always do that to us?) But overall a very pleasing sound, the MELLOTRON coming through quite well as well as the flute. And the drums.... I know there are some comparisons to Bill Bruford concerning other drummers, but Mattias Olsson comes closer to capturing the Bruford style and "sound" than anyone I've heard. Very talented and somewhat young at the time. And that brings me to another point.... I have to keep reminding myself that this was recorded in the 90's. It has a very 70's sound and atmosphere, which is awesome in my book. The vocals, as mentioned, are somewhat sub- par and it would be nice if the lyrics were in English, but I'm here for the music, which is outstanding. So don't let my petty gripes deter you, purchase on, Brothers ( and sisters!)

For those interested with neo-progressive in the vein of King Crimson or darker Genesis, Sweden's Anglagard fit the modern mold without shattering it too much. This release, after the short lived but influential group had already called it quits, is a decently recorded live capsule from a '94 stateside festival which shows the band effortlessly channeling selections from their two studio outings with nearly all the mastery afforded to production work and overdubs.

A very good CD of prog-rock. It is more original than the vast majority of prog rock that has been put out in the last couple of decades. They have a very distinct style with a few touches of Genesis and ELP, it is a shame that they broke up after this record.

If your'e a fan of Crimson, you would like it, it might even bring some nostalgies to you. If you want something more than that, you might as well pass it. Technically speaking they do well, apart from the singing, but it is too predictable.

This group has generally been all too overrated by the progscene and the reviewers. Yes, it is good, ok, no big problem, but not SO good. Basically all the compositions is based on a single idea, and when you have heard the dark mellotrone sound, sometimes accompanied by a flute, piercing through the structure of every little tune you get somewhat bored. The singing, when such occurs which isn't too often, is just awful, so try check the instrumental tracks.

If you insist to buy an Anglagard recording mind that basically all their three works sound pretty much the same so you might be well of with just one of them.