Customer Reviews

Metamorphosis

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Now we come to the acme(?) of the Iron Butterfly saga. At least Doug Ingle, Ron Bushy, and Lee Dorman decided that it was time for little Erik Braun to go and wood-shed a little bit longer. And that Doug Ingle and company needed a duel guitar attack, hence Mike Pinera and Larry Rhinehardt. Pinera(I believe) a west coast picker fresh out of Blues Image(or maybe it's post Blues Image) whatever, his presence along with L.R.(Rhino a southeast coast prodigy and pre Captain Beyond member) make for one of the best duel guitar duos to ever grace a stage and recording studio.
This cd takes off smoothly then soars, levels off, and soars up into rock space the musical frontier. These 5 musicians went heart and soul on this project. I highly recommend it. And if your a true ex-hippie who enjoyed the summer of love days, then put this in your cd player and go take a drive out into the country at night(especially at night) to your local highest altitude and park, put the seat back and space out man!!! Right on and far out, people.

A ex-hippie fan

Iron Butterfly has been dismissed by many, if not all contemparary reviewers. I think they are dead wrong. The band was inovative and unique. But of all their work this album belongs in every serious listeners collection. This is an extraordinarily fine disc. This disc has it all: wonderful lyrics, great hooks and melodies, and the musicianship is of the very highest caliber. It sounds like nothing else the band ever did. For those of you who enjoyed Captain Beyond, this album is the jumping off point for that effort. I have listened to this disc for 25 years and it is just as fresh and exciting each time I reach for it. Do yourself a huge favor and buy this disc.

Iron Butterfly's best album lyrically and vocally. And probably the best from an album cover artwork standpoint, too. From the front cover's casket and cradle washing up on shore at sunrise to the back cover's nude flapper with butterfly in hand, it's unique. No two ways about it. The vocals on this album are excellent with not one but two strong baritones, Doug Ingle and Mike Pinera. I have to give the edge to Doug Ingle for having the better voice for this band.Doug wails his vocals raw on my favorite cut on this CD, "Soldier In Our Town". Written by Ingle and lyricist Robert Woods Edmonson, This is a beautiful acoustic ballad with EXTREMELY strong vocals and an electric, psychedelic fade out at the end. I can't compare it to any other song I've ever heard. If In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida was Iron Butterfly's tour de force, Metamorphosis deserves an honorable mention as a new Iron Butterfly sound for a new decade.

This was the first (and only) album from the band featuring Mike Pinera and Larry Rhineheart and it is a real gem. Their dueling guitar work is solid and Pinera contributes some excellent vocals to compliment Doug Ingle and his soulful keyboard and vocal work. The music is varied and well rounded with excellent contributions from Lee Dorman (bass) and Ron Bushy (drums) as well. At first listen songs like Stone Believer and Best years of our lives jump out with their top 40ish sound and with continued listenings the rest of the album blends in beautifully. I've always found that truly great music is the type that grows on you, sounding better and better with each listen, until you find yourself enjoying every song. There is not a weak effort on the entire record and I ground the grooves down with repeated listens. I can honestly say I've listened to Metamorphosis hundreds of times and it still sounds fresh today. Sadly the band disbanded after this release with Rhineheart and Dorman going on to form Captain Beyond with Rod Evans (Deep Purple) and Bobby Caldwell. Their first album with this spin off group was an absolute smash and I recommend it just as highly as Metamorphosis. BUY THEM BOTH AND DO YOURSELF A HUGE FAVOR.

First off, the reviewer before me just doesnt understand music. Iron Butterfly ALWAYS changed album to album.

Heavy sounded like pop/rock with a splash of psychedelia. More Beatles influenced than anything else.

Vida is a psychadelic classic. The whole flower power thing is in full effect.

Ball was a little rock, a little psychadelic. Some flower power but not as many "Feel Good, Love EVERYONE" type of songs on this one. Some songs were downright scary.

Therefore, there is no reason to believe they'd stay the same band with the addition of 2 new guitarists. Both "El Rhino" Larry Reinhardt and Mike Pinera had their own style, but for some reason they compliment each other nicely. Over the course of the 9 songs you get almost that many song styles. Here is a breakdown of the songs:

Free Flight: This brief instrumental (40 seconds) is a part of the last track Butterfly Bleu. Not sure why they felt they needed to do this but it is a nice cut.

New Day: This was a single in a few foreign countries. Good guitar riff, great vocals. Good rock song.

Shady Lady: This is their attempt at funk apparently. Sounds kinda porn-ish in a way. But the guitar solo is good. Some interesting lyrics, most arent very understandable.

Best Years Of Our Lives: Great GREAT song!. Mike Pinera sings most of it Great riffs and solos. Great topic of song. Should have been a single. This is proof of how AWESOME of a guitarist that Mike Pinera is. This, easy rider, butterfly bleu and the song from his other band (Ride Captain ride) is the only proof you need.

Slower Than Guns: An acoustic song. Only has Doug Ingle and Ron Bushy performing on it. The other 3 didnt like the song so they opted to not participate (according to Ingle, Pinera says they recorded it when he wasnt around) Good song, about how man is ruining the earth. well sung!

Stone Believer: A single in most countries. Good song. More good riffs. A good song because of the dual lead vocals by Mike & Doug. More great soloing. Kinda spiritual in its lyrics.

Soldier in our town: Easily the weakest track on the album. This one is another with only Ron Bushy & Doug Ingle. (Additional instrumentation for the 2 songs was played by the producer and engineer) Doug Ingle screeches the choruses in this one. Another sad note. This was the flipside of both New Day and Easy Rider. Wastes your 45 with an awful song.

Easy Rider: Not a song used in the movie (it came after the movie) but about Motorcycles. Great drums, and guitar. More shared vocals. Shame it is only 3 minutes long. But it cooks like no other song from 1970.

Butterfly Bleu: This 14 minute epic is a blues number. Sadly no drum solo but the song is PHENOMINAL otherwise. Some great jamming on the song.
IMPORTANT HISTORICAL NOTE: This song is the first appearance EVER of a talk box effect on the guitar. No Peter Frampton, Joe Walsh and Richie Sambora did not innovate its usage. You wouldnt believe the amount of people who think it started with Do You feel Like We Do, Rocky Mountain Way & Living On A Prayer. It is in it's infancy, so it sounds like someone is throwing up on the microphone.

Overall, the album is a 9 out of 10. The only setback is Soldier in our Town. If Silly Sally had been included instead (non album flipside to Stone Believer) then it would have made the album a perfect 10.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

This album was a real change of direction for the Butterfly when it came out in 1970. By that time their earlier stuff was already sounding dated, and Ball was a great disappointment as a follow-up to IAGDV. With this album the band shifted to a more contemporary AOR sound (AOR=Album Oriented Rock, for the benefit of you young punks who've never put a record on a turntable) and the results were a definite improvement. New guitarists Mike Pinera (from Blues Image) and Larry (Rhino) Reinhardt played well together, producing some harmonizing that was great on "Stone Believer" and exceptional on "Butterfly Bleu." It's nice to hear Doug Ingle (a terrific keyboardist) finally get away from his previous cheesy Vox Continental combo organ sound, using a Hammond organ instead and a Clavinet (which is not an electric piano, in spite of what you're told in another review here) on "Shady Lady." My favorite cut is "Easy Rider," which is a hard rocker suggestive of early Blue Oyster Cult and contains some blazing slide guitar playing by Rhino. The band broke up after this album, with Pinera going on to Cactus and Rhino and bassist Lee Dorman forming Captain Beyond. If you're a fan of either of the above bands, I recommend this album highly.

I remember getting Metamorphosis by Iron Butterfly as one of my "free" albums when I got suckered... er joined the Columbia Record Club so many years ago. I always liked Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida and another track or two from the LP. Never really got into Heavy or Ball that much though. I thought that IB had peaked with I-G-D-V but after just one play of this "new" album Metamorphosis, I realized that the band had a future after all and that I found a few favorite album - (its still among my all time favorites). Except for a couple of clunkers on this album I thought the songs, performance and production were great and are much better than some critics claim it is. The additional of Blues Image Mike Pinera and Larry "El Rhino" Reinhardt gave this band a sonic boost and helped to better redefine IB sounds. I know a lot of fans and even band members still say its not a true IB album that it lacked many elements that made the band it was - but frankly, I always thought that this album allowed IB to expand their range. To this day whenever I play Stone Believer in my car or ipod - my first reaction is to crank it up and let the music take me. It's still one hell of a kick a## rocker that can go toe to toe with some of the more critically accepted tunes. Metamorphosis by Iron Butterfly is a great lost and hidden gem that will surprise and please IB fans and those who are into heavy rockin' tunes of the 70's.

Being a rock producer myself and having produced some pretty big rock records some would be amazed/shocked that i would be influenced by this band and this record!! I had the pleasure of meeting Richard Podolor, the albums producer, and it was with reverence that i told him of my love of this record and his production. Although it is definitely slicker than any of the other IB records it is also the best collection of songs and commentary that they had done to date. Ingle finally tossed out the Vox and moved up to the B3, the guitars are pristine, and the drums cannons! You could tell someone else was manning the board on this one compared to all the other releases. Ingle had a very underrated vocal - it was very identifiable and a precurser to the modern Pearl Jam white soul vocal stylings that are so prevalent today. Bushy and Dorman were very underrated as well as a rhythm section - the bass is always very melodic on a IB record, and the drums steady.

I agree with the comments about Braun - he was a genius - his use of feedback and various noises on the previous records is groundbreaking but I guess he wore out his welcome; the result on this record with Pinera and Rhino is a fresh approach.

But its also an end to what sadly is perceived as a one hit career and an untimely split-up. InAGaddaDaVida is still the thing most remember about these guys. They definitely had more to offer but with the lack of any more hit singles their career fizzled out.

The digital remastered sound quality of Iron Butterfly's Metamorphasis CD pressed in Japan is incredible. Any fan will be pleasantly impressed. It is indeed heavy music and psychedelic 60's rock at it's best! Play it loud!

I would agree with Mr Benson's comments on the big production. It is in utter amazement that I listen to this difference in comparison to other remembered Iron Butterfly releases prior. Great mix, honed clean, with precise guitars and a solid bottom end, and yeah, that B-3. There was an article concerning this lp ('Metamorphosis'), in which the band really gave it their all for this one and the thinking was that 'Meta...' would probably be their last shot.

It is with welcome delight to read the kudos this 1970 release deserves, while listening to it in the (loud) background; purchased this back in '71 and liked it, but there was so much to listen to that year. Little did the fans of this title realize that it would serve as a missing link to the onset of another great band within a few year's time, as mentioned in another review. The guitar player, Rhino and I believe the bassist, Lee Dorman went on to form the gifted pack-punch-heavy band, CAPTAIN BEYOND!

If you pick it up it'll provide an enjoyable listen with a slightly dated but wonderful charm, much like Blood, Sweat and Tears first lp with Al Kooper, another classic gem.

Good Listening...