Customer Reviews

Round the Edges

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

 

 

Fuzzy and fairly heavy for its time(early 70's),here's another proto-metal must have! I'd also consider this proto-Prog as well,in respect to the (for the time) ambitious arrangements - I'd wager that the guys in Opeth have a copy of this in their collections!If your bag is obscure early 70's hard rock,i'd say you need a copy for yours too

Good songs, catchy heavy fuzzed out guitar riffs and some killer frenzied train wreck guitar solo's that I love. A must have for classic rock/proto-metal lovers. Tracks I really dug were "Darkside" running time 7:28 sweet. "Live for Today" 8:07 starts out mellow and builds up nicely, great tune. "Zero Time" my favorite, starts out heavy as hell and keeps on drivin'. The bonus tracks are good too, from my understanding they are from a previous recording session with a different lineup that didn't work out a few years earliar. The name fits for the time. It does have an overall dark feel too it. Rock on!

"Dark", which was founded in 1968 in Northampton by Steve Giles, is very closely tied to another band from the same town, and from the same year - the legendary "Wicked Lady" (Axeman Cometh, Psychotic Overkill). However, "Wicked Lady" debut album pre-dated the first LP of the "Dark" (released in 1972), it is better known, and more versatile and accomplished musically. "Dark" is often called by some tone-deaf critics "melodic progressive" (beware: it is as close to progressive as Lady Gaga to Janis Joplin), but in fact it is the heaviest possible psychedelia, rough, raw, brutal, menacing, striped to the bones of any eventual decorations (no exotic instruments, no flower power parts) - rather slow, monotonous, self-repetitive, sometimes tribal foot-stomping rhythm, sometimes medicine man's chanting. On the one hand, the act sounds out of time (as if the album captured the band under formation - they've learned 2-3 basic riffs, recorded them, and went into the next basic set), the vocals of Steve Giles are forged in the same mould as exaggerated shaky singing of Marc Bolan (in his early happy hippie acoustic days), there are no well-defined catchy tunes... On the other hand, "Dark" came ahead of time - it sounds as grandfather of doom with its minimalistic approach and deafening guitars. Although Alan Bowley, who acted as producer of the album (he was sound engineer), calls the LP "the culmination of those two years of playing", and "finest recording session to date", the album all in all is unsteady and not so "representative" at all, but... But these sounds still have a hypnotizing power over me, so it could be the same for other addicts of hard'n'heavy of the 70s. Hard'n'heavy it is.

"Dark" was: Steve Giles (songwriter, guitars and vocals), Ron Johnson on bass, Clive Throneycroft on drums and Martin Weaver (the founder of "Wicked Lady")) - guitar. The band lasted from 1968 until 1972, when they recorded this album (6 tracks). The album was bootlegged both on vinyl and CD; CD-reissues have 4 bonus tracks, recorded without Weaver and Carl Bush plays bass instead of Ronald Johnson.

The album, however, went nowhere, and the band soon followed it. It is considered to be one of the most expensive albums (fetching over GBR 1.200-1.500, which should be taken with the pinch of salt - have you ever tried to sell one of these ultra-rare vinyls? Because I did - unless you're lucky, you'll be offered a fraction of the price you've paid. By the way, stamps collectors are facing the same problem - good, if they'll get a face value).

In any case, if you are into good old hard'n'heavy, you'll be happy to have it - otherwise it's not a must

As I sit and listen to this for the third time today,I see why this is so highly rated in some quarters.The guitar work is wonderful,the songs are tuneful and well arranged.In my estimation,this is British rock from the top drawer.