Now that the Concert Closet has been fumigated, deodorized, hosed-out, refueled, re-stocked, and spiffed up, time to get back to my search for all things prog. A new year means a new challenge--and an opportunity to set the bar high right from the start. Testing the hybrid capabilities of the Concert Closet, I set the GPS for Bergen, Norway and upon arrival let the splendid sounds of Seven Impale take over my senses for a few days...
Seven Impale refers to themselves as a "...jazz/prog/rock-band with a taste of lemon." Their debut full length LP "City of the Sun" was released in September and grabbed the prog world by its collective up-turned noses. Time to find out what all the hub-bub is about...
The prog buffet is laid out with several tempting delicacies; the first to fill my ear canals is a tune called "God Left Us for a Black-Dressed Woman." After an initial blast of King Crimson a la "Red," I pick up numerous top notes and flavor foundations; Under the Psycamore, Beardfish, Traffic, and a mad dash of Opeth just to spin your head faster. This song simply grabs you and refuses to let go; somewhere Mel Collins is relaxing on a sofa smiling as Chris Wood watches from on high...the horns are that good. This piece has everything a proghead wants; massive mood swings, other-worldly time changes, incredible horns, guitars that defy logic, drums that take center stage when appropriate and lie beneath the surface otherwise...and vocals that slice through membrane and tissue like a scalpel, cutting you deep and leaving no scar. Happy New Year indeed!
My second serving from this smorgasbord, "Beginning/Relieve," is on the band's 2013 EP release. A smooth, tranquil opening that leads you down a dark alley so as to kick you right in the abdomen--prog the way it was meant to be! More of those mind-numbing horns float across the top of this piece like fog on the interstate. Seven Impale has tilled very rich soil in the classic section of the prog garden--and the fruits of their efforts are tantalizing to say the least. The layers of sound here test your listening skills; I have been playing this song on a loop for over an hour and I pick more from it with each go 'round...
Liner Notes...The best thing to come out of Norway--next to skiing--Seven Impale is comprised of Fredrik Mekki Widerøe on drums, Erlend Vottvik Olsen on guitar, Stian Okland on guitars and vocals, Tormod Fosso on bass, Benjamin Mekki Widerøe on saxophone, and Hakon Vinje-Orgel on keyboards and synthesizers. Seven Impale is arguably among the best progressive bands to emerge in the past few years, and they earned those bragging rights as serious students of the genre. Seven Impale blends the prog bands I mentioned earlier with strong aromas of Steely Dan and Weather Report, hints of Stanley Jordan and Pat Metheny, and a spritz of The Moody Blues...puts them all in a Waring Blender and crafts an amazing fusion of sound that hits you in the head, body, and spirit simultaneously. Seven Impale has trod all over the prog garden, reaping harvest here and planting new seed there...all for the benefit of prog fans everywhere.
The third serving from the overstuffed buffet table is a tune called "Oh, My Gravity!" Seven Impale continues to redefine themselves on every song they put together. The horn opening here is set up as a brain teaser while drums, guitars, and keyboards slowly ooze their way into your head riding the saxophone tide. The ensuing orgy of sound takes the avid listener on a Utopian prog journey, headlong into a new realm. While Seven Impale certainly knows their way around the prog garden, they are also true innovators. To say Seven Impale is unique would be akin to saying Adrian Belew is talented--a laughable understatement.
The cut posted below is called "What am I Sane For?" Seven Impale comes out slowly here, once again leading with horns that mesmerize. Of course one need not wait too long for the knock-out punch as nerve-riding guitars and pulsing drums fill out a sound best described as the antidote to what ails you musically...one dose every hour should do the trick.
Thanks for continuing the journey with me into 2015 fellow progheads! It feels like forever since I have posted here and it is great to be back behind the controls of the Concert Closet. Making Norway the first stop of the year in my search for all things prog may have set the bar high, but I believe the best prog is still out there waiting to be discovered. While Seven Impale blazes their trail here, so many other bands are off on other tangents, clearing their own paths. Onward we go, deeper into 2015 and all the undiscovered wonders prog has to offer! Gotta keep that bar high; until next week...
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