WHEN'S THE FUTURE - "Then"
‘Now’ was a tantalising taster for ‘Then’ whose review has already appeared on Zeitgeist. I explained ‘then’ that When’s The Future is a close relation of Kromlek consisting of guitarist Dave Musgrove, bassist Bazz with the addition ‘now’ of Shaun Barrie, Michael Tonks and Rachel Minto whose singing graces the splendid opener ‘Land of Milk and Money’. Two atmospheric instrumental tracks follow and are typical of the inventive and very rhythmic (tribal) approach throughout this album. I also said in my original review that ‘Slow Motion’ (now reincarnated as ‘Slow Potion’) with its appropriately persistent groove and scintillating interplay between guitar and synth was one I kept returning to. Well, a few more listens have, if anything, increased my sense of enjoyment of this hypnotic song. The aptly named ‘Tribal Pot’ is another memorable instrumental on which Shaun unleashes his famous ‘bogeridoo’. I loved the old upright piano on ‘My Coat’, fast becoming my favourite track- and there are quite a lot to choose from! Two more instrumentals follow, ‘Dream Cracker’ in particular having a very contemporary feel i.e. It might actually appeal to a ‘young’ person! Those familiar with the psychedelic/spacerock Hawkwind/ Gong/ Ozrics influenced Kromlek will now have waited a while for a guitar/ synth freak out but won’t be disappointed by the 7:45 of ‘Psllocybe Astral Glide’. The bit at the end is a bit other side of the moonlike! (See later) ‘Cop Out Dood’ with its ‘straight from the hip’ sardonic message- ‘You’re getting there- getting where now?’ features some fantastic flute and percussion and an unforgettable chorus ‘I’m out of my brain again’ (Really?) ‘Consett Jig’ and ‘Go East ‘N’ Feast’ are enigmatic and self explanatory titles respectively- \I wouldn’t like to try to dance to the former while the latter is a close relative to Terri~B’s ‘essential incense music’. Try listening to this without your legs folded! The beginning of ‘It All Goes Back to the Sea’ is the nearest the band come to ‘ska’ (another characteristic of Kromlek’s music for the acquainted) but it seems to me that ‘Kromlek’ has taken a big step forward here as the style rapidly undergoes a metamorphosis into a kind of ambient experimentalism. What I particularly like about ‘Then’ is the way the disparate styles are blended as one track flows seamlessly into another to produce a unique ‘sound’. For me ‘Then’ even surpasses my previous favourite Kromlek album ‘Collective Conscious’ and that is, in my book, a compliment of the highest order. Don’t miss out on this one- definitely one of the best albums to penetrate my grey matter this year. When is the future by the way?
By Phil Jackson