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CAIRO
This is the debut album from Californian band Cairo.
The band consists of Mark Robertson, on all manner of keyboards; Jeff Brockman on drums and electronic percussion; Alec Fuhrman on guitars & vocals; Bret Douglas on lead vocals and Rob Fordyce on bass and vocals. Six tracks spread over this sixty three minute album makes for some lengthy pieces which are highly intense too. These guys can sure play and there is so much soloing that, at times, the songs can be lost behind the displays of technical ecstacy. It seems that each band member is trying to outdo themselves by showing off as much as possible - whether that is good or bad depends on your own taste. I will attempt to convey the Cairo experience: their sound has touches of American AOR, a slight dose of Dream Theater and lashings of Emerson and Wakeman style keyboard playing. Most of the music is composed by keys wizard Robertson with help, here and there, from drummer Brockman - with the lyrics being mainly written by singer, Bret Douglas.
The album begins with 'Conception', a two minute instrumental with Egyptian flavoured guitar and grand keyboard flourishes. The second song 'Seasons of The Heart' is the first epic, at ten minutes long.
Deft guitar and keyboard licks combine making a superb opening riff that recurs throughout the song. Bret Douglas has a full rounded voice and hits all the notes without any difficulty. There's some spectacular keyboard and guitar work here, and the song closes with a multi layered vocal section with the band going into overdrive in the background.
'Silent Winter', at eight and half minutes, has a marching keyboard riff backed up with more eastern flavoured guitar and soaring vocals. After many chops and changes it closes with a beautiful keyboard
melody. 'Between The Lines' begins with some Keith Emerson style racing Hammond organ and quasi classical flourishes, the whole band kick in for an even more intense rock-out with multiple instrumental
sections of a complexity that is very difficult to take in at first.
'World Divided' has a slightly more relaxed pace, taking a more anthemic approach. However, Cairo can't resist heading back into more complex time changes with acrobatic solo runs from Fuhrman and Robertson in
particular.
The previous tracks however are as nothing compared to the 22.5 minute epic 'Ruins At Avalon's Gate'.
This is possibly the most over the top piece of prog rock I have ever heard. Racing ELP style keyboard melodies abound in this most overblown display of complex busy busy music. Trying to get your head around this piece is not easy, it twists and turns until your brain is fried with concentration. The vocal sections from Bret Douglas are beautiful but all too brief; I can't believe I'm wishing an album had more vocals on it - usually it's the other way around. There are tons of melodies and superb solo sections buried in here but before your brain latches on to one part, they're off playing the next run. I have to say that perhaps the often used criticism of prog rock being "self indulgent" is justified here - for me, this piece in particular is just too much. Maybe the band should concentrate on the songs a bit more rather than these self congratulatory displays of bombastic soloing.
This is certainly no easy listening cd and requires a lot of attention to fully appreciate. However, if you are fan of Keith Emerson's most extreme playing and very technical of prog rock then this may well be
to your liking.
Steve Smith 1/4/00
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CONFLICT & DREAMS
Tracklist: Angels and Rage (10:23), Corridors (11:56), Western Desert (17:08), Image (1:25), Then You Were Gone (8:25), Valley Of The Shadow (15:52).
I have had this CD in my collection now for a couple of years.
I must start off by saying that it may not be too everyone's taste, as musically it is extremely dense, bombastic and symphonic. Most of the tracks contain very long musical passages featuring a lot of guitar and keyboard interplay and, quite often, there is just too much going on. You can often hear all the members of the band throwing in fills and runs at the same time - and it can get a bit too much!
And yet, if you like this kind of thing and are in the right mood, it is very enjoyable listening.
You cannot fault the incredible musicianship or the inventive structure of some of the songs. Occasionally there is some overuse of the 'call and response' type of soloing between guitar and keyboard and, needless to say, there are also multiple time signatures galore. The band seem to be striving to create drama and dynamics and, in this regard, they sometimes fall short ... but there is to enjoy here, and I do listen to this CD quite a lot.
'Angels and Rage' starts off the album as it means to go on - with a symphonic blast of wailing guitar, layers of keyboards, and a few of those extremely fast bass runs and drum rolls. As with most of the
songs, there is a lot going on here. Bret Douglas has an appealing and distinctive voice, although he can sometimes sounds little bland, reminding one of those typically 80's American AOR bands such as Reo
Speedwagon or Styx.
'Corridors' is probably the most musically conventional and (almost) restrained track on the album, and as such is one of the most enjoyable.
'Western Desert' is the longest and, in my opinion, best track on the album.
There is a wealth of musical ideas here, lots of interesting themes, some excellent instrumental passages, with the aforementioned keyboard/guitar interplay to the fore ... and a killer outro.
'Image' is a short guitar/piano piece that really just sounds like filler, although it comes as a welcome, restrained relief after what has gone before.
By the time we get to the next track, 'Then You Were Gone', the cracks begin to show.
It's not that its a bad track, just that by now the format has become overly familiar; the endless runs and fills, guitar licks etc begin to grate a little. It's as though the group have used up all their tricks and there is nothing new to give us.
Things do pick up with the final track, 'Valley of the Shadow'. This is another epic track, containing an excellent organ/piano solo in the mid section, and lots of changes.
Musically excellent, though a little rambling in places.
I would sum up by saying that this is a good album to dip into and listen to a couple of tracks at a time, but very heavy going to listen to all in one sitting. It will be interesting to see what direction they
take with their next album. I will be happy to hear more of the same ... but with a little more restraint next time.
John Morley 30th May, 2001
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TIME OF LEGENDS
Track Listing: Underground (8:06), The Prophecy (10:15), Scottish Highland (2:39), You Are The One (5:44), Cosmic Approach (4:20), Coming Home (7:08), The Fuse (9:02).
Before I get into the nuts and bolts of this review, I should point out that there appear to have been some line up changes in the Cairo camp since the release of the last album.
Gone is guitarist Alec Fuhrman and bass player Jamie Browne - though Jamie did not appear to be a full time member of the band anyway. At the moment the band appear to be a three piece consisting of Mark Robertson on keyboards, Jeff Brockman on drums and Bret Douglas on lead vocals; augmented on this album by John Evans on bass guitar, and Brian Hutchinson and Luis Maldonado on guitars and occasional background vocals. The reasons for the changes are unknown, as the band's new website is still under construction and the old one has not been updated for some time.
The latter is unfortunate, because there appear to be a few factors that point to possible problems with the recording and release of this CD. I do know that this album's release was delayed for some time as
recording began as far back as last summer. Also, total running time is only 47 minutes ... this is not really a complaint, but the average running time of most of the prog CD's in my collection is approximately 70 minutes. Indeed, the band seem to have opted for slightly shorter songs with this release, the longest track being 10:15. Finally, the track listing and running times on the back cover are printed way out of line, which is an unbelieveable mistake for any band to let slip through although, to be fair, this may just have been on my copy. Indeed the album design itself is rather sparse, with a muted blue wintry design on the cover, unlike the colourful graphics of previous releases, and some horribly transcribed lyrics in the CD booklet. All of this seems to suggest that perhaps all is not well within the Cairo camp.
But on to the music ... I must say that it has taken me a few listens to appreciate this album - it's not one that grabs you straight away.
Overall, I would say it falls somewhere in between 'Cairo' and 'Conflict and Dreams'. It does not have the bombast and intensity of 'Conflict...', but does retain some of the instrumental workouts; specifically keyboards and guitar. There is more restraint, instruments have more room to breathe and there is more emphasis on songwriting. The addition of different guitarists does alter the nature of the overall sound, with the guitar being a little more conventional and rocky than usual ... no bad thing, it just takes a bit of getting used to.
Things kick off rather conventionally with 'Underground'. Though in parts it is typical of their style, this is a very restrained track, with a mostly consistent beat, livened up by a brief Hammond solo in the
mid section.
'The Prophecy' starts off very atmospherically, with a long instrumental keyboard section with a touch of electronic tinkering, before launching into some strident piano chords. The pace quickens, and we are
soon into an epic sci-fi style groove, fortelling the coming of a stranger from beyond the stars. This is much more like it - and it gets better. Suddenly we are into a funky instrumental section, with
some lovely guitar and keyboard interplay. What I like about this is that the two instruments appear to compliment each other rather than compete - one of the faults I found with the previous album.
An excellent track, much more representative of the band's style.
Next up is a short instrumental, 'Scottish Highland' which is piano based, with some flute-style synth - not bad but this strikes me as filler. Why do bands insist on throwing these short pieces onto CD's?
Does anyone else ever go back and listen to them? I know I don't.
On to 'You Are The One', which appears to be a love song of sorts, almost a ballad. It features some nice fluid guitar work and leads into some more keyboard and guitar interplay, with the synth solo's being
particularly strong. Different guitar sounds are employed on this track to interesting effect, and it's good to see the band trying to vary their sound a little.
Talking of varying their sound, the next track is a bit of a departure. 'Cosmic Approach' is a Hawkwind-ish, fast paced instrumental piece. It starts with some furious, tribal style drumming, with washes
of keyboards and lots of electronic noises.
Very dramatic, and stylistically similar to some of the pieces on 'Conflict and Dreams'. It has a nice spacey, almost psychadelic sound, hence the Hawkwind reference. Though I like this track and applaud the band again for trying something different, it does not really develop into anything that interesting, and fades out in much the same way as it began.
'Coming Home' takes us back into familiar Cairo territory, though it does contain some excellent guitar from both Luis Maldonado and Brian Hutchinson, soaring anthemic vocals from
Douglas, these held together by Robertson's excellent symphonic keyboards. Good keyboard and guitar interplay on this one too.
Another instrumental track, 'The Fuse', closes the album in fine style. A very strong ELP influence on this one - a whoosh of electronics takes us into a fusiony,
discordant section, alternating with some lush symphonic passages and as this is a Robertson composition, expect plenty of synth and hammond soloing. A mention must also be made of some strong, funky bass work here from John Evans.
Overall, despite some initial dissapointments, I would recommend this album.
I find I am warming to it more and more with successive plays, and the band do at least make some attempts to alter their usual style. Fans of the group certainly should find much to enjoy here.
John Morley 4th July 2001
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