Izvajalec: Yak
Založba: Samozaložba
Izid: year
Ocena: 3.8/5
Yak je ena tistih skupin, ki je obstajala že v osemdesetih, a ji zaradi ne vem kakšnih razlogov takrat ni uspelo izdati albuma. Dvajset let kasneje se je vodja zasedbe, Martin Morgan, odločil obuditi pesmi iz tistega časa in jih zaigrati na albumu Dark Side of the Duck, s pomočjo svojih klaviatur in programiranih bobnov. Rezultat ni bil kaj pride uspešen, a pokazalo se je, da ima Morganova glasba veliko potenciala, če bi se le odločil zaigrati s pravo skupino. Ravno to se je zgodilo na Journey of the Yak.
Journey of the Yak je poln prog stereotipov – aluzij na progresivne pesmi iz sedemdesetih, aluzij na Tolkiena,… a to niti ni tako pomembno, če se osredotočiš zgolj na glasbo. Martinu Morganu je končno uspelo. Ustvaril je album, ki prikaže njegov naraven občutek za dobre melodije in za dobre klaviaturske linije. Mož zna odlično igrati, a v ospredje vedno postavlja spevnost.
Za tiste ki poznate zgodovino skupine, veste, da je nastala v osemdesetih, ko se je pričelo neo progresivno gibanje. Prav bi imeli, če bi predpostavljali, da Yak veliko zamisli jemljejo od Genesis, celo en naslov (“Entangled in Dreams”) je očitno sposojen od Genesis. Občutijo se tudi Camel in Emerson, Lake and Palmer vplivi, vendar pa Morgan nikoli ne skuša skriti svoje ljubezni do klasičnega proga. Vseeno pa mislim,da je najpomembnejše to, da Morgan vedno igra z veliko mero melodičnosti. Seveda je veliko prog vplivov, a so dobro predstavljeni, z dobrimi klaviaturskimi zvoki, dobrimi melodijami in kvalitetnim igranjem.
Mislim, da se je Morgan odločil prav, ko je za pomoč prosil le ritem sekcijo. Je tako dober klaviaturist, da bi preveč ostalih instrumentov pomenilo distrakcijo od njegovih ekstravagantnih klaviaturskih sposobnosti. Morgan je izvrsten skozi vso ploščo in celo uporablja nekatere efekte, da na klaviaturah pričara kitarski zvok. Prav gotovo je on zvezda na izdelku, a tudi preostala člana sta opravila pomembno delo.
Z Journey of the Yak je Martin Morgan končno uresničil svoj potencial, ki ga je kazal že na prejšnjih izdelkih. Končno mu je uspelo vse skupaj sestaviti – dobre kompozicije, ki jih tokrat odigrajo pravi instrumenti. Journey of the Yak sin a veliko izposoja od drugih skupin, a so skladbe tako solidne, da se pomanjkanje izvirnosti pravzaprav sploh ne pozna. Upam, da to ni Morganov zadnji juriš in da bomo v prihodnosti od njega slišali še več takšnih stvari.
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Yak was one of those bands that was around in the 80s but never managed to release an album, for whatever reasons. Twenty years later, the band leader Martin Morgan resurrected some of the old songs and played them on the album Dark Side of the Duck with the aid of his array of keyboards and his programmed drums. The end result was anything but spectacular, but it did show Morgan’s music had a great deal of potential if he would only play it with a real band. This is exactly what happened on Journey of the Yak.
Journey of the Yak is full of prog stereotypes – allusions to 70s progressive rock songs, allusions to Tolkien,… but this becomes less of an issue if you focus only on the music. Martin Morgan has finally done it. He has created an album that shows off his natural feel for good melody and tasteful lead keyboards. He knows how to play, but good melodies are always paramount.
For those of you familiar with Yak’s history, you know that they were formed in the 80s when the neo movement was gaining in popularity. Therefore, you are right to assume that Journey of the Yak is full of Genesis influences. There’s even a title (“Entangled in Dreams”) that obviously borrows from Genesis. There are also some influences from Camel and ELP that I notice, but Morgan never tries to hide his love for classic prog. However, I think the most important element here is that Morgan always plays with a great deal of melody in mind. Sure, there are lots of prog influences, but they are presented in a very good way, with good keyboard sounds, good melodies and fine playing.
I think it was the right choice for Morgan to enlist the help of only a rhythm section for this effort. He is such a strong keyboard player that the addition of too many other instruments would distract the listener from his extravagant keyboard skills. Morgan shines throughout the record, even using some effects to simulate a guitar on the keys. He’s the star here, there’s no doubt, but both other guys perform admirably.
With Journey of the Yak, Martin Morgan has finally realized the potential shown on his previous recordings. He has finally managed to put it all together – the good compositions played by a real band this time. Journey of the Yak is unashamedly derivative, but the compositions are solid and make up for the lack of originality. Hopefully, this isn’t the last hurrah from Morgan and whatever group of musicians he chooses to work with and I hope to hear more from him in the future.
Zasedba
Martin Morgan – klaviature
Dave Speight – bobni
Gary Bennett – bas
Produkcija
Yak
Seznam skladb
1. Gates of Moria (3:12)
2. Entangled in Dreams (10:04)
3. Jadis of Charn (11:28)
4. March of the Huorns (12:04)
5. Dearly Departed (3:06)
6. Journey of the Yak (8:30)
