For their third studio outing, Sanguine Hum have gone all out for a double concept album. Very 70's! This is a band I have sort of followed over the course of their last two albums and they are a very distinctive band, mixing a whole lot of influences and sounds. There is a bit of Hatfield and the North as has been mentioned in reviews of the band, Frank Zappa and more traditional prog fare like a bit of Yes and Genesis, but it all comes together in quite a nice cohesive whole. However, for me I always felt there was something that didn't quite completely gel. I couldn't put my finger on it till I heard their live album from last year. I felt the music was impressive, but a bit too "careful". It came across as a bit too studious and introverted. No such problem with this new album. Whether it's the bonkers concept of the album or realising they have something special on their hands, but this album is a complete triumph. I will be bold enough to say it could be the 21st Century's equivalent of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. In fact it reflects that albums obscure concept too. Here, rather than a protagonist Rael, we have a bloke called Don and something to do with the paradox of buttered cats. It's all clearly explained in the lengthy synopsis within the album booklet! Musically, the album is quite excellent. Mixing fusion like instrumentals and tricksy songs in a manner that keeps the dynamics of the album flowing effortlessly. The playing is full of enthusiasm and ambition from all concerned. The band do play very tightly and work off each other very nicely. This is a great album and one that has made me go back to their earlier albums and maybe those will be appreciated more now. By the way, the album is on Esoteric Antenna, who had a such a succesful year last year with the albums they released and it looks this year is going to be even better!
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