AAJ Review: Grand General, Grand General

[jkelman]

My review of Grand General's self-titled Rune Grammofon debut, today at All About Jazz.


A supergroup of young Norwegians - violinist Ola Kvernberg (Liarbird); Motorpsycho drummer Kenneth Kapstad (The Death Defying Unicorn); The Core keyboardist Erlend Slettevoll (Office Essentials), but here in a more electrified context; Bushman's Revenge guitarist Even Helte Hermansen (Jitterbug Waltz); and bassist Trond Frønes - comparisons to early Mahavishnu Orchestra and, especially Larks' Tongues in Aspic-era King Crimson, with Frønes' thundering John Wetton-like bass tone would be fair, but ultimately superficial, as Grand General sounds, for the most part, like neither group, though they are, no doubt amongst the many touchstones.


Meant to be heard LOUD and ideal for fans of fusion-oriented progressive rock, it's a tremendous debut that bodes well for live performances...and the future.


Review here.

[FredOCal]

This is high on my want list. "Office Essentials" is another one.

[Dok]

Where to buy?

[jkelman]

amazon.co.uk, for one....

[Dok]

Thanks John! Will order

[Progatron]

I'm a little late to the party on this one, just ordered it though! I've checked it out online and it's excellent!

[jkelman]

I'm a little late to the party on this one, just ordered it though! I've checked it out online and it's excellent!

One of my favorite releases of 2013....glad you're liking! It's really something of a supergroup of young Norwegian artists.

[Udi Koomran]

The sound and production are mighty impressive but the Mahavishnu "influence" spoilt it for me
I wish they would have put more effort in the compositions

[mellotron storm]

Do they remind anyone of Elephant9 who are on the same label I believe. I've just heard samples.

[Zeuhlmate]

Grand General - Tachyon

[jkelman]

Do they remind anyone of Elephant9 who are on the same label I believe. I've just heard samples.

They are on the same label, yes (Rune Grammofon), not that that means much if you know the label. The energy and fusion-like approach has some resemblance to E9, but they are still two very different groups. One, guitar/keys/violin-heavy; the other, a keyboard power trio.

[jkelman]

The sound and production are mighty impressive but the Mahavishnu "influence" spoilt it for me
I wish they would have put more effort in the compositions

I actually think the writing is much stronger than Even in Bushman's Revenge. It's hard, with that lineup and energy, to escape the MO comparisons, but I think they're equally comparable to LTIA-era Crim.

[Udi Koomran]

It's hard, with that lineup and energy, to escape the MO comparisons, .

Not sure I understand your point
Why is it hard ?

[jkelman]

Not sure I understand your point
Why is it hard ?

I mean, with a lineup that's identical to MO and the group playing a pretty kickass blend of prog/fusion, comparisons to MO are inevitable....though, honestly, I feel such comparisons are a bit superficial as if you dig deeper there's a lot to identify them as doing their own thing.

Sorry if I was unclear, Udi. As a writer that's not a good thing at all!

[mellotron storm]

They are on the same label, yes (Rune Grammofon), not that that means much if you know the label. The energy and fusion-like approach has some resemblance to E9, but they are still two very different groups. One, guitar/keys/violin-heavy; the other, a keyboard power trio.

Ahh thanks, for sure the guitar and violin is going to change the flavour, I just remember thinking of E9 during one sample where the keyboards were dominating. I'm even more interested now with the Mahavishnu Orchestra comparisons. On the list it goes.

[battema]

Welp...ordered.

You and your damned interesting reviews keep making my collection grow....

[jkelman]

Welp...ordered.

You and your damned interesting reviews keep making my collection grow....

I'm sorry....kind of ...

[Bake 1]

Spun this one a couple of times and liked it ...was rooting for it from the beginning. It smokes pretty good, has a spiff punchy sound and this one went to keeper status right away...still, I'm stuck w/ a sneaking suspicion that it will over time seem too derivative to eat as many neurons as the stuff that inspired it. That annoying little voice has been full of s**t on a few occasions... hope this is one of em'.

[JKL2000]

I just discovered this album, thanks to a recommendation from Spotify, then reading John’s review. Listening now...

Where do people stand on this album now? Looks like there was no second album.

[jkelman]

I just discovered this album, thanks to a recommendation from Spotify, then reading John’s review. Listening now...

Where do people stand on this album now? Looks like there was no second album.

No, and it's a shame. I got to see them live on one of my last trips to Norway and they were, in a word, incredible. Mind you, that's my general opinion about everything o hear from violinist Ola Kvernberg....

[Scrotum Scissor]

Looks like there was no second album.

These musicians - like so many others on the Rune Gram label - are from the 'Trondheim (conservatory) jazzlinja' circuit (a highly prominent institution of music education here in Norway) and so tend to shake off their "rocksy" after a few years of juvenile activity. Numerous great acts have taken that path, it seems. Which is in a sense understandable, as these are by definition trained players who seek revenues for their scholarly expenses like everyone else.

They're all involved in other projects, of course. The Grand General is a good one. Music of this sort hasn't been done better in Norway since Jon Eberson's Moose Loose in the 70s.