Bought this LP back in the 70's based on the beautiful cover alone. It didn't disappoint!
Bought this LP back in the 70's based on the beautiful cover alone. It didn't disappoint!
Hm. What "angle" do you approach them by? Because, honestly, I'm not too sure about the tendency some might have to lump Harmonium in with the "traditional" school of symphonic rock; like I wrote earlier, they were - and remained - very much of a "singer/songwriter's" entity, even when the scale of the actual tunes grew larger and more multilayered. And just like Yves said, some of the secret to their musical and artistic triumph lay in the poetic nature of the whole concept. They were all about emotion, sentiment and vision - never about exhibitionist technicality towards the audience. As such, they were never comparable to someone like, say, ELP or Yes - "classically influenced" or not. There were other such artists from across the globe, who aren't as "dug" by the "prog" fans although they played progressive rock music with an intense level of individualism and enjoyed huge success (espec in their respective homelands), check Niemen (Poland) or Luis Alberto Spinetta (Argentina). Serge Fiori (Harmonium mainman), IMO, belongs in the same league.
"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
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