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The Tangent - L'Etagere Du Travail
When Andy Tillison and his band, The Tangent, released a new album earlier this year some of us lucky enough to have been part of the pre-order clan had a pretty good idea that it was going to be greeted very favourably within the progressive rock community. The Electric Sinfonia, “a song for real human beings – in a world on autopilot”, that is Le Sacre Du Travail has become one of the most talked about releases in what has been an exceptionally good year for lovers of long-form songs, cunning time signatures and curious instruments making even more intriguing noises.
Not content with wallowing in the satisfaction of successfully realising a long held vision, Andy Tillison now brings us the companion album to Le Sacre ……an independently released collection of demos and shelved projects nattily titled, L’Etagere Du Travail or Shelf of Work (a couple of little Tillison puns at play there). Gone are the luminaries who helped light up the former album (apart from a little help from Luke Machin and colleagues from The Tangent past on one reworked track and one super live number) – this time it’s a multi-tasking Tillison providing all the music ………but you probably wouldn’t know it unless you were told!
The five previously unreleased tracks kick off with Monsanto, a concerning moral tale - more worrying in that it really is happening, proving that whilst we had our backs turned a seemingly amoral, mega-rich company has and still is taking out a patent on just about everything that used to belong to mother nature – oh…. and us! From the off we are left in no doubt as to what these new tracks are all about – this is Andy Tillison’s chance to dust all those keyboard sounds off and take us on a journey through his considerable repertoire. The trip is a veritable thrill ride! Monsanto is a jazzy jaunt delivered at great pace to reflect Tillison’s disbelief at what this company has got away with – complete with a fabulous synthesized trumpet break and a chance to hear Andy let loose on organ and synthesizer! Stirring stuff.
Lost in Ledston sees Tillison reflecting on the death of Margaret Thatcher and the fact that the media view can seem so different from other people’s perception. Cool organ chords underpin a more lyrical tune than its predecessor, again highlighting Tillison’s keyboard skills. There’s a repeated Hammond sounding motif within this tune that could just so easily be a young Keith Emerson and a sprightly, skipping synthesizer solo to die for that takes us rather merrily to the end of the song. Goodbye Maggie? Another “Lost” title from Tillison – it’s like trying to follow that TV show!
The longest track and probably the centrepiece of the album is The Iron Crows, an interpretation of Claude Debussy’s La Mer, his three-piece suite (I loved writing that!) about the sea. This piece was first worked on when Luke Machin was a member of The Tangent and, thankfully, some of his guitar work remains here. A really satisfying and genuine interpretation of Debussy’s themes, The Iron Crows is a wonderful example of what can be achieved when adapting the classics in the prog rock arena – a great listen. Andy Tillison both here and through his enduring works, Le Sacre Du Travail in particular, is proving consistently that modern musicians can and do have the same vision that their “classical” ancestors had.
Build a New House With the Lego sees a return to that big fat Hammond sound, one that I love and have to assume Tillison does, too. I’ve always thought that Andy Tillison comes as close to anyone in this era to reproducing the sound that Keith Emerson used to get from the Hammond – it’s all about that visceral feel to those crunchy, fudged chords; whatever it is it works for me! Again this song gives Tillison the opportunity to prowl around the keyboards in his jazzy, rocking style. It’s all about making the sounds fit the song with Tillison – this music is never showy for the sake of it, another reason why I hear quality and class in his playing; yet it’s still packed with fun!
Supper’s Off is a rocky no holds barred workout complete with a little dose of Canterbury through the verses. As the title may suggest it’s a sideways shot at many folk from Tillison’s (and mine, for that matter) generation who grew up in the age of peace, love and happiness and turned it into a world for the self-centred, greedy, lazy and media manipulated. Genesis take a bit of a hit in this one, but it’s all a bit tongue in cheek, in a frustrated kind of way – it’s probably more about the way folk have become so easily manipulated, really; who’s going to keep the current (and often more original) batch of musicians going whilst the old boys can still sponge up all the money? However, I reckon there’s more passion and commitment in this one Tillison song than most of what the “old guard” have come up with in many years.
The “Revisitations”, which make up the second half of the album, are a discoed-up version of Perdu dans Paris (fabulous fun), two re-worked tracks from Le Sacre, Steve Wright in the Afternoon and a majestic version of A Voyage Through Rush Hour (piano duet), a version of The Ethernet with Jakko Jakszyk on vocals and a glorious live version of The Canterbury Sequence.
It’s the forty-odd minutes of new music, though, that make L’Etagere Du Travail such an enjoyable and satisfying album. The whole thing simply buzzes with energy, originality and excitement, the sentiments displayed make one think as well as listen, and it really feels like Andy Tillison is in celebratory mood after putting together his magnum opus that is Le Sacre Du Travail. Tillison really is a master craftsman when it comes to melding the sounds and feel of an album and on this one in particular he’s a veritable one-man band for the majority of it. To be honest, I struggle to differentiate between what may be genuine instruments and emulation on much of this album but …….it doesn’t matter one jot. What really matters is that this music is a joy to listen to from start to finish. Job done then, Andy!
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Highly Evolved Orangutan
Speaking of Le Sacre Du Travail, does anyone know from where the DIGIPAK edition can be ordered? (I'm checking with Greg Walker...)
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Good review John. Just gave my first listen to the companion disc last night. It is very easy to listen to, and it has a lot of the jazzier elements in it. The revisited songs are quite good.
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