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░ ██ ██ Artist: Magic Bus ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Phillip the Egg █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2017 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-12-22 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Progressive Rock ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Back To The Garden Records ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ The Air is Sweet with Hope and Joy - These █
█ uplifting words come from Mystical Mountain, the █
█ opening song of Phillip the Egg, the mystifyingly █
█ titled third release by Magic Bus. They sum up the █
█ positive and joyful atmosphere of the album as █
█ this talented band take us on another musical █
█ Astral journey. With a band name derived from Tom █
█ WolfeÆs book The Electric Kool-Aid Test, about Ken █
█ KeseyÆs counter culture æMerry PrankstersÆ who █
█ travelled Æ60s America in a psychedelically █
█ painted bus called æFurtherÆ, also known as æThe █
█ Magic BusÆ, it is inevitable that this is a band █
█ that unashamedly basks on the sunlit hills of the █
█ hippy idyll with musical and lyrical inspirations █
█ drawn from that era. Phillip the Egg gloriously █
█ continues along that path, but this time Magic Bus █
█ take it on to greater heights with a more █
█ expansive and vibrant approach. █
█ Mystical Mountain typifies this development as it █
█ commences in a vein reminiscent of their previous █
█ Caravan/æCanterburyÆ inspired 2014 album, the fine █
█ Transmissions from SogmoreÆs Garden, tripping █
█ along whimsically with mellifluous guitars, lovely █
█ harmony vocals and short flute swoops. However, █
█ just when you think itÆs over it then takes off in █
█ a whole new direction with an extended █
█ instrumental second part. A simple guitar riff is █
█ built on by bass, drums and a soft flute as it █
█ rises in tempo and volume, perhaps akin to █
█ ascending a mountain, before we reach a simple █
█ piano plateau which leads to a further rising █
█ simple guitar, bass and subtle drum passage û and █
█ then Magic Bus really start to raise the musical █
█ power. Jay DarlingtonÆs sinuous work on the organ █
█ and Terence WaldstadtÆs scintillating guitar play █
█ off each other as the band dramatically reaches █
█ the peak of the Mystical Mountain û Viv █
█ Goodwin-DarkeÆs flute floating off into the █
█ distance like a bird released. For an opening song █
█ it certainly sets out Magic BusÆs more ambitious █
█ stall and indicates that this is an album which █
█ reveals their more progressive rock influences, █
█ conveying more of the energy and power of their █
█ impressive live sets. █
█ In contrast Magic Bus then soothe us with gentle, █
█ dream-like instrumental Fading Light, with █
█ shimmering cymbals and subtle percussion from █
█ Connor Spring, who shows he can balance lighter █
█ material with heavier rock pieces. This piece █
█ almost feels like an introduction to Trail to █
█ Canaa, the next significant trip on this mystical █
█ journey. Vocalist, guitarist and one of the main █
█ song writers in the band, Paul Evans revealed that █
█ Canaa is in Belize in Central America, and █
█ speculated with deliberate ambiguity about the █
█ strange things that may have happened there. More █
█ research reveals that Canaa is among the Mayan █
█ ruins at Caracol, which was at its peak around 650 █
█ û 700 AD, when Europe was in the Dark Ages. Canaa █
█ means æSky PalaceÆ and the Mayan Pyramid there is █
█ STILL the highest building in Belize, which sounds █
█ very impressive. That may be very interesting but █
█ how does it work as a song? Thankfully, the █
█ resounding answer is that it works excellently. █
█ Opening acoustic guitars and flutes lead us gently █
█ through to the main clearing of the song as the █
█ music, harmony vocals and lyrics convey a █
█ pastoral, spiritual idyll: █
█ ôWe prayed to the Morning Sun, Our Light and God / █
█ We Danced round all the Stars, Sang with the █
█ Rising Dawn and gave our Hearts to Summerö █
█ Once again Magic Bus take the songs to another █
█ level, perhaps beyond where they may have left it █
█ on previous albums. Hypnotic organ chords induce a █
█ mystical sense of ritual joined by the band rising █
█ in power as the guitar intertwines with █
█ DarlingtonÆs exciting organ runs and SpringÆs █
█ powerful but restrained drums. We return to the █
█ soft idyll of the introduction in the coda, and █
█ you have a sense of having followed a relatively █
█ short but beguiling musical trip into another time █
█ and place. The pace and sense of travel is taken █
█ to another level on Zeta, a rippling and █
█ entrancing space chant imbued with Eastern █
█ rhythms. This is an exciting piece infused with █
█ short but sweet organ, flute and guitar solos that █
█ do not distract but combine skilfully to take the █
█ ride further towards the chanted Astral Portal. █
█ There are definite echoes of Ozric Tentacles or █
█ Gong in this piece, and Evans and Darlington have █
█ said that Gong have always been one of their █
█ influences, and that this has come much more to █
█ the fore on this latest album. █
█ Magic Bus are a band which loves its science █
█ fiction and sense of mysticism. Paul Evans and Jay █
█ Darlington readily admit to a fascination with the █
█ Sci-Fi of the Æ70s, and this interest permeates █
█ their songs in sound and theme, particularly the █
█ more angular Distant Future, driven along with a █
█ great bass line by Wihll Mellorz, underlining his █
█ deft touch throughout the album. Walstadt throws █
█ in a great and characteristically distorted guitar █
█ solo to enhance the futuristic feel, followed by █
█ Goodwin-DarkeÆs spiralling flute stabs, all backed █
█ by DarlingtonÆs keyboard sounds and effects. █
█ Kepler 22b powerfully continues the cosmic themes █
█ of much of the album, based on a planet that █
█ appears to be similar to Earth and possibly █
█ habitable in a æGoldilocksÆ orbit (i.e. not too █
█ hot and not too cold) around a star in the Cygnus █
█ constellation, 600 Light Years away. This is an █
█ exhilarating instrumental full of diverse sounds, █
█ themes and excellent musicianship, building on the █
█ feel and epic sweep of the excellent Jupiter 3 AM █
█ from Transmissions from SogmoreÆs Garden. Jupiter █
█ 3 AM is always a highlight of their live sets, and █
█ there is a very real sense that this new album is █
█ a much more evocative representation of the energy █
█ and power of their stage performances, Kepler █
█ 22bÆs fascinating musical orbit will undoubtedly █
█ be an exciting addition to their atmospheric gigs. █
█ After such a breathtaking ride it is perhaps █
█ appropriate for Magic Bus to lead us to calmer █
█ musical waters in the delightfully wistful █
█ Kalamazoo. This diaphanous song was somewhat █
█ unusually written mainly by drummer Connor Spring █
█ and bassist Wihll Mellorz, whom apparently were █
█ just playing about in the garden of the recording █
█ studio with two 12-string guitars (how much more █
█ æProgÆ can you get!) when Evans and Darlington █
█ liked what they heard and Evans helped them hone █
█ it into a lovely piece to soothe the soul. Evans █
█ and Darlington have shared how important and █
█ inspirational the environment and atmosphere of █
█ Vale Studios in Worcestershire was in the creative █
█ process of making this album, and this beautiful █
█ lilting song is testament to that observation. █
█ The final song Yantra Tunnels announces itself █
█ with shimmering Eastern sounds, befitting the █
█ YantraÆs association with the mystical diagrams of █
█ Tantric traditions. Wihll Mellorz lays down a █
█ subtle bass under a sinuous synthesiser line █
█ intertwined with flute. Another multi-layered and █
█ fascinating trip unfolds as the band spirals █
█ upwards in Gong-like raptures, and then they take █
█ off in a powerful and scintillating instrumental █
█ finaleà which then fades into the distance. █
█ Possibly curtailed to enable a vinyl length █
█ release, it is very likely that unleashed in a █
█ full live manifestation Yantra Tunnels will █
█ develop even more cosmically and expansively, █
█ typifying the real sense of the power and energy █
█ of live performance being channelled in this █
█ impressive album. █
█ Magic Bus have produced a very fine album in █
█ Phillip the Egg which takes their journey onward █
█ into a more expansive and exciting musical orbit. █
█ They continue to draw on and honour their █
█ inspirations and influences, but have developed █
█ their sound to liberate and more fully reflect █
█ their true energy and spirit. As Paul Evans once █
█ said about Magic Bus, ôif youÆre not happy with █
█ where you are, thereÆs always the roadà thereÆs █
█ freedom on the busö. █
█ Join the Magic Bus on their mystical musical █
█ journey, and free yourself with them on their █
█ road. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Mystical Mountain 8:50 ░
░ 2. Fading Light 3:36 ░
░ 3. Trail to Canaa 5:40 ░
░ 4. Zeta 4:33 ░
░ 5. Distant Future 7:10 ░
░ 6. Kepler 22b 6:45 ░
░ 7. Kalamazoo 3:31 ░
░ 8. Yantra Tunnels 5:04 ░
░ 45:09 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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