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PRICE:
$21.00
IN STOCK
ARTIST
TITLE
Facelift
FORMAT
2CD

LABEL
CATALOG #
VP 233CD VP 233CD
GENRE
RELEASE DATE
6/10/2002

"You may well ask, why release yet another live recording of a Soft Machine concert when there are already several available. Quite simply according to the line up which included Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Hugh Hopper and Elton Dean and in their opinion it was one of the best performances they had done together. It was made in the middle of the classic Soft Machine period and contains all the major items that made up their repertoire of the time. The recording was made by Brian Hopper from the audience and as can be heard from the enthusiastic reception by the audience at the end, this was an outstanding Soft Machine offering, with an 'authentic' live sound exactly as it was actually experienced, heard here in glorious lo-fi, but a performance to treasure and above all to enjoy. It is the spirit and energy which comes through in a performance that is critical and if these are at a high point as they were in this concert then any shortcomings in sound quality can be ignored. Elton's playing was especially lyrical with a soaring, expressive fluency especially on 'Out- Bloody-Rageous', 'Backwards', 'Hibou Anemone & Bear' and 'Pigling Bland'. Hugh, as ever, underpinned everything with rock solid bass whilst displaying sensitivity and drive ? very necessary with the complex patterns being thrown around by the other three. Robert as a drummer, Robert as a vocalist, Robert as a musician -- all are inseparable. It is his total immersion in music that enables Robert to project his personality into all he does on stage and on record Mike's uncompromising strings of notes, leaps of musical structure and texture and complex time signatures all characterize a style not heard before (or since) in any band. The concert followed conventional practice with two sets separated by an interval. It was therefore appropriate to place the two halves on separate CDs to maintain the feel of the overall performance. This CD will be a must for the huge Soft Machine fan base especially with this brilliant line up."