Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Astonishingly proficient chamber rock band, 3 Dec 2004
The first album from Far Corner, a quartet of atonishingly proficient musicians with no known pedigree, apart from fretless bass player Bill Kopecky who also plays with the band Kopecky. This is tighly composed chamber music for drums, piano, cello and bass. It resembles the first two Present albums or mid period Univers Zero, but with extra bass -the bass just soars and sings in an almost human tone. For those not familair with those groups, imagine what might have happened if ELP had continued with the model set by the Barabarian on their first album and added a cello player who uses effects pedals and you're somewhere there. The piano player also plays Hammond organ on occasion to complete the picture. Very high intensity music, wonderful composition and superlative playing. Recommended to fans of Alaamailman Vasarat, Kopecky, Univers Zero and Apocalyptica. It doesn't get any better than this!
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Check Every Corner, 24 Mar 2008
"Far Corner" is the first album from the group of the same name. This instrumental group creates a form of progressive rock which involves a mix of classical, chamber, and rock, along with a bit of jazz fusion mixed in for good measure. Parts of some of the pieces reminded me of ELP and King Crimson, but with their unique group of instruments and a style all their own, this album is by no means an attempt to recreate someone else's sound. The base of the group is keyboards, bass, cello, and percussion, but they are not limited to those instruments.
This debut was released on September 21, 2004, and opens with the engaging and powerful driving "Silly Whim". The listener is immediately drawn to the surging beat and rhythm changes, along with the instrumentation. This is followed by "Going Somewhere?" which is an interesting piece but one which wasn't quite up to the opening number for me. The next three tracks are the three movements to a piece titled "Something Out There" which also involves a lot of improvisation. The first movement is a bit experimental and kind of meanders along. The second movement steps immediately into overdrive with a driving beat and some wonderful keyboard and bass work with the cello adding in to a lesser extent. The last movement returns to more of the meandering and experimentation of the first movement.
"With One Swipe of Its Mighty Paw" is another of the powerful and grabbing pieces on this album. The mix of cello, keyboards and bass is excellent with the percussion holding everything together. "Outside" is a bit calmer, but still offers good interplay between the instruments. It is not outstanding, but a solid track. In a similar vein, "Tracking" offers some more complex rhythms and melodies, but comes in a bit short when compared to the strongest tracks on the album. "The Turning" is another of the engaging pieces which really grab the listener's ear. Alternating with syncopated rhythms and melodious sections, it is a real treat. The album ends with the longest single track called "Fiction". Once again featuring varied rhythms and wonderful interplay between the musicians, it is a good way for the group to finish this debut album.
This is an impressive debut album, to say the least. The group consists of William Kopecky (electric bass - fretless & fretful), Dan Maske (grand piano, Hammond organ, synthesizers, additional percussion), Angela Schmidt (acoustic and electric cello), and Craig Walkner (percussion). Each of the members contributes a lot to the final product, and are clearly very fine musicians. Frederick Schmidt (clarinet) and Heather Schmidt (flute) are guest musicians on the album. Dan Maske composed all the pieces, though on "Something Out There" one has to credit all the musicians for their improvisations. This album deserves around 4 ½ stars, though I will round down to 4 so they have some room for improvement.
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