Monday 19 February 2018

GARDENING CLUB CANADIAN REVIEW

Band: The Gardening Club : The Gardening Club
Website:  www.gardeningclubmusicandart.com/
Label:  Gonzo Multimedia (2018)
Rating: Engaging Prog-Lite finally sees release

I always enjoy catching up on albums that perhaps had a limited release in their heyday or perhaps never saw the light of day. Such is the case here with The Gardening Club and their 1983 self-titled release. Given the timing of the original release, prog fans will no doubt have some idea of the mainstream nature of the music performed here as the album often times sounds more like a lost 10CC album of quirky pop tunes. That’s certainly most obvious in main man Martin Springett’s vocal style but also in the actual crafting of these tunes. Proggy embellishments are everywhere especially on a few of the instrumentals where band members take the opportunity to stretch out performance wise; nothing overly complex or crazy, but certainly thoughtful extended solos and shifting musical dynamics or arrangements. It’s at times like these that you can see why this record failed to find an audience in 1983. It was simply too complex for the time. 

Very interesting material released at the wrong time. Gonzo Multimeida are the folks behind the release of The Gardening Club and they’ve done a nice job is putting a package together that not only includes the original album but features five bonus tracks and a twenty-four page booklet displaying original artwork. There’s a total of seventeen tracks included, a whopping seventy-three minutes of music and I have to say, this is an exceedingly pleasant listen with just a hint of something more musically complex or serious going on in the background that breaks through here and there. It’s enough to keep me coming back to the disc to hear what else I might have missed on previous listens. Great to seeThe Gardening Club hit the light of day after all these years. Word is a new album is on the way and I’m certainly looking forward to that.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO

The Gardening Club
CD - £9.99

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