Fossilium Catalogus ii Plantae 69

Amon Düü II's follow-up to their landmark double-LP set Tanz der Lemminge features a musical approach less experimental than previous recordings, but nonetheless distinctive and broad-reaching in its sphere of influences. The almost epic tack of the earlier works has been pared down here, but full-forward, guitar-heavy tracks like "C.I.D. in Uruk," "Ballad of the Shimmering Sands," and "Kronwinkl 12" use disparate folk and hard rock elements cannily. The band moves the music with a majestic sweep punctuated by the snaky guitar work of Chris Karrer and John Weinzierl.

By 1976, Amon Düül II had transitioned from a highly experimental unit to an almost traditional pop-rock act, with lyrics sung in English and a decidedly (and unexpectedly) rockist approach to songwriting. New members Stefan Zauner (keys) and Klaus Ebert (guitar and bass) contributed the majority of the songs, adding to the stark newness of the sound. While this album has its share of exciting moments, it is not a typical Amon Duul album, and will probably be best enjoyed by completists.

{RYM}Here we have everything, from fast pomping passages to more mellow parts, the sound and manner of composing here is more refined then on their debute, the musicianship is tight, great ideas and top notch pieces. The interplay between guitar and organ (keyboards) and drums I must say is absolutly killer and inventive. There are some passages that truly shine no less, like on opening Put it this way, what to say really , impressive playing from each msucian, Gary Moore in duel with master Don Airey, somemthing not to be missed by any prog/jazz rock lover.

The second album by Amon Düül II, 1970's Yeti, is their first masterpiece, one of the defining early albums of Krautrock. A double album on vinyl, Yeti consists of a set of structured songs and a second disc of improvisations. It's testament to the group's fluidity and improvisational grace that the two albums don't actually sound that different from each other, and that the improvisational disc may actually be even better than the composed disc. The first disc opens with "Soap Shop Rock," a 12-minute suite that recalls King Crimson's early work in the way it switches easily between lyrical, contemplative passages and a more violent, charging sound, and continues through a series of six more songs in the two- to six-minute range, from the ominous, threatening "Archangels Thunderbird" (featuring a great doomy vocal by mono-named female singer Renate) to the delicate, almost folky acoustic tune "Cerberus"…

This ambitious video and musical project was co-ordinated by Tom Galley (brother of former Whitesnake guitarist Mel Galley) - the albums are concept affairs, centred on the theme of supernatural phenomena. However, utilizing an impressive list of guest musicians has not always guaranteed a good result, and Phenomena went some way towards proving this truism. With Neil Murray (bass), Cozy Powell (drums), Mel Galley (guitar) and Glenn Hughes (vocals) among the initial line-up, great things were evidently expected for Phenomena. However, the songs were often overtly complex and lacked a central melody line. Dream Runner, released two years later, suffered from similar problems, but the music was less of a disappointment.