There are a lot of different sounds presented on this album. I’ve included it in the progressive rock section because quite a bit of this fits, at least somewhat, under that heading. Still, there are other sounds, too. I’m not blown away by all of this, but it’s a great way to sample a number of artists you might not otherwise hear. It should be noted that I previously reviewed a number of these tracks on the individual albums. The reviews of those here are modified from the original reviews for the sake of consistency. 

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2013  Volume 2 at lulu.com/strangesound.

The keyboard laden sound that opens this resembles 1980s progressive rock. Yes, there is such a thing and I happen to like it. Think Yes’ Drama album and Asia’s first album. This gets more involved and turns towards mid-period Genesis for a short section, then comes back out into the main section again. From there it turns to something else that’s quite tasty. The cut keeps shifting and getting altered as it continues, but it never ceases to be progressive rock, or interesting.

Jazzy prog is merged with hard rocking, almost punk sounds for a killer tune. The lyrics are in German (I think) and this is a fun number. The horn section adds a lot to the mix.

A garage band, riffy psychedelic sound is heard as this opens up and that continues as it expands. This really does feel like it could have been released in the late 1960s or early 1970s. There’s a cool psychedelic/proto-prog jam later in the track. This is really quite a complex piece, working through a number of shifts and changes in its course.

Here we get a tune that’s got a great retro rock and roll sound to it. There’s nothing Earth shattering here, but this is classy. There’s a section later in the track that turns towards space rock. As it moves out from there we get something closer to a Southern rock meets jam band sound.

The melodic elements on this one seem above and beyond those on many of Mythos tracks. While it reflects the electronic music kind of vibe that the group has, this has more of a dramatic, almost movie soundtrack feel in a lot of ways.

Hints of country music are heard on the melodic opening movement of this cut. Combining that sound with the elements typical of this group (mostly psychedelic and prog) and perhaps some Mazzy Star, this is a strong tune. There’s a rather trippy spoken section that has some killer melodic guitar soloing.

An instrumental, this cut features some proggy moments and is one of the cooler pieces on show. That is set within the kind of sound that is Faithful Breath, mainly a classic rock meets NWOBHM texture.

I love the fuzz guitar sound on this rocker, but the vocals on this live recording suffers from too much distortion. There are moments of this, though, that make me think a bit of Hawkwind. It has some great fuzz jamming later, too – very space rock like.

Suitably, electronic sounds open this. Then it shifts out to a bouncy jam that seems like part electronic music and part surf music.

Suitably there is French language in this. It’s in the form of a spoken female voice over a fusion meets electronic kind of backdrop. That’s counter-pointed with more of a straight ahead rock sound for the choruses. This is a great tune.         

World music and fusion (the central sound of the vibe that is Zzebra) are combined here. It’s got some soulful singing. and I love some of the instrumental work, too. There’s also a bit of a drum solo in the middle of this thing

Indie rock with some hints of electronic music makes up the motif here. The lyrics are in German. This isn’t bad. It’s just a little average.

Classic blues sounds are heard here. This feels like something that would have come out in the late 1960s. Think John Mayall.

Playful old time music makes up this cut. It’s very old world in nature. It’s OK, but doesn’t really seem to fit very well here. Additionally, it’s not my kind of thing, really.