Various Artists - 2020 - The 17th Dream Of Dr. Sardonicus Festival Live

(85:36; Fruits de Mer Records)






















Track list:
1. Sarah Birch - Reverence 3:54
2. Mark McDowell and Friends - Starstreamer 6:06
3. Alain Pire Experience - Lazin' in the Afternoon 3:31
4. Ken Pustelnik's Groundhogs - The Garden 7:06
5. Elfin Bow - Autumn Stone 5:29
6. Fellowship Of Hallucinatory Voyagers - Taith Yr Afon Teifi 16:42
7. The Chemistry Set - Love or Confusion 4:03
8. Sendelica - Nine Miles High 17:08
9. Three Dimensional Tanx - Racing Car #9 4:39
10. Moon Goose - Second Life 5:03
11. The Bevis Frond - Pale Blue Blood 11:55

Line-up:
Artists as listed


Prolusion.
UK label Fruits de Mer Records have for quite a few years had a hand in arranging annual festivals where the bands associated with the label and other interested and interesting parties are given the opportunity to perform for an interested audience over a weekend. The festival is called The Dream of Dr. Sardonicus and is held in Cardigan, Wales. The double live album "The 17th Dream Of Dr. Sardonicus Festival Live" documents the artists that performed at the 6th of those festivals back in 2019.

Analysis.
Just about anything that UK label Fruits de Mer Records is involved in are matters with a high artistic quality: While I'm sure some missteps have happened along the way these are few and very far between. This festival is another such success story, and while not the kind of event that will bring in any serious amount of money or people the artistic value is high, and the events come across as memorable ones for audience and performers alike.

On this double album those of us who didn't attend the festival get the chance to hear what was going on, and I rather assume that many of the people in attendance will have bought a copy to relive the weekend and help preserve the memories of it too.

There is a great deal of variety at hand here, with gentler folk music oriented escapades and more regular 60's classic rock with psychedelic overlays present just as much as music a bit more out there in shape, form and execution. Among the highlights are The Chemistry Set and their transformation of the song 'Love or Confusion' from a compelling blues song into something light toned filled with nervous energy and otherworldly aspirations, and the Moon Goose and their song 'Second Life' that combine aspects of stoner rock and space rock into quite the vibrant and energetic journey. Those fond of the more elongated and jam-oriented varieties of space rock gets their fill and then some with contributions by The Fellowship of Hallucinatory Voyagers and Sendelica respectively, and good old garage rock found its way into the festival too it seems.

While these live recordings obviously have been made within a budget, this is a couple of light years removed from being an audiophile oriented production, the recordings are clean and the sound fairly well balanced. I do believe that some of the keyboards and in one case a violin may have been lost just a little bit in the soundscapes, but then again these are live recordings and not a studio production. Where documenting what actually took place in the manner it happened is the most important aspect of it all. And the impression I get is that this has been very successfully done indeed.

The main problem with this double album, as with just about anything released by Fruits de Mer Records, is getting your hands on a copy of it. This specific title was sold out at the pre-order stage, but as time has gone by a few of these have found their way out into the second hand market. Around a dozen are available for the curious at the time of writing, and some of them even at a decent price.

Conclusion.
If you have a taste for psychedelic rock in several different guises, and listening to live performances by almost a dozen different artists with almost as many takes on the genre seems interesting, this double album should give you exactly what you need. The recording quality is decent, the performances good, and the total experience is that this is an honest and genuine live festival compilation. A solid production on all levels, as per usual with productions from this label.

Olav "Progmessor" Björnsen, January 2023

Links:
https://www.fruitsdemerrecords.com/

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