Rob Harrison - 2024 - Explode My Head

(45:06; Rob Harrison)

Track list:
1. A Severe Lack of Gravitas 5:28
2. A Bountiful Surplus of Grace 7:01
3. A Profound Throb of Dread 8:40
4. An Absurd Case of Iguanas 8:05
5. An Acute Sense of Being 8:57
6. A Fragile Harmony of Desires 6:55

Line-up:
Rob Harrison - guitars, saxophone, bass, vocals, effects
with:
Ian East - flute. clarinet
Eliseo Salaverri - drums
Lloyd Stratford- drums, percussion
Pedro Vieira - piano
Julia  - violin
Polina Faustova - cello
Jess Townsend - violin
Tom McCluskey - cello
Hannah Buddle - backing vocals
Siobhan Hynes - backing vocals
Jessica Lucitt - backing vocals
Felicity Sage - backing vocals


Prolusion.
UK artist and musician Rob Harrison isn't a name I'm familiar with, and I can't recall having encountered the music by any of his many band involvements either. Where the bands referenced are Z Machine, Attercopus, The Felix Subway Band, Mascot Moth and Strap the Button respectively. This summer Harrisn is out with his first ever solo album. The album is called "Explode My Head", and was self released by the artist.

Analysis.
When looking at the cover art for this album and reading the album and song titles, I suspect just about everyone will realize that this is an album that operates in a bit more of a niche segment in the field of progressive rock. It is a retro-oriented affair for sure, but more importantly is that this is an album that looks back to the more expressive varieties of the form and the tradition from yesteryear.

That the album opens with a creation that kicks into a chamber rock initial drive, segues into landscapes with a little bit of an orchestral feel too and then head over to a hard and heavy jazzrock expression where the saxophone and the electric guitar are the dominant instruments rather sets the tone of this journey. Following this we get a small handful of creations that hone in more on the jazzrock side of matters, and those fond of a more heavy set saxophone and electric guitar combination will find plenty to enjoy on these excursions. With a little bit of a detour into the kind of landscapes Gentle Giant explored while at their creative peak. We also get instances of experimental minimalism to deal with, as well as jazzrock sections a bit less bombastic in sound and execution. To conclude this production the album takes a more dramatic shift again, now with a folk music inspired composition that gradually segues over to more of a chamber rock type of expression. Taking the album full circle in that regard.

This is one of those cases where words just won't convey exactly the kind of music we are dealing with. And where lots of details probably have gone missing when taking notes and giving the album some initial inspections just won't enable you to notice everything nor all the references I presume are very much present. A fact that can be stated with a deep sense of security is that this is a challenging production though, and an album that revolve around the progressive, the boundary bending and the experimental.

Conclusion.
For me at least, "Explode My Head" is a creation that explore, celebrate and hail the great expressive progressive rock bands of the 1970s. King Crimson for sure, probably Van der Graaf Generator and Soft Machine too, and Gentle Giant for sure. And possibly with one song that may have taken some cues from the Calvert-era of Hawkwind. If you enjoy expressive progressive rock and jazzrock as they made it prior to 1975, this is an album that should be taken note of.

Olav "Progmessor" Björnsen, June 2024

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/RobHarrisonMusic