Search - Deluge Grander :: August in the Urals

Eastern European-sounding prog, made in the USA.

Squire Jaco | Buffalo, NY USA | 07/23/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Remnants of the Baltimore-based jazz-fusiony band Cerebus Effect head up this wonderful new prog band with the abstruse name of Deluge Grander. I don't know if it was the subliminal influence of the cover art and album name, but this album frequently had a sound reminiscent of something Russian or foreign.



It looks like the leader of this group (and primary composer) is keyboardist and sometimes guitarist Dan Britton. He is very talented, and it is certainly his employment of a rather large arsenal of keyboards throughout the album that lends this music to be tagged mostly "symphonic prog". Patrick Gaffney's jazz-oriented drumming is very inventive and exciting, and I suspect it is his influence that pulls the band into some fusion excursions. Notable also is the ever-present guitar playing of Dave Berggren, and some decent bass playing by Brett d'Anon.



The album opener is the remarkable "Inaugural Bash", and at 27 minutes in length, it somehow manages to hold one's interest with quite a stew of styles and instruments, including xylophone and trumpet in parts. I thought the last five or six minutes could have offered a bit more climax and resolution to the rest of the piece, but still an overall great composition. Each subsequent song is shorter than the one before it, with distinctive styles and rhythms. There's even a Spanish style to the 7-minute last track "The Solitude of Miranda", the short vocal section of which is sung backwards by a woman listed as Adnarim (Miranda spelled backwards, just in case you missed it).



Some reviewers have complained about the vocals on this album. Aside from some Zappa-like alien vocals for about 15 seconds on track one, and the ten-second vocal on "...Miranda", vocals mainly appear on tracks 2 and 3. They really are not bad, and add to the uniqueness of the band's sound. Britton's deep-throated vocals are mike'd kind of far away, and mixed somewhat low, so even if you didn't like them, they wouldn't be too distracting. But I rather like them - they tend to be almost narrative, though the lyrics themselves must not be terribly important since they are not reproduced in the liner notes anyplace. Nevertheless, it's the MUSIC (not the lyrics) that dominate and impress on this album anyway!



There's really an awful lot going on in this 71-minute album. The busy-ness of the music probably could have benefited from slightly enhanced production, but really the mix is not too bad. I do believe that the overall sound and style of Deluge Grander is distinctive and accomplished enough to garner a good listen; there aren't the overt similarities to other bands (though you will be reminded occasionally of Yes, Genesis, Gentle Giant and others), nor many prog cliches, so you get a pretty original experience with this cd. (Who else puts the "Oh-EE-Oh" march from "The Wizard of Oz" into a prog song ["A Squirrel"]!? ) There is also a lot of original artwork throughout the liner notes - plenty to enjoy here!



I value interesting music that is played and recorded well. This cd's rating was based on:

Music quality = 8.6/10; Performance = 9/10; Production = 8.5/10; CD length = 10/10.

Overall score weighted on my proprietary scale = 8.8 ("4-1/2 stars")

"

Densely layered music from Cerebus Effect members

Brian G | Willington, CT United States | 11/05/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Deluge Grander owes its conception to the Baltimore progressive rock group Cerebus Effect. Keyboardist Dan Britton and drummer Patrick Gaffney were exploring new material. They were joined by Dave Berggen on guitars, with Jeff Suzdal adding sax, Brett D'Anon adding bass and Frank d'Anon ably filling in several more instruments. The result was something very wonderful. The arrangements of August In The Urals are incredibly dense and layered, but the lead musician is never in doubt. Melodies and rhythms wind around each other, returning and then hiding under the thick blanket of warm keyboards and bending bass.



Minor keys predominate, but what sets this album apart are the sections where the listener can "come up for air" with a turn to major chords and more upbeat, positive sounding material. The music follows a classical style with songs composed of many sections. Styles, rhythms and instrumentation change often. The composition style ranges from dark RIO similar to Guapo (especially with the driving electric piano so useful in Guapo's music) to the Scandanavian symphonic excursions of Wobbler and Sinkadus, to the more melodic sounds of Glass Hammer and even some Rick Wakeman and Van der Graaf Generator.



With only five songs covering a total over 70 minutes, there is sufficient room within each selection for each player to add their own ideas. On the first track "Inaugural Bash", the listener is given a revolving set of melodies. The vocals enter at about eight minutes into the song like a choir of morticians, but then fade into the clever, intricate songlines again. When a certain chord basis and rhythm are established, some kind of melody always shows up, whether played by the keyboard, the vocals, the guitar, or the bass. Even after 26 minutes, "Inaugural Bash" fades out, like there was more the band wanted to add!



The exhausting "Inaugural Bash" is graciously followed up by the pastoral introduction to "August In The Urals". However, this does not last long before the Russian men's choir vocals reappear. But they are too far back in the mix to contribute lyrically, buried by the heavy bass and mountain of mellotron. The mixing and mastering are probably the only shortfall of this recording, understandable since it was recorded in individual home studios. That said, it is quite an accomplishment based on the limits of their equipment.

"A Squirrel" and "The Solitude of Miranda" continue the heavy progressive keyboard elements, evoking Par Lindh and Deus Ex Machina But I keep coming back to the comparison with Wobbler and Guapo in the complexity and heavy use of keyboards.

This band is unique for American bands in that there are very few instrumental or vocal solos. This reflects on the creative imagination of the players, keeping the listener entertained for each long track.



Deluge Grander provides the listener with visual pleasure as well. In the liner notes, there is a work of art depicting each song. My favorite is the pastoral scene for "Abandoned Mansion Afternoon". The pictures are somewhat folky and simplistic, but each tries to depict the music as a picture - very difficult since there are few lyrics. Plus the lyrics are de-emphasized, although a print of the lyrics would have been helpful in connecting the art with the music. This album illustrates the advantages of great cover art. On the front cover of August In the Urals is one of my favorite masterpieces of 19th Century art - a portion of Thomas Cole's "The Voyage Of Life - Youth" showing a young person reaching toward a grand city in the sky while in a boat floating into a pastoral landscape. What is missing in this scene is Cole's original depiction of challenging rapids in the stream ahead, an allusion to the challenge of mid-life. The challenge of making this album could have been in mind when they chose this particular work of art. If this metaphor holds, the players are in heaven now!

"

Not For Everybody

Old Prog Lover | Indianapolis, IN | 05/27/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Face it. One is either going to love this music or hate it. I don't think there is any middle of the road. It is even hard to classify. Eclectic Prog, maybe. Rather than try to describe it, it may best to try to relate it. The best I can relate Deluge Grander is to King Crimson, but not quite. It is a bit more melodic than that. Suffice to say that if you like King Crimson, and even some jazz rock fusion, you should like Deluge Grander, and Dan Britton's other project "Birds and Buildings". If you can picture a work like Larks' Tongues in Aspic, then add a melody line that is "followable" then you have an idea of Deluge Grander.



The music IS complex. It can often sound a disjointed mess to some. But you will here the melody line come and go through out a piece. It really does boarder on a type of jazz, where extended length songs grab and release a melody and allow the musicians to go out on a limb and then come back in once again. You have to sit and listen to this music, you have to be able to follow it. If you want expect it to be "car jamming music" or music to "hum along to", forget it. It has to be taken in and digested. Maybe even a bit like classical music. The music is not mellow by any means. While no where near metal, it is hyper; with the rhythm section setting the pace with rapid bass lines and fast drum beats. It is also very short on lyrics.



I don't mean to come off sounding like some snob or something. You just have to be ready, and understand, what this type of music is about. Just because you like Yes, The Flower Kings, and Genesis does NOT mean you will like Deluge Grander. (Or Birds and Buildings) I hate to see a single star rating because the music was not what one was expecting. (And I really can't blame them. They may think: "What in the heck is this stuff!?") If you can get into King Crimson, Robert Fripp, Adrian Belew, and maybe a couple of early Talking Head releases "Fear of Music" or "Remain in Light" then perhaps you can appreciate Deluge Grander and Dan Britton.



Personally, as you can see from my rating, I love this CD! It is wonderfully complex. You can listen to it over and over and hear something new each time, or follow a different instrument with each listen; hear how they interact with one another. These musicians are fantastic. Just composing and playing these long pieces is mind blowing. I often have to wonder if they even come out the same way twice.

"