Search - Larval :: Predator Or Prey

Well balanced fusion of Prog and Jazz

drumb | milwaukee, wi United States | 02/12/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Over the years, progressive music has taken countless blows to its credibility. True, many of the late 60s and 70s progressive bands did reach new heights of pretentiousness and utter ridiculousness in their music, but this depressing general trend tends to obscure the genre's lesser noted more creative players. Because of this, the years following the initial progressive boom have brought about a virtual drought of Prog rock acts and the brilliant ideas originated by groups like King Crimson and Pink Floyd have become all but extinct. Thankfully, Bill Brovold has created the constantly changing Larval to solve this very problem. Hearkening back to the glory days of timeless albums like Larks Tongues in Aspic and Red, Larval's Predator or Prey takes heavy riffage to new levels. The squealing sax and clattering drum kit only add to the commotion, making a surprisingly tight unit that gives focus to the progressive sounds and a distinct order to the free jazz influences. Furthermore, even on a very literal level Larval shares many parallels with the legendary King Crimson. Like Robert Fripp in Crim, Bill Brovold is the only constant member of an ever-changing assortment of musicians all united under the umbrella title of "Larval". Brovold also seems to have the same ... perfectionist sense as Robert Fripp toying with the Entity track twice on this release, and again on his next album, in the same way that Fripp constantly updates his favorite tracks (Larks Tongues in Aspic, Fractured). However, Brovold's unique jazz flair is what truly sets Larval apart from the otherwise very similar progressive behemoth that is King Crimson. Featuring a distinctly Avant Garde John Zorn informed layer melded with his Prog roots, Larval makes the rare fusion of Avant Garde and progressive that only a select few have ever accomplished, The Art Bears and Henry Cow being amongst them. What Brovold ends up with is a truly distinct album that should appeal to fans on both sides of his influence spectrum and in my opinion, ranks highly amongst CDs of both Prog and jazz."