GONG — Shamal (review)

GONG — Shamal album cover Album · 1975 · Jazz Related Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
Warthur
Shamal is an awkward album from a time when Gong were clearly no longer the whimsical teapot-obsessed pixies of the Daevid Allen years but Pierre Moerlen's fusion force hadn't emerged from the cocoon yet. Jazzy in places, spacey in others, the album meanders around in search of a cohesive sound and hasn't quite found it by the time the title track plays us out. Steve Hillage's contributions seem subdued and lacklustre, as though he were already eyeing the exit, whilst Pierre Moerlen's percussion work knocks this piece up to a three-star piece. Pleasant but forgettable, Shamal is one you want to listen to if you find yourself curious as to how the madcap psychedelic Canterbury group of You became the sleek jazz-rock unit of Gazeuse, but unless you are very interested in the band's history I wouldn't make it a high priority.
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