Top Bar
Musique Machine Logo Home ButtonReviews ButtonArticles ButtonBand Specials ButtonAbout Us Button
SearchGo Down
Search for  
With search mode in section(s)
And sort the results by
show articles written by  
 Review archive:  # a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Seventh Wave - Things To Come [Esoteric Records - 2018]

1974’s Things To Come was the first album from this British two-piece prog-rock project. And it offered up a decidedly uneven blend of bounding, melodic & symphonic 70’s prog pop-rock, and instrumental tracks  with a more experimental & moody leaning. On Cherry Reds prog sub-label Esoteric Records here  we have a recent CD reissue of the album.

Seventh Wave where formed in the mid 70’s by  Ken Elliot (keyboards, vocals) and Kieran O'Connor (percussion)- the pair originally met in progressive/ psychedelic group Second Hand, who released one of the classic slices of strange and unpredictable prog with their second  & sadly finally album for the project 1971’s Death May Be Your Santa Claus( also reissued on Esoteric) . After the break-up of Second Hand, the pair went onto release an album of more jam based prog under the banner of Chillum. So Seventh Wave was their third project together. I was a huge, huge fan of Death May Be Your Santa Claus- so when I saw Esoteric where reissue both this and their second album Psi-Fi I had to dive in

For the fourteen track album, the pair played everything with  Ken Elliott on  Piano, Electric Piano, Clavinet, Synthesizer [Arp, Moog, Ems], Mellotron, Glockenspiel, Chimes,  & Vocals.  And Kieran O'Connor on Drums [Ludwig, Asba, Orchestral Bass Drum], Congas, Bongos, Bells [Sleigh], Cymbal [Finger, Crash], Castanets [Castinets], Handclaps, Claves, Xylophone, Vibraphone.  So as an album it’s certainly both virtuoso & varied in its sound pallet.

Sadly beyond the pairs musical prowess & a few interesting ideas, Things to Come often comes across uneven, muddled, and unstructured album. Bringing together grand ELP like symphonic prog pop-rock tunes featuring some fairly pointed US pop rock elements, with more random & quirky instrumental tracks- which often lack both coherency & worthy structure. All giving the album a feeling of been a collection of different sessions, or compositions in embryonic stages.

Sure you can say as an album Things To Come is both unpredictable & daring in its structure- the issues is it just feels like a collection of tracks or a compilation, instead of a coherent album, which of course is one of the things you can usually rely on with Prog.

As you’d expect with Cherry Red linked label you get a decent job done with the reissue- with the disc coming in a clear jewel case. Ths features a glossy 16-page inlay booklet – which features a new four-page write-up about the band & album, as well as full credits & lyrics. And you also get a single  bonus track in the shape of a single cut of an album track

I really wanted to like Things To Come, after having so much time for Second Hand’s 2nd album- but I just found it too uneven in its blend of sketchy moody-ness/ experimentation, and in your face pop-prog dramatics.

Rating: 2 out of 5Rating: 2 out of 5Rating: 2 out of 5Rating: 2 out of 5Rating: 2 out of 5

Roger Batty
Latest Reviews

Seventh Wave - Things To Come
1974’s Things To Come was the first album from this British two-piece prog-rock project. And it offered up a decidedly uneven blend of bounding, melodic &a...
110725   Alternative TV - Direct Actio...
110725   Theme - Meditations on Space,...
110725   Pitchshifter - Peel Sessions...
100725   John Scott - Symptoms OST
100725   Torsofuck - Feasting On Carve...
100725   Dachra - Dachra(VOD)
100725   Transmission - Transmission( ...
100725   Up! - Up!( Blu Ray)
100725   Jack The Ripper - Jack The Ri...
090725   A Day At The Beach - A Day A...
Latest Articles

Matthew Holmes - Of razor-sharp t...
It’s fair to say the Sharksploitation genre is often tried, tested, and to be honest, tired. Fear Below is a 2025 Australian film that tries to do some...
180625   Matthew Holmes - Of razor-sha...
280525   The Residents - Visits From T...
090525   Ennaytch - Of walls, abused ...
150425   Dead, Dead Swans interview - ...
110325   Sebastian Tomb - Walls of unb...
040225   Alien Sex Fiend - Possessed B...
231224   Best Of 2024 - Music, Sound &...
191224   Splintered - Somewhere Betwee...
031224   Shane Ryan-Reid - Coerced and...
221024   Whore’s Breath - life’s h...
Go Up
(c) Musique Machine 2001 -2025. Twenty four years of true independence!! Mail Us at questions=at=musiquemachine=dot=comBottom