NORTH STAR: Tempest CD 2000. THE early 80s Progressive Rock Philadelphia USA band. Check all songs. Whole album

Description

The Progressive Rock band NORTH STAR has been around since the early 80’s and released a bunch of albums since then. They play Progressive Rock, but I believe ‘Tempest’ is their first instrumental album. A song like “”Plastic bombastic”” will appeal to all fans of progressive rock. Just listen to the big keyboard/synthesiser typed sound that was done by a guitar synth! There are also quite a few songs that are hard to label as progressive rock, as they sound very different and very peaceful with all sorts of calm and epic moments. The best songs seem to pop up towards the end of the album, such as the already mentioned “”Plastic bombastic””, “”Goodbye mom”” and the keyboard only based “”Colossus””.

If you were expecting more heavily Genesis influenced music as on their previously released albums, Tempest will be a pleasant surprise. Despite some of the similarities, I think North Star have found their true heading. Tempest will help to bring them up out of the crowd.

SAMPLES:

Check Audio (whole album, every song)

https://www.deezer.com/album/183689?autoplay=true
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/tempest/id4265497

OR  www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/1218356/a/tempest.htm

 

Label: Space Monster Optional Entertainment ‎– CD-0500-4
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 2000
Genre: Rock, Prog Rock

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Tempest (6:54)
Yes, I Know (5:02)
Bathroom By The Bongos (6:23)
Prelude in C (2:38)
Opus V (6:00)
Raudra (9:09)
Gettin’ Gigue Wit It (3:21)
Plastic Bombastic (7:00)
Goodbye Mom (6:09)
Colossus (4:43)
Total Time: 57:19

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Musicians:
Dave Johnson – guitar, guitar synthesizer, bass; electric drums (3)
Glenn Leonard – drums; doumbek (5) and keyboards (5, 4)
Kevin Leonard – keyboards; bass (1, 3) and organ (5)
Joe Newnam – sitar (6)

“”Progressive, instrumental symphonic rock music has been all the rage since the days of albums like the first ELO album or Fragile by Yes, yet it has rarely been done better than the most recent album from Pennsylvania-based North Star. Starting out way back in the mid ˜70s, the early North Star lineup featured founding members Dave Johnson (guitar, bass) and Glenn Leonard (drums). By the close of the  ˜70s, Kevin Leonard was added to the lineup which by then also featured Joe Newman (bass, vocals). On the group’s first 2000 album, Newman takes leave of his lead vocal chores, making Tempest an all-instrumental effort. Clocking in at just under an hour, Tempest is without a doubt one of the finest instrumental prog-rock albums in recent memory. The intricate, elaborate compositions from the Leonard brothers and guitarist Johnson really take flight and the musicianship is a marvel to behold. Newman also appears playing sitar on the raga-rock flavored “”Raudra””. If Tempest is a sign of things to come from North Star, music lovers are in for a real treat indeed. In addition to a dazzling performance, Tempest also features fantastic album artwork.”” – Music Web Express

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“”If you were expecting more heavily Genesis influenced music as on their previously released albums, most notably on Feel The Cold, then the new North Star album, Tempest will be a pleasant surprise. The lineup for this outing, their first since 1992’s Power, is Dave Johnson on guitars of various types, Glenn Leonard on drums, Kevin Leonard on keyboards, and Joe Newnam on sitar. What this all means is that it is an all instrumental affair.

The album opens with the title track, Tempest, which features a blistering guitar solo by Johnson that is just on this side of harsh…like biting swirling winds which buffet you right off your feet. If you like Liquid Tension Experiment and other like bands then you’ll like this, though the presence of the bass is minimal on this track. Keys are the second most prominent instrument…there were times when I thought of Magellan, especially during the last minute or so when the thumping bass is clearly heard. Some slight comparisons can be made to Djam Karet during the second track “”Yes, I Know,”” this composed by Johnson.

To contrast with the tracks that take a instrumental, hard-edged prog bent there are a few that take them into many different territories not at all travelled by the neo-prog bands they once were grouped with. “”Yes, I Know,”” in fact, ends on quite a jazzy note. “”Colossus,”” which closes the album, is grandly triumphant sounding – this is soundtrack quality music. You can almost see the Roman legions marching across the Italian landscape… Okay, I do picture the film Ben Hur here; of course the Museum Replicas Limited catalog did just arrive, the cover featuring gladatorial Roman armor on the cover (including the gladiator) – no doubt to tie in with the success of Gladiator. The track is a rearrangement of “”March Of The Centurions,”” a 1995 track by Kevin Leonard.

“”Bathroom By The Bongos”” is a fun track. Light keys tinkle, so to speak, over a rumbling bass and percussion…the bongos of the title, of course. There is something processed sounding about it though, as it is akin to rhythmic contemporary instrumental. Three minutes in, it changes to something quite dark and sinister…keys buzz ominously, as the rhythm becomes a slow, but stuttered, grind … I thought of Rush…a darker, slower “”YYZ”” perhaps.

Johann Sebestian Bach’s “”Prelude In C”” is next, played on light keys and xylophonic percussion…hmm, not surprisingly Ed Macan comes to mind. Heard alone, this would get North Star cataloged in the New Age section, however divergent from reality that category is. Unlike ELP, say, this isn’t a rock version of a classical classic, but the sparse instrumentation is probably far different than Bach composed for.

“”Raudra”” is spaghetti western by way of sitar, and from what it sounds like, only sitar. The gun fighters are standing at opposite ends of the road, staring each other down while the dust swirls at their feet and the sun beats down, baking hot. Except this dusty, dirty road is in India not the American Southwest. This is a very good track, one of those that I’d label intriguing and involving. Like other single-instrument tracks that have easily become my favourites (David Lanz’ “”Leaves On The Seine”” comes to mind as one), the use of space, of echo and reverb, make this a full-bodied track. The instrument and the way Newnam plays it fills the spaces that would be occupied elsewhere with bass and percussion – three instrumental sounds with only one instrument. The track also appears on Eastern Compositions For The Western Attention Span.

“”Getting’ Gigu Wit It”” is, while a play on the Will Smith title “”Getting Giggy With It””, it is more Mannheim Steamroller at Christmas meets the music for the Disneyland Electrical Parade. This is another Bach piece, ‘Gigu’ from “”French Suite No. 5″”; if I tell you that it also sounds a lot like what Emerson Lake and Palmer would do, or at least Emerson, you wouldn’t be very surprised. Of course, ELP also come to mind with “”Plastic Bombastic”” which is perhaps a nod to ELP in a way, a sarcastic nod. This sounds very much like Emerson’s arrangement of Prokofiev’s “”Romeo and Juliet”” on 1992 Black Moon (if memory serves, Prokofiev’s gave it a different title…but memory doesn’t serve me enough to remember what that title is). The title references back to a title on their second album, Feel The Cold, “”Plastic Fantastic.””

“”Goodbye Mom”” is an emotional guitar lead track that begins with the kind of solo that many tracks end with – that sense of riding off into the sunset, of looking back at the adventure behind, knowing that the future will never be the same. Another of Johnson’s compositions, this one for his mother who had passed away. While I didn’t, of course, know his mother, I imagine she would be well pleased with this track as it’s a beautifully and lovingly played. One of the best on this album about top notch tracks. The tolling bells that end the piece are at once sad and hopeful.

Despite some of the similarities, I think North Star have found their true heading. Tempest will help to bring them up out of the crowd. Well done after an eight year absence.”” – Stephanie Sollow, ProgressiveWorld.net

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“”North Star is back in the world of prog after eight years hiatus, with a fantastic CD. It is an instrumental CD appropriately named Tempest. The CD has 10 engaging tracks of classic symphonic rock. Fans of Liquid Tension Experiment and Djam Karet will eat up this stuff.

The music will get its hooks in you and take you on a prog coaster ride that does not let up. If you caught them at NEARFest, you know what I am talking about. Intense guitar work from Dave Johnson makes this album really take off. Keeping it up in the stratosphere is out of this world performance by the rest of the band. Kevin Leonard on keyboard, Glenn Leonard on drums and Joe Newman on sitar, round out the lineup. The production and recording are first rate and musicianship is top notch.

For lovers of instrumental symphonic prog rock with some jazz and fusion thrown in the mix, look no further for your fix; you get a major dose with Tempest from North Star. This is an absolute gem, and a great sounding CD. This album should appeal to fans of Liquid Tension Experiment and Djam Karet.”” – Thomas Connolly, Prog4You.com