Despite the fact that this disc is a collaboration of members from The Flower Kings, one should not label this disc as yet another Roine Stolt project. This is Hasse Bruniusson's (occasional percussionist with the band) project which happens to contain the participation of the Flower Kings guitarist.
Having said this, what can we expect from this collaboration ?
Any time food is flying around, you gotta figure that some will stick where you don't expect it to , while some of it lands miles from the intended target. Such is the case for this 'flying food circus ' as well. Blending elements of fusion, avant progressive, and what could only be described as the themes from a Saturday morning cartoon show, Flying Food Circus is an odd mixture of styles and sounds. Comparisons to Zappa wouldn't be far off the mark; but unlike FZ and The Mothers, this one doesn't pack quite the same punch. Parts of this disc are laughable, but not in the same tongue-in-cheek way Mr Zappa has gotten us used to. You find yourself laughing more at the music than with it.
However, just as you're about ready to dismiss this disc outright ( as I came very close to doing on a few occasions), you hear certain tracks which give you hope for this project. Tracks like " Collect Relapses " with it's incendiary guitar passages the exploratory " The Man Without Qualities", and the '70's fusion flavored " A Clown's Opinion" remind us that the boys at the helm of this ship are experienced sailors and not just floating around rudderless.
If you had this disc on your 'must buy' list based on the personnel, you're in for a rude awakening. This in no way resembles the formulaic, over-extended opuses presented by The Flower Kings. If you find Ikea commercials particularly amusing and wanted to further explore Swedish humor, than this might be the place. Although be forewarned, the lamp in the rain is much funnier .
Printer Friendly Page
Send to a Friend
