GNIDROLOG - LADY LAKE (RCA VICTOR 1972) Jap mastering cardboard sleeve

Gnidrolog are one of the more overlooked bands that took part in the progressive rock explosion in Britain around 1971-73. Why the band is nearly forgotten nowadays is a mystery to me. When Mike Prete first played me Lady Lake, my jaw literally dropped. Expecting some banal proto-progressive stuff, I was pleasantly surprised to hear powerful, full-blown progressive rock with an dark, original feel. The best comparisons I can make would be to groups like Van der Graaf Generator, Jethro Tull and Gentle Giant, and Gnidrolog often meets the same level of brilliance as those bands. Of course, it would be mistaken to say that Gnidrolog were simply heavily influenced by these bands, since the group was coexisting and rose to prominence in tandem with those groups. In fact, judging from their gig history, Gnidrolog were fairly integral to the prog scene at the time, playing shows with everyone from Colosseum, Wishbone Ash and Greenslade to Gentle Giant, Soft Machine, King Crimson and even Magma...[net]
.............................
"Lady Lake" is a very surprising and overlooked album of dark progressive rock from the early 70s. Gnidrolog sounds like a mixture of early Jethro Tull and Van der Graaf Generator, with heavy emphasis on both flute and saxophone. Much of the songs are structured around fairly conventional vocal melodies, with cool lyrics backed by familiar song structures, before breaking into incredible chaotic jams full of flute, sax and guitar interplay. The opening two tracks, "I Could Never Be a Soldier" and "Ship," are mindblowing, full of dark melodies led by Colin Goldring, whose emotional tone bears a passing resemblance to Peter Hammill's.
Overall, this a vastly underrated album that must have been overshadowed by the other prog gems released at that same time. Lady Lake is a great work what will appeal to fans looking for a unique, dark mix of early Tull and VdGG...[net]
Here