Hands: Hands

Richard “Cool Beans” Patz should be considered the “T Rex” of dinosaur hunters at Shroom. He has dedicated his tireless energies to unearthing, rediscovering, and offering the waiting-for-cool-stuff, world lost “dinosaurs” of treasures of ‘70s fusion, prog rock, and other such eclectica. Having first reviewed Hands’ Palm Mystery which followed this release, I was eager to hear more of this exceptional band’s music.

I was not to be let down — plenty of quality musicianship here! I again heard rockin’ fusion and mellow acoustic guitar, strong keys, tight bass, great drumming, lilting flute, tender vox, and of course jazzy, folk rock fiddling. Hands is Canterbury meets Dixie Dregs with flashes of vintage Jean-Luc Ponty. Listen closely for echoes of Jade Warrior, National Health, PFM, Arti + Mestieri, Hatfield and the North, Genesis, Kansas, Flying Island, and Tull. They wax their most ambitiously symphonic prog on the 10:29 “Antarctica”. I found “The Tiburon Treasure” a delightful vignette of acoustic guitar and violin. Best cuts for general rocking out and flat out furious fusion are “Castle Keep”, “Mindgrind”, and “Zombieroch”. The remainder of this release is predominantly toned down and contemplative with songs like “Dreamsearch” — that even your non-prog, girlie friend/soulmate will enjoy. I highly recommend this release for a sweet taste of “what was but never came to truly be — until now”. Thanks again, Mr. Shroom.

Cyberhome: http://www.shroomangel.com

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