Record Reviews

BRAND X ~ THEORY OF NOTHING (RECORDED LIVE 1977) MOONJUNE 150 (Barcode: 692287915025) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 1977 Released: 2026 This is an archival live album by the British Fusion / Prog band Brand XFind albums by this artist, recorded during the 1977 North American tour by the second lineup of the group following the departure of drummer Phil CollinsFind albums by this artist, which included guitarist John GoodsallFind albums by this artist, bassist Percy JonesFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Robin LumleyFind albums by this artist, American drummer Kenwood DennardFind albums by this artist and percussionist Morris PertFind albums by this artist. The 2CD album presents ten tracks, including three tracks, which were yet not released on albums at the time of the recording and would appear later on the “MasquesFind albums with this title” album. All the music was original, written by the band’s members. Although not intended for release, the quality of the recording is quite good and allows most of the sonic details to be heard properly, in contrast to the many bootleg recordings by the group available on the market. Brand X were a great bunch of highly talented musicians, alas their arrival on the scene was just a tad too late to really make a statement, simply because both Progressive Rock and Fusion were already dying, with a distinct smell of decay already in the air. The truly great statements in both genres have been already made during the first decade of the 1970s, and all that was left to do was sadly and probably mostly subconsciously, an attempt to repeat / copy / restate some of the substantial statements already made. As a result, as almost everything recorded in these genres after 1975, was destined to sound “déjà vu” in one way or another, despite the fact that this album includes some great musical pieces and many virtuosic performances, but all not enough to make it truly exciting or surprising in any way. But of course this is a splendid tribute to Goodsall, Lumley and Pert, all of whom are sadly deceased. Overall, this is a wonderful piece of British Prog / Fusion history, which is definitely worth being heard and remembered, but offers nothing really new about the history of the band or the genre in general. Of course kudos to MoonJuneFind albums on this label Records for releasing this piece of memorabilia!

Updated: 07/09/2026Posted: 07/09/2026

CD 2 Digisleeve Remastered Recommend To A Friend

FUSION SYNDICATE ~ BEAUTIFUL HORIZON PURPLE PYRAMID 4685 (Barcode: 889466468520) ~ USA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 2012 - 2023 Released: 2023 This is the third album by the Fusion SyndicateFind albums by this artist, a brainchild of American guitarist / composer / producer Fernando PerdomoFind albums by this artist, who assembled a group of Fusion / Prog superstars to record (mostly) his compositions with various lineups, which change from track to track. The collective lineup includes guitarists John EtheridgeFind albums by this artist and Robby KriegerFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Brian AugerFind albums by this artist, bassists Jah WobbleFind albums by this artist and Alphonso JohnsonFind albums by this artist and drummer Chester ThompsonFind albums by this artist, among others. The album presents seven tracks, all original compositions by Perdomo. The album also presents three bonus tracks produced and composed by bassist / composer Billy SherwoodFind albums by this artist, which originate from the debut eponymous album by Fusion Syndicate from 2012, which is difficult to find these days. It features such Fusion giants like bassist Percy JonesFind albums by this artist, guitarist Steve MorseFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Jim BeardFind albums by this artist, drummer Asaf SirkisFind albums by this artist and others. These bonus tracks were newly remastered and with the four bonus tracks added to the “A Speedway On Saturn`s RingsFind albums with this title” album, constitute a reissue of the debut album. Although featuring excellent musicians, the album has nothing new to offer musically and has no coherent concept per se. There is plenty of excitement and excellent soloing by the participants, as expected, but sadly it confirms the notion that Fusion, following a relatively brief period of creativity and Artistic productivity during the Golden Decade (1965-1975) has been mostly dormant, if not dead since. Overall, this is a well-played typical Fusion album, which adds nothing new to the genre’s illustrious past, but offers a pleasant listening experience to the genre’s hard to die fans.

Updated: 11/12/2023Posted: 11/12/2023

CD 1 Digipak Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend