Aardvark - Selftitled (1970)

Aardvark - Aardvark

Heavy psychedelia or Progressive rock? It was hard for me to find this album, until then I only had one of their songs to listen to, titled "Copper Sunset". It's a very nice tune if you are interested in heavier sound. There are other great songs in this album, don't miss this one! Fun fact: They did not use a guitar in their songs.

Album information:

01.Copper Sunset

02.Very Nice Of You To Call

03.Many Things To Do

04.The Greencap

05.I Can't Stop

06.The Outing-Yes

07.Once Upon A Hill

08.Put That In Your Pipe And Smoke It

Band information:

Originally, they became known mainly because Paul Kossof and Simon Kirke played in the band before leaving to form legendary band FREE. From then on, AARDVARK were mostly a studio act and by the time they recorded their only album, the line-up consisted of Stan Aldous (bass), Frank Clark (drums), Steve Milliner (keyboards, recorder, vibraphone) and Dave Skillin (vocals). Comparisons are not easy but one could probably say their music has the power of EMERSON, LAKE & POWELL mixed in with a little R&B à la PROCOL HARUM and early MOODY BLUES. Shades of GRYPHON, GREENSLADE and PINK FLOYD are also present.

As is to be expected, AARDVARK's material is highly keyboard oriented, the brunt of the music being carried by the fuzzed-up Hammond organ which more or less simulates the job of a distorted guitar. The soaring vocals by Skillin are pleasant and the music, although not highly original and somewhat lacking in variety, is quite melodic - nice 60's sounding melodies. The album contains some ear-friendly piano/keyboard interplay as well as some good R&B guitar riffs and harmonic choruses. The low points: following the fashion of the early 70's, many tracks drag on far too long. Also, possibly because the dominant Hammond did not stand the test of time, the album unfortunately sounds quite outdated. Finally, the cuts that work best tend to be the less progressive ones. Overall, AARDVARK is an honest musical effort for the times, an interesting early art rock experiment with a slight progressive edge.

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