OFF: Unlimbo review

[K Henderson]

Somebody here was interested in my thoughts on this...went ahead and
conjured up this tentative review FWIW...Keith H. (FAA)

Unlimbo - Prahna Fish (1998) Polygraph (UK) Poly #03

Unlike the Delerium lot, Unlimbo is a 'free-festy' style psychedelic band
that stayed the course and have not dived full-bore into electronica mode.
I guess that's why they haven't been signed on to Delerium, instead
releasing this third effort (following a 3-track EP and a 9-track live
CD...could they be Poly #01 and #02?) on (I'm guessing) their own
independent label.  That said, the seven-member unit does claim multiple
hands on synths, samples, decks, and various forms of percussion.  But "Drum
& Bass" doesn't come to mind.  Rather, from the very opening of "Nahton,"
the words "Ozric" & "Tentacle" are conjured up instead.  Circa 1990 Ozrics,
that is.

Prahna Fish's seven tracks add up to almost 50 minutes, and so Unlimbo likes
to play around with each idea for about 6-8 minutes or so, relying on the
usual smattering of reggae/dub rhythms and eastern flavors.  In lieu of any
'lyrical' vocals, the band employ lots of spoken-word voice samples from
numerous sources (Captain Kirk and Bones make an appearance), including more
than a few drug-related passages.  For example, in the midst of the
wonderfully dreamy title track, we hear "You don't have to do anything now
but hallucinate...I'll come back for you later."  Shortly thereafter,
Gundula Grun's violin and Chris Muggeridge's synths dance amongst themselves
over an active bassline and punctuated beat, the resemblance to Hawkwind's
Palace Springs almost too uncanny.  "Spellbound" is one of the more evolved
tracks, practically a medley of many different themes with shifting focus
(guitar to bass to synth) presented at intervals of thirty seconds or so.
Very nice.  The album finishes off with "Inertia," yet another eight-minute
space-reggae tune that recalls any Ozrics or Dead Flowers tune you care to
mention...but at least it's a good one.  Unlimbo does have a few of their
own tricks up their collective sleeves.  Early in the album, "Flinch" is
only classifiable as a 'hoedown dub,' Grun's violin more aptly termed
'fiddle.'  And then the reggae stylings of "Bagdub" are less like the
Ozrics' version than the Police's take on things.  A much freakier version
of the Police, no doubt, and a nice guitar solo to boot.

'Prahna Fish' hardly treads upon virgin ground, but yet I still feel it
deserves high praise.  The Ozrics spawned a whole slew of copy-cats, some of
which turned out to be superior to this listener's ears (the aforementioned
Dead Flowers and Ship of Fools, for example).  David Hands' guitar work is
notably less prevalent than Ed Wynne's contribution to any given OT disc,
but the clever use of sampled voices, lots of extra-spacey synths, and
violin and didgeridoo fill any suspected void quite satisfactorily.  I can't
predict how long Unlimbo can stay 'relevant' in the neo-psychedelic world in
this guise, but given their strong musicianship, capable song-writing, and
high freakiness factor, future albums aren't likely to be stinkers at least.
On the web, www.unlimbo.com (though there's hardly anything there, at least
that my browser can access).