COLOSSEUM/COLOSSEUM II — Valentyne Suite (review)

COLOSSEUM/COLOSSEUM II — Valentyne Suite album cover Album · 1969 · Jazz Related Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
AtomicCrimsonRush
Inspired Early Prog - But Nowhere Near Masterpiece Quality.

This is a breakthrough album certainly not only for Colosseum but for prog rock, and jazz. This album features all the proggish elements: the side long epic 'The Valentyne Suite' (absolute brilliance), the thematic proggy 'The Machine Demands A Sacrifice ' and the ultra riff heavy 'The Kettle ' (my favourite). This in itself is deserving of a high star rating.

However there are a few rather dull moments for the rest of the CD and this marrs the rating considerably as it is so inconsistent. The extra bonus tracks and second version of the disc have some excellent moments too such as 'JUMPING OFF THE SUN' but the rest is all rather forgettable unfortunately.

I saw this eye catching CD and grabbed it eagerly expecting a masterpiece in light of how much people rave about this album. Instead I was thrown off balance at how ordinary a lot of it is. Perhaps it was ahead of its time and the band did not seem to know which direction they were heading. Jazz fusion, heavy rock riffs, orchestrations and even blues, but all as inconsistent as these genres themselves. There are notably 4 great tracks but they are set amidst a wash of forgettable tunes. It still is worth getting hold of for the aforementioned tracks but ultimately it is not as great as many will have you believe. 3 and a half stars for the innovative music.
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