Short Reviews [The Tangent - 2020 - "Auto Reconnaissance"]

All you really need to know about this album can be summed up in this quote from Andy Tillision, who said, “Possibly one of a very few albums to be influenced by ELP, The Isley Brothers, Steely Dan, Aphex Twin, National Health, Rose Royce, Squarepusher and Return to Forever that will be released this summer". I must confess I had to google Squarepusher, but while I have plenty of ELP, Steely Dan and National Health in my collection, and I have a nodding acquaintance with Return to Forever, the others have never interested me so I will have to take his word for it. Of what there is no doubt whatsoever is that this is a progressive album in the very truest sense of the word. There are plenty of Canterbury musical references in particular, and tracks such as the epic “Jinxed in Jersey” show here are a band who are consistently refusing to conform to what anyone really think they should be doing, even from those within the prog scene. Andy’s storytelling is incredibly vivid, and one can imagine him undertaking the journey he describes, bringing the characters to life. One has no idea where the music is going to lead from one minute to the next, as they treat progressive rock as an ideal as opposed to a style, no Genesis or Pink Floyd clones these, rather The Tangent is continuing to push boundaries just like it used to be. We can go from pleasant gentle harmony to a Hammond being ripped to pieces with a guitar hard over the top, no drums to a driving beat, electronics to quiet, one just never knows. We have the same line-up on this album as the last one, and the quintet are obviously comfortable with each other, egging each other on with layers that pay repeated playing and deep listening. The Tangent are undoubtedly one of the most interesting progressive bands around, and as someone who has followed Andy’s career with keen interest since Parallel or 90 Degrees all I can say is that this is yet another outstanding album.