ProgRock Records (2008)

If there’s a country that qualifies as most eclectic when it comes to their forward thinking progressive bands, Germany wins the title in my eyes. Especially after taking in the 7 piece act Seven Steps To The Green Door. Instrumentation such as clarinets and saxophone isn’t used as mere spices to their experimental progressive art-rock sound. A trio of vocalists (Anne Trautmann, Ronny Grube, and Lars Kohler) trade off verse sections and come together with beautiful three part harmonies. Free flowing jazz guitar and poly-rhythmic drums can turn up on a dime- as well as simpler, lighter vocal driven fare such as the Peter Gabriel/ Genesis influenced “Moon Talks To Me”. You will need at least 50 listens to grab every little nuance, every quiet keyboard drone, every explosive energetic splash- which explores even electronic industrial avenues with “Step Into My World” that features Anne’s melodious delivery contrasting the aggressive male counterpart screams.

The group willingly bends notes to feedback proportions at one moment in time and conversely returns to a softer, more radio-friendly atmosphere with the quieter ballad “Melissa”. “My Lovely Mr. Singing Club” pushes the progressive jazz envelope, as guitar, keyboards and sax form a trinity in note mirroring dexterity, complete with a cynical laugh track during the riff changes. They love a selection of American and British contingent with their grab bag of reference points, but I also hear a wildcard entry like Chicago and I think this sets the band apart from 95% of the new progressive bands come out these days.

“Step In 2 My World” can be busy but isn’t like watching 7 people going in different directions to create a car crash - they understand the need to let the music breathe and attempt to explore and experiment with the song as king.

Whew - I’m exhausted. Make sure you are in the right frame of mind when venturing into their world.

7steps.fischelzone.net
www.progrockrecords.com

Composed by Matt Coe