Iron Butterfly
Album: Ball/Metamorphosis
Label: BGO
Tracks: 18
Website: http://www.ironbutterflyband.com/

Bit of a FATEA diversion here, moving from the acoustic spectrum and tracking back to the Los Angeles music scene of the late sixties and early seventies when Iron Butterfly were masters of their craft. Their undisputed masterpiece, 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida' was both groundbreaking in its concept and content and backed by sales in millions (30 at the last count) the album earned the first ever platinum record. In what almost sounds like the title and plot of a Richard Curtis film, they've gone through periods of inactivity, reformation and deaths. Yet, Iron Butterfly are still active as a going concern (their current line up including Dave Meros of Spock's Beard) and with the presentation in the standard digitally re-mastered versions of their follow up albums, 'Ball' and 'Metamorphosis', they've made sure that they still have stock which is held in high regard.

The release comes packaged with both albums neatly fitting onto a single disc and with some nice liner notes from recognised rock scribe Neil Daniels, who is in no doubt as to the contents containing some of the finest American rock of the decade. Period, as they might say across the pond. Certainly for its time it was up there and out there although some might argue as to whether or not it stands the test of time. Always a band who were assigned a number of labels from heavy to psychedelic and acid infused, they certainly crossed a few genres and were the archetypal difficult to define band.

'Ball' has its fair share of heavier pieces in 'Real Fright' and 'In The Time Of Our Lives' and to be honest it's a more direct set of songs than its more revered predecessor. Yes it does have its more psychedelic moments but running at nine songs across forty minutes, it can't be accused of indulgence.

Dogged by line up changes and shifts in the group dynamics, 1970's 'Metamorphosis' explores deeper and darker themes than 'In-A-Gadda…' Two new band members in Mike Pinea and Larry Reinhardt perhaps accounted for a shift in direction, but after the loss of Doug Ingle, rendering the band organ-less for the first time, the band split in May 1971. 'Easy Rider (Let The Wind Pay The Way) ' from the album provided their biggest chart single and Pinera and Reinhardt's twin guitars as well as their acoustic work adds something to the album which iron Butterfly fans will have found a development. The fourteen minute 'Butterfly Bleu' harks back to the more experimental and improvisational side of the band, but was perhaps a last throwback to the heady days of 'In-A Gadda…'

A little left field it may be in the current musical climate, but the release remains an interesting curio from another time and deserves a place as the sort of influence which was taking hold on the likes of the emerging Led Zeppelin, from both their sound to the band name. Maybe Daniels hits the nail on the head in his liner notes: Original, unfathomable and a band who cannot be pigeon holed.

Mike Ainscoe