Chris Neal - Winds Of Isis

These days Chris Neal seems to be mainly a composer of film scores, but three decades ago, he produced one of Australia's first symphonic progressive albums. Winds of Isis is instrumental, with more than a hint of psych-throwback to it, and an unusual melodic approach, quite possibly influenced by his interest in film music and probably Hollywood musicals, too. He's more of a keyboard player than anything else, although he plays most of the instruments on the album, proving himself a capable guitarist and drummer. He lists all equipment on the back cover, which reads like a wish-list of mid-'70s keys and effects, using various Mu-Tron devices from the States, through which he sticks just about everything in sight.

Neal's Mellotron work is well over the top, with every track heavy with very raw-sounding 'Tron; don't expect a two million buck production here... He lists choir/cellos/strings, and uses all but the cellos extensively, usually in great chordal slabs stomping all over whatever else is going on at the time; almost the first sound you hear on the album is choir chords, and he only ever lets up for a couple of minutes or so before slapping some more on. I've had to guess which parts of side two's 'The Legend' contain 'Tron, as there's no timings for parts, so apologies if they're wrong.

All in all, a good, if unusual prog release, with very healthy doses of Mellotron, so if you don't object to something a little different, I can heartily recommend a purchase. I've no idea if Neal produced anything else in the progressive field; there seem to be several Chris Neals who've made their mark somewhere down the line, including an Abbey Road engineer, a modern country artist and a Mike and the Mechanics collaborator (collaborators usually get shot, don't they?), so Web research is extremely difficult. Anyway; worth the effort. Buy.

The CD is a limited official re-isue on the Japanese Poor House label as a mini-LP/CD format, with cover design perfectly down-scaled. Please be aware that the CD is blue-tinted, but obviously it is not hand made: the cover, as well as the CD label are manufactury-made.

1 Prelude 3:14
2 Into The Valley Of The Ancients - A Glimpse Of Isis 6:40
3 Full Moon Lightning - The Acid Test 3:52
4 Ritual Eternal - Initiation Of The Searcher 8:32
The Legend (19:58)
5.1 I. From The Castle The Winds Arose ....
5.2 II. Through The Corridors Of Time, Including The March Of The Undead - Temptation To Turn Back
5.3 III. Carnival Of The People - A Brief Respite
5.4 IV. Nightmare - Isis Unveiled
5.5 V. Dance Of The Astral Shadows - Beyond The Point Of No Return
5.6 VI. Flight From The Unknown
5.7 VII. Ashes To Ashes

Shipping Cost

LP:
Priority shipping to EUROPE: 12 EUR for 1 record and 4 EUR each addtional.
Priority shipping to OVERSEAS /America-Asia-Africa-Australia/: 14 EUR for 1 record and 5 EUR each additional record.
Double LP will be applied to two items.
ALL LP'S ARE PACKED WELL AND RECORDS ARE ALWAYS REMOVED FROM JACKET WHEN MAILING UNLESS SEALED!

Single 7" :
9,50 EUR for first record + 1 € more for each additional record for all over the world.

CDs or Tapes: 9,50 EUR for first CD + 1 € more for each additional CD for all over the world.
I can ship CDs without jewel cases for less shipping cost. Please ask for it
I don't grade jewel cases, as you can easily replace them if they're scratched or damaged.
Media=disc Cover=booklet

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