House of Not

This is the first album of five in the ambitious Walkabout series by Ontario’s House of Not. All the grandiosity of style (and some stunning vocal similarities) makes for some serious Pink Floyd moments, but this could also be the long lost album Peter Murphy did after smoking bud and getting boozy with the prog rockers next door. The trippy, psychedelic instrumental "Off the Path” and guitar meanderings that dip in and out of the 14 tracks give a delightfully prog rock essence to it all. Could it be a concept record we have here? Only the next four will paint the whole picture, but anything with a didgeridoo and more than two instrument-only songs screams "concept” to me. This is a tricky disc to classify as it goes off in so many directions. One minute it’s all bluesy, improv guitar solos, then bam! — we’re into a sombre piano serenade with all the melancholy richness of a Nick Cave ballad or the stunning and filmic "High in the Himalayas.” They even show a lighter side with the piano-driven honky-tonk rambler "Ol Phat Fok,” a playful poke at blind devotion to modern day prophets. In amongst it all are some incredible compositions putting this trio in a class of musicians not shared by many.