Progressive rock has always been one of the most fascinating and controversial musical genres, thanks to the infinite facets that have distinguished it and the caliber of the protagonists who have intertwined musical plots without preconceived patterns, while maintaining an overall homogeneity that is sometimes paradoxical .
Prog – it must be said – is, however, also one of the sectors that has been handed down the worst. Proposing today the same structures enjoyed during the glorious 70s seems, in truth, rather cloying. In these cases, one can certainly understand those who argue that it is better to listen to the founders who created and developed an era, rather than absolute clones who propose the same ideas, without providing for flashes of modernity.
The question that arises at this point is this: where can progressive rock aim nowadays? A more or less valid answer could call into question avant-prog, that is, that trend which had already begun to explore new musical territories at the end of the 70s, using successions of unconventional chords, frequent tempo changes, harmonic solutions to avant-garde and quotes from modern classical music. An experimental music that blends different genres, also contemplating a fair amount of improvisation. Well, today it is perhaps more interesting to try to delve into these areas, rather than into the already discussed and retracted models of canonical progressive rock. of yesteryear.
This long digression helps me to present the Eunuchs, a mysterious and very young (in their early twenties) Australian team originally from Sydney, who make the most ruthless avant-prog their banner; a proposal that does not reveal any stale soul of the past, on the contrary, it draws the most interesting ideas from it and transports them to the present day with an irrepressible spirit.
“Harbor Century” is the second album, the ideal follow-up to “The Castration Of Gods” which in 2021 had launched a hook picked up by very few close friends.
The Australian band is led by three childhood friends Enzo Legge, Linus Hilton and Kristo Langker, who alternate without hesitation between guitars, bass, drums, keyboards, piano, organ, vibraphone, metallophone (the list would be very long). If this were not enough, they are joined by at least fifteen additional musicians working on saxophones of various types, trumpets and trombones, violins, harp, French horn. In short, I seem to have given a good idea of what's cooking.
Among the nine eccentric songs in the setlist, for almost an hour in total duration, we review pages of prog-rock, but also of jazz, as well as post-hardcore and proto-metal, and then magically return to the art- rock, folk and even classical music. The beauty is that in an all-encompassing chaos like the one proposed by us, the spirit of unity of purpose can be clearly glimpsed: the classic entropy of impediment to the clarity and univocality of the message is not felt, or only occurs in a few cases.
If we really want to look for references, from the past we can mobilize Frank Zappa and even the Beach Boys (it may seem strange, but it is like this for very long stretches) and among the current ones, certainly, the anxious intellectualism of the Black Country, New Road, The proactive breadth of Black Midi, the articulated ruthlessness of Sprain and the theatricality of HMLTD. Eunuchs take each of these characteristics to the extreme, sometimes even reaching exaggeration.
Each song delves into allegorical events fueled by lies, tricks, scams, tricks and bizarre boat accidents, drawing inspiration from the interpretations that the band has gleaned from the landscapes, characters and exasperations of his beloved Sydney, all then brought back into a concept album with a nautical/marine theme, which uses some visionary settings to codify broader and more tangible aspects of the society that surrounds them.
It's not easy to sink your claws into episodes like “Magic Death Sea Nemesis”, the story of a fisherman who throws a boy overboard for money and glory, “Siren”, “Bird Angel Dynasty” or art-metal (let's invent a new label) of “Pat A Dragon”: to face these situations a certain physical preparation is required!
More linear passages come to the rescue (it's true, in these lands it could appear to be a euphemism) such as “Estuary Of Dreams”, with its folk-symphonic harmonies, the fun jazz cuts of “Magnificent Stallion” and the post-punk Jethrotullian of “Gnome And Fortune”, a place where the magical sound of harps and flutes is torn apart by the narration of creatures who are victims of greed and sloth, aimed exclusively at arrogance and greed.
There summa of the entire work, however, it is to be identified in “Heroin King”, cleverly placed at the end, which with its seventeen minutes forms a true suite that involves the entire colorful world of Eunuchs. The piece leaves aside, for large stretches, the most anxious deviations, between atmospheres of squalid sex, drug use, screams and murmurs swallowed up in the end by the sounds of a sea as black as ink, which gurgles and swirls in the moonlight between pools surrounded by sharp rocks and in which the evils of an economy based on an unreasonable market are dramatized, on the anger that leads to social conflict: a sad reminder of the unfortunate realities that meet in their imaginary and imagined port, but which are traceable everywhere, unfortunately.
It even seems that some parts sung (and shouted) by Enzo Legge were actually recorded underwater, using a hydrophone and this would not even be a very surprising oddity, given the extravagant variety offered. Congratulations are due, because it must have been really hard for Nick Hatzakos (sound engineer) to be able to amalgamate all this freedom of expression in a constructive way.
The exponential singularity of “Harbor Century” could represent a double-edged sword in the hands of the Eunuchs, who really push themselves to the limit, through a proposal that has nothing conventional about it, but which we dare to reward for courage, originality and quality, in an artistic territory where all too often the safe haven is preferred. Be careful, because our band seems to already have the preparation of a third album in store, this time not self-produced and made with the help of a real orchestra: we'll see some good ones.
05/06/2024
Antonio Santini for SANREMO.FM