I am the proud owner of several The Luck of Eden Hall albums (and complimentary T-shirts!) and need very little persuasion when it comes to Curvey’s music for he is the guitarist, vocalist and mastermind behind this latest manifestation enigmatically named Custard Flux (actually their fifth album). Opening track ‘Peace and Love’ has a lot packed into just under 5 minutes: chiming guitars, heavy riffing, a neat guitar break and some tremendous drumming. There is a passing resemblance to ‘Day Tripper’ at the start of ‘Burning in the Sun’ and the enormous contribution guest mellotron player Andy Thompson brings is quickly evident. Of course, Curvey is backed by a crack band of Vito Greco on guitar, Timothy Prettyman on bass and Nick Pruett on drums and percussion, a line-up that defies a quartet labelling as it sounds so much bigger!
Before we go any further, “Einsteinium Delerium” is a “conceptual narrative of our historical atomic madness in variable time signatures” (and for anyone who has seen the film “Oppenheimer” this is a most topical subject, Einstein himself regretting writing a letter to President Roosevelt suggesting that the US developed an atomic bomb after learning that scientists in Berlin had worked out how to split a uranium atom). Einsteinium itself is an unstable element discovered after the first hydrogen bomb test. It turns out that Einstein was in fact a pacifist who often referred to the Bhagavad Gita which afforded Curvey a less depressing and “more positive psychedelic inspiration” for the album and Curvey quotes from Sri Ramakrishna who wrote of “sectarianism, bigotry and its horrible descendant fanaticism” and human history being “drenched in human blood” (and this was the 19th century!). Curvey also urges listeners to find out more about Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Continuing with the music, ‘Equinox’ has another great guitar riff, psychedelic chorus and more dynamic drumming; it segues into ‘Transmutation’ with its mellifluent mellotron and flashing cymbals with warbling synths and memorable guitar arpeggios. ‘Right Now Here in Time’ (which along with ‘Equinox’ is accompanied by a video on the Custard Flux Bandcamp page) is as progressive as hell and totally superb. I love the quirky guitar on ‘Open Wide’ and the eccentrically brilliant guitar solo. ‘Time for Me to Go’ has a CREAM like feel about it in the vocal harmonies and reminded me of STEVE HILLAGE in the guitar work. The 8-minute ‘Fat Man’ (not the Jethro Tull number!) finished off the album in fine style as another memorable guitar riff is unleashed during its 8-minute length.
A fabulous album then that is about something really, really important and is simply indispensable.