"Progressively and compositionally, Brutal Architecture is light
years ahead of Rocket Scientists 1993 debut, Earthbound. In fact,
this is one of the best (and most surprising) American prog releases
of early '96 - a smartly crafted collection of long, instrumental
pieces with stylized solos, contrasted by Beatle-esque vocals and
sharp studio production. Neither neo nor retro, Brutal Architecture
is at the vanguard of a promising new American progressive movement
that melds adventurous musicianship with an accessible, melodic vocal
emphasis. I found myself drinking rather deeply, especially when
keyboardist Erik Norlander stretches out on piano. An added bonus is
that these guys can rock when they want to. Highly recommended!"
[Progression]
"One of my favourite CDs for '96 I think. I was taken aback as soon
as I heard the smooth keyboard buildup on Dark Water Part One leading
into an uptempo number called Wake Me Up. Instrumentally, Rocket
Scientists are professional, the lyrical content is fairly OK too.
Mark McCrite's voice is particularly acute throughout, with excellent
keyboard playing by Erik Norlander... the style is refreshingly
varied, with tempo changes and a mellow feel, even a hint of Yes I
thought. In all, I found this offering by Rocket Scientists to my
liking and very vibrant. I hope more U.S. bands can blend their
progressive music as I have found here, to produce the distant
atmosphere as on Mariner or Nether." [Audion]
"Somewhere in the promotional bio, it mentioned both the Beatles and
King Crimson, but I still wasn't ready for a combination of both in
the same song. Somehow, they manage this neat little maneuver on Wake
Me Up... These guys are good! They know their stuff as only people
who have lived and breathed music for a long time can. Oddly though,
for such seasoned professionals, there's a great sense of freshness
here... If Rocket Scientists wanted to be pop stars, I'm sure they
could make it with ease, as there are some superbly catchy songs
here. However, they'd have to control their desire to throw in the
completely off-the-wall twists that make this such an absorbing
album." [Astro Zombie]
"Musically, the band are very influenced by the likes of ELP, UK, and
Yes/Wakeman, which results in a heavy keyboard influence. There are
several short instrumental pieces, but the album comes alive on
tracks such as The Fall of Icarus, Rainy Days and Pastel Grays, and
the excellent title track. Pride of place, however, belongs to the
magnificent album closer, Mariner, 11 minutes of sheer bliss. This CD
does get better through each track, which is a real achievement as it
starts wonderfully and certainly captures the imagination... overall
this is a stunning album. A must for all prog fans, especially those
who lean more towards the keyboard side." [Wondrous
Stories]
"They take a 70's attitude (and equipment) and combine it with 90's
production techniques for a successful marriage of old and new. Gobs
of mellotron echo The Moody Blues but the band has also assimilated
bits of 80's-era King Crimson and UK. Much more complex [than
their debut] yet they retained their ability to write strong
melodies. Superb audiophile quality recording to boot!" [The
Laser's Edge]
"Here's another quality band from Kinesis, this bunch of
supermusicians sound like a mix of The Beatles, ELP, Genesis and The
Alan Parsons Project! Erik Norlander's massive synths and mellotrons
give the band their special character, and compositions like Rainy
Days And Pastel Grays, plus the monumental Mariner will give any fan
of progressive rock a wonderful experience. A mighty album!"
[Scream Magazine (Norway)]
"These guys have the blueprints for the perfect prog songs... You
would be pleased to pick this CD up; all the songs are structurally
sound and the vocals are very palatable. Music can often take a back
seat and be played for background noise; however, this is not the
case for Brutal Architecture. Once this disc is on you can't help but
pay attention." [Music News Network]
"This is what I fondly like to call American Prog. While it is
undeniably prog, it is also uniquely American, having more in common
with Kansas than with Genesis. The playing is top notch. Great buzzy
keys (mellotron too), a nice seventies sounding guitar, very good
implementation of the Stick, and some nice subtly busy percussion."
[Music Uncovered]
"One of my favorite new progressive bands. Their music will remind
you of Pink Floyd, Yes, ELP, and King Crimson... this is a true
masterpiece. Highly recommended!" [Stavros Moschopoulos, United
Nations FAO Casa Gazette]
"For their second CD, Rocket Scientists have become a band... this
album is much more interesting. The mainstay of the band is still
strong vocals and good songs. However, this time the players have
stretched it out a bit with longer intros and instrumental sections,
making this an outstanding follow-up. It jumps way up on the
progmeter. It's not too difficult to hear who has influenced these
guys, but the sound is their own... lots of keyboard/guitar interplay
- Norlander is a first-rate keyboardist. I would highly recommend
this to anyone who liked the first, and to all who want a good
listen." [Expose]
"Brutal Architecture" is an album from 1995, however really worth
mentioning. Not too much of the work from the Kinesis label comes
across the big ocean to get to the symfo lover. That's why we mention
Brutal Architecture from Rocket Scientists. The album is altogether
wonderful and sounds clear and pure.
During the opening track, "Dark Water Part One", you think you're
listening to a clone of Pink Floyd, but nothing is further from the
truth when you listen to the rest of the album. But a little bit of
Floyd influence you cannot take away from these Americans. "Wake Me
Up" enforces that sound sung by Erik Norlander.
Here and there they use Mellotron to give the album a symphonic aura
... The final piece is an entwined ballad that uses Mellotron sounds,
and at 11:29 minutes is the longest on the album. ... It's an
outstanding album that after a few listens falls into the category of
records that you will listen to again and again. [Symfo City Prog
Page (The Netherlands), September 1997]
"It was January '96 when the ROCKET SCIENTISTS' first album
"EARTHBOUND" was released in Japan. The female singer Lana Lane's
first album "LOVE IS AN ILLUSION" which was supported mainly by
ROCKET SCIENTISTS has received high ratings by hard rock / heavy
metal listeners, as a result, "EARTHBOUND", which was released right
afterwards, has caught the attention of those listeners, thus, ROCKET
SCIENTISTS has obtained a certain number of fans, but I am sure that
the fans wouldn't even expect to hear a ROCKET SCIENTISTS second
album this soon.
As the liner notes from "EARTHBOUND" state that the album was
released in '93 after a three year production period, so three years
have also passed before the album was released in Japan. It is not
strange that their second album was delivered a month after the first
album was released if they had been working on the new album during
this time.
The ROCKET SCIENTISTS line up (participating musicians) that was
credited on their previous album's inner sleeves were Erik Norlander
(key), Mark McCrite (vo, g), Curtis Balmer (g), Don Schiff (b), Tim
Gerht (ds), Tommy Amato (ds) and Lana Lane (vo), but this second
album "BRUTAL ARCHITECTURE", Curtis Balmer, Tim Gerht and Lana Lane
have left the band and the remaining Erik Norlander, Mark McCrite,
Don Schiff and Tommy Amato recorded this album. Of course ROCKET
SCIENTISTS was not a permanent band at the time they made their
previous album, it is highly possible that this was an organized
project to release the pieces that were written by Erik and Mark. It
is easily assumed that they decided to do another one since their
first album was a hit when it was released.
Now, I will introduce the members of ROCKET SCIENTISTS who played on
"BRUTAL ARCHITECTURE".
Erik Norlander (kybds) From Hollywood, California State. While he was
growing up, he was influenced by British Progressive Rock such as
ELP, YES, KING CRIMSON, UK, and JETHRO TULL, as well as British
Pop/Rock such as ELO and SUPER TRAMP. Simultaneously, he has devoted
himself to Sci-Fi novels such as Robert A. Heinlein, Michael Moorcock
and Issac Asimov and his lyrical style is influenced by these Sci-Fi
novels. He is the main songwriter of ROCKET SCIENTISTS and also the
main songwriter, producer and keyboard player of the already
mentioned, Lana Lane's solo album.
Mark McCrite (vo, g) From Atlanta, Georgia State. Because of his
background, he was heavily influenced by '70's Southern Rock, which
triggered him to gravitate towards the guitar during elementary
school. He was also a big BEATLES fan, and from listening to
"SGT.PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND", he found the spirit of
progressive Rock in it that helped develop his music style up to this
point. THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND ethic of "melodic yet extended and
dynamic" has always been a goal for him. He too could be considered
as ROCKET SCIENTISTS' main songwriter.
Don Schiff (b) From Wilmington, Delaware State. He is the veteran who
has experienced sharing the same stage with Elvis. He moved to Las
Vegas right after graduating from High School and became a house
bassist at the Flamingo Hilton where he played with Ike & Tina
Turner, Perry Como, among other players. He mastered the Stick in the
'70's, and has since written many songs for many artists, including
Pat Benatar, as well as scoring for several films. In recent years,
he has participated on albums such as Eddie Money and Kerri Anderson.
By the way, the Stick is an instrument that has ten strings and
covers the sound range of a bass, it was conceived in '69 and arrived
on the market in the mid '70's.
Tommy Amato From Cleveland, Ohio State. He began playing in clubs at
age 15, at the same time he was doing some studio work which would
make him a session commodity later. He moved to Los Angeles in '80
upon his friend's recommendation, where he eventually played with
countless artists from Savoy Brown to Warrant. Recently, he
participated on Paul Sabu's long time - no hear solo album. He listed
his favorite drummers as Bill Bruford, Billy Cobham, John Bonham, and
Tony Williams.
Well, regarding the information on the production process of this
album "BRUTAL ARCHITECTURE", Erik Norlander himself wrote comments on
the inner sleeve, so please refer them for that information.1 In
conclusion, let me state how I felt from a listener's point of
view.
ROCKET SCIENTISTS' music deeply reflects the British Rock influence
which is Erik Norlander's root . The essence coming from this sound,
such as "dignity" or "full bodied", brings the listener a sense of
rich British Rock. There must have been many listeners who were
attracted by their delicate, but warm, and detailed, but graceful,
sound from the first album. However, to be honest, the sound of their
previous album felt rather flat, and the lack of undulation and
plainness of the album partially detracted from it. But in their
second album, all these problems have been solved splendidly, as a
result, a truly dynamic work has been created. It has increased
passages of the piano's pleasant flow and the decorative and
classical expression of the Mellotron. On the other hand, it has
adopted modern feelings which are heard on "Wake Me Up" and
"Millennium 3".
Moreover, the Japanese version contains a song titled "Stardust",
which features Lana Lane's vocals, as a bonus track. At the time of
writing this review, that track hasn't arrived yet, but I can't wait
to hear it. We also received information that Lana Lane will soon
begin to work on her second album following "LOVE IS AN ILLUSION".
Perhaps, ROCKET SCIENTISTS will be a large part of the process. I am
very much looking forward to that, also." [Masao Fujiki, Burrn!
(Japan), January 1996]
Erik Norlander is the one who has produced, written songs, and played
keyboards for female vocalist, Lana Lane who has released her album
"Love is an Illusion" in October, '95. His synthesizer style is
influenced by ELP, ELO, and YES, he has researched his production
style based on influences such as Alan Parsons' studio workmanship,
and he leads the band Rocket Scientists. All members of Rocket
Scientists played on Lana's album as her backup band, but you may not
know that Lana used to be credited as a member of the band when they
first debuted in '93. The debut album "Earthbound" was released last
month in Japan and we reviewed it in our magazine, but the next new
album "Brutal Architecture" is the reason their debut album came to
be released here. Lana participated as a guest on this new album.
LINE-UP: Mark McCrite (vo. g), Don Schiff (b), Tommy Amato (ds), Erik
Norlander (key) SOUND: Instrumental parts mainly composed by
keyboards that are elaborately arranged in a progressive style, and
the accommodating pop songs and lyrical guitar unexpectedly match
each other. [Burrn! (Japan), January 1996]
The recently debuted LA female singer, Lana Lane, whose solo album
(Love is an Illusion) was a sorrowful hard rock drama album, is a
real gem. This is the second album, formed by four members of the
band that backed Lana Lane, and her producer, Erik Norlander. It is
pleasant to hear the active arrangement of Mellotron and analog-ish
synths. Sometimes Jethro Tull, sometimes Super Tramp, and sometimes
Alan Parsons Project ... In any case, they splendidly capture parts
of the seventies British lyrical feelings and sounds, clear melody
and impressionable guitar top off the sound, technical and elaborate
progressive music, and occasional catchy pop innuendoes are creating
an interesting world. (Burrn! rating is 83 out of 100) [Hirano,
Burrn! (Japan), February 1996]
This brand new album makes me wonder what kind of death metal it is
just by looking at the title. Is this going to be released in '96? I
can't comment on anything for now since the credits and related
information haven't arrived yet, but I am assuming Erik is in charge
of this album. By the way, doesn't Lana participate on this? As far
as the sound, it is more progressive rock than the last album and the
arrangements and use of keyboards are finally displaying more skill.
More of Erik's color is showing on this one, but as a result, there
is more unity in the band. Also, their lyrical style has increased
and the instrumental parts have more fullness due to the
constitutional use of the keyboard, but don't expect a violent
technical battle or an intense impact to unfold. It is the result
they came up with, which is okay to ignore catchy and pop-like
styles, and this sound reminds me of recent Camel. It is not lengthy
to the point of being pompous, the songs are diffused but organized.
It is quite an album. [Burrn! (Japan) February 1996]
