NO ONE can do this kind of polytextural contrapuntal harmonies and interplay of rich and complex intricate vocal and percussive overlapping musical layers. Pure genius!
This is a great song, from a great album. I love the little introductory interview question. It’s amazing how much can be done with only voices and percussion.
Gentle Giant has a unique vocal sound, usually in the English Folk Round style. I know of only one other group who comes close to this in the Progressive Rock field -- Capability Brown, and their 20 minute track which at times is very "Christmas Chorus' like, and has quite a few enjoyable moments. The name of it is "Circumstances (In Love, Past, Present, Future Meet)" from the album Voice (1973). I almost bought this album long ago in a department store, but might have been creeped out by the album cover art.
"Design" is definitely one of the most 'out there' stuff Gentle Giant has ever done. This is not necessarily what I prefer about them because here it is not counterbalanced by a more catchy sound element!😉
'Tis a modern madrigal, and methinks it finds me well pleased thereon. Lovely! (To my mind keeping it almost all choral makes it lovelier, standing distinct among the companion songs adjacent.)
After The Giant broke up, lead singer Derek Shulman had a stunning career as a record executive. Among the artists he signed: Dream Theater, Bon Jovi, Cinderella, Kingdom Come and even more surprisingly, Nickelback.
Nice Justin! Saw GG 4 times, stunning live. Squire said that a good tune is one that swings. He did like GG and Sound Chaser was written right after GG toured with YES ✨️🎶✨️
Evening Justin. Dave here from the Offbeat Of Avenues, which sort of sums up this song too. What makes it for me are Kerry Minnear's lead vocals over the 'choir'. If i had to pick favourite Gentle Giant songs, most would be written and sung by Kerry - Aspirations to name just one.
Few *rock* bands can do something like this today, but there are plenty of choral ensembles that can perform a piece like this. But that's sometimes the problem when GG does it -- it can come off as one of Kerry Minnear's Royal College of Music thesis compositions.
They were not quite finished with the album when the record company already insisted on publishing it. I think it was Derek who said that the company obviously expected them to do the last overdubs in the record store. So this is probably the reason that some parts seem to be incomplete and not as good as they were planned.
can't believe I was into this back when in my late teens. After a non-stop great streak of amazing albums, "Interview" wasn't received as well, which seemed odd to me because it contains many of my favorites and several adventurous compositions
I too love when Gentle Giant does a song where the vocal harmonies are a centerpiece. I especially like it when Kerry's romantic vocal takes the lead. A great contrast to Derek. "Design" is a standout track but literally all the parts were written by Kerry in a studio room upstairs. No one knew how the final result would sound until the final mix down. The "drums" are really written percussion parts probably played by Kerry. "Interview" is an underrated album but it was recorded quickly under stress and as such does not match the highs and exuberance of "Free Hand".
I am pretty sure GG took much of their group vocal inspiration from the renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo (1566 - 1613). His choral works contain surprising chromatic harmonies and passages of rhythmic interplay that foreshadow some very modern styles. (His life story is also surprising and controversial). If you want to react to something different that also connects with one of your favourite band's favourite musical flavours (lots of British spelling in that tongue-twister passage :-)), you could try a couple of his short madrigals: 'Se la mia morte brami' and 'Tu piangi Filli mia'. I think you'll enjoy the challenge.
Imagine the record executives, after the almost "successfull" Free Hand, hoping for a sure fire commercial hit, being presented with this! GG weren't even trying. That came two years later with Giant For a Day, which was devoid of any of their genius, but which really "tried".
Along with Chameleons possibly, the biggest mistake of my teen life was neglecting Gentle Giant, all because of Rentaghost. Innovation and Unconventional Poise. Let's not dilly daddle further therefore: Scritti Politti Doll by Doll China Crisis are thimply to good to ignore!
Yes, Interview is *the* great unfairly overlooked GG album - at the time, it got lost in the shadow of Free Hand & Power and the Glory. Yet it has some of GG's most dissonant & daring moments.
I didn't like the high-pitched percussion that happened around about the half-way point, but the rest was different enough to grab my attention from everything else I was doing so I could take it in. Strange but alluring all the same.
This is perhaps the most Gentle Giantesque of all GG tracks with the acapella counterpoint and discord to the fore but, for me, it's not nearly as successful as Knots, maybe because the discord is more discordant and the riffs and melody nowhere near as memorable. Still bloody good though.
I'm a big fan of the G's, and so it pains me to say, but this effort is definitely quite a chore to listen to. And my thinking largely mirrors a.k's earlier post. Starts nicely, vocal & harmonies, but come around the 2 min mark, the lapse, were you'd expect the band to come in with their full (usual) virtuosic brilliance... No, they don't. What we do get is more oblique vocals with what sounds like some 10 year old happily bashing his first toy drum kit. This's a skipper for me.
@@pentagrammaton6793 To me, this is the last of the truly great GG albums. They intentionally went "radio friendly" after this, and lost my interest. In retrospect though, Missing Piece and Civilian are now quite enjoyable.
@@lemming9984 Yes I agree, a good part of The Missing Piece is still nice and I must say that I even prefer the more energetic and convincing Civilian! (which makes it a highly recommendable final album). On the other hand Giant for a Day! is hard to bear and remains Gentle Giant's worst album in my opinion.
![Digital Circus Episode 4 [TRAILER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/abZtsmMUbJo/mqdefault.jpg)
Such an underrated album!!!
I Love it, musical mathematics in timing ! 👍🎶🎤🥁🎼✌
NO ONE can do this kind of polytextural contrapuntal harmonies and interplay of rich and complex intricate vocal and percussive overlapping musical layers. Pure genius!
When you are that talented that all you need are percussions and throats to make an excellent prog track
This is a great song, from a great album. I love the little introductory interview question. It’s amazing how much can be done with only voices and percussion.
Gentle Giant has a unique vocal sound, usually in the English Folk Round style. I know of only one other group who comes close to this in the Progressive Rock field -- Capability Brown, and their 20 minute track which at times is very "Christmas Chorus' like, and has quite a few enjoyable moments. The name of it is "Circumstances (In Love, Past, Present, Future Meet)" from the album Voice (1973). I almost bought this album long ago in a department store, but might have been creeped out by the album cover art.
Don’t forget the truest vocal imitation from Kevin Gilbert.
(Sheryl Crowe basically killed him)
"Design" is definitely one of the most 'out there' stuff Gentle Giant has ever done. This is not necessarily what I prefer about them because here it is not counterbalanced by a more catchy sound element!😉
you read my mind...
This song has a heavy Edgard Varese influence.
'Tis a modern madrigal, and methinks it finds me well pleased thereon. Lovely! (To my mind keeping it almost all choral makes it lovelier, standing distinct among the companion songs adjacent.)
After The Giant broke up, lead singer Derek Shulman had a stunning career as a record executive. Among the artists he signed: Dream Theater, Bon Jovi, Cinderella, Kingdom Come and even more surprisingly, Nickelback.
Nice Justin! Saw GG 4 times, stunning live. Squire said that a good tune is one that swings. He did like GG and Sound Chaser was written right after GG toured with YES
✨️🎶✨️
I like it! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. 🩷 the chords and the counterpoint when it came in. 2 for 2 today! 😃
Evening Justin. Dave here from the Offbeat Of Avenues, which sort of sums up this song too. What makes it for me are Kerry Minnear's lead vocals over the 'choir'. If i had to pick favourite Gentle Giant songs, most would be written and sung by Kerry - Aspirations to name just one.
Few *rock* bands can do something like this today, but there are plenty of choral ensembles that can perform a piece like this. But that's sometimes the problem when GG does it -- it can come off as one of Kerry Minnear's Royal College of Music thesis compositions.
They were not quite finished with the album when the record company already insisted on publishing it. I think it was Derek who said that the company obviously expected them to do the last overdubs in the record store. So this is probably the reason that some parts seem to be incomplete and not as good as they were planned.
The whole band played percussion on this one :)
can't believe I was into this back when in my late teens. After a non-stop great streak of amazing albums, "Interview" wasn't received as well, which seemed odd to me because it contains many of my favorites and several adventurous compositions
I too love when Gentle Giant does a song where the vocal harmonies are a centerpiece. I especially like it when Kerry's romantic vocal takes the lead. A great contrast to Derek.
"Design" is a standout track but literally all the parts were written by Kerry in a studio room upstairs. No one knew how the final result would sound until the final mix down. The "drums" are really written percussion parts probably played by Kerry.
"Interview" is an underrated album but it was recorded quickly under stress and as such does not match the highs and exuberance of "Free Hand".
I am pretty sure GG took much of their group vocal inspiration from the renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo (1566 - 1613). His choral works contain surprising chromatic harmonies and passages of rhythmic interplay that foreshadow some very modern styles. (His life story is also surprising and controversial). If you want to react to something different that also connects with one of your favourite band's favourite musical flavours (lots of British spelling in that tongue-twister passage :-)), you could try a couple of his short madrigals: 'Se la mia morte brami' and 'Tu piangi Filli mia'. I think you'll enjoy the challenge.
Imagine the record executives, after the almost "successfull" Free Hand, hoping for a sure fire commercial hit, being presented with this! GG weren't even trying. That came two years later with Giant For a Day, which was devoid of any of their genius, but which really "tried".
Along with Chameleons possibly, the biggest mistake of my teen life was neglecting Gentle Giant, all because of Rentaghost. Innovation and Unconventional Poise. Let's not dilly daddle further therefore:
Scritti Politti
Doll by Doll
China Crisis
are thimply to good to ignore!
Yes, Interview is *the* great unfairly overlooked GG album - at the time, it got lost in the shadow of Free Hand & Power and the Glory. Yet it has some of GG's most dissonant & daring moments.
When this LP came out I would have shied away from playing this track to some new to GG. Now I play it and and just say DEAL WITH IT !!!!
I found the percussions to be the most interesting.
Was what you did with your fingers towards the camera a reference to the Kids in The Hall bit "I'm Crushing Your Head" ? . If not, check it out.
The Kids were great ! 😆
I didn't like the high-pitched percussion that happened around about the half-way point, but the rest was different enough to grab my attention from everything else I was doing so I could take it in. Strange but alluring all the same.
This is perhaps the most Gentle Giantesque of all GG tracks with the acapella counterpoint and discord to the fore but, for me, it's not nearly as successful as Knots, maybe because the discord is more discordant and the riffs and melody nowhere near as memorable. Still bloody good though.
Um … no…
I love Gentle Giant!!!!!❤
I'm a big fan of the G's, and so it pains me to say, but this effort is definitely quite a chore to listen to. And my thinking largely mirrors a.k's earlier post. Starts nicely, vocal & harmonies, but come around the 2 min mark, the lapse, were you'd expect the band to come in with their full (usual) virtuosic brilliance... No, they don't. What we do get is more oblique vocals with what sounds like some 10 year old happily bashing his first toy drum kit. This's a skipper for me.
Yeah they were largely done by this point.
@@pentagrammaton6793 To me, this is the last of the truly great GG albums. They intentionally went "radio friendly" after this, and lost my interest. In retrospect though, Missing Piece and Civilian are now quite enjoyable.
@@lemming9984 Yes I agree, a good part of The Missing Piece is still nice and I must say that I even prefer the more energetic and convincing Civilian! (which makes it a highly recommendable final album). On the other hand Giant for a Day! is hard to bear and remains Gentle Giant's worst album in my opinion.