Inundated with every characteristic of
progressive rock, Germany's
Jane combined elements of
jazz fusion,
space rock, and even
heavy metal at times to come up with a sound that was always exciting and never restrained. On 1972's
Together, they fabricate a sound that combines the percussiveness of
hard rock with the expansive wandering of makeshift melodies, all kept intact by the vocals of
Berndt Pulst, who luckily doesn't have to be a great singer thanks to the intricacies of the organ and flute that are widely predominant. Nonetheless, this debut album offers up some engaging
prog rock through the freestyled transience of the lead and bass guitars. The full 12 minutes of
"Spain" is punctuated with some stellar drum playing via
Peter Panka and some interesting singing from bass player
Charly Maucher near the end. Showing signs that their music will gain experimental momentum in future albums (and it did), the placid eeriness that is germinated in
"Daytime" and
"Hangman" prove that
Jane have their roots firmly planted in the
space rock and
Krautrock genres, only to evolve into other avant-garde areas later in the '70s on albums like
Here We Go and
Fire, Water, Earth & Air. As one of the most popular bands on the progressively oriented
Brain label,
Jane's exploratory brand of guitar/organ/percussion based music is well-established throughout these six tracks. ~ Mike DeGagne
