Madison Dyke - Zeitmaschine (Reissue) (1977/2004)

This late 70's band from Hanover, Germany, featured two guitarists (one of whom doubled on synth), a drummer, a bassist and a lead singer who also played flute and Mellotron. Like art rockers JANE, their music bears a strong floydian streak; add to this some early GENESIS lyrical fantasy, aggressive electric guitar and flute play reminiscent of NEUSCHWANSTEIN's "Battlement" and you'll have an idea of what they sound like.

Their sole release, "Zeitmaschine" (The Time Machine), contains two relatively short tracks with English lyrics and two extended instrumentals: overall, a mish-mash of styles that include hard rock, symphonic prog and ambient German musik - often within the same track. Interesting exchange between the 12-string acoustic and crying electric guitars, good compositions and decent vocals. The sound quality is rather poor but the album still offers a nice trip into the past.

Could be of interest to fans of JANE, NOVALIS and early RAMSES, or if you fancy a rather synthetic version of CAMEL.