The Inner Mounting Dame

Overall Album Score: 9.0 out of 10

I'm probably as aptly equipped to review jazz-rock-fusion music as ... a random person on the street. Simply put, I usually don't listen to this type of music on my own freewill. Jazz was never my favorite musical form (a lot of which I'd classify as "boring and I don't care"). And Jazzy-rock? ... Yeah. Not my cup of tea, either.

But ... The Mahavishnu Orchestra is hardly boring. They're not delightful but their NOTTTTT boring. ... Many of these songs sound so utterly crazy and so utterly twisted ... and they're so complex and wild that ... hey! This is a good album! ... Wow!! ... This album is detached from regular methods of song construction. This stuff might even sound sloppy at first, but ... man! Listen to it closer, and I can't help but notice how intricately these songs were put together. ... And there's a lot to discover about it that you won't notice upon first listen. ... Yeah ... this is an album that will do nothing but grow on you upon repeated listens. The big problem I can think of: since this isn't particularly delightful upon the first listen, then ... there's not much to bring you back for seconds. I forced myself to listen to this album about four times and ... I still haven't quite warmed up to it. ... I mean, this stuff is more difficult to enjoy even than similar stuff by Frank Zappa!!!! ... But ... oh man ... this stuff is just so much more complex and wild (not weird) than Zappa, that ... it honestly doesn't even compare.

What really makes this album ***great*** is: "A Lotus On Irish Streams." ... It's about as intricate and complex as the best of 'em, except this time it's calm, quiet, and ACCESSIBLE!!! It's an absolutely perfect and ear-dazzling instrumentation of a babbling brook if there ever was one. ... Whoah ...

So ... this is album of the highest order of the art. ... It's not on the highest order of accessibility, but ... alas! Everybody who honestly and actively likes this album are, like, seriously into music, and maybe deserves a handshake or something. Likewise, this album isn't for *everybody*, and that's understandable. It's a difficult listen.

Overall Album Score: 9.0 out of 10 (A good album for elitist music fans like you and me to enjoy. Not an easy thing to get into, but ... you should try it!)

Average Song Score: 9.0 (The wild world of The Mahavishnu Orchestra is here ... FOR YOU!!!!)

Album Tilt: 8.5 (It's not merely the fact that I think the album has an accessibility problem ... the last three songs are a bit dull.)

Artist Rating: 9.5 ("A Lotus on Irish Streams" is one of the most brilliant instrumental songs I've ever heard. The rest are quite interesting, and if you're willing to give it a chance, are apt to inspire you.)

Track Reviews

Meeting of the Spirits 9.5/10

Wow! That's all I can honestly say about this song! ... It's one wild thing! ... And, I'm going to have a difficult time trying to describe it! Well, the first part of it is very fast paced (with this excellent violin-sound in the background) ... it seems messy, but there is structure to it. And the guitar playing here is excellent. Then it gets slower ... but slowly picks up steam with a jazzy keyboard ... and then the fiddle picks up again. And then, pretty soon, it starts to get wild again with that GEETARRRR!!! ... (Oh ... it's easy to overlook the drumming here, too ... you can't overlook the drumming! Oh man ... this defines good drumming ...) The end of the song seems like a good conclusion. It gets quieter and slow again ... seems like a nice place (if still a bit crazy) to let off if there ever was one ... and stuff. This was a riveting album opener!!!!

Dawn 9/10

This would have been a very calm song if it wasn't for that electric guitar doing crazy things in the foreground! ... The song starts out nice and soothing (though with some keyboard chords that don't seem to make sense ... it's jazzy!!). And then it picks up its pace and starts rocking a little bit (well, not *rocking out* technically speaking ... maybe jazzing out would be more appropriate, even though that has different connotations)! Another fine jazzy song and stuff. The instrumentals are played quite masterfully.

The Noonward Race 9.5/10

For my ears untuned to jazzy stuff, this one seems to make more sense to me than the last two. ... It's still crazy, though! It's fast pace (and creates a nice groove) and the electric guitar goes insane!! ... Yeah, there's some really wild instrumental noodling. The only reason I'm enjoying this so much is because it's so fast paced ... but whatever. I know what I like ... and I like what I know.

A Lotus on Irish Streams 10/10

Oohhhhhhhhhh!!! This might not be too exciting, but it's beautiful! And ... geez, this song is as good a musical representation of "a lotus on Irish streams" if there ever was one. It sounds exactly like a bubbling brook (I think every instrument in here plays the babbly book line at least once). The violin is absolutely gorgeous in here (in particular). ... Every instrument comes out in the forefront at least once ... they seem to all be vying for the top spot. ... This is much better than all that I'm-in-touch-with-nature mood crap I hear in those nature-esque stores nowadays. ... This isn't boring for a start!

Vital Transformation 9/10

CRAZY STUFF AGAIN!!!! Fast paced ... the guitar is brilliantly insane ... (and the other instruments are insane ... It's kinda easy to overlook those other ones). Anyway, I really like the guitar. It's not any better than the other like-songs that appeared on the album, I think, but I still like it!

The Dance of Maya 8.5/10

Eh ... I don't feel like this song is particularly great as far as being weird and wonderful ... I'm not particularly getting a butt-load of emotion (be it awe or confusion), either. For that reason, it might be among the album's most accessible songs, but ... I don't think people who would get this album are in it for accessibility. Just the same, I certainly admire it! Geez, just listening to how well this song is played makes every comment I ever made about Journey and Foreigner having good instrumental abilities seem like lies. ... This stuff is exceptionally played!

You Know You Know 8.5/10

They're keeping themselves modest here FOR ONCE (it seems) ... or maybe their modesty is being unmodest ... hmmmm ... I'll certainly have to think about that one! ... *thinks* ... Uh, I can't come up with anything. This is a song that's easy to ignore just because it doesn't seem to do anything, but ... it's still high quality jazz-fusion-rock-whatever-this-is.

Awakening 8.5/10

Well this song CERTAINLY ISN'T BORING!!!! Everything here is so fast and crazy that my head is a-spinnin'! ....... oh ................ I'm dizzy .................. A drum solo, too? ... Aren't we supposed to hate those? ... Man ... Even the Mahavishnu Orchestra isn't immune to the disease of drum soloing. But it's not even 30 seconds long, so ... that's no mortal sin.

Everybody do the commentssssssssssss here.

geosochi@yahoo.com (George) received July 15, 2005

Hey Michael! Revewing the Orchestra, I see! "Inner Mounting Flame" is indeed a very powerful fusion album.... I've never heard as much raw energy and fire as "Meeting of the Spirits". Amazing collection of virtuoso musicians, and incredible interplay between them. And if there is such a thing as putting the amp up to 11, then this is it, the power and sheer volume of the Mahavishnu's guitar is stunning! I do share your appreciation for the album's one quiet piece, the medidative "Lotus On Irish Streams".

McLaughlin went on in many directions since then - Indian Classical fusion with Shakti, an acoustic tribute album to Bill Evans, fairly straight bop on "After the Rain", among other things - all the while retaining a sense of adventurousness due to his strong creative personality.

Take care for now!

JPB@rogers.com (JP) received Aug. 7, 2005

Oh yeah. The Inner Mounting Flame is still one of my all time top 5 and I'm 56. I went though 3 vinyl copies since 1971 and bought the CD when it came out. Oddly I'm more into rock and blues but the intensity, complexity and level of musicianship in the M.O. is addictive. The same goes for Birds of Fire and the peacefull but sometime frenetic McLaughlin solo accoustic masterpiece My Goal's Beyond.