UK Instrumental Progressive Rocker Neil Campbell published the single “Setting Sail” taken from his new album “The Smoky God” out on March 08, 2024. Stream the track through the Youtube player below:
“A mini-album based on Willis George Emerson’s ‘The Smoky God’
Most of the music of ‘The Smoky God’ originated at the end of my work with Joey Zeb, Andy Maslivec and Marty Snape in the band Bulbs around 2013. Pre-production of this recording recommenced in around 2016 in collaboration with Marty Snape, who contributed electronics and assisted with the album’s pre-production. After moving the project across to Liverpool’s Crosstown Studios, Roger Gardiner (bass) and Viktor Nordberg (drums) and I pulled together all the additional tracking, which involved a great deal of overdubbing on my part. A continuation of my work with engineer/co-producer Jon Lawton, we’ve brought to this album many production and arrangement techniques developed across recordings made together over the last five years, culminating in an album that melds progressive rock with systems (minimalist) music in equal measure.
The book upon which the album is based, ‘The Smoky God, or a Voyage Journey to the Inner Earth’, written by WIllis George Emerson and published in 1908, is a story presented as a true account describing the adventures of Olaf Jansen, a Norwegian sailor, who sailed with his father through an entrance to the Earth’s interior at the North Pole. In the story, for two years Jansen and his father lived with the inhabitants of an underground network of colonies who, Emerson writes, were 12 feet tall and whose world was lit by a “smoky” central sun – the Smoky God. At the end of the story our protagonist Jansen returns, via a South Pole passage, to the surface world. Nobody believes his fanciful tale and he is institutionalised for many years in an asylum. Only on his deathbed is his personal testimony transcribed by Emerson in the book.
I would like to express thanks to all the above-mentioned musicians for their help in the ‘voyage’ of this piece of music, culminating in this recording. I would also like to extend thanks to a.P.A.t.T. member, producer and electronic musician Stephen Cole who contributed electronics on a section of the title track, to Úna Quinn who created her own uniquely different version of this album’s final track ‘Recollection’ as her track ‘Sin é’, ahead of this release (the final track on her 2019 album ‘Inside Out’) and who has been greatly encouraging throughout the ongoing development of the album, to Martin Atherton, who has also lent his ears and his encouragement to the work in progress, and to Colin Maddocks, Adrian Wharton and Paul Hunt for the visual contributions they have made.” – Neil Campbell
Purchase the album on Bandcamp: https://neilcampbell.bandcamp.com/album/the-smoky-god
Tracklist:
- Setting Sail (4:44)
- Franz Josef Land (3:03)
- Fresh Water Streams (2:57)
- The Opening (3:50)
- Anthem Of The Giants (1:50)
- The Smoky God (5:45)
- Returning (6:11)
- Recollection (3:18)
Lineup.
Neil Campbell / Classical and Acoustic Guitars, Bass, Godin MultiAc Guitar, Roland VG99, Korg Monologue, Korg Kaoss Pad KP3, Boss SY1, EMS Synthi AKS, Additional Keyboards, Electronics & Programming
Marty Snape / Electronics and Pre-Production
Roger Gardiner / Additional Bass
Viktor Nordberg / Drums
Stephen Cole / Electronics (6)
Jon Lawton / Electronics and Electronic Percussion Programming