Janus - Gravedigger (1971)

Janus, born as a progressive rock band made up of English musicians in Krefeld in Germany in 1970. Signed to EMI Harvest, they recorded their album, "Gravedigger" in 1971. Remarkably, the whole album, including mixing was put together in 24 hours of studio time.

The band has two very distinct sides. Capable of soft, beautiful melodies, they also cranked out some mega-decibel material, which a few years later would have had them tagged as a punk band.

The hightlight of the album is the title-track, Gravedigger and with a length of 20 minutes plus this is a significant part of the album. The track has a light acoustic start with guitar against a backdrop of keys. The introduction ends with what feels like a spaghetti western guitar section which fits perfectly. A little over half way through the track sees the guitar taking a more classical approach with a gorgeous melody against a gentle tide/beach backdrop. A melancholy, reflective, slow moving and captivating track is progressive as opposed to the remaining hard rock music on the album. There are some very nice moments, both acoustic and electric guitar throughout.

Line-up :
- Colin Orr / guitar, keyboards
- Roy Yates / classical guitar
- Bruno Lord / vocals
- Derek Hyatt / vocals
- Mick Pederby / bass
- Keith Bonthrone / drums

Track List :
01. Red Sun - 8:59
02. Bubbles - 3:54
03. Watcha' Trying To Do - 3:53
04. I Wanna Scream - 2:46
05. Gravedigger - 20:53
06. Red Sun - 5:34
07. Napalm (Sticks To Kids) Watergarden (Bonus) - 6:59
08. War Machines (Bonus) - 3:56
09. Yesterday Has Turned To Shapeless Life (Bonus) - 4:37
10. Yesterday Has Turned To Shapeless Life (Bonus Instrumental) - 5:35

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