Supersister – Iskander
The oddball and essentially lighthearted Supersister saw a change in the ranks for 1973’s Iskander, their fourth studio album, with 50% of the four man line-up departing due to creative differences. With a new drummer in the shape of Herman van Boeyen and a saxophonist and flautist named Charlie Mariano drafted in, Supersister went all serious and recorded a concept album based upon the life of Alexander the Great.
The result was a wedge of progressive rock in the classic sense of the term.
In the same way that Rick Wakeman approached his solo projects with little or no vocal accompaniment, Iskander is all about the musicianship, creating musical vistas and sonic soundscapes that encapsulate the subject matter. There are Middle Eastern influences weaved throughout the fabric of the album, tying in with the Persian connection to the empire builder and ruler of ancient Greece (Iskander being the Persian name for Alexander). These are provided by Mariano wielding a variety of ethnic wind instruments.
A jazz-rock element also makes its – not altogether welcome – presence felt throughout and if the truth be known, this neither feels nor sounds like the Supersister of old. It holds more in common with, say, Camel’s The Snow Goose than their debut album Present From Nancy.
But is it any good?
Well, it’s not bad. The nine tracks blend effortlessly into one another, maintaining the feel of a sonic journey, but the occasional vocals seem to get lost, and in approaching the album in this way Supersister lose their identity, rendering themselves indistinguishable from a host of other prog rock bands of the 70s.
Saying that though, both ‘Bagaos’ and ‘Looking Back’ touch upon the previous quirky nature of these Dutch musical eccentrics, and the inclusion upon this Esoteric reissue of the single ‘Wow’ along with its B-side ‘Drs. D’, as well as the ramped-up 7″ version of ‘Bagaos’, help to remind us of how bloody good Supersister could be.
Not the best that Supersister released, but one that could grow over time.
Iskander is reissued by Esoteric Recordings and available from Amazon.co.uk
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