The words "progressive rock" are usually thought of in a couple of ways. Either an old band that's still around playing their older songs or new bands who basically try to sound like those old bands. There are plenty of people who just accept that progressive rock doesn't need to progress or be wildy creative. Fortunately, bands like Trojan Horse exist purely to debunk those ideas.
"World Turned Upside Down" is a wild ride and not for the faint of heart or those stuck on Genesis clones. Trojan Horse have more in common with Soft Machine, Gentle Giant and Van der Graaf Generator. But really, they don't sound like any of them! Instead, they
almost seem like they are trying to destroy prog as much as they are fans of it.
"Jurapsyche Park" starts things off with a great guitar riff before wordless vocals, fuzzed out guitars and insane keyboards take over. Even the guitar solo seems odd, a sort of surf rock vibe. It is a great introduction to the madness and genius that follows. "Sesame" is one of my favorite tracks with very interesting keyboaords that sound sped up at times eventhough tbey aren't. It reminds me of Field Music meets The Flower Kings if both were a little drunk at the time! As odd as songs are on "World Turned Upside Down," they are always quite catchy and this song is a perfect example!
"Scuttle" brings to mind the band MUTation but a far less metal version of that band. I suppose if Mike Patton had wanted to do a prog song, you might get these results. The horns and twisted keyboards are a bit reminiscent of Mr. Bungle. The title track even has a cello with a very breezy 70s vibe. Vocally, the song reminds me of the NYC band Izz. The epic "Hypocrite's Hymn" has a very quicky, crazy start that features a mellotron which, when you are a prog band, is always a good thing! If there was one song that best summed up the insane creativity of Trojan Horse, this is it!
Without a doubt, fans of adventurous progressive rock will find much to love about "World Turned Upside Down." Sure, it is a challenging listen but for me, that's the whole point of music and certainly progressive music. Trojan Horse are a band to keep an eye on. I think we'll hear a lot more from them. At least, I hope so!
