In the annals of musical history the Topanga Canyon area of Southern California is legendary. Such diverse artists as Neil Young, The Eagles, Jim Morrison, Joni Mitchel, Stephen Stills and many more have called the canyon area their home over the years. In the prog rock world Topanga was also the home of Djam Karet, a legendary prog band that has released more than a dozen albums over the years and performed at all of the major U.S. festivals. One of the main members of Djam Karet is Gayle Ellett, whose guitar stylings have shaped the band’s music for several decades now. Ellett’s other band is The Electro Mags and this new album from them is a sure fire winner. “The Painted River Of Light” consists of only 4 tracks, but they are all lengthy musical explorations with a total running time of almost an hour. This is an all instrumental tour de force of eclectic prog that is sure to tickle the fancy of fans of this genre. This is the band’s 3rd album, but my first exposure to them. The Djam Karet influence is apparent, but this is not a copycat band. All of the traditional prog instruments are here with lush keyboards, soaring guitar, Warr guitar, and pounding percussion. As the title implies the music on this album does flow like a river. Everything runs together smoothly and even at the album’s lengthy running time, time flies by when listening to it. I can’t imagine that fans of Djam Karet or prog in general would not eat this albums up. Highly recommended.
