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Then?

by Tramtracks

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  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Deluxe 12" 180 gram vinyl version of our latest album.

    Includes unlimited streaming of Then? via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 7 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $50 AUD or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    "Then?" is new prog rock from Australian session band Tramtracks. The album is a made-for-vinyl release and as such some tracks segue together, which is why we've included the option to purchase entire Sides A or B. Those purchasing the vinyl are entitled to download the entire album which includes individual tracks as well as the entire sides.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $10 AUD  or more

     

1.
Take the front seat A new karma Enjoy your step Watch your feet It’s bittersweet It was your back shot saying Bittersweet You drink dirty water It’s bittersweet Your mouth punching words Bittersweet Was the final straw Take the front seat A new karma Enjoy your step Watch your feet It’s bittersweet Bittersweet It’s bittersweet It was your back shot saying Bittersweet You drink dirty water It’s bittersweet Your mouth punching words Bittersweet Was the final straw
2.
Call It On 03:42
Flying through the Sydney jungle Driving through the streets Crossing many bridges We never missed a beat For we were driving so fast Down Victoria Pass Great Western Highway Open plains, dry hot grass Were you here before us Resting in the fields Did you come before us With wings upon your heels We crossed so many bridges We never missed a beat Just to find you here In your country retreat Call it on .... (Mother of Grace) You took us into your space to the place where we used to play And all around All around this place Call it on Mother of Grace
3.
Emphatic 04:33
If you ever get a chance To re-write your past Would you do the things You regret, all over again You know you have Seen it all before Never see it coming It’s the same old circle Always bringing back the past Moving forward Keeping old wounds tied to the mast Never changing then, they push you Back into the wall It becomes emphatic It becomes emphatic It becomes (everyone) emphatic It becomes (everyone) emphatic When it becomes three on one You cannot please everyone Whoever wrote that tired old song Never thought it would please everyone It’s a misfortune … for everyone It’s emphatic ... for everyone
4.
Cat Fink 04:09
You’re the cool cat fink You’re the cool cat fink All through your pictures All through within your vision Won't set you free, only spellbound You’re the cool cat
5.
Father come quickly Look up to the sky The colours are changing Look into your fields of rye A samurai tends to his bonsai A rabbi raises his hands to the sky Bless the god of rain The rain is champagne Deserts turn to floodplain The rain is champagne The farmer’s in a seaplane And the rain The rain is champagne
6.
7.
As she passes through the garden Like a butterfly Her golden hair blazing in the sunlight Her colours reflecting the southern sunrise Shimmering reflections Passed me by I’ll show you You show me The blazing mirrors reflecting the sunrise They all have come Attracted to you I’ll show you You show me The blazing mirrors reflecting the sunrise They all have come Attracted to you
8.
As the setting sun Runs through the trees Enhancing the evening’s greener hills The tallest tree stands Emblazoned by light The stream runs fire It all feels still until the morning When the northern wind comes When she bends old river gums And beats them like drumbeats On an open ground She runs through the cane Hums through the wheat Summons long grass people She passes on her heat Through the open plain Running through the cane Driving steamy rain Relentless drumbeats Takes the energy away Dust on the highway The long grass people have no rest The northern wind is on her annual quest Running through the cane Humming through the wheat Summons long grass people Passing on her heat
9.
10.
Show me, show me, I saw your beautiful face I saw your beautiful face I saw it
11.
And you... You were always there You were always there We went on our ways Occasional chance To share just a glance Bid each other the time Remember the shine In your eyes You still have that shine I see it so clear And you say I have mine That is sublime Our souvenir of this lifetime! And now you reappear Now you... Now you are always
12.
13.

about

The tram to Bondi might have stopped running years ago, but that hasn’t stopped Tramtracks from launching "Then?", a fabulous vinyl recording of some of their finer tunes – though totally reimagined and produced into a contemporary prog rock sound. Released on Prommo Grande Records this selection of hand-picked tunes bears wonderful fruit.
Initially, Tramtracks (Pilt, Forbes, Hudson, James and York), a band that grew out of Forbes vision, had been thinking about how to release a CD capturing some moments from earlier albums but remained undecided about how to proceed until thoughts turned towards a vinyl release. However, "Then?" is so much more than a retrospective look at some of Tramtracks’ more catchy and nostalgic tunes from "Rain", "You" and "Grow".
The sound has been totally reinvented courtesy of award-winning producer, engineer, sound director, and musician David Cafe who as special guest, also contributed to each of the re-imagined tunes. Cafe has worked with some of the biggest names in the Australian music business (The Angels, Flowers, Billy Field, Doug Parkinson, Dragon, Tommy Emmanuel, Swanee, Matt Finish among others). A long-time friend and colleague of Toivo Pilt (Tramtracks, Sebastian Hardie, Windchase), the pair worked tirelessly to bring this new album to fruition.
As Toivo put it: "...when Bob, Ticker, Mr. Hudson, Dale and I started kicking around ideas for a vinyl album, I knew immediately we needed to turn to David Cafe. He was definitely the man for the job to help us work through some of our tunes to help them reach their previously unrealised potential". On hearing the finished album, Ticker (James) said, "...this is what needed to happen to elevate these tunes. There is real emotion that now shines through in the musicianship!". As a band, Tramtracks was made possible by Forbes who converted his office to a studio and brought the band together to release four earlier albums. Fans will recognise familiar but reimagined tunes with additional layering of guitar, bass, percussion from Cafe with a heavy focus on melodic prog style keyboards form Pilt and Forbes that make for a rich and vibrant sound.

Rising out of swirling synths, side A opens with the punchy It's Bittersweet with a big full sound, lush keys over a prog rhythm with lashes of guitar to punctuate the sound. Then another rocker, Call It On, with its relentless feel textured by Pilt’s delicate piano. Originally a jam, Emphatic becomes an anthem for revisiting the regrets of our past and finding a new way. The restrained synth lines give way to electric piano and a delicate interplay between snare and toms before collapsing the time into a toe tapping bass riff, big guitar chords and a driving beat. This is anything but "a tired old tune"! Like so many of Tramtracks’ tunes, Cat Fink started as an improvisation and turns into a rich lush prog extravaganza of Hammond and synths sitting snugly over York's bass lines and the big drum sounds from Ticker. Rain is Champagne is a vivid reminder of a country in drought and it's thirst for water in this arid land. This busy six-eight rocker finishes with "the farmer's in a sea plane" as it soars into flight. Side A closes with excerpts from another jam, Flying With Dragons, with a pretty piano melody layered over a driving guitar, bass and drum rhythm section.

Side B changes mood. Sometimes it is the simplest of melodies that are the prettiest, and so it is with Southern Sunrise which again showcases Pilt’s delicate touch with composition and melody. The tune almost floats as it subtly builds in dynamics with delicate touches of flute, synth and organ over a rhythm section that gently propels the track forward towards its synth climax. The Northern Wind has also been reworked with catchy rhythm section reminiscent of The Neville Brothers. What is noticeable is that these tunes now have space and depth that wasn’t necessarily captured in their earlier offerings. What is totally unexpected is the turn taken by the next three tracks. T.S.O.G. (The Sound of Glebe) features Ralph White on horn and saxophone. It is a sublime start offset by Pilt’s stirring synth solo before White again gives a lesson in smooth sax as it should be, layered in the textures of Pilt and Forbes keys. Perhaps the standout track of the album is the spacey and achingly haunting I Saw Your Beautiful Face, a track about loss and the wonder of rebirth. The melody works its way through a number of different feels and rhythmic changes before climaxing in a soaring guitar solo from Cafe that builds on Hudson’s original lines. In a fitting end to the album, and one for the romantics, "You" takes an acoustic turn before being given the Tramtracks treatment as it celebrates the rediscovery of relationship, that touchingly finished in a wedding in real life between Forbes and Saunders who adds vocal accompaniments to the track!

Making "Then?"

The source code for "Then?" came from earlier Tramtracks albums "Rain", "You" and "Grow", all recorded in Glebe with what the Trammers affectionately called the Tramshed.

Among other guests, the core tracks on these albums featured:
• Toivo Pilt on keyboards
• Robert (Bob) Forbes on keyboards, theremin and percussion
• Mark (Mr) Hudson on guitars and bass
• Graeme (Ticker) James on drums
• Dale (V8) York on bass.

The studio also doubled as the meeting place for Yes Fans in Australia, the fan club that invited Yes to tour Australia and New Zealand again in 2003 after a 30 year absence, and for the reformation of Sebastian Hardie to open for them, with Pilt on keyboards. Nicknamed "The Shrine", for all who worship the band Yes, as shown in the photos of the albums inner sleeve, the studio walls were adorned with original artwork from the artist Roger Dean who created so many of the wonderful Yes album covers. It was an incredibly creative vibe in which to play and jam for eleven years, with the main Tramtracks line up involved in "Then?" playing together most Tuesday nights for 7 years.

Final credit for getting "Then?" off the ground goes to Cafe in the engineering, production and mastering department while also contributing as a special guest, and Pilt who was the lynchpin with band members and helped re-imagine and record each of the initial tunes. Each tune needed considerable work, and several were significantly reimagined, with some parts re-recorded. Everything was given a general sprinkling of Cafe’s magical touch to make the album a satisfying and cohesive whole.

About the cover to "Then?"

Tramtracks first album "See" opened with a futuristic picture of Sydney Harbour, totally dry and covered in sand, with a Bondi tram, stuck in it's tracks.

So it is only fitting in a re-imagined album that it actually reference Bondi with a beach scene, and curiously be titled "Then?". Sure it captures the past, but it also ask a question about the future, something that brings us to the re-imagined offering of these tunes now. Lovingly put together by Pilt’s partner, Olga Raievska, the album cover and label design showcases her talents as a graphic artist.

Take a trip with Tramtracks.

Tramtracks hope you enjoy listening to "Then?" as much as we do now! New Oz Prog from Tramtracks.

www.tramtracks.com

credits

released September 14, 2020

Written & Performed by:

Toivo Pilt - Keyboards/Vocals
Robert Forbes - Keyboards/Theremin
Graeme James - Drums
David Cafe - Guitars/Bass/Percussion
Mark Hudson - Guitar/Bass
Dale York - Bass

Produced & Arranged by David Cafe
Design by Olga Raievska

It’s Bittersweet (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James)
Call It On (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James)
Emphatic (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James)
Cat Fink (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James/York)
Rain Is Champagne (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James)
Flying With Dragons (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James/York)
Southern Sunrise (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James)
The Northern Wind (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James)
T.S.O.G. (The Sound of Glebe) (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James/White)
I Saw Your Beautiful Face (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson/James/York)
You (The Wedding Song) (Pilt/Forbes/Hudson)

Recorded at the Tramshed and Federation Studios - Sydney
Engineers: Robert Forbes, Michelle Barry, Kathy Naughton, D.C.
Vinyl manufacture by Program Records, Melbourne
Cover painting “Bondi” and Design by Olga Raievska
Mixed and Mastered by David Cafe

Special thanks to Col Joye,
and Luke and Angus from Hermitude,
for keeping the music alive in Glebe!

Lyrics printed by permission

2020 Prommo Grande Records

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