Andromeda - Beginnings 1967-68

Demos and try-outs from shortlived power trio

Taking shape around singer/ guitarist/ songwriter John Du Cann in 1967, Andromeda were to be even more short-lived than his previous group, The Attack. But while the trio of Du Cann, bassist Mick Hawksworth and drummer Jack Collins managed only one, eponymouslytitled album at the time, the band’s catalogue (and stature) has grown considerably during the last few years thanks to Angel Air’s expanded reissue of the debut (Definitive Collection) and an archival ‘reimagining’ of the same album (Originals).

Now comes a collection of the trio’s earliest recordings, put to tape while McCann was still in The Attack. Raw and unpolished, the likes of Let’s All Watch The Sky Fall Down and the genuinely thrilling When To Stop find the band searching for, and, more often that not, locating, a satisfyingly crunchy sound. Moreover, as the stripped-back demo of A Means To An End proves, Andromeda could also handle more sensitive material with skill.

If sleevenote writer Nick Dalton’s claim that the band “could – and should – have been as big as Cream” seems a little over-enthusiastic, Angel Air is to be commended for ensuring that the work of an undervalued band receives a fresh hearing.

Angel Air | SJPCD 243

Reviewed by David Davies
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