Consuming the Tangible

It was inevitable in my sojourns through ’70s music that I eventually hit upon the krautrock scene and the major players in it. Does Embryo qualify as a major player? They’re listed in Marshall Gu’s genre entry for the 33 1/3 series, so I’m allowing it. Besides, one look at the cover for the on-the-nose titled Rocksession and you could say it was inevitable I was going to own this, with only a modicum of listening time invested in it beforehand. Now that I do own it (thanks, Laser CD) and had some time to settle with it, I can say it’s a fun, jam-heavy record that leans into what its title suggests: a session where a bunch of musicians came together and rocked it – at least by early ’70s Munich-based standards.

Admittedly that sounds like damning with faint praise, but I promise that’s not the case. More a musical collective than a tight-knit band, Embryo is led by drummer Christian Burchard with an often-revolving lineup focused on loose jazz rock jamming with ethnic and world music inspirations folded in. Rocksession is comprised of studio sessions recorded in 1971 and ’72, but ultimately rejected at the time by their label. When the label finally released it in the beginning of 1973, it had the small benefit of coming out alongside the other tracks that were recorded at the time on Steig Aus and We Keep On and having a fairly consistent lineup. I haven’t checked out those records yet, but if they’re like Rocksession maybe there’s no need to check them out?

Because here’s the thing about Rocksession: It’s fine. Everyone is talented, and the technicality on display never overshadows the jazz-rock jam aspects of Embryo’s sound. Opener “A Place to Go” feels like a standard track at the time, albeit with Edgar Hofmann’s sax reaching into Middle Eastern melodies. It starts by lulling you into a false sense of security with its flowing lines before hitting fusion freakout mode in its latter half. But at under five minutes it’s a digestible, easily understood track, giving you everything needed to jump into the longer double-digit tracks like “Entrances” and “Warm Canto.”

“Entrances,” at close to 16 minutes, is clearly the centerpiece of Rocksession, and it’s a fusion-heavy showcase for guitarist Siegfried Schwab, while the more mellow, meditative “Warm Canto” allows keyboardist Mal Waldron and organist Jimmy Jackson to go wild with their respective instruments and effects to conjure a spiritual cousin to some of what the Mahavishnu Orchestra would also engage in. Closer “Dirge” rebels against its name, and I dig the syncopation as the guitars bounce against the bass and drums as the latter slowly amps up in energy and volume.

Is Embryo going to change your world? Probably not; one of my first thoughts was to compare Rocksession’s energy and innovation to another early pioneer of this sound, Agitation Free and their debut Malesch, which came out the same year and I think I bought at the same time. Still, this album grows on me with each listen, and makes for a good chill session.