Nektar’s second album caught them still finding their voice, working out what might make them different from the many solid but limited jam bands who emerged in the early 70s.
Their debut album, 1971’s Journey To The Centre Of The Eye, had leaned in hard to sci-fi and psychedelia. By the time they made follow-up A Tab In The Ocean, they’d temporarily retreated, edging back towards more standard rock and blues fare.
Recorded in their adopted homeland of Germany with producer Peter Hauke, the 1972 release is, happily, not without a few prog predilections – even if it never lives up to the lysergic blow-out hinted at in the title. There’s the colourful sleeve for a start; then there’s the 17-minute title track, originally spread across the old side one, which foreshadows subsequent loftier achievements. For all its length, it doesn’t always know what to do, but the spirit is willing.
Of the other tracks, Desolation Valley has the most memorable riff, almost Sabbath-like in its doomy heaviness. Meanwhile King Of Twilight – not in itself anything special – was to become a curious choice of cover for Iron Maiden, who revived it in 1984 for the B-side of Aces High.
If A Tab In The Ocean is often too leaden to float, it has spells where the more honeyed version of Nektar is visible. Roye Albrighton’s voice and guitar always carry a trustworthy sincerity. Carried within this five-CD box are a new remaster, the original mix plus a 1976 US do-over, and a Blu-ray of surround sound mixes for devotees.
The fresh addition is, over two discs, a previously unreleased 1973 concert from Erbach, Germany, which sees the band mixing their music of this era with sketches of works in progress, some of which evolved into elements of Remember The Future.
Delightfully there’s also a run-out for their then-imminent winner Do You Believe In Magic? It’s further evidence that while Nektar may not quite have located their sweet spot on this lower-grade swim, the currents were auspicious.
A Tab In The Ocean – Deluxe Edition is on sale now via Esoteric.
