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Walpurgis was a short-lived band from Berlin, formed in early 1970 by Polish and German musicians. The double-guitar quintet consisted of Ryszard Kalemba (g), Jerzy Sokolowski (g, voc), Jan Sundermeyer (perc, fl), Georg Fürchtenicht (b) and Manfred Stadelmann (dr, voc). Wallenstein keyboardist Jürgen Dollase secured them a record deal with Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser’s legendary Ohr label. The recording sessions for their first and only album took place in May and June 1972 at Dieter Dierks’ studio in Cologne-Stommeln, with Frank Oeser as producer. During these sessions, they were supported by Jürgen Dollase on keyboards. They played a style of psychedelic rock inspired by the US West Coast sound, complemented by blues-oriented heavy rock. Extended improvisations by the guitar duo alternate with organ and piano contributions from Dollase and a few flute solos.
A style of rock music that enjoyed widespread popularity in the late 1960s, but by the end of 1972, when the album was released, it was no longer in demand and therefore failed to attract any attention from the public. The band split up shortly afterwards. Today, this rare album is considered one of the most overlooked releases on the Ohr label, which primarily made a name for itself with its catalogue of cosmic and experimental space rock, and remains particularly popular amongst collectors of early psychedelic guitar rock.
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