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One of the hidden jewels of British prog, led by the prominent Hammond playing of Dave Lawson. Blues / jazz-laced prog in the vein of Cressida and Titus Groan also featuring the sax and flutes of Tom Harris. The opening track, "Concerto For Bedsprings," is a 4-part suite that travels through rock and jazz territory, followed by the slow and dramatic title track "I Spider". The use of Mellotron, sax and organ on "Love You" brings King Crimson to mind, "Ymphasomniac" is percussion dominated instrumental track bring to mind the best Gentle Giant; and Dave Lawson's jazzy vocals & excellent Hammond playing on "Always I Wait.

" Fans of Colosseum, Gentle Giant, Van Der Graaf Generator, Titus Groan, Cressida, etc. will find what they're looking for, but WEB were no copy cats. They are innovators of the genre; after this album, they changed their name to Samurai (1971).

Their first album, essentially an uneasy amalgam of orchestrated pop, soul, lounge-room jazz, tribal chanting, music-hall and, yes indeed, psychedelic forays with odd time-changes, shows little coherence. The only thing to keep this building from immediate toppling is the sense of humour displayed on at least some of the tracks. There also is a stand-out track: East Meet West, with an an ominous melody and lovely sparse, but inventive instrumentation. The love for musical suites manifests itself already on War Or Peace, a quite listenable effort. The liner notes by some sixties luminaries are hilarious.

With the same line-up and the same producer (Mike Vernon) Web gave it another try on Theraphosa Blondi, which continues very much in the same vein, but still shows slight improvement. The musical suite now starts off side one and incorporates some superb mood changes as well as a cover of Sunshine Of Your Love. Overall the mood is more serious, more jazzy through intensive use of wind instruments and more mature, although there still is room for tribal gatherings and throwaway pop songs. The departure of singer Watson and his replacement by Dave Lawson (who wrote all the material on their third album), as well as the label-change, make Web sound like a completely different band on I Spider.

There's still the suite (Concerto For Bedsprings), but the atmosphere is heavy and menacing, rather than lightweight. Lawson's dramatic voice and especially his assorted keyboards, inventively played, unify the sound remarkably well, while the production by drummer Wright suits the music much better. Harsh harmonies and some fuzzy episodes make for uncomfortable but interesting listening. Although in places still lacking in coherence, this is an album not to be missed. Those who hate horns would do better to leave it alone, though.


01.Concerto For Bedsprings including:
1a. I Can't Sleep
1b. Sack Song
1c. Peaceful Sleep
1d. You Can Keep The Good Life
1e. Loner
02. I Spider
03. Love You
04. Ymphasomniac
05. Always I Want

Bonus (Live in Sweden 1971):
01.Concerto For Bedsprings including:
1a. I Can't Sleep
1b. Sack Song
1c. Peaceful Sleep
1d. You Can Keep The Good Life
1e. Loner
02. Love You