Instant Impressions: 'Imaginos III - Mutant Reformation' by Albert Bouchard

Multi-instrumentalist and Blue Öyster Cult founder Albert Bouchard unleashed the concluding chapter of the Imaginos trilogy, Mutant Reformation, on Friday, July 7. Conceived from the mind of late BÖC producer/songwriter Sandy Pearlman in the late 1960s/early 70s in the form of unpublished texts entitled The Soft Doctrines of Imaginos and musically attempted for the first time as a Bouchard solo album in what would become a BÖC collaboration in 1988, Bouchard revived the Imaginos narrative on November 6, 2020 with the solo album Re Imaginos. The revamping featured several musical layers, from acoustic and electric guitars to brass and strings, with the album containing alternate versions of the songs from the 1988 Blue Öyster Cult LP, along with the additions of previously unreleased tracks from the saga, “Girl That Made Love Blind” and “Gil Blanco County.”

After the success of Re Imaginos, Albert Bouchard quickly began work on the sequel and released Imaginos 2 - Bombs Over Germany on October 15, 2021. Taking place during the events of the World Wars, the album had a more militaristic tone to it sonically. Not only did the album consist of reimaginings of more Blue Öyster Cult classics like “The Red & The Black” and “Shadow of California,” but there were also guest appearances from several members of the BÖC camp, from founders and bandleaders Eric Bloom and Buck Dharma to current guitarist Richie Castellano to founding member (and Albert’s younger brother) Joe Bouchard. The release was so successful that the first pressing of pre-orders sold out before the street date, making a third installment all that much more inevitable. 

Almost two years later, the time has come for the final chapter of the Imaginos saga. With a timeline focused on the late 20th/early 21st century, there’s another plethora of collaborative efforts on this album from in and outside the Blue Öyster Cult community, and even more BÖC cuts to fit into the narrative that will appease any hardcore fan. Without further delay, feel free to listen along and follow my real-time reactions to each track below:

1. Welcome to Desdanovaland (1:01)

• Incredibly fitting intro
• Voiceover does a great job with setting the tone for the rest of the album, great writing too 

2. Flaming Telepaths (5:32)

• This was always one of my favorite BÖC songs when I was younger
• The sci-fi style of the electric guitars is a perfect start to a song like this
• Though it’s been easy to get accustomed to hearing Eric Bloom’s voice in relation to this song, Bouchard’s voice fits very well in this arrangement
• It’s nice to hear different improvisations with the guitar solos, yet it’s easy to hear a couple similarities to those in the original BÖC version
• Love the fact that the ending is just as abrupt as the original version

3. The Queen’s Graveyard (4:13) 

• After the energetic way “Flaming Telepaths” ended, this is a nice juxtaposition
• The chorus makes me wonder if this was a song written back in the pre-BÖC days when they were known as Stalk-Forrest Group

4. Transmaniacon (3:24)

• Such a fantastic re-imagining of an already epic song
• Having The Dictators featured on this track was a phenomenal touch – they do a great job with beefing this song up and giving it a bit of a post-punk edge
• Much like the original BÖC recording, the instrumental break at 1:43-2:00 is my favorite part of this song – it gives the song so much life and energy, and the band does a great job bringing that out here

5. Career of Evil (4:40)

• Automatically a completely different tone from the original, wasn’t expecting this
• Interesting build-up to the chorus
• Awesome solo during the midpoint of the song
• It’s always interesting to hear how a song will start out slow and soft , then end at full blast like this

6. St. Cecilia (3:35)

• It’s times like these that fascinate me with just how long this Imaginos concept has been in the works – wild to hear a revamped version of a Stalk-Forrest Group song all these decades later
• While the instrumentation is, of course, different, it’s nice that the same kind of trippy atmosphere is present in this version
• The shorter runtime is also noteworthy – with the original clocking in at almost seven minutes, it’s nice to have it consolidated for this album

7. Curse of the Hidden Mirrors (3:22)

• One of my favorite songs from the Stalk-Forrest Group days, I’m so happy to see this one on the tracklist
• Interesting effects on Mike Watt’s vocals, but fitting enough for the atmosphere of the album
• Love the key change during the last verse

8. Mountain of Madness (5:57)

• Intro already has me hooked – I’m a sucker for Irish rock, and this easily gives me that feeling
• Update: that feeling is only amplified during the chorus, gotta love it
• While Richie Castellano is a fantastic, I enjoy that this song highlights his underrated chops as a vocalist 

9. Redeemed (4:08)

• Much like “Transmaniacon,” this doesn’t musically stray too far from the original arrangement, but the additional instrumentation and quality production gives it a much fuller and rounded-out sound
• Joe Cerisano’s voice is perfect for this rendition as well
• The subtle change of fitting Imaginos’ name in the lyrics is a great edit too (almost makes me wonder whether or not this song was always meant to be part of the musical saga)

10. Mothra & Starfish (2:56)

• This would’ve been right at home with the rest of the Stalk-Forrest Group recordings, or even on BÖC’s debut album
• It’s easy to tell how much of an influence the west coast psychedelic rock scene of the 1960s had on the members of BÖC back in the day – wonderfully fitting vocals from Susie Loraine as well
• In the context of the album, this song almost feels like a transitory track, like a turning point into the second half of the album 

11. Godzilla (4:10)

• With how legendary the original song is, it’s always a hard one to replicate – that being said, this is a worthy rendition
• Something about having “Godzilla” play right after “Mothra & Starfish” just seems appropriate
• It’s nice to hear former BÖC bassist on this track, along with Mike Fornatale
• The most glaring difference to the original version is the break at the midpoint, but it’s appreciated for the fact that Bouchard’s rewrites help the song fit in the context of the Imaginos universe 

12. R.U. Red D. 2 (3:36)

• Immediately reminded of “Leave That Thing Alone” by Rush with the intro
• It’s always interesting to hear how Bouchard manages to completely change the musical aspect of certain songs while retaining the same vocal melodies with these re-imaginings
• This is perhaps the biggest musical detraction from its original version, but it works so well

13. Sole Survivor (4:29)

• So glad the original opening bassline is still intact
• Super interesting take on the chorus from the vocal perspective – in a way, drawing it out like that instead of the straightforward nature of the original helps enhance the spacey sci-fi sonic nature of the album’s sound
• Really cool to hear a musician like RJ Ronquillo on a track like this too – big fan of his work, and it’s great to see him collaborate with another fantastic musician I look up to as a fan

14. E.T.I. (4:45)

• With a cult classic (in more ways than one) like this, it’s nice to hear that there wasn’t a ton of sonic experimentation/deviation from the original version
• Additionally, as a hardcore BÖC fan, it’s really cool to hear Joe Bouchard on lead vocals for this one
• The extended outro for the last minute or so was fun to hear as well

15. Aldebaran Alien Take Me Away (3:42)

• I’m so glad that while the musical arrangement is very different to the original arrangement, it manages to meet and exceed the same energy level as its predecessor
• The background vocals really bring this song to life
• As if the original chorus wasn’t already phenomenal, I think Bouchard just topped it with this version
• Stellar guitar work throughout, both acoustic and electric
• The contrast in dynamics between the verses and chorus is greatly appreciated, along with the slight lyrical alterations by Bouchard

16. Arianna of Earth (3:53)

• It’s hard to come back down after the adrenaline rush from the previous song, but here we are
• The chorus makes me feel as if this song could’ve been on BÖC’s 1976 blockbuster album Agents of Fortune
• As is the case with a fair amount of BÖC and Bouchard’s work, it’s very easy to be put in a trance by this song

17. Heavy Metal/Black and Silver (4:34)

• When I first saw this song on the tracklist, I was pretty surprised – however, after re-listening to the previous two Imaginos albums as well as going through this one right now, it makes much more sense now
• I like how Bouchard took a song that was originally so hard-hitting and in-your-face and brought a little more of a laid-back groove to it, all with a few modifications in instrumentation and melody

18. Buddha’s Knee (3:41)

• Without a doubt the biggest sonic outlier of the entire trilogy
• Pretty bold move to end the album/saga with this mainly because of how different and strange it sounds in comparison to the rest of the songs, but in a way that’s also what makes it work – the Imaginos story is one that can be very confusing for a lot of people (myself included, so don’t ask me what the meaning is), but fans are drawn to it because of its uniqueness, and I believe that’s a decent part of what this song represents

With 18 songs on this album, it’s safe to say that Mutant Reformation was the epic conclusion that the entire Imaginos story needed – not only was it great to hear resurrected BÖC cuts along with collaborations with several other talented musicians, but it was amazing to hear all of those aspects come together to construct this entire record. This is nothing that hasn’t already been said by many before me, but Sandy Pearlman would be proud. 

Albert Bouchard made a promise to Pearlman before his unfortunate passing that he would revive the Imaginos story and have it told completely the way it was meant to be, and he achieved just that. However, that’s not it for Imaginos – there may or may not be a graphic novel in the works, and Bouchard will also be hitting the road at select locations for his Imaginos Live shows. For the list of dates/locations and to buy tickets, click here.

After the first of what will quickly become many listens, my top 3 standout tracks are:

• “Curse of the Hidden Mirrors”
• “Mountain of Madness”
• “Aldebaran Alien Take Me Away”

If you listened along and also enjoyed the album, you can buy Imaginos III - Mutant Reformation here.

To keep up with Albert Bouchard’s work, click here.

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