Energit -

Energit was a Czech jazz-rock band from Praha that debuted with a 1975 self-titled album on Supraphon. Over the next two years, the band issued the two-song Mini Jazz Klub č. 6 EP and had a twelve-minute track featured among cuts by Impuls and Jazz Q on the album Jazzrocková Dílna 2. Both titles appeared on Panton, which issued Energit’s 1978 second and final album, Piknik. Keyboardist Vladimír Mišík also served in SHQ and made numerous solo and collaborative albums.

Members: Ivan Khunt (vocals, organ, 1973), Jaroslav “Erno” Šedivý (drums, 1973), Luboš Andršt (guitar), Vladimír Padrůněk (bass, 1973-74), Vladimír Mišík (vocals, 1974), Rudolf Ticháček (saxophone, 1975-78), Emil Viklický (keyboards, 1974-77), Milan Svoboda (keyboards, 1977-78), Jan Vytrhlík (bass, 1975-78), Anatolij Kohout (drums, 1974), Josef Vejvoda (drums, 1974), Karel Jenčík (drums, 1975-77), Jaromír Helešic (drums, 1977-78)

Background

Energit formed in Praha in early 1973 when guitarist Luboš Andršt and bassist Vladimír Padrůněk left Jazz Q and teamed with Flamengo alumni, singer-keyboardist Ivan Khunt and drummer Jaroslav “Erno” Šedivý.

Pre-Jazz Q, Andršt played with Roosters, P-67, Colour Images, Double Time, Blues Company Ltd., George & Beatovens, and Framus Five. Padrůněk studied violin before bass hand a 1969–70 stint with the band Exit. Khunt joined Flamengo in 1969 and recorded the 1972 album Kuře v hodinkách with Šedivý, who joined the final Flamengo lineup.

Energit entered a restricted Czech rock circuit after the post-1968 tightening of concert permits. The first lineup worked clubs for roughly six months with an English-language setlist, comprised of original songs by Andršt and singer Vladimír Mišík alongside outside repertory. Authorities banned the group after a concert in Pečky, where returning fans stopped a passing train at the station. Šedivý emigrated first, and Khunt later left for Denmark.

Andršt rebuilt Energit after an extended pause with Mišík, then shifted the group toward a non-vocal jazz-rock format after pianist Emil Viklický joined in 1974. The pre-album lineup drew on Andršt, Viklický, bassist Jan Vytrhlík, saxophonist Rudolf Ticháček, percussionist Jiří Tomek, and drummers Josef Vejvoda, Anatoli Kohout, and Karel Jenčík.

Energit

Energit released their self-titled debut album in 1975 on Supraphon.

The album contains five Luboš Andršt pieces and presents instrumental jazz-rock by a studio lineup built around electric guitar, octave-divider soprano saxophone, piano, Moog, bass, and multiple drum assignments.

Energit pairs guitarist Andršt with reedist Rudolf Ticháček (soprano saxophone with octave divider), keyboardist Emil Viklický (piano, Moog), bassist Jan Vytrhlík, conga player Jiří Tomek, and drummers Karel Jenčík, Anatoli Kohout, and Josef Vejvoda.

“Ráno (Part I)” erupts from scattered sound bursts into conga-lined motion, then pivots through a syncopated bridge, saxophone bursts, staccato electric-piano runs, and a renewed guitar solo before the opening motif returns. “Paprsek Ranního Slunce” ripples through brisk ensemble motion, then fractures into a sharper motif shift and quick machine-cut runs.

“Noční motýl” coils from sparse harmonic fragments into a firmer central passage, where overdriven lead work and Moog-edged replies crowd the middle before the opening atmosphere returns. “Apoteóza” flares through compact electric figures, clipped accents, and synthesizer detail. “Ráno (Part II)” loosens the opening material into a short unwind, then fades on a percussion cadence.

A1. “Ráno (Part I)” [Morning (Part I)] (17:25)

B1. “Paprsek ranního slunce” [Ray of the Morning Sun] (4:40)
B2. “Noční motýl” [Night Moth] (7:50)
B3. “Apoteóza” [Apotheosis] (2:55)
B4. “Ráno (Part II)” [Morning (Part II)] (4:05)

Sessions occurred primarily during December 18–23, 1974, at Supraphon Studios in Dejvice with additional sessions in January and March, 1975, at Mozarteum, Prague. Hynek Žalčík selected and assembled the album and wrote the sleeve notes. Engineers Gustav Houdek and Jiří Brabec worked with recording supervisors Jan Hrábek, Jan Spálený, and Květoslav Rohleder. František Vlach created the cover with photography by Alan Pajer. In early 1976, the album appeared with a revised cover.

Mini Jazz Klub č. 6

Energit released the two-song EP Mini Jazz Klub č. 6 in 1976 on Panton.

Mini retains Andršt, Ticháček, Viklický, Vytrhlík, and Jenčík from the debut lineup. Energit plays “Soumrak” in 7/8 meter and builds its theme from an eight-note mode based on half-step and whole-step alternation. The ensemble gives “Zelený satén” solo choruses for soprano saxophone, guitar, and electric piano.

A. “Soumrak” [Dusk] (6:19) – Andršt
B. “Zelený satén” [Green Satin] (5:47) – Viklický

Energit recorded the two cuts on June 14, 1976, at Czechoslovak Radio in Prague.

Piknik

Energit released their second studio album, Piknik, in 1978 on Panton.

Andršt wrote all seven pieces, performed with Ticháček and Vytrhlík from the prior LP. Piknik adds keyboardist Milan Svoboda and drummer Jaromír Helešic, plus four auxiliaries: percussionist Jiří Tomek, trombonist Bohuslav Volf, and trumpeters Michal Gera and Zdeněk Zahálka.

“Drift” struts through a wah-marked riff, clipped syncopation, bright ensemble punches, and rotating lead phrases. “Stratus” glides from suspended opening tones into a supple syncopated theme, then thins after a late brass lift. “Jarní rovnodennost” braids acoustic figures with close answer phrases before a sharper line narrows the middle passage. “Mobilis in mobili” jolts through raw-edged lead figures, firm offbeat accents, and short reply figures.

“Zapomenutý ostrov” unspools from a shadowed opening into quick-tempo exchanges, then clears into muted tones and a calmer group return. “Říční písek” lopes through deep low-end motion, syncopated accents, and upper-register solo crossings. “Piknik” flashes through bright brass figures, a quick-cut middle break, chirping electronic detail, and a final ensemble drive.

A1. “Drift” (6:29)
A2. “Stratus” (4:20)
A3. “Jarní rovnodennost” [Spring Equinox] (3:45)
A4. “Mobilis in mobili” [Moving within the Moving Element] (3:53)

B1. “Zapomenutý ostrov” [Forgotten Island] (7:58)
B2. “Říční písek” [River Sand] (4:25)
B3. “Piknik” [Picnic] (6:32)

Sessions occurred in January and February 1978 at Studio Dejvice; Energit completed the recording there on February 28 in Prague.

Postlude

Energit remained a Luboš Andršt concert vehicle into the turn of the decade. Andršt closed Energit in 1980 and formed Blues Band Luboše Andršta with Peter Lip. In 1981, he made his solo debut with the Panton release Capricornus and played auxiliary guitar on the Collegium Musicum double album Divergencie. He later rejoined Michal Prokop’s Framus Five and recorded Plus-Minus Blues with Krátké spojení. Andršt revived Energit with bassist Vladimír “Guma” Kulhánek, drummer Jiří Zelenka, and singer–Hammond organist Jan Holeček.

Milan Svoboda returned to Prague Big Band, the orchestra he had founded at the Prague Conservatory. Svoboda kept Michal Gera and Bohuslav Volf in the late-seventies brass section, then worked with Zdeněk Zahálka and Rudolf Ticháček in the next PBB configuration. Svoboda led the orchestra through Reminiscence and Poste Restante. He later led the Czech/Polish Big Band, Kontraband, quartets, sextets, and theater and film projects.

Jaromír Helešic played with Jazz Q, SHQ, Jazz Sanatorium, Prague Big Band, and the Milan Svoboda Quartet. In 1981, he joined the Blues Band Luboše Andršta for a fifteen-year tenure. Jan Vytrhlík left Czechoslovakia for New Zealand in 1982 and made Sydney his base by the mid-Eighties. Rudolf Ticháček remained in Svoboda’s Prague Big Band and died in September 1982 in Munich.

Trumpeter Michal Gera formed Gera Band in 1981 and kept separate affiliations with Impuls, Prague Big Band, Jazz Sanatorium, ASPM, and Blues Session. Zdeněk Zahálka continued through the Prague Chamber Orchestra and held a long teaching post at the Conservatory Jaroslava Ježka. Bohuslav Volf led the Volf Jazztet and the Bohemia Big Band. He later directed Lab Big Band for Conservatory Jaroslava Ježka students. Jiří Tomek remained a studio percussionist and vocalist across jazz, rock, and pop sessions, with later affiliations that included Horký dech, Pražský výběr, Jazz Q, Bohemia, and Discobolos.

Earlier Energit alumni followed separate routes before the Piknik lineup settled. Vladimír Mišík formed Etc…, which issued its first album in 1976 and returned after a state performance ban in the mid-Eighties. Bassist Vladimír Padrůněk worked with Etc…, Jazz Q, Abraxas, and Dux before his death in Prague.

Emil Viklický departed for study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He formed his own quartet and worked with international soloists. Ivan Khunt and Jaroslav “Erno” Šedivý emigrated after the first Energit ban. Šedivý later worked in the United States and recorded with the San Francisco group Life After Life on Alternative Tentacles.

Discography: