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Review – Alex Carpani – So Close. So Far. – by Shawn Dudley

Alex Carpani – So Close, So Far

“Incommunicability increases distances between people, self-alienation increases the isolation of an individual from the rest of the world and technology can enable dramatic consequences to happen. However human beings have the power to avoid all these things by listening to their heart and living their real lives first. “

The above paragraph lays out the thematic concept at the heart of ‘So Close. So Far.’, the fourth album from Italian progressive rock artist Alex Carpani. It’s a topic that seems to inspire a lot of musicians in our social media-fueled world of the 21^st century. A world more connected then ever (So Close), but really a facade, an illusion flickering from millions of handheld devices (So Far). But unlike many albums that broach this topic, the mood flowing throughout these catchy, melodic songs is one of hope.

‘So Close. So Far.’ is a significant departure from the previous album ‘4 Destinies’. Whereas that album was comprised of four epic-length compositions, this time out the focus has been tightened into brief (by progressive rock standards anyway) melodic rockers that should appeal to fans of IQ and mid-period Porcupine Tree.

The album is beautifully produced by Alex Carpani with the mix by Marco Barusso, dynamic and spacious and a real treat for the ears in a time when far too many albums are compressed and abrasively harsh. The performances are uniformly excellent; Alex Carpani (keyboards, programming and vocals), Ettore Salati (guitar), Joe Sal (vocals & additional guitar), Giambattista Giorgi (bass) and Martin Malacrida (drums). The arrangements are tasteful, tightly reined in and tailored to highlight the consistently accessible songs.

The album is overflowing with earworms and several tracks would make excellent singles. Man On Wire gets stuck in my head for hours, it’s a simple driving 4/4 with a killer chorus hook that just latches on and won’t let go. Let My Drop Of Sweat Fall Down is a gorgeous pop song with a huge, lush chorus and Crystal Falls is a Neo-Prog gem that would actually work quite well on a dance floor. The whole album flows together beautifully; it’s a concise 51 minutes that just breezes by.

My favorite song is Stay With Me which has an extended instrumental section in the middle (despite still clocking in at only 4 minutes) that really shows off Carpani’s tasteful layering of disparate keyboard sounds, it’s a lovely combination of synth, organ and piano.

Overall this is a fairly straight-ahead melodic rock album, the ties to “Prog” are more textural, more about the sophistication of the arrangements and quality of musicianship. Personally, I usually tend to lean more toward the experimental, bands that stretch out and improvise. But ‘So Close. So Far.’ is so lovingly conceived, so well written and arranged that it’s a most pleasant exception.

Released 4th March 2016

Buy So Close. So Far. from Amazon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDvGMs8LtBQ

Review – Haken – Affinity – by Shawn Dudley

I’ve been living with this new Haken album for a couple of weeks now, attempting to wrap my head around it. Each time I think I’ve got it figured out some new detail jumps out at me that requires me to reevaluate. Like the band themselves, ‘Affinity’ remains wonderfully elusive and that just makes me appreciate it more.

Haken have been an enjoyable enigma from the very beginning. Over the course of four impressive full-length studio albums they have remained defiantly hard to categorize. The proverbial square peg. You can sit down and catalog all the elements, you can ascertain their stylistic influences, you can dissect and study their compositions but any attempt to accurately file them away into pre-existing little boxes? Futile. The only box they fit into is the one labeled, Haken.

Opening single Initiate sways back and forth from driving and propulsive to ethereal and contemplative with the always-impressive voice of Ross Jennings guiding the way. The arrangement seems deceptively simple on the surface, but there is a wealth of detail here that becomes more apparent on repeated listens (this holds true for the entire album). The heavier guitars don’t make an appearance until over 2 minutes into the track and provide a visceral edge to what is otherwise a primarily keyboard-driven, clean-toned arrangement. This concise 4-minute track serves as the appetizer for the full-course buffet that follows.

At the center of ‘Affinity’ are two equally impressive if stylistically diverse epics.

The first of these is the appropriately named 1985. On their prior album ‘The Mountain’ from 2013 a lot of discussion was spurred by their incorporation of “retro” instrumental sounds from the 70s, particularly in the infectious single Cockroach King, which wore the influence of Gentle Giant proudly upon its sleeve. This time out we move forward a decade to the digital 1980s. 1985 conjures up memories of the birth of personal computers, 8-bit video games, boom boxes, MTV and just about every keyboard sound and 80s production element introduced during the first half of the decade. In the press release the band mentions their love of albums like ‘90125’, ‘Toto IV’ and ‘Three Of A Perfect Pair’ (and even though Rush isn’t specifically mentioned their early 80s albums are an obvious inspiration as well).

To their credit, Haken takes these elements and instead of creating a pastiche, they expertly incorporate them into their signature sound. They are just additional colors in an ever-expanding palette. Their ability to liberally borrow sounds from different eras and styles has been apparent since their debut album ‘Aquarius’, but with each successive release it has become more organic in structure and more assured in execution. This maturity has also carried over into the recording studio, ‘Affinity’ is a quantum leap forward in production and sound design, showing that Haken is just as adept at “playing the studio” as they are at their individual instruments. On most albums a track as impressive as 1985 would be the clear highlight…but ‘Affinity’ has more riches to offer……

The second epic is the main course of our buffet and would also serve as an impressive introduction for the uninitiated. By far the heaviest track on the album The Architect is an absolute stunner, a 15-minute tour de force of the power and diversity this band can conjure.

Roughly split into separate movements it begins in muscular technical prog-metal territory, but this isn’t your typical paint-by-numbers variety, this is exciting, driving, heavy music played with passion. The mid-section is absolutely gorgeous, an ambient pad of voices and sound effects provide the backdrop for new bassist Connor Green to take a lyrical, fusion-inspired solo and then the guitars enter playing a gorgeous contrapuntal figure that harkens back to the sound of ‘Discipline’-era King Crimson. The following section increases the intensity with a side-trip into Opeth/Enslaved territory (the melody in this section is reminiscent of The Drapery Falls) and a guest appearance from Einar Solberg from Leprous providing a brief harsh-vocal contribution. It’s an immense arrangement and an impressive achievement.

While these tracks demonstrate the further refinement of the Haken elements we’ve come to know, I think the most exciting aspects of ‘Affinity’ show the band moving forward and expanding their sound into uncharted territory. Tracks like the lovely Lapse and the outward-leaning experimentation of Red Giant are thrilling, thoroughly modern compositions that point the way toward exciting chapters yet to come. They show an increased interest in electronic sounds and atmospherics, yet never venture into cold/clinical territory, remaining warm and inviting throughout.

I have to throw out a special mention to the wonderful mix by Jens Bogren who first came to my attention because of his excellent work with Opeth. His mixes sound HUGE, incredibly powerful without sacrificing any of the intricate detail and that made him the perfect choice for ‘Affinity’.

Easily their most impressive album, ‘Affinity’ solidifies Haken as one of the best bands that modern Prog has to offer and their potential for the future appears limitless.

Released 29th April 2016

Pre-order ‘Affinity’ from Burning Shed

Review – UT New Trolls – E – by Emma Roebuck

Progressive Rock, as it began in the late 60s (if you break it down into its component parts), arguably had key elements that were essential for it to be Prog. Skilled musicianship (if not virtuosity), an understanding of varied musical styles and the ability to distill it into your own identity and yet retain those obvious components in the music. These were, in the main, Jazz, folk, Classical, blues, soul and Rock, there are probably more but the essentials sit in there in the big 5 or 6 bands that broke through in the early 70s.

So onto UT New Trolls who have a history that goes back to the mid 60s and grew out of that very tradition. I won’t go into their long and hectic history but they have been around consistently since 1966 with splits and reunions dotted across the recording world.

The sound is very obviously from that period when you hear it. Hammond organ and Moog synths are heard throughout this album with a thick solid production. The album was recorded at the back end of 2015 in analog so I assume no computers or digital instruments were used in the studio apart from the actual recording equipment.

To the album then, as a whole piece it feels like a journey through the history of music and I know that was the aim of the band when the conceived the project. The Italians close connection with classical music and its history is very obvious in the first track Dies Israe (Day of Wrath), a haunting violin sat in front of a deep keyboard tone, ominous and threatening of things to come. Doom laden, it then jumps into a folk dance that I believe to be a Polka type rhythm in a truly insane change in tone of the track. This sets up the entire album to be filled with the unexpected and a delightful spirit. My translations may leave something to be desired but I am interpreting.

Cambiamente (Changes) is not a Black Sabbath cover but it rocks out as good as any can. It’s not prog metal but it is good rock in a progressive theme.

Io (I) is a ballad in a full on fist pumping passionate style that is worthy of any power pop band from the 80s or 90s, but without the 80s cold calculating production.

The epic Ostinato (determined) is classic prog track that many modern or classic bands would be proud to produce. It’s layered with experimental and melodic components that explore musical themes and is enough to fill an album from that one piece alone.

I’ve selected various tracks off the album as highlights and personal favourites but the 8 track album has something for every fan of progressive music. Do not let the fact that this is sung in Italian put you off, the lyrics ( of which I have no idea what they mean), on listening, become part of the music.

Musically, if you like Camel, Procul Harum, ELP , Yes, Early Genesis, Pink Floyd (Syd period) or Big Big Train, you will find something immediately familiar and reassuring for your aural delight.

As a friend who had listened to album before me stated, “It’s a bonkers album with so much variation to offer the listener”. I’d definitely put it in the ‘worth a punt’ box.

Released 27th November 2015

Buy ‘e’ from self distribution in Italy

Combination review – Panzerballet – Breaking Brain & Special Providence – Essence of Change by Shawn Dudley

fusion (noun) – a merging of diverse, distinct, or separate elements into a unified whole.

When venturing into conversations about experimental or hard-to-define musical styles I often find it beneficial to go back to the original literal definition of the genre name.

Fusion (the musical style) conjures a particular sound and a particular era, mostly the early 70s and bands like Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, Tony Williams’ Lifetime, Miles Davis’ electric bands, etc. A briefly exciting marriage of rock rhythms and jazz vocabulary that eventually got watered down through the corporate machine until it came out Smooth Jazz on the other end. Thousands of waiting rooms in dentist’s offices beckoned. But the sound of early 70s fusion is very much defined now, so I believe we’ve lost the focus on the diverse elements that went into creating that sound in the first place.

That 70s fusion sound can be heard on both of these albums, but it’s now just one ingredient among many again, it has returned to being an element of a larger whole.

Panzerballett and Special Providence have tackled a similar range of variables; combine various jazz styles and arrangements with highly technical, complex progressive metal. However, they’ve chosen their own individual approaches to attaining that merger.

(Picture by Uzziel van Baalson)

Panzerballett from Munich formed in 2004 and instantly made an impression with their insanely complex and often humorous cover versions of famous jazz and rock standards. Songs as diverse as Smoke On The Water, Giant Steps and Birdland (Weather Report) were dissected and reassembled in all kinds of imaginatively quirky ways. Classically trained bandleader Jan Zehrfeld (guitar) assembled a lineup of similarly schooled musicians including a full-time sax player and set out to play “jazz metal”. ‘Breaking Brain’ is their fourth full-length album and while the humorous elements still come into play, as a whole this is a more focused affair and features primarily original compositions.

Yes, their music is insanely complex and the music nerds have plenty to dissect and study here. But, they are so much fun at the same time, such an infectious spirit permeates these instrumental pieces that even non-musicians should find plenty to enjoy on ‘Breaking Brain’.

My attention is constantly drawn to the saxophone in their arrangements, an instrument that is still a rarity in the prog metal arena. The coloration offered by paring the saxophone with the tightly controlled prog metal arrangements really gives Panzerballett a unique sonic signature. Saxophonist Alexander von Hagke (who has toured with Asia) is an excellent player in the post-bop mold; I hear a lot of Joe Henderson and Michael Brecker influence in his playing. In fact, the music of the Brecker Brothers looms large in Panzerballet’s fusion bag; ‘Heavy Metal Bebop’ for the 21^st century.

Highlights include the ferociously complex opener Euroblast, the excellent saxophone feature Der Saxdiktator and the “funk turned inside out and backwards” opus Smoochy Borg Funk.

The comical tendencies come through in the infectious Typewriter II where the rhythm of the piece is stated by the clicking and carriage returns of a manual typewriter. The album also feature a couple interesting cover choices; Mahna Mahna from the late 70s TV series The Muppet Show and an insane reading of Henry Mancini’s Pink Panther theme.

As a whole ‘Breaking Brain’ is the most exhilarating and entertaining instrumental album I’ve heard in 2015 and I highly recommend it to the more adventurous leaning progressive rock and jazz fans.

Special Providence from Hungary released their first album ‘Space Café’ in 2007 and it was primarily a jazz fusion album with elements of funk and rock mixed in. It was on their follow-up record ‘Labyrinth’ from 2008 where they really started integrating progressive rock, instrumental rock, electronics and progressive metal elements into their arrangements.

‘Essence Of Change’ is their most streamlined release to date with a more defined approach to the overall sound. The whiplash-inducing shifts from rock to jazz on their prior album ‘Soul Alert’ were undeniably thrilling but it was probably a hindrance for the non-jazz initiated to warm up to. The jazz elements and compositional complexity are still definitely in place on ‘Essence of Change’, but they’ve now been more subtly integrated, which could be partially attributed to the addition of new keyboardist Zsolt Kaltenecker.

The album flows beautifully through a variety of moods and styles, every piece melodically engaging while also revealing further complexity on repeated listens. The tracks work individually but I think the album is best experienced as a whole.

Guitarist Márton Kertész has to be mentioned here, because his assured playing permeates all these songs. A very tasteful player who possesses the chops for shredding and the restraint to only use them when absolutely necessary (which is a rarity in my experience). That description also really works for the band itself; they never allow their obvious technical skills to take precedence over their compositions.

The highlights are many, with Kiss From A Glacier and first single Northern Lights being the standouts on the first half and the song cycle of Atlas Of You, I.R.P. and the lovely Darkness on the second half.

As a jazz fan for many years I tip my hat to both Panzerballett and Special Providence for showing that fusion is alive and well in the 21^st century. It warms my heart to hear young musicians still exploring that vocabulary and finding new and interesting way to apply it to modern progressive music.

‘Breaking Brain’ was released on 30th October 2015 and can be purchased from:

www.gentleartofmusic.com

‘Essence of Change’ was released on 30th March 2015 and can be purchased from:

www.specialprovidence.eu

The Honourable Mentionables and Wallet Emptiers of 2015 – by Progradar

So, I’ve done my ‘Best of 2015’ list but there were so many that nearly made the list and should still be on your ‘Wallet Emptying’ selection that I couldn’t let 2015 close out without giving them a mention………..

Mandala – Midnight Twilight

Psychedelic, dark and groovy.

Mew – +/-

Uplifting and slightly mental.

Progoctopus (now Oktopus) – Transcendence E.P.

Cracking Progressive rock with an unusual edge.

The Enid – The Bridge

Symphonic, classical, brilliant.

Franck Carducci – Torn Apart

Progressive, bluesy, funky and with a whole lot of soul and some scorching guitar solos, love it!

Djam Karet – Swamp of Dreams

What they do is make brilliant, spaced-out, psychedelic music that could only come from Djam Karet and ‘Swamp of Dreams’ is a perfect example of their skill and flair.

Corvus Stone – Unscrewed

Mad bad and brilliantly dangerous, whether you’ll come out the other side with all your mental faculties is another matter entirely.

Unified Past – Shifting the Equlibrium

It’s Power-Prog, will it appeal to everyone? I doubt it but, those that do appreciate this band’s excellent music have really dropped lucky this time, well done chaps!

3rDegree – Ones & Zeros Volume 1

2015 continues to deliver some very high quality releases and 3RDegree have muscled their way well up that list.

Kinetic Element – Travelog

It feels like a labour of love and the skill, energy, blood, sweat and tears that have been invested in this production can be felt by all who hear it.

Geof Whitely Project – Supernatural Casualty

I found ‘Supernatural Casualty’ to be a box of delights. At sixteen tracks it is perhaps two or three songs too long but that doesn’t detract from what is a thoroughly satisfying piece of music.

Methexis – Suiciety

Aided by some superb musicians and a vocalist who has the skill and inherent ability to deliver everything needed, what we actually have here is an outstanding musical release.

Progradar’s ‘Best of 2015’ review – by Progradar

A scary picture to get things started, it’s that time of year again when everyone puts out their ‘Best of 2015’ album list and I’m no different to every other music journalist, budding or otherwise.

Lists like these are very subjective, after all, one man’s poison is another man’s wine but they’re fun to do and give a real retrospective of some of the great music that has been released over the past 12 months or so.

First off, the usual disclaimer, I won’t include any Bad Elephant Music releases as some people might say I’d be slightly biased. However, once again, this tiny independent label has given us some mighty impressive music from the likes of The Room, Tom Slatter, Simon Godfrey, The Fierce and the Dead and Twice Bitten, among others, all of which can be sampled at the link below:

Bad Elephant Music

I tried to get it down to a top 15, never mind a top ten, but that proved too difficult so, here it is, Progradar’s top 20 albums of 2015. Don’t see the position as being too indicative as, really, albums 20-6 could be in any given order on any given day, the quality is that close. The top 5, however, are my definitive top 5 albums for 2015.

Enough pre-amble, here we go……

20 – Transport Aerian – Dark Blue

A deeply dark, disturbing and highly original work of art from this talented, serious musician. Well worth a listen but, be afraid, very afraid!

19 – Steve Rothery – The Ghosts of Pripyat

Marillion’s guitarist is venturing further afield with his solo work and it’s simple, faraway beauty is quite inspiring. Put your feet up, get your headphones on, lay back and relax.

18 – Barock Project – Skyline

An unexpected highlight of the year, hopefully the fourth album by this extremely talented and still relatively young band will see them break into the mainstream of the progressive rock market. I for one think that, with music as deeply enjoyable and illuminating as this, that they definitely deserve it!

17 – The Aaron Clift Experiment – Outer Light, Inner Darkness

A new release full of sophistication and depth and powerful, thoughtful songs that resonate deeply with you. An album about duality, darkness and light and imbued with intricate compositions, complex arrangements and virtuosic performances, you will want this delight in your collection, trust me…..

16 – Mystery – Delusion Rain

2015 saw Canadian prog-rockers Mystery return with a new album and a new lead singer and it was as if they’d never been away. Jean Pageau has a voice that fits perfectly with the melodic progressive rock that the band deliver with aplomb. The epic track The Willow Tree is a superb, intricate and emotional hit of passion and takes the album from merely good to very good indeed.

15 – Hibernal – After the Winter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdPh-mbJh0c

Mark Healy’s cinematic and evocative soundscapes waft over a post-apocalyptic spoken word storyline to deliver an immensely visceral listening experience.

14 – Built for the Future – Chasing Light

‘Chasing Light’ is one of those rare albums that grabs you immediately AND keeps on getting better with every listen. Built for the Future’s debut release is a thing of rare wonder that resonates with me on a personal level, their commitment to delivering music that connects deeply with the listener has produced a record that shines brightly.

13 – Sylvium – Waiting for the Noise

Superb progressive rock with tones of Porcupine Tree and Riverside. A musical experience that emphasizes emotions rather than the eternal quest for a perfect pop song.

12 – The Wynntown Marshalls – The End of the Golden Age

Scottish tinged Americana with powerful and haunting songwriting and outstanding musicianship.

11 – Echolyn – I Heard You Listening

Storytelling by music, getting to the heart of the matter and opening up small town America. A band I have heard little of in the past, this new album will definitely change that, a melting pot of sweet melodies and delicious harmonies.

10 – Tiger Moth Tales – Storytellers Part One

An album that is even better than the delights of ‘Cocoon’. My inner child is brought to the fore by the magic, charm and allure of ‘Story Tellers Part 1′, it takes me away to an inner nirvana where nothing can touch me or spoil my mood.

9 – Comedy of Errors – Spirit

Do you believe music has soul? I do and, when it is as deeply involving and emotionally uplifting (and draining to be honest!) as this, it becomes life affirming in many ways. All the songs were written by Jim Johnston but I’m sure even he would agree that they are given life by the whole of Comedy of Errors.

8 – Glass Hammer – The Breaking of the World

It could have been this studio album or the equally impressive ‘Glass Hammer – Live’, recorded at this year’s RosFest but, first, let’s get the Yes comparison out of the way, these guys do traditional progressive rock so well they have transcended that to stand in their own circle of praise. A highly impressive effort once again.

7 – Karnataka – Secrets of Angels

The first album written specifically for vocalist Hayley Griffith’s voice, a symphonic prog- rock masterpiece with towering anthems and delicate ballads concluding with the epic twenty-minute plus title track.

6 – The Tangent – A Spark in the Aether

A return to traditional progressive rock, incredibly addictive, flippant and irreverent and, well, just darn good fun!

5 – Big Big Train – Wassail (yes, I know it’s only an E.P. but I like it!!)

You can put your heroes on a pedestal to be knocked off when they don’t reach your lofty expectations but, with ‘Wassail’, Big Big Train have just enhanced their reputation as purveyors of unique and sublime progressive rock which is founded on the elemental history of this blessed isle. A history that is fundamental to the everlasting allure of this captivating group of musicians.

4 – Arcade Messiah – Arcade Messiah II

‘Arcade Messiah II’ takes all that was good with the first album and enhances by taking the raw, coruscating energy of the first release and developing it into a superb sound that, while holding nothing back, is full of nuances and intelligence. A ‘Wall of Sound’ that makes Phil Spector’s look like a diminutive picket fence and it is quite possibly the best thing this highly talented musician has ever produced.

3 – Maddison’s Thread – Maddison’s Thread

Folk is rooted at the core of Maddison’s Way but this album is all about the music and the way Lee can diversify with aplomb is very impressive. A contender for album of the year for me and one that will stay with me for a very long time.

2- Subsignal – The Beacons of Somewhere Sometime

See, this is why these bloody lists are only subjective. I had mine all worked out and then I listened to the fourth album from German band Subsignal and it was blown out of the water. Arisen from the ashes of the great Sieges Even, the first three albums by the band failed to really hit the heights for me. Well, all is most definitely forgiven as ‘The Beacons of Somewhere Sometime’ has just hit me right on the correct spot and elevated them to a higher level. It has a real emotional depth to it and is one that is highly, highly recommended, nearly making it to the top spot…..

1 – Riverside – Love, fear and the Time Machine

So, after a tough fight it is Polish band Riverside that take the crown this year. I have always been a fan of this band without actually loving their work. All that changed with this years beautiful release. There is a depth and maturity to this release that resonates deep to the core. The fragile, breaking vocals and signature sound have taken the band to the forefront of the progressive rock genre and, in this album, they have left behind a musical legacy of which anyone can be proud.

Review – Comedy of Errors – Spirit – by Progradar

“Human spirit is the ability to face the uncertainty of the future with curiosity and optimism. It is the belief that problems can be solved, differences resolved. It is a type of confidence. And it is fragile. It can be blackened by fear, and superstition….” – Bernard Beckett.

“It’s not so much the journey that’s important; as is the way that we treat those we encounter and those around us, along the way.” – Jeremy Aldana.

To me, the beauty of music is the way it can tell a story, heartwarming or heartbreaking, it doesn’t matter. The best albums take you on a musical and spiritual journey, one that will, hopefully, leave you in a better place than when you started.

The journey isn’t always easy, there will be highs and lows, moments of sheer ecstasy and moments of utter despair. It is becoming a rare ability to write and perform songs that can move you emotionally and make a difference to your life and I spend most of my days searching for that scarce and rarefied commodity.

Recently I was the lucky recipient of the latest album from the esteemed Scottish progressive band Comedy of Errors and it promised to be one of those rare beasts, a work of music that would be challenging yet profound and, ultimately, life affirming.

‘Spirit’ is the band’s most musically ambitious album so far, representing a major step forward in the band’s development, dealing with themes of grief, loss and ultimately, hope. The cornerstone of the album is a 45 minute unbroken piece taking the form of an emotional journey at once personal and universal, despairing and uplifting.

After a long absence from the scene, Comedy of Errors re-formed in 2010 and have been busy increasing their profile since then through gigging at venues in the UK and Europe and appearing on the bill at several UK prog festivals. They are excited and delighted to add the United States to the growing list following an invitation from the organizers to play at Rosfest 2016.

They have also released 3 albums during that time, their first album effectively being ‘Disobey’ (2011) followed by ‘Fanfare and Fantasy’ (2013) and their most recent album ‘Spirit’ released in October 2015.

Based near Glasgow, Scotland, Comedy of Errors are Joe Cairney (Vocals), John Fitzgerald (Bass), Bruce Levick (Drums), Jim Johnston (Keyboards), Sam McCulloch (Guitar) and Mark Spalding (Guitar).

Joe, Jim and Mark were in a former incarnation of the band some years ago where they gigged extensively and released various demos during that period. When they disbanded Jim kept on working on revising songs and writing new music before getting the band back together in 2010.

The main track, Spirit, has been divided into multiple tracks but, as the CD booklet says:

“…..these divisions and titles are arbitrary; the ‘song’ is in fact one long single unbroken piece of music best listened to in its entirety from beginning to end.”

For the sake of the review I am going to follow the band’s ‘arbitrary’ subdivisions….

You’re God and You let me down, My grief lies all within….

The opening to My Grief Lies All Within is almost revelatory, the keyboards waking you from a stupor before the rest of the band arrive with a cacophony of guitar heavy staccato notes. There then follows a more pensive section, thought provoking, before Joe’s immediately recognisable vocal takes up the tale. The track takes on a choral feel with the harmonies and organ like keyboards, the bass and drums delivering an even handed tempo. Emotive and stirring, Joe Cairney’s voice is the centrepiece around which everything is grounded. There seems a sadness deep at the core of this powerful song, a poignancy that pervades the melancholy guitar solo that runs out the track.

Playing with our hopes we bow to you, in helpless, hapless, hopeless despair….

There is a seamless segue into Infinite Wisdom which is a fast paced, almost frenetic two minutes of sceptical hell or no notion. An anger consumes the vocal and gives a slightly menacing feel to the whole track.

Spirit shines, Undiminished, Like a flower, Gentle, unbreakable….

This quite unique musical experience continues with Spirit Shines/Spirit, a slow burning build up leaving tendrils of warmth enveloping your very soul. There follows an uplifting, feel-good piece of music with a repeated vocal motif that just really ‘gets’ you emotionally and I feel the tears welling up, tears of joy and happiness, as if a great weight has been lifted from your shoulders. Joe’s vocal delivers empathy and succour in equal measure, his compassion and the delicate piano note lift you up and leave your very being re-born.

Tension…….tightening, Frightening……dread….

Uncertainty is the overwhelming mood that is imparted at the beginning of Can This Be Happening/Timeless, anxiety and concern leech from the song. The music is measured one minute and hectic and unsure the next. A maelstrom attacks your aural senses leaving you misdirected and momentary lost, all the moods and emotions imparted by the excellence of the musicians and conducted by Joe’s commanding, theatrical delivery.

We gather together in darkness, While endlessly waiting for answers…

The questions continue with In Darkness Let Me Dwell, we seek the answer to the eternal question of a greater being. A dominating bass line runs throughout this compelling track. Joe’s vocal is both questing and demanding. A profound, complex and intricate song and one that leaves more questions than answers….

Destroyer of Angels, On the wind of your breath, you deal out disaster, Destruction and death.

A reverie of angelic voices opens I Call And Cry To Thee, leaving you somewhat in rapture, a timely pause to allow your soul and senses to catch up with you. A solemnity surrounds everything, a contemplative yet austere tone that is carelessly tossed aside by the compelling, hard-edged riff that overtakes everything, like a musical tsunami. Joe Cairney’s challenging vocal then takes over, still demanding of the heavenly entity, leaving a melancholia surrounding proceedings.

Set your spirit free….

A calm reflectiveness descends as Set Your Spirit Free/Goodbye My Love Until We Meet Again begins. An ethereal, wistful instrumental that plucks at the heart strings with a feeling of letting go, a finality of slightly sorrowful bereavement.

Spirit shines, like a flower, Gentle, unbreakable.

A very moving introduction, fateful and momentous holds your attention as Ascension/Et Resurrexit/Auferstehen – Arise In Love Sublime, Arise – Spirit builds into something utterly sublime, The organ note from the keyboards transfixes you with its celestial grace and then Joe repeats the refrain from Spirit Shines, inspirational and incredibly moving. A spiritual and refined experience that fills your heart with love and compassion.

Rise again, oh rise again in everlasting love…..

Another perfect transition and Into The Light continues the uplifting atmosphere. The transition from despair, grief and loss to hope and joy is nearly complete. The vocals lead us with the realisation that we shouldn’t question the greater powers, where there is death, there will always be love and happiness, our is not to reason why. The joyous music is an outpouring of both grief and delight and lifts up your soul to greater heights.

The Time and distance disappear, beyond the rooftops twilight urban glow..

The final segment of this epic journey is Above The Hills and is as full of hope and longing as the earlier tracks were of anguish and despondency. Joe’s mercurial voice leads the whole band in a jubilant celebration of life and of death. A nostalgic note creeps into his voice, a hint of sadness but with a thoughtful edge. The culmination of an eventful journey though life, love, despair and happiness, that these superb musicians can impart this whole gamut of emotions through their music is testament to their songwriting skill and musicianship.

Part 2 ‘Epilogue

This Is How It Has To Be is a brilliant instrumental where the skills of the musicians come to the fore. The drums and bass provide the backbone on which the rest of the instruments can rely. A demonstrative guitar guides you through the rest of the track, ably abetted by the delightful keyboards. A reflective musical trip that really gets you thinking, the change into a Mike Oldfield style second half is clever and gives the song a second lease of life. A livelier, shanty style that really gets your foot tapping, quite ingenious.

The closing track on this particular copy is the Spirit (single) and it is a worthy addition to the album bringing back all sorts of emotions as you hear Joe singing that fantastic refrain once more, a quite sublime song with a superb guitar solo.

Released 20th October 2015

Buy Spirit direct from the band

Review – Spock’s Beard – The First Twenty Years – by Gary Morley

‘Time’, it’s a strange thing. Undetectable without relying on specialist intervention – slow motion or time lapse cameras show us its effect, mirrors reflect the effect it has on us. Time is both measure and measured, we slice it up and record its passing, yet time is the single most important concept we have. Without it, there is no ‘now’ and no ‘future’ or ‘past’.

If someone in the future invents a time machine and travels back, we would know it, wouldn’t we? They’d stop wars, point humanity on the right path to prevent destruction of the planet, encourage us to support the exploration of outer space, reveal the evil of reality TV etc.

If there is such a machine and such people were taking requests, then I think Spock’s Beard need to borrow that time machine to go back and meet their earlier selves.

The one thing they need to communicate, without putting the future of the universe at risk with causality and paradox, is they should seriously think about changing their name. No matter how good they are as musicians, no matter how epic their epic tracks are, the name conjures up all the wrong associations. Geek chic it ain’t…

Twenty years of Spock’s Beard. To me, they are part of the “new wave” of Prog, post Genesis, and post Twelfth Night et al. They write long, epic tracks and started as they meant to go on with complex multi-part tracks that are polished and assembled on this chronological trip.

The first piece by them I’d heard, from a cover mount free CD was At the End of The Day and it wormed its way into my consciousness. I went on a voyage of discovery, picking up second hand copies of their albums, then deluxe first editions as they were released. I didn’t realise but SB and it’s off shoots, side projects and affiliates take up a large chunk of my modern Prog pile. The tentacles spread out, from Transatlantic to Roine Stolt’s Flower Kings to Neal Morse’s solo work to some bunch of internet sprout wranglers; the Beard has links to it all.

Yet they are not mentioned in the same pages that eulogise Mr Wilson, fawn at the uttering’s of lesser talents with better haircuts. But they deserve their place in such company.

They write record and perform long, complex pieces; they can rock out with the best, with an instantly identifiable sound. It is a broad pallet of sound – vocal harmonies, kicking brass section, attacking keyboards, and guitars too, underpinned by some severe drumming talent.

In many ways, Spock’s Beard are the quintessential American Prog band. Musically adept, lyrically optimistic, almost slavish attention to detail. There is a lot going on in these tracks, almost too much at times: This “everything but the kitchen sink” approach is evident in the tracks that start this CD.

The younger version of SB, fronted by a scarily long haired version of Neal Morse, seemed to want to be taken seriously, very seriously. Every track is a constructed of multiple parts, instrumental breaks and moments of sublime beauty. The Guitar and keyboard coda of the track in question still makes me stop and hold my breath.

The cynical amongst us may deride SB as Genesis wannabe’s as there are striking similarities between the evolution of both bands.

Both bands produced complex, multi part tracks across their first albums.
Both bands “lost” their original vocalists and replaced them with the incumbent drummer stepping up to the front.
Both vocalists departed leaving, as their swansong, complex double concept albums in their wake.
Both bands then changed to a more direct, full on direction and reaped the benefit of commercial success.

But here our stories diverge, as SB then floundered with a mid career fallow patch ( to me, “Feel Euphoria” was a band in a holding pattern) .They then rediscovered their Prog Mojo with “ Octane” , the opening 7 part concept sees them at their best ,describing a car accident from the POV of the driver. The sheer beauty of his life unfurling is a testament to the collective ability of the ensemble in that it skates close to cloying sentimentality. But the combination of words and music convey the love of life and of hope in the face of adversity which reflects the lyrical obsessions of Mr Morse and the spiritual quest that pulled him away from the band.

One part of this epic, my favourite post Morse SB piece, is here in burnished re-mastered glory.

She Is Everything is one of Prog’s great love songs. A song that makes you want to share the joy of this experience, the lyrical content is crafted around a tune that comes straight out of the classic pop tunes book. It’s a love song that in a few short verses leaves you fully understanding the depth of feeling conveyed, but without getting caught up in sentimentality.

I mentioned earlier Neal Morse’s swansong, “Snow”, my favourite SB album.

It’s that most “Prog” thing, a concept album detailing the life of Snow, an albino loner with a psychic ability. He grows up in the Midwest, move to New York, undergoes an epiphany , uses his powers for good, falls in love with the wrong girl, ends up fulfilling his prophetic vision of his future ( see, time again! ) then gets saved by his friends.

Mixing Christian myth, Robert Heinlein’s ‘Stranger in a Strange Land’ and taking the good from every concept album ever written, bits of ‘Tommy’, ‘The Lamb’, ‘The Wall’ & Bowie and Roeg’s ‘The Man who fell to Earth’ all are thrown into the pot. There are bits that Yes would be proud of, Marillion would recognise and ELP would tap their feet to. In short, it is the quintessential Prog Rock concept album.

But if that all sounds clichéd, it succeeds on the strength of the music. It ebbs and flows beautifully, from a gentle acoustic representation of Snow’s innocent childhood to the depravity of the cess pit of New York to the pain of unrequited love through the depths of despondency and out on the wings of hope and love.

The tune selected for here, The Wind At My Back is the centre of the piece, appearing twice at the climax of both discs. Its harmonies and themes run all through the album and serves as a fitting memorial to Mr Morse’s tenure as vocalist.

If this Collection has done nothing else, it’s made me dig out my SB CD’s, and go looking to fill the gaps in my collection.

X, represented by The Jaws of Heaven seems a return to the more Prog rock version of SB than the previous albums, with this track highlighting the keyboard strengths of the band. There’s a whole raft of sounds – Mellotron, piano, strings, brass all flowing together and complimenting Nick D’Virgilio’s fine vocals.

Over the two discs of this compilation we have witnesses the young Prog overachievers throw everything into the mix, then slow down, give us vocal harmonies, fine melodies and songs, become increasingly adventurous with their lyrical subjects which culminated in an epic modern fable. Then the singer quits and their drummer takes over.

The band move onto new terrain, ploughing a rockier landscaper, but still sowing the seeds of Prog, they start to really find their musical point in the cosmos with a trio of albums…

And then they lose another front man! NDV jumps tracks and we all know which train he’s hitched his wagon to!

It’s starting to read like a Prog Spinal Tap here, without the gardening joke, but nothing is going to slow the progress of the Beard. If you’ve lost a front man, not a problem: steal (or borrow, though do you have to give him back?) one from another band.

Enter Ted Leonard from US Prog metal band, Enchant. Now I had a couple of Enchant CD’s once. They didn’t survive the great CD purge. They were nice, inoffensive formulaic Prog Metal. Too twiddly for me to be honest, the downfall of Dream Theater in my humble opinion. I go for the Miles Davis approach. Play one note instead of ten as long as it’s the right note.

Jump to 2013 and the release of “Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep”. And it sounds like the old SB, back to their proggy best. The track chosen here, Waiting for Me features the SB “sound”, vocal harmonies and glorious melody, a superb production as we have come to expect. This track shows how far the band has travelled but they’ve still retained their core spirit. They use keyboards to complement the guitar as did Deep Purple before the departure of Mr Blackmore. Drums are high in the mix, but unlike Metallica , SB have a world class percussionist who drives the songs forward rather than running alongside trying to grab the steering wheel.

The penultimate track is the first track on their most recent album. Criticisms have been levelled at the band for moving away from their sound, but, on the evidence of this track, the 2015 SB is rolling on nicely, with some great guitar and keyboard touches. The Deep Purple comparison is very evident with the Hammond being prominent, but to me, this is a good move as that classic sound of guitar, Hammond, bass and drums drives the song onward.

And so, gentle reader, we reach the track that most Beard heads will be forking out for. A track that promises all 3 front men together (well appearing on the same song). And we start with gentle piano and strings, then a very Early Yes like rhythm and sound.

It’s Very Yes like. The Proper Yes. Roger Dean Artwork Yes.

There’s a nice instrumental section, with all working together to create a melange of melody. Guitars are edgy and the metal influences are there, but the big Prog chords and drums keep them firmly in their place.

The music swells and slows, we are anticipating vocals as the rhythm changes and we get acoustic guitar a drum then a voice.

More voices, it’s no longer a song of parts as the song moves through a very folksy part with at least 2 different voices singing parts, then we switch moods again and a third, much more rock voice appears.

I’m enjoying the interplay of instruments and voices on this first listen, I’m not too focused on the lyrics as they flow with the tune and I’m more interested in the structure first, lyrics second.

This is possibly a result of continued exposure to bands singing in languages I’m not conversant in ( i.e. everything except English) but as I get older and the reading of lyrics stops being feasible due to CD sized fonts and ole eyes, I find it easier to concentrate on the whole thing.

And…

Well, it’s a Spock’s Beard epic track. Lots of glorious vocal harmony. Glasses full of guitar and keyboards. There are fine performances from all 3 singers.

As you would expect, their voices complement each other, the sound is one that SB have perfected. It’s a compliment to them that time flies by as you listen. The track allows them to do what they do best.

Listening again (the third time) this track reminded me of another band. It opens as if it’s from those dextrous players on a cosmic adventure, Utopia, circa 1973 when Todd Rundgren was in full cosmic flow, expanding his (and our) consciousnesses.

The more I listen, the more the track strikes me as a statement of where American Prog is today. Think of a line drawn from Utopia, through Kansas, up across the Boston Guitar Mountains to the Glass Hammer lakes, there you will find a dam built by these eager beavers of Prog. All that music is held back and they tap it off into these epics.

There’s even a drum solo hidden in there and leads us on to an extended instrumental piece that ties all the different SB threads together. Guitars weave as the tempo increases, the keyboards are fighting for their place in the sun, the interplay between them and the drums is pure SB and all the more welcome for that. I can see this going down a storm live, with the big solo closing piece giving the lighting designer a chance to stun the watchers as the closing lyric wafts over the rapturous audience.

If you’ve never dabbled in the world of Spock’s Beard, then this compilation is a fine way to start. Chronological and logical, it gives a true flavour of the band. Personally, I’ would have included live tracks as that’s when the interplay between them as musicians really comes into play.

Also, I’d have chosen different tracks. I would have included Devil’s Got My Throat from “Snow” which is as noisy and rocking as the title suggests. I’d feature more from “Day for Night” and “V”, but then they were the first SB CD’s I owed.

At the price this is floating around for, it’s a great summary of a great American Prog band.

They will never be out there on the edge, pushing the envelope of Prog, but if you want songs, actual tunes you can hum or even sing along to, then dip you toes in the Beard’s world. It’s a rather fine place to spend an evening or two with a glass of good wine.

Released 20th November 2015

Buy The First Twenty Years from Inside Out Music

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKA63eo1nOc

An interview with Greg Spawton (and a little Kings Place reminisce) – by Progradar

It is almost three months since the three seminal gigs of the year. When that fantastic community of friends and music fans, now known as The Passengers, got together for a brilliant social event and a series of concerts like none of us had known for quite a while.

It wasn’t just about the music, it was about meeting people I had just conversed with online for the best part of three years and friends I have met recently through a shared love of the band Big Big Train’s music.

Greg Spawton, Danny Manners, David Longdon, Andy Poole, Nick D’Virgilio, Dave Gregory, Rachel Hall and Rikard Sjöblom took a huge risk when they decided to perform live at three dates at London’s Kings Place in August. Yes, they were playing to an adoring audience but it had been many a year since any of the material had been heard in a live setting. Add in the fact that they were going to play with a brass band and it was no mean feat that they were attempting.

To cut a long story short, and as better and briefer wordsmiths than I have already spoken about, it went down a storm. I came down on the Friday and stayed with some friends.

Saturday saw me meet up with Mike Morton of The Gift and assorted other friends and Passengers at the Old Parcel yard pub in Kings Cross where we spent the afternoon reminiscing and wondering what the evening’s entertainment was going to bring.

The anticipation was building to a crescendo as we walked to Kings Place, just round the corner. Many of the great and good were in the bar before the gig and it was great to meet up with Jerry Ewing and his sister Sarah, Joe Payne, Christina Booth, David and Yvette Elliott and many other friends I have made in the music industry over the last few years.

I am not going to waffle on about the concert itself, only to say that it was a real life affirming event for me. The depth of emotion and sheer brilliance on show will stay with me forever.

If I had to pick a couple of tracks to epitomise the whole evening for me, it would have to be Victorian Brickwork from the first set where the addition of the superb Brass and the way the track finished just left me an emotional wreck and, from the second set, the utterly sublime and beautiful Curator of Butterflies, I cried…. a lot……..

Showing just how much they are in touch with their fans, the band did a ‘meet and greet’ with everyone after the concert. Many ales were quaffed with great friends and a fantastic night finished with aplomb.

So, after the dust had settled, Greg luckily enough agreed to answer some questions for me about the band, the gigs and the future…..

Pic courtesy of Martin Reijman

Progradar: When did the idea of doing some live concerts first come up and was it just one band member’s idea which you extrapolated on?

Greg: We had talked about it from time-to-time over the last few years. However, our focus has been on writing and recording new music so it seemed, to me, to always be a distant prospect. As a firm idea, it started to come up in conversations in 2013.

However, our studio recordings are complex, layered things, with strings and brass in the brew alongside the normal rock instrumentation, so we were a little worried how difficult it would be to recreate our sound in a live setting.

Therefore, we decided to do a dress-rehearsal in 2014, with no audience present. This worked pretty well so we started the process of selecting a venue and a team to work with.

Progradar: Did the addition of Rachel and Rikard to the ranks make this more of a reality?

Greg: Absolutely. The fundamental decision we had to make was whether we stripped things down and played a more basic version of our songs with a smaller line-up, or whether we should try to present our music as we want it to be heard, with all the layers and the bells and whistles.

Rachel and Rikard enabled us to take the latter approach. Rachel had performed on the ‘English Electric’ albums and was already a big part of our plans. We also needed to find a musician who could cover guitar and keyboards with equal dexterity. There are not many people like that around, but Rikard ticked all the boxes. Soon after the 2014 rehearsals, we invited them both into the band.

Progradar: What made you decide on Kings Place in the end?

Greg: We like to do things our own way on our terms and we didn’t want to play something on the usual circuit. Kings Place came to our attention when Danny played a show there with Jonathan Coe. It was in the smaller Hall Two, but I was struck by the potential and thought it would be worth checking out Hall One.

Generally speaking, there were a few things we had to take into account: location was important as we wanted the venue to be an accessible place, close to public transport. The stage had to be big enough to accommodate a large band, but we had little concept of likely ticket demand so didn’t want to over-reach and book a venue with too high an audience capacity. We needed a place with good acoustics and with access to recording facilities as we wanted to record the gigs. We made contact with a few other places, including the Queen Elizabeth Hall at the Southbank Centre and we looked at some places in Winchester.

Bristol was also an option at one stage. In the end, I went up to Kings Place with Rob Aubrey and we liked it the minute we walked in. The staff were great, very welcoming and it met all of our other requirements. Not all London venues offer welcoming staff and they were brilliant all the way through. They rarely do rock gigs there and so I think they looked on us as a way of expanding their enterprise. It brought quite a buzz to the place and they thought our fans were lovely.

Progradar: When deciding on the set list, what factors did you take into account?

Greg: If we had decided to gig without the brass band, we would have looked at a very different set list. However, as we knew we would be playing with the brass band this enabled us to select some of the pieces where the brass plays a significant part. This brought East Coast Racer and Victorian Brickwork straight into the reckoning. Above all, we wanted to create a set list which showed all aspects of what we do, from the epic progressive rock through to folk and pop music.

Sometimes we get to cover lots of different things in one song, such as Summoned By Bells or Hedgerow. Other times, it was the contrast between songs which we wanted to demonstrate. We were particularly keen to offset some of our melancholy moments with some which are more joyful and communal. Once we had decided on the set list we needed to make one or two musical changes to songs for live performance.

For example, East Coast Racer needed a new ending as the closing section on the album was simply a restatement of an album theme and wasn’t right for the live version which we wanted to play at the end of the gig to bring things to a close. One of the original options I thought about when writing East Coast Racer was to have a guitar solo at the end, so we decided to revisit that idea. Danny composed a new chord sequence to allow the solo to develop.

We also changed the opening section of Make Some Noise to give it a more folky, foot-stomping feel. And Dave Desmond added more brass to The Underfall Yard.

Progradar: Did you ever consider varying the setlist for each night?

Greg: We had a couple of other songs on the rehearsal back burner and, at one stage, thought about varying the set list. The crucial thing though, was to try to play things well. We only had limited rehearsal time together so we didn’t want to cram in too much at the risk of lowering the quality.

Progradar: How involved was Rob Aubrey in the planning and sorting out sound when you’d finally agreed a venue?

Greg: Rob had huge involvement in every aspect of the sound. He liaised with Real World and Kings Place about all aspects of the sound and arranged for their monitoring engineer to visit our rehearsals which was a big help as sorting out monitoring for 13 musicians is a headache. One of the advantages we had with rehearsing at Real World was that we could record everything we did, allowing us to playback the songs and fully work out keyboard and other levels ahead of the gigs.

The more you can sort in advance, the more things are in control on the night. We had a rather random meeting with Michael Giles at the pub on the first night of rehearsals and the first thing he said to us was: ‘record everything and listen back to it’. The other big help we had was finding Zab Reichhuber who controlled and prepared the lights and the videos and slides. She is a very talented and impressive young woman.

Progradar: How did rehearsals go and, honestly, did you really feel ready by the Friday of the gig?

Greg: Rehearsals were brilliant. They were hard work and a lot of fun. By the time we arrived at the venue we felt ready enough, but there were still a couple of areas where we tripped up during the first show.

That may be nerves, or just the different environment. In the 70’s, progressive bands would get extremely tight due to constant touring. Not many of us have that opportunity these days as the more limited audiences will enable most bands to play maybe 10 or 20 shows each year or just do one-off shows, so it is a different set of circumstances.

We had a really good couple of hours on the Saturday afternoon at Kings Place where we sorted out some of the monitoring niggles and then had time to work through the bits that were unsteady on the Friday show. We were pretty tight on Saturday and Sunday.

Progradar: The massed ranks of Passengers were going extremely giddy in anticipation of these concerts, does that put added pressure on you as a band to perform?

Greg: In the weeks running up to the gigs we became increasingly focused on gig preparation so we absented ourselves from social media for much of the time ahead of the shows. At rehearsals we were in a little world of our own. Nick and Rikard, who have both played a lot of gigs, were very confident about the audience response. That settled my nerves a bit.

Progradar: How much extra does having the brass section there playing live add to the performance?

Greg: A huge amount. The brass band has become an integral part of our sound since ‘The Underfall Yard’. The sound of a brass band is not something you can easily replicate on keyboards, so without them, we couldn’t properly perform quite a few of our songs. The guys in the band are some of the best brass players in the country and they are all really great chaps to hang out with, so we are truly lucky to have them onboard. We are recording with them again for ‘Folklore’ and ‘Station Masters’ so they are part of our long-term plans.

Progradar: How did the reaction of the audience make you feel, was it what you were expecting or something on a different level?

Greg: It was at a completely different level. Personally, I had no idea what to expect from the audience. It was a seated venue so I wondered if that may make things a little subdued. That didn’t particularly worry me as it is nice to think that people are listening carefully, but I didn’t want it to be too restrained.

When we were standing stage-door before the gigs the atmosphere sounded quite lively and we became aware that the audience were likely to be quite enthusiastic. Then we walked on and had a great welcome and it went on from there. It was amazing really.

Progradar: Did you enjoy meeting the fans after the concerts and sharing a drink with them?

Greg: For all of us it was one of the highlights. It was lovely to meet so many listeners and share a few words. There was such a friendly atmosphere, it was heart-warming. I really don’t like the whole paid meet and greet thing that seems to have caught on in some parts of the music business although I understand the commercial reasoning and I know that it is popular with some fans.

Progradar: What was the buzz like on Saturday morning after the first performance the night before?

Greg: We were pretty tired early doors, but very happy. We also wanted to spend some time running through some sections again and we had a good couple of hours playing in the afternoon. After that we felt pretty relaxed and were looking forward to the show.

Progradar: Did the Sunday matinee feel any different to the two evening gigs?

Greg: Each of the gigs was different. The audiences reacted to different songs and passages of music. We all liked the matinee. Sunday evening exits from London can be a terrible thing so it didn’t feel that people had to rush off afterwards.

Progradar: At any point did you wonder what you had let yourselves in for?

Greg: It has been a major organisational challenge and a steep learning curve. In order to make the band a profitable concern we try to do as many things ourselves as we can which means cutting out middle-men like promoters. At times, in the weeks ahead of the gigs, so much energy was expended on planning itineraries and transport and food and accommodation that it seemed there was little time for music. It was also a big musical challenge but we got into our stride pretty quickly at rehearsals so worries about that began to subside.

Progradar: What do you get from performing live that is different from recording?

Greg: I am a songwriter rather than a performer and haven’t played a gig for many years so it has been an interesting experience. The obvious difference is the interaction with the audience. There is no part of the writing and recording process which is at all like that.

When things are going well on stage and the band is playing well and the audience is into things it is a pretty amazing thing to be part of. Having said that, I love writing and I am looking forward to finishing off our new album. All aspects of the music making process are very satisfying and all parts can have their moments of frustration.

Progradar: Now things have calmed down a bit, what were the highlights of the weekend for you?

Greg: It was very cool to perform with my friends and bandmates and watch them in their natural environment. The atmosphere both backstage and onstage was such a positive thing. And the audiences were amazing. They seemed very engaged. I liked that there would be applause during the songs for solos.

I saw Elbow in February and came away thinking that they have an ability to make a gig both a communal event with lots of singalong moments and, at the same time, a very personal one, with people reacting individually to songs that moved them. That was what we were reaching for with these gigs, and that seemed to happen.

Finally, after everyone had gone on Sunday and the gear was on its way back to base I got to have dinner with my lovely wife at St Pancras. It had been a very busy few months ahead of the gigs and then there were rehearsals and the shows so it was nice to finally have some time to relax and reflect.

Progradar: Were there any negatives, what would you possibly do different next time?

Greg: We’ve already started thinking about this. The main thing is monitoring. We will probably hire or buy our own monitoring desk next time and get things fully set up at rehearsals. This will save time in setting up at the venue and keep us fresher.

I still think we will aim to play two or more nights in one location rather than a conventional tour but, depending on how things go with record sales, we may well look at a bigger venue next time. It would be great to play live with Rachel’s string quartet at some stage as well, but that would make things even more complicated so we may leave that idea for a while.

Progradar: Does the thought of doing it again fill you with dread or joy and, if it’s the latter, when can we do it all over once more?

Greg: Definitely joy and definitely in 2017!!

Review – Yuka and Chronoship – The 3rd Planetary Chronicles – by Rob Fisher

‘The 3^rd Planetary Chronicles’ is nothing short of a glorious and joyful revelation. Despite the band describing their music as “highly reminiscent of late Seventies Progressive rock” and “reputed for its philosophical depth, lyrical brilliance, and technical virtuosity”, it nevertheless does nothing to prepare you for the exhilarating voyage of musical exploration and discovery which listening to this remarkable album brings. It truly is a sublime ode to all that is best in innovative and creative progressive music.

The musicianship to which we are treated is both exemplary and staggering. Formed in 2009 by Yuka Funakoshi, the visionary impetus at the heart of Yuka and Chronoship as well as its keyboardist, vocalist and composer, the band consists of Shun Taguchi on bass, Takashi Miyazawa on guitars and Ikko Tanaka on drums.

Taguchi’s production is flawless, allowing the technical brilliance of each musician to shine through with a crystal clarity which only serves to underscore just how breath-takingly brilliant they are as a band. The seemingly effortless technical mastery of their respective instruments is further enhanced and enriched when they play together: the music they create is a wonderful testament to a band enjoying each other’s company and revelling in each other’s musical abilities. There is a clear sense of joy in creating music together and it is no coincidence that they claim to be happiest when playing live; but that sense of freedom, playfulness and creativity is no less present in this studio recording.

And what a recording it is. Following on from their debut album ‘Water Reincarnation’ (2011) and ‘Dino Rocket Oxygen’ (2013, complete with Roger Dean cover), this third album deeply impresses in just about every respect. Whether the title refers to this being the third record in a series – suggesting a strong conceptual connection across all their albums to date – or whether it refers to Earth as the third planet in the solar system and the album being the chronicles of its growth and development, is unclear. I suspect it is actually and intentionally both, in which case we are being offered something which has been carefully and cleverly conceived as a historical and conceptual, as well as a philosophical, whole.

Such an impression is bolstered by the CD booklet, designed by respected Japanese manga artist Hideji Oda, as well as the way in which the 12 tracks are arranged and presented. The album is in effect a survey of the significant stages, developments and evolution of earth itself as well as the human race inhabiting it. This sweeping vision covers not just the very formation of the planets but the emergence of earth, key steps in human history (Galileo, steam, The Industrial Revolution, the birth of radio) but also anticipates aspects of the future of humanity as well.

As such the album is built around four recurring musical ‘anchors’: Birth of the Earth – Collision (Track 1), Birth of the Earth – Merger (Track 5), Birth of the Earth – Magma Ocean (Track 9) and Birth of the Earth – Embryonic Planet (Track 12). This in turn effectively creates 3 distinguishable ‘sections’ or ‘phases’ in the progression of the conceptual plot and the musical story being told.

And, my goodness me, what a musical feast it is. Tracks 1 – 4 are dripping with moody atmosphere, the sounds of cosmic winds offset by a haunting simple keyboard, in turn opening into a magnificent sound stage as a wall of melodic and harmonious orchestration brings in the guitar, bewitching, rising above and piercing the keyboards and bringing a distinctive voice of its own; this in turn prompts the bass and drums to enter, primal, tribal rhythms beating out the life and soul of the universe itself, in turn adorned by a vocal, almost operatic overlay, in turn echoed by playful synth and flute sounds. The world is new and the instruments blend and dissonate like the elements conspiring in the formation of the universe itself.

Yet even this is just a prelude, labour pains giving birth to something momentous, new, profound and wondrous. The discordant almost chaotic beginning to Galileo I (Track 3) speaks of confusion, of competing elements, of attempts to make sense of the world (and how nice that Galileo is honoured in such a way). Yet this gives way in Galileo II (Track 4) to beautiful rippling arpeggios, the discovery of science and the workings of the world, off beat guitar work matching fantastic and ever changing drum tempos. It is full of hope and optimism.

(Pic courtesy of the Yuka and Chronoship blog)

Tracks 5 – 8 mark a shift in tone and tempo. From the light, airy playfulness of the early beginnings, we reach a more developed sound, crunching yet subdued guitars adding confidence to the subtleties and nuances of the keyboards, the bass adding more assured support and riffing quietly as part of a growing ensemble, the drums more intricate, yet more unsettled, the timings changing and changing again as ideas are explored and turned aside, new ideas given prominence only to be cast aside and the process repeats. This is the steam age, the age of technological revolution and fast paced innovation and the music brilliantly captures the breathlessness of human evolution and advancement.

This in turn sets the stage for the finale. Tracks 9 – 12 build and push on again, the music now grander, fuller, more encompassing not just in scale but also in depth of sound and diversity of ideas being offered. The guitar work comes to the fore, solos, riffs appearing from nowhere, taking the breath away but leaving as quickly as they arrive to seamlessly hand over to the keyboards who in turn allow the choral echoes to float and supplement the ever present bass which at one moment grumbles and asserts itself and then in another gently lifts and supports.

The concluding tracks are a stunning testimony to what this might sound like played live, the drums signing off E = M#C (Track 10) as they would the final song of a live set, bringing the show to a definitive conclusion. And yet this itself is a ‘false ending’, I Am Thee (Track 11) taking us back once more to the reflective atmosphere of the beginning whilst pointing the way to the future and introducing one final set of ideas and musical motifs.

Breathlessly brilliant, ‘The 3^rd Planetary Chronicles’ is enticing, captivating and spell-binding. At 33 seconds short of an hour it is without doubt one of the stand out albums of 2015 and in the short time it has been available, it has displaced just about everything else I have been listening to. Thoroughly recommended.

Released 25th September 2015

Buy The 3rd Planetary Chronicles from Cherry Red Records

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