Interview with Ms Amy Birks – by John Wenlock-Smith

On the release of Ms Amy Birks debut solo release Progradar’s John Wenlock-Smith asked the velvet-voiced songstress a few questions…

JWS – I’ve listened to the album quite a lot and I notice the album falls into several different parts, all apart from ‘Jamaica Inn‘, the next few songs are divorce related, there is the song about the abuse you suffered and a couple of historical related tracks. We get the travelling song in Colombia and then ‘I Wish’ and the album closes with a song of hope.

AB – Yes, ‘Not Every Night‘ & ‘With All That I Am‘ both carry the pain and frustrations felt in divorce but both very different sounding – ‘Not Every Night‘ has a much more forgiving and delicate tone (I’m a big fan of the delicate right hand of Dubussy and Chopin so I took a bit of inspiration from them on this album) – And delicate perhaps because I wrote this song 2 years or so after my divorce.

‘With All That I Am‘ sounds much more raw and closer to the detail with lyrics like “Who is she? You owe me that at least”. I wanted the instrumentation in this track to echo the raw tone to the lyrics so both Caroline Lavelle’s cello and John Hackett’s flute both play their part in creating a splitting of directions and the classical sounding piano holding this piece together, with it’s more formal and rigid feel. 

The track ‘More’ is written about my difficulty with siblings and I’m sure it will be a pain in my life that will be hard to separate myself from completely. That’s why you hear dark and brooding instrumentation with clashes and a big crescendo that sounds almost confrontational and aggressive in nature.

‘Say Something’ is written about two key things that have happened in my life – first being at the age of 14 when I was attacked by a fellow student in my music class  – the boy well expelled and by coming forward to say something, 5 more girls from the same year said that he had done similar things to them. The second incident coming a few years later – I was a model and the photographer who was also managing the start of my music career took advantage of a 17 year old girl. I won’t go into detail but a lot was said during a 2 year period of my life that will stay with me forever.

JWS – This album is very different, several years after the events its kinder and more forgiving really 

AB – Yes, with time I have allowed myself reflection and the ability to try and understand moments in my life and bring out the melodies in a more uplifting way. You see, although the lyrics take you somewhere with pretty dark undertones, the melodic feel is meant to uplift and take you past these painful meanings so you get a better balanced feel. 

JWS – You obviously love history and are drawn to certain figures, the same with literature with Daphne du Maurier and Jamaica Inn.

AB – Absolutely. I’m a huge fan of the National Trust and English Heritage and have spent many a weekend visiting the great houses and gardens (I’m a keen gardener) throughout England. My parents also play their part, taking me to places such as the Bronte country and Howarth for holidays. The work of the Bronte’s will for sure feature on the next album but for this album I chose the work of Daphne De Murier, and the character of Mary Yellan; A strong but romantic character where I could position myself firmly within to create the video for ‘Jamaica Inn’. I’m a huge fan of South West England, again, holidaying there as a child so it was a perfect excuse to hire a few horses, carriage and to wake up at 5.30 in the morning to don the beach in a very Poldark-style dress, handmade by my seamstress mother, Sylvia. 

JWS – Where is the album’s rear cover picture taken? 

AB – At the back of St Andrew’s Church in Leysters – Herefordshire. My dear friend and photographer for the album artwork, Richard Shakespeare lives in nearby Leominster.

JWS – What would you say are your musical influences?

AB – Natalia Merchant, Suzanne Vega, Joni Mitchell, Joan Armatrading, Carol King, Tori Amos, Kate Bush, Fleetwood Mac, Dario Marianelli, Debussy, Chopin, JS Bach, The Beatles, Jeff Buckley, Jethro Tull… I could go on haha 

JWS – I know album 2 is ready and will be released next year, what can we expect from this? 

AB – Quite possibly a bit more guitar and drums, works of the Bronte sisters poetry but basically an extension to what you hear on ‘All That I Am & All That I Was’, with string orchestration because I love to write for cello and violin, a classical, progressive feel with ornate polyphony.

JWS – Where do you get your ideas from?

AB – Real life – I always think, write what you know, then your true feelings and character will come through without having to think, “how should this sound?”. You shouldn’t have to think if you write from your heart. I studied English Literature, Art, as well as Music so I draw inspiration from many things. I remember penning a song whilst stood in front of ‘The Kiss’ by Klimt, so that may turn up at some point. Books of course and music… I’m often listening to JS Bach & Erik Satie and feel inspired to jump on the piano to write. Places also inspire me. I’ve written in Colombia, France and Italy, where I’ve found local melodies and instrumentation push me to write and of course, sun, a glass of Chianti and a beautiful view seem to aid in putting pen to paper.

JWS – Who would you most like to work with?

AB – The violinist, Angele Dubeau, lead vocalist and writer for Pain of Salvation – Daniel Gildenlow, Composer – Dario Marianelli and Steven Wilson!

JWS – I really feel that this album is a very strong statement from you and I think it will be acclaimed by many but how do you feel about it? 

AB – Thank you and I’m grateful to know that and I feel a real sense of achievement. I’ve been through a lot, especially over the past 4 or 5 years and I’m glad that I have been brave enough to write about it and to discover that I can produce, engineer and mix, so I’ve picked up many skills, equipping for the next album. 

JWS – There was mention of a more guitar driven version, will that be available and, if so, how and when?

AB – Yes, plenty of material and ideas kicking around. It’s just trying to figure out which ideas to put forward first but I should imagine an acoustic version of these songs and possibly my version of the Beatrix Players’ ‘Magnified’ at some point in the next 18 or so months.

JWS – Have you any other plans for when lockdown ends?

AB – Yes, I’ll be heading to France for a dip in the river Vienne, a spot of painting in my French house as there’s lots of work still to do before I can use it as my writing studio, and a chance to catch up with my parents as they’re now full-time in France. I will also be scheduling many more gigs over the next 12 months, so watch this space.

JWS – Have you thought about what other historical figures could you write about?

AB – Well, there are still four more wives of Henry the 8th to write about and plenty of Bronte characters that really inspire me. I’m a big fan of Kate Mosse’s books, such as ‘The Burning Chambers & Sepulchre’ so who knows…

Thanks to Amy for talking to Progradar, look out for John’s review of the new album coming very soon and you can order the new album, released 3/4/2020, here:

https://themerchdesk.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=88_296


Haken announce new album ‘Virus’ / Launch first single ‘Prosthetic’

Progressive rockers Haken are excited to reveal their new studio album ‘Virus’, the follow-up to 2018’s acclaimed album ‘Vector’, will be released 5th June 2020. By way of introduction, the band have recorded a special video message to give some background to the record: 

Today also sees the launch of the album’s first single and opening track ‘Prosthetic’, with a video directed by Vicente Cordero. Watch & listen to this punchy opening salvo here: 

The band comments: “Prosthetic was the first song we completed during the ‘Virus’ writing sessions and we always felt it would be the perfect opener for the album. It’s a very guitar heavy track with its roots in 80s thrash riffing, but with the unconventional rhythmic twists and turns we often like to explore in Haken. We sadly never had a Jeff Hanneman and Robert Fripp collaboration, but this song at least draws on inspiration from them both!

Lyrically the song is a bridge between our two albums Vector and Virus. The message was brilliantly brought to life by video director Vicente Cordero, who also beautifully captured the live energy of the band in a way that both enhances the song, and perfectly sets the scene for what’s to come.” 

Since releasing ‘Vector’ in October 2018, Haken have completed headline tours the world over, played sold-out shows across Europe and North America as support for Devin Townsend and picked up a Prog award for their efforts too! All the while, they have been quietly, secretly working on the follow-up album, entitled ‘Virus’.

Drummer Ray Hearne reveals, “since releasing ‘The Mountain’ in 2013, one question has been asked of us time and time again, ‘who is the Cockroach King?’. This is something we were interested in exploring more deeply too, so we essentially did that through our music; elaborating and expanding upon the intervallic, harmonic, rhythmic and lyrical themes of that song. The end result is in an arc which spans across two albums: ‘Vector’ and ‘Virus’”. 

Once again, Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood has mixed what is perhaps the most eclectic Haken album to date, with the 7 tracks revealing hints of influences from multiple genres, all intertwined with Haken’s own recognisable sound. Guitarist Richard Henshall had this to say about the production, “Using Nolly again was a no-brainer, as we wanted the two albums to be sonically connected. But having just spent a day mixing with him in his studio, it’s obvious that this album will be an evolution of the ‘Vector’ sound. These songs seem to allow a lot more freedom of creativity with the production, so we’re excited to see where it leads”.

Longtime Haken collaborators, Blacklake, have designed the visuals and artwork and the album will be available as a Limited 2CD, Standard CD, Gatefold 2LP + CD & as Digital Album. Pre-order now here: https://haken.lnk.to/Virus

The track-listing is as follows:

1.     Prosthetic

2.     Invasion

3.     Carousel

4.     The Strain

5.     Canary Yellow

6.     Messiah Complex i: Ivory Tower

7.     Messiah Complex ii: A Glutton for Punishment

8.     Messiah Complex iii: Marigold

9.     Messiah Complex iv: The Sect

10.  Messiah Complex v: Ectobius Rex

11.  Only Stars

‘Virus’ is the culmination of a musical thought experiment which started with the ‘Vector’ writing sessions in 2017 and holds intriguing potential for the band’s future, as vocalist Ross Jennings explains, “whilst ‘Virus’ can absolutely be enjoyed as a stand-alone work, it is thematically and conceptually linked with ‘Vector’, so our intention is to perform both albums back to back for a special performance someday”. 

HAKEN are:

Ross Jennings

Richard Henshall

Charlie Griffiths

Diego Tejeida

Conner Green

Ray Hearne

New Amy Birks album – All That I Am and All That I Was – out tomorrow – 3rd April.


Winner of ‘Best Female Vocalis’ in the 2018 PROG Magazine poll and former lyricist, co-composer and lead vocalist of the 2017 Prog magazine Limelight Award winners Beatrix Players, Ms Amy Birks self-produced debut solo album All That I Am & All That I Was is to be released tomorrow. The new release contains the singles Jamaica Inn and I Wish and features guest appearances from a raft of luminaries including Steve Hackett, John Hackett and Caroline Lavelle is available in two physical formats.

Ms Amy Birks – I Wish

Amy recalls the process of recording I Wish and reflects on its unsettling lyrical undercurrents – 

“I feel very honoured to have worked with Steve Hackett & Nick Wollage. I wrote this song during a trip to Colombia where I was influenced by the classical guitar and percussive sounds of Bambuco. When I bumped into Steve at the Prog Awards, I asked him to play and he very kindly obliged. The Rossetti poem works perfectly as this is a dark lyric about the fragility of the mind and how the past can so very easily come back to tease and torment.”

Ms Amy Birks – Jamaica Inn

For Amy ” this has been a really personal and full-on experience that has pushed me further, emotionally, technically and lyrically than I ever thought possible, which has enabled me to become the writer that I have been wanting to be.”

Special, limited edition All That I Am & All That I Was and vinyl formats are available now via The Merch Desk.

Formats are: Limited edition CD package in a six panel 7″ gatefold sleeve accompanied by twelve page photo book available to mail order customers and from the merch stand at shows from 5th April while stocks last.

The vinyl album in 12″ gatefold sleeve. Initial copies of both formats ordered from The Merch Desk will be signed by Amy.

The album will also be available via all the usual download and streaming services.

https://themerchdesk.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=88_296

DEVIN TOWNSEND – Empath – The Ultimate Edition announced for release 5th June 2020

Devin Townsend is pleased to announce the release of ‘Empath – The Ultimate Edition’ on 5th June 2020. This comprehensive version of 2019’s acclaimed album contains the original record and bonus discs across 2 CDs, plus 2 Blu-Ray discs. The first blu-ray contains the 5.1 Surround Sound mix by Devin, with visuals for the full record, plus a stereo visualiser. The second blu-ray contains a raft of bonus material, including ‘Acoustically Inclined – Live in Leeds’, a recording from his April 2019 acoustic tour where he performed tracks including ‘Love?’, ‘Deadhead’, ‘Thing Beyond Things’ & more.

It also features the full Empath Documentary, a ‘Genesis 5.1 Mixing Lesson’, a full album commentary & more. The four discs sit inside a beautiful art-book that contains new liner notes and images from the making of the album.

Devin comments of the new 5.1 surround sound mix: 

“On a technical level, I guess I have always been dissatisfied with the basic ‘stereo’ format in which the type of music I make gets presented in. Whether its headphones, computer speakers, stereos (or basically anything currently), I have had to figure out ways to get the work to function through TWO speakers. I hear things in a particularly orchestrated way, and with the amount of information that typically gets recorded per song, the result has been the dubious ‘wall of sound’ that I keep ending up with. But my intention has never been to make an oppressive experience, but rather something that is immersive and vast.

Making it work in two speakers just simply doesn’t quite work for the vision. Although I’ve managed to get the point across, (to varying degrees), things always have to compromise to make it all fit. Making the drums speak at the same time as orchestra, cymbals, guitars, choirs, synths etc.…all with my voice on top, ends up with every conceivable frequency fighting for breathing space between those two speakers.

Therefore, I asked the powers that be in my business world, to tolerate one more ‘kick at the can’ when it came to Empath. I wanted to attempt a surround mix and follow the original vision of it being an immersive, multimedia experience for people in the ways I could best achieve at this stage. And although it’s still pretty ‘dense’, with four more sources for the sound to come from, I feel its significantly closer to the original vision here.”

Pre-orders are now available here: 

https://www.omerch.eu/shop/devintownsend/

https://Devin-Townsend.lnk.to/Empath-TheUltimateEdition

Devin will head out on a Summer festival run mixed with club shows in Europe, which includes a headline appearance at Bloodstock Festival in the UK.

04.06.2020 Sweden Rock Festival – Solvesborg (SE)

05.-07.06.2020 Rock Im Park  – Nürnberg (DE)

05.-07.06.2020 Rock Am Ring – Mendig (DE)

10.06.2020 Majestic Music Club – Bratislava (SVK)

10.06.2020 Mystic Festival – Krakow (PL)

11.06.2020 Nova Rock – Nickelsdorf, (AT)

13.06.2020 The Roman Arenas -Bucharest (ROU)

14.06.2020 Mixtape 5 -Sofia (BGR)

15.06.2020 A38 – Budapest (HU)

18.06.2020 Copenhell – Copenhagen (DK)

20.06.2020 Graspop Metal Meeting – Dessel (BE)

21.06.2020 Hellfest – Clisson (FR)

23.06.2020 Rockhal – Esch-sur-alzette (LUX) Co-Headline with Meshuggah

24.06.2020 Xtra – Zurich (CHE) Co-Headline with Meshuggah

26.06.2020 Rock The Night Festival – Rivas-Vaciamadrid (ES) – CANCELLED

28.06.2020 Tuska – Helsinki (FI)

29.07.2020 MetalDays, Tolmin (SLO)

30.07.2020 Wacken Open Air – Wacken (DE)

05.08.2020 Brutal Assault Festival – Jaromer (CZE)

07.08.2020 Bloodstock Open Air – Walton-On-Trent (UK)

09.08.2020 Into The Grave – Leeuwarden (NL)

12.08.2020 Summer Breeze, Dinkelsbuhl (DE)

Find the full list of upcoming dates here: https://www.hevydevy.com/tourdates/

Review – Pure Reason Revolution – Eupnea – by John Wenlock-Smith

Well this is certainly different for me. Yes, I’d heard of Pure Reason Revolution but somehow never actually listened to their modern day take on Progressive Rock. I know that they are well regarded in certain circles and they have quite a history. Several albums, a split and, more recently, a return to action, albeit in an altered form and with a slightly different line up, so this was new territory for me. I admit it did take me a while to get to a place of understanding with this album but, as always, continued listening finally gave way to understanding and then to acceptance and admiration even. 

Well this is my review of this their fourth album, ‘Eupnea’, their first since 2010.  It is pretty topical in content in that it speaks of the experiences of Jon Courtney and his wife surrounding the birth of their baby girl, Jessie. Born prematurely at 32 weeks and weighing just 3lbs, this album records her battle for survival, which thankfully she won.

It is Jon’s tribute to his wife and daughter Jessie and has this theme woven throughout the tracks, which really helps you understand the music properly once you are aware of its back story.

‘Eupnea’ consists of just Six tracks of varying length ranging from over four minutes to the epic title track that is nearly fourteen minutes in length. That said, there are no wasted moments on these tracks as everything is of relevance and worthy of their place. Let’s have a look at this in a bit more detail.

The music opens with New Obsession which includes the sounds of hospital apparatus monitoring heartbeat, pulse and breathing. This sets the scene for much of what is to follow; great vocal harmonies from Jon and Chloe Alper and some furious guitar work from Jon that really rocks out with a wonderful melodic solo at the 3.55-minute point. It really delivers a punch, along with that fabulous chorus of “It’s you, a child, a lover you’re dead calm and the choir is so soft tonight”. Very emotional, heartfelt and a simply fabulous opener.

This is followed by the first of the longer tracks, Silent Genesis, with its atmospheric keyboards and samples. A Pink Floyd type guitar line from Jon and an insistent bass line that works to anchor everything together. This track also features original PRR guitarist Greg Jong who was bought in to create this powerful emotional feeling.

Third track Maelstrom is so called because it marked the turning point in Jessie’s struggle for life when she began steadily breathing and her parents’ anxieties were lifted. This is a song of hope that the storm has started to pass over, deeply significant and with Jon and his wife being very grateful for this positive change, an end to the uncertainty. Again, this song has more wonderful harmonies from Jon and Chloe.

Ghosts and Typhoons follows and at over 8 minutes fits between the shorter and longer pieces like a bridge. It has blistering drum patterns to it and raucous guitar throughout, featuring lovely vocals from Chloe alongside some fine support from Jon resulting in more great harmonies. This is quite a powerfully propelled piece that shows PRR’s strengths and imagination at play.

Beyond Our Bodies is a celebratory song about the fragility of life and the body’s ability to overcome incredible difficulties and to come through the other side. This is another compelling song.

Which leads us to the title track and longest song, Eupnea, which is about normal unlaboured or quiet breathing, without volition. This is a song that brings everything together in a 13 odd minute piece of contrasts, in which heavy passages sit next to lighter more gentle ones in a juxtaposition of light and shade that accentuate the emotional roller coaster that this music takes you through.

This entire album is certainly a very moving journey, and one that I urge you to join, partly as at the time of writing this review the world is struggling to cope with the Covid 19 (Coronavirus). This album follows a different scenario with, thankfully, a positive outcome.

A simply marvellous album that will be on many ‘best of’ 2020 lists I’m sure.  A fine album indeed, very emotionally raw, it rocks hard too.

If, like me, you are unaware of the music of Pure Reason Revolution, then this album is a fine introduction and will hopefully whet your appetite to discover more from this fine outfit. Jon and Chloe have produced an album of depth and intelligence here that really deserves to be widely heard. Highly recommended indeed.

Released 3/4/2020

Order from InsideOut Music here:

http://www.insideoutshop.de/Item/Pure_Reason_Revolution_-_Eupnea_-Ltd-_CD_Digipak-/16622

Self-styled ‘Funny Music Pioneers’ The Fierce And The Dead Launch Their Own Podcast

British prog instrumentalists The Fierce & The Dead have launched their own podcast, Lets Start A Cult. While initially covering the history of the band, future episodes will feature interviews with fellow musicians and friends of the band, music gear discussion and commentary on things the band find interesting.

Guitarist Matt Stevens, “We’ve been interested in creating a podcast for ages and having stopped rehearsing and gigging due to ongoing events we thought now was the time to crack on with it. We’ll talk about the history of the band to bring people up to speed initially then we’re going to focus on talking to our friends about their music, music gear and tutorials, that sort of thing. It’s been fun to do and hopefully we’ll be able to keep it going, I really enjoyed it, but i was surprised how little I remembered about the making of the first album and EP. It was a long time ago! . “

Episode 1 is available on YouTube now with an episode to follow every week and it’ll be up on all major podcast platforms shortly. You can listen to the first episode below.

BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME CONTINUE 20th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION WITH VINYL REISSUE OF FORMATIVE SELF-TITLED 2002 DEBUT ALBUM FEATURING NEWLY REMIXED AND REMASTERED AUDIO

OUT MAY 15TH FROM CRAFT RECORDINGS AND AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER TODAY (3/24)- LIMITED-EDITION CLEAR VINYL EXCLUSIVELY AVAILABLE ON BAND’S WEBSTORE

Craft Recordings is pleased to announce a vinyl reissue of the scorching, 2002 eponymous debut from progressive hardcore outfit Between the Buried and Me. The album, which has been remixed and remastered by its original producer, Jamie King, is set for a May 15th release date and is currently available for pre-order. A limited-edition version of Between the Buried and Me, pressed on clear-colored vinyl, can be found exclusively on the band’s website and is also available to pre-order today. These reissues are both part of the band’s 20thanniversary celebrations, which will be marked by special releases and extensive touring.

Praised as “One of the fiercest albums in the hardcore community” by AllMusic, Between the Buried and Me set the North Carolina five-piece up to become a key player in the scene – catching the ears of fans and music critics alike with their impressive musicianship, sharp lyricism, and unique blend of progressive metal and math rock. Produced by Jamie King, who would go on to collaborate with Between the Buried and Me on numerous projects to come, the 10-track album was cerebral yet aggressive, and included some of the band’s earliest material, re-worked from their 2001 three-song demo – “What We Have Become,” “More of Myself to Kill,” and “The Use of a Weapon.” The group also wrote and recorded seven new songs, including “Arsonist,” a scathing statement against the Westboro Baptist Church, “Aspirations,” a melody-forward tune which highlights the guitar chops of Nick Fletcher and Paul Waggoner, and the epic, nine-minute long “Shevanel Cut a Flip,” which closes the album.

Reflecting on Between the Buried and Me 18 years later, guitarist Paul Waggoner said, “It’s always a strange feeling when you bring faded memories back into focus and find yourself reflecting on an adventure that started two decades ago and somehow still continues to this day. All the daily ups-and-downs and side-to-sides of being in a band can sometimes blur the past and make you forget where you came from, and why you started doing this thing in the first place. So it’s nice to dig up the bones of our humble beginnings, make them sound a little better, and present them to the people that have made this all possible.”

Frontman Tommy Rogers added, “If you told me in 2001 that this album, we recorded in five days would eventually turn into a career that’s lasted 20 years, I would think you were absolutely mad. Here we are in 2020 getting to remix and remaster what started it all. It’s been a great experience listening back and giving this original Between the Buried and Me album a new life. We hope the fans enjoy this new mix by Jamie King as much as we have.”

Often referred to as a “Thinking man’s metal band,” Between the Buried and Me continue to push the boundaries of their musical and technical abilities, even as they celebrate their 20th anniversary together. Formed in 2000, the band has released nine studio albums, including 2007’s watershed Colors, The Parallax II: Future Sequence (2012), as well as 2015’s Coma Ecliptic—which not only peaked at #12 on the Billboard Top 200 (a career-high for the band), but also garnered widespread acclaim from Noisey, Revolver, Alternative Press, and The Guardian, who welcomed the album with a rare perfect score. The group has launched countless sold-out headline tours and support runs with the likes of Mastodon, Opeth, and Coheed and Cambria. Most recently, Between the Buried and Me released a two-part studio album, Automata I and Automata II in 2018. Currently, the band is gearing up for an extensive, North American retrospective tour, where they will perform the entirety of their epic, 2009 LP, The Great Misdirect, as well as a set of career-spanning material.

Click here to pre-order/pre-save Between the Buried and Me (remixed and remastered).

TRACKLIST: Between the Buried and Me

Side A

1. More Of Myself To Kill

2. Arsonist

3. Aspirations

4. What We Have Become

Side B

1. Fire For A Dry Mouth

2. Naked By The Computer

3. Use Of A Weapon

4. Shevanel Cut A Flip

About Craft Recordings:

Craft Recordings is home to one of the largest and most prestigious collections of master recordings and compositions in the world. Its rich and storied repertoire includes legendary artists such as Joan Baez, Ray Charles, John Coltrane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, Vince Guaraldi, John Lee Hooker, Little Richard, Nine Inch Nails, Thelonious Monk, Otis Redding, R.E.M. and Traveling Wilburys, to name just a few. Renowned imprints with catalogs issued under the Craft banner include Concord, Fania, Fantasy, Fearless, Milestone, Musart, Nitro, Prestige, Riverside, Rounder, Specialty, Stax, Sugar Hill, Vanguard, Vee-Jay and Victory, among many others. Craft creates thoughtfully curated packages, with a meticulous devotion to quality and a commitment to preservation—ensuring that these recordings endure for new generations to discover. Craft Recordings is the catalog label team for Concord Recorded Music. For more info, visit CraftRecordings.com and follow on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Spotify.

PATTERN-SEEKING ANIMALS release first track ‘Here In My Autumn’ off forthcoming studio album “Prehensile Tales”!

n 2019, PATTERN-SEEKING ANIMALS, the California-based band featuring Ted Leonard (lead vocals & guitars), Jimmy Keegan (drums & vocals), Dave Meros (bass) and John Boegehold (keyboards), presented its much-lauded eponymous debut. Just a year later, the group releases its second opus, “Prehensile Tales”, to be released through InsideOutMusic on May 15th, 2020.
 
As a first track from the forthcoming new album, PATTERN-SEEKING ANIMALS now reveal ‘Here In My Autumn’, John Boegehold comments:
“The tale of a man clinging to a chapter in his life that’s become impossible to return to yet impossible to forget. Of course that describes much of life itself, doesn’t it?”

For the six songs on the album (the longest clocking in at over 17 minutes), the band introduced violin, flute, trumpet, cello, sax and pedal steel to the sound palette that was once again recorded & mixed by Rich Mouser at The Mouse House.
 
The track-listing reads as follows:
1. Raining Hard In Heaven
2. Here In My Autumn
3. Elegant Vampires
4. Why Don’t We Run
5. Lifeboat
6. Soon But Not Today
 
The album, featuring cover art by Polish artist Mirek (https://www.facebook.com/mirekis7/), will be released as Gatefold 2LP plus CD, Limited Edition CD, and on all digital platforms. Presales are now available!

To pre-order, stream, download “Prehensile Tales”, just click https://patternseekinganimals.lnk.to/PrehensileTalesID

KANSAS – launch sneak preview of new album ‘The Absence of Presence’ out 26th June 2020

30th March 2020: Kansas, America’s legendary progressive rock band, will release their highly anticipated new studio album “The Absence of Presence” on June 26, 2020. The band gave fans a sneak preview of what they can expect to hear on the album with this sampler video: 

“We are really excited for our fans to be able to get a taste of what is to come from ‘The Absence of Presence,’” says KANSAS lead vocalist Ronnie Platt. “I think people will really be surprised by the album. ‘The Absence of Presence’ shows the band firing on all cylinders.”

“The Absence of Presence” follows-up 2016’s “The Prelude Implicit,” which debuted at #14 on Billboard’s Top 200 Albums chart. KANSAS has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide, and is famous for classic hits such as ‘Carry On Wayward Son’ and ‘Dust in the Wind’ to the progressive epic ‘Song for America.’

“The Absence of Presence,” released by Inside Out Music, features nine all new tracks written by the band, produced by Zak Rizvi, and co-produced by Phil Ehart and Richard Williams. KANSAS’s signature sound is unmistakable throughout. The album showcases Ronnie Platt’s towering vocals, David Ragsdale’s searing violin, Tom Brislin’s dazzling keyboards, Williams and Rizvi’s electrifying guitar riffs, Ehart’s powerful drums, and Billy Greer’srocking bass.

“We are really proud of the album ‘The Absence of Presence,’” comments KANSAS guitarist, producer, and songwriter Zak Rizvi. “Making a new KANSAS album sets a very high musical standard that is expected from our fans. From rockers, to progressive epics, to ballads, there is something on this recording for everybody.” 

“The Absence of Presence” will be released June 26, 2020, on Inside Out Music. The album will be available on CD, Double LP 180 Gram Vinyl, Limited Edition Deluxe CD + 5.1 Blu-Ray Artbook, and as a digital album. Pre-order opportunities begin on the 17th April via KansasBand.com & other outlets.

“The Absence of Presence” Track Listing:
1. The Absence of Presence

2. Throwing Mountains

3. Jets Overhead

4. Propulsion 1

5. Memories Down the Line

6. Circus of Illusion

7. Animals on the Roof

8. Never

9. The Song the River Sang

Scottish prog Maestros Abel Ganz Open Pre-Orders For New Album – The Life of the Honey Bee and Other Moments of Clarity

“The Life of The Honey Bee, And Other Moments of Clarity” is the eagerly and long-awaited new album from Scottish prog maestros Abel Ganz. A concept album comprising of six thematically linked pieces exploring our relationship with memory and loss. The liminal space between a fading ‘what was’ and an anticipated ‘what is to come’.

The album recalls the hazy technicolour of long remembered summers and the sepia of a love forgotten. A place where we blur the boundaries of returning and renewal. The lyrics chart the course through recollection to premonition. These words are both deeply personal and universal, hope for what is next and a lament for what we have lost.

The new album has taken six years to realise and follows on from the self-titled 2014 opus Abel Ganz which was both critically acclaimed [topping several ‘best of’ lists for that year], and universally acknowledged as the band’s best, most mature album to date.

The influences on the new album continue in a similar vein – further developing their eclectic mix of folk, rock, metal and Celtic styles. The album’s trajectory shifts between crunching guitars, subtle acoustic instruments, strings, soaring Hammond and emotive grand piano all connected by lyrical storytelling and timeless vocals and harmonies.

Produced by Denis Smith, mixed by the legendary Simon Vinestock [Texas, Blur, Robert Plant, Simple Minds] and mastered By Jacob Holm-Lupo [White Willow / Opium Cartel] the album also includes a beautiful performance from multi award winning former ‘Scots Singer of the Year’ and acclaimed solo artist Emily Smith. Other notable contributions include the dynamic saxophone skills of Snake Davis, string arrangements and performances by Frank Van Essen, Chromatic Harmonica by Alex Partlin, as well as regular virtuoso contributors Fiona Cuthill and Stephen Lawrence from the Scottish folk-music scene.

Speaking of the new album drummer and band producer Denis Smith says:

“We have all pushed ourselves so incredibly hard on this record in an attempt to make this the best possible ‘complete work’ we could make. Everything on the record is interconnected and is there for a reason – right down to the guests we chose to play specific parts, the spaces we chose to record in, to the artwork – everything!

We deliberately set out to avoid simply repeating what we did last time – we hope we have taken ourselves in to new areas (amazingly – the band’s first concept album), while still retaining that ‘Ganz’ touch. On the production side of things – it’s a source of great personal pride that we have been able to collaborate and work with such skilled professionals such as Simon Vinestock and Jacob Holm-Lupo. These guys are at the very top of their game and they have helped us to raise the production values to a much higher, professional level.

Although Abel Ganz has had a very long history as a band [with many high spots] we feel very strongly that this album is the pinnacle of achievement and we hope you do too!”

The pre-sale will begin at midday on Sat 28th March and run until May 31st. The official release date is June 15th 2020!

https://abelganz.com/?fbclid=IwAR0ozcQ8fTwrC2eFZqCRTX6oiqs3oen_Kj5z-Vcecyc4Oi2ePw5FW–msKE