rescuing musical virtue in distress.
It is thanks to bands such as Circu5 that the term prog has shaken off some of its old image and is becoming cool again. Following in the footsteps of bands such as Porcupine Tree, Dream Theatre and Muse, it through blending the tight and to-the-point aggressiveness of alt-rock with the more thoughtful and a... Continue Reading →
Wow. Just Wow. I’ve been listening to ‘Origins’ for the last few days, it’s been playing from start to finish so I can take in exactly what is going on and, to put it mildly; a lot is going on. To sum up the album would take a while, in short it’s an old fashioned... Continue Reading →
Music is at it’s best when it is crossing borders, when it is free to sample the sonic delights of any number of genres and then forge those sounds and ideas into something new, appealing and unique. Genres have a way of focusing the musical mind too narrowly, of suggesting that their are rules and... Continue Reading →
There was a time, not so long ago, when music labelled progressive was seen as being decidedly uncool. Though what is uncool about playing with broad musical visions, weaving technically dexterous musical threads together and actually having something to say through your music, I will never know. But then things began to change. Bands such... Continue Reading →
I get a lot of music pass under my virtual pen which, even at first glance, you pretty much know what you are going to writing about, without even listening to it. The cover art, the titles, just the whole vibe of the peripheral accoutrements is a real give away and off you go down... Continue Reading →
Rules are made to be broken. We all know that. To some that is a worn-out cliche, to others it is a way of life. Rule breaking for the sake of it is fine if you want to head off down some belligerent, non-conformist, punky-rant route, but rule breaking with a purpose is where it... Continue Reading →
For a large portion of its long existence the broadly termed “prog” genre has largely been about dexterous rock music anchored down by the fluid sounds of keyboards and synths. It seems long overdue therefore, that in some quarters there would be music-makers who would eventually flip the priorities and make music that is essential... Continue Reading →
Are you ready for an unforgettable night of rock, prog and freakish twists and turns – from three bands making big waves on the international rock scene? If so then all discerning music fans need to make sure that they catch CIRCU5, I Am The Manic Whale and Let's Swim, Get Swimming at LEVEL 3... Continue Reading →
If you like your music to come with a heavy dose of drama and no small amount of pathos then Through Infinity are definitely going to tick a lot of boxes for you. Wandering between a sort of theatrical rock and the more intricate and exploratory end of the genre, they also blend in graceful,... Continue Reading →
Following the recent announcement that legendary prog-rock band Camel will bring their acclaimed live show to London’s Royal Albert Hall in Sept 2018, the band are happy to reveal that this will be preceded by an extensive run of UK tour dates. During what will be a very special run of shows – performed by... Continue Reading →
There is something wonderfully glacial about Verve Crystal. The songs are wilfully unhurried seeming to ooze and crawl forward rather than be driven by anything more urgent and anyone who opens an album with an opus clocking in at just under twelve minutes has got to be applauded. So already loving the way Humboldt Been... Continue Reading →
“’Pink’ deals with the passage of time,” explains Mothers lead singer and songwriter Kristine Leschper of their new song from upcoming sophomore album Render Another Ugly Method, coming out September 7 on ANTI- Records. “It describes a series of memories within cars - cars of my childhood, recent past, and present - and subsequent feelings... Continue Reading →
Sitting here in England writing about a band from Croatia not too long after my own country's World Cup defeat to them, might cause some writers to look harshly on them through some sense of sport related, warped national pride. Well, with me, music has always been way more important than over paid prima donnas... Continue Reading →
You can trust Mr Dog The Bear to take an unusual approach to releasing an album. Normally, as a reviewer, I receive an intangible link to the album’s on line home, if I’m lucky I get a physical version through the post. But Mr Dog The Bear has always been about music built around a... Continue Reading →
Malady have premiered their epic 23 minute single 'Nurja Puoli' of which they say, "Modern music consumption isn’t built for looking at trees or wandering through mazes. We live in a culture of straight lines and constant motion. Malady ask that you opt out, reclaim your time, and slow the fuck down for once. Trust... Continue Reading →
I have to admit that when you see the term Rock Opera or Concept Album in the notes for a review submission, I tend to clench my teeth and expect the worst. Maybe I grew up in the wrong time when such terms were linked to the likes of Rick Wakeman dressed as a wizard... Continue Reading →
AUTOBAHN have created an ambitious album that comfortably sits beside the darker parts of Brian Jonestown Massacre with moments of purposeful hesitation that underpin the self-doubt and uncertainties inherent in understanding the moral crossing. _______________________________________________________ Something dark and near biblical lies at the heart of AUTOBAHN’s post-rock progressive second L.P. ‘The Moral Crossing’ Leeds based... Continue Reading →
As his long-awaited CIRCU5 album lands with a satisfying thud, I secured a ringside seat with Steve Tilling to get the inside scoop. Steve has been a familiar face on Swindon stages, and those further afield over the years. So the obvious place to start is, why after all this time playing in other people’s... Continue Reading →
None other than Stephen Hawking once pointed out that for every equation he put in his books destined for the populist market, the potential audience was immediately cut in half. I fear that the word Progressive has the same effect on a rock music buying audience. But if the word conjures thoughts of keyboard playing wizards writing musicals about... Continue Reading →
The mercurially named I, Symptom continue their singular quest to explore the point of impact between dystopian electronica and trashy post-punk forms. But whereas last time around Triple Exclamation Mark was a blend of urgent warped rock and driven, dance orientated sounds, this time they offer up a slow burning, trippy meander through the solar... Continue Reading →
Before we get down to the nitty-gritty of exploring the music too closely, right from the off the two things that scream out at me as I dip my toe in its sonic waters are the sheer eclecticism and the texturing of sounds. It’s the same feeling I get when I listen to Steely Dan’s... Continue Reading →
I know I’m always searching for music that is pushing new boundaries, testing the limits, fusing disparate threads into new forms and making truly creative inroads towards new sonic pastures. Occasionally you find it in the fleeting corners of more conventional songs or as fillers on albums between more commercially viable options. And then you... Continue Reading →
THE SOURCE is an exciting new chapter in the Ayreon saga, with contributions from renowned vocalists like James LaBrie (Dream Theater), Simone Simons (Epica), Floor Jansen (Nightwish), Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian), Tobias Sammet (Edguy, Avantasia), and Russell Allen (Symphony X). The Source will be released on April 28 through Ayreon’s new label Mascot Label Group/Music... Continue Reading →
Stephen Hawking famously said in his introduction to A Brief History of Time, that he had been advised that every equation included in the text would halve the sales in the mainstream market. I feel the same about analogies in music reviews, better just to get on with the task at hand rather than beat... Continue Reading →
Middlenamekill are a band waiting for a bigger stage. You can hear it in their music, music crafted for anthemic launch pads and stadium broadcasts - big songs looking for a big space to call home. Even when you watch the band in the small club environs that they currently ply their trade, it is... Continue Reading →
I have to admit that I am often put off of venturing into reviewing a record when it has the word metal in the genre description. Although as a younger man I was brought up on many of the classics of that genre, the metal world has moved on a long way since then and... Continue Reading →
It takes a certain type of band to make music that is as expressive, emotive and engaging as the most eloquent of lyrics and create vocal deliveries what are as elegant and fluid as the instrumentation behind it. It takes a band like Halo Tori. When the age old argument of which is more important... Continue Reading →
I won’t dwell too long on the lead single Magnet in Your Face, we have already covered that ground, except to say that it makes for the perfect opening salvo to this record. Yes, I’m old, I still call them records. Perfect in that it introduces you to a band whose sound ricochets between the... Continue Reading →