Month: April 2017

Review – Drifting Sun – On The Rebound (2016 Remaster) – by Progradar

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it…”

A common enough saying, if there’s nothing wrong with a certain thing then why change it? Yet in the music industry there seems to be a propensity of remixed and remastered versions of older releases, why is this?

I suppose the technology today means that the songs can be tinkered with to produce what the artists originally wanted and there might not have been enough money in the coffers originally to release the desired versions of the tracks?

For whatever reason there is a plethora of ‘breathed on’ new versions of old releases around at the moment and last October Drifting Sun gave us a new version of their 1999 release ‘On The Rebound’ and the band’s main man, Pat Sanders, has asked your intrepid music journalist to review it.

Here’s the artwork for the original release:

I asked Pat why the band decided to remix and remaster the album and here it is, straight from the horse’s mouth (so to speak):

“The album was originally recorded and mixed/mastered at a time when we didn’t have much experience in this sort of thing, and lack of a proper budget basically forced us to take care of the mix and mastering ourselves, which wasn’t handled as best as it could have been, and that has always been in the back of my mind all these years.

Therefore, I recently decided to give the album a new lease of life and have it remixed and remastered by our sound engineer Jon Huxtable. He has done a great job bringing the songs back to life, really this was more than just a simple remix… we literally pulled the tracks from the raw files and started from scratch there.

While we were working on the mix, I thought that another thing that wasn’t showing the record in its best light either, was the cover, and so I did brand new artwork for it, as well as redesigning the entire booklet too. So there you have it, ‘On the Rebound’, Circa 2016, brand new mix, brand new master, brand new artwork!”

The band’s line-up on the original album was Pat (keyboards), Chris Martini (vocals), John Spearman (guitars), Manu Michael (bass) and Tobin Bryant (drums).

There is a rich sound to the newly remastered songs and it doesn’t sound like an album from the end of the last century, there’s a real modern sound to the music which is evident from the opening bars of The Charade, a really up-tempo neo-progressive track with a multitude of twists and turns throughout its thirteen minute duration. The keyboards and up front and centre and the drums have a real vibrancy to them and Chris Martini has a very expressive and expansive vocal style, almost theatrical in its delivery. A nicely harmonised chorus adds to the stylish feel and there’s a really intricate keyboard solo that puts a big smile on your face. John’s guitar finally loses its cloak of subtlety and becomes more forceful as we move further into this impressive track, I have to admit it has really surprised me, I wasn’t expecting a 17 year old release to sound this vibrant and dynamic. Swan Song opens with a powerful guitar run and Chris’ almost operatic vocal, a much more serious and sober track with an emotive vibrancy. It ebbs and flows superbly and the keyboards and guitar have a real tete a tete, playing off each other brilliantly before there’s a cracking guitar solo full of fire and brimstone that will have you pulling out your air guitar and joining in. A cracking track that shows just how neo-prog should be done.

A sophisticated vocal and delicate acoustic guitar open Drifting Sun with style and panache and draw you into its cultured embrace. The vocal opens up more and the music adds verve and tenacity and, along with Pat’s 80’s sounding keyboards, give you a rather elegant piece of music. Once again John’s skill on the guitar comes to the fore with a tasty solo, it doesn’t get much better than this. There are hints of Marillion but this talented band have their own identity right at the core, sit back and enjoy the music. Another cultured introduction opens Long Nights and there is definitely and 80’s feel to this song with the chiming keyboard notes and elegant bass lines. The vocals are heartfelt and earnest and the track seems to glide elegantly across your aural synapses with its hypnotic beat. There’s a feel of treading water, a calmness and serenity to everything as this mesmerising song continues. About half way in things take a darker turn and an aura of unease covers everything. The guitar fires up and goes on an intricate, quick fire journey, aided and abetted by the slightly discordant keyboards and driven along by the dynamic drums and bass, a proper progressive intervention into the composure and harmony of what went before. The song ventures into a more elaborate form with mysterious undertones, asking questions that you don’t have answers too, it’s very clever and really piqued my curiosity, I just love the freshness of the free-form and free will guitar section towards the end.

Heaven’s Eyes is a more straightforward song with a beautiful piano opening and Chris delivers another warm, sincere vocal performance. Almost a ballad but one with more depth than your usual fare, it is stirring and touches your soul with its earnest emotion. It stirred thoughts and sentiments inside that I thought were long gone and left me thoughtful and musing on the world we live in today. Minstrel is an intriguing track, it has many layers of subtlety and, as you peel them back, you are gifted with little nuggets of wonder. There’s a fantastic vocal from Chris that reminds me of some of the great frontmen that progressive rock has seen, almost a cross between Peter’s Gabriel and Hammill with a little bit of Fish thrown in for good measure. A proper ‘progressive’ track in every sense of the word and one with a penchant for a bit of showmanship at times. It’s a song for late night, lights down low, headphones on and a glass of deep red wine in your hand. As the song title would suggest, there is a touch of the troubadour about Chris’ performance on this song and he is the main focus, backed up very ably by these talented musicians to add a patina of theatrical artistry to every note.

The final track, Mon Masque, is a fitting ending to the album, full of pomp and circumstance, emotion and sentiment, it has real fervor to it. I’ve used the word ‘theatrical’ in this review and you do get that feel that you could be in a West End musical, it is more than just music, there is a heart and soul to every word and every note and the band are really putting on a performance for their audience. To hear these songs played live would be pretty special I’m sure. I keep losing myself in the myriad twists and turns that envelop this song, like a musical maze that you’re quite happy to be lost in.

I loved Drifting Sun’s last release ‘Safe Asylum’ and the praise I gave that album is well justified by this remastered version of ‘On The Rebound’. An entrancing, theatrical musical experience that draws you in and leaves you sated with its dexterity and brilliant tracks. Whether it was broken or not, this ‘fix’ has produced something rather special.

Released 1st October 2016

Buy ‘On the Rebound – remastered and remixed’ from bandcamp

 

 

 

 

Review – Lonely Robot – The Big Dream – by Leo Trimming

‘To go to sleep and never wake up… to be simply not there forever and ever…

… That’s such a curious thought… that’s such a curious thought’

These spoken musings of an unidentified philosopher about sleep and death permeate the instrumental cinematic opening sequence Prologue (Deep Sleep) of Lonely Robot’s second album ‘The Big Dream’, and atmospherically sets the scene for an album which considers our mortality. Lonely Robot is a solo project from John Mitchell, renowned as guitarist, producer and vocalist with bands such as Frost*, Arena, It Bites and Kino. ‘The Big Dream’ is more reminiscent of Kino than It Bites, but such is the excellent quality and imagination of the ‘Lonely Robot’ project Mitchell has arguably now created material which surpasses the achievements of his time with either of those bands. Following on from Lonely Robot’s impressive 2015 debut ‘Please Come Home’, which featured a range of guest artists, in ‘The Big Dream’ John Mitchell takes on all the vocal, guitar and keyboard duties to great effect, alongside his Frost* band mate Craig Blundell on drums.

‘The Big Dream’ once again showcases Mitchell’s strong song writing and distinctive fine guitar style, but also shows his excellent keyboard work throughout this musically dynamic album. Whilst this is an album of ‘Big Ideas’ it is largely expressed in a series of accessible and polished rock songs, alongside some more progressive cinematic passages. For John Mitchell the song is key and whilst he undoubtedly has the musical chops he is not about indulgent technique, preferring songs punctuated with memorable hooks and riding along on waves of melodic progressive rock, such as the ‘earworm’ song Sigma and it’s heroic sounding refrain.

Similarly to ‘Please Come Home’, once again the album has a science fiction context – not a concept album as such, but with recurring themes and featuring the central character of ‘The Astronaut’. However, whilst the previous album was largely associated with Space it appears in ‘The Big Dream’ The Astronaut wakes from a cryogenic sleep in a strange woodland. There are peculiar hints of a space age Shakespeare’s ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ with the gentle pastoral prog pop of Floral Green, featuring some delightful vocal dexterity from Mitchell, presumably supported by Kim Seviour (ex-Touchstone) on backing vocals. A short expressive guitar solo over sensitive keyboards skilfully  illustrates this delicate number… sometimes less really is more.

In contrast Everglow blasts in like some sort of sci-fi movie spectacular with powerful, driving guitars intertwining with sparkling, pulsing keyboards, whilst Craig Blundell provides a remarkable drumming masterclass to drive this impressive highlight of the album along… oh, and Mitchell throws in yet another short but golden guitar solo before we rejoin the thunderous refrain and heavy curtain of sound that introduced the song. If that’s not enough we then segue into the lighter, dreamy and appropriately shimmering False Lights, in which Blundell initially shows a much more subtle side on percussion, before it builds in intensity and then recedes in echoes. Symbolic, is rather insistent, perhaps lacking some of the subtlety and in my view somewhat interrupting the flow of the cinematic sweep of the latter half of the album, but it’s still a trademark Mitchell finely honed rock song… which is no bad thing!

In 2016 John Mitchell released under his own name an E.P. called ‘The Nostalgia Factory’, featuring four cover songs (which is well worth seeking out). ‘The Nostalgia Factory’ included a fine version of the Phil Collins song Take Me Home and it sounds as if The Divine Art of Being has distinct echoes of that great anthem… which is a good thing! John Mitchell certainly knows how to pen a song with great melody and choruses that resound around your brain like The Divine Art of Being, a song which also highlights the great quality of his voice, perfectly suited to his pitch and intonation.

The Big Dream feels like the finale of the album and projects us into spacey, epic Floydian territory, reminiscent of A Godless Sea on ‘Please Come Home’. The Big Dream is widescreen in nature with a wall of grandiose, cosmic keyboards echoing the intro of ‘Awakenings’ over which a wonderful high pitched guitar swoops eerily. This is spectacular stuff which feels like a film soundtrack. As this evocative track closes the philosopher returns with his spoken musings on death and sleep and then in a direct link back to ‘Please Come Home’ we hear the strangely heartbreaking lines:

‘Please Come Home Lonely Robot, Your Heart is Beautiful, Programmed to Receive, We Miss You now Lonely Robot, Ever so Beautiful’

After the drama of The Big Dream there is a sense of release and optimism as the coda song Hello World Goodbye is like musical sunlight breaking through the clouds. A piano plays a simple melody before Mitchell’s almost whispered soft vocals resonate with optimism, beautifully backed by Kim Seviour, and Mitchell pours a lovely soaring, rippling but subtle guitar solo over the conclusion. Epilogue (Sea Beams), with it’s title hinting at the tragic replicant Roy Batty from ‘Bladerunner’ (the ultimate Lonely Robot?) is a delicate ending, feeling like the end credits for a movie. The elegiac whistle like sounds underline the nautical but cosmic connection and underlines the emotion at the core of this remarkable album. John Mitchell has released a remarkable album which subtly conveys meaning and depth with accessible and finely written songs.

The juxtaposition of machine and emotion in the ‘Lonely Robot’ project is peculiarly touching, and one wonders if many of us lead similarly robotic, regimented lives, not knowing how to escape or truly express our inner feelings…

‘…That’s such a curious thought…’

Released 28th April 2017

Order ‘The Big Dream’ from InsideOut Music

 

 

The Fierce And The Dead Stream ‘Verbose’ – Second Track from ‘Field Recordings Live’

It is just under two weeks to go until Bad Elephant Music releases The Fierce & The Dead’s live mini-album, ‘Field Recordings’.

Taken from the band’s incendiary set at last year’s Ramblin’ Man Festival, ‘Field Recordings’ captures the band in their element – performing live on stage in front of an enthusiastic crowd. The album features two previously unreleased songs which may (or may not!) feature on The Fierce And The Dead’s third solo album, currently in production.

BEM’s CEO David Elliott:

“As a bit of Easter cheer on a rather grim Monday, we’ve released the stream of a second track, another new tune entitled ‘Verbose’. Get it in your ears – and if you like it, and you have £8 to spare, it would be lovely if you’d buy a CD. Mark Buckingham’s stunning artwork is worth the price of admission alone.”

The band reckon this album is the best statement to date of what The Fierce And The Dead are about. Even Matt (Stevens) himself has gone on record as saying “yeah, it’s okay” – which if you know him you’ll recognise as the highest possible praise when it comes to his own work.

You can listen to Verbose and pre-order ‘Field Recordings’ at the link below:

The Fierce And The Dead – ‘Verbose’

(Eggs-alike by Allyson Blue-Sky)

TFATD – Facebook

TFATD – Website

Website – Matt Stevens

 

TRINITY 2 – THE PROGRESSIVE ROCK CHARITY EVENT – Trinity Live Returns on Saturday 27th May 2017

In aid of Cancer Research UK / Teenage Cancer Trust / Macmillan Cancer Support

It is with great pride and excitement we announce that Trinity, in association with Prog Magazine, is back with a bang on Saturday 27th May 2017. Held at The Assembly in Leamington Spa, the line-up will include Lonely Robot, Touchstone and Ghost Community during the evening, with afternoon performances by A Formal Horse, Kim Seviour and the Dec Burke Band. There will also be a charity rock auction and raffle, which already has some incredible items donated from the very generous stars of the prog music world.

The prog music community has a history of supporting their own, as shown by the recent over-bringing people together to help out others less fortunate than themselves. The first Trinity, which took place back in 2014, enabled the organisers to donate over £9,000 to the three charities and the organisers are looking to beat that figure this year.

As Jerry Ewing, editor of Prog Magazine (and promoter of Trinity) says: “This is a terrific evening for a very good cause. Not only will it hopefully raise a huge amount for the three cancer charities, but it’s a spectacular bill as well, from top to bottom. There isn’t one band I’m not really looking forward to seeing and I’m already hard at work curating my DJ set for the after-show. Prog is proud to support Trinity 2, and I hope to see as many of you down there as possible.”

Tickets for Trinity Live are available from www.leamingtonassembly.com

 

 

 

Review – Magenta – We Are Legend – by Progradar

Longevity in the music business is almost like the Holy Grail and those that find it do so because their music has the ability to endure, to evolve, to develop and to progress. In this internet age that is becoming harder to accomplish, every man and his Mac Book can produce music and have it playing around the world in no time at all.

I feel that the best music will always outlast these mountebanks and pretenders and rise to the top, it is just a case of weeding out the middle of the road releases to find the creme de la creme or, if I’m lucky, for it to find me.

Stephen Lambe (he of Summers End Festival fame) also represents some of the best acts in progressive rock today through his 1973 Artist Promotions and I have been fortunate that Progradar is one of the review websites that he has chosen to work with. Stephen’s latest offering was the hotly anticipated new album from British prog stalwarts Magenta. Did I want to review it? Do bears sh… you know the rest!

The long overdue new Magenta album ‘We Are Legend’ will be released on April 20th 2017.

Main man Rob Reed says:

“It was time to try something new, musically and lyrically. I’ve always kept to a small music pallet with the previous albums, but I felt that we’d reached a crossroads and wanted to try something new. Magenta have gone through a lot since the last album, especially Christina our lead vocalist, so we feel that we have something to prove with ‘We Are Legend’. So be prepared.”

‘We Are Legend’ features 3 tracks, opening with the 26-minute Trojan and two 11 minute pieces Colours and Legend. As well as Christina Booth, Rob Reed and guitarist Chris Fry, the album also features new drummer Jiffy Griffiths and long-term live bassist Dan Nelson.

Magenta have been around since 1999 and have released a litany of superb albums in their illustrious career to date, there high quality being one of the reason’s for the band’s longevity. Will ‘We Are Legend’ perpetuate that success? There’s only one way to find out…

It smacks of utmost confidence in your own ability to release an album with only three tracks on it, much like certain progressive rock legends from the 1970’s but ‘We Are Legend’ is every bit as fulfilling as a release with 10 or 15 songs on because every track is an immersive, involving journey of many parts and provides the listener with everything they need for forty nine minutes of intense musical pleasure. Opening track Trojan builds the atmosphere skillfully and artistically before blooming before your very ears into a wondrous piece of music with a myriad of subtle twists and turns. The high energy driving beat has things moving along at a hell-for-leather pace, the slightly distorted guitar taking an impressive lead and the stylish bass and drums providing the foundations upon which Rob’s keyboards guide us around this mesmerising musical tapestry. Christina’s voice has never sounded better, she has a powerful authority to her vocal delivery which grabs your attention immediately and never lets go. In fact, the first few minutes literally bowled me over with their energy and intensity. Just sit back and listen and enjoy the ride as these masterful musicians put on a breathtaking show for you to enjoy. All the time little nuggets of musical wonderment pop up to put a huge smile on your face, there’s a guitar solo about six and a half minutes into the song that I really enjoyed but you could pick out one of many moments of a similar nature. To be fair, this isn’t just a song, it’s a musical drama, a riveting narrative set to some rather impressive music and you will find yourself becoming lost in the whole captivating experience. Rob is right, this is a hugely expansive work that just gets better with each listen.

After the twenty-six minutes of musical spectacle that was Trojan there is no let up as the introduction to Colours storms into view, there’s an urgency to the music and tension and instancy to Christina’s voice and a whole melodramatic feeling of turmoil to the track. Where Trojan was a big theatrically inspired production, this song has a much more progressive feel to it. The calm, wistful interludes add a touch of class and style, the guitar playing is exquisite and just gives me a nostalgic shiver down my spine. Christina is, once again, showcasing her huge vocal talent on this track, she really is the epitome of her Twitter handle ‘Prog Queen’ and must have one of the best voices out there and not just in progressive rock circles either. Rob Reed’s elegantly languid keyboard playing is a delight to listen to and Chris Fry certainly knows his way around a six string, his guitar playing is tight, fluid and very absorbing. This song has some riveting, engrossing moments and then there are also some brilliant pieces where they seem to just go for it and the music takes over. Not once do you think that any of these tracks have gone on too long, in fact it is the exact opposite, you’re left wanting more and the the ending to Colours is a case in point, an uplifting, tumultuous overture that has prodigious amounts of raw emotion and soul, you can literally hear it in the Christina’s voice and Chris’ guitar and there, just in the background, the brilliant bass playing of Dan Nelson is the conductor bringing things to a refined close.

Adding a final climactic flare to the album Legend begins with a very serious undertone, the guitar all fire and brimstone and Jiffy’s drums a dominant driving force. There’s a lull and then Christina’s honestly heartfelt and yet slightly severe vocal joins in adding a sheen to this sombre tale. It’s a heartfelt and emotive track that has a darker underbelly, all mournful and forlorn. A ying and yang between the darkness and the light follows, the hauntingly memorable chorus trading shots with the more mournful and pensive verses. A fiery guitar solo lights up the darker elements and then a short-lived intricate,determined and resolute section takes centre stage before Christina’s delicate vocal adds an almost ethereal and engaging grace, added to by some elegant guitar playing, a moment of serenity among the drama and theatricals and yet one that emphasises just how good they are. Christina is centre stage on this song, she is the leader and the focus, her voice full of fervour and feeling and it just entrances you. Once again Magenta show they know how to close out a song with swagger and verve, an inspirational and almost spiritual end to what has been an incredible musical experience.

There’s a huge amount of pride in titling your album ‘We Are Legend’ but Magenta deserve to give that name to this excellent release. The longevity of nearly two decades in the business has given them well deserved kudos and they have built on that to give us three songs that inspire and stimulate the listener. This record is a sublime forty-nine minutes of musical bliss and sees Magenta back in the top echelon of progressive rock acts where they deservedly belong.

The CD will be accompanied by a DVD containing the whole album in 5.1 surround sound plus interview and performance videos.

Released 20th April 2017

Pre-order ‘We Are Legend’ in all formats from the Magenta webstore

Review – Nem-Q – Fault Lines – Terranes – by Progradar

In April 2016 I reviewed ‘Fault Lines – Subduction Zone’, the first EP in a two-parts concept piece from Dutch band Nem-Q and now the second part of said EP, ‘Fault Lines – Terranes’ has arrived at Progradar Towers to complete this ambitious project.

A “fault line” means fracture. The double EP album cover shows a fracture (fault line) between a heart and a brain. This not only marks the division of the album, but it also shows the inner struggle of choices and the consequences. The new songs vary widely in dynamics and atmosphere and are closer to the band than the previous (concept)album.
Nem-Q are Paul Sieben (vocals, guitar), Mark Reijven (guitar), Maarten Meeuws (bass), Dennis Renders (keys, vocals) and Twan Bakker (drums, percussion).
 

You can read my review of the first four tracks that make up ‘Subduction Zone’ here:

Review – Nem-Q – Fault Lines – Subduction Zone – by Progradar

The second EP, ‘Terranes’, opens with Perpetual Motion and the intro is very smooth, cool and laid back with a delicious bass line and drum beat. It almost has a rock infused jazz feel to it with the off-kilter beat and Paul’s classy vocal. These guys have just carried on from where they left off at the end of ‘Subduction Zone’, a quite mature and earnest piece of music with some impressive playing as the song gets heavier, almost agonising in its earnest intensity. There’s an intricate instrumental section in the middle with an uplifting vocal delivery, technical but with heaps of emotion and soul. An apt description for this notable group of musicians.

Bipolar has an unsettling opening, focusing on the title of the track. All edgy, and harsh and with a chaotic feel, you are drawn into the maelstrom and left to find your own way back. The vocals are precise and measure with a fervent, almost mocking tone. My mind feels like it is in the middle of a disturbing, confusing vortex of sound. The band use the music to tell the story perfectly and the undercurrent of agitation can be felt all the time. A special blend of progressive metal concept storytelling that has you hanging on every note.

The longest track at seven and a half minutes, Confusion has a mysterious and enigmatic feel from the first note. It moves along with cryptic undertones, the keyboards giving it a questing and searching aura before Paul’s knowing vocal joins the fray. This track seems to want to stay in the shadows, furtive and hidden and yet erupts occasionally with powerful and combative outbursts of emotion to give it hidden depths. Around halfway though the song, however, it morphs into something altogether more outgoing and demonstrative. There is a power that was previously concealed and yet now appears in all its glory, the keyboards take on a more urgent note and the rest of the rhythm section, drums and bass, join in giving in a breathless edge as its races to some unforeseen conclusion, a song of two distinct sides, darkness and light.

A much more metal side to Nem-Q becomes apparent with Misguided, the vocals have a menacing tone and the music a much sharper edge. There’s a faster pace to the song and every note seems to be delivered from the bowels of the earth with increasing magnitude and power. It’s like someone has turned everything up to 11 with no care for the plaster on the walls, the dynamism and impetus is addictive and just carries you along with it to the elegant close.

The last song on this EP ( and the whole concept) is the title track Fault Lines and it has a potency and stimulus that could move any leviathan. The electricity crackles and burns just under the surface as the keyboards, give an eerie note over the rabid riffing of the guitar and the frenetic drums and high-energy bass playing anchors this violent vortex of musical efficacy. There are some really intricate instrumental sections among the vibrant discord and the song comes to an abrupt close leaving you to catch your breath and admire what has gone before.

The perfect partner to ‘Fault Lines – Subduction Zone’ and one that completes the circle, ‘Terranes’ shows a band content with their identity and musicians with all the skill in the world. Excellent songwriting and compelling tunes which, when added to the first EP, form a whole that is greater than the already substantial parts. More heavy progressive rock than prog-metal, whatever you call it, just make sure you add it to your wish lists!

Released 21st January 2017

Order from the Nem-Q Store:

http://www.nem-q.com/store/

 

 

Review – The Bob Lazar Story – Baritonia – by James R. Turner

An incredibly inventive and eclectic due of Matt Deacon and Chris Jago, The Bob Lazar Story have been purveying their own unique blend of tritonal wankery since 2006, and this their latest magnum opus (that’s an Irish PI cat eating an ice cream to you and I) is now out on the Bad Elephant label.

Home to such instrumental wizards as The Fierce and the Dead and The Brackish, The Bob Lazar Story’s blend of prog, metal, fusion and huge dollops of humour fits right in with the labels ethos. Despite the fact that Matt is in New Zealand and Chris is in Los Angeles, the tightness of their playing, and the way they interact sonically with each other and the material makes it sound more like they recorded it together after a night rearranging all the genre sections in an HMV.

Frank Zappa once asked ‘does Humour belong in music?’ and I have had this debate with various people online and in the real world equivalent of Facebook (The pub!) and some po-faced Joe’s who think music should be serious and revered and played with a straight face disagreed mightily with me.

Whilst they have that opinion, they are, quite frankly wrong.

When you have the musical playfulness of ‘Baritonia’ bouncing out of the speakers at you, it’s clear that these guys know a) how to play and b) know how to play.

There is a lightness of touch and knowing wink in a lot of this album, and with titles like Toptop Switcherooney, Elbow Patch Man, In The Woods with Tony Iommi and Escape Tits it looks like that a) they revel in the absurd and b) have been reading Simon Godfrey’s twitter feed.

You can have fun in music, whilst still respecting the art form, and this is where the Bob Lazar Story’s strengths lie.

They jump gleefully from sound to sound, building some epic pieces, like the wonderful LOL, Defiantly with it’s classic synth sounds, or the aforementioned In The Woods with Tony Iommi, which is one of those walking holidays that could turn into either heaven or hell.

Mining their own rich seam of inventive, playful and joyous instrumental music, it’s hard for us reviewers to lump this into any genre because I think they’re a one band genre all by themselves, and as you listen to tracks like Make it Like It Used To Be the squelchy synths and rollicking riffs put a great big daft grin on your face.

Pop this into your ears and enjoy as another wonderfully exciting chapter in the Bob Lazar Story has just been written.

Released 14th April 2017

Order ‘Baritonia’ from Bad Elephant Music

New music from ‘a strAnger’: “One Day” – by Progradar

Swedish music act a strAnger is truly independent, DIY to the bone. Fairly eclectic, but fundamentally a rock and alt music act and have been described as :

“Beck gone Soundgarden lite hardrock with the cheerful bastards of Radiohead playing lounge music in the background”.
– RockUnited

For Swedish singer-songwriter act a strAnger, music has always been an eclectic undertaking. Starting out playing in bands ranging from thrash, to heavy rock to grunge and punk-rock, while at the same time honing his acoustic skills on his own and appreciating a wide range of other musical styles; a strAnger does not worry much about genres.

In a change from the norm he has release his latest album ‘Insatiable’ on a track by track basis through 2016 and 2017 and on April 4th released the seventh track One Day. Lyrically it is a social commentary; staging the big brother – little brother relationship in a socially and criminally challenged environment.

The last couple of years have been a lot about finding a path for music in Sweden and the West, coming back from the dynamics of China. And finding a path in the changing landscape of music. Which in turn impacts the way to release music, as well as finding a balance between where and when. a strAnger is delighted to finally be sharing the fruit the last couple of years’ hard work with his new
collection of songs ‘Insatiable’.

You can buy the first seven tracks (including One Day) from bandcamp here

 

Review – Kaprekar’s Constant – Fate Outsmarts Desire – by Leo Trimming

6174 – there you go, 6174 apparently is virtually always the Answer using Kaprekar’s Constant, which may lead some to ask what is the Question? … and what does it have to do with a new Kent based Progressive Rock band, featuring David Jackson, once of veteran ‘Prog’ greats Van Der Graaf Generator? Who knows?

‘Fate Outsmarts Desire’ is their interesting and rather impressive debut album, written and largely played by multi-instrumentalists Al Nicholson and Nick Jefferson, who formed this project in 2015. Why they have the rather peculiar band name is rather a mystery but research shows that ‘Kaprekar’s Constant’ is a number theorem devised in 1946 by an Indian mathematician in which the answer is virtually always the number 6174 in no more than 7 steps… all rather mystifying but you can google it as well if you’re really interested!

Strange as it may seem, the choice of the band name indicates that this is a group with an interest in enigmatic curiosities and history, which imbues the atmosphere of this album.

The stark and memorable opening lines of this album:

“Your band of scrotes and their dredging boats robbed the shingle from under our feet…”

make an immediate statement that this is a work steeped in atmospheric historical narrative. Hors D’Oeuvre effectively acts as a promising overture for the album, referencing elements of the longer pieces to come, and David Jackson evokes slight hints of A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers by VDGG with his distinctive droning sax sounds.

Perhaps the strongest and most memorable composition on the album is the elegiac Hallsands, (but I may be biased as I live very close to that beautiful but tragic location!) A fine song based on the true story of the negligent environmental disaster visited upon a South Devon village by rapacious developers who stripped a shingle bank protecting the village to provide material to build the docks at Devonport in Plymouth. This led to the eventual collapse of the whole of Hallsands village in to the sea in 1917 – perhaps a lesson for modern times and it’s exploitation of the environment. The music is suitably nautical and evocative of a simple seaside community falling victim to thoughtless dredgers. Paul Gunn provides some thankfully brief narration interludes, but the main impact is conveyed by the folk tinged fine vocals of Bill Jefferson, conveying more than a little anger and bitterness. Acoustic guitars with whistles and flutes conjure up the simple seaside community, ultimately destroyed by

“arrogant lies… the beach went to Devonport, the houses went to the sea”.

Epic in length and evocative in nature, Hallsands holds the attention and touches the emotions with skillfully composed music which very successfully conveys the images atmospherically. Contrasting simple acoustic passages, reminiscent of Jethro Tull in some ways, with more discordant storm driven percussive sections, Hallsands is one of the main highlights of this album, successfully describing a captivating and instructive story in our recent history.

Real US police radio conversations introduce and underpin the remarkable Four-Faced Liar. Inspired by much more recent events, the story of the capture of the Boston Marathon bombers is conveyed in a fine lilting melodic rock song, sung perfectly by Bill Jefferson, backed colourfully with some well judged keyboards and string sounds. The events are described from the perspective of the Clock of the Boston Custom House, called the Four Faced Liar locally as none of the clock faces tell the same time. Maybe that is a metaphor for the different perspectives on how one story can be reported, or may just be an interesting local detail for a band that evidently likes idiosyncratic stories from reality. The relative brevity but excellence of this song is a reminder for progressive rock bands that sometimes ‘less is more’.

Pearl of the Lake features Dorie Jackson (daughter of David Jackson) on some lovely vocals in a much shorter and simpler song, relying purely upon the strength of the melody and the lyrics to express itself.

Dorie Jackson takes lead vocals for the epic concluding piece, Houdini – King of Cards, based on the renowned escapologist. A possibly over extended first lyrical section sets the scene before giving way to an instrumental passage, combining keyboards and saxes possibly conveying the peculiar atmospheres of séances. Houdini was very skeptical of tricksters in his life time, but wondered if he could effectively ‘cheat death’ by communicating with his wife Bess after his death. They agreed on a very personal message between them that he would try to communicate from beyond the grave. Bess started the tradition of spiritualism sessions to see if her husband, the man who could escape from any jail, managed to escape death. For 10 years after his death Bess organized these sessions without receiving a sign from her husband, and then ceased them convinced that even he could not cheat death. The closing melodic section is sung beautifully by Dorie Jackson over a slowly building backing, with her father adding some effective woodwind. The apparently real archive spoken parts from that era are interlaced with this song, and add an eerie and authentic element to the narrative.

In contrast album opener Bluebird demonstrates for me just how NOT to use spoken parts!

Based on the story of Sir Malcolm Campbell and other high speed motoring pioneers Bluebird is introduced and constantly punctuated by short explanatory spoken parts by Paul Gunn, which are clearly delivered in a tone intended to sound contemporary to the story… but have the unfortunate effect of sounding like the rather pompous Harry Enfield comedic character ‘Mr Cholmondley-Warner’. The music is melodic progressive rock imaginatively expressing the events, including the dramatic journey of the car ‘Babs’ along Pendine Sands in Pembrokeshire. A restrained but expressive guitar carries the middle section, alongside Jackson’s saxes and flutes. This is an ambitious song of nearly 18 minutes full of some finely played music, but one has to wonder whether there was enough narrative to justify such an epic treatment. Just when you think it’s over Gunn’s voice pops up to let us know the story was moving to the next stage. This is a clumsy device which for me distracted from the music – it felt like I was looking at a lovely painting in a gallery and then suddenly a tour guide stands in front of it telling me what I am seeing, but now cannot see because the guide is in front explaining it to me! The whole song feels episodic and rather a history lecture, which is a pity as there is some good music on this piece. Perhaps this new band needed to rely less upon the ‘Basil Exposition’ type interludes and really trust much more in the imaginative power of their music.

However, it would be grossly unfair to focus on this flaw, (which explains why the first song on the album appears at the end of the review), rather than commend Kaprekar’s Constant on what is undoubtedly a very promising and good debut album.

They are clearly talented musicians and singers with a mission to entertain and inform with fascinating stories and melodic rock songs. Their historical narrative songs are clearly in the same territory as the eminent band Big Big Train, but let’s not forget that a band such as Big Big Train took quite some years to mature and develop in to their current excellence. If Kaprekar’s Constant continue to develop their evident melodic sensibilities and further hone their songwriting craft they have the potential to offer much more to Progressive Rock. To think that this is a debut album is remarkable…

… now what was the question again?

Whatever, 6174 is the answer.

Released 10th March 2017 via Uranium Club

Buy ‘Fate Outsmarts Desire’ from Uranium Cub on bandcamp

Review – Beatrix Players – Magnified – by Rob Fisher

There are few delicious pleasures in life as wonderfully satisfying than being so completely absorbed and utterly enthralled by the music to which you are listening that all sense of time, space and place are temporarily forgotten. ‘Magnified’ is exactly that kind of delightful surprise, effortlessly exerting a mesmerising and seductive captivation which renders this beautiful debut album from Beatrix Players a thoroughly enchanting experience.

The irresistible allure of the music is skilfully crafted around the thrilling and ever powerful presence of the piano, offset and complimented by the vivid and often dramatic strings of the cello and both are nurtured and encouraged by the melodic nuance and emotional poignancy of the vocals. The shifting ebb and flow between the three players creates an exciting and edgy dynamism, the fluid and continually evolving interactions forming sumptuous textures and compelling soundscapes that are happily spell-binding.

Yet there is also a foreboding sense of driving purpose diffused at all levels throughout the album, a strong and uncompromising spirit of determination which supplies a creative vision buried in the heart of what is being played. There is a willingness to dabble, to experiment, to pursue the meaning being conveyed in the music by blending differing styles and genres in order to capture and convey the unique sound which is so earnestly being sought.

Given the nature of the instruments involved there is no surprise to find elements of classical, baroque and even choral traditions but these have been delicately infused with rhythms and styles drawn from folk, prog, blues and jazz to craft an impressively expansive and hugely evocative sound which is as enthralling as it is consuming. It is a combination which forms the perfect cradle to tell the sometimes painful and all too human stories which inspire the songs with which we are being presented.

“The power of music”, Jess Kennedy (piano) believes, is its potent ability “to make people feel something”, to take hold of you and let you become lost in the moment. At heart, ‘Magnified’ is an intelligent series of narratives, stories and vignettes which speak with tremendous power and feeling to the day to day situations in which we find ourselves, the gamut of emotions we experience and the often agonizing and difficult problems with which we wrestle.

But this is music which is sensitively designed to make you think as well as feel. It works so well because it takes the rawness of everyday experience and fuses it with the mythology and the symbolism of age old stories which are familiar to us all. Real life mixes with fantasy to create sweeping, expressive melodies that are rich with empathy and compassion and form an enticing gateway through which we hardly notice ourselves enter.

What we find is the darkness which sometimes occupies the heart of beauty and often hidden within everyday life. This is not an album which shies away from or turns a blind eye to the more troubling aspects of human experience, despite the seeming elegance and charm of the music itself. Indeed, it is precisely the combination of the open vitality of the music with a biting realism of what life sometimes throws at us which allows the songs to communicate with such commanding potency and emotional authority.

“So I can’t write a love song” is the forlorn opening to Molehill (Track 5), thoroughly bewitching in terms of the music, heartbreaking in terms of the lyrics. Never Again (Track 3) positively makes your blood run cold with its plaintive “The walk of shame / In the middle of the day / The sun hits my tears / And blinds my thoughts / And in this moment I am numb / Another night and surely I’m done”; yet all we initially hear are the strains of piano and cello gently rippling and undulating in the background.

This is the standout achievement of what is without doubt a magical album. We are graced with music which opens the soul to the full catalogue of human experiences, without blinking and yet, without retreating either. There is strength and resolve in the darkness: “I’ll cut my hair / Become courageous / For I will live to outdate this / Take a risk and find strength” (Never Again). Forlorn does not necessarily or always mean despair and resignation. We can find, within ourselves and with the help of others, the strength to rise above what trouble us.

With the release of ‘Magnified’, Beatrix Players have created a truly stunning and enchanting collection of musical experiences to delight the soul and feed the mind. Call it bewitching, call it sublime, I thoroughly recommend sharing time with it and succumbing to all the enchanting journeys on which it will take you.

Released 31st March 2017

Buy ‘Magnified’ from bandcamp