Victor Lee was born in South Korea where he spent his childhood there. He moved to the US in his late teens and has been living there since. He started on classical piano and has always had a piano at home since he was too small to crawl up the chair, Victor then started playing guitar when he was 14.
This talented musician wrote his first ever original composition back in 2013, called “Absence”, to comfort a friend who had lost her dog at the time. Even though he felt the quality itself wasn’t quite there, Victor quickly fell in love with the process and the purpose that songs bring as it allowed him to express things that he couldn’t with words.
There followed his first official track “Second Chance” on Dec 6, 2016 with a very talented Norwegian drummer named Andreas Sjøen who then played on several more tracks on Victor’s debut album “Strangely Familiar” released in 2018.
On Sep 17, 2019 he released a single “Letter” which was a partnership with a renowned Instagram Music community called “Pickup Music” as a part of their educational program “Songsquad”
Victor Lee’s new single “Harbor City”, featuring Henrik Linder on bass and Andreas Sjøen on drums was released on January 10th, 2020. Victor plays electric and acoustic guitars, keyboards and produced and mixed the song which was mastered by Jeremy Krull.
A marvelously upbeat track of prog/rock/jazz fusion, this song is seriously uplifting with fantastic keyboard runs and some mind blowing guitar solos. It flies along at a serious rate of notes but the musicianship is tight as a drum.
For five minutes you can forget real life and all its trials and tribulations and just immerse yourself in this inspiring musical concoction.
“My Arrival began life when three souls wandered into a single room with the intention to write music from a different perspective than they had done so before: shorter and accessible songs, without losing any of their intended intensity and progressive roots.
Their new album “Satur9 & Indigo” is intricate but elegant in sound. The music is made possible by the gentle weave of synths and guitars atop steady bass and drums, with vocals telling us the melancholic story of a man with a bleeding heart on a dying planet, desperate to find a new home.”
I do love a good press release and this one is no exception. Being a big fan of Sylvium, when Ben van Gastel (guitars & key) contacted me about this new project, I was very interested to hear what they had come up with.
Ben formed My Arrival along with Richard de Geest (vocals) and Fred Boks (bass, drums, keys), the music is closely related to Sylvium but with more relaxed, shorter tracks and is a bit more oriented to Art Rock, instead of prog.
Musically inspired by a changing world, the music was written with the intention to tell the story of a departure and a search for a new home.
Ben van Gastel: “All over the world people are looking for a safe home, not only because of war or climate change. Loved ones are left behind, hoping they will meet again soon, when they have found their new home. Richard de Geest has the gift of a singer songwriter.
He wrote the lyrics like a true poet! He takes you on this search for a new home with his voice, leaving no one untouched. Fred Boks is well known from Sylvium’s first EP release “Purified”. This time he has surpassed himself.
Being responsible for the mix and mastering, every sound is carefully balanced by Fred, sometimes twice or more! It was this finishing touch to take the music to another dimension.”
There is almost a melancholy feel to the album but it is overlaid by lush musical passages and a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere. The musicianship is outstanding and the quality of songwriting draws the listener into this immersive and deeply engaging musical experience.
There is substance to the music, a real primal, deliberate and thoughtful feel and Richard’s warm and substantive vocal delivery underpins and overlays everything like calming influence.
The album is bookended by a sci-fi feeling intro and outro and then the music flows through some mightily impressive songs, Gone with it’s highly emotive touch and the Pop/Prog of the enchanting Pale White Dot accompany you gently into the rest of this impressive album.
Things get more meaningful with the dignified and languid brilliance of Strange Machine and the sombre, forlorn feeling Saturn & Indigo. There’s an eruption of intensity on the powerful Null Echo which fades into the stark beauty of Come Undone, these superb musicians just keep on delivering sublime song after song.
You want a rather well crafted instrumental that ramps up the tension a jot? Well here’s Failure of a Grand Design to give you exactly that with its haunting and apprehensive atmosphere. Full Dark no Stars is a compelling three minutes of emotive vocals and stirring music and Close Your Eyes is as wistful a piece of music you could ever hope for but one that leaves a plaintive and reflective feeling in the pit of your stomach.
The album will be released on the band’s own label, Mey Productions, giving them further opportunity to learn, to grow and to be inspired, thanks to their audience. That’s all that My Arrival want to do – bring musicians together, make music with them, inspire their audience and let them discover their world and, with ‘Satur9 & Indigo’, they have made a hugely impressive and influential start.
July 2020 sees the publication of A Genesis In My Bed – the long overdue autobiography from guitar great and former member of Genesis, Steve Hackett. As with his music, Steve has written a highly detailed, entertaining and embracing tome that charts his life in full, but with a firm emphasis on his years with Genesis that saw the band’s meteoric rise to become one of the most successful British bands of all time.
Steve talks candidly
about his early life, his time with Genesis, and in particular his personal
relationships with the other four band members, with great insight into the
daily goings on of this major rock band.
Naturally, A Genesis In My Bed also regales stories of Steve’s career since leaving Genesis and the many different journeys that it has taken him on. With his flair for the creative, and a great deal of levity, A Genesis In My Bed is also a riveting read. Indispensable for Genesis fans but also essential for general music lovers and avid readers of autobiographies full of heartfelt and emotive tales.
1,000 copies individually numbered and signed by Steve are available to pre-order directly from the publisher
& the artist:
Polish progressive Rock masters RIVERSIDE are happy to share line-up news with all of you:
Riverside are a quartet again!
Dear friends, this is an incredibly important moment in the history of our band. From the beginning of February 2020, Riverside are officially not a trio any more, we are a quartet! It is with incredible joy that we would like to announce that the fourth official member of the band is…
Well, you can’t have expected anyone else? 🙂
He’s been with us for over three years. He let us recover from the tragic loss we have all experienced, he helped us survive and become, from year to year, a better and better live band. He has been our friend and our brother. We are welcoming him in our midst with great joy, in which we hope you will also share!
Ladies and gentlemen, on the guitars in Riverside: Maciej Meller!
Being a good guitarist and loving music is one thing, but being able to fit in with your personality, incredible modesty and humility, that’s an incredibly important thing in our band. Maciej meets all the criteria and we are truly happy that he wants to continue our journey with us.
***
We still remember. And we still go back to the moment when, after we lost Piotr, in 2016, the massive amount of your support made us continue as Riverside. We were not ready to invite anyone to our family at that time. “Wasteland” had to be recorded as a trio. We simply had to cope with the loss on our own.
Now, it’s high time for Riverside to have a guitarist in the line-up again, not only during live shows but also in the studio, when working on new material. So we are really pleased to let you know that after coming back from the final, spring edition of the Wasteland Tour 2020, together with Maciek, in the new line-up, we will start working on the eighth album.
The upcoming spring concerts will have a different character, a different tone, and Riverside will sound mightier than ever before. We would really like to see you there!
Last but not least – Piotr Grudziński will always be in our hearts, we all still love him and we will never forget him. But we have to move on. We are on a journey, they are waiting for us. There is more to create in this life, more to see, more to know, more to save. We hope that you will decide to stay with us again and that you will let us help one another through all of this.
We are here with you and for you.
Riverside
***
RIVERSIDE’s next touring run starts later this month and includes dates across Europe as well as an appearance at the Cruise To The Edge and shows in Latin America as follows:
RIVERSIDE – Wasteland Tour 2020 26.02. Madrid (Spain) – MON Live 27.02. Barcelona (Spain) – Salamandra 1 29.02. Milano (Italy) – Legend Club 01.03. Treviso (Italy) – New Age Club 03.03. Lubljana (Slovenia) – Kino Šiška 05.03. Zagreb (Croatia) – Tvornica Kulture 06.03. Novi Sad (Serbia) – Pozorište Mladih 07.03. Thessaloniki (Greece) – Principal Club Theater 08.03. Athens (Greece) – Gagarin 205 Live Music Space 10.03. Istanbul (Turkey) – Zorlu PAC 11.03. Sofia (Bulgaria) – Music Jam Club 12.03. Bucharest (Romania) – Quantic Club 13.03. Cluj-Napoca (Romania) – /FORM SPACE 15.03. Budapest (Hungary) – Barba Negra 27.03.-01.04. Miami (USA) to Belize & Honduras – Cruise To The Edge 2020
02.04. Mexico City (Mexico) – Auditorio Blackberry 04.04. Guadalajara (Mexico) – C3 Stage 07.04. Santiago (Chile) – Teatro Nescafe 09.04. Sao Paulo (Brazil) – Carioca Club
RIVERSIDE most recently released a special edition 2CD+DVD version of their current and highly successful studio-album “Wasteland” via InsideOutMusic. The ”Wasteland – Hi-Res Stereo and Surround Mix” 2CD+DVD comes as Digipak format with an additional Slipcase and includes a DVD bonus disc of “Wasteland” as Hi-Res Stereo 24bit version and as Surround Mix (4.1), plus 3 video clips. This edition also contains 5 previously unreleased acoustic tracks/versions on a separate CD.
Pure Reason Revolution recently announced the release of ‘Eupnea’, their first new studio album in nearly 10 years, for the 3rd of April 2020. Today they are excited to reveal the first piece of new music taken from the record, in the form of the epic 10-minute ‘Silent Genesis’, a track which Jon Courtney co-wrote alongside original PRR member Greg Jong.
The band comments: “With some tracks it’s blood sweat & tears to get them nailed, but “Silent Genesis” came together really quickly. While Greg & I worked on the music, Chloe was blasting out vocals in London. We had a lot of fun making this track; mangling synths, riffing & unexpectedly outroing with funk!”
‘Eupnea’ features the work of artist Jill Doherty on its front cover, and will be available as a Limited CD Digipak, Gatefold 2LP + CD (with etching on Side D) and as a digital album. Pre-orders are now available for both physical and digital here: https://PureReasonRevolution.lnk.to/Eupnea
The full track-listing is as follows:
1. New Obsession 05:09
2. Silent Genesis 10:20
3. Maelstrom 05:44
4. Ghosts & Typhoons 08:45
5. Beyond Our Bodies 04:28
6. Eupnea 13:23
Of the new album the band commented:
“We stuck to our manifesto of no musical boundaries and the result was ‘Eupnea’. We return to a more progressive sound with ferocious guitars, thunderous drums and the stacked harmonies that give us our signature sound. We’re excited to begin playing it live.”
You can watch an interview clip where Jon Courtney and Chloë Alper discuss the process of getting back together last year, and playing Midsummer Prog, here: https://youtu.be/sLlKj5u_SJ8
‘Eupnea’, the long-awaited return from the band, sees them harking back to their earliest days, while rolling in all of the musical experiments and experience they’ve gathered in the intervening years.
The cinematic soundscapes of Hammer and Anvil? Check. The dark atmosphere and synths of Amor Vincit Omnia? Check. The gauzy psych-prog of their debut? Ch-check.
It’s sprawling, with three tracks hitting the 10 minute mark and one notching up against 15 minutes. Sure, track length does not equal ambition, but still, it’s quite the statement of intent.
The band currently have two confirmed Summer festival dates, performing at Night Of The Prog Festival in Germany on the 17th of July, and Ramblin Man Fair in the UK on the 18th of July.
Pure Reason Revolution originally parted ways in November 2011 following touring in support of their 2010 album ‘Hammer and Anvil’. Since then, Jon Courtney started Bullet Height and released their debut album ‘No Atonement’ in 2017, while Chloë Alper began a new band called Tiny Giant as well as playing live with the likes of Charli XCX and James.
The band originally formed back in 2003, releasing their much-loved debut album ‘The Dark Third’ in 2006 via Sony BMG. They went on to release the albums ‘Amor Vincit Omnia’ in 2009 and ‘Hammer and Anvil’ in 2010.
THE NEW STUDIO ALBUM, AN OPUS OF ABSORBING, SOARING PROGRESSIVE ROCK & METICULOUSLY CRAFTED DOSES OF MELANCHOLY – RELEASED ON PEACEVILLE ON 24TH APRIL
“In days and nights of black and silver, the dead end king will come. From pieces of broken mirrors there will be a crown bestowed upon his head. In reflections of shattered glass not only the seasons will turn, but also the change disguised by the lapse of time. His mind will have to come to bear the weight of everything that was left behind and forgotten. Archiving the inaccessible. Celebrating the abandoned and mourning the destroyed. The city burials.” Anders Nyström
Katatonia, formed in 1991 by Jonas Renkse & Anders Nyström, and transitioning from early pioneers of the rising black/death/doom movement, to powerhouses of the progressive metallic rock genre. Surprising their legions of admirers by taking an unexpected break, following the conclusion of their 2016 haunting The Fall Of Hearts albumtour cycle. Joyously, 2020 brings the news that they are not only back, but newly armed with arguably their finest album to date, the enormously vivid and powerful City Burials.
With the winds of a new direction steering the band on their latest journey, City Burials stands as Katatonia’s new triumph of deep & enigmatic progressive rock – the fruits of a rejuvenating and profound chapter in the band’s legacy; a catalyst for its creators, with a collection of moments constructed out of the fragments of an ever-evolving life. Compiled into one of their most important modern works and statements to date, the finely-honed instrumentation provides a multi-textured backdrop with the voice of Jonas Renkse guiding us through these latest trials of loss and ruin.
The proof of Jonas and Anders’ enduring artistic bond is displayed throughout City Burials absorbing 58 minutes of meticulously crafted melodies and inspired, idiosyncratic arrangements. From the spine-tingling dynamics of opener “Heart Set To Divide” through and the simmering menace of “Lacquer” to the wildly evocative sorrow-scapes of “City Glaciers” and the exquisitely delicate “Vanishers” (featuring a guest vocal from Anni Bernhard, of Stockholm art rockers Full Of Keys) Katatonia’s eleventh studio album is a showcase for a partnership that was magical from the very start.
Inspired by an injection of fresh blood into Katatonia’s creative brew, with their most recent recruit, guitarist Roger Öjersson, whose contributions have been extremely significant, City Burials is an album that sees the band reclaim part of their heavy metal roots, via several moments of exuberant, old school classicism, deftly woven into these new songs’ kaleidoscopic fabric. Although songs like “Behind The Blood” and “Rein” are as heart-rending and immersive as any in Katatonia’s illustrious catalogue.
The result is an album that looks certain to push the band ever further into the spotlight. With grand plans for extensive touring around the world in support of their latest and perhaps greatest album, Katatonia are wringing fresh hope from life’s gloom-sodden tapestry.
City Burialswas produced by Nyström/Renkse and recorded at Soundtrade Studios, Tri-Lamb Studios & The City Of Glass, throughout October & November 2019, with engineering work handled by Karl Daniel Lidén and mixing and mastering from Jacob Hansen, who states “Once in a while you end up working with artists that are special, and that particular session being something you’ll remember forever. This session is one of them, and only for good things! Proud to say I mixed and mastered the new Katatonia album”.
City Burials also sees the return to the Katatonia fold ofAnders Eriksson (Frank Default) beloved for his keyboard contributions to Night Is The New Day, Dead End Kings and various remixes.
Artwork appears courtesy of Lasse Hoile, the image itself representing the ongoing era of the Dead End King.
City Burials Tracklisting
1 Heart Set To Divide [05:29]
2 Behind The Blood [04:37]
3 Lacquer [04:42]
4 Rein [04:21]
5 The Winter Of Our Passing [03:18]
6 Vanishers [04:56]
7 City Glaciers [05:30]
8 Flicker [04:45]
9 Lachesis [01:54]
10 Neon Epitaph [04:32]
11 Untrodden [04:29]
Bonus Tracks available on various formats
12 Closing Of The Sky [05:26]
13 Fighters [03:37]
City Burials will be released on CD, deluxe mediabook CD with bonus tracks, black and coloured vinyl LPs with bonus track and digitally (Digital pre-orders receive “Lacquer” as an instant download) . Pre-orders available HERE
Look out for news on exclusive European ‘City Burials’ launch show and album bundle coming soon!
KATATONIA LIVE
Katatonia will be appearing at various festivals in 2020 with details of headline tours coming soon.
Though Moonshot may not have reached the commercial and creative peaks of celebrated Progressive peers such as Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes and King Crimson, they were arguably one of the best of the chasing pack and fully deserve to be named alongside the likes of Gentle Giant, Camel, Greenslade, The Yorkshire Parkin Experiment, BJH, Gryphon, PFM, Prawn, Ange and others ‘Worlds Of Yesterday‘ is a fine testament to a fine band.
From the Crimson-esque grandeur of The Sweetest Bitter Pill to the straightforward beauty of Before That Before, via the warped creativity of Lost In The Ghost Light and the engaging Pop ofStupid Things That Mean The World, this new compilation contains the band’s strongest work from 1971-1992.
I’ll let Tim Bowness give you his personal perspective on legendary Warrington Proggers Moonshot:
“My 2017 release Lost In The Ghost Light was a homage to the classic Rock album era. The album revolved around my interpretation of the contemporary musings of Moonshot leader Jeff Harrison, though the events in the songs took place between 1967 and 2017. During this period, Rock music had gone from a revolutionary force that defined the zeitgeist to the exact opposite (a safe and nostalgic reminder of a better time). Jeff’s career was of interest to me because he came from my home town and was born on the same date as me in exactly the same place (Victoria Park Maternity Home in Warrington as I’m sure you’re eager to know). It was 16 years earlier, but how could I not be curious?
In the 1970s and 1980s, there were no local musicians of note from the area, so (in both a good and a bad way) Jeff became something of a home town legend regularly played by DJs such as The Longford Lover.
On a personal level, I was interested in how Jeff and Moonshot had been passionately principled for its first 10 years, but seemed a little exhausted and compromised from that point on. Where did the inspiration / drive go? How was all relevance and credibility lost? Why did Jeff make the career choices he did?
Although some critics still rate the band’s early albums (as do I), it’s fair to say that Moonshot’s reputation was sullied by years of playing ‘golden oldies’ to diminishing audiences. Jeff’s 1980s penchant for wearing leopard skin outfits (a la Rod) and his dismissive remarks about contemporary music (post Punk) also had an impact on his critical standing.
In recent years, Jeff’s vocal aversion to downloading and streaming came across as bitter rather than insightful (he sometimes made a good point, but there was no moderation in the way he expressed his views). His latter-day obsessions with President Putin t-shirts and the falling standards of rice pudding production were a little (endearingly?) odd by any standards.”
I confess to having never heard of Moonshot until bass player David K. Jones got in touch about me reviewing this second compilation of material and I’m glad he did, their idiosyncratic music really piqued my interest and I confess to now becoming something of a fan.
The brilliant album opener Moonshot Manchild with it’s edgy, almost reggae rhythm and swirling keyboards is a wonderful piece of music, the vocals driving the storytelling along at a fair lick. The modern and up-to-date feel continues with Stupid Things That Mean The World with a powerful and stripped back bass line giving strong impetus and more of the excellent keyboards acting like the conductor to the vocals that have more than a hint of a certain Phil Collins to them and, let’s face it, that’s not a bad thing is it?.
This band may have their roots in the late 1960’s but the music is definitely of this century. The dreamlike and dramatic wonder of Worlds of Yesterday is an absolute delight to behold with it’s cultured vocal and intricate keyboards, an absolutely wonderful piece of music that shimmers and glows giving joy to the heart and soul. Lost in the Ghostlight is all mystery and cloak and dagger, an edgy and dark song that leaves you on edge as it befuddles your senses in an arbitrary manner.
This contorted originality continues with the slow burning brilliance of Nowhere Good to Go as it builds the tension to almost unbearable levels, the brooding keyboards intensifying in the background adding a hard edge to the vocals, a really clever piece of music. Moonshot show their storytelling originality once again on the utterly mesmerising The Great Electric Teenage Dream, eight minutes of spellbinding musical excellence. A hushed opening and atmospheric vocals play over lush keyboards. There’s a wonderful sparsity that proves beyond doubt that less is very often more. the wistful tone to the voice and the elegant piano add a nostalgic, melancholy tone and the delicately strummed guitar adds contemplation to create something sublime.
A thoughtful and beautiful addition to this compilation, Before That Before is a delight that touches you with its simple grace and heartbreaking mournfulness that leads up to the classic splendour and unashamed pomp of The Sweetest Bitter Pill. Complex and grandiose in scope, this is intelligently crafted music that accompanies the listener on this fascinatingly baroque journey, transfixed and transformed as it comes to a close.
The final track on the album is the towering and imposing Distant Summers, a wall of dynamic sound that washes over you with its unrelenting and almost primeval urge, a towering close to a great compilation of fantastic songs…
…did I say final? If you get the CD then you, lucky listener, get two bonus tracks. The first bonus Track is an enchanting Moonshot version of the Tim Bowness track You’ll Be The Silence and the second, Shadows, is a staggeringly good instrumental that includes themes from the songs on the album along with a new piano theme. To quote David K. Jones:
“We were thinking of Los Endos by Genesis!!!”
So, how to sum up this rather stunning compilation? ‘Worlds of Yesterday’ is, to me, like one of those great lost albums that resurfaces after decades in someone’s attic. I’d never heard of Moonshot before this but, boy, do I wish I had! Brilliantly crafted and delivered songs that feel bang up-to-date and resonate on every level. Believe me, this album should be on everybody’s wish list, it really is that good!
Released 17th January 2020 on Plane Groovy Records.
Order both the vinyl and CD version from Burning Shed here:
Following the successful studio album ‘Liquid’ and the magical live CD/DVD at Loreley recorded in the pouring rain, Blind Ego are back with a new album. And boy is there a new storm headed your way.
A solo project of RPWL guitarist Kalle Wallner, I was very impressed with the first album where Kalle let his harder side loose on some classy hard and melodic rock tracks. This new album turns the knob up to the mythical eleven in style.
The album’s title ‘Preaching to the Choir’ has different meanings, on different levels. When applied to the band Kalle Wallner says, “It’s about blind understanding. When you get the right people on board, there is no need for lengthy explanations. You just hit the recording button. And when you then give the right musicians the right music … that’s when they help you take it to the next level.” He goes on to say, “No need to convince anybody, no discussions. And no compromises are necessary. You just pump it out.”
When it comes to writing the music for Blind Ego‘Preaching to the Choir’ takes on a different meaning. “A lot of bands stick to their comfort zone, giving their fans exactly what they’ve come to expect. The album’s title is a reminder to explore and trust my own development and not be afraid to challenge the fans.”
With Kalle’s thunderous and yet expressive guitars the core of every track, the album opens with some gusto on Massive and the fantastic title track. A plethora of hard-edged riffs combine with the powerhouse drumming of Michael Christoph to give a monumental and elemental sound, a real hit to the solar plexus and the funky chorus just grabs you from the get-go making Preaching To The Choir one of the best hard rock tracks I’ve heard in quite a while!
Burning Alive gives a more melodic bent to proceedings and brings the excellent rock vocals of Scott Balaban to the fore. A pulsating and driving song with another killer chorus, I’m really getting into this finely crafted release. Things take a darker, funkier course on the mesmeric Line In The Sand with it’s grungy riff and harsher vocals. There’s real variety on show here and very impressive musical and songwriting ability on every track.
Dark Paradise, with its sense of melancholy and contemplation, takes the rock ballad and elevates it to a higher plane with some elegant guitar work and delicate bass and subdued drums which erupt, along with Scott’s powerful vocal, on the wonderful chorus. Polished hard rock returns with the invigorating and fast paced In Exile, a lesson in how to do an accessible rock track that doesn’t have to be obviously commercial.
Blind Ego are a rock band with all guns blazing, yet grown-up enough to take their finger off the trigger at just the right moments. There is no loud without silent, no hard without soft and this is all evident on the excellent Heading For The Stars with its combination of the subdued and the outspoken, one of my favourite tracks on the album. The anthemic, in your face and chest pounding Broken Land invokes The Scorpions to me. A straightforward, no-nonsense hard rock track that wears its heart on its sleeve and does so with pride.
A slow burning, thoughtful opening sees album closer The Pulse almost creep up on you but it is an intense, powerful and profound song that becomes almost all-encompassing and engrossing through its eight minutes plus running time. The music and lyrics ebb and flow with riveting skill, the piercing guitar solo a particular highlight.
‘Preaching To The Choir’ is a powerful statement of intent from this stellar musician and is a wonderfully crafted release. Hard rock of the highest calibre performed by musicians at the height of their game and working in perfect union. The bar just got raised even higher…
“There’s always room for a story that can transport people to another place.”
J.K.Rowling
Hibernal is a sci-fi post-rock project created by Brisbane native and author Mark R. Healy where, along with long term musical partner in crime Rowan Salt, Mark interweaves sci-fi stories with instrumental music to tell a compelling storyline that unfolds throughout the course of the album. The aim is to take the listener on an atmospheric, immersive and thought-provoking journey with every production.
I have become an avid fan of Mark’s work and it is always an occasion filled with great anticipation when a new Hibernal album is announced.
‘Beyond’ is the fifth release from this accomplished musician and storyteller and, in my opinion, is his best release yet.
“It was meant to be a routine mission. A crew of two sent to investigate an anomaly in the Rigel system at the foot of Orion.”
Using the excellent voice talents of long time collaborators Scott Gentle and Faleena Hopkins, we are told a twisting tale of two people who pass through a void in space and find a sinister and mind blowing world on the other side.
I am not going to spoil the story by writing an in depth review of the album but, suffice to say, it is one of Mark’s most engrossing and spine-tingling tales yet..
“As I watch, a pale blue star seems to throb and grow larger. With each pulse, shafts of azure light illuminate around it like the strands of a spider’s web. I can’t decide if it’s beautiful or terrifying. Then the moment passes, and the murk drifts overhead, obscuring my view.”
Hibernal albums are amazing cinematic soundscapes that have you on the edge of your seat, you feel invested in the characters and your heart is in your mouth waiting to hear what is going to happen next, the music adding an incredibly detailed and suspenseful accompaniment to the absorbing and compelling narrative.
I’d liken Mark’s work to an audiobook with musical backing, these are works that need to be listened to in one sitting, from beginning to end. I played ‘Beyond’ in full for the first time on one of my daily runs and soon found myself totally immersed in the story and itching to find out what was going to happen with Blake and Aven next, with music like this it truly doesn’t get much better than that.
“You can’t leave me. We’re in this together, Blake. Right to the end.”
‘Beyond’ is another tour de force from the undoubted master of cinematic storytelling. It is an enthralling and utterly gripping piece of work that holds your attention from its fascinating start, through its intriguing plot and right until the chilling end.
Mark R. Healy, my friend, you have done it again and this time it is your very best release yet!
Philadelphia- duo Rise Twain released their debut self-titled album last year on InsideOutMusic. The union of Brett William Kull (producer, audio engineer, and member of Echolyn, Grey Eye Glances, and Francis Dunnery’s New Progressives) and J.D. Beck (The Scenic Route, Beck-Fields, author & playwright) bring their collective years of direct and varied experience in writing, performing and recording music together for their impressive first album.
Today, the band have launched their first ever official video for the beautiful ‘Prayers’.
The band comments: “Prayers is an elegy for love to come down from a forbidden height, to call from the night, to remember, wake, and live again. It sings a desperate melody to the lost so that they may find their way home.”
The album is available to order on Limited CD Digipak, 180g Black Vinyl LP + CD & as digital album here: https://risetwain.lnk.to/RiseTwain
1. Everspring 2. Golden 3. The Range 4. Lit Up 5. Death of Summer 6. Oh This Life 7. Prayers 8. Falling Skies 9. Into A Dream 10. That Is Love
Talking of how the duo came together: “I produced an album for J.D.’s original band, The Scenic Route”, says Kull, describing his first meeting with Beck in 2007. “They were a rocky, progressive kind of band, like a Jeff Buckley kind of thing. I was immediately drawn to his vocals. He’s such a strong singer.” Kull says he and Beck immediately hit it off, what he describes as an “inevitable connection.”
Adds Beck, “I just knew I had to work with Brett on a higher level. When I came in to cut the vocals on the Scenic Route album, the way we worked together…some people you just gel with, and then some people you have a barrier with. Brett and I gelled.” They spoke of one day collaborating on their own project, which finally surfaces as Rise Twain.
Discussing the album’s musical direction, Beck notes, “There’s not a typical structural theme that we use over and over and over. ‘Organic’ is a word that comes to mind. Seeking openness through simplicity and allowing the complexity of music to exist without the necessity of overly packing it or overly processing it. With that we were able to achieve such a broad spectrum of sound, and a colossal sense of its existence, without having to have a billion guitars and a billion things put over top. There’s some colouring with strings and other embellishments, but it really is something very simple and stripped down, and it’s awesome.”
Kull adds, “There’s a lot of complexity in this, but it’s not overt in the least bit. But yet, when you get into it, there’s all this really rich harmonic and dynamic stuff going on.”
RISE TWAIN are: J.D. Beck: Piano, lead and backing vocals Brett William Kull: Guitars, bass, keys, percussion, lead and backing vocals
