| The "Whirlwind" is the 3rd studio release from Super'prog group Transatlantic who have released yet another gem. Once again we are treated to the creative output of 4 of Prog's biggest names (Trewavas of Marillion, Portnoy of Dream Theatre, Stolt of FlowerKings and Morse of Spocks Beard". This Quad formation never cease to amaze me musically! Although the Whirlwind does not break any new musical ground here it does stand up as strong as its close competitors (IQ, Marillion, Porcupine Tree etc....). This album ebbs and flows with huge dynamic tempo and moods shifts and brings to life the musical imagination of these very talented musicians. My package comes with a second CD which is as good as the first adding 4 additional new tracks recorded during the Whirlwind session as well as 4 bonus tribute tracks (The Return Of The Giant Hogweed (Genesis), A Salty Dog (Procol Harum), I Need You (America / The Beatles) and Soul Sacrifice (Santana) | |||
| Benefit was the 3rd album released by Ian Anderson and the lads. On Benefit i think this was the album where JT really hit their stride and created the classic Tull sound we have all come to adore. Not a weak track on this album fro start to finish and I think Benefit is relly one of the Great prog JT albumns ! "Benefit" has become sadly overshadowed thru the years by fan favourite "Aqualung" which in many ways I find them quite complimentary actually and Benefit is a prelude of what was to come in many ways. Benefit also featured a guest appearance by John Evans on the piano and organ who adds some new depth to the music JT were exploring at the time. This album also features some great guitar work from Martin Barre (aka Son). Highly recommended slice of Tull !! | |||
| Dry Cleaning Ray was a 2004 mini-album release by British Art rock band No-Man. According to the liner notes this CD was intended to be a companion release to Wild Opera with songs and re-mixes from the Wild Opera recording sessions. No-Man is of course the genius of Tim Bowness and Steve Wilson who together have recorded some stunning material. Dry Cleaning Ray is a lovely mix of pop and Porcupine Tree vibes and contains some fantastic tracks. | |||
| It was the song "My Sunday Feeling" that did it for me for the Tull'sters. At this point in their career Jethro Tull were primarily a blues- rock band with slight psych and prog leanings. "This Was" was the debut album for Jethro Tull and marks the start of a wonderful long career of albums. The album is R&B based with an overall serene feeling to it and offers the listener a first glimpse into what was to come. Mick Abrahams plays on this album but soon after left to form Blodwyn Pig and the rest is history | |||
| Il Laser sadly only recorded one gem of an album and then broke up. Laser have that classic vintage 70's Prog sound with deep tonal keyboards (aka Deep Purple) with fantatsic drumming and guitar/bass interplay. Fans of Ital-prog will need to hunt this little jem down! Thanks again to Mauro Moroni of Mellow Records for making this good quality vinyl transfer available to us all. Get your copies before they are out of print. Highly recommended album | |||
| Imagine being trapped out in space with your only companion being an ipod! Well that is the latest creation from Mack Maloney who takes us on a musical voyage into space. Musically this album is solid from start to finish and I love the range of themes and moods this album offers. Sky Club is a number of original scores with the vast majority creatively reinterpreting older songs. I am a huge fan of Pete Townsend and they do a great job of opening the CD with "Don't let Go The Coat" as well as Mike and the Mechanics "Silent Running" and even something by The Syn's Steve Nardelli, Journey, Cream and the Jars of Clay along the way. The musicians featured with Maloney (Keys) are top notch...Mark Poulin(guitars, vocals, bass, percussion), Rich Kennedy (guitars), Amadee Castenell whose sax on "Send Her My Love" is just heavenly and Chris Billias (piano). All I can say is that if I ever discover an IPOD in space I hope Sky Club is one of the featured albums on it !! | |||
| "Poohlover" was one of the last progressive influenced albums Italy's iPooh released and it is a real beauty!. As you would expect the album is highly orchestral and symphonic and plays to the emotions of the listener. Red, Dody, Roby and Stefano wrote some of their more emotive songs like "Pierre" and "Il Primo Giorno Di Liberta" that make me so darn meloncholic everytime i listen to this album. "Poohlover" also contains one of my personal favourite Ital-prog songs "Uno Straniero Venuto Dal Tempo" which has personal deep meaning to me. A truely inspired album from a band whose music has meant so much to me over the years. If you have never heard the music of early iPooh then you have missed out. | |||
| Bi Kyo Ran has always been compared to King Crimson and I can't disagree with this! However, this does not mean that they are a carbon copy or simple immitators ! Bi Kyo Ran mix as many elements say of RUSH as they do King Crimson. ...enough of the comparisons ..lets talk about this album shall we ? Without a question this is an amazing band and i love this album ! Imagine heavy bass lines topped with Fripp-like guitar accents and that famous noodling with excellent and complex drumming and I think you got it. Sometimes frantic..sometimes melodic...sometimes beatiful and sometimes looping yet always calculating and with purpose. And what could make a prog even more complete than a good dose of mellotron to keep you in genre!. There are some vocals on this album as well which actaully are quite good and never get in the way to be honest and in fact i think add something to the music and not detract from it. This debut album is an excellent musical tour of harmony, dissonance, rhythm, and ordered chaos. This album will keep your toes tapping and your mind trying to catch up. | |||
| Released in 1980 due to the high interest and popularity in his Private parts work, Anthony Phillips (ex-Genesis) went back and released part II (sub titled "Back To The Paviilion"). This is another great solo album that has been missed (including by many Genesis fans) featuring some lovely symphionic and acoustic pieces as well as more electric'fied stuff. Anthony is joined by friends as well on this album with guest appearances by Mike Rutherford, Andy McCulloch, Michael Giles and Mel Collns (no not Phil!) Anthony sums up this album well in his final footnotes " this album is dedicated to those who still champion the "old-fashioned" ideas of beauty, lyricism and grandeur in art". I ordered the recently re-mastered version right from Anthony's website direct which came autographed making this one a little extra special for me personally. | |||
| In 1973 Peter Sinfield took a reprive from his King Crimson lyricist role to pen and tour this little lost prog treasure of an album interestingly titled "Still". This album is I guess as much progressive as it is rock as it is folk and clearly Sinfield did not want to re-create another King Crimson album at all. His conscious and liberal use of the Freeman Symphoniser synth vs the mellotron helps maintain the distance from the "21st Century" days, however with the inclusion of 7 Crimson-associated musicians it is amazing that it was able to keep its own character! Guest appearances are made by Mel Collins, Keith Tipett, John Wetton, Ian Wallace and Greg Lake. "Still" is a very uneven album which is part of the attraction for me and has sustained a place in my music endeavours. I believe this is a classic album and if you are a fan you should pick up the Manticore 2 CD re-master as it contains extra songs and demo's of the early mixes which are quite enjoyable. | |||
| Before the classic Renaissance line up broke up they recorded this little gem of an album and ushered in the 80's. "Azure D'or" was one of those albums that some Renaissance fans love and others put near the bottom. For me personally I am a fan of this album (thus the inclusion on my site) very much and although not of the same ilk as "Ashes Are Burning" or " Turn Of The Cards" still has some wonderful Haslam - renaissance moments. "Jekyll and Hyde" and "The Winter Tree" are the first 2 tracks that open this album (need I say any more?). Jon Camp gets a vocal solo on "Only Angels Have Wings" which is a great tune actually (although I always prefer Annie). This album was produced by David Hentschel who also produced Genesis' classic "WIND AND WUTHERING". | |||
| Keith Tippett is an acquired taste and i will admit likely not for the casual listener. Fans of Fusion Miles Davis era will however likely dig this album big time ! Tippett is a jazz musician who clearly pushes the boundaries on all sides and often creates such angular music that it can almost impossible to decipher. Centipede is a very mis-understood recording and one of the albums that i love and each time I hear something different. Centipede is really musical mayhem personified! Tippett assembled over 50 musicians to help him record this thriller......including members of Soft Machine, King Crimson, Blossom Toes, British rockers Nucleus, Patto and the creme de-la creme of Brit jazz players. The end result is a wild album that never rests and contains both the beauty and beast. Not to be taken to lightly this album will challenge your progressive rock limits ! Enjoy | |||
| Though best known for their membership in The Strawbs, the rhythm section of John Ford (bass) and Richard Husdon (drums) recorded a number of excellent albums with 1973's "Nickelodean" rising to the top for me. This album is a bit folky and a bit rock and in many ways not unlike the classic Strawbs material of the same era. I actually hear McCartney-esque soft rock etudes throughout this album (not unlike ELO's Time album) yet it resonates with unique charm. Highly recommended album that I dont think has ever been officially released on CD yet. | |||
| Here is one of my personal favourite prog albums from Canada ! Imagine a mix of Canada's "FM", "Morse Code" and "Maneige" with France's "Tai Phong" and i think you then may have an idea of what this album sounds like. This excellent album features some top notch progressive electronic-space flights and in many ways also has a PULSAR'ish vibe to the album. Tai Phong's Jean Alain Gardet and Jean-Jacques Goldman also join as guests making this an extra special and rare album for your collection. This is also a great headphone listening album | |||
| Years ago I discovered Egg's "The Polite Force" which is still to this day one of my fav Canterbury albums. "The Civil Surface" was egg's 3rd album and is really a way underrated album (in fact so too are Egg). On this album Dave Stewart was pushing the boundaries of Prog rock with the heavy use of accompanying woodwinds, French Horn , flute and harmonic vocals. The results are a delicate yet stunning mix of ever-changing moods and rhythms....all carefully orchestrated by Stewart. I suppose this album is less likeable than the frist 2 Egg albums but after a few listens this album will rank i bet as high and the earlier gems do. This is an excellent album that I highly recommend to lovers of classical and prog rock. | |||
| Gong are a strange band and that is for sure....and they do some stuff I love and some stuff that I can take a pass on, however Angels Egg is an album i enjoy from start to finish. Daevid Allen, Didier Malherbe, Steve Hillage and Pierre Moerlen wrote and recorded the Flying Teacup trilogy (I previously reviewed their 3rd album "You") which over the 3 albums paints a stange story of the Pot-Headed Pixies and the flying Teacups ( I sitll dont get this to be honest but I dont think they do either). This album contains some great space music and interesting twists and turns. So strap on the ol' headphones, fasten your seatbelts and get ready for the space travel of our lifetime. | |||
| "Fallen Angel" is the second album released from Canada's Dream Aria and an album that will really grab you ! Right from the opening heavy bombastic opening title track to the progressive percussive mayhem of "Abstract Relations" this album really kicks into high gear. This album actually reminds me in parts of Ayreon's heavy prog sound. Fallen Angel is an aggressive and dark forboding album that will hold your interest from start to end. | |||
| Coming Soon | |||
