The latest RPWL release "World Through My Eyes" is staggeringly good....they've come out of their Floyd-covers-band-do-their-own-material days ('tho previous releases are equally recommended, not just on the strength that Floyd no longer record/release new product)....and, IMHO, they've managed to utilise a plethora of different styles and "prog motifs", yet still retain their own sound - name-checking Kansas, Manfred Mann, Floyd (D'oh...!), and Bendragon, does them no justice...CHECK THEM OUT...!
Waiting on the shelf to be listened to are Magenta "Another Time...Another Place" ("Seven" just HAS to be 'done'), Nightwish "Bless The Child" EP, HIM "boxset" ("Love Metal" is THOROUGHLY RECOMMENDED), and in the post as I type, is a new band to me - "Within Temptation"....more, as and when....
What have you to suggest...?
I'm listening to Luca Turilli's 'Prophet of the Last Eclipse' atm. I was interested if he could make a difference to the Rhapsody albums. And I must say, he does. Good album. Can't wait to get my fingers on the new one.
I always recommend SYLVAN (http://www.sylvan.de) when someone asks me...
Cheers Peter, I'll get Malc @ GFT to throw me a Sylvan SOR CD...
BTW, should I be asking you how the bass playing is going....?
Quote from: gelert on Fri, 2005-01-28, 22:16:57
The latest RPWL release "World Through My Eyes" is staggeringly good....they've come out of their Floyd-covers-band-do-their-own-material days ('tho previous releases are equally recommended, not just on the strength that Floyd no longer record/release new product)....and, IMHO, they've managed to utilise a plethora of different styles and "prog motifs", yet still retain their own sound - name-checking Kansas, Manfred Mann, Floyd (D'oh...!), and Bendragon, does them no justice...CHECK THEM OUT...!
Waiting on the shelf to be listened to are Magenta "Another Time...Another Place" ("Seven" just HAS to be 'done'), Nightwish "Bless The Child" EP, HIM "boxset" ("Love Metal" is THOROUGHLY RECOMMENDED), and in the post as I type, is a new band to me - "Within Temptation"....more, as and when....
What have you to suggest...?
I had the first RPWL album but didn't think too much of it - sounds like they've improved so I may well check them out again. Magentas's "Seven" didn't do much for me either, nice vocalist but way too many "Yes" overtones and generic 'prog' pieces for me to take seriously I'm afraid.
Nightwish are a band I'd heard a lot about and I've just ordered "Century Child", similarly looking towards checking out Within Temptation & The Gathering.
Waiting with barely contained excitement for the new Porcupine Tree opus on March 21st ;D
Quote from: Moonloop on Tue, 2005-02-01, 10:40:04
Waiting with barely contained excitement for the new Porcupine Tree opus on March 21st ;D
Mmm... Porcupine Tree
They are VERY top notch aren't they? Sophisticated, class music. Hear them often on the station (Radio Paradise) in my sig file. There's a lot of good stuff there that I'd never have considered before. Try Lumin by Hadra - no sorry, it's Hadra by Lumin. It conjures up all sorts of images and makes you want to eat spicy food! Excellent. Then there's Loreena McKennitt, Hem, Kent, Calexico. Man, what a goove! Then you can get all sad and whimsical when they play Nick Drake.
Aural Moon is good but too anal. People request 30 min theramin solos and other tracks that are best left forgotten. Come on admit it, there is some real prog dross out there. IQ have done a fair bit of it too IMHO. But they've also done some outstanding work. Ever. Subterranea.
Mind you, I STILL reckon that 'The Masquerade Overture' is one of the finest albums I've ever heard. It just hits the spot for me and is rarely far from one of my CD players/computers.
GLD's 'Forces' is getting a lot of play lately as well. A band that I like but get hassle for admitting it :-( At least they never made me wince over some of their lyrics :-)
I've had to change my listening habits recently as my 25 seater CD machine packed up the other week. I have my Macs connected to my hifi but also have my DVD player connected. My CD's sound much better through this so I'm revisiting them. And a decent pair of headphones has made a difference too (I bet the neighbours like them as well).
Shields to full power... let's go!
Ian
Quite a few names which I haven't heard of there :o
Agree though, just because a band may be prog-based, doesn't mean they're any good. Do love most of the IQ stuff though, although the new one is proving hard work to get into.
Remember getting the first Grey Lady Down album, loved it as it sounded like Marillion ::) thought they began to get a bit too technical after album 2 and lost the songwriting ability. Still a good band though.
My 'prog' album of last year would probably be "Kallocain" by "Paatos". The PR blurb described it as a mix of King Crimson, Bjork & Portishead - which to be honest, isn't too far off being accurate.
;D
Well, thanks MASSIVELY, Oliver Twist and Moonloop.....
They say that the best praise comes from unsolicited sources....
But I won't spoil the moment....
Quote from: Moonloop on Tue, 2005-02-01, 10:40:04
Nightwish are a band I'd heard a lot about and I've just ordered "Century Child", similarly looking towards checking out Within Temptation & The Gathering.
You might also want to try "After Forever" and Epica.
With Nightwish try the latest album "Once" or the second album "Oceanborne"
Quote from: sotonrobin on Mon, 2005-02-07, 14:09:45
With Nightwish try the latest album "Once" or the second album "Oceanborne"
...or try the boxset "1997 - 2001"
AND "Once" (platinum edition) - boxset I've seen on Tesco's website for c.£28-00, which for their first(?) four albums, including "Oceanborn", is top VFM... Or try ST Records in Dudley...
I'd recommend Ayreon (http://www.ayreon.com/home/index.php) to everyone. The albums are projects/rock opera's by Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Clive has appeared on some of the albums. (That's part of how I came to know about arena)
'Into the Electric Castle' is still my favourite, but the new album 'The Human Equation' is also a masterpiece. Lately the older albums are being re-issued and 'tuned up' with bonusses, extra's, doc's and rerecordings of songs. It's brilliant so give it a try if you haven't heard of it.
Quote from: Appelmoes?? on Mon, 2005-02-07, 20:33:09
I'd recommend Ayreon (http://www.ayreon.com/home/index.php) to everyone. The albums are projects/rock opera's by Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Clive has appeared on some of the albums. (That's part of how I came to know about arena)
'Into the Electric Castle' is still my favourite, but the new album 'The Human Equation' is also a masterpiece. Lately the older albums are being re-issued and 'tuned up' with bonusses, extra's, doc's and rerecordings of songs. It's brilliant so give it a try if you haven't heard of it.
Hugs, Appelmoes, Ayreon is also on my fav list! ItEC is really a super-great album, especially "Isis and Osiris". Oh dear, I love that song.
Peter has recommended Sylvan already, so let me bring Fates Warning back into the game. I LOVE the "Pleasant Shade of Gray" which to me is on the eternal Top Five of Prog albums....with Song No. IX it actually contains THE Song of me and my wife. And if a Mexican liking a Prog song isn't a sign of quality, what else is ?
And with No. XII they have created a masterpiece that I can only compare with DT's Metropolis Part II from Images and Words.
....sorry, got carried away... :)
FW recently released "FWX" which I haven't got into yet, need some more spins to grow into it.
I can also recommend watching them on stage, it's fabulous. Had that chance once, when they played together with Savatage (a divine combination !) in Atlanta in front of, imagine that, 250 people !!! Incredible !
Quote from: sotonrobin on Mon, 2005-02-07, 14:09:45
You might also want to try "After Forever" and Epica.
With Nightwish try the latest album "Once" or the second album "Oceanborne"
Agreed, they do sound interesting, it's just that when I get to a bit which says something along the lines of "...and combined with the excrutiating grunts of..." it does tend to put me off a bit :( , I mean, musically, I love Opeth for example but really dislike the cookie monster vocal style on some of the tracks.
Quote from: Moonloop on Tue, 2005-02-08, 09:01:09
I love Opeth for example but really dislike the cookie monster vocal style on some of the tracks.
Couldn't of put it better.
Quote from: Draddi on Tue, 2005-02-08, 06:23:53
And if a Mexican liking a Prog song isn't a sign of quality, what else is ?
What about a Mexican prog band? Elfonia, with a wonderful female vocalist Marcela Bovio.
Came across this band via the Ayreon album "The Human Equation".
Quote from: sotonrobin on Tue, 2005-02-08, 14:53:43
What about a Mexican prog band? Elfonia, with a wonderful female vocalist Marcela Bovio.
Came across this band via the Ayreon album "The Human Equation".
A mexican prog band ? Who would have thought....can I order them online ? You got a link ?
Quote from: Draddi on Thu, 2005-02-10, 06:05:29
A mexican prog band ? Who would have thought....can I order them online ? You got a link ?
http://www.elfonia.com/
Ayreon, yes! And Fish sings on Into the electric castle, and does one of his finest performances. That's one thing about Arjen: He manages to draw the best out of every one. The singer from Stratovarius sang for him, and all of a sudden he's lost his finnish accent, for example...
While we're at people singing on Ayreon albums: Check out Shadow Gallery. Especially "Carved in stone" and "Tyranny". The first, self-titled, album is also fantastic, but it was originally only meant as a demo, but got released as it was. Only let-down is the drum machine, although a lot of work has gone into the programming. Anyway, Mike Baker is a serious contender for the title "Best singer in the universe". A range few people possess, a control that can't be bettered and artistic passion only Steve Perry could compete with. And the best songs I've heard in my life. So. I'm a fan, alright. But check it out! I like them for some of the same reasons I like Arena. Only, in the areas where I feel Arena has much room for improvements, SG is state of the art.
Fates Warning... Started out as a shitty band, got better and better, peaked at "Perfect symmetry", or even "Parallels", then started a downslide that never seems to end. At "A pleasant shade of gray", they were still pretty good, and the mentioned part is fantastic. But some of the stuff in the beginning of the album pointed in the direction they've headed since. Noise, depressing, less melodic, veeeery slow. "PS" is my favourite album from them. Light-footed prog/jazz influenced melodic pearls, and even one of the most beautiful ballads I've ever heard, "Chasing time". Highly recommended. If you'll like it, you'll love it!
Ayreon is my all-time favourite! As Appelmoes?? stated counts for me as well: thats how I first learned about ArenA :)
i can recommend a band from Holland (the same city as Appelmoes??): Picture of the Moon (http://www.pictureofthemoon.net/)
Wwhen you hear them it is quiet obvious that their very much inspired by DreamTheater, but they still have their own unique sound :)
Just pay your attention to such fine bands as: Retroheads, Metamorphosis, Navigator, Satellite, Red Sand, Carptree, Cryptic Vision, Satellite, Karnataka. Suppose, you won't be disappointed.
Quote from: The Voyager on Mon, 2005-03-07, 10:48:04
Just pay your attention to such fine bands as: Retroheads, Metamorphosis, Navigator, Satellite, Red Sand, Carptree, Cryptic Vision, Satellite, Karnataka. Suppose, you won't be disappointed.
Hmmmm ... I see Satellite got mentioned twice .... must be something subliminal going on here as I suddenly feel the urge to check them out :)
Quote from: Simtere on Wed, 2005-04-27, 16:15:26
Hmmmm ... I see Satellite got mentioned twice .... must be something subliminal going on here as I suddenly feel the urge to check them out :)
Yes, do that, because Satellite are really class :)
I would recommend Alias Eye
   DEAD SOUL TRIBE  I simply love their music!
By the way: hi there everyone. My first post here. ;)
Quote from: Noah on Tue, 2005-05-17, 19:37:10
   DEAD SOUL TRIBE  I simply love their music!
By the way: hi there everyone. My first post here. ;)
Hi Noah and welcome :)
Quote from: Noah on Tue, 2005-05-17, 19:37:10
DEAD SOUL TRIBE I simply love their music!
By the way: hi there everyone. My first post here. ;)
Welcome :)
I heard DST live last year before Threshold played @De Boerderij, Zoetermeer and wasn't really impressed. Probably the soundguys fault 'cause the music was reaheaheally too loud, my ears hurt so bad >:( But recently I got an Inside Out cd with some songs on it, incuding one from DST and that one didn't sound that bad :) Still I'm a little reluctant to buy an album.
@Appelmoes??
You should really give it a try! It's music you have to listen to a few times to get familiar with.
But I guess you have to like that heavier, more "metal" sound to really like their music.
Which I certainly do.. ;-)
And as I'm very much into heavier, darker music, it's that kind of balance between really heavy rhythms and guitars and stuff and that "proggier" side that makes them so special for me.... and the dark lyrics.
But I can't describe music in words anyway!
Oh, and thanks for the welcome.
Ah, dark lyrics, well then I will have to read those too before I buy an album.
Quote from: Appelmoes?? on Wed, 2005-05-18, 12:35:09
Ah, dark lyrics
Dark as in: black coloured font?
When lyrics are written in a white colour you wont read them first? :P
but honestly, I agree with Appelmoes?? about those dark lyrics, I cant identify myself with a lot of 'dark-lyricced' bands, some lyrics are even disturbing imho.
Not really my kind of thing. Oh, and I also heard DST @De Boerderij before Threshold, liked Threshold way better! ;)
hadnt heard about them before, but since I heard them I seem to encounter these guys occasionnaly now and then.
You seem to get it wrong.
Don't panic! Not DARK in that way. Not like Gothic-Dark, you know.
That has got nothing to do with that. More like the darker sides of ourselfs. And maybe a bit pessimistic sometimes.
But I would consider some of the Arena lyrics (Contagion... , The Shattered Room...and many more) as dark, too.
And I don't think they are disturbing!
And on the new album "the january tree" the darker (sorry) lyrics have almost disappeared.
So maybe you guys should start with that one. If you want to, of course.
Hope I haven't put DST into the wrong "image" now.
And if you want dark lyrics you should listen to some Black Metal. ;)
My friends:
20 cd's for progressive rock/metal fans I recommend for a "newbie":
Dream Theater - Metropolis 2000 Live
Shadow Gallery - Room 5
Neal Morse - Testimony
Transatlantic - Live In Europe
Isildurs Bane - Mind Vol. 4
Spock's Beard - Octane
Pallas - The Blinding Darkness
Pendragon - Live In Krakow
Kino - Picture
Ayreon - The Human Equation
Angra - Temple Of Shadows
Therion - Sirius B & Lemuria
Quidam - Time Beneath The Sky
Arena - Live & Life
RPWL - The World Through My Eyes
Satellite - Evening Games
Ark - Burn The Sun
Vanden Plas - Beyond Daylight
Time Machine - Reviviscence
Threshold - Critical Energy
I highly recommend you give ear to this:
Shadow Gallery - Room V
...or any of their work. I don't know anyone in this world that writes better songs, and the singer is "subtly" the classiest and most plesant Pavarotti I've heard. Hard to explain. He's just brilliant without the big adverts. I don't think he will ever cease to amaze me with his attention to detail, and his ability to do anything required. A great, clean voice, and seemingly limitless range. -Again, not forced down your throat all the time. More something you realize over time.
Ok, they ARE my favourite band!! ;D
www.shadowgallery.com (http://www.shadowgallery.com)