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Recommendations....

Started by gelert, Fri, 2005-01-28, 22:16:57

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gelert

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...?



Internationally Affiliated Member of the Federated Union of Conundrums, Kudos, & Eccentric Dialogue, featuring the Scantily Clad Radii Of The Ubiquitous Meniscus - our motto "Time flies like an arrow - fruit flies like a banana"

Peter

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 when someone asks me...
Arriving somewhere, but not here....

gelert

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....?
Internationally Affiliated Member of the Federated Union of Conundrums, Kudos, & Eccentric Dialogue, featuring the Scantily Clad Radii Of The Ubiquitous Meniscus - our motto "Time flies like an arrow - fruit flies like a banana"

Moonloop

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
The brainwashed do not know that they are brainwashed...

Oliver Twist

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
web.mac.com/ianmoff  - iChat/AIM: ianmoff
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Do your ears a favour - www.radioparadise.com

Moonloop

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
The brainwashed do not know that they are brainwashed...

gelert

Well, thanks MASSIVELY, Oliver Twist and Moonloop.....

They say that the best praise comes from unsolicited sources....


But I won't spoil the moment....
Internationally Affiliated Member of the Federated Union of Conundrums, Kudos, & Eccentric Dialogue, featuring the Scantily Clad Radii Of The Ubiquitous Meniscus - our motto "Time flies like an arrow - fruit flies like a banana"

sotonrobin

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"
Because he was human
Because he had goodness
Because he was moral
They called him insane

gelert

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...
Internationally Affiliated Member of the Federated Union of Conundrums, Kudos, & Eccentric Dialogue, featuring the Scantily Clad Radii Of The Ubiquitous Meniscus - our motto "Time flies like an arrow - fruit flies like a banana"

Appelmoes??

I'd recommend Ayreon 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.
For some good reading visit:""Fluffy Kittens of DOOM"!

My drawings on MySpace


Peter

Quote from: Appelmoes?? on Mon, 2005-02-07, 20:33:09
I'd recommend Ayreon 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.
Arriving somewhere, but not here....

Draddi

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 !

Moonloop

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.
The brainwashed do not know that they are brainwashed...

sotonrobin

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.
Because he was human
Because he had goodness
Because he was moral
They called him insane

sotonrobin

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".
Because he was human
Because he had goodness
Because he was moral
They called him insane

Draddi

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 ?

sotonrobin

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/
Because he was human
Because he had goodness
Because he was moral
They called him insane

Deenfan

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!

NijntjeRocks

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
Wwhen you hear them it is quiet obvious that their very much inspired by DreamTheater, but they still have their own unique sound :)
Nijntje=Miffy. Original Miffy: (in Dutch)

The Voyager


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.

Simtere

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 :)

Proglady

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  :)


Noah

      DEAD SOUL TRIBE    I simply love their music!

By the way: hi there everyone. My first post here.  ;)

Proglady

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  :)