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[maddox]

I love Transatlantic but I can't stand The Flower Kings. Will I like Kaipa?

NP: Shadowland - A Matter Of Perspective

Tom

Difficult one.
I mean, despite the presence of some Flower Kings members, the sound can't really be compared with TFK.
You still hear the voice of Roine Stolt of course but it's something I don't mind listening to.
Their new album In The Wake Of Evolution has only Jonas Reingold from TFK. Great bassplayer by the way.

It's a bit folky, and some parts somehow reminds me, especially vocal-wise, of Ritual, but that's probably because the new male singer, Patrik Lundström, is also the singer/guitarist of Ritual.

I think it's a pretty good release.
One of the highlights this year.

Maybe you should check out their Myspace site for more info. 

[Iggy]

Ziltoid the Omniscient - Devin Townsend

Probably my favourite of his.

[Iggy]

Cerulean Blue - Rain.

More rock than prog or metal.

[Nicky007]

NP  A7:  Diamonds In The Rough

Terrific album  

Probably their heaviest yet.

I'v had Diamonds on repeat the past two days - it's sooooo good !

And it's already given me two stuck-on songs:  Until The End and Demon.

Until The End is the catchiest song I'v heard for long.

M. Shadows is arguably the most powerful singer on the prog scene currently (now that Rob Halford has become more subtle, and our resident Rob is rather silent)  

It's tragic that The Rev died. He should'v been around to experience the well-deserved success that A7 are getting (e.g. almost 1 million fans at their Facebook site).

Musically, of course, we're well served by Mike on the drums  

Tom, Funkster, Iggy, Mad, Cap, I'm sure A7 is somethin for you guys, maybe even Bups, Teunis and Manatee (there's no growl)  

Nicky.

[Nicky007]

NP  Mutiny Within  on  MySpace 

Nicky.

[Nicky007]

NP  Dominici  on  MySpace  

Good ol' Charlie, and his band  

This is quite good, guys, real metalprog, reminds me of TOT  


Nice, from Wiki - Charlie Dominici:

"Charlie auditioned for Dream Theater in 1987 and was hired for the job in November of that year.

Charlie performed on the band's debut album, 1989's When Dream and Day Unite. However, Dominici was older than the rest of the band and there were personal and creative differences at work. It was felt that, despite being a very talented singer, his decidedly "pop" vocal style did not fit in with the distinctive progressive direction that the band's compositions were taking. According to Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, "It was like having Billy Joel singing in Queensrÿche." A good singer in the wrong band, they amicably parted ways shortly thereafter.

Charlie remained in contact with Dream Theater throughout their career, despite lapsing out of the music business and obtaining a job as a finance manager in the automobile business. Charlie was hired by Mike Portnoy to sing at his wedding to Marlene Apuzzo. Charlie started working on an album with his brother, guitarist Kane Daily, that never saw the light of day.

Charlie's voice was also heard on the YtseJam Records release "When Dream And Day Unite Demos" which featured pre-production and vocal demos of several songs.

On March 6, 2004, Charlie joined his former bandmates onstage in Los Angeles for the first time in 15 years for a special performance celebrating the 15th anniversary of the band's first album. After the band performed the entire album, they began playing "To Live Forever" a non-album track that was written in the same time period, and singer James LaBrie announced Charlie, who sang most of the song. The band then launched into "Metropolis" which was also written in that time period, with Charlie and James singing a duet, and also being joined by former keyboardist Derek Sherinian. This performance was later released by YtseJam Records on CD and DVD versions entitled "When Dream And Day Reunite". The DVD version also features footage from the band's 1989 tour with Charlie of each song, as well as documentary footage. Despite having not actively sung since leaving Dream Theater in 1989, this performance gave him the itch to make music again and in 2005, he released a solo album entitled O3: A Trilogy, Part 1, the first album of a three-album concept piece.

Charlie subsequently signed a deal with InsideOut Music for a worldwide release of the second instalment of the trilogy, O3: A Trilogy, Part 2, which was released in February 2007. This album was recorded with a full band under the band name Dominici and showed a heavier, more metal progressive style than the former. The final part, O3: A Trilogy, Part Three, was released in April 2008.

Dominici opened for Dream Theater at three shows at their Chaos in Motion World Tour in June 2007."

Nicky.

[Nicky007]

NP  Amorphis:  Skyforger  (on repeat)  

Tom, thanx for gettin me onto this fine band  

The first Finnish band that really grips me  

There's quite some Anathema and Floyd mood in Skyforger  

Looks like the vodka hasnt wiped out these guys  


"In Finnish mythology, the Sampo was a magical artifact of indeterminate type constructed by Ilmarinen that brought good fortune to its holder. When the Sampo was stolen, it is said that Ilmarinen's homeland fell upon hard times and sent an expedition to retrieve it, but in the ensuing battle it was smashed and lost at sea."

- Wiki: Sampo

Nicky.

[Nicky007]

Here ya got a chance to hear a great song, A7's  Until The End:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPP01XiO58s

You can get the the lyrics by clickin the double arrow under the loudspeaker icon.

Enjoy !

Nicky.

[Bupie]

Interesting, never heard of them before. Another band to check.

Ultravox - Vienna

A classic, awesome new wave LP album

[Nicky007]

Interesting, never heard of them before. Another band to check.

If it's Avenged Sevenfold (A7) you mean, Bups, then you'l be hearing a lot more: In the States, they'r just as big or bigger than Dream Theater now, and they'r also getting over to Europe, maybe even to France 

And you can hear our old friend Mike Portnoy play all drums on the next A7 studio album. Sadly their longterm drummer Jimmy Sullivan aka The Rev died recently.

From Wiki - Avenged Sevenfold:

"On February 17, 2010, Avenged Sevenfold stated that they had entered the studio, along with Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, to drum for the record, in place of the Rev. "I want our fans to know that with Jimmy in our hearts, our journey to record has officially began. Jimmy helped leave this world an amazing gift and now it's our job to make sure to deliver that gift to our fans. We asked Jimmy's all time favorite drummer Mike Portnoy to record on behalf of him. Mike said it would be an honor and without question that's what Jim would have wanted. It's comforting to us that someone like Mike, who is undoubtedly revered as one of the best drummers in the world, held such respect and adoration for the Rev's abilities. Even though it will never be the same without our brother by our side, his essence lives in our hearts and through the music he helped create. He was a legend before any of the success or any of that bullshit and we are fucking excited to lay this down for our fans, and especially for Jimmy." Mike stated that it would be an "honor" to play for the band."

Mike's "honor" is by no means an exaggeration, as A7 are as great a band as DT 

So we'l be hearing a lot more about'm - and by'm 

Nicky.

[Nicky007]

NP  Pyramaze:  Legend Of The Bone Carver  (on repeat)  

Danish/American progmetal band with Lance King on vocals on this album. Close to Iced Earth. (Matt Barlow sang all main vocals on Pyramaze's Immortal.)

Interesting lyrics about the struggle between "Good and Evil".


"Good and Evil
The one seems to be unable to exist without the other
There's always been a balance between them
Everytime something bad happened, something good would take its place elsewhere."

- Opening words for Legend Of The Bone Carver

Nicky.

[Peter]

np: Blackfield - 2007 - Blackfield II

So smooth...

[Nicky007]

NP  Bigelf  on  MySpace 

http://www.myspace.com/bigelf

These days they'r playing gigs in the States together with Porcupine Tree 

Nicky.

[The Butterfly Man]

Actually, it sounds even better than Nevermore without vocals.

For a long while I thought that Warrel was the genius of Nevermore, but when I heard ZOP, I realised that Jeff was too. Nowadays prog genius is usually the result of two or three extraordinarily gifted musicians getting together - and sticking together ! - and that's the case for Nevermore too.

I hope you guys soon getit: ZOP is a monster album, in my mind the ultimate progmetal guitar album!

You'l be hearing things on this album that you never thought existed !

OK, sure it's a difficult album to get into - sinister (no surprise there), cranky, sneaky, all that stuff - but once you'r there, you start hearing heaps of melody, harmony, all the stuff that makes us go whoaaaaaa  

Hey Nicky, guess what...... I've heard ZOP! Man, why did it take me so long to give it a chance? It's great! Especially for guitar-fanatics like myself. The album's a real rollercoaster-ride with some killer songs. The greatest thing about it is that when it's finished you start realizing you didn't even miss any vocals, as opposed to some other instrumental albums out there.
He doesn't look like it with his long blonde hair, but Jeff Loomis is a beast! From brutal riffing to heavenly melodic playing, he makes it sound like it's just a walk in the park. It probably is for him, but not for me!

I mean, despite the presence of some Flower Kings members, the sound can't really be compared with TFK.
You still hear the voice of Roine Stolt of course but it's something I don't mind listening to.
Their new album In The Wake Of Evolution has only Jonas Reingold from TFK. Great bassplayer by the way.
It's a bit folky, and some parts somehow reminds me, especially vocal-wise, of Ritual, but that's probably because the new male singer, Patrik Lundström, is also the singer/guitarist of Ritual.
Maybe you should check out their Myspace site for more info.  

Hmm, I'm not really into folk, but I will check out their MySpace. Thanks Mad!

NP  A7:  Diamonds In The Rough

Tom, Funkster, Iggy, Mad, Cap, I'm sure A7 is somethin for you guys, maybe even Bups, Teunis and Manatee (there's no growl)  

I know, I listen to their self-titled album regularly! City Of Evil is next on my list, looking forward to hearing that!

NP  Mutiny Within  on  MySpace  

Apart from , what do you think?

NP  Amorphis:  Skyforger  (on repeat)  

Tom, thanx for gettin me onto this fine band  

You're welcome!

NP  Bigelf  on  MySpace  

Another great band you got there! Saw them live last October, and since then I was hooked. Cheat The Gallows would be my recommendation if you were to buy one of their albums...

NP: OSI - Office Of Strategic Influence

Next up will be Metallica - Death Magnetic

Tom

[Nicky007]

Yeah, Tom, good to seeya  

You don't often come by the Room these days. Is it the cat or the lady who absorbs all your time ? - or both ?  

Man, why did it take me so long to give it a chance?

Tom, that's anyone's guess !  I don't think even God knows !  

The greatest thing about it is that when it's finished you start realizing you didn't even miss any vocals, as opposed to some other instrumental albums out there.

Yeah, I experienced that too  

Except that the real greatest thing is that you can play the darn thing again and again, and it only gets better each time  

Jeff Loomis is a beast!

Right !!!

Aint we proggies fortunate to have some fabulous musicians who give it their all, just for us  

City Of Evil is next on my list, looking forward to hearing that!

City is a terrific album, but Diamonds In The Rough is even better (imo of course), believe it or not  

As I said earlier: A7 are in class with DT now !!!

Apart from , what do you think?

Tom, you'r soooo impatient  

Look at me: I'm the paragon of patience  

Wonder whether Cap's gettin spooked about MW    

Next up will be Metallica - Death Magnetic  

Agree, Tom  

Took me a long time to get into Metallica, but now I realise that they'r at the top too  

Got'm in my pantheon  


So, Tom, how about warming up to Nostradamus now ?

As I'v said here, I consider it the greatest album of our times  


Here are some nice Priest songs from Nostra and other albums:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AP0HATlHl2g

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM2WOvbfCXU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbAZoQremfw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--Ndpsb8S7w&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYYhrN0m4Uk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsuzrqgO0Gs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wvvqu1txSI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Hbw6RJyMoE&feature=related


Man, that sure surprised me: There's a lotta Priest stuff on YouTube, but it took me a looong time to find my faves  

Just goes to show that Priest are still under the radar in the prog community  

Nicky.

[funkster]

Kingdom of comfort by Delirious ?

[Bupie]

NP Blind Guardian - A Twist In The Myth

[Peter]

np-> Seventh Wonder - [Mercy Falls  (2008)]  #10: Break the Silence (9:29)

After some lecker pizza from the nearby Italian... sunny outside... damn, do I really have to continue work now...?

[The Butterfly Man]

Yeah, Tom, good to seeya  

You don't often come by the Room these days. Is it the cat or the lady who absorbs all your time ? - or both ?  

You already guessed it, they both require a lot of time and attention, as you probably know like no other. The only difference is that the lady doesn't rip the wallcovering from the walls......yet!

As I said earlier: A7 are in class with DT now !!!

Although I like 'em (having heard only one album to date), I don't like them half as much as I like DT. Of course, that can change, so let's see! I'm very curious to find out what Mike Portnoy brings to the A7-table.

Tom, you'r soooo impatient  

Look at me: I'm the paragon of patience  

Patience is usually one of my strongest points but with you I'm very impatient for whatever reason... I wonder why that is!

So, what's your verdict on Mutiny Within based on the songs on their MySpace?

So, Tom, how about warming up to Nostradamus now ?

As I'v said here, I consider it the greatest album of our times  

I don't know, haven't checked it out yet. But will do asap using your Youtube-links as a starting point!

Just played: Mastodon - Crack The Skye
Now playing: Transatlantic - The Whirlwind
Up next: Between The Buried And Me - Colors

Speaking of which, did you already make some progress with BTBAM Nicky?

Tom

[Nicky007]

np-> Seventh Wonder - [Mercy Falls  (2008)]  #10: Break the Silence (9:29)

Yeah, these guys really make wonderful music  

I'v listened a lot to their first two albums. These are super. Both singers are great !

In fact, I was the first Roomie to listen to SW (remember, guys), and I got Tom and Mad onto'm. So aint I great too ?  

I havent yet got hold of Mercy Falls, but I'v listened a lot to the songs on MySpace, and they sound real good  

Damn, do I really have to continue work now...?

Well, Cap, if Mutiny Within continue to grow in the Room, you may be outta work before ya know it  

The only difference is that the lady doesn't rip the wallcovering from the walls......yet!

Maybe you should wait a bit with ZOP, A7, and Nostra then, and play some Enya instead  

I hope you'v taken down your bachelor posters from the wall  

I don't like them half as much as I like DT

That'l change when you have Diamonds In The Rough  

OK, A7 aint (yet) as versatile as DT, but they sure have POWER, and as I said earlier, I consider M. Shadows the most exciting singer on the rock scene atm (well, let's say: next to Rob H)  

Patience is usually one of my strongest points but with you I'm very impatient for whatever reason... I wonder why that is!

Maybe it's because I'm so impatient with you  

Or maybe it's cuz you and I are the fastest moving Roomies atm  

So, what's your verdict on Mutiny Within based on the songs on their MySpace?  

OK, I'l listen more to'm tomorrow at my local library - promise !  (not a Mad promise)  

Speaking of which, did you already make some progress with BTBAM Nicky?

I'l listen more to'm this evening when I get home - promise !

Hey Tom, just because your lady is taking over your life doesnt mean that you can just take over my life  

Just played: Mastodon - Crack The Skye

Nicky

[Iggy]

Focus - The Best of Focus.

I had forgotten  how good these guys are. I only had tapes originally so thought I would try the best of to see if I still liked them. And I do. 

[The Butterfly Man]

Maybe you should wait a bit with ZOP, A7, and Nostra then, and play some Enya instead  

Can't do that, I have to have my daily dose of (prog)metal, regardless of the consequences! That'll probably change when the lady (or the cat for that matter) takes total control of my life so I'm just enjoying the moment while it lasts...

OK, I'l listen more to'm tomorrow at my local library - promise !  (not a Mad promise)  

And?...

I'l listen more to'm this evening when I get home - promise !

So?...

Hey Tom, just because your lady is taking over your life doesnt mean that you can just take over my life  

It's all in your best interest Nicky, believe me...

Just played: Mew - No More Stories Are Told Today, I'm Sorry They Washed Away. No More Stories The World Is Grey, I'm Tired Let's Wash Away
Now Playing: Redemption - Snowfall On Judgment Day
Next: Arena - Contagion

Tom

[Nicky007]

Focus - The Best of Focus.

I had forgotten   how good these guys are.

Betcha, Iggy Prog (not Pop)  

I remember Hocus Pocus from the time I was ... yeah, Tom's tender age. Was a big hit then and was played aaall the time  

Dutch group - yeah. All respect, lately they'v given us Sun Caged, and Arno Menses  

Can't do that, I have to have my daily dose of (prog)metal, regardless of the consequences!

Yeah, I know that, believe me *sigh*

I think that the reason why dames don't get properly into prog is that they have to fulfill their daily quota of talk-talk-talk - hey, but don't tell Ms 007 or Bella that I said that  

Maybe also cuz metal gets the archetype war spirit goin in us men - so hereby a step-up to the ladies  

And?...

So?...

Hey Tom, have you noticed that the sun is shining today ? - and it's Spring and the ladies are scantier clad ? - and there's some full moon or somethin .....

OK OK OK  

Just played:  Mew - No More Stories / Are Told Today / I'm Sorry / They Washed Away // No More Stories / The World Is Grey / I'm Tired / Let's Wash Away

Must be the longest album title in existence  

On my SL it's just: No  


NP  Nostradamus

Now Tom, what was this .....  

Nicky.

[Manatee]

JP: A whole buncha R.E.M.

NP: Steve Hackett - Voyage of the Acolyte

[Manatee]

JP: Porcupine Tree - Signify

NP: The Flower Kings - Space Revolver