Now Playing Thread

[Iggy]

I do like their Venice concert though.
One of the best concerts ever played for I'm concerned. 

I wonder why it wasn't released on DVD. I do love Pulse though.

NP Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

[maddox]

I wonder why it wasn't released on DVD. I do love Pulse though.

NP Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Don't know.
Copyrights issues or something?
It's a shame.
I have it on VHS for years and a friend of mine has transfered the show to DVD.

Brilliant!!

[Nicky007]

Anubis - the detached

Funky

With The Detached, one really has to get into the story 

Musically alone I consider Andromeda Unchained better 

But the portrayal of the Detached is one of the most fascinating topics I'v encountered in progworld 


NP  Meshuggah:  Catch Thirtythree

I take up this album now and then. As I can only take about 15-20 minutes of it, I set it going at different places. I'v decided that I have to master it - in some sense of the word

But it sure is resisting me 

Tom, what's the secret 

Nicky.

[erik]

NP  King Crimson:  The Power To Believe

Iggy, I think one has to approach this sorta music in a different way than e.g. Arena. Arena have so much melody, rhythm and harmony that it doesnt take long before one takes to linking'm. KC otoh are more experimental, they deliberately cut down on the melody, rhythm and harmony in order to try out new avenues. Accordingly they require many more listens. But I think it's possible to get to enjoying'm just as much as Arena - don't you think too, Erik ?  After a few runs, there will be passages here and there which emerge as enjoyable, then on next run a few more passages, and then the album as a whole will become appealing 

KC's music is definitely harder to get into, but it's very rewarding! And then there's lots of KC's of course, lots of incarnations/era's with different styles.

Would you rate this as one of their better ones, Nicky?  I was thinking of trying an older one next, perhaps Larks Tongues in Aspic, since I really like Red, which I think is the last of their "old" era.

You may find this post from a while ago helpful, Greenie, I tried to give a bit of a KC overview there. Power To Believe is definitely one of the better ones, so is Larks. Starless & Bible Black from that era is a tough one, a lot of heavy instrumental live improv on there. You already have Discipline if I remember correctly, Three Of A Perfect Pair would be the next step of that period and is recommended, then Beat (KC's most "poppy" album if you want to apply that term, it's still KC we're talking about). I'm also very fond of their "jazzy" period (album 3 and 4, Lizard and Islands, especially the former). Their second In The Wake Of Poseidon is a bit In The Court Part 2. As for newer KC, Thrak is highly recommended after Power To Believe, Construkction Of Light I'm still struggling with a bit.

[Teunis]

Knight Area - Realm of Shadows

[Manatee]

Thanks for the info, Erik.

NP: Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part II (on You Tube)

[Nicky007]

NP  ARK:  Burn the Sun

This is a great album, from 2001. The style is very diverse, moving gracefully between progmetal, jazz-rock, Spanish guitar, crooning, and much more.

As probably no other active Roomie knows ARK, here's from Wiki (ARK):

"ARK is a progressive metal band from Norway resulting from the friendship and musical collaboration of guitarist Tore Østby (Conception, DC Cooper, Giant's Playground, Redrum) and drummer John Macaluso (TNT, Riot, Spread Eagle, Alex Masi, Yngwie Malmsteen, Powermad), who later joined up with singer Jørn Lande to record two acclaimed albums.

Lande, Østby and Macaluso were joined by Randy Coven (Steve Vai, Steve Morse) on bass and Mats Olausson (Yngwie Malmsteen) on keyboards for their second effort [Burn The Sun, nb]."


And I don't need to make an attempt to characterise the album further, as Lord Chimp has pinned it well (Amazon, ARK, Burn The Sun):

"This is ARK's second album. As brilliant and original as the debut was, this is better. On a flat basis of originality, it stands a bit lower than the debut, but the songwriting here is simply jaw-dropping and the production quality flawless. While the song structures are usually pretty ordinary (namely the lyrical structures), the encompassing music is so diverse that it never feels streamlined at all. Individually, ARK is comprised of phenomenal musicians possessing chops and writing talent. Tore Østby has thrust himself into the leadership race of best progressive metal guitarist. The man's style, tone, and technique are varied, unique, and precise. His playing ranges from the flaring leads of Heal The Waters to the bubbly flamenco plucking of Just A Little. His stock of heavy riffs are much more diverse and interesting than the staple prog metal 'chugga-chug' riffs. The awe-inspiring drummer John Macaluso unleashes ceaselessly complex rhythms with enough restraint that it isn't pretentious. Bassist Randy Coven and keyboardist Mats Olausson don't seem to be permanent band members, but they make an impression as more than just 'session players.' (Coven's bass is particularly great.)

Vocalist Jørn Lande is astonishing. Yes, he does sound like David Coverdale at times, but one can't leave it at that. He possesses tremendous range and the dynamics of his voice are just incredible. If you listened to Absolute Zero, Just A Little, and Torn, one might not immediately recognize that it's the same man singing. He does throw in some hack 80s rock bits like 'baby' and yeah' but it seems to mesh so well. His emotional power is truly sincere ... just listen to Missing You. So diverse is Lande's singing that aside from the Coverdale influence, I hear elements of Bono, Dio, Sting, and lots of classic rock singers. Not every one likes Lande's voice, which I understand. I think he's an incredible singer, though, and he mostly sounds better and more diverse here than on the debut.  All in all, he's a vocalist of matchless depth and richness."


Jørn Lande is a formidable singer 

And this album is a very special treat. OK, it's uneven, but where it's good, it's great 

Here's one of the best songs, Just A Little (appetiser, nb  ):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djjZ1zWq44I

Nicky.

[Iggy]

NP  ARK:  Burn the Sun

This is a great album, from 2001. The style is very diverse, moving gracefully between progmetal, jazz-rock, Spanish guitar, crooning, and much more.

As probably no other active Roomie knows ARK, here's from Wiki (ARK):

"ARK is a progressive metal band from Norway resulting from the friendship and musical collaboration of guitarist Tore Østby (Conception, DC Cooper, Giant's Playground, Redrum) and drummer John Macaluso (TNT, Riot, Spread Eagle, Alex Masi, Yngwie Malmsteen, Powermad), who later joined up with singer Jørn Lande to record two acclaimed albums.

Lande, Østby and Macaluso were joined by Randy Coven (Steve Vai, Steve Morse) on bass and Mats Olausson (Yngwie Malmsteen) on keyboards for their second effort [Burn The Sun, nb]."


And I don't need to make an attempt to characterise the album further, as Lord Chimp has pinned it well (Amazon, ARK, Burn The Sun):

"This is Ark's second album. As brilliant and original as the debut was, this is better. On a flat basis of originality, it stands a bit lower than the debut, but the songwriting here is simply jaw-dropping and the production quality flawless. While the song structures are usually pretty ordinary (namely the lyrical structures), the encompassing music is so diverse that it never feels streamlined at all. Individually, Ark is comprised of phenomenal musicians possessing chops and writing talent. Tore Ostby has thrust himself into the leadership race of best progressive metal guitarist. The man's style, tone, and technique are varied, unique, and precise. His playing ranges from the flaring leads of "Heal the Waters" to the bubbly flamenco plucking of "Just a Little." His stock of heavy riffs are much more diverse and interesting than the staple prog metal "chugga-chug" riffs. The awe-inspiring drummer John Macaluso unleashes ceaselessly complex rhythms with enough restraint that it isn't pretentious. Bassist Randy Coven and keyboardist Mats Olausson don't seem to be permanent band members, but they make an impression as more than just "session players." (Coven's bass is particularly great.)

Vocalist Jorne Lande is astonishing. Yes, he does sound like David Cloverdale at times, but one can't leave it at that. He possesses tremendous range and the dynamics of his voice are just incredible. If you listened to "Absolute Zero," "Just a Little," and "Torn," one might not immediately recognize that it's the same man singing. He does throw in some hack 80s rock bits like "baby" and "yeah!" but it seems to mesh so well. His emotional power is truly sincere...just listen to "Missing You." So diverse is Lande's singing that aside from the Cloverdale influence, I hear elements of Bono, Dio, Sting, and lots of classic rock singers. Not every one likes Lande's voice, which I understand. I think he's an incredible singer, though, and he mostly sounds better and more diverse here than on the debut.  All in all, he's a vocalist of matchless depth and richness."


Jørn lande is a formidable singer 

And this album is a very special treat. OK, it's uneven, but where it's good, it's great 

Here's one of the best songs, Just A Little (appetiser, nb  ):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djjZ1zWq44I

Nicky.

Brilliant timing Nicky. I believe Ark are supporting Frost* in December. I was thinking of checking them out.

NP Aspera - Between Black and White from Ripples. (I think Mad put me onto them. Thanks Mad)

[Iggy]

Now Therion - The Miskolc Experiment which at first seems a bit disappointing. I am going to see them soon so hopefully it will improve. One saving grace is I grew up listening to Classical music and Opera.

[erik]

Brilliant timing Nicky. I believe Ark are supporting Frost* in December. I was thinking of checking them out.

Careful there, Iggy, Wikipedia lists no less than three bands with the name Ark and I gather the one supporting Frost is the resurrected British one with John Jowitt, not Nicky's Norwegian metal Ark.

The Ark (band), Swedish glam-rock band
Ark (UK band), a melodic rock band
ARK (band), a metal band

[funkster]

Opeth - Watershed

For the first time in ages 

[Iggy]

Careful there, Iggy, Wikipedia lists no less than three bands with the name Ark and I gather the one supporting Frost is the resurrected British one with John Jowitt, not Nicky's Norwegian metal Ark.

The Ark (band), Swedish glam-rock band
Ark (UK band), a melodic rock band
ARK (band), a metal band

Ah thanks Eric. 

NP The Incident - Porcupine Tree

[Nicky007]

ARK (band), a metal band

It's strange that people don't check up names already used, alternatively devise original names.

If ARK were some anonymous garage band, then OK, use the name, but actually ARK (all capitals) are a groundbreaking group.


Iggy, next time you quote, maybe you could, for good practice, limit the quote to what's necessary for your comment 


NP  Judas Priest:  Nostradamus

Needed something to boost me up 

Any Roomies here who aint yet into this album ?

Guys, that's like missing The Wall, or Contagion, or for that matter, sex. What would your life be like without these ?

I know that very few Priest fans followed Priest into their album Nostradamus ... but I expect more from Roomies 

Nicky.

[erik]

It's strange that people don't check up names already used, alternatively devise original names.

If ARK were some anonymous garage band, then OK, use the name, but actually ARK (all capitals) are a groundbreaking group.

Ahem, Wikipedia once more:

arK are a musical group formed around Birmingham and The Black Country, England. Originally active from c.1985 to c.1995, the band reformed in 2010.

ARK is a progressive metal band from Norway [...] ARK's self-titled debut album was released in 1999.

So it's the Norwegians that picked a name already in use. Strictly speaking the UK Ark weren't active then, but they do retain the oldest rights to the name

[Nicky007]

Strictly speaking the UK Ark weren't active then, but they do retain the oldest rights to the name

They were barely more than a garage band 

And also, now living in Cop, I have to side with the Norwegians (Norway is a former Danish colony) 

Calling ARK (notice: all capitals) a Norwegian group is a bit thick (I know that Wiki writes "ARK is a progressive metal band from Norway", but Wiki's not necessarily an authority, Erik): John Macaluso is an acclaimed American drummer (from New York), Randy Coven is an acclaimed American bass player (also from NY), and Mats Olausson is an excellent Swedish keyboard player (from Göteborg).

That's like calling Transatlantic an American group 


Jowitt & Co. could'v made a pun on "Noah's Ark", like "Novas Ark" 

Nicky.

[Nicky007]

JP:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djjZ1zWq44I

If noone else lauds it, I'm happy to 

Notice what John M does with his drums 


NP:

SW:  Alley Cat  (on repeat)

Well, once I was on YouTube ... couldnt help it 



Tom, ya sure put some bug in my head 



Doesnt anyone else here think that this song is way o'er the top ?

Hey guys, where's yer passion ?


God, what a day ..... 

Nicky.

[Peter]

Wow, I really love Jorn's voice, since I first heard him on Arjen's 01. ARK is really an eye-opener, music-wise. Thanks for the suggestion, Nicky. *runs off to visit amazon*

[Peter]

this is also ... whoa, awesome rock
Jorn Lande- Song for Ronnie James
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEtyaC6ltQg

[erik]

NP Anathema - A Natural Disaster - Flying

A favourite of mine, this track, they played it yesterday as one of the encores at the gig I went to. It was totally awesome, what an amazing band. They started with older material and then played the whole We're Here.. album from start to finish. My album of the year 2010 and especially the track Universal is pure bliss. This album is sooo intense!!

[Teunis]

They started with older material and then played the whole We're Here.. album from start to finish. My album of the year 2010 and especially the track Universal is pure bliss. This album is sooo intense!!

Great album indeed!

Just: Toto - Kingdom of Desire
Now: parts of the upcoming Darkwater album including a full track on their MySpace:

http://www.myspace.com/darkwaterofficial

Promising 

[funkster]

Those once loyal by Bolt Thrower

A fine slab of British death metal to start the day 

[The Butterfly Man]

NP Anathema - A Natural Disaster - Flying

A favourite of mine, this track, they played it yesterday as one of the encores at the gig I went to. It was totally awesome, what an amazing band. They started with older material and then played the whole We're Here.. album from start to finish. My album of the year 2010 and especially the track Universal is pure bliss. This album is sooo intense!!

Hey Erik, I was there as well! Didn't see you though. But you're right, what a band. I saw them for the first time a few years ago when they were supporting Porcupine Tree, and they grew so much as a band over the last few years. Great to see.

I also really liked the supporting acts. I'm very much into singer-songwriter stuff these days, so Petter Carlsen's set was very enjoyable. Petter seems to be a nice guy, although a bit shy on stage. I bought his album after the gig.

The other support act, Long Distance Calling, was nice as well. Their music can be described as a mix of post rock, some metal, and a bit of prog. They are an insrumental band and they clearly have a lot of fun on stage.

NP: Marillion - Less Is More

Tom

[erik]

Hey Erik, I was there as well! Didn't see you though. But you're right, what a band. I saw them for the first time a few years ago when they were supporting Porcupine Tree, and they grew so much as a band over the last few years. Great to see.

I also really liked the supporting acts. [...]

Hey Tom, I already suspected you would probably be there as well, but didn't see you either! Next time then, with Arena in November The gig when they supported Porcupine Tree was also the first time I saw Anathema, really liked their performance (already had several of their albums). I also really enjoyed both support acts Wednesday, very different but both very good in what they do. Petter Carlsen has a great voice and was an impressive presence sonically with just guitar and voice. It became rather late though with two support acts and a quite long main set, I had to leave after Flying to catch the train, I think I missed at least one song I heard them start when I was downstairs at the wardrobe (couldn't make out which), hopefully not more?!

[Peter]

Ark - Burn The Sun

fat  

[Nicky007]

fat  

Great, Cap 

Happy that I could deliver there 

Yeah, ARK are really amazing 

I read on Wiki that they'r planning to release a new album Aradiokaos in 2010. That's one to get 

Nicky.