Author: Time Lord

progarchy.com

Album Review: Big Big Train — Grimspound ★★★★★ @bigbigtrain

On By Time LordIn progressive rock1 Comment

Big Big Train (BBT) blew me away with the double LP of Folklore. (And yes, that is how you have to think of this band: in terms of the analog experience they engender.)

Folklore is such a toweringly great album, how do you follow it up? Perhaps the only thing you can do is assemble Folklore outtakes or B-sides, which is what Grimspound purports to offer us.

But that is not quite accurate: Folklore was the outcome of such a supernova explosion of creativity, that what BBT had was simply an overabundant creative surplus to draw from, in order to issue in a sequel.

As I heard the first track, “Brave Captain,” I was thrilled. It ranks with the most exciting of BBT’s songs. But then, on first listen, the rest of the album settled into a series of songs that sounded like nothing new, but rather more of the same thing that BBT has become good at.

Continue reading “Album Review: Big Big Train — Grimspound ★★★★★ @bigbigtrain” →

The Revenge of the Analog: BBT’s Grimspound @saxdavid @rushkoff

On By Time LordIn progressive rock2 Comments


Perhaps you’ll want to purchase Big Big Train’s magnificent new album, Grimspound, in a vinyl version:

There are two vinyl versions of the album. There is a limited edition frosted clear vinyl version alongside the standard black vinyl version. Both vinyl versions are gatefold releases featuring double heavy weight 180g vinyl and a 4 page booklet insert including the lyrics and the stories behind the songs. A complimentary code for a high-resolution download version of the album is provided with each vinyl order. Orders of the limited edition frosted clear vinyl will also include a postcard signed by all band members. A limited edition blue vinyl version of 2016’s Folklore album is also available at Burning Shed and includes a complimentary hi-resolution download code.

What is it that people are seeking when they deliberately and consciously go against the digital grain and cultivate an analog experience? Don’t worry, it’s not merely indulging in nostalgia. If you want to obtain a truly insightful perspective on the human need for the analog (a connection that the music of Big Big Train excels in establishing), then you’ll want to check out David Sax’s new book, The Revenge of the Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter.

Continue reading “The Revenge of the Analog: BBT’s Grimspound @saxdavid @rushkoff” →

Memories on Record Store Day

On By Time LordIn progressive rock2 Comments

Good times remembering Rush and Cygnus X-1 with Jeff Elbel on Record Store Day:

Personal interlude: On long car trips, my father was somewhat loathe to relinquish control of the cassette deck. He knew that what he heard in the house emanating from my room didn’t sound anything like Marty Robbins or David Frizzell. I have a vivid memory of one of the rare events that I was given permission to supply the soundtrack, while riding in his beloved 1970 Pontiac GTO along the Rock River on State Route 2 near Oregon, Illinois. I seized upon the opportunity to share my recent discovery of “Cygnus X-1, Book I: The Voyage.” To his credit, Dad made it almost five minutes before punching the eject button, fixing me with his gaze and asking, “Were they almost done warming up?” Geddy Lee had yet to sing his first note. I felt every bit like the hapless protagonist of 2112 during “Presentation,” thwarted upon making an offering of musical beauty to the Priests of Syrinx. …

Due credit: In 1986, my father took me to see the Power Windows tour at the Rosemont Horizon in Chicago. Thanks, Dad!

Sheryl Crow on sex, beauty, and dinosaurs

On By Time LordIn progressive rockLeave a comment

Sheryl Crow has some great thoughts about the crappy pop music on the radio today over in her USA Today interview:

She reflects, “In the old days you’d sleep during the day and write and record furiously all night because there was something altruistic about making music that could save the world. Now Jeff and I are just a couple of old dudes in the studio.”

Of course it’s hard to keep all-nighter hours when you’ve got two sons to raise. For Be Myself Crow and her team had to work during school hours. Once the boys came back home, she switched to family mode, which includes acting on some of the themes addressed in her lyrics.

“I’ve turned into one of those people that young rock ‘n’ rollers hate,” she says, with a laugh. “I don’t like them turning on pop radio and hearing songs about sex — and that’s all that’s on there, 18-year-olds singing about ‘the taste of you.’ If everything is about branding and we’re branding sex as power, what does that say to little girls and little boys? What does that say about beauty?”

She sighs and smiles. “I guess I’m a dinosaur. But I like it.”

Yes plays “Roundabout” with Geddy Lee!

On By Time LordIn progressive rock1 Comment

Yes with Geddy Lee on bass at Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY, on April 7, 2017.

Video preview of “Apex” from Unleash the Archers @UnleashArchers

On By Time LordIn progressive rockLeave a comment

Here’s the video for a track from Unleash the Archers’ forthcoming new album, Apex:

The ever popular streaming artist effect

On By Time LordIn progressive rock3 Comments

Never mind albums and cassettes. Now CDs and digital downloads have had their day:

For the first time ever, streaming music has eclipsed both of those ways to get music. Streaming from Spotify, Apple, Pandora, even Tidal now accounts for 51% of all music sales according to the RIAA.

The gold record? A thing of the past. There is nothing to frame for the walls of rock stars. Maybe you get a digital wall now, too. In a virtual mansion.

The good news, they say, is that revenue was up for the industry by almost a billion dollars. It’s been flat or down for the last several years.

There are 22.6 million paid streaming subscriptions. (This means everyone else is listening to ads.)

But the bads news is for the artists. Royalties on streaming sales are much lower than downloads or CDs. The artist is suffering. The execs are not. So the Industry is happy.

Actual CDs sold– the total money value was down 20% from 2015 to 2016. Digital permanent downloads were the same or worse– Singles, which everyone thought was driving the business, are down more than albums.

Rush ready to launch Cygnus X-1 vinyl collectible for Record Store Day

On By Time LordIn progressive rock1 Comment

This is the coolest idea I have seen in a while, especially since it concerns one of my all-time favorite Rush epics:

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Rush’s sixth studio album, A Farewell To Kings. To kick-start the celebration, on April 22, 2017, UMe/Anthem/ole will release a limited edition, 12” single for Cygnus X-1 as an exclusive for Record Store Day, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

Featuring “Book I: The Voyage” and “Book II: Hemispheres,” this is the first time these tracks will be released as a single and the pressing will be limited to only 5000 copies. Cygnus X-1 is pressed on 180g vinyl and features brand new artwork by Hugh Syme, Rush’s longtime artwork and creative director.

Side A:

Cygnus X-1 – Book I: The Voyage

Side B:

Cygnus X-1 – Book II: Hemispheres

Released in 1977, A Farewell To Kings is the studio follow-up to 2112. Recorded at Rockfield Studios in Wales, A Farewell To Kings was the band’s first U.S gold-selling album, receiving the certification within two months of its release, and was later certified platinum.

Rock and Roll isn’t Dead, But It is Dying… Right in Front of Our Eyes

On By Time LordIn progressive rock2 Comments

The WSJ has the data. As one generation slowly dies off, the next generation has no comparable stars to fill the void. The result? The disappearance of rock and roll as a cultural phenomenon. In other words, music is just not as important in the lives of the younger generation. We are witnessing the twilight of the rock gods:

Continue reading “Rock and Roll isn’t Dead, But It is Dying… Right in Front of Our Eyes” →