What to do while you’re waiting for Haken’s new album Affinity to be released?
I recommend you make good use of your time by listening to the awesome new album from Oktopus, as well as watch the online videos released in advance of the new Haken. Here’s the latest:
Not long ago I gave Oktopus a hard time over their name change, but now it’s time for me to report back on their new album after listening to it for a week solid. After enjoying tremendously the album’s stunning debut single, “Eyes Open,” I soon ordered a physical CD copy of Oktopus’ new album, World Apart, because the “Eyes Open” song was so awesome that I couldn’t stop listening to it.
Continue reading “Album Review: Oktopus — Worlds Apart ★★★★★ @OktopusUK”
It’s been over twenty years since Weezer’s “Buddy Holly” temporarily entered onto your hard drive, and forever into your heart, thanks to that Windows 95 install CD. Despite a fistful of great songs and some really good albums since then, Weezer has never recreated the magical sense of joy and awe that the “Blue Album” evoked in us when we saw what a garage band could do to change the universe and blow our minds. Although 2014’s Everything Will Be Alright in the End was a surprising solidly enjoyable Weezer album from start to prog-epic finish, the “Blue Album” has never been eclipsed. Until now.
With 2016’s “White Album,” Weezer has released their finest album ever. Full stop. Every cut absolutely slays it, as the decades since the “Blue Album” yield a harvest of songwriting maturity that pairs perfect sonic sensibilities with poetically beautiful, philosopher surfer-dude lyrics.
The killer slabs of guitar, that trademark Weezer garage sound of glory, wins you over right out of the gate with “California Kids.” From there on, the abundance of non-stop outstanding tracks permits you to pick your own favorites from the panoply of richly melodic delights.
I’m partial to the fervid rap patter of “Thank God For Girls,” which reclaims stream of consciousness from the louche rap icons, to serve it up with superior musical accompaniment (drums and bass just as the California kids have ordered) and with sagely observations harkening as far back as the Sears catalogue and Adam’s rib.
“L.A. Girlz” is another favorite, thanks to that classic onslaught of the patented Weezer wall of power chords, but there are also surprising new pleasures here, like the nostalgic “(Girl We Got A) Good Thing” and the piano-driven “Jacked Up.”
Ooo-wee-hooo, consider me pleasantly blindsided by this unexpectedly epic achievement by Weezer. It’s a classic. Five stars!
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Rolling Stone says:
Today marks the 40th anniversary of the release of Rush‘s prog-epic masterpiece 2112. To celebrate, the band is releasing a digital comic book telling the story of the LP’s titular rock opera. It begins with the “Overture,” which Rolling Stone is hosting exclusively. The entire 20-plus-minute suite, will then be available on Rush.com 21 hours and 12 minutes from the time of this post (Saturday at approximately 6 a.m. PST) and will be available for fans to watch for free until Monday at 6 a.m. PST.
Prog fans should note that Hélène Grimaud has collaborated again with German electronic artist and composer Schiller.
Schiller has done a remix of Debussy’s Préludes, L117 from Hélène’s new album Water.
The transmogrified classical track is released today and available right now at https://DG.lnk.to/WaterRemix
David Longdon writes about the first track on Folklore:
Folkore [the album and the track] starts off where most of our ancestral stories most likely began. Around the cracking flames of the campfire. Stories told after sunset, with no daylight reassurances or distractions. The cold dark night forcing us to huddle closer together, among the security of the ‘pack’, beside the warm glow of the flames. The night focusses us in. Our minds become much more open to suggestion. Our imaginations are susceptible, impressionable and pliant. It is at these very moments, when the unbelievable can all too easily be believed.
The moment is right and the stage is set. Firelight makes the shadows dance. Flickering light contorts the animated features of the storyteller – transforming them into something other than they are.
Women and men, young and old – rapt listeners all. Although the older listeners have heard these stories many times before and they know what is to unfold. They too delight in the engrossed faces of the youngsters. Open mouthed and spellbound as they listen to wondrous tales. Or recoiling in fright to the comforting arms of their mothers. Caught up in the drama of the moment. Hanging on each word and every plot twist.
These tales Ignite and fan the flames of our fertile imaginations. These are our stories of love, words of wisdom, cautionary tales. Heroic adventurers featuring fantastical creatures and conniving villains. Supernatural tales, stories involving the incredible luck of particular individuals. Stories that reveal the fate of their many characters and the consequences of their actions. It is an integral part of who we are and who we think we are. Forming the bedrock of our cultures.
Passed down by word of mouth from generation to generation – the fine details and factual information sometimes abandoned and exaggerated in favour of the drama within the story as these tales are reinterpreted from storyteller to storyteller. Country to country, each adding something of themselves to embellish the tale.
“The pen is mightier than the sword, the music of the word is scored”
Each development further enhancing the power of the word. The emergence of the written word, the development of the ink press, the incredible technological advancements of the 21st century – all fuel to our fire and grist to the mill. We are still making out own cultural folklore to this day – the addition of the press and social media allows our stories to be told at a terrific rate.
Folklore is a deliberate companion/bookend piece to Wassail. It shares the same chord sequence and it uses the same mandolin/violin/flute riff. The instrumental play out at the end of the piece features members of the band taking a short solo section then passing it on to the next player and so on until the piece concludes.
In addition to Folklore being the first track on the album and the title track of the album, it will also be the first ‘single’ taken from the album. A short film (music video ) has been shot to accompany it, featuring a cast of extras drawn from our fantastic ‘passengers’ on the BBT Facebook forum.
My friend and fellow band mate Greg Spawton will post a blog next week in which he writes about the next track on Folklore.
Oktopus is the band formerly known as “Progoctopus” who released an excellent EP in 2015 called Transcendence. It was one of my favorite pieces of music in 2015 because all four tracks worked together as an epic whole.
I was sad to hear that vocalist Jane Gillard who did that EP with them was leaving the group. Her vocals were truly outstanding on the EP. But now the band has a new album coming out at the beginning of April. The preview track, “Eyes Open,” is fantastic and now I can’t wait to hear what this trio is up to.
I actually hate the band’s new name and I much prefer “Progoctopus” because that name, apart from being lovably goofy, had a definite rationale: with Jane, the band was a quartet, and so if you do the math on four sets of hands, you arrive at the requisite eight for the titular prog action. I’ll take a prog octopus any day over just a plain octopus. It’s bad enough having a “k” in the octopus’s misspelled name, but if the creature can’t even do math, then I’m sorry but it would take Roger Dean doing the cover art to win me over to this new name.
Now on to what I love about this band. I love the guitar sounds with this group. And the jazz element that seeps in is definitely cool and sets the band apart. Keep up the amazing music, guys, and I can’t wait to hear what this full album has in store for 2016. If the preview track is any indication, the songwriting and musicianship promises to be top notch throughout.
Haken’s new album Affinity is a masterpiece. I’ve been listening to the advance copy non-stop.
Trust me, it’s totally brilliant. Full of surprises, it is a continuous source of musical delight.
Now you too can enjoy a taste. Here’s “Initiate,” the album opener, complete with official video:
If you haven’t listened to The Mute Gods yet, you really should. They have crafted one of the best albums of 2016.
Nick Beggs himself will personally take you through the album, track-by-track, if you listen to his detailed, in-depth interview with Progarchy from last week.
Also, here’s the press release from Inside Out records, which accurately describes what’s going on with this supremely excellent album:
Is everything truly as it seems? Are we living in a state of manufactured reality? How can regular people rise above the propaganda that floods daily existence? Those are some of the important questions The Mute Gods explore on its debut album Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me on InsideOut Music.
The album’s 11 provocative tracks explore the dark clouds governments, corporations, media, and religious institutions form atop society. Songs such as “Praying to a Mute God,” “Feed the Troll,” “Your Dark Ideas,” and “In the Crosshairs” look at how we’re driven to distraction by these forces, taking our focus away from important issues and meaningful personal priorities. Musically, the album is a mercurial journey that seamlessly shifts between the realms of progressive rock and adventurous pop.
“We live in a time of heightened religious fundamentalism in which people deliver the wrath of God or speak out on his behalf,” says Nick Beggs. “When did God appoint these dubious PR men? The people in this world who should truly be listened to are often the ones who are silenced. The voice of reason seems strangely quiet in the face of so much disinformation. The Mute Gods address this imbalance.”
The band is the brainchild of Beggs, an acclaimed bassist, Stick player, songwriter and vocalist, with a footprint stamped across a wide range of genres including progressive rock, pop, Celtic, funk, and soul. Collectively, his own band and project releases have sold more than four million copies.
Beggs has also worked with some of the biggest names in rock and pop, including Belinda Carlisle, John Paul Jones, Gary Numan, Cliff Richard, Seal, and Tina Turner. In the progressive rock realm, he’s performed with Steve Hackett, Steve Howe, Iona, Lifesigns, and Rick Wakeman. Currently, Beggs records and tours with Steven Wilson, the progressive artist enjoying significant acclaim and chart success with Hand. Cannot. Erase., his latest release.
The Mute Gods came together during Beggs’ tenures with Hackett and Wilson. Roger King, the album’s keyboardist and producer, worked with Beggs on Hackett’s sold-out multi-year Genesis Revisited tour. King has long been Hackett’s right-hand man, serving in production, arrangement and writing capacities for the ex-Genesis guitarist. Marco Minnemann, considered one of the most important drummers of his generation, has worked with Beggs extensively on many Wilson tours and recordings.
The album also features contributions from other rock, pop and jazz luminaries, including keyboardist Adam Holzman (Miles Davis, Steven Wilson), drummers Nick D’Virgilio (Spock’s Beard, Tears for Fears) and Gary O’Toole (Steve Hackett, China Crisis, Kylie Minogue), and multi- instrumentalist Rob Reed (Magenta) as well as Ricky Wilde (who happens to be Kim Wilde’s brother).
Perhaps the most important special guest on the album is Beggs’ daughter Lula, an emerging singer- songwriter. The album closes with “Father Daughter,” a poignant reminder of keeping family intact even in the face of difficult challenges. The emotional vocal duet between Beggs and Lula looks at the struggle of a father reconciling dealing with his responsibilities to the world with the needs of his children.
Line-Up:
Nick Beggs: string basses, string guitars, Chapman Stick, programming, keyboards and vocals
Roger King: keyboards, programming, guitars, backing vocals, production and mastering
Marco Minnemann: drums, guitars and sound design
Guests on the album:
Ricky Wilde: keyboards, programming, guitars and backing vocals
Frank Van Bogaert: keyboards and backing vocals, additional mixing
Nick D’Virgilio: drums, guitar and keyboards
Gary O’toole: drums
Lula Beggs: vocals
Progarchy 