I stumbled across this video today. It appears at least one member of the Cornell family is capable of carrying on Chris’ legacy – Toni has some pipes like her father!
Seasons, Jimi Hendrix, and the Virgin: Jammin’ in the Kingdom with Chris Cornell
And I’m lost, behind
The words I’ll never find
And I’m left behind
As seasons roll on by
Thus far, 2017 has been a rather amazing year when it comes to rock and prog. PROG magazine is back and better than ever. Thank the Good Lord for Jerry Ewing.
The music releases–already and forthcoming–this year are nothing less than stunning. Big Big Train has released the finest of the band’s career, and The Tangent’s new release has yet to come. Steven Wilson is coming out with a progressive pop album, and newspaperflyhunting and Bjorn Riis have, as with BBT, released the best thing either’s written and done, thus far in their respective careers. There’s a new Anathema that is pretty good, and Steve Hogarth seems, at the moment, unstoppable with Marillion as well as with Isildur’s Bane.
Now I want to fly above the storm
But you can’t grow feathers in the rain
And the naked floor is cold as hell
This naked floor reminds me
Oh the naked floor reminds me
As I type this (having just returned from a conference on libertarian thought in 1840’s France), I have just received in the mail two grand packages. The first I opened is Steven Wilson’s remix of Jethro Tull’s SONGS FROM THE WOODS. The second is Aryeon’s signed five-disk ear-book, THE SOURCE. Honestly, I’m not sure how to react with anything that would be regarded as decorous. I’m a 13-year old boy, at the moment, just having had my first listen of MOVING PICTURES.
Holy schnikees.
Continue reading “Seasons, Jimi Hendrix, and the Virgin: Jammin’ in the Kingdom with Chris Cornell”
Synopsis: Schooltree “Heterotopia” @schooltree
So far, we have covered Act I and the beginning of Act II in our synopsis of Schooltree’s magnificent Heterotopia. Stay tuned for more to come…
Act II, Part 1 — Synopsis: Schooltree “Heterotopia” @schooltree
As I said in my review of Schooltree’s fantastic concept album Heterotopia, at the beginning of Act II of this amazing prog opera, there is an LP’s side worth of immediately accessible, instant rock and roll classics.
The power and sophistication of these songs is jaw-dropping, so I thought I would devote this current post to them alone, as I resume the synopsis of the prog opera’s storyline.
I also include the last track of Act I, Specter Lyfe, on my playlist of the five classic tracks on the album that became my first-listen favorites. Here are the other four, which kick off the storyline of Act II:
Suzi encounters three shadows who taunt her for her ghostly “condition.” We’ve seen how this story ends, they prophesize, and you’re already dead, just like the rest of your kind. (Dead Girl)
Metanoia reaches out to Suzi after this altercation and teaches her the power of the strange – throughout your experience you will encounter strangeness, you yourself will become strange, but don’t be afraid – form is illusory, lines can be broken down and shaped by your will. Use the strange to adapt yourself and the world around you. (Turning into the Strange)
As Suzi moves through this world and tries to adapt, she begins to realize she’s spent her life overcome, in a cycle of unwitting self-destruction. She’s been a sort of ghost all along, but feels more uncertain and insubstantial than ever now (for obvious reasons). She feels unsure whether it’s her life as a human or her life as a ghost that’s the “reality.” Metanoia offers some perspective on this – all these things that make being a ghost hard are also what make it extraordinary. You are alone, but that makes you singular; you can’t touch anything but you can move through walls; the lines of reality are broken so nothing confines you. This is what will enable you on your quest: the power of the ghost. For a moment Suzi sees clearly the path before her. (Edge Annihilate, Power of the Ghost)
What shall be left of us?
Don’t miss the fine interview with Greg Spawton (GS) and David Longdon (DL) over at Stereo Embers.
Here’s a snippet, wherein they muse on the themes of the “Grimspound” title track:
DL: So much of today’s world is based in the digital realm that it is intriguing to think about what will be left of our times as hard archaeology. If that connection to the digital realm is somehow lost due to whatever will befall our species in the future, I don’t think that much physical matter will remain to tell our story. Impermanence is a concern. That is what this song is about.
GS: My background is in archaeology and history and it is interesting that many of our activities these days are ephemeral. Information is so easily shared and yet deeper knowledge and understanding doesn’t necessarily follow. One of the core themes on the album is a call for a return to the Enlightenment tradition. We seem to be getting slightly adrift from the humanist values which gave birth to modern society.
Well, as you may know, enlightened people do leave behind vinyl…
Peace, The Strawbs, and the Tragic Passing of Chris Cornell
I’ve never really listened to Soundgarden, but I’m fully aware of their importance in the history of rock. When I saw this morning that Chris Cornell died, likely of a suicide, it certainly made my heart sink. I thought instantly of fellow Progarchist Carl Olson, who has expressed his love and admiration for Cornell’s music in several posts here at Progarchy over the years. His tribute today to Cornell captures that sense of loss that we all feel when one of our musical heroes passes away.
Continue reading “Peace, The Strawbs, and the Tragic Passing of Chris Cornell”
The shocking death of Soundgarden’s legendary Chris Cornell [Updated]
Update: There are now reports from the medical examiner that it was a suicide. Baffling and confounding.
——-
I awoke this morning to two texts from close friends. The first was terse and direct: “Chris Cornell has died.” The second:
“Just heard about Chris Cornell. Sad day for the music world. I’m in Detroit on my way to Florida. It’s all over the news here. Soundgarden played here last night. I doubt he killed himself.”
The first friend had accompanied me to Cornell’s stunning July 2016 concert at The Hult here in Eugene. We both agreed it was a remarkable show; it was even better than a solid 2013 show at a smaller venue just five minutes from my house. We marveled at Cornell’s range, presence, lyrics, musicianship.
Now we are both stunned by his sudden death in a Detroit hotel, not long after a Soundgarden concert that reportedly concluded with Led Zep’s “In My Time of Dying”—a staple in recent solo shows by Cornell.
There are reports that the death may have been a suicide. If so, that would be even more shocking. There had been ups and downs, but Cornell had avoided the deep dives into oblivion that eventually swallowed up Kurt Cobain, Andrew Wood, and Layne Staley. And had, over the past two decades, thrived both personally and professionally.
Cornell was a drug user in his early teens, then drank heavily (and apparently used drugs on occasion) during the heyday of Soundgarden in the 1990s. He hit bottom in the late ’90s as the band broke up and then his first marriage unraveled. Even then, however, he produced his (arguably) finest solo album “Euphoria Morning” (later updated to “Euphoria Mourning”), which demonstrated that he was not just about grunge, but could dip into gospel, blues, and folk. After a stint in rehab, he joined up with three members of Rage Against the Machine to form Audioslave, one of the finest supergroups in recent memory, producing three studio albums of muscular, confident rock that further demonstrated Cornell’s prowess as a songwriter. Several songs for movie soundtracks followed, including “You Know My Name”, the theme song to the 2006 James Bond film, Casino Royale. And Soundgarden’s 2012 “King Animal” was a solid, often brilliant, return for the legendary band.
Since the early 2000s, Cornell’s personal life appears to have been thriving. He married Vicky Karayiannis in March 2004, and by all accounts was a devoted husband and father. His most recent solo album “Higher Truth” was well received, revealing a mature and confident artist who was still trying new things as a songwriter and musician. In interviews, Cornell was thoughtful and funny; he seemed to embrace his fame without taking himself too seriously, which is not an easy thing to accomplish amid the fame and challenges of being a musician.
Again, I’m simply stunned. My God grant Chris Cornell peace and provide solace to his family during this most difficult time.
Chris Cornell, 1964-2017
Shocking and upsetting news in the music world today: Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell died suddenly last night after performing with the band in Detroit. No word on the cause of death as of yet. This is another great loss to the music world, and our prayers go out to his family and friends. We hope he is rocking out in peace.
https://www.yahoo.com/music/representative-rocker-chris-cornell-died-age-52-073215382.html
Progarchy 