Tag: Matt Cohen

Have Yourself a Merry Christmas

On By bradbirzerIn progressive rock music1 Comment

Well, it seems a little early to talk about Christmas.  But, not about Christmas music!  As we get close to Advent (begins this Sunday) and prepare for Christmas and the holiday season, you have a lot of wonderful offerings from the music community.  Indeed, there almost seems to be a revival of the Christmas song.  Lots and lots to choose from.

reasoning xmas

If you want a great two-track EP, get The Reasoning’s “It’s Christmas (Sing it Loud),” out today, and available from amazon.com and iTunes.  Rachel Cohen has the voice of an angel, of course, and it shows in every note she sings with one of the greatest prog/rock outfits around today.  Thank you, Matt Cohen, master of many, many things.  For those of you who shy away from prog, no worries.  This is just a wonderfully joyous song.  I think it could’ve easily been the finale to HOME ALONE.

proggychristmas-new2-2

Neal Morse, never unwilling to profess his own faith (in Christianity and in prog!) has two CDs out you might like.  The first, out last year at this time and still available, is a PROGGY CHRISTMAS–featuring just about everyone you could imagine.  As I wrote last year:

All of the members of Transatlantic (Portnoy, Trewavas, and Stolt), Steve Hackett, Steve Morse, and Randy George.  Portnoy is even “The Little Drummer Boy”!  Jerry Guidroz does his usual extraordinary mixing and engineering.

Also available–as a member of the Neal Morse Inner Circle–“Christmas 2013.”  These songs date back almost 20 years.  Very delicate as well as energetic.

leah christmas

Our own progarchist, lovely Leah, “metal maid,” has a gorgeous EP out, “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence.”  Three tracks introduce the listener to our favorite Canuck rocker (that is, below the age of 60.  Sorry Geddy, Alex, and Neil) and the spirit of a metal Christmas.

kevinmccormickandrachelm

Finally, out just since last Friday, is another progarchist album, In Dulci Jubilo.  This one comes from classical and progressive guitarist Kevin McCormick and his oldest daughter, Rachel.  My best description of this album is “immaculate.”  In Dulci Jubilo is 14 tracks long at 46 minutes.  A much more detailed review forthcoming.

TrinityLive–May 2014

On By bradbirzerIn UncategorizedLeave a comment
Matt Cohen. Shamelessly stolen from Matt's Facebook Page. Unless progarchy gets a letter from Matt's lawyer, it will remain the image for this post.
Matt Cohen. Shamelessly stolen from Matt’s Facebook Page. Unless progarchy gets a letter from Matt’s lawyer, it will remain the image for this post.

One of our progarchy favorites, Matt Cohen–the Welsh Odysseus of the rock world–posted something quite intriguing today.  The TrinityLive show, forthcoming in May, 2014.  The trinity in question–no, not that Trinity!–The Reasoning, Magenta, and Touchstone.

This is where being an American is a real limitation.  Jealous of our British and European friends who can attend.  Plan now to enjoy.

http://www.trinitylive.co.uk

Schnikees: The Reasoned Thief!

On By bradbirzerIn Uncategorized1 Comment

frontpage_newlogoI guess I’m a little behind on prog news.  This was announced a few weeks ago–The Reasoning will be working with Bruce Soord of The Pineapple Thief on the next album.  Wonderful news.

For the first time we’ll be bringing in an outside producer, too: we’re honoured to welcome the wonderful Bruce Soord on board. The band are full of excitement and enthusiasm right now about getting firmly stuck into this new piece of work.

For the full article at PROG, go here–http://www.progrockmag.com/news/bruce-soord-to-produce-the-reasoning/

What a solid collaboration–one for the ages.

Foxbat–a new band with The Reasoning’s Matt Cohen

On By bradbirzerIn Uncategorized3 Comments

foxbat photoAn invitation just appeared on my Facebook wall to “like” Foxbat, a band only recently formed around bassist extraordinaire Matt Cohen (The Reasoning).  There’s still a lot of mystery surrounding this, but here’s what’s appeared at the official Foxbat FB page:

 

A brand new British Rock band bringing the 70’s vibe, screaming and kicking in to the present day. Formed by Matthew Cohen, Keith Hawkins, Ian Harris and Simon Hobson. Full press release in February 2013.
Founded 2012
Genre Rock
Members Simon Hobson – Lead Vocals
Keith Hawkins – Guitars and BVs
Matthew Cohen – Bass and BVs
Ian Harris – Drums and BVs
? – Hammond and BVs
Hometown UK
Record Label Comet Music
Influences Deep Purple
Rainbow
Whitesnake
Led Zeppelin
Black Country Communion
Iron Maiden
Bad Company
Styx
Queen
Captain Beyond
Black Sabbath
Def Leppard
Yngwie J Malmsteen
The Who
Boston
The Eagles
Journey
RUSH
TOTO
Thin Lizzy
Uriah Heep

Find Owain Roberts

On By bradbirzerIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

For our British friends, a message from Matt Cohen of The Reasoning.

There will be a feature on wales tonight programme which is on ITV now and also on S4C this evening at 9pm Y Byd ar Bedwar, please watch if you are in Wales xx

The official FB page is: http://www.facebook.com/findowainroberts

Threnodic Introspections in Neverland: The Reasoning

On By bradbirzerIn Uncategorized7 Comments

Call me a total nerd (and it would be true, for better or worse), but I experience a thrill every time I meet a new word.  Hello new word, I’m Brad.  Well, ok, I’m generally not quite this formal, especially with vocabulary.

With The Reasoning’s newest masterpiece, Adventures in Neverland, I had to look up the word, “Threnody.”  A funeral dirge.  For the previous EP, And Another Thing, I had to look up “Apophenia.”  A false perception of patterns.

Nice.

From the first moments I can remember listening to Progressive Rock, I have always appreciated not only the intelligence and creativity espoused by the artists themselves, but I’ve also loved the ways in which prog artists demand a certain intelligence and creativity on the part of the listener.

If I’m going to spend any where from thirty minutes to 120 minutes listening to something, I want full immersion.

Every The Reasoning album is a full immersion into the wonderful and meaningful ream of art–by design and certainly without apology.  “Here we are,” Matt, Rachel, and the gang seem to be proclaiming.  “We’ve given you everything we have, and we very much hope you enjoy it as well.  Regardless, we’re having a blast.”

And enjoy it I do, Matt and Rachel.  Every album, every song, every time.

I first encountered their music in 2008 with the release of their second album, Dark Angel.  No mediocre band would give themselves such a lofty name, I correctly assumed.  I was equally intrigued by the title and cover of that album.

The cover itself is worth describing (and I’ll paste a picture of it here, I hope–please wordpress, please!).  A gorgeous, leather-clad, barefooted, winged woman walks across black and white tile (my first thought is a chessboard) in the ruins of a castle or cathedral, with a full moon and ravens above her.  A few planets hover in the background, as does a small glimpse of a renaissance village, and the floor decays as the angel moves forward, away from the village.

Since that moment four years ago, I’ve purchased everything The Reasoning has recorded in the studio, including their haunting cover of Duran Duran’s best song, “The Chauffeur.”

The first album, Awakening, appeared in 2006.  Dark Angel came out in 2008, and the Duran Duran cover in 2009.  In 2010, The Reasoning released Adverse Camber.  This year, The Reasoning released the EP, And Another Thing, in the spring, and Adventures in Neverland just about a month ago.  These guys are unstoppable.  And, we’re all the better for it.

The newest album, Adventures in Neverland, lives up to every one of my very high expectations.  From the opening moment–guitar, keyboards, and a countdown–until the last note, Adventures in Neverland drives and rocks.  It is a truly great album.  Superb in every way.

As it does move, it moves almost relentlessly, driving the listener toward the Apocalypse.  Most of the music has been written by the bassist, Matt Cohen, and the lyrics have been penned by his wife, Rachel Cohen.

He’s clearly a perfectionist, one of the best bassists in rock, and a man driven.  Rachel’s clearly a brilliant and poetic wordsmith, possessed of a voice equal to her imagination.  I could listen to her sing me into the gates of heaven itself.

As with other The Reasoning releases, the cover of the new CD is inviting, if a bit ominous.  It appears, visually, to be a sequel to Dark Angel.  Rather than seeing the angel cross the ruins from inside of the ruins, the viewer sees the ruins (most likely) from a great distance, with birds still hovering but an omniscient eye overseeing it all, including what appears to be the Dark Angel atop the ruins themselves.  Fading at each end, the title: “Adventures in Neverland” hangs at the bottom.

Every song on Adventures in Neverland is a gem:

1. HYPERDRIVE

2. THE OMEGA POINT

3. THE GLASS HALF

4. STOP THE CLOCK

5. OTHERWORLD

6. END OF DAYS

7. NO FRIEND OF MINE

8. THRENODY

9. FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH

10. ADVENTURES IN NEVERLAND

If you’re happy with this new wave of progressive rock (Brian Watson of DPRP fame called it the “third wave”), you’ll be especially happy with The Reasoning.  For me, they’re an intimate part of the revival.  They’re leading, and they’re leading very well.

Every reader of Progarchy should support The Reasoning.  Here’s the official website (click here).

As a sidenote, I have also followed Matt Cohen (@thereasoning) on Twitter and Facebook for quite some time.  The guy is absolutely hilarious, down to earth, and extremely talented.  He also calls things as he sees them.  In other words, he’s not just a great artist, he’s a real person.

Coralspin’s Honey and Lava (2012)

On By bradbirzerIn Uncategorized3 Comments

Coralspin, “Honey and Lava,” (Altrospire, 2012).  New on the prog scene, Coralspin hails from England.  Much of the music on this excellent release has the feel of something Trevor Horn or Trevor Rabin might have produced around the time of Yes’s 1984 MTV masterpiece, “90125.”  Certainly, Coralspin has its roots in the early to mid 1980s, especially with its big guitars and its big keyboards.  Whether one likes the music of Horn or Rabin or not, no one could honestly dispute the audiophile proclivities of each man.  The same can be written of Coralspin’s Blake McQueen.  The production of this album is simply stunning–this hit me from the first moment I put it in my cd player, and it continues to impress me with each listening.  It’s not just the keyboards and guitars that stand out , no matter how much they predominate on most of tracks.  The bass and the drums are crisp, offering this album a much more punctuated and professional feel than some of its 80s ancestors.  Indeed, I wish Horn and Rabin would’ve mixed Chris Squire’s bass at this level on 90125.  Amazingly enough, almost all of Honey and Lava was recorded in McQueen’s home, and he later mixed and engineered it.  He’s, simply put, a master audiophile, in the same league with Steven Wilson or Rob Aubrey.  The lyrics on this album are wonderful as well–mythic, pointed, hard, soft.  Everything has its place, and its place is very good.  If I were forced to make a comparison (and, as far as I know, I’m doing this out of my own free will), I would compare Coralspin to The Reasoning.  There’s the obvious fact that the lead singers of each are women, but the comparison between the two is much, much deeper than what some silly academic might have pronounced twenty years ago as worthy of revelation.  The structures of the songs–as approached by Matt Cohen and Blake McQueen–have a definite similarity.   Both love mythic lyrics as well, and each wisely uses the voice not only to convey the meaning of the lyrics but also to convey the meaning of the very music itself.  For what it’s worth, I’m a very proud owner of Honey and Lava, and I eagerly await the follow up.