Fresh from the warm South Florida, comes a prog rock veteran Barry Weinberg, with his debut album “Samsarana” dropping January 25th.
The fifteen-piece musical beast of a debut appears very much ready to stand next to plethora of amazing albums that the genre gave birth to over the years.
After short and atmospheric intro titled “Conception,” forward comes “Creation” leading off with a very Floydian feel and with a full sized chorus following all verses, it seems there may be an easy ride ahead for more cautious listeners. “Welcome to my World” is a laid-back stripped down acoustic piece with Weinberg’s voice over leading to “This Vicious Circle,” which sees Weinberg’s circling melody wash over the pebbles and steal away the shoreline behind, whereas “Come Out and Play” is a groovy and funny little piece.
“Beyond the Astral Sky” kicks in through a silent verse, attacking with a slightly alternative-flavoured chorus, and some sharp instrumentation, before the leviathan-sized hook belonging to “Taking it All” take things to a further level, with occasional hard rock sprinkle. We hear the same good work kept up through “Endless Sea” and “A Passage of Time,” the latter ringing the Genesis influence.
After another instrumental interlude “Perception,” “You Cannot Burn the Fire” comes as, arguably, the heaviest piece, incorporating heavy metal riffing and evil-flavoured singing. “Come My Way” brings in the folk element, while the following “The Way” comes with a steady pace, making for one of the highlights.
“Samsarana” is an absolutely accomplished piece of playing, writing and performance that should see the genre pushed out of its confines.
“Samsarana” is out on January 25th; pre-order it from Barry Weinberg’s official website.
I post the following not to start any kind of war against Nugent or any internet dog piling. I did, however, find this absolutely fascinating.
As some of you know, I’m a professor by profession. At the moment, I’m writing an intellectual biography of a very interesting sociologist, Robert A. Nisbet (1913-1996). In my research, I came across this quote from Ted Nugent. It was, by the way, next to a quote by Irving Kristol about Robert Nisbet.
If the punk rockers think they’re so punky with the pins in their face, I’ll show ’em my nine millimeter, put a couple of slugs in their chest and let’s see how punky they think that is.–Ted Nugent, quoted in THE REGISTER (November 17, 1977), F5.
A review of Ghost Community, CYCLE OF LIFE (2016).
Tracks: Rise Up; Mirror Lakes; Anything and Everything; Blue December Morning; Ghost Community; and Cycle of Life
Ghost Community: Jake Bradford Sharp (drums); Matty Cohen (bass); Moray Macdonald (keyboards); Simon Rogers (guitars); and John Paul Vaughn (vocals).
Ghost Community
Imagine if Styx hadn’t gone down the AOR and pop road in the second half of the 1970s, but instead had remained deeply embedded in the prog tradition of the early part of that decade.
Imagine, for just a glorious moment, that we remembered Styx not for KILROY WAS HERE, but rather for CRYSTAL BALL and EQUINOX? Then, throw in some British rockers to replace the ones from Chicago. Then, add the perfectionist and never-wavering mighty bassist and Welshman, the brilliant and steadfast Matt Cohen.
What you might find yourself with is a little piece of perfection in a rather dreadfully fallen world.
And, thus, you’d hold in your hand, Ghost Community’s CYCLE OF LIFE.
From the opening note to the closing one, Ghost Community is nothing if not utterly earnest. I’m not sure if everyone in the prog community would classify this as strictly prog—but, then, really, what is? The more unclassifiable the better—at least to me, when it comes to art as well as to individual human lives.
I must admit a bit of bias here. I have rather proudly enjoyed the friendship of Matt Cohen (though, strictly through the internet) for many years, and I find him to be one of the most compelling artists of our day. He loves to rock, he loves to get things exactly right, and he possesses the will power of ten great men. No matter what life throws at him, Cohen NEVER sits down and he never wallows. He thinks, and he acts. And, the world is so much better for it.
He’s also one incredible bass player.
As I listen to this album, I can’t help but feel immense satisfaction. It’s full of intensity and enjoyment. There are great lyrics, great playing, great flow, great engineering, and great production. There’s nothing more to desire. At one level—hence, the comparison to early Styx—the album is rather obvious and straightforward. Upon several listens, however, especially when paying attention to the lyrics, several more layers emerge—all quite subtle and nuanced. My guess is that even a decade of listening will still reveal more nuances.
This is an intelligent release, an excellent contribution to the current wave of prog rock. Maybe more rock than prog, it’s a delight.
Wait, that doesn’t look like the queen. Yes, the subtlety was lost on me when I was 18.
Amazingly, THE QUEEN IS DEAD came out thirty years ago today. For me, it was that magical time between graduating from high school and heading off to the University of Notre Dame. I spent that summer of 1986 dreaming of college, working as an overnight DJ at a local radio station, and rather madly chasing around a young woman (who is now, thankfully, happily married and living in central Kansas).
Strangely, though, THE QUEEN IS DEAD did not inspire or trouble me once that summer. For whatever reason, I completely missed its release.
It wasn’t until I arrived at Notre Dame that a great friend (and now an extremely famous philosopher) introduced me to THE QUEEN IS DEAD. From the first listen, I was bowled over. Being rather partial to prog rock, I didn’t cotton easily to non-progressive music. Yet, there was something in THE QUEEN IS DEAD that captured my imagination. There was a wit, a whiny intelligence, a reference to some of my favorite writers, and a strange cynical romanticism that pervades the whole album that tugged at my soul.
With Morrissey, I wanted to walk the cemetery gates, and I knew that there was a “light that never goes out” when it came to that Kansas girl I chased for almost two years.
I felt sorry for the Queen and for Prince Charles, of course, but I chuckled about the vicar, and I thought I knew a Bigmouth, here or there.
Thirty years ago. Amazing. It could’ve been yesterday.
Artist: Spiritual Beggars Album Title: Sunrise To Sundown Label: Inside Out Records Date of Release: 18 March 2016 If you’re looking for a musical experience to surprise you and offer something completely different from what has gone before, I wouldn’t recommend Spiritual Beggars to you. Theirs is not a blueprint that seeks to challenge listeners […]
Jim Trainer’s cover for Big Big Train’s UNDERFALL YARD
For what it’s worth, I took a quick break from work this evening and forced myself to write down my twenty favorite rock albums. I gave it almost no thought–I just brain stormed and listed my all-time favorite albums of the rock era. [I intentionally left off all Rush albums.]
Despite my own restrictions, I discovered something very interesting. At least to me.
For the last 29 years, I would have listed my favorite album of all time as Talk Talk’s The Colour of Spring. My iTunes numbers tell me something different, and I must agree.
Welcome to day two of my ‘Album Of The Year 2015’ countdown. If you missed the opening instalment of what is a series that will either make or break me, you can check it out right here: Album of the Year 2015 – Number 30. Additionally, if you missed my similar countdowns from the past […]
I must admit, I hate to wake up to this news. Here’s hoping that SONGS FROM THE VATICAN GIFT SHOP was playing in the original–not its MUZAK version–as Scott rode the escalator to heaven. Rest in Peace, crazy musician man. Many, many of us loved you.
I must admit, I hate to wake up to this news. Here’s hoping that SONGS FROM THE VATICAN GIFT SHOP was playing in the original–not its MUZAK version–as Scott rode the escalator to heaven. Rest in Peace, crazy musician man. Many, many of us loved you.
Progarchy 