This is the PROG ROCK Listening Club - New albums every Friday

Cause rock is like politics and the best kind is progressive!!
Listen to these awesome albums, you will not regret it!

http://www.metalsucks.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/yesclosetotheedge.jpg

Yes - Close to the Edge

http://bluestormmusic.com/store/images/softmachine_third.jpg

Soft Machine - Third

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_THCX_XP9NE4/Slkim8Y2DhI/AAAAAAAAAXk/upLJ8QnBDBo/s320/camel-moonmadness.jpg

Camel - Moonmadness

oh look, a listening club I can get behind!

'Moon In June' on Third is pretty much the greatest piece of music ever made. You won't regret it!

I approve of the Soft Machine and Camel!

I bagsy a week at some point.

I'll have a week after LJ then

we'll both end up rabidly promoting VdGG tbh

well you and i have diff faves so its no worry there

Spotify links
Yes - Close To The Edge
Soft Machine - Third
Camel - Moonmadness

maybe a mod could integrate them below the album pics?

I turned into dew, sorry.

So who wants Week 2? Cause I only know three prog albums total!

LJ is week 2 and I'm week 3

though you stole my camel pick lol

I want a week sometime Mr. the Viceroy.

well you and i have diff faves so its no worry there

Your favourite is rapidly drawing alongside mine in my estimation but yeah I'll choose one of the other two

Week 4 for Abbott! I'd better start a spreadsheet...

im sure the club can handle a vdgg two weeks in a row

Can I have week 5?

Too many listening clubs! Maybe I'll join you guys later on...

after the game?

Just let me skip Soft Machine, and this looks like a nice club. Camel are generally very underrated.

I blame Bedouin

I was gonna do a different camel on my week actually but i guess I will save that for another time.
I didn't think you would like Soft Machine , Geir, but It really is great and it will appeal to some ilxors who may have not heard it.

Actually, Camel may belong to my 70s prog trinity (at least if a pop band like 10cc don't count as prog) together with Yes and Genesis. They were also probably the one famous prog band of the 70s who were closest to the melodic symphonic rock style of Yes and Genesis.

The greatness of 'Moon in June' can't be overstated. The record as whole isn't a favorite, although I liked it well enough that I look forward to giving it another listen. Overall, I'm not much of prog enthusiast, but I find just about everything Wyatt has ever recorded at least interesting.
I like 'Close to the Edge' okay. It's agreeably weird in places, but my dislike of Anderson's vocals has always prevented me from spending much time with the album.
I don't think I've ever listened to anything by Camel.

Camel probably made the best all-instrumental prog album ever with "The Snow Goose".

Yeah that's my fave. I hope someone picks it in their week.

NV you having a week?

I say pencil him in anyway

Ooh, this sounds like a listening club for me! Close To The Edge I know like the back of my hand anyway but I'll re-listen to the Soft Machine and Camel. I tend to play the first 2 SM records if I play anything by them, but 3rd is everyone's favourite isn't it? Camel were better when they didn't sing iirc.

First two are my favorite. I wish the world made more songs like "Why Am I So Short?"

"I find it easy to express myself!"

You doing a week Geir???

I will do week 3 if no-one else wants it

The Soft Machine and Yes albums are equally great imo. I've never heard Camel, so I'll have to give them a spin.

Can I do one week?

Oh Hey! Sweet! Could I have a week sometime?

this is a great idea

Viceroy is gonna be stoked 4 the interest.

When is abbott week?

Digging out my shitty cut-out Camel CD.

This sounds like a great idea. Definitely sticking around for this.

I hope louis isnt gonna pick beta band or something

Somehow I forgot that I had a copy of Third. I like it: Soft Machine - Third: Classic or Dud?

And yes, "Out-Bloody-Rageous" does get into "Poppy Nogood" territory.

It's hard for me to say anything more about Close to the Edge, esp since I'm hoping to publish an analysis of it at some point.

Camel was the only one of these I hadn't heard before. It's nice symphonic prog that reminds me of Genesis sometimes. Not on par with the other two but little is. I'll keep it in rotation though.

There's something really right about listening to prog while studying Fourier analysis and reviewing complex numbers.

Am going to fulfil my end of the bargain and hear Camel at some point; obviously the other two are burned onto my mind

i feel sorry for people who can't get into "siberian khatru"

"Siberian Khatru" is the best track on the album, imo – It's "ANd You And I" that always feels a bit draggy to me.

The title track is the album as far as I'm concerned. If that was the only thing they ever did it would be rightly lauded. The opening section is some of the most full-tilt bonkers music I think i've heard, and the musicianship is out of this world. Just absolutely love the song--at 18 min. it doesn't feel overlong. I find "And you And I" less than memorable...Siberian Katru is a cool jam that I've always picked up a Hendrix feel from...it's a nice way to end the record, but neither track holds a candle to the opener.

All three songs are mindblowing. And different from each other. Khatru is a fucking jam.

I've always had And You And I as my favourite :/

but yeah, they're all super

fyi lala links for those behind the spotify curtain:

Yes - Close To The Edge
Soft Machine - Third
Camel - Moonmadness

I think I gave 'katru' a short shrift in my post upthread... I listened to it on my commute this morning and was definitely wrong saying it didn't hold a candle to the title track. It's more straightforward, but no less interesting than anything else on the album. Another thing I wanted to mention is that the production on this record is fantastic. Lots of space, tension between sound-elements...I don't know, I'm at a bit of a loss describing it. The dueling melody lines from the mellotron & clean guitar tone just sound great together. The album as a whole is Yes at their most compelling, hooky enough to sustain interest over a long period... which I don't think they were really ever able to do as successfully again.

OK, there's some intense shredding over knotty ensemble work on "Lunar Sea".

rock critic silence on eddy offord over the years is pretty pathetic

Wow, I certainly had no idea about him. It's interesting--as much as prog in general gets tagged with the charge of bombast, sonically there's a pretty rich and nuanced pallette in those records.

Oh, the production of Close to the Edge is gorgeous. It's pretty central to my analysis.

Are you doing a book? (or has this been discussed before on previous threads?)

I gather that Bruford wasn't terribly at home with the editing process that was necessary for some of the longer Yes tracks, I wonder if he felt it was cheating a little. I recall seeing a documentary once where he expressed a liking for SK more than most of the other Yes songs he played on.

IIRC there's a honking great edit near the start of AYAI before the drums come in.

I've written a paper about "Close to the Edge" (the song) that I've presented at a few conferences. I hope to (significantly) edit it and try to publish it.

YSI?

close to the edge is yes' most solid album, every song is great, no filler, that's what you get when you only have three songs. it's not my favorite though (I like songs on fragile and the yes album a lot more) but there is no denying it's a great album.

I prefer Relayer, but not by too much.

not a bad song yes album - close to the edge. and after the bizarre tales, relayer picks up right where close to the edge leaves off. it's one of the best studio album runs any band's ever had. jam after mindblowing jam

it was madness to believe they could duplicate CTTE (the song) four times over, but I can easily imagine that they thought they could do it. I'm not entirely versed on Yes lore, but didn't Wakeman follow Bruford out the door when it became clear that nobody but Anderson or Howe would be allowed to write for what became 'Tales...'?

hey guys you can talk about the other 2 albums!

OK!

Listening to Third after CTTE was really disconcerting... they could hardly be more different. The production was really strange with the SM album, very raw, with the drums sometimes buried, sometimes in the right channel only, and everything recorded HOT HOT HOT! I hadn't listened to this one in a while after being on a Softs kick a while back. I think my opinion hasn't changed--Fourth is my favorite. This one's a bit overlong and way shaggy. Facelift & Out-Bloody-Rageous are the standouts--in fact a single LP with those two alone would have been quite a record. Where this one sounds like a band jamming and discovering what they're capable of, I prefer the tighter compositions of Fourth and the emphasis on Hopper's bass on that one. Third is still a more-than-worthy record though.

yeah, it does sound very different after listening to the YES album, much prefer the Soft Machine though (and the Camel, though I think The Snow Goose is even better)

can you post tracklists of the above 3 albums - i think the versions i have access to are special editions with extra tracks and, well, it'd be nice to stick to the originals

"once where he expressed a liking for SK more than most of the other Yes songs he played on"

He didnt get a writing credit on it, but if I remember correctly he was the originator of the idea for the song. Kind of dumb that he didnt push for a credit if thats the case

Yes - Close To The Edge - the psych pop roots are still showing through on this album, as opposed to later albums where they just sounded like their earlier albums. The title track is essentially a 3 minute pop song stretched out to 20 minutes, but they retained enough concision in the arrangements to keep it to the point. Eddie Offord really was a genius wasn't he? Would have loved to hear him work on a Miles Davis album from this period...my only real problem with the album is a lot of the lyrics, which I find difficult to ignore :

How does she sing?
Who holds the ring? And ring and you will find me coming.
Cold reigning king,
Hold all the secrets from you
As they produce the movement

Shut up. Anyway, still gets a 5/5 for me.

Soft Machine - Third - I have mixed thoughts about this record. By this point Elton Dean had joined, Wyatt was being sidelined and they were moving towards the kind of noodly Brit jazz rock (with copious horn charts no doubt) that automatically shuts my brain down when I hear it. The difference from their first album is so pronounced even by this point that it's essentially a different band. I can't hear something like "Facelift" without thinking of Wyatt's quotes about being sneered at (no doubt there's 2 sides to the story, but still), and didn't the rest of the band refuse to play on "Moon In June"? So, 3 tracks out of 4 are actually really good (esp. the Terry Riley-isms on "Out-Bloody-Rageous") but it's a pointer towards a bleak future for me. 4/5.

Camel - Moonmadness - mostly harmless. "Song Within A Song" really nice but would have benefitted from a decent singer. The rest of it ranges from nice to noodly, basically a bit inconsequential but not as inconsequential as Barclay James Harvest. I imagine most of their fans wore duffel coats. I mean I like it, but it's sympomatic of a certain kind of unchallenging soft-rock element that crept into early-to-mid 70s prog, a million miles away from something like "Siberian Khatru" and without the compositional chops of Genesis. 3/5.

Don't forget that Third was mostly made up of edited live material. Might not be the most pleasing sounding album in the world but I think the performances more than make up for it. The interplay between them all is incredible. One of my favorite sections of music ever put on record is on Facelift from the flute solo around 11:20 which breaks into a heavy 3 based groove and builds up to Elton's sustained notes around 14:30 which are the basically the door into the trip's peak. Explosion. Hypnotic sax riffs, each instrument a layer, polyrhythmically swirling around each other, locking in with another for a few measures of heavy groove and then flying off to improvise and make space for other layers to do the same, with each measure getting more and more intense and the whole while Hugh Hopper tightly weaving it together with his fuzzy bass. Ah what bliss.

I keep wondering when this is gonna change, feels like it's been these three albums for a month. Meaning it's been a realllly long week for me.

fancy that, a prog thread feeling its going on too long ;)

lj gets to post his picks at midnight

cuz im pretty sure it was decided friday was prog club day (as many ilxors arent around at weekends as they dont work then)
John just took ages to make his picks and post them!

He took like an hour and a half! I was *there.*

yeah but we decided he'd do it on friday!

Anyway i cant see lj remembering it's his turn

I agree that there's a soft rock element to the Camel album...actually the tunes that emphasize that are the ones I like best, 'Air Born' for example. It's a bit campy, but has that dreamy sound and even quotes a bit of the Beatles 'Flying'.

Also, listening to this record finally explains what Ween were listening to when they wrote this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSg2zQl0hk4

I was playing Third just last week, a day or so ahead of this thread. I'd swear, listening to the opening few minutes of "Facelift" with that free-form organ noise, this could easily be mistaken for a Sun Ra recording - even the muddy live recording quality helps create that illusion. Mike Ratledge really didn't sound like any other prog keyboardist I can think of.

LJ is gonna post a Cardiacs album, isn't he?

no I'm not. Cardiacs aren't REALLY prog.

Im guessing Cardiacs, Ulver and VDGG.

ok scratch the Cardiacs then. surprise me!

I mean those WOULD be my choices in an ideal world, but this ain't an ideal world. I don't WANT to make things easy for y'guys. ;)

funny. just came here to suggest that whoever's next post up the first RARE BIRD album in his/her trio. "iceberg" is unbelievable

if I'd heard it...

ok decision time

kamerad you can choose it for your week

Hey! It's the PROG ROCK club WEEK TWO! For those about to overcomplicate, we salute you...

i just might pfunkboy. thanks for those three new ones, lj. looking forward to checking out youthmovies, who i've never heard of before

ask viceroy to put you down for a week then

just noticed this thread. gave third a listen last night. (was previously only familiar with their first two.)

so, the first few minutes of "facelift" basically sound like a supersilent record, huh? cool. I was thinking I had a double album of out free rock in store and was pretty disappointed when the jazz rock kicked in proper. but it grew on me and I agree with the comments about the flute solo and the intense build for the rest of the song.

"slightly all the time" definitely seems like the weak link on here. it's a bit by-the-numbers and drags the record down at 20mins.

I fell asleep somewhere in between "moon in june" and "out-bloody-rageous" but I gave em another listen during my commute this morning. pretty into these tracks as well. the terry riley stuff is definitely cool but I'd rather just listen to terry riley, you know?

I dig the weird production on this record too. gives it a bit of a chaotic vibe that works for the material.

so, pretty positive impressions overall but the record is a bit of a slog.

feel like listening to third on vinyl would probably help out with the "slog" factor. give each track a bit of time to digest and all.

really dig the drumming on "moon in june" btw

The version of "Moon in June" on BBC Radio 1967-1971 is pretty mindblowing.

cool. I'll definitely be checking that out, then. thanks.

I thought of Supersilent as well!

yeah, the early supersilent records sound like they took the beginning of this album and took it way out into the stratosphere! anyone looking for more organ noize with a lopsided, lurching fusion vibe would be well-served by any of their first six records. (all sequentially titled... like most soft machine records. hmmmm...)

listening to the camel album now. had never heard it before. barely even noticed it was playing for a few tracks, hah.

and that close to the edge is my fave prog album of all time. it is IMMENSE in every sense of the word.

and as others have noted, somewhat amazingly for a 3-song yes album, that thing is truly all killer/no filler!

I was going to do another Camel album for my picks but cant now because viceroy picked an album, and now I cant do VDGG because lj picked an album by them. I'm just gonna have to go outwith "classic" prog for my selections then and damn the consequences.

you can do whatever you want, man!!

its a shame noones doing week 2.. this thread could have been even busier.

My week will be done on this one.

so everyone can still discuss previous weeks albums in the future

CTTE (the track) came on my shuffle earlier...I tried to think of a way to reduce it to its 3-minute pop-song soul. Doable but you wouldn't want to.

The best bit is CLEARLY the bit JUST after the drumless organ 'Get Up/Get Down' section. Where Chris Squire sounds like a robot controlling all of music.

1. Van Der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts (1971)

http://churlinux.files.wordpress.com/2008/01/pawn_hearts_cover.jpg

Some 'classic' prog for y'all. Possibly not my favourite VdGG but the one you should probably start with. The greatest of the original prog bands with their early masterpiece, a swirling, genuine clusterfuck of sound and fury, whose sense only comes through after a few loose-jawed listens. Staggering complexity of thought at play, and crucially a brilliant grasp of songwriting amid the chaos, executed by musicians learning how to breathe fire. And barely an electric guitar in sight.

http://open.spotify.com/album/7CVoSNQO9BoYVj7f4qsNeE
http://lala.com/zoQvI

2. Mansun - Six (1998)

http://otho.douban.com/lpic/s2956249.jpg

Up-and-coming Britpop bandleader goes off deep end, suffers panic attack, records clinically insane album that ought to be a colossal failure even by Britpop standards. Mansun was in essence the solo project of Paul Draper, and no more so than on this absurd piece of work. I have little to say about it except that virtually every single bonkers decision taken in the making of this record pays off handsomely, which, to be honest, is nothing short of miraculous. It's huge, camp, boldly-realised, head-spinning and nothing like anything you've heard before. Approach with glee.

http://open.spotify.com/album/3LupLbRks98bg8OzxePrLx
http://lala.com/zXQvI

3. Youthmovies - Good Nature (2008)

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41aa8sSOwgL._SS500_.jpg

Youthmovies broke up a couple of weeks ago. I saw their last London gig. They were fabulous, as they've always been. This is their magnum opus, their only full-length album. It's absolutely gorgeous from start to finish, probably the best pure-prog album of the decade. By this I mean that it lacks for avant-garde touches, electronica diversions, genre-bending madness; what it has instead is some of the best prog songcraft you'll hear. These guys write tunes as if their lives depend on it, all while the chord-changes and time-signatures flock by like unattended cattle. And the production's beautiful. And they rock the fuck out when they want to. And they have A TRUMPETER FFS

http://open.spotify.com/album/5tBA1cLGGO9CvZm0NsxcQW
http://lala.com/zG52I

Enjoy!

The VDGG is AWESOME. But now I cant pick them next week for my go. Lol I should've known you would pick Mansun, well i also own this cd and it is great. Youthmovies I never cared for but I will give it a go.

when the thread title is changed, there's gonna be a dozen posts saying they knew it was obviously LJ's week hehe

You TOTALLY can pick them for next week's go! I've brought the pinnacle of VdGG part 1, you can hit 'em with some prime part 2...that's what I thought we were doing :P

They're very different albums, and equally fantastic.

i can't think of anything novel to say about pawn hearts at the moment but it's certainly one of my very favorite prog albums

haven't heard the other two, i'll give them a listen later tonight!

If there hadn't been Yes in Week 1 I'd have probably posted Relayer fwiw

(but VdGG periods 1 and 2 are much more distinct than Yes' two 3-track wonders)

Actually no I wouldn't...I'm not so mental about Yes as I used to be.

Still love them, mind. (I'll zip it now)

I certainly wont be picking YES, ELP, Gentle Giant or Jethro fucking Tull in my picks so none of you need fear that!

IMO Yes are much better than the other bands you name but then I need to give Gentle Giant a genuine go, maybe

I am just gonna pick three Rick Wakeman albums from the past decade for my week.

:D

Top three Rick Wakeman albums of the 00's:

1. Wizard and the Forest of All Dreams
2. At Lincoln Cathedral
3. Retro

you can add him to list of things i'll never ever pick

Yep. Pawn Hearts was the first VdGG album I owned, but I only got it after I had immersed myself heavily in Hammill's solo albums of the period. So when I think of VdGG, I inevitably think of them as an aspect of Hammill's muse rather than a band in their own right, the huge contributions of the other three notwithstanding.

Like Louis, this isn't my favourite VdGG album. In general I find the pre-split era albums a tad callow and baroque when compared with the fierce intensity of the post-split years. Hammill was still finding his way as a songwriter with this album, the "how can I be free" section of 'Man-Erg' is a teeth-grindingly awful interlude which the mature Hammill would never have allowed past quality control. On the other hand the rest of 'Man-Erg' is just some of the most soaringly beautiful, shattering, longing music I've ever heard.

I just listened to the Mansun album. More impressed than I expected to be, though I doubt I'll return to it. Sounds kind of like a lost Smashing Pumpkins CD. Having no information about them except the name, I'd always assumed they were a goth metal group.

yeah i listened to the Mansun album last night and really liked it from first impressions. i'm not convinced it's 'prog' though, at least not any moreso than other pompous britpop albums like Dog Man Star

It's about 50 times weirder than anything on dog man star

The production on the Mansun record is overstuffed, but in an interesting way. I have made my best attempt to 'approach with glee' but came away feeling exhausted...yet fairly impressed.

whole album's amazing but 'cancer', 'television' and 'being a girl' are jams in excelsis

there's an interesting article by draper on the recording of six here
http://ymlp.com/msg.php?id=anekcixcbjy

and here
http://ymlp.com/msg.php?id=anekcixlkpn

best bit probably being this part about recording the song Cancer:

"I mentioned in the intro about the nun looking back at herself. 'The sea of faces just like me'; that was about the effect starting at about 5.24. That was an idea I had that went like this. I play the piano in the live room. Then come back in and set a microphone up in the control room and record myself with the others listening back to myself playing the piano. When mixing the record, fade out the master tapes and fade up the stereo recording I made of me listening back to myself, then fade it out again just before Chad's guitar solo. Practically it made the solo sound ace when it kicks in, but it was just an idea so that when you get the record at home you listen to the finished thing, then just for a brief moment you hear what we were actually hearing from the control room at the moment it was being recorded. You can hear me talking in the control room and some random effects being played on the sampler sampled from a guitar thru all the effects boxes at the time to add effect. A moment in time captured. It took an aeon to sync up and figure out but it sounds seamless. That's what we heard in the room at the time of making it, so that's why its there. It's a record about making records.

After that Andie and Chad join in with my piano. I later flew Chad's guitar through loads of effects boxes onto loads of tracks of tape and put the faders up and down and automated all the effects I'd fired his guitar through to swell in and out so the sound constantly evolved and changed. Either Chad or me doubled up the piano part later on at 7.17 we went back into the first section of lyrics to end the track off, but in a different style from before. Job done. Six random bits of music running seamlessly together.

Finally I got my Linn Drum out again for the handclap and added the chords I wrote the song in as guitar swells. Chad overdubbed a new lead line and as the song was very ethereal sounding by this point, too nice. At 8.28 I put it through the 'big cheese' pedal and the fireworx so it was virtually just a farting noise, just to keep things edgy and not get to washy.

Piece of piss."

Yeah I got that when he first released it - was always disappointed he gave the last four tracks such short shrift, but he clearly cares deeply about the album and there's some good, enlightening stuff there for sure

'Cancer' really does work like a dream. A sorta breathless odyssey through the dude's brain.

Listening to Youthmovies now. This sounds like Indie to me. I'm not at all familiar with post-70s prog though.

It is uk indie

Yeah, I really like the Youthmovies but "pure prog" did seem a bit overstated to me for what sounds like a really good math rock record. I do see more of what I would consider a prog element than I do with what I've heard of, I dunno, US Maple or June of '44 though.

All this said, I think it's totally great - and clearly more progressive - to keep this club open to different types of rock music that is progressive (as opposed to Progressive Rock music). Some people might see some of my future choices as modern composition or alternative jazz.

there goes my june of 44 pick then, lol

No, pick them!

The indie thing isn't a diss. This is quite good. I suppose the ambition stations it in proggish waters. I'll probably listen to it again soon.

I actually had another modern pick lined up but I'll decide next week

What I like most about Pawn Hearts is the atmosphere of incipient doom it conjures up. This is music teetering on the brink of the occult. Hammill had come under the influence of the magick-obsessed British bluesman Graham Bond, which makes sense in terms of the seething devilry of the album as much as it does in terms of the influence of the blues on Hammill's early writing. Hammill grew up in Derby in the East Midlands, a nexus for British blues and soul, and has cited John Lee Hooker and Muddy Waters as early influences – in particular Hooker, whose blues were rarely 12-bar standards. That sense of dislocation and not-quite-rightness you sense in Hooker is all over Hammill's work, in the music but also in the vocal phrasing.

can't imagine anyone else delivering lines like--
I know I'm not a hero, well,
I hope that I'm not damned
--with similar dread. most people would probably just sound silly, but to this day hammill creeps the fuck out of me

gimme 5 mins to post my albums

LJ you still around?

i am

#1 Van Der Graaf Generator - Godbluff
http://www.progreviews.com/reviews/images/VdGG-Gb.jpg
AMG review

Following the release of Pawn Hearts, bandleader Peter Hammill took time out to develop a solo career, choosing to focus his energy on darkly introspective works that seemed to be intended to examine the personal consequences of his life. When it came time for reuniting the members of Van Der Graaf, this change in direction had its effect on the band's post-1975 music. While the musical structures continued to be complex and dense, there seemed to be far less accent on the demonstration of musical skill than had formerly been the case. Indeed, the album opened with daring quietness, with David Jackson's flute echoing across the stereo space, joined by Hammill's voice as he whispered the opening lines. There was sturm und drang to come, but the music had been opened up and the lyrics had developed more focus, often abandoning metaphor in favor of statement. Godbluff was a bravura comeback -- only four cuts, but all were classics.

Spotify Link

As LJ said, this is a different era for VDGG , so it's ok to post. Enjoy!

#2 King Crimson - Starless & Bible Black
http://bigearflux.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/king_crimson-starless_and_bible_black-frontal-resized.jpg

AMG review

Starless and Bible Black is even more powerful and daring than its predecessor, Larks' Tongues in Aspic, with jarring tempo shifts, explosive guitar riffs, and soaring, elegant, and delicate violin and Mellotron parts scattered throughout its 41 minutes, often all in the same songs. The album was on the outer fringes of accessible progressive rock, with enough musical ideas explored to make Starless and Bible Black more than background for tripping the way Emerson, Lake & Palmer's albums were used. "The Night Watch," a song about a Rembrandt painting, was, incredibly, a single release, although it was much more representative of the sound that Crimson was abandoning than where it was going in 1973-1974. More to that point were the contents of side two of the original LP, a pair of instrumentals that threw the group's hardest sounds right in the face of the listener, and gained some converts in the process. [Starless and Bible Black was remastered again for CD in the summer of 2000, in significantly improved sound that brought out the details (and surprising lyricism) of much of the material in far greater detail. The booklet included with the remastered version is not as impressive as some of the rest of the series entries in terms of information, but has great photos.]

Not a Spotify Link

#3
Crime In Choir-Crime In Choir
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_J2DE-Pu6NhU/RxFJCVZluZI/AAAAAAAAABA/SMA6MO9fZKI/s320/cic2.jpg
AMG review

After the breakup of At the Drive-In, it became apparent that said band was certainly the sum of some diverse parts, and with each new project from the former members those parts have gotten a little more clearly defined. Hailing from the more abstract corners of At the Drive-In's sound comes Crime in Choir (which of course boasts "founding members of At the Drive-In"), whose instrumental escapades are astoundingly diverse and technically tighter than most of their peers. With viciously syncopated drumming and hearty synth overtones providing the melodies, the quartet weaves tunes both dark and ominous as well as strangely uplifting, all while keeping up a chaotic pace and careening through rapid changes that show off its skills without sounding too cocky. There are touches of early Trans Am when the group gets into chugging grooves like the finale of "Pictures in the Dictionary," and the seamless percussion echoes Don Caballero at points...not bad company to be in considering this is the outfit's debut effort. In a crowded world of instrumental rock acts, this foursome is actually worth paying some attention to, and its pedigree is thankfully reduced to something less important than the music at hand.

Not A Spotify Link

Zach Hill from Hella is on this, was gonna go with Don Caballero , but most ppl will know them and just say its mathrock, so I figured i'd choose Crime In Choir ahead of don cab and hella.

I hope lots of you check all the albums out and post all your thoughts.
Enjoy!

crime in choir piss allover the mars volta.

San Francisco quintet Crime In Choir are an instrumental progressive rock band, comparable to Faust, Goblin, Magma, Soft Machine, etc. Founded in 2000, Crime In Choir released their previous full-length releases on Frenetic Records (2004’s The Hoop) and Omnibus (2002’s self-titled debut), respectively. The band’s third full-length, Trumpery Metier, was recorded by Tim Green, and is their first release for Gold Standard Labs.

On September 13, 2007, Crime in Choir performed at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art accompanied by light projections by visual artist, Anthony McCall.

Crime in Choir's fourth release, "Gift Givers" was released on the 22nd January 2009[1] on Kill Shaman Records - their previous label (Gold Standard Labs) closed its doors in October, 2007.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_In_Choir

And the ex ATD-I dudes are the founder members who arent the brothers.. (nothing to do with sparta or atd-i)

or tmv , i mean

interesting picks!

Godbluff is one of the best things ever written by anyone ever and if you like it you need to hear Still Life too

but just fucking enjoy it if you haven't heard it before - it's staggering

I enjoy Starless & Bible Black every bit as much as Red.

I wonder what LJ will think of Crime In Choir though.

Cigarettes, ice cream, figurines: of the Virgin! Mary!

abbott can you update the thread title please?

Wow I have to say I haven't heard of Crime in Choir! This will be quite an exciting treat!

Cigarettes, ice cream, figurines: of the Virgin! Mary!

That is the only lyric Robert Fripp has ever written, fact fans.

Not true! He wrote the lyrics to "You Burn Me Up I'm a Cigarette," too. Must have liked cigarettes a lot.

I wonder what you all will think of crime in choir

Abbott are your nails dry yet?

You had to bring that up!

big lover of s&bb - great cover apart from anything else. it shows the band at their best even though the many live recordings of the time are just as good. vdgg - really have never gotten them at all. as i said in the other thread - the vocals just don't do anything for me.

Abbott, I was hinting that you needed to change the thread title cuz noone is clicking on the thread!

...

hurrah!!! Thank you!!!

yeah but now Graaf is misspelled.

weird its now gone back to the old title
xp

yeah wtf

maybe stet is working on the site and its reverted to old titles or something.

that might be it, as the admin log doesnt have a record of the previous change.

oh well, lets just talk about this weeks new albums!

oh we are back, hurrah!

I love Godbluff very much but don't know how much I have to say about it seeing as I've been living with it for almost 20 years. Hammill is at his most possessed on 'Arrow', his voice sounds like sandpaper on fire. The vocals, the lyrics, the organ and the drums all started to work together so spectacularly on this album. They sound like a band a lot more than they did on the pre-split albums.

Arrow has always been my fave VDGG song. I think I bludgeoned LJ into submission as he now agrees this album is as good as his beloved Pawn Hearts.

Have you heard Crime In Choir before? It's all instrumental stuff with Zach Hill on drums for the 1st album. So much better than the 2 other bands that came from ATD-I.

The only moment on Godbluff I can't stomach is the cha-cha bit of "The Sleepwalkers". Just seems so staggeringly out of place. Always made me cringe when I saw them do it on the reunion tour. Other than that it's just so awesomely powerful.

Starless & Bible Black has always seemed to be a bit patchy esp when compared with Larks' Tongues and Red. "Lament" and "The Night Watch" are very pretty and "Fracture" has some of the most incredible guitar work Fripp ever did but elsewhere it seems to wanders a bit. Maybe it's the fact that some of it was recorded live with the crowd noise taken out that contributes to the lack of cohesion.

No, I don't know Crime in Choir. But then again I don't know At The Drive-In either.

Crime in Choir! I forgot about them. Thought they were pretty rad. Let's see if I still do...

Then it wont prejudice you! Please follow the link and play it!

Haha , Rebecca, If you listened to funk,jazz and doom/drone metal, I think your record collection would mirror mine!

have meant to educate myself re vdgg for quite some time, so am listening now for the first time. flutes at intro are lovely, vocals suggest that they may be inclined to become an obstacle...

okay, the vocals are no obstacle whatsoever. i LOVE the vocals. "and their pace does not relent..." just transitioning, as you can maybe tell, from arrow to the sleepwalkers. arrow might be my new very favorite song of the moment, and the sleepwalkers is shaping up just fine, too. scorched earth is the only track that hasn't blown me away so far, and it wasn't bad or anything.

The only moment on Godbluff I can't stomach is the cha-cha bit of "The Sleepwalkers". Just seems so staggeringly out of place.

― anagram

caught "scrabbling at the lock" in arrow -- inspiration for tom cora & the ex? sax solo & crazy imperious vocals around 7-8 min in the sleepwalkers are SO GREAT!

Yeah, that bit of "Sleepwalkers" v. much needs to be there. As a little stab of black humour it reminds you that VdGG aren't quite as earnest as you might think, and that Hammill doesn't despair quite as much as you might imagine. Plus the band plays it really tight, and it's a perfect alternative form of respite before they come crashing back in with the freak out.

I mean, it might be a "cha cha cha" but it's the sound of skeletons or zombies or sleepwalkers Cha-Cha-Cha-ing. Caligari has jokes in it too.

a trip through the inner darklands is almost always more enjoyable if i get the sense that my guide is aware of the absurdity.

rather than moving on to starless, i'm listening to godbluff again. hand of bowie in the undercover man? kinda hard for me, a prog novice, to parse this stuff wr2 influence & inspiration. my impression is that vdgg have been influenced by floyd, king crimson, golden earring and elp, and also glam like bowie and maybe even alice cooper. but maybe it's the other way around, or some mixture?

vocals often remind me of rob halford for some reason

I think I bludgeoned LJ into submission as he now agrees this album is as good as his beloved Pawn Hearts.

VdGG did the bludgeoning.

Contenderizer, Scorched Earth is my favourite track on the album. It's terrifyingly intense and after a few listens it'll click. One of the most complicated things they ever made, and one of the best song-titles in history too.

The bit from 6.33 onwards in The Sleepwalkers is the word 'epic' blasted into space then torched by a solar flare

I will listen to the other two later but for me VdGG are prog so I gotta unburden myself a bit

maybe my problem with vdgg is that i've never worried about lyrics and emotive vocals in prog whereas it's obvious that these are the things that seems to make lovers of vdgg weep. i know there are lyrics in s&bb and, apart from the "cigarettes" thing above, i can't remember one line.

i listened to s&bb again just now (after the comment about it's patchiness) and i liked it much more than the previous time i played it when i too thought it was a bit dull in the middle. this time around i liked the flow of it a lot... and the improvs are great.

isn't prog all about 'musicianship' - shouldn't we bee ooh-ing and aah-ing over solos and time sigs and such?? :-)

what blows my mind about VdGG the most is how the instrumentation and the blistering performances completely suit the amazing songwriting - my thing about 'narrative' to the fore again here. everything fits together like the vast and terrifying machinery of a successful war

the lyrics and vocals are *utterly* great but they're just part of the experience, and not the most breathtaking part.

prog is about whatever the hell it wants to be about, provided that it's 'progressive', preferably in both senses of the word

@coalition to me - please notice smily

*notices smily*

*furiously*

this is bizarre. thread title has AGAIN reverted to last weeks.

it's not changing back until you've all heard my picks

the thread titles dragging on and on and irritating everyone just like a youthmovies album! ;)

NV I guess you and I are just gonna have to agree to disagree on this one :) I don't think that bit of "The Sleepwalkers" needs to be there at all, in fact it comes perilously close to spoling the song for me. As indeed it did at the reunion shows when various people had the temerity to get up and dance in the aisles to it!!!

Haha if I held bands responsible for horrible things fans do I wouldn't like any bands.

Me neither but I still disliked that part right from the first time I heard it.

NV i thought you did hate everything? ;)

why do mods hate prog club?

we need a progmod

thank you mr/mrs mod!

dancing in the aisles! the temerity

anyway, i've spent a couple days trying to get my head around starless and bible black. though much of it is lovely (and much of the rest is appealingly heavy &/or crazy), i don't respond to it as immediately or as viscerally as i did the wonderful van der graaf generator lp. part of the problem is doubtless the abstract nature of the album's second half, and the relentlessly choppy and fragmented musicianship of the first few tracks. i mean, it's easy to love the absolutely gorgeous "night watch" and "trio", but it's a record of phases, and that's just one of them.

i do like the inclusion of some funk and almost punk aggression in the opening act, and it's interesting to listen to this part of the album with the work of the later bruford/levin/belew lineup in mind. while discipline is usually described as a major shift in the band's direction, i hear a lot of that sound & approach in the first three tracks here. the main difference i hear is that this stuff is a bit unrefined in comparison, and a lot less catchy.

which brings me to the last three. the two long, abstract, improvisational tracks that close the album (after "mincer", which ends just as it gets going) tend to throw me. it's not that i don't like them - i do, but in a rather distanced way. the title track reminds me of the residents, in its moon-man spaciness and tonal obstinacy, and i've never been a big residents fan. the solo musicianship and group dynamics keep things interesting throughout, but i have to be in the mood for that kind of cosmic exploration. "fracture" is more successful, but also more demanding, and i still find it easier to intellectually appreciate than to emotionally engage with. LOVE the last few minutes though.

Has anyone listened to Crime In Choir?

a few thoughts on these: Godbluff is an improvement on Pawn Hearts--punchier songs, more tuneful in general, and Hammill's lyrics are pretty great on this one. The clavinet is a good addition as is actual occasional bass playing. After two albums in two weeks, I can't say as I think much of Jackson's sax. He generally sounds anemic, and without much to say when he's not stating the riff. I remain perplexed & amazed by Hammill-- I tried playing a song to a friend, he got through a minute of Hammill's vocals before dismissing him as "too off-Broadway". I tend to think that's my entry point for him though...I like the range between drunken lounge singer and Elemental Demon.
Anyway Arrow is prob. my favorite track thus far. And the cha-cha bit on Sleepwalkers seems in keeping with the musical style-shifting of that tune, but I have no history with the album.

I guess I'm going to have to save comments on the other two for later...

xpost--yes, i like it! more later.

crime in choir is the toughest yet. their lp reminds me of post-rock in how thoroughly it's been scrubbed of obtrusive, cheezy or theatrical elements. primarily vocal elements, of course, but the streamlining and aesthetic conservatism apply to their sound as a whole. all that's left are smooth tones and expert (but mostly unshowy) musicianship. i dunno, maybe it IS post-rock. whatever you call it, i'm not a fan of the approach. i'm not satisfied with smooth vibes and restrained expertise. i want something wilder and weirder to creep in every now and them. or else for things to be stripped down a lot further. i suppose it's music as a transportational device - weightless and propulsive, with lots of busy little details flashing by, but nothing to interrupt the steady forward progress. like motorik krautrock or dance music, kinda, but delivered in a prog idiom. and the drumming is amazing, i won't deny that. it's enjoyable while it goes by, but neither memorable nor mind blowing.

ike motorik krautrock or dance music, kinda, but delivered in a prog idiom.

Heh, you've probably just sold the album to everyone else now!

okay, that was too harsh. CIC remind me of pinback in the clockwork chiming of guitar & bass and the sense of constant motion, and i like the early pinback stuff. this is much more expansive and rhythmically varied, but the feel is similar. and i've got to admit that the more i listen to this album and get the hang of its subtle ebb and flow, the more distinctive the songs seems and the more i enjoy it overall. "fleece on fire", for instance, is incredible, especially in its first and last minutes. still can't ever see the crime in choir being a personal favorite. they're a little too boxed-in and sedate for my tastes.

I put Crime In Choir in the same bracket as bands like Zombi or Laddio Bolocko, I like it well enough when I hear it but it doesn't really take. Bet they're great live though. I dunno, maybe shorter songs would be an improvement? That way the ideas wouldn't outstay their welcome. Still, generally a 3.5-to-4 out of 5.

Starless And Bible Black seems like the weakest of the 3 Bruford & Wetton era albums, but I understand that they always had problems coming up with enough material at short notice (how did bands manage an album + world tours every year back then?!). The best tracks (Great Deceiver, Fracture) are as good as anything they ever did though imo.

Another vote in favour of the VDGG cha-cha section here, it's like coming across a nativity scene in a tour through hell.

also wanna mention stuff like pell mell and even the feelies relative to crime in choir. suppose it's the clean, "jangly" fender (?) guitar tone and whooshing synths, coupled with the light but frantic drumming.

I put Crime In Choir in the same bracket as bands like Zombi or Laddio Bolocko, I like it well enough when I hear it but it doesn't really take.

currently listening to vdgg to check my calibration. and yes - it's my favorite of the three by a huge margin.

Yeah, for me CIC (on this album anyway) tread a line between jammy psych (a la Circle, Can etc) and more composed prog that doesn't quite work - not enough composition / tunes and not taking off into the stratosphere either. How do their other albums compare?

I think I would more or less agree with Contenderizer re: Crime in Choir, with the exception of seeing the attributes listed as mostly positives--that is, I like it.

i suppose it's music as a transportational device - weightless and propulsive, with lots of busy little details flashing by, but nothing to interrupt the steady forward progress

This makes alot of sense to me, and while I would agree it doesn't make for immediately grabbing music, I have found myself putting it on once a day since the weekend. I find your idea of contemporary bands' conserviatism interesting--but I don't think that it's something shared with Zombi for instance. I've often withheld passing their music along to friends on account of it coming across as too cheesy. As far as I'm concerned they're making the kind of music I want to hear...

One thing that I've been thinking about with these albums is what makes prog prog. Well one thing I think you have to have across the board is a badass drummer, and Crime in Choir does not disappoint. Thoughts on SABB to come.

Zach Hill isn't on the other albums.

but most CiC fans seem to think they got better with each album.

Am I crazy if "The Great Deceiver" is making me think of proto-Primus?

Okay I'm gonna finally join this prog club. It's weird hearing opinions from people who haven't heard some of the most classic prog albums ever. It's especially weird hearing opinions from people not familiar with much prog-rock at all... My previous thinking was that this thread would only attract people who are already familiar with all the clasic prog albums (like me) so I didn't want to join. Sign me up for whatever week is left.

these listening clubs are only attractive to me when i'm interested in the genre but haven't heard the stuff on offer. that way i can get pointers, hear cool new shit and discuss stuff as i discover it, which is always fun. plus catch up on glaring/embarrassing holes in my basic music comprehension (70s king crimson albums, frinstance).

I would be embarrassed and ashamed

hey now part of the clubs point is to introduce classics to newbies and another part is to introduce lesser known stuff

And acouthelic... U can do Cardiacs because I never heard them

oops wrong person and screen name typo. That's what I get for trying to post from memory

right person? lj is the cardiacs bore diehard!

the cardiacs he posted on that poll results thread last week was horrible.

viceroy did you like this weeks picks?

lj? viceroy?

While we're waiting for the next set, can I just take a minute to say that Godbluff really ended up sinking in, deep. The Undercover Man might be my favorite VDGG/Hammill song I've yet heard. One thing I find consistently amazing/amusing/infuriating about Hammill is his ability to take a melody/lyric and keep extending and twisting it. He does it repeatedly in Undercover Man... for example the part in the opening that has him singing

as if there were a choice
but to carry
on
miming the song
and hope that it all works out right
To
night

...is just the greatest. And the lyrics flip between self-doubt, warm-hearted encouragement and outright cruelty with ease, my favorite being

But would I leave you in this moment of your trial?
Is it my fault that I'm here to see you crying?

I guess I'm geeking out on them, but then again I've been playing this song nonstop for four days.

Also this from the VDGG C/D thread was amusing/relevant:

wtf ok lounge-salsa section

― This is the day when fisticuffs happened everywhere (country matters), Thursday, March 12, 2009 11:14 AM (1 year ago) Bookmark

Looking forward to the next selection!

Who was supposed to pick the albums last friday?

lol it was ABBOTT

abbott
sundar
akm
mares nest

after that
Davek (davek_00)

Album picks should be forthcomming -- apologies but we were conscripted by a Mormon family to work as kitchen wenches for an entire week.

It began when we noticed Utah silver dollars stuck to the bottom of our root-beer mugs...

Repost this everytime it drops off the last 50 posts

14/5 abbott
21/5 sundar
28/5 akm
04/6 mares nest
11/6 davek

Perhaps surprisingly, I hadn't heard S&BB before. I only had Red and In the Court.... I really like it after one listen, at least as much as those. The instrumental compositions are surprisingly pretty and well-crafted.

I love VdGG and this album is no exception. Hammill really is a remarkable singer IMO. I think Pawn Hearts is still my favourite because of its more overt experimentation and intensity. Aspects of this album reminded me a bit of Genesis.

I couldn't find the whole Crime in Choir album but I listened to at least half of it via Youtube and Grooveshark. I wasn't sure what I thought. I think I felt similarly to contenderizer. It's well-played and not unengaging but it did not make that much of a stronger impression than that. I should probably listen again. It reminded me of Tortoise but that could just as easily reflect how long it has been since I heard anything by Tortoise.

xposts

I don't think they sound anything like Tortoise.

Here they are for the week, I have no idea if they're on Spotify so Good Luck Britishes.

Thinking Plague – In EXTREMIS
Art Bears – Hopes & Fears
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum – Of Natural History

none of them are on Spotify..

http://www.progreviews.com/reviews/images/TP-IE.jpg
http://www.progarchives.com/progressive_rock_discography_covers/682/cover_42219212009.jpg
http://www.progreviews.com/reviews/images/SGM-oNH.jpg

This is what they sound like???

I can't even use Spotify so I have a hard time getting really het up abt this.

Hopes And Fears has 'In Two Minds' which is in like my top 10 most heartbreaking songs.

I dont know any of these though I think I may have heard the sleepytime gorilla museum album once years ago

I'd like to get in on a week of this one too.

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum can be a tough listen, but they are one of the most original and stellar live performance acts in the world.

Always wanted to get ahold of some Art Bears. It's RIO right?

Never even heard of Thinking Plague...

It's RIO with singing by Dagmar Krause, and I like it very much!

Thinking Plague all sounds like a crazy rolly wheel rolling all the wrong directions, and has another female singer.

art bears - in my top 50. haven't heard the other 2 so looking forward to this.

totally gonna get on all this

you still have last weeks to finish

Crime In Choir is deffo on the waiting-list, fear not

Should I post my choices on the 21st or the 24th?

I don't think we should all change the order around bcz I was too foolish and absent to post mine on the correct day.

(I also asked to get a week as of 5 days ago)

im sure viceroy will pencil you in next

14/5 abbott
21/5 sundar
28/5 akm
04/6 mares nest
11/6 davek
18/6 captain lorax

that ok?

also why does ilx admins hate prog rock club thread titles? abbott changed it then its went back again.

OK...listening to Art Bears for the first time. I know nothing about the players save Firth, and I know little of him but his name. Anyway, it's interesting, highly arty, stubbornly difficult to listen to. Not especially proggy in my book, but complex for sure. One nice thing about this listening club is that every week someone adds some other dimension to the notion of prog in the first place. Anyway the standout here is "In Two Minds", half for the afforementioned heartbreaking lyrics and the way it just breaks out into a Who song halfway through.

All the dissonance and extremely drawn-out melody lines make for some tough, but attention-getting music. I can't say that I found it especially enjoyable, but I'm glad I heard it and may return to it again sometime.

On balance I like the 2nd and 3rd Art Bears albums a little more, but 'In Two Minds' is my fave AB song and the Brecht 'On Suicide' is amazing too. Yeah it's total Who in the middle! So stirring.

i remember at the time how thrilling the art bears seemed to me. i'd hated henry cow's last album but this seemed to fit in so well with all of the post-punk stuff coming out in that year. and it was a revelation to hear HC do song based music that they'd written themselves. it seemed like a renouncing of the tim hodgkinson sub-classical prog stuff they'd moved to. lots of great tracks but i always loved the dance most of all.

21/6 Nate C? ;)

I don't even really like Henry Cow tbh but I love Art Bears and Skeleton Crew a ton.

I don't even really like Henry Cow tbh but I love Art Bears and Skeleton Crew a ton.

is it because you like the song based structure / singing / etc?

Really enjoyed both Art Bears and SGM on first listens. "Gunday Morning" was a standout SGM track for me. I couldn't find the Thinking Plague yet. I have and love In This Life (actually considered picking this for my week) and History of Madness but I've never heard In Extremis. These choices will provide a good transition to mine.

And yes, Tortoise was the wrong comparison. I think Crime in Choir just reminded me of a bunch of post-rock and math rock bands I used to see 10 years ago.

Youthmovies is pretty stellar. Now that I'm not just listening on Youtube, I can really appreciate just how well-produced it is.

oh no lj has got you!

muahahahahaha

Sundar your turn to pick albums, we can still discuss abbotts picks too, dont worry!

WEEK 5:

1) U Totem - U Totem

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drc700/c704/c70477qba5i.jpg

If you liked Abbott's picks, you will like this. Splits the difference between RIO and modern chamber music with moments of delicacy, rhythmic intensity, hyper-knotty complexity, and actual tunes you can walk away humming. The opening and closing epics are stunning. I've been in love with "One Nail Draws Another" since I first heard it some 10 years ago.

AMG review (Francois Couture):
U Totem, both the band and the eponymous album, is the result of a merger between two avant-garde bands of progressive rock/Rock-In-Opposition allegiance: the David Kerman-led 5uu's and the James Grigsby-led Motor Totemist Guild. U Totem is a two-headed beast, a wonderful beast that is. But the integration of the two creative forces wasn't complete and one can feel important style shifts between the Grigsby-penned tunes and the Kerman collaborations. Grigsby is classically trained and shows great interest in contemporary music and Japanese culture, something that would become a leitmotiv in his future works with U Totem (Strange Attractors) and with his Motor Totemist Guild (All America City). Therefore, his pieces are full of complex and contrasting textures with a lot of emphasis put on acoustic instruments like flute and bassoon. Kerman's interest resides more into rock, but a rock derived from Henry Cow. His pieces share affinities with Grigsby's on the complexity level, but his are more structured in terms of rhythm, more driven by powerful drumming and lightning-fast keyboard chops. These differences can be very well felt in the album's highlights, the orientally-inclined "One Nail Draws Another" (although for a Grigsby tune, it rocks!) and the News from Babel-feel of Kerman's "The Judas Goat." This first album is very strong and has become a requirement to any avant-prog fan but, as a band, U Totem will deliver an even stronger opus, the conceptual album Strange Attractors.

2) Imahoritsuneoyoshidatatsuya - Dots

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drn300/n333/n33351ykrcc.jpg

A collaboration between Ruins drummer Yoshida Tatsuya and virtuoso guitarist/composer Imahori Tsuneo, this is not necessarily the most accessible listen at first but the skills on display are astonishing as the musicians navigate a multitude of sudden shifts in metre, dynamics, and even style and do so with what feels like real fierceness. Surprisingly beautiful gentle moments or even snippets of gleeful classic rock sometimes appear after punishing violent passages.

3) The Nice - The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/dre600/e650/e650321b7nt.jpg

I thought I'd go classic here. The recording is messy and lo-fi, and the chops, while strong, are not expressed in the virtuosic displays we've come to expect from symphonic prog, but that adds to the charm for me. It just feels to me like musicians who love playing together jamming out some exploratory hard psych-rock with clear Beatles and Hendrix influences and pushing against the limitations of the recording. Pretty tunes, period sound effects, guitar and organ noise, fun tripped-out rock music.

AMG's Bruce Eder doesn't love it like I do:

The 1998 Castle Communications reissue (ESM 647) of the only album by the progressive band as a quartet runs circles around every other version of this album on CD, including the material in the 1995 Charly Records box, which was pretty good. Otherwise, the music is a flawed but valiant effort at progressive-type art rock, a little too heavily influenced by spaced-out, druggy psychedelia and suffering severely from the lack of a real singer in the ranks of the band. Keith Emerson's organ and piano flourishes never sounded crisper, and Davy O'List's Hendrix-ish guitar is in sharp relief as well. Mostly, though, this record still suffers from the fact that the players had virtually no experience in a recording studio, and seem uncomfortable working without an audience in front of them.

Holy shit U Totem sounds so far up my alley it's out the other side, and I've never heard of it! In print?

the chops, while strong, are not expressed in the virtuosic displays we've come to expect from symphonic prog

This is not a slight to symphonic prog obv. (I don't agree with those who hear nothing but the display of virtuosity in Yes/Genesis.) I guess I meant more that The Nice sound like more like really solid rock/R&B players rather than hyper-precise classical-style virtuosi? This is especially noticeable in the rhythm section, e.g. if you compare what the bassist does here compared to what Chris Squire did a few years later.

xpost

(I'm not sure about whether U Totem is currently in print TBH. If it's really hard to find, I might be able to help you find it...)

i like the nice album, hated elp but the nice were terrific!

none of these are on spotify

U Totem is on eMusic. I have just enough credits left for this month to buy it. Samples sound pretty awesome. Nice woodwind work!

There is this guy on Youtube making a series of videos, and hopefully the fourth one should be out soon. I found a shitload of great stuff on these.

I found one of the true loves of my life on them: DEVIL DOLL! A fascinating Italian band who heavily draws from the silent era of horror movies and other later black and white horrors. They are Symphonic Goth/Classical/Prog/Folk and they do extremely long pieces that have a movie story like quality. The vocals put most people off, sounds like Dwight Frye singing, but Id urge you to try and get over that stumbling block, because I think they are astonishing and he has some amazing parts. A real life changing band for me. Sacrilegium is their best. He is a pretty odd guy, aparently he is a well known record collector in Italy and has an enormous collection, he used to be a criminoligist and he has been making lots of music since 1996 that he has never cared to release to the public, somehow without any commerical success he is still able to get lots of church organs and large choirs and other stuff you'd think he wouldnt be able to afford. I hope he changes his mind because 4 albums is not enough. There are always listed 6 albums but one has never been released and Sacrilege Of Fatal Arms is a remix of Sacriligium made for a movie with 10 or 15 minutes of new parts in it.

The first video got taken off Youtube because it had big label bands on them, so it was put on an obscure video site I somehow found.
http://video.xfree.hu/?n=grimilda%7C5d5a43c388d735f369890d6bbced5cd0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EMkZe1AIEw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivqKPi9I6YY

I'm gonna put every album on this thread that I haven't heard a lot onto my i-pod so that I can give my 2 cents when I get back from vacation (long car ride means i-pod time).

In the meantime I'll say this

Close To The Edge is brilliant. My song preference is the track order.

Pawnhearts is my first VDGG album and it is the most catchy VDGG album I think. Great album through and through. I don't get annoyed by the "how can I be free section" which someone said is teeth-grinding. I think it adds to the catchyness which is a good thing for VDGG in my opinion because Hammill stuff is very far from catchy most of the time.

Godbluff is my second VDGG album (via Godbluff DVD). I agree with Sparkle Motion that The Undercover Man is the best song on it. The vocals are just superb. I downloaded tons of live versions on SLSK at one point and I had a favorite performance (the sound quality was shotty but the singing was strong)

Starless and Bible Black - Just great stuff. Every King Crimson album has low points but the really high points always make up for it. The mood on The Mincer is cool: "fingers creeping...". The Night Watch and Trio are very beautiful delightful (as contenderizer pointed out). You have to turn up Trio to hear all of it - the volume is all over the place.

Mansun - Six - I haven't heard all of this yet but I've been playing Stripper Vicar on repeat as soon as I discovered it a month or two before this thread started (I guess that's from Attack of the Green Lantern though).

listened to Art Bears once. I can't get into this. I think it's just a little too abstract.

//one of the albums I'm going to pick for my week is not classified as prog but it has distinct similarities. For instance, the use of mellotron//

'Dots' is a seriously kickass album. Much of it reminds me of an updated Mahavishnu Orchestra, like chopped up bits of The Inner Mounting Flame in particular. I'm not familiar with either of the participants, but I want to hear more for sure.

Also I think I wouldn't mind taking a turn some week.

If yall are having a hard time finding the music you could try the Rhapsody website which gives you so many free songs a month. Quite a few. The Nice - The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack is on there but not the other two albums for this week.

28/5 akm
04/6 mares nest
11/6 davek
18/6 captainlorax
21/6 Nate C
28/6 Sparkle Motion

Cool.

Is it still hard to find the U Totem and Imahoritsuneoyoshidatatsuya? Is there an acceptable/appropriate way to share these? Is there enough interest that it matters?

Glad you enjoy Dots, Sparkle Motion.

I found them with the aid of the word bl0gsp0+ if anyone should go that route.

I'm not familiar with either of the participants, but I want to hear more for sure.

well, a couple folks talked about various tatsuya yoshida-related projects on this short-lived thread I started...
tatsuya yoshida appreciation thread

my fave yoshida stuff is definitely with koenjihyakkei and nivraym is the pinnacle, imo. but make sure to seek out the shimmy disc remaster from 2009 - it's a big improvment.

still, all of their albums are excellent. hundred sights of koenji might be my next fave.

but koenji lean much more on the zeuhl side of things. if you're digging the chaotic vibe of dots, check out ruins. the mandala 2000 live album is nice and spastic. burning stone is probably my personal fave.

thanks!

28/5 akm
04/6 mares nest
11/6 davek
18/6 captainlorax
21/6 Nate C
28/6 Sparkle Motion

AKM are you around?

viceroy do you get to do emergency picks if the poster doesnt show?

28/5 akm
04/6 mares nest
11/6 davek
18/6 captainlorax
21/6 Nate C
28/6 Sparkle Motion
05/7 pfunkboy

I'll do emergency picks in T-02:15 minutes unless akm shows up in the thread to diffuse the PROG BOMB!

and I meant hours not minutesm sorry!

not seen him around

15 minutes till PROG BOMB!

!!!!! PROG BOMB !!!!! -- New Friday Picks for 5/28/10 (28/5/10)!

Triumvirat - Illusions on a Double Dime (1974)

http://urubu.files.wordpress.com/2006/06/triumvirat_ilusions_f.jpg
http://open.spotify.com/album/1KDrZ0BG6DN9odiHb9sE25

Marillion - Clutching at Straws (1987)

http://fuckingsick.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/1987-clutching-at-straws.jpg
http://open.spotify.com/album/7M6qdztBAZADkaYJ6bIEhF

Hawkwind - In Search of Space (1971)

http://img55.imageshack.us/img55/8264/hawkwindvx1.jpg
http://open.spotify.com/album/1cgsYqtDTMTetu7FjEsIhI

I always love Triumvirat album covers.

i'd managed to ignore triumverat all this time. the album's quite nice: lots of genesis and canterbury stylings. but it lacks the grit i find in the prog i like the best: they sound like they're coasting.

the marillion is distinctly insipid.

but the hawkwind is just trashily superb. masters of the universe has the same riffy thing as can's connection.

So what do you think of the Marillion, Viceroy? I'm on "Incommunicado" now. At its best, this album seems like the sort of thing I could enjoy just because I love Lamb Lies Down on Broadway so much. However, much of it still feels a bit ... soppy? I was always a bit curious about this band because I have a soft spot for pop-prog/AOR but ... I think I want it to be either more progressive or catchier. I might spin some of it some more though. They were big in Britain, I gather?

seriously can we extend this so that each set of albums gets two weeks

so no sod will post for 2 weeks instead of 1?

FINE ok I'll get my skates on and listen but atm my life is plagued with an unfinished MA...will do a grand retrospective on all of these at some point!

Oh weird. Now that I'm a little drunker, the Marillion is sounding great. Nice solo on "Torch Song".

Really liking Triumvirat so far! Great bass drum sound.

I mean, the drums generally sound great and are played pretty dazzlingly.

I agree about the drums on Triumvirat, everything else about it I thought was pretty dud.

I propose that every listening for the purposes of this thread be undertaken with this diagram in mind :

http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s99/Ivan_2068/Dibujo5.gif

Steve Hackett is "Avant?"

Sorry to bail but I have exams on and around the eleventh, so could you delay or cancel my week?

also xp that venn diagram is way off

^rly

you doubting my veracity? or if you want i can make my own prog venn diagram in mspaint..

no that was a ^really, this.

make your own, yes! it had better be lolz though.

Hey Viceroy, I admire your cojones for choosing Marillion!

that marillion album is one of my favorites but it is distinctly unlike any of their other records (either with fish and certainly unlike anything they did without him, most of which I prefer). it's a bit more of a 'rock' album than misplaced childhood or something which is more traditionally 'prog'. but it's an interesting choice.

That's not my venn diagram btw, I copied it from a forum post on prog archives. Just in case anyone was thinking I have nothing better to do than trap on endlessly about prog rock.

Anyway, this weeks picks :
Triumvirat - a bit disappointing, Trace were a far better euro-ELP rip-off due to being a bit wilder. Great cover though.
Marillion - I have to admit to being a major fan of their earlier records at the time, lyrics like "The rain auditions at my window / Its symphony echoes in my womb" were the cosmic truth to 15 year-old me. HOWEVER I'd lost interest by the time Clutching At Straws came out, and a concept album about how boring being in a band is wasn't likely to bring me back to the fold. A cursory listen now hasn't changed my opinion I'm afraid, it still just sounds like soft rock to me with an unpleasant Knopfler-esque guitar sound.
Hawkwind - my copy of this includes the Hawklog, which gives you something to read during You Shouldn't Do That at least. Funny how Dave Brock is always seen as the main guy but Nik Turner wrote all the best songs, eh.

I enjoyed the Hawkwind, although I'm not totally sure what makes it prog. Nice tuneful lo-fi psych sludge.

oh man, someone else here likes Clutching at Straws? used to be one of my favorite albums, not so much anymore but parts of it definitely hold up (incommunicado!) and i still enjoy it on the rare occasions i pull it out

04/6 mares nest
11/6 davek
18/6 captainlorax
21/6 Nate C
28/6 Sparkle Motion
05/7 pfunkboy

mares nest its your turn to don the cape

Erm, I screwed up when I added Nate c after me. I made my week 3 days long

Hey all, been really enjoying peoples suggestions so-far, especially the unfamiliar. Tiumvarat and U-Totem especially.
I will be uploading some bits late tonight, I'm off later to a gig so will be back home around 11:30 GMT and then a spot of burning and will post the files up on an easy to access FTP partition.

Been thinking hard today about what to choose, maybe it will change, but at the minute the records aren't covered by Spotify.

Hope this is cool.

sounds very sensible to me as Spotify is available in so few countries.. your solution should be the default option for these clubs imo

LoL at my hastily constructed post above, should really proof-read before I post.

btw MN I have acquired that album we were talking about, via that blog that put it up on sendspace the other day

and it is -incredible-

especially the song 'Fanny' which nearly took my head off first time round

i'd like in on this listening club action!

I think you'll dig at least two of the choices, they are taking a while to upload tho' :(

Would like sometime to see a full on LJ splurge about the Spratleys record on a Cardiacs thread if you are inclined.

Cause it is fucking epic

1. Bob Drake - The Shunned Country

http://cdn.pitchfork.com/media/2442-the-shunned-country.jpg

A collection of mostly very short ghost stories augmented with a charming, scattershot junkyard approach, not at-all 'prog' in the classic sense, but BD certainly employs certain recognisable prog elements. Rather twisted, hectic Fripp-like banjo playing being one of them. Okay well the playing style not the banjo, obv.

Bob was a member of The Thinking Plague who we heard previously and I nearly put up one of his other projects (The Science Group) but I plumped for this instead.

I also really, really dig the lyrics and had a look for a link to them but unfortunately can't find one. Which is a shame as they are great fun.

Don't worry if you can't seem to/want to listen to all of it in one sitting, it's just a by product of the format I guess, I still haven't and it might be better in bite sized chunks.

2. Quasar - Fire In The Sky

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Vpf1wbmX5oE/SleFGxb7V-I/AAAAAAAAAcQ/YcIMzVX8bj4/s320/FITS.jpg

80s Brit Neo-Prog band, ran with the slightly bigger dogs at the Marquee etc, but fell by the wayside in a mire of personnel difficulties, however according to Wiki they are still making music.

Quite indebted to 76-80 era Genesis to my ears and musically, really emblematic of that scene too. If there's anyone here who digs bands like IQ/Pallas etc and are willing to forgive the rather bedroomy singer and demo studio production vibe they will probably like this too.

But I expect it might get a bit of a pummelling..!

I hope for some words from Matt#2 (it was his brother who turned me onto them) who I'm guessing saw them back in the day. :)

3. Peter Hammill - In Camera

http://img13.nnm.ru/3/e/3/a/a/1dd7390fb1f9da9c5a20191405c.jpg

This record was my first entry into PH/VDGG and I now feel maybe couldn't have been a worse 'in'. Actually one of his crappy-ass love song records would have been more unfortunate, anyhoo I purchased a second hand cassette of this from a funny little local record shop at the very top
of the Archway Road in London (Caroline Records???) and at the time it's seeming impenetrability blew my mind grapes, not knowing what to expect I
simply shelved the tape and went looking for some more well known VDGG instead.

I think it might have been Tapeworm that sealed the it's temporary fate.

So inevitably I come back around a few years later and hey, it's not impenetrable after all and is quite brilliant and even reminded me of Roy Harper in places.

(Roy's HQ was also considered too)

Gog and Magog on the other hand! Well, maybe someone more learned and erudte than I can apply some context wrt those two songs. I still find Magog utterly terrifying -as I type this I'm relistening on headphones and it's spooking me the hell out-

Also tagged onto the back of the remaster there is a pretty good three track BBC session as an Hors D'oeuvre.

So, there is an ftp link here:

ftp://94.143.254.73/

User - ilx
Pass - prog

If there's any probs let me know peeps.

O LOOK IT'S SPOCK

The message of this thread is that Peter Hammill OWNS prog btw

will be on these

LJ, in about 30 mins there will be something extra special awaiting you in a misc folder on the ftp

omgggg

Is there anywhere to go where you don't have to download each track one-by-one btw? Like, an overall folder?

I could do ysi links sure, but it'll have to wait till tomorrow. Okay, later today.

But I'm sure you can just pull the folder off as a whole, unless you are on a mac then sorry, no idea. If not, open the ftp page in internet explorer (via the Page tab)

ready in 15 btw

ok let's have a peek

I hope for some words from Matt#2 (it was his brother who turned me onto them) who I'm guessing saw them back in the day. :)

He actually played in them for a while! I never saw them as I recall tho. Um, tbh Quasar were really awful. I don't mind the bedroom demo production (IQ's "Tales From The Lush Attic" sounds worse and I like that), it's the vaguely MOR feel that gets me. MOR as in James Last and charity shop Hammond organ albums that is. Miss!

Bob Drake and Peter Hammill - hit! In Camera is about the nearest thing to a VDGG album he ever did as a solo artist, in fact didn't they play "Gog / Magog" on the reunion tour?
Bob Drake albums all sound pretty similar to me, I don't usually like the everything-including-the-kitchen-sink production ethos, but it works pretty well when applied to avant-bluegrass or whatever it is he does. Great producer too, his records always sound like they were recorded in a farmhouse (which they were) but they're not really low-fi either.

Only heard the Bob Drake out of these three, but it will blow your little minds.

Yeah, it's quite unique, like some weird Fred Frith/Minutemen/bluegrass amalgam or something.

Loving the Hammill, thanks.

It is more than quite unique...it is utterly addictive! See also, What Day It Is It and The Skull Mailbox.

In Camera is about the nearest thing to a VDGG album he ever did as a solo artist, in fact didn't they play "Gog / Magog" on the reunion tour?

Not sure about this, since it only has Evans on drums on "Tapeworm" and "Gog", whereas the two previous solo albums had all the other members playing on them and sound much more VdGG-like. Hammill conceived In Camera as more or less a full-on solo album. "Gog" (not "Magog") wasn't performed on the 2005 reunion shows with Jackson but was resurrected for the later trio shows.

can i have a week, please?

let me fix this because I made a mistake where my week only 3 days long

11/6 davek
18/6 captainlorax
25/6 Nate C
2/7 Sparkle Motion
9/7 pfunkboy
6/7 sarahel

wouldn't that be July 16th, not the 6th?

yes typo. I shouldn't be volunteering to do that anyways since I'm not running this club :P

i can really hear the likeness to harper's vocal phrasing and tonality on "in camera". cripes - after 30 years this might be my way into vdgg (as i love harper unconditionally).

i too love bdrake's production but his albums are difficult for me to get into. much like u totem and others in that post-RIO style: they seem a bit overblown and i wish they'd just play less fussy time sigs occasionally.

I mentioned this upthread...could my slot be put back/swapped for someone else as this is an exam week for me.
Cheers

Can I have a week too?

Holdin' out for LaHost Matt, don't let me down buddy!

Since noone stepped forward I'll swap with DaveK

#1 Camel - The Snow Goose
http://images.uulyrics.com/cover/c/camel/album-the-snow-goose.jpg

Camel's classic period started with The Snow Goose, an instrumental concept album based on a novella by Paul Gallico. Although there are no lyrics on the album -- two songs feature wordless vocals -- the music follows the emotional arc of the novella's story, which is about a lonely man named Rhayader who helps nurse a wounded snow goose back to health with the help of a young girl called Fritha he recently befriended. Once the goose is healed, it is set free, but Fritha no longer visits the man because the goose is gone. Later, Rhayader is killed in battle during the evacuation of Dunkirk. The goose returned during the battle, and it is then named La Princesse Perdue, symbolizing the hopes that can still survive even during the evils of war. With such a complex fable to tell, it is no surprise that Camel keep their improvisational tendencies reigned in, deciding to concentrate on surging, intricate soundscapes that telegraph the emotion of the piece without a single word. And even though The Snow Goose is an instrumental album, it is far more accessible than some of Camel's later work, since it relies on beautiful sonic textures instead of musical experimentation.

Spotify Link
Not A Spotify Link

#2 Man - Winos , Rhinos & Lunatics
http://www.insideoutshop.de/images/ManRWLunatics.jpg

An excellent set of material energized by the return of the pleasingly abrasive vocals of Deke Leonard; it charted nearly as well as Back Into the Future, and its tighter composition means that in many ways it's held up better over the years. The second half may be the band's artistic high point -- bookended by the pomp-wah instrumentals, "Intro" and "Exit," it contains the unusually sultry "Kerosene" and the epic "Scotch Corner," which builds up from rattling snare and picked guitar verses to beautiful choruses of harmonized vocals.

#3 Tangerine Dream - Force Majeure
http://fabiopirovano.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/tangerine_dream-force_majeure.jpg

Although Tangerine Dream is usually associated with synthesizers and the ambient movement that followed over a decade after such albums as Phaedra, Stratosfear, and Rubycon were recorded, Force Majeure shows the band displaying its roots in space rock. This time around, guitar and drums (played by Klaus Krieger) are as prominent as the keyboards. As the name would appear to indicate, the music on the album doesn't seem played so much as propelled forward, the overall pace rarely slackening for long. The title track is a suite that incorporates several distinct themes that segue into a cohesive whole via musical bridges. "Cloudburst Flight" is really an excuse for Edgar Froese to display his virtuosity on the electric six-string, which he does with amazing intensity. "Thru Metamorphic Rocks" begins with what sounds to be an album-ending theme, but then cross-fades into a hypnotic piece that builds upon a constant bed of pulsating sequencers and processed drums with various sound effects and still more keyboards until it fades out completely some 14 minutes later. An absolute necessity to those who might be at all curious about the band, or even successful experiments within the rock genre. Sections of the album would later appear in slightly altered versions on the soundtracks to the movies Risky Business and Thief.

Spotify Link
Not A Spotify Link

The question is, how are you going to manage to squeeze Tangerine Dream into the Funk Listening Club?

I expect you will. I heard TD were popular with Paisley Funkateers back in the day.

Froese reminds me of David Gilmour so much on that record.

You've managed to get the Dream on 3 listening clubs so far! (xp)

you can pick their 80s records for Tom D's New Age Listening Club.

Froese reminds me of David Gilmour so much on that record.

I never cared for post Syd stuff but point me in the direction of similar type guitar. I have Animals somewhere, I quite liked that out of the albums I've heard.

You don't like Meddle?

that was the other one i thought was ok actually.

I thought wish you were here was a load of shite bar shine on you crazy diamond which was magnificent. I despise the wall.

Yes, Froese is totally Dave Gilmour. I'm sure that was the idea!

i dont like yes, elp, gentle giant,jethro tull either. Am I banned from Prog Club?

You must have heard "Ummagumma"? Edgar certainly had!

that's the one people keep saying I'd like.

Pretty sure he said that was the Floyd album as far as early TDream was concerned. That and "Saucerful of Secrets" obv.

Are there any good live recordings of Pink Floyd with Syd in the band?

Tangerine Dream with The Salvation Army Band?

I think most of the Syd-era bootlegs are BBC sessions rather than concerts

Ummagumma is the best Pink Floyd album by a mile IMO

I never really thought of PF as being prog.

Really?

They can't play very well, can they?

I guess I always thought of them as a ROCK JUGGERNAUT like Zeppelin or Sabbath, who are kind of in their own category by being so BIG.

I suppose a lot of Pink Floyd fans did keep denying it's prog as they thought it was a slight.

And being so big = fans who have never heard prog rock/say they hate it but still like PF, then agreed.

Poss. a lot of prog fans thought it was a slight on prog that Floyd were considered prog

Even at secondary school in the mid-late 80s Pink Floyd had a cool cache that almost none of the 60s/70s juggernaut bands had (ie the casuals loved them and the who)

Neds love the Floyd

Smoke a bit of dope, listen to the Floyd

the question is though, are Tangerine Dream prog?

things never change then. They must listen to dad's music.

the question is though, are Tangerine Dream prog?

Progressive, sure. Prog compared to Mansun? Definitely!

Are Dream Theater prog?

yeah I couldn't really see why Mansun were featured in this club either. As for TD, I only know their early '70s ambient stuff but if, as the above review implies, this album has guitars and drums on it then prog it shall be.

xp

states, not "implies" ffs

Oh it has some wonderful guitar on it.

Backtracking for a moment... it's a shame In Camera didn't get more discussion. It's certainly one of Hammill's bleakest albums, kind of twisted inwards as a result of its totally solo gestation (four-track at home). VdGG had split up and this was the first album on which PH tried to do pretty much everything himself (a working method he's returned to on and off ever since). His voice is at its most bitter and declamatory here. Not easy listening then, but a crucial step in his career.

Oh and sorry davek if your turn has been pushed back a bit further than you would like, maybe someone else will swap with you?

18/6 captainlorax
25/6 Nate C
2/7 Sparkle Motion
9/7 davek
6/7 sarahel

Unless the others step back a week to allow davek his week.

I'm cool to bump.

18/6 captainlorax (cool with bump)
25/6 Nate C
2/7 Sparkle Motion (cool with bump)
9/7 davek
16/7 sarahel (supposed to be 16/7)

i've not much to say at the best of times but i've never like camel or man so can't add much there. the tangs is excellent though - i only heard this 2 years ago but like it almost as much as ricochet (my all time fav).

Cheers guys :)

anyone around?

viceroy do you have an opinion on these albums?

so captain lorax is up in 15 mins then?

captain lorax to thread

uhhhh I thought Davek could take this week

I have opinions on lots of albums but they aren't ready yet

i didnt know you had swapped

well we technically haven't. okay I'll go

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9f/Motorpsycho-Timothy%27s_Monster_%28album_cover%29.jpg
1. Motorpsycho - Timothy's Monster (2CD) -I just now googled Timothy's Monster + blogspot and found this download link
Motorpsycho has been my new found love over the past few months. I wanted to include Trust Us (2CD) because that one is brilliant as well. Timothy's Monster is very loosely called prog here. Everything from rock, lo-fi, psychedelia, pop, metal, punk and folk is on this one. The first album is much more Alternative. The album came out in 1994 and the band is from Norway. There's mellotron on dis!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_LZV2ZFit0lY/SkXjaAuS5QI/AAAAAAAAAZM/EgXshp70nHE/s320/Front+na+Blog.jpg
2. Marek Grechuta - Korowód (the reissue with 17 tracks) took me a while to find any download link, click continue to rapidshare
Well I've only heard the first 6 songs so far because that's the most I had got from soulseek a few days ago. It's enough for me to know I like it. The original from 1971 only had 9 tracks but I think I just found a link to the reissue with extra live tracks (which aren't so important apparently - according to the reviewers on RateYourMusic where I found this album).

Korowód (Procession) is an eclectic record mixing influences from classical, folk and jazz under a progressive rock-umbrella. Oh, and it's Polish

http://tralfaz-archives.com/coverart/G/Gentle_Giant/gentle_giant_octof.jpg
3. Gentle Giant - Octopus
Freaking A, a friend just got here with beer. Yall find a link if you want to hear this album. My experience with it is pretty odd. It's not one of those bands that I revisit very often but damn 'The Advent of Panurge' lays down some Renaissance jam. 'Raconteur Troubadour' is lovely... there's a lot to say about this album at another time.

I love "Octopus"! I bought it because the cover was shaped like an octopus, I had never even heard GG before then.

Same here. I only heard amazon.com clips before I bought Octopus. To this day I would say that it is my favorite GG album and the best beginner album. Two standout tracks to hear after you hear Octopus are "Proclamation" and "Valedictory" - the latter having a heavy prog-funk sound.

I'm not the biggest GG fan but I definitely like the stuff I got (which is Octopus + random tracks atm).

bump

thanks for fixing the pictures Abbott

I suppose I am biased because I'm Polish. Grechuta was considered a poet/lyricist more than anything. Korowód is a deep and beautiful record. I'm a guy who's dead set against owning duplicate copies of most things, but I keep two copies of the vinyl on hand just in case something happens to one of them... or I wear it out. Anawa's his backup band, and they made a pretty awesome record themselves.

Will check it out, I dont like Gentle Giant at all though.

Gentle Giant were great, my fave of the mainstream UK prog bands after VDGG and King Crimson.

For my listening club really I only care if you like motorpsycho or not - them being my new found love. Opinions?

Even if they aren't the most advanced band coming out in their style they are the most freaking enjoyable band...

I did not enjoy the motorpsycho, Cap'n. I fail to see the appeal. Is there a track that really stands out for you?

VdGG were not "mainstream UK prog" xxp

xp Sparkle Motion...
if you don't like this track you probably just don't like that type of music
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ws9RY-2qbMY

it just sounds like indie rock to me - like Radiohead circa The Bends - it's pleasant, not the kind of thing I go apeshit for, but pleasant.

It took a while for me to see the timeless quality of Motorpsycho (I had to hear whole albums 3 times over with my headphones on at work when I was alone performing brainless tasks). At first it was just a pleasant kind of music with some 90's cool. Eventually Motorpsycho absolutely hit the nail on the head with me when I relayed all the elements together in my mind: cool 90s sludge, driving rock, good vocals that became memorable (with some dual harmonies here and there), some real pretty moments here and there, and just a little extra pan ache sprinkled on top that differentiated them from other 90's indie rock

They have songs with much more power than anything on The Bends. Motorpsycho is first and foremost psychedelic rock/indie rock but RateYourMusic did throw on a progressive rock tag on the end which may have to do with the epic quality of some of their songs like the great 'Vortex Surfer' off Trust Us album or the sublime 'The Golden Core' off of Timothy's Monster

ps - 90s art-rock with endearing gruff/melodramatic vocals has already proven to be my thing with all my posts on ILM about The Grifters (best band ever) and Red Red Meat. Them + Motorpsycho have vocals that really match my palette - a palette that I don't expect many people to share (I would have a better chance getting people to like Motorpsycho on a 90's alternative thread)

Ha, I'm only on track 6 but I think it reminds me more of Pablo Honey.

I don't dislike Grechuta but I imagine I might get more out of it if I understood the lyrics?

I might give those two another chance some time. I switched to Gentle Giant though and I am really liking this so far.

GG is pretty tight, agreed. 'Panurge' reminded me of a KC Cat Food-type jam...my favorite track so far.

Still to check out Marek Grechuta

Major apologies everyone, but my Macbook decided to quit turning on this evening. I'm in a state of shock. Anyway, until Applecare rescues me I'm going to have to switch with someone else. Unless you want me to just list my 3 choices via iPhone with a haiku of decription & no images...

nate email me your choices and i'll find images and links etc and post it for you

my username @ gmail dot com (not herman)

Nate's picks
Univers Zero - Heresie
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_z8rLjrFVzbo/SfrROvrk69I/AAAAAAAAAHE/EzsgaQti_xw/s400/Univers+Zero+-+Heresie.jpg

Univers Zero's debut recording, 1313, may be somber, but it's a walk in the park compared to their second release, which features more or less the same lineup as the first (oboe, bassoon, viola, violin, bass, guitar, keyboards, drums), except for an additional and prominent contribution of cathedral organ from guitarist/keyboardist Roger Trigaux. Studio overdubbing sometimes gives the five-man group the sound of a much larger chamber ensemble. Extremely dissonant and emotionally bleak, Heresie is sometimes quite close to the industrial and gothic genres -- which didn't really even exist for another five years or more. A Magma influence is readily discernible on the long opening track "La Faulx," which includes the guttural chanting favored by Magma's Christian Vander. (In the early '70s, Univers Zero drummer Daniel Denis was employed as a second drummer in Vander's group.) "Jack the Ripper," the second long piece, maintains the oppressive atmosphere, and after a long, brooding introduction, introduces the nervous, jabbing ostinato patterns which were to become a Univers Zero trademark. This music on this CD might have little to do with rock, and might also be a massive downer, but the quality of the writing and playing is extremely high. Michel Berckmans' solo work on oboe and bassoon work is magnificent, and Patrick Hanappier's string playing (violin and viola) also demonstrates the precision of a trained classical musician, along with demonic avant-garde scraping and howling on "Jack the Ripper." Best of all, Univers Zero never cheapens the effect of the music with any of the stock cartoon licks which are associated with the gothic genre today. Group members sound deadly serious about what they're doing, which might call their sanity into question, but which makes for an incredibly powerful listening experience. In fact, Heresie is a stunning one-of-a-kind item which has never been duplicated by anyone -- including Univers Zero.

King Crimson - Thrak
http://mitkadem3.homestead.com/files/KingCrimson_Thrak_Cover.jpg

he only progressive rock band from the '60s to be making new, vital, progressive music in the '90s, King Crimson returned from a ten-year exile in 1995 with THRAK, their first album since 1984's 3 of a Perfect Pair. As with the '80s band, guitarist/ringleader Robert Fripp recruited singer/guitarist Adrian Belew, bassist Tony Levin, and drummer Bill Bruford for this incarnation of his classic band. However, he added to this familiar quartet two new members: Chapman Stick player Trey Gunn and ex-Mr. Mister drummer Pat Mastelotto. Effectively, Fripp created a "double trio," and the six musicians combine their instruments in extremely unique ways. The mix is very dense, overpoweringly so at times, but careful listens will reveal that each musician has his own place in each song; the denseness of the sound is by design, not the accidental result of too many cooks in the kitchen. Sometimes, as in "THRAK," the two trios are set against each other, in some sort of musical faux combat. In others, they just combine their respective sounds to massive effect. On "Dinosaur," perhaps the strongest track on the record, Mastelotto and Bruford set up an ominous tom-tom groove that supports an even more ominous guitar figure. The vocal, the musings of a long-dead sauropod, are vintage Belew, just as the freaky, falling-down-the-stairs solo in the middle is vintage Fripp. Other high points include the drum duet "B'Boom" and the two Belew/Fripp "Inner Garden" pieces. Allusions to earlier Crimson abounds, such as the form of "VROOM," for example, which is suspiciously reminiscent of "Red" (from the 1974 album of the same name), or the shout-out to "The Sheltering Sky" (from 1981's Discipline) in "Walking on Air." Thankfully, this never gets annoying, but instead acts as a subtle nudge and a wink to faithful fans. King Crimson came back in a major way with THRAK, and proved that, even in its fourth major incarnation, Fripp and company still had something to say. High-quality prog.

Voivod - Nothingface
http://www.voivod.net/discography/89/89.gif

Arguably the best of the Denis Belanger-era Voivod albums, Nothingface is highly recommended to just about any aficionado of twisted, original heavy metal or prog rock. Although the album's roots are in progressive rock, the group knows when to lay off the virtuosic overkill and play it straight. A superb, tripped-out cover of Pink Floyd's early psychedelic masterpiece "Astronomy Domine" is the album's highlight, and its video aired numerous times on the early-'90s MTV show Headbanger's Ball, introducing many to the band for the first time. Vocal melodicism is stressed heavily on Nothingface, with Belanger's vocals pushing such tracks as "Missing Sequences" and the title track, as do guitarist Denis d'Amour's jazzoid-metal guitar riffs. The group's lyrics may be hard to decipher for some (relying heavily on themes of science fiction that often paint unsettling pictures), but ultimately help complement what the group is doing musically. Nothingface also turned out to be their most commercially successful album, making an appearance on the Billboard charts. Jason Newsted of Metallica has praised Voivod as one of his favorite metal bands on numerous occasions, and after hearing Nothingface, it's easy to understand why.

Heresie is sooo good! I am scard to listen to '90s KC tho.

Thrak is great

Agreed, there's no reason to be afraid of thrak.

iirc Thrak is my theme song

It's not a bad choice of themes

Serious question: is Thrakkattak prog? or are we in some other nebulous zone there?

My computer lives! God bless MACPAC. I will dive into this discussion soon. Cheers guys!

Ok here's my 2 cents on these:

1) Univers Zero - Heresie has been called "the darkest recording ever made". It's evil chamber music with a metal drummer. Or RIO Magma-worship at 40bpm. Utterly vast, cosmic, and scary. I bought it on tour and listened to it in the car at night and half way through my first listen, realized that it was one of my favorite albums ever.

2) King Crimson - Thrak is the only post-red Crimson that I particularly like. At this point, the group was a double trio, and on some of these tracks, the band was panned with one drummer, bassist, and guitarist in each speaker. There are monster Fripp moments, and the usual Belew tunes, and I like them all. The production on this album inspired Tool to hire the same guy to make a little record called Aenima...

3) Nothingface - The perfect prog/metal album. The production is crystalline and digital, reminding me of the best qualities of Primus' Sailing the Seas of Cheese. But the music is absolutely angular, the chords jazzy, and riffs lifted from classical music. It's epic space-age future music that rocks throughout. Double bass drums, shredding/face-melting guitar solos, and still the sublimity of extra-dimensions. I could go off for another paragraph about the Amiga-generated cover art by drummer Away...

so last fridays picks should have been by sparkle motion or dave k?

2/7 Sparkle Motion (cool with bump)
9/7 davek
16/7 sarahel (supposed to be 16/7)

― CaptainLorax,

Oops! Twas I that blew it. I'll have a few picks up shortly.

OK here they are:

1.
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-1156598-1221606200.jpeg
King Crimson, Lizard (40th Anniversary Stereo Remaster) (1970)

It wouldn't be right for me to do a turn without picking a KC record. For a long time my pick for worst KC album overall, the 40th Anniversary Remaster has been a total revelation. While I haven't heard the multichannel mix (which is reported to be even better), the sonics here present depth and clarity that my nasty Editions EG cassette was never going to touch. It's interesting to compare the Mellotron riff of Cirkus with last week's 'Dinosaur' from Thrak. Cirkus is probably my favorite track on the album save the demented Happy Family, a pseudo-sequel to Cat Food from the previous record. Downside is that Gordon Haskell is a dud on vocals--Boz sang these songs much better on the many live archive recordings from this period...but it's a KC record so what did you expect?
Anyway I'm sure many here are familiar with Lizard, but if you haven't heard it in this iteration, give it a shot.

not a spotify link

2.
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-258337-1159272907.jpeg
Heldon, Stand By (1979)

Heldon's last, proggiest album, also one of their best. Since there are really only 3 tracks here, I'm mostly posting it for the mind-blowing title track. There's also a bit of a connection with my first pick in that both albums do a take on a bolero. Whatever the reason is that they were so popular with prog bands I'm not sure. The CD tracking (as I've always heard it puts the title track first instead of last--it makes more sense to me that way, but whatever.)

Not a spotify link

3.
http://www.discogs.com/image/R-364819-1238266335.jpeg
Zombi, Cosmos (2004)

Some on this thread have called Zombi boring but I love the hell out of this record. Just the right amount of winking nostalgia, unabashed love of genre & instrumentation, and musicianship on display to make it compelling listening. Maybe it's a little postmodern but I'm not going to complain.

non-spotify link soon...

I love Zombi, and Spirit Animal is even better than Cosmos tbh, but its a great record.

I prefer Cosmos as a whole to Spirt Animal, but Spirit Animal has "Earthly Powers", which rules.

Here's the non-spotify link to Zombi

Zombi are not even vaguely prog though?

I would disagree with that assessment, they are more than vaguely prog--they're fairly prog. TD is somewhat prog, Goblin, same, and I'd say Zombi is more prog than either.

I do love how just about all of us that have posted selections have had at least one that gets a 'not prog' claim.

Zombi are very prog.

definitive proof-- I am picking my wife up from work when she comments on the music:

her- what's this?
me- Zombi
her- it's a little too Yes for me.

Yes????

She just doesn't dig prog.

I dont dig Yes.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandpopfeatures/7877603/Prog-rock-top-ten-when-pop-went-bonkers.html

Are there classical music quotes on Nothingface?

"Stand By" is my favorite Heldon album. ^_^

It is totally badass.

davek is up

9/7 davek
16/7 sarahel
23/7 theviceroy

Give me a couple of minutes.

woo

1. Koenjihyakkei - II (Viva Koenji!)
http://www.skingraftrecords.com/graphics/biglppics/GR83big.jpg

For all of his musical activity thinly stretched over dozens of bands, no one can ever say that Tatsuya Yoshida isn't capable of focusing his energies on one incredible thing at a time. Best known as leader and co-founder of Ruins, the drummer's ultimate accomplishment is the second release by his avant-progressive ensemble Koenji-Hyakkei. All of his trademarks are here: speedy, impossibly convoluted bass and drum patterns; kinetic vocals bordering on chaotic war cries; and the apex of his development of Magma's "zeuhl" legacy. Unlike the relatively Spartan Ruins, however, Koenji-Hyakkei presents his visions in brilliant Technicolor: tight, powerful, group singing; majestic keyboard arrangements; and a massive rock mix give II a vital kick unmatched in Yoshida's catalog.Fittingly, II (sometimes known as Viva Koenji) begins with "Grembo Zavia," arguably Yoshida's finest composition. Beginning as a breakneck choral workout and jagged, drum-led flight of odd-meter ferocity, the song works through several sections of saturated intensity, highlighting one laser-beam riff after another. The band navigates these themes as if performing an apocalyptic opera for their lives. (Truthfully, if you aren't up for an intense ride, it may well be too much to take.) And then it gets interesting: Stripping away all but barely audible bass and drums, soprano Aki Kubota coos ominously, as if forecasting impending doom. Indeed, the sudden onslaught of chaos soon afterwards will probably shock anyone foolish enough to have turned the volume up during the break. Likewise, "Guoth Dahha" manages to sustain perpetually manic intensity via death metal guitar licks and vocals that go from classic zeuhl-operatic grandeur to angry howls to all-out screams of horror. Although not every moment on II is so extreme (see Kubota's comparatively soothing Middle Eastern trance-rock "Cembell Rotta"), anyone not ready for a full helping of unrepentant bombast and super-human prog should beware of this album. Along with Koenji-Hyakkei's first release, however, it is one of the best Japanese progressive releases of the '90s.

2. Cardiacs - Sing to God (pts 1 + 2)
http://geordierussell.instone.net/Jukebox/Img/C/Cardiacs%20-%20Sing%20To%20God.jpg
This needs no introduction.

3. Orthrelm - OV
http://cdn.pitchfork.com/media/6113-ov.jpg

OV, containing a single 45-minute composition, makes as good an introduction to putting oneself into a trance as it does to minimalism or instrumental prog. Although recorded over a period of months, the title piece is presented as a single performance, each segment locking into the next, on and on until everything simply stops. And just as I described Orthrelm's prior releases as monolithic, this one threatens to glaze over the eardrums of anyone not particularly fascinated by the prospect of a metal mosaic, massive in size with attention to minute detail. Yet, it is the attention to detail-- the baroque refinery of the individual riffs and drum patterns-- that makes OV more than just an impressive technical feat (or an excruciating bore). As with the additive, metric modulation of Glass (who cribbed his technique from Indian raga) or Reich's rhythmic phasing, Orthrelm somehow makes music more than the sum of its innumerable parts.

Enjoy, and please posts your thoughts! I'd be really interested to hear what people make of these..also, thye could be construed as generally 'difficult' but please persevere because these records reward repeated exposure.

i know 1 & 3, ugh to #2 :)

Also, all three are from the 90s onwards: 1997, 1995 and 2005 respectively.

at last, someone gives three albums I've already heard (and loved)!

christ I have SO much listening back to do mind

pro tip for anyone looking to get into Koenjihyakkei - listen to motherfucken Grembo Zavia - although it's the first track so you'll probably listen to it anyway

OV is amazing and actually in no way enervating - it quickens the thought and stimulates all sorts of mental pleasure-points - musical acupuncture, perhaps

Sing To God is a bit shit rly

Yeah picks are maybe on the predictable side, but, anything for people to listen to Koenji on call.

If my albums were food/drinks:

Koenji: Red Bull mega+++ quadruple pack with limited edition samurai war cry packaging!

Cardiacs: psychedelic pick n mix, whiskey on tap (honestly this is a straight up drinking album, with Fiery Gun Hand its anthem)

Orthrelm: lunch capsules from a world where humanity has become so advanced and fortified, food consumption is unnecessary.

sing to god is basically every cocktail in the world thrown together and served with a pizza that has every nice topping ever on it

if that doesn't sound your thing... :D

your koenji one is correct, although the red bull must be served in a gigantic Viking hall

and orthrelm is more like a packet of tic-tacs except they're all green but they have infinitesimally different flavours so you're constantly all "uh? ooh!"

I figure that everyone here is resourceful enough to find full albums to listen to without me providing links, so I'm just going to post youtubes of a song (or part of a song) for my picks, and people can investigate further, if they're so compelled.

The "Prog Classic"
Magma - Udu Wudu

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bACchaeVyxc

Magma - De Futura (Part 1) - some would argue that "De Futura" is the only reason to listen to this album. It is the epic closing track. It is the best song on the album. I like the other songs as well, but this one is definitely the stand-out.

And you can see the influence of Magma in the following:

Idiot Flesh - Fancy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3D8rQEYXNk

Idiot Flesh - Drowning - this is probably the most prog-like song I could find a youtube for. I tried looking for "Hollow Men" - a musical adaptation of the T.S. Eliot poem, but with no success. The album is pretty diverse: there are comedy numbers, a few that might be "too metal" to be prog. Members and sometime collaborators of this band formed most of the initial line-up of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum.

The Flying Luttenbachers - Cataclysm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHPFBxruoHg

The Flying Luttenbachers - Demonic Velocities (Live) - Cataclysm is the last album recorded with a full band. The Luttenbachers began in 1991/92 and went through a variety of different styles which culminated with the "brutal prog" of the last few albums which include this one. This album also includes a cover of a movement of Messiaen's L'Ascension (spellchecked for LJ).

De Futura is ace so far, albeit more understated than I'd imagined - Part 2 just started

ok the building siren section was super-sweet and now the synths are doing all sorts of cool things - def building to something mighty

lj you should be on Pop, Genre, Change & Boundary-Busting

thats your thing

yeah I dig the subtlety with which this is getting more and more brutal

pfunkboy I want to see how that thread plays without me for now

ah man this thing had better break into a disco groove at the end now

aw - it chooses to NOT go the whole way. if I covered it, that last bit would go full nightmare-disco mayhem

why disco?

to me it would make more "sense" to go into a death metal shredfest

but i think it's awesome as it is

it is pretty awesome. idiot flesh was well cool as well. about to hear flying luttenbachers playing at REDACTED

oh wait it's the Orthrelm guy! :D

xp - uh can the second sentence of LJ's post be deleted/removed - that's TMI dude

imo all those davek albums are classics!! and is OV just impossible to follow up?

Mick Barr was briefly in the Flying Luttenbachers. The guitarist on the left is Ed Rodriguez who is now in Deerhoof.

yes and possibly dominique

FL track is hectic - mega-intense progmetal jamz iirc

Mick Barr is not in that video!

oh wait I misinterpreted a comment

it's funny because Rob, the guitarist in the video, vaguely resembles Mick Barr and was his replacement in the band.

haha its the viceroy who missed his turn

I am late sorry guys!

New Prog listening club update forthcoming in a matter of mere minutes and mind you it might be mind-blowing in its megalithic massiveness!

Abbott must be making the choices then?

No these will hopefully all have spotify links and album images

all hail spotify

http://www.ecompil.fr/bk_img/0000/7314/5346/3226/00731453463226/00731453463226_S.jpg
Rush - Exit Stage Left
Spotify Link: http://open.spotify.com/album/4ySyBOcK1jQERckCH3TBww

http://i50.tinypic.com/351g21f.jpg
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Spotify Link: http://open.spotify.com/album/70sCoSN0qV6U4AqJ1wJkY0

http://i38.tinypic.com/2ll1qmq.jpg
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Tarkus
Spotify Link: http://open.spotify.com/album/2N1saVj6TsYUNdxC85kXhv

These are all great albums, lets discuss what makes them great. Or we can argue about there cannon status for a long time. We can also talk about why they are overrated and what flaws and problems they have.

*their (cannon) status

I have the genesis on 2xlp. Its grrrreat!

and by cannon I, of course, mean "canon".

Now we're talking. The Lamb, what a great album. People accuse it of lacking tunes but in my book that's part of its appeal. It doesn't need tunes, it tells its story and does so grippingly, twisting and turning inside Gabriel-as-Rael's skull.

Besides which, "In The Cage", "Counting Out Time" and "Carpet Crawlers" are melodically irresistible.

i stole lamb from the best import record store in sydney... and the experience scarred me for life. the best thing genesis ever did and easily canonical.

the live shows must have been something else

Indeed, and of course there is no video. Why were bands so reluctant to have themselves filmed in the 70s? There is precisely no extant pro-shot concert footage of prime-era Genesis, Floyd, VdGG...

There is the live audio which came out on the Archives box set a few years ago, it's riddled with overdubs but they don't bother me overmuch.

Why were bands so reluctant to have themselves filmed in the 70s?

It was friggin' expensive! There's that irritating clip of Genesis doing "I Know What I Like" live, Peter Gabriel must cringe every time he sees that one wheeled out.

And both Yes and ELP had live in concert films?

What do you all think about Tarkus?

you know i hate elp

About 5 minutes of Tarkus is great, the rest appalling.
The Lamb Lies Down drags somewhat in the second half I feel, if they'd cut about 20 minutes out of it it'd have been the best album no contest.
I saw Rush on the Exit...Stage Left tour! I think it was mind-blowing but I was 13 so don't really remember.

Anagram, I'm no Genesis expert, but there are a number of things on youtube (1972-73 TV specials and such) available on this DVD set.

http://tommygunvideo.com/discography.html

"Are there classical music quotes on Nothingface?

― Sundar, Wednesday, 7 July 2010 19:56 (2 weeks ago)"

Yes! And I was just listening to classical radio a few weeks ago and heard one of the original tunes. Unfortunately I was driving and have yet to confirm for certain what it was they were quoting. I'm guessing it was Messiaen.

thanks Dan, that DVD looks great! Had never seen it before.

that tommygun video is a bootleggy rip off, all of those things are on the re-released dvd/cds and they're also available for free on torrent sites.

(by which I mean, they were available for free on torrent sites before they wound up on the dvds, they were fan-rescued projects and the official dvds just used the stuff the fan community put together. they might still be on http://torrent.genesis-movement.org/, not sure, but this was all done and distributed with the band's knowledge and approval).

I made my friend a little action figure of Rael that had a detachable penis.

It's Friday! Who's up this week for picks?

I dont think anyone volunteered for this week or after. I guess it's time for people to volunteer?

If not, you viceroy will need to choose! (or abbott)

I saw the Musical Box do "Lamb" start to finish (replete with props on loan from Genesis!) and damned if it wasn't the coolest thing. I think the album is super-great, draggy last bit and all. Surprised more people don't do covers of this stuff. Jeff Buckley in retrospect seem very forward (backward?) thinking for covering "Back in NYC." Would have been wild had that been his next "Hallelujah."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubYDPqi6ht4

Any volunteers?

i'll have a go

Do it!

3 Favourites:

Tim Blake - New Jerusalem

http://www.nonightsweats.com/images/tb_nj.jpg

Blake was the synth player in Gong who provided all of the glistening swirls behind the silliness. This is probably the most prog oriented of his solo releases with a mix of great electronics and uk hippie schtick.

not a spot

Henry Cow - Unrest

http://www.nonightsweats.com/images/hc_ur.jpg

For me, Henry Cow are the epitome of prog rock. I know that they're left field and difficult at times but when they were on form (just about always) they were astounding. Like this one where a mix of composed and improvised / cut up pieces combine to make a grand, dark, mournful release.

see notspot run

King Crimson - Red

http://www.nonightsweats.com/images/kc_red.jpg

Well, ofcourse, KC are really the epitome of prog rock. In this listening club I've downloaded a few metally / mathy bands whose riffing owes a huge debt to this album. But Red sounds loose and full of real people instead of being hard edged and prosaic. Like Unrest it's got a mix of studio pieces and improvs and it's just wonderfull from start to end.

run notspot, run

and if you don't want to dload the blake album after seeing that cover then... get outta here!

awesome! thanks for stepping up nonightsweats!

weirdly, this is the first time i've noticed that john wetton's chisel-jawed countenance looks uncannily similar to that of james reyne (of 'australian crawl' "fame").

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRZjmEU6fQBjujibLPq2ti3UI2yqw_j-W5Hs7ZB0sALPddySYw&t=1&usg=__Vn20cAVV73qUtCEleTkyRqL39lU=

You are right, that Tim Blake album cover made it a must hear.

I won't have time to listen to it until at least tomorrow though.

I think "Red" is kind seen as the apex or epitome of 70's KC output, and the perfection of that lineup, but I still think it falls short of the albums that came before it. Starless is probably my favorite KC song, sappy though it kind of is. Red is great as well. But I can't help but feel the rest of the album doesn't measure up; Fripp took the good parts of this and perfected them on Exposure.

red - once again it comes down to the 1st album i heard actually making an impact on me. from this one i went to the other 70s records and then the earlier material. but red just seemed to encapsulate their sound perfectly for me. the brass section sounds fantastic and providence is as good an improv as they ever did. i can certainly understand the preference people show for the other 70s albums.

Red is my favorite King Crimson album (most of the time) just because the vibe is dark and groovy. The chorus of Fallen Angel and the build up of Starless might have been very influential in some of the more tortuous sounding music I like today. Well tortuous for other people but medicinal for me :)

Growing up I never steered towards metal to satisfy any angst or anger I may have unwillingly sought out in my music fix because other genres could fill that void in a much more pleasing way

The Lamb and Selling England are my two favorite Genesis albums for surely. Back in N.Y.C. tears the shit out of everything (just wish the weird chorus part was less weird). Lots of other great songs. The Colony of Slippermen has some heavy/jammy vocals like Back in N.Y.C.

Finally getting around to playing this Tim Blake album right now. It is super good! It kind of gives me hope about the world, in spite/because of the lyrics. This French titled instrumental track has kind of a Heldon/Zorch thing going on that I dig.

it's not really blake's best (that'd be crystal machine) but it's definitely the most aligned to prog.

Wetton on that cover always puts me in mind of this...
http://www.residents.com/historical/page0/page10/files/dsmute500.jpg

:-)

i suppose this thread is officially dead

when I have a bit of stability in my life I'm doing a full retrospective

i'll do something on Monday.

ok

Sorry, I'm responsible for this thread and it has wasted away like so many romantic poets...
Can't wait for you picks AKM...

Lets start a new round of scheduling, eh? We can switch the day to Monday or just have another three picks this friday. Anyone have an opnion on this?

or 1 album per week?

I can get behind that

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51N5xokVKiL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

Porcupine Tree: In Absentia

Porcupine Tree are a band that I'd heard about, listened to, and greatly disliked when I first encountered them. I came to Steven Wilson's work via No Man (which I came to via Richard Barbieri, because I was a big fan of Japan) and I wasn't overwhelmed, it seemed too fey, not very well developed, somewhat dated. Porcupine Tree sounded like it might be more up my alley but that was a wash too; Up the Downstair sounded formless and drifting, Signify just annoyed me when I first heard it, the Sky Moved Sideways sounded too much like endless iterations of "Shine on You Crazy Diamond". All of this to say: you bring your expectations to the music, and that can color the experience. For some reason though I kept attempting to get into this band and kept hitting walls, maybe because I just heard too many influences overshadowing the actual music; also, there always seemed to be one or two songs per album that were just kind of, well, dumb (Stupid Dream had a song called 'a smart kid' the title of which reeked of smugness).

All of that stopped with this record; not sure why. This album seems to me to be the epitome of neo-prog, the vast majority of which I really dislike. In theory or rumor, a concept album about a serial killer, it keeps the concept abstract enough that it doesn't weigh down the tracks with ponderous story-line; more like a jumbled box of photos, snapshots of the life that resulted in a personality compelled to bury others under his floorboards (maybe). If there is one immediate influence that comes to mind for this record, it might actually be the Moody Blues or Kansas, shock and horror; the harmonies on "Trains" and the use of acoustic guitar are certainly reminiscent. There are moments of real musical beauty here, the slow build of "Collapse the Light Into Earth" that closes the album for instance. The crunch in the guitars was a little startling on this record, prefiguring a short-lived dip into Tool territory, and the odd time signatures, where they show up, are tasteful and effective. Gavin Harrison is now (apparently) King Crimson's second drummer and it's obvious why from this album.

Now I'm an ardent fan and think most things PT related are worthy, but this sits at the top of the heap, I don't think Wilson has bettered it except for his solo album Insurgentes which came out last year. But that seemed so marginally 'prog' I didn't choose it.

http://www.mediafire.com/?59l1o6fzus4lv

ill do two more tonight.

--=={{(( PROG BOMB in T MINUS 2 Hours ))}}==--

Unless someone claims it within that time!

Also anyone want to volunteer for spots?

Let's see:

9/03/10 -- Free
9/10/10 -- Free
9/17/10 -- Free
9/24/10 -- Free

anybody want to take one of these slots?

Nobody wants to do this anymore? Really? All of prog has been explored and no one wants to contribute any favorite albums?

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## *********** RRRRRR 0oooooo0 GGGGGGGG
## *** RRR 0 0 GG RRRROGRESSIVE ROCK LISTENING CLUB ::
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(( EARLY FRIDAY MORNING PROG BOMB ))

Rick Wakeman - The Myths and Legends of King Aurthur (1975)

http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/4739/14a37f626ba0294893d2d23.jpg

Spotify Album Link

I will volunteer to try to get people to like Motorpsycho since I failed the first time around

the album I posted the first time around, timothy's monster, had a special edition come out this year

here is their 13 minute epic from that double album - the golden core

Viceroy, I can post some albums next week if the slot is still free.

9/03/10 -- Blau
9/10/10 -- Free
9/17/10 -- Free
9/24/10 -- Free

Caravan: In the Land of Grey and Pink (1970)

Unlike Soft Machine, Gong and maybe one or two other Canterbury bands, Caravan have never been rehabilitated and deemed acceptable. Soft Machine have credibility with the "avantgarde" crowd and Gong appeal to the cosmic-reveller types, but Caravan are stuck with their jazz-lite chops and psych-lite pastoralisms, making music that commits the double crime of being both noodly and twee. On In the Land of Grey and Pink they give the game away from the very opening bars of the first song, a trombone riff that sounds like something you might hear at a fairground, then Richard Sinclair starts to sing in his soft voice about drinking tea with a golf girl, whatever that is, and the album continues in that vein. This is beginning to sound like a takedown, so I should add that I actually like Caravan, they just need to be shown some tough love every now and then.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RexRohnp-zE

Shub-Niggurath: Les morts vont vite (1986)

The anti-thesis to Caravan. Shub-Niggurath are a Zeuhl band, I suppose, by virtue of being French and playing dark jazz-influenced prog, but the lyrics are in French and favour Lovecraftian themes over the typical Zeuhl story. The music too is a variation (and in my opinion an improvent) on the Magma formula: all the groove is sucked out and replaced with slow, crushing riffs underlying frantic keyboards, "operatic" female vocals and the occasional dischordant saxophone. The result sounds rather like God at times (the Kevin Martin project, not the Allah/Jehovah/Trinity thing) and is more than heavy enough to deserve an honorary spot in the metal canon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onzy5CEHpSI

Second Hand: Death May Be Your Santa Claus (1971)

More psych than prog, perhaps. I include this because I never see anyone talking about Second Hand, and while Death May Be Your Santa Claus is no forgotten masterpiece, it still deserves some attention. As the title suggests, the mood here is one of sinister surrealism. The bass and drums maintain a solid groove and the organ-driven melodies are nice, but the highlight is the vocals, which are all over the place: mock-crooning, distorted warbling, Plant-like wailing, Beefheart-ish rambling and the occasional psychotic rattle a la the guy from Comus. In case anyone happens to hate the vocals, they still ought to give the second half of the record a listen, as it consists almost entirely of horror-tinged instrumentals loaded with effects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttKnk0JPGYUg

the caravan album is classic

Definitely, though I think the second half is inferior to the first. The best track by quite a margin is "Winter Wine", followed by either "Golf Girl" or "Love to Love You". I also forgot to mention that all the keyboard solos are great and that the production is really good. Maybe if I went over my posts more thoroughly, I could proofread them too...

the shub niggurath album is a classic!

yeah, caravan are ok but i like the other bands that the main members were in far better. still and all, golf girl is just dandy.

in honor of the earthquake down there, here's a song from split enz's very genesissy debut album, mental notes, produced by phil manzanera of roxy music, i think
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T4bHxbR0vk&playnext=1&list=PL68B8A6B6B7EAEB33

Those 70s Split Enz albums were kind of interesting, but I don't see them as particularly Genesis-like. I would say they had more in common with somewhat "weirder" bands such as Roxy Music, Sparks, Cockney Rebel or Be Bop Deluxe.

geir are you taking a week to choose albums?
your top 3 prog albums! do it!

I might have a go. Probably would go for something a bit less obvious than "Selling England By The Pound", "Foxtrot" and "Close To The Edge" though, as those are my favourite three prog albums, and probably also the favourite albums of many other symphonic rock fans. :)

Geir you should post some albums tho! Get this thing started again! Let's get progressive!

that would be great

the first one is genesissy, geir, clumsily so, since they're not virtuosi by any stretch, but they travel similar whimsical and spectral grooves nevertheless. the others, as you say, are more art-pop. squeeze is another fair touch point. great band, regardless

really enjoying this new thing for me and I got another 15 minutes of the song left
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxcMu_GDXjI

Geir's Norwegian music poll inspired me to browse RYM top Norwegian albums

Oh, snap, anyone heard Plank! Little bit of Goblin, little bit of Neu!, little bit of punk (read a couple of odd Fugazi comparisons). Pretty cool. From Manchester, I think. Album is called "Animalism."

anyone up for kicking this around again?

HELL YES

Would love to - not sure what all has been covered, but I've been digging these a lot lately: Arzachel s/t, Khan 'Space Shanty', Ultimate Spinach 'Behold and See' (I guess more psych), Arcadium 'Breath Awhile' (listened to this last night and it is still pretty stunning), Annexus Quam 'Osmose', Steel Mill 'Green Eyed God', and all the Area records

that arcadium album is a monster. the six minute slow burn that starts off the first song could keep building for an hour and i'd be fine

yeah i was thinking of redoing the krautrock one but we might have covered everything. But since krautrock is prog anyway why not combine it for those who want to?

I'm up for this!! Can we include "neo-prog" stuff?

lol its your club! you choose!

and yeah we should combine kraut and like heavy psychedelic maybe?

lol I forgot I started this.

its friday here now! I think you should start a new thread with prog/krautrock/heavy psych in the title.

Funk club is mondays so it wont clash

and it IS Friday....

I'll take next friday!

take it here:

New/Improved PROG/KRAUT/SPACE/PSYCH ROCK Listening Club