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Latest Progressive Rock Music Reviews
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Big Big Train
![](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/sound.png)
Review by
lazland
Prog Reviewer
![4 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/4stars.gif)
What, another Genesis tribute allegation, you ask? No, not a bit of it. This band, not particularly in terms of approach, but most definitely in terms of their use of English lore and joyous storytelling of our heritage are, to me, the modern day Jethro Tull. Think of that band's wonderful folk rock period between Songs from the Wood and Broadsword...., transport it into the 21st century, and here we go. London Plane, with its tale of a boat squadron on course to Runnymede, could quite easily fit in on any one of those Tull masters. The chorus of this soars.
The album explodes into sound with the title track. Pure folk prog, with Longden's flute and Rachel Hall's exceptional violin playing right to the fore. The latter, to me, is a very welcome addition to this band. Her playing on this and the live set released on Stone and Steel are exceptional, and her backing to Longden's feeling lead vocals complement each other very well.
The band now boast eight members, living in disparate areas of not just the UK, but literally the world, with Rikard Sjoblom adding important textures on guitars and keyboards, and the drummer from America who I regard as being the finest modern exponent of the trade, Nick D'Virgilio. His work shines on this, and both also contribute backing vocals, making the band sound throughout as a vocal and instrumental symphony.
Along The Ridgeway uses both Hall's violin and the welcome return of the brass section to great effect. It segues effortlessly into Salisbury Giant, a huge figure which one adorned pageants in medieval Wiltshire, now housed in a museum there. These are gentle pieces, with intelligent use of orchestration creating a solemn, thoughtful, mood. Longden sings it beautifully. I fell in love with his voice on the wonderful Martin Orford swan song, The Old Road, and he is, to me, a world class vocalist.
Brass and violin also introduce us to the exceptional The Transit Of Venus Across The Sun. The lyrics, vocals, and music take me back many years to when I was a young man fascinated by the vastness of the visible night sky, and wondering just what it would be like to fly there, a la James T Kirk. You are taken to this place on the "so many words left unsaid" sequence, before Dave Gregory produces a scintillating guitar solo leading the entire outfit in a symphonic burst of pure noise. Quite lovely.
Wassail has attracted some criticism. It is beyond me why. When I first heard it on the EP release of the same name in 2015, I knew we were in for a real old treat with the forthcoming album. Whilst the accompanying video, costumes and all, might seem a tad corny, this is prog folk at its most powerful, with swirling keyboards and thunderous riffs, led by Spawton on bass and D'Virgilio on drums moving things along at a fair old pace. The story itself is of pagans travelling between houses and orchards wassailing, boozing to hearty effect on Wassail, a rather strong mulled cider.
There is one track on the album that I still struggle to "get", and that is Winkie. The story behind the song is straightforward enough, that of a World War Two flying hero. It is played well enough, with the drums especially moving things along swiftly, and Longden evokes true emotion in The North Sea passage when radio contact with the plane is lost. However, it is, to me, slightly too breathless and wordy at times to truly impress. Great in parts, but not as a whole.
The epic length track on the album, clocking in at 12.40 minutes, is Brooklands. This venue, of course, was the world's first motor racing circuit, and the track evokes all of the romance and thrill which that venue brought to the pioneers who raced there, the smells of the engines, and the crowds who followed the sometimes dangerous exploits of the participants. I love the thoughtful guitar lead, whilst D'Virgilio excels on a tuneful drum pattern, with Spawton producing a deep, growling, bass line. A great story and tribute to a time long passed away, this is intellectual prog folk at its peak. The section leading to the denouement has the entire band, keys, flute, violin, rhythm, guitar stretching themselves to the limit, before we come down to earth gently with a delicate vocal.
All which precedes, though, leads up to the biggest thrill, the final track, the sumptuous and beautiful Telling The Bees. I didn't think that the band could better Hedgerow, to me a highlight of prog rock in all the time I have listened to this great genre. This one does it, in spades. It plays to every strength this great band have. It aches with emotion, and has, at its heart, the memories of a loved father, honoured in old custom by telling the bees of a life and love. "The joy is in the telling", and the telling is a wonderful noise. This song evokes memories of loved ones no longer with me, and I sing it at the top of my voice, but with love and fond memories, not sadness, the way such fond memories are meant to be. This is a gloriously uplifting track, and yet another reminder of why this band are so special. Listen and let the emotion wash over you.
This is yet another fine release by a band who I hope will continue to carry the torch of quality English progressive rock for many years to come. Four stars, and simply excellent.
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Frank Zappa
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Review by
rdtprog
Special Collaborator Prog Metal / Heavy Prog Team
![4 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/4stars.gif)
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Marillion
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Review by
Matti
Prog Reviewer
![3 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/3stars.gif)
Since it feels awkward for me to write a review for such heavily reviewed album, I first thought to write one for the 'Kayleigh' single. I'm getting tired of reviewing singles so much, so here's my very subjective view on this famous Neo Prog milestone. I bought it on CD several years later at the early 90's, but it isn't my favourite of the Fish era, that honour goes to Clutching at Straws. And up to this day my reception of Misplaced Childhood is somewhat ambivalent. Like many other prog listeners, I find it a bit cheesy as a whole, with the super-clean production, sugared synth carpets and sentimental guitar solos.
'Pseudo Silk Kimono' is irritatingly all cheesy synths, but it functions as a conceptual mood-setter, followed seamlessly by the radio-friendly song for lost love, 'Kayleigh' (which I have as a ringtone on my phone nowadays!), which is seamlessly followed by another radio-friendly love song, naively romantic 'Lavender'. What is this? A potpourri of pop songs? Luckily, 'Bitter Suite' and 'Heart of Lothian' are multi-part compositions with various moods. I love the quietest, more mystified parts ("A spider wanders aimlessly...", and later, "It's getting late for scribbling and scratching on the paper...") whereas 'Blue Angel' and 'Wide Boy' sections are really cheesy, especially for the guitar solos. On the next album there's a lot more diversity in guitar and keyboard sounds. Is Misplaced Childhood perhaps over-produced in a way, emphasizing the sentimental concept?
The album is practically two side-long, pauseless entities, and that's definitley one of its strengths. The second part (side of the vinyl) contains the ultimate highlight, but there are also songs that feel like fillers to me. 'Waterhole (Expresso Bongo)', terribly boring. 'Lords of the Backstage' is refreshingly bold and bright. 'Blind Curve' is a magnificent journey into deep, sore emotions, and finally there's new blood on guitar parts too. The melody in 'Mylo' is spellbinding, and the creepily quiet section 'Perimeter Walk' gives goose bimples. Unfortunately the 'Threshold' section returns to the cheesiness and the similarily wailing guitar solo by numbers heard on the first side. 'Childhoods End?' is a fine, sunny and powerful catharsis after all the dark emotions the concept album has gone through. The synth solo at its end sounds very Genesis-like. But for me 'White Feather' is a boring anti-climax.
This is definitely an important album, but the certain weaknesses and the overall cheesiness make me round my 3½ stars downwards. This is not to say I wouldn't understand five-star ratings perfectly well!
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Melody Crossover Prog
Review by
DamoXt7942
Forum & Site Admin Group Avant, Crossover & Neo Teams
![3 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/3stars.gif)
We can call this obscurity as another art rock salad mixture with heavy, psychedelic, and symphonic directions. Variation of soundscape cannot be heard enough but rough, fuzzy diversity in kinda 70s progressive cage we can find out via this album. Ethnicity or weird keyboard-oriented colourful psychedelia sound excessive especially in a short track "Death Rebirth". Bluesy battles of guitar and keyboard plays with dry-fruity female voices give us a hint of French-based fashionable vibes in "Viens Voler Avec Moi". There are other cool but poppy catchy song messages here and there (and pity that not all of them cannot be felt innovative) but well understood they might have got massively inspired by psychedelic rock / art pop vanguards, and it makes sense this 'demonstrated' work would have been dedicated to their pioneers. Basically unpolished but splendidly powerful intention we can notice via their mystic creation. Worth listening to.
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tr-Ond and the Suburban Savages RIO/Avant-Prog
Review by
DamoXt7942
Forum & Site Admin Group Avant, Crossover & Neo Teams
![4 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/4stars.gif)
"Kore Wa!" is the second album of SUBURBAN SAVAGES that has been recorded / produced for seven years and finally released in mid 2017. Actually I've mysteriously got impressed at the sleeve and the title of their newest album (a Japanese phrase "Kore Wa!" means "this is!" in English), and currently I appreciate stumbling upon their fantastic stuff and themselves. Not only the exterior but also the musical contents have completely knocked me out. I have assumed they would feel familiar with Japan and Japanese culture, and made sure of this via their soundscape seasoned with Japanese (or related) folksy melody lines. Well understood why seven or more years were needed for creating material for "Kore Wa!". Via this stuff we can hear a variety of melodic appearances they might possess in their inner space.
It's crazy amazing that avantgarde complexity and pop, catchy intensity come one after another like a merry go round. Such a well- matured, melodically-balanced movement cannot easily be heard even in progressive rock scene or something. The opening starshine "Fade Into Obscurity" lets us know enough (and their fragile chorus is fantastic too). In "As I Am Dying" deep, heavy, and mysterious anxiety will pop up and hide out under the complicated cloudy sky. The titled track might be sung in (especially old-fashioned) Japanese language but I cannot understand their "words" but unique and challenging sense.This song (with "hoy hoy hoy!") could not remind me of Japanese kabuki nor kyogen lol, but we can find their strong motivation to adopt every element all over the world and digest enough for the sound launcher rich in their originality.
Eventually I've got immersed in this creation not because I'm a Japanese but I'm fascinated by sound innovation. Woohoo.
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Camel
![](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/sound.png)
Review by KolbiterProg
![4 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/4stars.gif)
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Pendragon
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Review by
rdtprog
Special Collaborator Prog Metal / Heavy Prog Team
![3 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/3stars.gif)
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Roz Vitalis
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Review by 302
![3 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/3stars.gif)
The best part of the EP is the contrast that is created between instruments especially in songs "Psalm 6" and "Prophet". Musicianship is excellent. I warmly recommend this album to those who like surprises and complexity in the music.
Album reminds me about the book The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949) by Joseph Campbell, which tells universal story of the hero's travels.
EP starts with song "Psalm 6" a quite nice and rythmic start with bass and drums, then the trumpets set in. Trumpet seems to play totally different song. Nice contrast. After the start it almost turns to church music with organs. It reminded me what it was to sit in the church and listen psalms. Then the music flows quite melodically with fluit, keyboard and guitars leading the music to the end.
Second song "Trattamento 2" is melodic keyboard driven peace.
Third song "Prophet" starts again with keyboards quite serenely but when bass comes along it starts to feel more threteaning, again contrast between different instruments is quite apparent. And towards end the whole song seems to get quite disturbed. You can easily create a story in your head about the travels of a prophet.
Fourth song "Denial of access". Once more the instruments are playing different songs creating interesting tensions inside the piece.
Fifth song "Passing over". The music gets more light and cheerful here. Keyboards are leading the music forward. I find the bass playing in the background nice.
Sixth song "Trattamento 3" ends the EP. This is again keyboard leaded music.
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Architectural Metaphor Psychedelic/Space Rock
Review by prophet10
![3 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/3stars.gif)
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Yes
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Review by dosware
![3 stars](/web/20170519181029im_/http://progarchives.com/static-images/3stars.gif)
After my initial WTF experience hearing this mostly sedate and decidedly non-prog album, I realized there was something else unique and artistic happening here. I keep listening to this album- not primarily as a prog fan, but as a fan of emotional and complex pop music long gone from the airwaves. YES remain great songwriters, composing amazing hooks with top production- this album puts current popular music to shame. There is not a bad track on this album.
This is Yes's most innovative album since Drama.
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