Ready for a total PROG-stravaganza with cousin Steve, Dr. Dave and new friend Dara. We’re going to ge there early and get right up front. We’re getting a bit old for the standing-all-show deal, but, thankfully, there is no opening act and this is a special show in that it represents the mightiest prog-rock super-group in the land. Roine is a legend, the godfather of swedish prog. Neal Morse is the happy warrior, a missionary of prog and evangelical Christianity! Michael Portnoy is, as of this date, the greatest rock drummer out there. When he plays with his band (Dream Theater), the kit is the size of a small school bus. Who knows what he’s bringing to the TLA next week? And finally, Pete Trewavas, he is the glue that brings order to the ferocity of the others’ passion.
Transatlantic will, presumably., be performing their entire new album The Whirlwind as well as some of their back catalog and a couple covers.
It’s gonna be a great night. Here’s a sample of the new record:
p.s. I’m pleased to say, after the chaos of my recent relocation, I have finally found our tickets, so we are ready to go!
Cover bands. Tribute bands. “Experiences.” Do not get me started! Have you never wanted to do something creative? Something that was truly yours? Do you see your job as, essentially, one of impersonation? The only passion that really comes across to the audience is the passion for perfection. At best, the performers disappear, or, as is often the case, wear costumes. But part of it is still an exercise in impersonation.
But I am a good one to talk. Let us not even, for the moment, mention the dozens of shows by a certain Genesis tribute band that I have witnessed. As an audience member I delight in the opportunity to see something I never had the opportunity to witness the first time around. And, taken on its merits, the performance is inspiring – sound, vision, composition. But here’s the sick part: I also have audio-only recordings of tribute bands! Why not just listen to the original? That’s the thing I’ve been listening to for twenty-five years!
But that’s just it. After all this time, I’m looking for something different, another level of genius. And when that raw material is in another’s hands, the possibility for “interpretation” or variation is dangerously prominent.
Well, The Watch is your cure for the common tribute band. Part of what motivated Genesis (a BIG part) was the desire/need to write music. That push to be creative, to do something new, was, no doubt, a big part of what moved the real Genesis on stage. The Musical Box has never had that. New music has always been explicitly excluded from their mandate. The Watch, on the other hand, has four studio albums of original material and a live album of that material. They are established original artists. They have also created two Genesis programs that perfectly imitate the dominating force of Foxtrot and Nursery Cryme. Those records have had a profound, though often overlooked, influence on music throughout Europe, North America and South America.
Will The Watch have that kind of impact? I don’t think so, but one never knows. The point is that they are making the music that they want to make, and while it is overwhelmingly influenced by Gabriel-era Genesis, it is also their own. Or is this what Genesis would have sounded like if that remarkable quintet had never disbanded? That’s a fanboy question for the ages.
For now, I count myself very lucky to have come across this band from Milan. Thirty-eight years ago, Genesis was looking for a break with a live show that they new was good, but it wasn’t getting through outside England. Italy was a home for Genesis when they were on the road. Now, it seems, Genesis has become a musical home for a few gifted musicians from Italy.
I have ordered The Watch’s two most recent titles from Amazon – Primitive and Planet Earth. I also want to thank Sommutante for having an amazing music blog. It’s in Portuguese, but it’s pretty easy to see he’s pretty hip. And I don’t recommend Google Translate. Just listen to the music.
Rikard is har at work with the next release – this one will be under the ‘Gungfly’ banner. And while last year’s ‘Please Be Quiet’ was a tremendous dose of cowboy prog, the first release from the upcoming record has a decidedly heavier vibe. Check out the single over at Gungfly.net. Am I hearing more metal in the man’s guitar solo? Also, he says that the new Beardfish album is coming along nicely. Music to my ears!
Always great chalk art outside local bar/chow place North 3rd. Earlier this year, they had a tribute to the film version of Watchmen and then Up. But, yesterday, I got this dose of beloved prog. If you don’t know the song, give it a listen:
Marillion (pictured above) is betting that their fans will still shell out the bucks even though the ‘new’ record doesn’t have any new music. ‘Less Is More‘ (October 2) contains acoustic arrangements for older tracks – some favorites and some obscure. They’re emphasize that they really worked hard on doing something new with these songs. I’ve already placed my order.
Steve Hackett looks to get up off the mat after his ex wife Kim Poor metaphorically shattered his jaw with a lawsuit that could cost him his Genesis royalties. As a result of the hard times, this electric rock album, featuring hall-of-famer Chris Squire, had to be completed in Hackett’s apartment. ‘Out of the Tunnel’s Mouth‘ is available on October 5.
On October 27 we’re all going to be crushed by Transatlantic’s ‘Whirlwind.’ No word about touring yet, as bass player Pete Trewavas will be busy promoting Less is More with Marillion (see above). And you can decide for yourself whether it’s genius or a dick move to have the record as one track. this pretty much forces us all to buy the ‘bonus disc’, which has the rest of the songs and some covers. Of course, that bonus disc will, no doubt come at a premium.
You will notice that only the Transatlantic title is slated for a Tuesday release. Hackett’s record is due on a Monday, which is, I think, normal for UK releases. But the Marillion release on a Friday is just more proof that, no matter how many years you have in this business, traditional distribution rules don’t hold up for prog records – unless you’re Dream Theater.
If you are a regular reader of DailyKos, then you probably know of Bill in Portland Maine and his extremely entertaining and informative “Cheers and Jeers’ feature. Today, he is interviewing one of the regular contributors to the DailyKos community – Malacandra a/k/a Miles Kurland. He’s a web developer and designer with strong political feelings and, apparently, great taste in music:
What kind of music makes you feel invincible to the GOP horde?
Progressive Rock, of course! These days, it’d be the Decemberists. As luck would have it, they were doing a gig in Pittsburgh during Netroots Nation, just a few blocks away from the conference center. I had the unforgettable experience of seeing both a rousing speech by Howard Dean and a kick-ass Decemberists concert all in one evening.
So let’s try a 77 minute track! That’s right, proggers! One disc, one song. That’s what we’re in for with the new Transatlantic album ‘The Whirlwind’ slated for an October 27 release this fall. We knew from back in April that the band had gotten together for a new record, but a project of this scope was not anticpated, nit by me, at least. Plus, there will be a 2CD version where the extra disc has four more originals and four covers. Oh, you know, what, that’s OK – I didn’t want to hear Mike Portnoy play Return of the Giant Hogweed, anyway. I mean, in these trying economic times it’s better for me not to know what that’s going to sound like.
Share the goodness with the finest in Polish sausage prog. This is one of my all-time favorite bands, but if they come in concert (still touring and making great music!), then it would be a bit of a sausage fest.
And, hey! What’s with that beautiful guitar with the metal neck! Heh heh…
The legends of Polish Prog are back! SBB’s new album is called ‘Iron Curtain’ and it’s so good, for those of us who are so inclined, it will make you cry.
The pressure of the modern world is the reason for human oblivion. We are the generation that destroyed the myth of Europe’s ‘iron curtain’. The new sound of SBB is like a mirror of the lives of the barriers’ breakers…
