Whilst browsing the site, I was surprised to see this LP hasn't been rated.
It is not a true prog album, but it is a fine musical treat, especially at Christmas time. I had it
brought for me at 2007 Christmas, and we all enjoyed listening. The album certainly highlights what
a fine vocalist Squire is in his own right - Run With The Fox (easily the most recognisable prog
track) is fantastic and has attracted quite a bit of UK radio airplay.
The album does what it says on the tin - a collection of mainly Christmas songs arranged, with a
distinct rock twist, with Swiss Choral choirs, except there is no Swiss choral choir on it!
Steve Hackett is the most recognisable and distinct guest on the album, and I can't wait for their
next promised collaboration.
You will likely only get this LP out at Christmas, aside from Run With The Fox, but you will be
rewarded with an enjoyable collection of songs and arrangements from one of the finest musicians of
his or any other generation.
Not that there is an abundance of progressive
rock-tinged acoustic guitar trios among the ranks, but this aggregation
stands tall among its peers as the guitarists' inventiveness surges
forward with this altogether warmhearted reckoning of Christmas carols
and other pleasantries. The guitarists' nimble yet at times forceful
approach is wholly evident during their highly rhythmic spin on "Jingle
Bells." They perform the classic "Greensleeves" with a sensitive,
chamber-like approach while also tackling the Lennon/Ono
favorite "Happy X-Mas (War Is Over)." However, part of the magic
resides within the trio's ability to delve into the inherent frameworks
of each song, while also reformulating themes and rhythms into
personalized statements. Essentially, the artists have produced a rather
poignant Christmas outing, awash with interweaving lines and lilting
harmonies, as they complement their superior artisanship and
forward-thinking deployments with a cheerfully rendered collection of
holiday favorites.
Winter Solstice EP from Markus Reuter: Soundscape versions of traditional songs usually associated
with this time of year, at least here in Germany. In addition to the
meditative soundscapes (which are based on the series of pitches of each
tune) I've also overdubbed straight versions of the original melodies.
Enjoy this parallel universe... It's strangely hypnotizing. Only
available from December 1st to December 31st.
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Please support FreeForm Radio and KMXT by going to www.KMXT.org and pledging your support.
The music you hear is available on the artists' Bandcamp pages, websites, and Spotify.
We urge you to support the musicians you hear on FreeForm Radio.
I am also hosting Rural Electric (Mostly) Country Music from 7-9 pm right after the Island Messenger; this week I'll be featuring the top 25 contemporary country artists.
Close to the Edgeis the fifth studio album by English progressive rock band Yes, released on 8 September 1972 by Atlantic Records. It is their last album of the 1970s to feature original drummer Bill Bruford,
who found the album particularly laborious to make and felt unable to
contribute better ideas, which influenced his decision to join King Crimson once recording had finished.
After scoring a critical and commercial hit with their previous album Fragile (1971) and touring the album, Yes regrouped with producer and engineer Eddy Offord to record a follow-up. The album's centrepiece is the 18-minute title track, with lyrics inspired by the Herman Hesse novel Siddhartha. Side two contains two non-conceptual tracks, the folk-inspired "And You and I" and the comparatively straightforward rocker "Siberian Khatru". The album's cover, designed by Roger Dean, marked the debut of the band's "bubble" logo.
Close to the Edge became the band's greatest commercial
success at the time of release, reaching No. 4 in the UK and No. 3 in
the US, where it sold over one million copies. The album's 1972-1973 tour comprised over 90 dates worldwide and marked the debut of drummer Alan White,
who joined the band three days before it started. It was reissued in
1994, 2003, and 2013; the latter release includes previously unreleased
tracks and new stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes. Close to the Edge has since received widespread critical acclaim; in 2020, it was ranked 445th on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".[5]
Steven Wilson Remix: Released on the Panegyric label, Steven Wilson used the original
multi-track recordings to produce a “2013 stereo mix”, a 5.1 surround
sound mix, and an “original stereo mix” from a flat transfer of the LP,
in both a CD and DVD-Audio and CD and Blu-ray Disc package. Bonus tracks
include single edits, an early rough mix of “Close to the Edge”, and
instrumental versions of the album’s three tracks.
We'll have time to play Side 4 of Tales from Topographic Oceans: "Ritual"
"Ritual (Nous sommes du soleil)" relates to the tantras, literally meaning rites or rituals.[3]
Anderson described its bass and drum solos as a presentation of the
fight and struggle that life presents between "sources of evil and pure
love".[23] Howe is particularly fond of his guitar solo at the beginning, which to him was "spine-chilling" and "heavenly to play",[45] and uses a Gibson Les Paul Junior.[37] He wrote the chords and some lyrics to the "Life is like a fight" section.[37]
His outro guitar solo was more improvised and jazz-oriented at first,
but the rest of the group felt dissatisfied with the arrangement.
Anderson suggested that Howe pick several themes from the album and
combine them, which Howe did with "a more concise, more thematic
approach".[46]
During one of Wakeman's absences from the studio, White came up with
the piano sequence for the closing "Nous sommes du soleil" section.[8]
The second half contains a percussion jam that features the main melody
played on the drums. White, who played a standard kit, taught the
sequence to the other members, with Anderson on a cocktail kit and
Squire on timpani.[47] Howe, despite participating on the drum solo on stage early on, opted out as it affected his guitar playing afterward.
Tales
From Topographic Oceans was the fifth in a series of expanded Yes
classics, remixed in both stereo and 5.1 surround sound from the
original multi-track tapes, and approved by Yes.
It features the new mix of the original album, an unedited / extended
version of Dance of the Dawn (side one), and 5 newly created “single”
edits focussing on the song sections of the extended pieces. There’s
also a complete alternate version of the album using live tracks and
studio run throughs. Of these “High The Memory” (a studio run-through of
side 2), and “Ritual” (live in Zurich, April 1974) are previously
unreleased.
More bonus features include the extended Dance of the Dawn in stereo
& 5.1 surround sound, the 5 edits, instrumental mixes, the alternate
versions, and more, all in high resolution.
Multitrack tapes are unavailable for the other key albums in the Yes
catalogue, so unless that situation changes, this will be the final
release in the series.
In
March 2024, Anderson announced that a new tour, titled "Yes: Epics,
Classics and More" would begin with the Band Geeks as a backing band,
who had previously been on tour with Anderson. Alongside this
announcement, Band Geeks member and co-producer Richie Castellano also announced that they were working on a new studio album.[2]
The label Frontier Records described it as "a collection of songs that
harkens back to Yes’s classic 70’s sounds as well as to their latter-day
success with the album 90125."[3] Two singles and music videos were released in promotion of the album, "Shine On" on 13 June 2024[4][5][6] and "True Messenger" on 29 July 2024.[7]
Yes started work on the album shortly before the release of The Quest, their previous album, in October 2021. Like its predecessor, guitarist Steve Howe resumed his role as producer on Mirror to the Sky and the FAMES Orchestra in North Macedonia provide orchestral arrangements by Paul K. Joyce on some songs.
No Jon Anderson, Chris Squire or Alan White? No
problem for Yes. Prog’s great survivors hit a late-career upswing on
Mirror To The Sky
With every studio recording, live album or tour announcement, there’s
always a faction of fans who will turn up on a corner of the internet
waving their ‘No Jon Anderson, No Yes’ banners. Their zeal is only matched by the nearby counter-demonstration shaking their ‘No Peter Banks, No Yes’ placards.
But
time and events have moved on and maybe the ‘No Anderson’ contingent
should too. In the aftermath of the singer’s unceremonious departure 15
years ago, we’ve since lost Chris Squire and Alan White, a stark reminder, should it be needed, that life is really
too short to spend time grinding gears over something we have no
control over. Rather than exercising well-worn prejudices and allowing
expectations to become self-fulfilling prophecies, isn’t it better to
approach a new album with an open mind?
If 2021’s The Quest represented a return to some kind of form after the bland torpor of 2014’s Heaven & Earth, Mirror To The Sky feels like another useful step forward in Yes’ apparently never-ending story. There’s a good reason they released Cut From The Stars
as a digital single ahead of the album: it has more hooks in it than an
angler’s bag. With a cascading string motif; vibrant rays of organ;
spiky, undulating bass; bubbling guitars; dead-ahead drumming and
ecstatic skipping vocals, it moves with determined energy and purpose.
Setting out the stall of a band that have now been fully rejuvenated
with the installation of drummer Jay Schellen, it’s a track that has
urgency and power in abundance. Or, to put it another way, it fucking
rocks.
Those catchy qualities continue with All Connected
– its expansive feel seamlessly unrolls from one section to another,
making the musical connectivity work with consummate ease. While taking
disparate elements and welding them into something functional and
cohesive is pretty much what Yes are best known for, there’s an argument
that it’s not been done as elegantly as this for quite some time. If
the chorus of Luminosity sounds, at times, like it might have
been rejected by the local Christian Fellowship for being too
happy-clappy, it’s at least bookended with an engagingly upbeat
arrangement. The same cannot be said for the plodding dreariness of Living Out Their Dream, an unimaginative rocker whose by-the-numbers presence here is baffling.
That
lapse of judgement is mercifully brief and the title track restores
momentum. The piece showcases orchestral embellishments by Paul K Joyce,
whose work also graced The Quest. Mid-tempo rather than
magisterial, it nevertheless works well, with ethereal violin harmonics
adding a chilly trail in the wake of Howe’s contemplative fretwork. The
guitarist’s soloing throughout the track is especially good. At 75 years
old he might have slowed down in comparison to the flash of his youth,
but he demonstrates the wisdom of knowing that, in this case, a leaner,
cleaner melodicism will serve the song all the better. As principal
soloist and producer, Howe is ultimately free to overdub as many guitars
onto a track as he sees fit without fear of anyone telling him
otherwise, yet here he opts for a restrained approach that benefits the
album overall.
Yes’
internecine politics in the past have sometimes reduced the album-making
process into a passive-aggressive grudge match, wherein the band are
only able to work at the speed of the unhappiest member. By contrast,
this line-up has publicly stated that the spirit of cooperation and
mutual support evident during The Quest has continued to
flourish. Though it’s hard to objectively quantify, there’s a sense that
everyone being on the same page has brought optimism and coherence to
the music. Jon Davison’s charming ballad Circles Of Time, which
gently closes the album, though delicate on the surface, comes with a
real inner strength that’s due to the simplicity of its arrangement and
uncluttered sureness of its production.
As with The Quest, this album also comes with a three-track bonus disc. The best of these is the middling Unknown Place.
With its Hammond organ wig-out and solo cowbell section it seems
designed to provide some clap-along crowd participation when Yes next
get back on the road.
The long tail of Yes’ inventiveness during
the 1970s burns so intensely to this day that it’s inevitable that the
current band will likely always be judged against those past glories.
While Mirror To The Sky doesn’t scale those early innovative
heights and is unlikely to change the musical weather in the way the
band once did, when judged on its own merits, this is a set that stands
as the best Yes album in more than 20 years. Maybe it’s time to put down
the placards and listen.
A few weeks ago we featured a live 1974 recording of DSotM; tonight we spotlight the 50th Anniversary remastered recording of the original release.
The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 1 March 1973 by Harvest Records. Developed during live performances before recording began, it was conceived as a concept album
that would focus on the pressures faced by the band during their
arduous lifestyle, and also deal with the mental health problems of
former band member Syd Barrett, who departed the group in 1968. New material was recorded in two sessions in 1972 and 1973 at EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios) in London.
The record builds on ideas explored in Pink Floyd's earlier
recordings and performances, while omitting the extended instrumentals
that characterised the band's earlier work. The group employed multitrack recording, tape loops, and analogue synthesisers, including experimentation with the EMS VCS 3 and a Synthi A. Engineer Alan Parsons was responsible for many of the sonic aspects of the recording, and for the recruitment of session singer Clare Torry, who appears on "The Great Gig in the Sky".
The Dark Side of the Moon explores themes such as conflict, greed, time, death and mental illness. Snippets from interviews with the band's road crew and others are featured alongside philosophical quotations. The sleeve, which depicts a prismatic spectrum, was designed by Storm Thorgerson in response to keyboardist Richard Wright's
request for a "simple and bold" design which would represent the band's
lighting and the album's themes. The album was promoted with two
singles, "Money" and "Us and Them".
The Dark Side of the Moon is among the most critically
acclaimed albums and often features in professional listings of the
greatest of all time. It brought Pink Floyd international fame, wealth
and plaudits to all four band members. A blockbuster release of the album era, it also propelled record sales throughout the music industry during the 1970s. The Dark Side of the Moon is certified 14 times platinum in the United Kingdom, and topped the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart, where it has charted for 981 weeks. As of 2013, The Dark Side of the Moon has sold over 45 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling album of the 1970s and the fourth-best-selling album in history.[4] In 2012, the album was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
The
music in this new collection of Bonaventure’s work since 2017 displays
the ongoing synthesis and/or particularisation of genres, extra- musical
influences and fields of intuitive awareness that have always been at
work in his music. All of these being subject to the natural flow of
evolution that comes through continual artistic exploration never to be
constrained by convenient labels such as ‘classical’, ‘experimental’
‘avant garde’ or ‘dark ambient’ etc. For example, a lot of the music in
his endless cycle of ‘Preludes, Interludes & Postludes’ for organ is
informed as much by phenomena that occur in electronic & digital
sounds and processes as it is by the splendour, gestures and harmonic
idioms of ‘normal’ contemporary organ music. His natural inclination to
explore both fields simultaneously - electronic & acoustic - is
rooted in his youth when he was playing on a Hammond organ with Leslie
speaker, and a basic synthesiser, as well as learning to play the ‘real’
organ and exploring the (then) contemporary repertoire that fascinated
and inspired him to create. In this regard, his main tool was the
recording of improvisations and sonic explorations, not just with the
organ but with anything that potentially had music in it. And it still
is. The process of recording and transcribing is the very bedrock of his...more
credits
released May 25, 2023
Michael Bonaventure (b. 1962, Edinburgh), composer,
organist and collaborator in new and experimental music projects; based
in Edinburgh & Amsterdam.
In recent times he has been producing work in the Dark Ambient field of
electronica, as exemplified in the CD album In Tenebris Ratione Organi,
released in 2019 by Eighth Tower Records. An earlier survey of his
electronic & organ music, Works 2008 - 2017, was released on the
Unexplained Sounds Group label in 2017, and in 2020 he co-created with
the Italian guitarist & synthesiser musician Loo(p)cy (Lucia
Caiazza) a new album entitled Across The Blood, released digitally in
October 2020. Most recently he has formed a duo,’PNEUMA’, with the
Scottish-based flautist, composer & improviser Richard Craig in
which a new dimension of artistic practice is being explored through the
synergy of flute, organ and amplified sounds in new compositions,
improvisation and the adaptation of existing repertoire. Bonaventure’s
own sonic universe derives its inspiration from mysticism and ritual,
natural and imaginary worlds, astronomical and supernatural phenomena;
much of his work is rooted in a personal kind of ‘adapted minimalism’
and in improvisation.
Recent works are: Omega (2023) for organ & fixed media, Prayer &
Exaltation (2022) for organ, Odd, Even & December Union (2021) for
music box, both written for Joseph Kudirka; Mavisbank (2021), an
electronic track created for Hauntology in the UK, a CD album released
in December 2021 by Eighth Tower Records; The Land Of Silence (2021), a
setting of Ernest Dowson’s poem “Beata Solitudo” for soprano, live
electronics & organ, premiered in Montréal in May 2021 by Kimberley
Lynch & Adrian Foster; an adaptation of Giant Silver (a track from
In Tenebris Ratione Organi) with new material for organ, premiered by
Lauren Redhead & Alistair Zaldua at the BBC Tectonics Festival in
Glasgow in 2021; and Giant Glass Green (2020), an electronic work
commissioned by Earth World Collaborative and funded by Canada Council
for the Arts. A number of his electronic works have been used in video
art created by the Dutch-based artist Thomas Mohr and shown at various
film/video art festivals in Europe in recent years, including at Berlin
Atonal.
His music has been played in Canada, USA, Russia, UK, New Zealand,
France, Spain, Germany, Belgium & The Netherlands as well as on BBC
Radio 3, Concertzender (Netherlands), Radio Onda Rossa (Italy) and
Resonance Extra FM.
As an organ soloist (with and without electronics) Bonaventure is also a
seasoned interpreter of new & experimental music, with innumerable
composer collaborations since the early 1980s. To date he has given over
200 premières and concertized in churches, cathedrals, universities and
at festivals throughout the UK, in Europe & USA, on BBC Radio 3
& Radio Scotland, and on 7 solo CDs. These include four volumes of
‘Contemporary British Organ Music’ on the sfz label and the later organ
cycles of Olivier Messiaen for Delphian Records, including a
widely-acclaimed rendition of the massive Livre du Saint Sacrement,
released in 2008.
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The
music you hear on tonight's show is available on the artists' Bandcamp
pages and websites (links below).
We urge you to support the musicians you hear on FreeForm Radio.
We are excited to feature Lobate Scarp's new release, You Have It All on tonight's show. This is a superb recording, destined to be a classic of contemporary progressive rock. Our thanks to Adam Sears for providing a promotional copy of this release.
What kind of band would you get if you combined Keith Emerson on
keyboards, Steve Hackett on guitar, Chris Squire on bass, Neil Peart on
drums, and Robby Steinhardt on violin? That’s the best way I can try and
communicate to you what the sound of Lobate Scarp is like. But don’t
get me wrong; I don’t mean to suggest that Lobate Scarp is simply a
pastiche of familiar sounds from ELP, Genesis, Yes, Rush, and Kansas.
Not at all. What I mean is that the sound of Lobate Scarp is like some
impossible dream come true.
As if it burst forth from the dream world of their cover art, Lobate
Scarp does indeed have their very own unique sound. That’s the wondrous
fact now firmly established by You Have It All, their second full-length album. It is a truly magnificent achievement. It instantly secures You Have It All a permanent place in the celestial upper echelon where my all-time favorite records rotate in eternal bliss.
Back in 2012, Lobate Scarp’s first CD, Time and Space,
contained exquisite intimations of greatness. I am forever grateful to
Adam Sears himself for boldly going where no band had gone before and
introducing his work to me. I was simply floored. This band was offering
something new: yes, their own sound; and who cares about fashion, we
always want bravely epic prog with unlimited daring. Helmed by Adam’s
visionary hand, that courageous debut album also hinted at a future
greatness, because right away there was debate about the merits of the
CD on this site. That’s a small clue a band just may be very special.
That kind of debate does not happen for a band that is a mere copycat
nostalgia act trying to replay the glories of the era of the birth of
prog. No, a band with their own sound, and doing something new and
interesting, will inevitably provoke different and polarizing responses.
First, Progarchy published a negative assessment, and then a positive assessment. Finally, I tried to break the deadlock at Progarchy, by myself declaring the album one of the very best albums of the year.
Over the years, I was delighted to learn of the band being quietly at work, with an occasional burst of beautiful light in 2016 and 2019. And now the patient work of a decade has come to fruition. You Have It All is an apt title for an album of such staggering ambition that actually and successfully attains all the moonshots it takes.
The first thing that has to be said about this record is just how
good it sounds. It is absolutely one of the best sounding audio
experiences of my life. Steven Leavitt and Rich Mouser and Michael
Bernard have all done amazing work with this CD and created an audio
paradise. The production and engineering investment of talent that has
been lovingly poured into this record is indisputable in every note.
Every penny that was crowdfunded has been spent to dazzling effect.
The startlingly immediate surround-sound of the drum kit on every
track is a marvel to behold, whether it is special guest drummer Eric
Moore (of Suicidal Tendencies, and Infectious Grooves) on the two epic
tracks “You Have It All” (14:31) and “Flowing Through the Change”
(17:25), or Jimmy Keegan (of Spock’s Beard, and Pattern Seeking Animals)
or Mike Gerbrandt on the other tracks. And the various guitar tones
will have you doing double takes… who is that? Is Steve Hackett on this album, or what??? And Adam Sears can be likened to Keith Emerson for his uncompromising pursuit of sound for the sake of glorious sound.
Usually, Lobate Scarp is Adam Sears (vocals/ keys), Andy Catt (bass),
Peter Matuchniak (guitar), Evan Michael Hart (drums), and Christina
Burbano-Jeffrey (violin), as when they performed most recently at
RoSFest in April in Sarasota, Florida. But the impressive parade of
studio musicians appearing on the CD recording is a testament to Lobate
Scarp’s unrelenting pursuit of excellence by any means necessary. I have
the impression that they will record and re-record, and collaborate and
re-collaborate, again and again, in any permutation and combination of
talents, regular or extraordinary, as they pursue the perfect sound and
the perfect record. And gosh darn it, their diligence of a decade has
paid off mightily with this release.
You Have It All has the effect of a typical Yes album on me,
in that it unfailingly elevates my spirit and transforms my mood for
the better just by listening. This is no small musical miracle. Yes is a
band prized as rare on this earth for just that reason. Operating in
that same prog tradition of making intimate contact with the listener,
Lobate Scarp uses their magic power to do what only the rarest of
musicians have the power to do.
As far as I can discern the story tying the album together, it goes
something like this. The hero of the story is Everyman, so let’s call
him Adam, since that is what the word Adam means. Adam is jamming with
his prog band on “Conduit,” the opening instrumental track, with his
band endlessly practicing in pursuit of perfection. But people think
Prog Adam is crazy for loving to spend his precious time practicing prog
music like this. This instrumental: It’s so long! Over five minutes
long and there aren’t even any lyrics yet! The people are criticizing
Prog Adam for his super-proggy instrumental. So, he replies in track
two, telling them there is “Nothing Wrong” with his life. He’s doing
what he wants to do. But just telling the haters to stop it is not
enough. Prog Adam therefore goes in search of spiritual sustenance,
looking for a spiritual “Life-Line” on the next track, as sustenance for
his prog, and finding it. With this spiritual enlightenment attained,
Prog Adam goes back to his band, and then they communicate the spiritual
enlightenment by expressing its lesson in the epic track, “You Have It
All.” Jon Davison even makes a guest appearance on this track, making a
cameo as the voice of the universe that teaches Prog Adam what he needed
to learn, so that he is then able to communicate it with the epic
musical power of “You Have It All” (14:31). End of Part One.
Part Two begins with “Beautiful Light,” with Prog Adam viewing the
universe on a daily basis through the mystical lens he learned about in
Part One. But then, with “Test Tube Universe,” Prog Adam, either back in
his day job as a scientist, or simply by making an analogy on the basis
of considering a scientist in his lab, considers the thought that maybe
the universe is just like an experiment that, although beautiful and
supportive to us (see Part One’s lesson), does not really matter to its
creator. But then in “Flowing Through the Change” (17:25), Prog Adam
makes spiritual contact with the transcendent creative force behind the
universe and taps into its deepest essence: namely, love. This final
spiritual awakening to the fullness of love is foreshadowed with “In the
Night I” and “In the Night II” which are threaded between the earlier
tracks on the album, since “In the Night III” is the second movement
within “Flowing Through the Change,” wherein Prog Adam sees the face of
God, and thereby finds his way to the path of love.
If all this sounds a bit woo to you, what can I say except that, I’m
probably making this all up, or else, if you listen to the music, it
will make you into a believer in prog and love and light, and so on. The
radiant power of the music on this album magically transforms whatever
it comes into contact with. Unless your heart is made of stone. Or,
maybe even then, too; that’s how good this music is.
So, what are you waiting for, Bandcamp Friday? It’s already here! You Have It All has everything you need.
'You Have It All ' is the second
full length studio album from Lobate Scarp. Recorded from August 2021-
March 2022. (Except for "Beautiful Light" and most of "Nothing Wrong").
Mixed and Mastered from March-May 2022
The album features special guests Jon Davison (Yes), Jimmy Keegan
(Spock's Beard, Pattern Seeking Animals), Eric Moore (Suicidal
Tendencies, Infectious Grooves), Ryo Okumoto (Spock's Beard), and Billy
Sherwood (Yes).
credits
released May 6, 2022
New
album by litmus0001. IMBER. Recorded in 2017. Meant to be released
in 2019. Finally released in 2022 by AnubisMusic. Experimental ambient
drone improvisation looping krautrock kosmichemusic post-rock. This is exceptionally good ambient music and an excellent addition to the FreeForm Radio playlist.
Tales from Topographic Oceans is the sixth studio album from the English rock band Yes, released as a double album on 7 December 1973 by Atlantic Records. It is a concept album based on singer Jon Anderson's interpretation of a footnote in Autobiography of a Yogi (1946) by Paramahansa Yogananda that describes four bodies of Hindu texts, collectively named the shastras. After he pitched the idea to guitarist Steve Howe, the two wrote the themes and instrumentation of four, side long tracks based on each text. Keyboardist Rick Wakeman disagreed with the album's concept and the musical direction of the album, and left the group after its tour.
Following its release, Tales from Topographic Oceans received a mixed critical reception and became a symbol of progressive rock
excess with its detailed concept and lengthy songs. However it was a
commercial success, becoming the first UK album to qualify for Gold certification based on pre-orders alone. It topped the UK Album Chart for two weeks and reached number 6 in the US, where it reached Gold certification for over 500,000 copies sold. Yes toured
the album from November 1973 to April 1974 with a set that featured the
album performed in its entirety. The album was reissued in 1994 and
2003; the latter with bonus tracks. An edition with new stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes by Steven Wilson was released in October 2016.
"The Revealing Science of God (Dance of the Dawn)"
20:25
Side two
No.
Title
Length
1.
"The Remembering (High the Memory)"
20:38
Side three
No.
Title
Length
1.
"The Ancient (Giants Under the Sun)"
18:35
Side four
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Ritual (Nous Sommes du Soleil)"
21:37
Tales From Topographic Oceans is the fifth in a series of remixed and
expanded Yes classics. The album has been remixed in both stereo and 5.1
surround sound from the original studio masters by Steven Wilson, and
is fully approved by Yes. Also includes the original mix in high
resolution, and bonus material, including a complete alternate version
of the album using live tracks and studio run throughs.
We'll begin the show with Sadie Norkin's recent 4 track EP release: "Creating New Life". Sadie Norkin is a young guitarist, mulit-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter located in Southern California thriving on her
love of
progressive influences. After playing the violin for 4 years she
started picking up the guitar at ten years old. Sadie has learned to
take all of her various influences and combine them into her own
uncompromising unique sound. I first discovered her playing covers of Porcupine Tree songs on YouTube. She is a superb and creative musician.
You can find her on Bandcamp by clicking on her name above or find her on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/SadieNorkinOfficial
Formed by world reknown keyboardist Jim Alfredson (organissimo, Dirty
Fingers, Janiva Magness, Greg Nagy Band, Root Doctor) THEO harkens back
to the keyboard-centric superbands of the 1970s like Yes, Genesis, and
Emerson Lake and Palmer, but with a distinctly modern and bold approach.
THEO also represents a return to the concept of the keyboardist as a
vital and irreplaceable part of the group, rather than a mere sideman.
The intrepid and dynamic music is paired with auspicious lyrical
themes of corporatization, consumerism, loss of innocence, exile, and
the obsession with celebrity. Lead vocals are handled by Alfredson
himself. Usually relegated to background duties, Alfredson's
surprisingly flexible baritone voice shifts from soaring muscularity to
intimate falsetto and everything between.
The eponymous debut album features six tracks including an epic three song opening suite comprising 24 minutes.
Track Listing:
1) The Game Of Ouroboros - 9:42
2) The Blood That Floats My Throne - 8:17
3) Creatures Of Our Comfort - 6:45
4) These Are The Simple Days - 8:03
5) Idle Worship - 13:27
6) Exile - 11:14
Jim Alfredson - keys, lead & backing vocals
Gary Davenport - bass, fretless bass, Chapman Stick
Kevin DePree - drums, percussion, backing vocals
Jake Reichbart - guitars
Special guests:
Greg Nagy - 12 string guitar on 'The Game Of Ouroboros', chunky rhythm guitar and backing vocals on 'Exile'
Zach Zunis - lead guitar on 'The Game Of Ouroboros'
Finally, if time permits, we'll feature cuts from the brand new Steven Wilson stereo remix of the classic Yes album, Relayer. From Wikipedia: Relayer is the seventh studio album from the English progressive rock band Yes, released in November 1974 on Atlantic Records. It is their only studio album recorded with keyboardist Patrick Moraz in the band's line-up; he joined in August that year after Rick Wakeman left over differences regarding Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973) to pursue his solo career. Relayer has a similar format as Close to the Edge
(1972), with one track occupying the side one and two tracks situated
on side two. The album saw Yes experiment with elements of jazz fusion. Relayer was mostly well-received with music critics and its
commercial success continued the band's popularity in the 1970s. The
album peaked at number 4 in the UK and number 5 in the US. The closing
section of "The Gates of Delirium", titled "Soon", was released as a
single in January 1975. The album is certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Whilst browsing the site, I was surprised to see this LP hasn't been rated.
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