Category Archives: Prog Rock
GURU GURU-UFO.
GURU GURU-UFO. By the late sixties, the members of many British and American bands were well on their way to becoming multi-millionaires. Especially groups like The Beatles and Rolling Stones. They had been at the top for the best part of a decade, and were now enjoying wealth beyond their wildest dreams. To look after …
KOLLECTIV-KOLLECTIV.
KOLLECTIV-KOLLECTIV. Musical history is littered with bands who only ever released one album. Often, that album fails to find the audience it deserves. This can come as a bitter blow, and sometimes, can lead to the band breaking up. By then, the rock star dream is over. The only option left, is to return to …
AGITATION FREE-2ND.
AGITATION FREE-2ND. Berlin, 1967. That was where the Agitation Free story began. That was when Lutz ‘Lüül’ Ulrich, Michael ‘Fame’ Günther, Lutz ‘Ludwig’ Kramer and Christoph Franke formed Agitation. This new band quickly established a reputation as one of the pioneers of Berlin’s underground music scene. When Agitation played live, their sets were like the …
SUNBIRDS-SUNBIRDS
SUNBIRDS-SUNBIRDS. Back in the seventies, the only German band most British people had heard of was Kraftwerk. A few more knowledgeable music lovers have heard of Can, and maybe, Neu!, Cluster or Harmonia. That however, was the extent of their knowledge of German music. That was a great shame, as Germany in the seventies, had …
THE BEST LIVE ALBUMS OF 2015.
THE BEST LIVE ALBUMS OF 2015. The final category in my best of series is live albums. For some reason, live albums seem to divide opinion. While some people love live albums, others loathe them. There seems to be no middle ground. Partly that’s down to how an artist approaches a live album. It may be …
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 3.
THE FIFTY-FIVE BEST COMPILATIONS OF 2015-PART 3. GROOVE WITH A FEELING-SOUNDS OF MEMPHIS-BOOGIE, SOUL AND FUNK 1975-1985. By 1975, soul music was no longer as popular as it had once had been. Executives running the Sounds Of Memphis label realised this; and between 1975 and 1985, the label released a much more eclectic selection of …
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART ONE.
THE BEST 55 REISSUES OF 2015-PART ONE. The next stop in my look back at 2015, is the reissues released during the last twelve months. Again, I started with a long-list, and over the course of a few weeks, gradually, narrowed it down to fifty albums. These albums are an eclectic selection, and cover an …
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART TWO.
THE BEST 55 REISSUES OF 2015-PART TWO. EJI OYEWOLE- CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME. In the sixties and seventies, the Nigerian music scene was thriving. New bands were constantly being formed. Similarly, new artists were making an impression on Nigerian music. This included Eji Oyewole. However, the flautist, saxophonist and future bandleader was different from his …
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART THREE.
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART THREE. JETHRO TULL-BENEFIT. Previously, Steven Wilson had worked wonders with some of King Crimson’s back-catalogues. So, allowing him to work his magic Jethro Tull’s Aqualung and Benefit was a calculated gamble. It had the potential to breath life into both albums. Listeners were able to see whether that was the case …
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART FOUR.
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART FOUR. LED ZEPPELIN-IN THROUGH THE OUT DOOR-DELUXE EDITION. On 15th August 1979, Led Zeppelin released their eighth studio album In Through the Out Door. By then, they were one of the biggest selling bands in the world. Their first seven studio albums and their 1976 live album The Song …
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART FIVE.
THE BEST 50 REISSUES OF 2015-PART FIVE. RICK WAKEMAN-THE MYTHS AND LEGENDS OF KING ARTHUR AND THE KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE, Following the success of Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, Rick Wakeman was getting ready to begin work on his fourth album. Then disaster struck. Rick had the first of three minor …
THE 33 BEST BOX SETS OF 2105-PART TWO.
THE 33 BEST BOX SETS OF 2105-PART TWO. HAWKWIND-THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN SPEAKING…YOUR CAPTAIN IS DEAD. Since 1969, the various lineups of Hawkwind have released twenty-seven studio albums, ten live albums and fifteen compilations. That’s not forgetting the recently released eleven disc box set, This Is Your Captain Speaking…Your Captain Is Dead. It was recently …
THE 33 BEST BOX SETS OF 2105-PART THREE.
THE 33 BEST BOX SETS OF 2105-PART THREE. MILES DAVIS-BITCHES BREW 40TH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS EDITION. Miles Davis’ recording career began in 1951, when he released his debut album The New Sounds. Soon, Miles Davis was establishing a reputation as a prolific, and innovative musician. He released a further forty-three albums between 1951 and 1969. This …
THE 33 BEST BOX SETS OF 2105-PART FOUR.
THE 33 BEST BOX SETS OF 2105-PART FOUR. THE VELVET UNDERGROUND-THE MATRIX TAPES BOX SET. For a while, The Matrix had one of The Velvet Underground’s favourite venues on The West Coast. It seemed to bring out the best in The Velvet Underground. So there was no better place for The Velvet Underground to record …
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART TWO.
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART TWO. BLACK MOON CIRCLE-THE STUDIO JAMS VOLUME I: YELOW NEBULA IN THE SKY. Norwegian psychedelic space rock band Black Moon Circle are one of the rising stars of the Norwegian music scene. Their previous album Andromeda was released to critical acclaim in October 2014. A great future was …
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART THREE.
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART THREE. ERRORS-LEASE OF LIFE. Errors have come a long way since they were formed in Glasgow, in 2004, by Simon Ward, Greg Paterson and Stephen Livingstone. Back then, Errors’ makeshift studio was a bedroom. That was the Glasgow based musical alchemists laboratory. Through experimentation and innovation, Errors sound …
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART FOUR.
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART FOUR. LABFIELD-BUCKET OF SONGS. Five years after the release of their sophomore album Collab, LabField, one of the leading lights of the European improv scene make a welcome return. They returned in 2015 with their genre-melting third album, Bucket of Songs. It was released on Hubro Music. Bucket …
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART FIVE.
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART FIVE. SIDSEL ENDRESEN AND STIAN WESTERHUS-BONITA. One of the most eagerly awaited albums of 2015 was Sidsel Endresen and Stian Westerhus’ sophomore album Bonita. It was released on Rune Grammofon in January 2015. Bonita was the followup to Sidsel Endresen and Stian Westerhus’ debut album Didymoi Dreams. Just …
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART SIX.
THE BEST 55 NEW ALBUMS OF 2015-PART SIX. THE WOODBINE AND IVY BAND-SLEEP ON SLEEPING ON. Four years after releasing their eponymous debut album in 2011. The Woodbine and Ivy Band return with their new album Sleep On Sleeping On. It was released in March 2015, on Static Caravan Recordings, and sees The Woodbine and …
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