Greetings, Fellow Earthbound Prognauts!

Hey everyone!  I'm Mark from Ellicott City, MD.  My online moniker was unabashedly stolen from the guy who did stage lighting for Gong back in their trilogy days (Whiz D. Kid).  I'm a retired engineer who spends his free time listening to good ol' prog (Crimson, Floyd, Gong, ELP, Yes, etc) as well as searching the web-o-sphere for new prog from around the world (Vespero, The Psychedelic Ensemble, Wobbler, Ozric Tentacles, etc).  A list of most of the bands I listen regularly to is attached below.

I have no musical background, other than playing the drums for a while in Jr. and Sr. high school.  I've always wanted to expand my horizons, so I bought an Arturia Mini Lab keyboard with their analog synth emulation software.  I have fun making noises, but I can't really play.  With a bit of trial and error, I've learned to pick out a couple of the main melodies of Jean Michael Jarre.

Now that I'm retired, I can spend more time traveling with my wife and going to prog festivals.  A couple of years ago, we did Cruise to the Edge.  Got my picture taken with John Wetton and Eddie Jobson, hung out at the pool and got pictures with Tony Levin, and enjoyed seeing Wetton, Chris Squire, and Edgar Froese one last time before their passing.  Saw Jarre in concert this past summer, then went to ProgDay in the fall.  We plan to attend again this year.  My wife is not a big prog fan, but she enjoys hanging out, drinking in the sunshine, and listening to any kind of music.  Yay for me!

I enjoy sharing my not-so-humble opinion about prog, so after years of lurking on ProgArchives, I've finally decided to join!  I haven't posted any reviews yet, just forum discussions.  See you around the site!

35007
Accordo dei Contrari
Al Dimeola
Anders Helmerson
Anglagard
Audio Cologne Project
Azigza
Bland Bladen
Brain Connect
Brian Eno_David Byrne
Bulbs
Bëiruth
Colorstar
Colster
Cosmic Ground
Cyrille Verdeaux & Clearlight
Dasputnik
David Cross
David Gilmour
Deluge Grander
Diversion Voice
Djam Karet
Dream Machine
Eating Seats
Eccentric Orbit
electric asturias
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Erik Norlander
Flor de Loto
Fromuz
Future-X
Gentle Giant
Gerard
Gong
Hidria Spacefolk
iNFiNiEN
Intervals
Jean-Luc Ponty
Jean-Michel Jarre
Kaabel
Kaipa
Karfagen
Kbb
King Crimson
Korai Öröm
Kraftwerk
Ksiz
Liquid Tension Experiment
Lizard
Lost World
Lumsk
Maat Lander
Mad Fellaz
Makajodama
Mantric Muse
Melting Euphoria
Mindflowers
Nexus
Nil
Noetics
Nova Collective
Oresund Space Collective
Osiris the Rebirth
Ozric Tentacles
Pierre Moerlen's Gong
Pikapika Teart
Pink Floyd
Planet X
Platurno
Quantum Fantay
Quarkspace
R-U Kaiser
RasaSound
Renaissance
Rovo & System 7 feat. Steve Hillage
Satumnaisuus
Sayer
Secret Saucer
Shpongle
Shylock
Sinkadus
Sonar
Sonic Architecture
Special Providence
Synth.Nl
Talisma
Tangerine Dream
the cellar and point
The Mahavishnu Orchestra with John Mclaughlin
The Moody Blues
The Moors
The Prog Collective
The Psychedelic Ensemble
Tidal Flood
Tilion
Tompox
Trey Gunn
Tripcycle
Tunnels
Tündérground
U.K_
Vangelis
Vespero
Walrus
Wobbler
Yes
Yuka & Chronoship
Zombi

Good to have you ~