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Icarium

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Topic: were Tears for Fears influenced by Prog
Posted: July 14 2010 at 13:32

I belive some of TfF are influenced by GG some songs have GG like Bass lines like Advanced for the Young at heart

Edited by aginor - July 15 2010 at 03:22

Vompatti

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 14:16

If they were, they sure did a good job to hide it. Sleepy

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 14:18

They did do one song dedicated to Robert Wyatt.

Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 14:28

Perhaps King Crimson? Taken at Discipline's first concert in 1981, these lovely pictures show a young Curt Smith on the far right. Dig it.

http://www.dgmlive.com/vision.htm?&show=423&id=463

http://www.dgmlive.com/vision.htm?&show=423&id=462

Edited by WalterDigsTunes - July 14 2010 at 14:29

Blacksword View Drop Down

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 16:23

I think you mean 'Advice for the young at heart'

Cant hear a GG influence myself. Pretty good band though.

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 16:50

Vompatti wrote:

If they were, they sure did a good job to hide it. Sleepy

chopper

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 16:54

Blacksword wrote:

I think you mean 'Advice for the young at heart'

Cant hear a GG influence myself. Pretty good band though.

I'd have to agree. They did do a pretty good Beatles impression on "The Seeds of Love" though.

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Posted: July 14 2010 at 16:56

chopper wrote:

Blacksword wrote:

I think you mean 'Advice for the young at heart'

Cant hear a GG influence myself. Pretty good band though.

I'd have to agree. They did do a pretty good Beatles impression on "The Seeds of Love" though.

Hell yeah!

Icarium

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Posted: July 15 2010 at 03:08

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xfkd7Js_P4

this is the song I was thinking off that have some Gentle Giant traces (the Bass line and the EL-guitar in the intro) Playing the Game is similar i think

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Posted: July 15 2010 at 03:13

aginor wrote:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xfkd7Js_P4

this is the song I was thinking off that have some Gentle Giant traces (the Bass line and the EL-guitar in the intro) Playing the Game is similar i think

Broken starts with the " Shout" melody, great live song off Songs From The Big Chair

Sorry but I have been down this road before - No Cigar!!. Gentle Giant aside I believe Roland Orzabal offers much for prog related in his songwriting. Still a good general music discussion. Their debut and Seeds of Love for sure.

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Icarium

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Posted: July 15 2010 at 03:22

fixed

Blacksword View Drop Down

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Posted: July 15 2010 at 04:23

chopper wrote:

Blacksword wrote:

I think you mean 'Advice for the young at heart'

Cant hear a GG influence myself. Pretty good band though.

I'd have to agree. They did do a pretty good Beatles impression on "The Seeds of Love" though.

I was hooked on that song when it came out. I bought the vinyl 7" and played the bloody thing until it could be played no more! It was a good Beatles 'pastiche' (is that the right word)

I liked 'Woman in Chains' and 'Head over Heels' too. Why don't modern pop groups bother writing melodies like that anymore. Are they incapable, or is it considered un-cool to make memorable music?

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Roj

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Posted: July 19 2010 at 07:59

Fantastic band, and certainly crossover prog in parts to these ears. I would describe TFF as pure class. They also happen to have a great vocalist/musician/songwriter in Roland Orzabal.

Have a listen to Badman's Song and Swords & Knives from the Seeds Of Love album for starters. Prog influence there without a shadow of a doubt.

The vast majority of the Raoul And The Kings Of Spain, Seeds Of Love, Elemental and their final (to date) album are brilliant. Much better than their earlier stuff imho.

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Posted: July 19 2010 at 08:58

Raoul and the Kings of Spain is one of those rarely talked about albums that is a good record and stands the test of time. As for prog, maybe in the song structure on that album, lots of nice changes and lush arrangements.

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Wiktor Hatif View Drop Down

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Posted: July 19 2010 at 10:10

you should check album "Saturnine, Martial & Lunatic" (1996), one of the best, containing unreleased material from 80's and 90's. There's lots of very experimental, electronic stuff, lots of non-musical sounds etc:

one of my favourite, very psychedelic, stick till the end: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nNNwPluue0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uB1kFkN_zk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEYy_q3FVZQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNESaIrL_zs

the great Robert Wyatt's cover: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYHsiWbXNBE
David Bowie cover: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LReqeLYgjhQ (personally like it better than original, at least vocal)

pretty interesting, huh? Wink

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Sa sa sa sa saa! Fssss
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Posted: November 09 2014 at 06:46

They definetely were. Whenever I listen to their eighties top album "The Seeds of Love" I am overwhelmed by the timeless quality of the songs and their structures. Except for the title track, which is deliberately reminiscent of both Hello Goodbye and I am the Walrus by The Beatles, there is hardly any "pop" on this album. And even The Beatles are considered prog on Progarchives, and how righteous that is!

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Posted: November 09 2014 at 07:13

I would say most of those 'new romantic' bands had probably listened to some prog in their time. They were the right age to have been teens in the 70's. I know OMD were very influcnced by Krautrock in the early days. Andy Taylor, guitarist of Duran Duran once said he was influenced by Fripp.

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tuxon

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Posted: November 09 2014 at 09:15

actually progressive rock is pop music isn't it, just not very popular nowadays. But it was popular in the 70's so naturally popbands post 70's are likely to have been inspired by some progressive acts that made it through to the pop-side (Yes, Genesis, Kraftwerk, Moody Blues, Pink Floyd) So there is a logical influence in bands like Talk Talk (who went progressive over time), Crowded House, OMD, Blue Monday, Tears For Fears, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Duran Duran, XTC etc. But it doesn't make them progressive rock in my book.

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Posted: November 09 2014 at 09:21

Tears for Fears is and has been one of my favorite bands for like ten years. But I don't really see them as prog, even though I think they've released music that prog fans would like (much of which has been discussed in this topic already).

I have to disagree with the sentiment above that Elemental is better than any of their 80s stuff ... I would say that album is the one stain on an almost perfect run of records. But it still has some great stuff on it (Break it Down Again and the title track are both amazing, as is the closing track). But that's just my opinion on the matter.

They are supposedly recording a new album to be released in 2015 ... I am waiting with diminished expectations. Maybe it'll be another ELAHE. Maybe it won't.

One song that I think would appeal to prog lovers that hasn't been mentioned in this topic yet is 'Listen' - it almost has the strangeness of the stuff from Saturnine Martial and Lunatic, but this was actually on one of their albums instead of a B-Side.

Icarium

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Posted: November 09 2014 at 11:55

Listen is an amazing song, Kurt Smith best vocal work,