CROSSOVER PROG

SPARKS are the brothers Ron(keyboards) and Russell(vocals) Mael who are from LA. And "Propaganda" is their fourth studio album, but the second after "Kimono My House" to be recorded in England after their move there. They would record one more in England called "Indiscreet" before moving back to California. I am so thankful that one of the bonus tracks is an interview done back at this time in England from a female reporter. So much fun! She asked if they had been back to LA after their big move and they said yes and we felt like tourists. They then compared LA to Heaven but they are hoping Heaven isn't as expensive. Oh you boys!

I am one of their fans who feel "Kimono My House" is the better record. In fact I'd rate "Hippopotamus" from 2017 higher than "Propaganda". There is a difference in sound for sure with less energy here, and less piano here. Ron explained that this one was written on acoustic guitar instead of the piano for the most part. I feel both records are inconsistent but strong enough regardless to hit 4 stars. This one is a low 4 stars in my world. In fact both start out really well for the first 8 tracks or so before a lull, then ending with a strong closer.

I have to talk about the cover art because this is a band with some of the best covers I've seen. If you want to smile check them out. The brothers asked photographer Monty Coles for something dangerous. The sky diving suggestion with the brothers tied together was passed on by the boys but this picture of them tied in the back of a boat looking very Miami Vice was accepted, and this was ten years before that show. In fact this picture was taken in the south of England on a frigid day. It wasn't fun for them. The picture on the back is just as good with the brothers tied up in the back of a car.

The songs here are mostly about the tension between the sexes, but looked at in a refreshing and unique context lyrically. The lyrics might be their strongest asset. Much of the music here includes words about hapless men and women with authority. Laugh out loud stuff. And for me the lull here includes "Achoo" and "Who Don't Like Kids" both poppy tunes that have that novelty approach to them. Good songs but for me not of the same quality as the rest of the album. The vocals got more of a focus on this one too compared to "Kimono My House". They would record vocals constantly during the recording sessions feeling this was a way for them to have it be more produced, but in a good way. Ron mentioned that they stacked vocals before, even on their first album but here they carried that further.

My top three includes the second track "At Home At Work At Play" which is like the "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us", the opener from "Kimono My House". Catchy and upbeat coming in after the 20 second opener that is all vocals. I really like "Don't Leave Me Alone With Her" which of course is the opposite that most men would say. Man, Russell can hit the high notes here. Lots of piano as well, like on "Kimono..." And that's the appeal of my final top three called "Something For The Girl With Everything", another "Kimono..." sounding piece. Intense and catchy this one with plenty of piano and beats plus those ultra high vocals.

I have to give these two credit for following up their break through album with one almost as good, and for many it's better. Ron explains that they were so energized by the success of "Kimono..." that the creative juices went into overdrive.

"Kimono My House" is the third studio album by SPARKS, and the first of three to be recorded in the UK. Brothers Ron(keyboards) and Russell(vocals) Mael are SPARKS, but when they moved to the UK they had to get a new backing band. So the tryouts began and included Warren Cann later of ULTRAVOX who made a brief appearance, and PINK FAIRIES guitarist Paul Rudolph, before deciding on their new drummer, bassist and guitarist.

The Maels were huge MOVE fans and tried to get Roy Wood to produce "Kimono My House" but he wasn't available so they settled on Muff Winwood brother of Steve Winwood. The main reason they moved to the UK was the reaction from fans during their tour over there. American music fans didn't "get" them, usually looking bewildered at their music or responding with apathy. Whereas in Britain they were adored. Their parents had just moved there, and the brothers loved everything related to the UK, so they abandoned their LA house and moved in 1973.

Their Top Of The Pops appearance in April of 1974 caused a sensation in the UK. This show was on once a week from 1964 to 2006, the world's longest running music show. And their appearance was one of those water cooler moments the next day. Everyone was talking about them! Even John Lennon. The music is poppy with Russell's very high pitched vocals. When asked by a British reporter what their sound was like, Ron replied that he plays the piano with his right hand only, disregarding the left side, while Russell sings in a very high pitch. Morrissey described Russell's voice as "sounding like he's singing in French italics."

So while bands like 10CC, QUEEN, ROXY MUSIC, STEELY DAN and the like get mentioned as comparisons, this band has such an original sound. And those lyrics! So humerous and witty with Russell doing vocal gymnastics at a fast pace. And the cover? So funny. And it's not the brothers either as some have suggested. I mean they are on most of their album covers and often in disguise but not here. They have the best covers. These two ladies are actually from Japan's Red Budha Theatre band led by Stomu Yamashta. To quote the liner notes on "Kimono My House"... "Critics were enraptured by it's heady blend of glam oomph, music hall humour, prog texture, rock power, Germanic cabaret, bubblegum pop and showtune infectiousness."

There are some outrageous lyrics on here. Russell by the way says that that "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us" and "Equator" were the hardest to sing live. "Talent Is An Asset" is about Albert Einstein's parents and them bragging about their son being a smart kid. Funny. Or a suicide pact gone wrong called "Here In Heaven", or how husbands did not look forward to Christmas and having to spend more time with their wives in "Thank God It's Not Christmas". The first seven tracks make this a four star album in my world. The last three are good, in particular the STEELY DAN sounding closer.

The three SPARKS albums that I would highly recommend are "Kimono My House" and "Propaganda" both released in 1974, plus "Hippopotamus" from 2017 showing that this duo has not lost their edge or wit one bit.

Moonshine Blast. Remember the name. These Paris based guys published last year their second record, Realm of Possibilities, which I honestly consider one of the greatest pieces of music of the decade. I decided to take some time to write a review, listening to the album several times, even watching some live performances of the band, and the more I listen to Realm of Possibilities, the more I'm sure I had already took a step closer to a musical masterpiece. The band proves to be able to play different genres, putting pop, grunge and psichedelia into a solid prog rock work, almays remaining loyal to their own style, finding their voice in an ocean of established artists, playing their own music with courage and awareness. There are even moments aimed to prog metal, as the heavy Strangled, built on a strong groove which I found myself handbang on several times, and songs with clear and poppy melodies, as Only You and No Exit: the most soft tracks of the record, even though some some good grunge riffs played with the bass. Grungy rhythms come back in songs as Fractal, which goes through different times signatures and a wonderful keyboard crescendo. Keyboards parts are curated by the singer Nicolas Duke, who has an incredible vocal extension and ability, feeling perfectly comfortable with each of the melodies the band plays. Sounds really good even in the most difficult tracks of the record: Cruel Immission, the most well written song of the record - starts in 7/8, goes in 4/4, ends in a wonderful crescendo - and The Cell, a sixteen-minute-long song built on psychedelic synthesizers and misterious keyboards, whose structure sent my mind back to Porcupine Tree's Anesthetize, in some parts. PT's influence is evident in much of the grooves the drummer Thomas Zecchinon plays, Gavin Harrison-like syncopath hits are recognizaible, especially in the two parts track Liquid Feels - don't understand why it's been divided in two, 'cause the whole thing works fine together. This is probably the weekest moment of the record, where Steven Wilson's passages and grooves kill their originality. The album ends with the beautiful acoustic ballad Where the Wind Blows, which wins the prize for the best lyric. Anyway, the highlists of Realm of Possibilities, for me, are the title track opener, a perfect overture for this amazing muscial journey, where Duke's voice, melodies and bass rhythm are at their best, the pounding Under.Control. (super heavy) and Broken Arrow, a poppy song that bounds Peter Gabriel's melody with Big Big Train'structures. As I said, remember about this franch band: they can easily play different genres, build complex structures and powerful melodies; their sound is recognizable, strong, original and accessful. They draw from monsters as Pearl Jam, Porcupine Tree, Big Big Train, Nirvana, Pineapple Thief, Mr.Mister and many others, keeping their own style. Realm of Possibilities is an incradible record, not perfect, but a good starting point for the future. Moonshine Blast is a young and talented band: we're going to hear them more often in the next years. And I can't wait for it.

I am obliged to do this. Secondly because this album has always been in first position on my shelves (yup alphabetical and no A.R. & Machines are filed under 'AR') but firstly because I am responsible for correcting the mis-information on the bands biog....Simon Kirke* and Paul Kossoff were never ever involved with this crew...which has the spin off of making other reviews that mention it look a bit 'daft'. I apologise. That was not my intention. * I am a Free fanatic and have followed SK and Paul Rodgers on FB for many years. The odd time I have sent a message/asked a question they have quickly and courteously replied. On reading this bands biog and finding out 'new' information, I dropped a message to SK asking for confirmation. The gist of his reply was 'who?' In fairness he went away and did his research and got back to me and confirmed that he and Kossoff had had zero to do with them and he added that, being London based and back then all the musicians knew everyone else in the capital, none of the names in Aardvark even rang a vague bell so he (and Koss) couldn't even have done a 'sit in and jam at a rehearsal for an hour from which myths are made of'. So, straight from the drummers mouth so to speak...

More importantly, the album in question. I have a theory (and if you don't like it, I have others!) that the true representation of what was going on re a genre at a certain time and place is not to be found in the agreed upon classics/best of the time but probably in the second and even third tier bands. Here in the crate digs will you find the most 'atypical' sounding 'prog' from that year or two....and Aardvark are it for 1970 in the UK. There is a psych hang over, a little bit of Beatle 'serious pop' and lashings of the burgeoning 'heavy' sounds here via the now and then rip roaring Hammond. The opening track says it all really. Concise and employing most of the above elements, The Nice and Atomic Rooster are probably most obviously referenced but am a fan of the keys freak out and you really don't miss a guitar, regardless of who had or hadn't been involved in the bands earlier life! Track 2 is piano led and Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll and Trinity are the touchstone. It has a jazzier/bluesier edge. Many Things To Do is a mellotron free Moody Blues with a stabby 'blues boom' solo in the middle. I assume you are getting the picture? There is nothing off putting here and if you had been told it was a library recording used as generic backing for films/tv progs/ads and so forth at the time ie sounding like what was 'happening' without having to fork out royalties. There are parts of most songs (Greencap) where a keys solo hits the spot and here a bass to the forefront passage which reminds me of an East of Eden track. They even spin out ideas to the 6min+ length...because that was what was 'happening'! 'I am not being critical, just a critic' as I think Lester Bangs once said. It is an album that doesn't get played much (OCD meticulous recording of everything played. I would get out more but there is too much music to listen to!) but has never ever come close to the 'sell on ebay' box. I still feel bad about the myth busting but let's just say this is a solid one and done (who counts 40 odd years later reunions?) and if you heard it blind (err you know what I mean) you would ask 'is this from '69/'70'. It is probably about right (current 3.44) as a 3.5 but it is not a 4 so I end up reducing the average even though I don't want to.

The first live album from Steven Wilson is a masterful exercise in re-interpreting boldly several of his best cuts, with the 2012 release 'Catalogue / Preserve / Amass' recorded during the European tour in promotion of the highly-acclaimed 'Grace for Drowning'. The single-disc live set features songs from both of Wilson's first two solo albums, with a particular highlight on the aforementioned 2011 double album, songs from which occupy five of the seven slots of the setlist. Alongside the then-former Porcupine Tree leader we find longtime collaborators Adam Holzman and Nick Beggs, together with drummer Marco Minnemann, woodwinds player Theo Travis, known from his work with Soft Machine and The Tangent, and experience guitar player Aziz Ibrahim, whom some might recognize from the H Band fronted by Steven Hogarth of Marillion. An all-around impressive lineup of musicians tackling a complex and demanding setlist, replete with classic Steven Wilson compositions, all part of his early and most experimental period, with lots of "fusion outbreaks" and improvisation going on around.

In the opening notes we hear the Bass Communion piece 'Citadel' playing in the background, over which Marco Minnemann swiftly builds a choppy rhythm that gives way to 'No Twilight within the Courts of the Sun', an 11-minute piece that sees the six-piece band setting up a fiery performance that approaches a sonic cavalcade at its loudest. Originally from the album 'Insurgentes', this live interpretation really brings out all the wicked qualities of this blooming and experimental piece. Next up on the setlist is the ghastly 'Index', as the live playthrough delivers that gloomy and claustrophobic feel in a dazzling way - there is a vivacity to this recording that one might not always get from the studio version. 'Deform to Form a Star' is the third track on the album, a beautiful performance that mostly stays faithful to the album version. The instrumental 'Sectarian' is an interesting entry here; this 7-minute piece allows the band to really "let themselves loose", the performance is manic and explosive, followed by the cathartic 'No Part of Me', with the live version expanding upon the melodramatic feel of the original recording. 'Veneno Para Las Hadas' from 'Insurgentes' also appears on this excellent live album, which is concluded with the centerpiece of 'Grace for Drowning', the 24-minute psychedelic fusion opus 'Raider II'. An outstanding performance of this closing piece, absolutely masterful, precise and breathtaking, and a grandiose finale to an otherwise-perfect set.

This live album from Steven Wilson might seem slightly overlooked, but it is a fantastic recording that shows the unmatched force that is his live band - every single nuance of this gorgeous album is perceptible and enjoyable, and every single minute of the album is an enriching sonic journey, making 'Catalogue / Preserve / Amass' one of the true masterpieces of Wilson's career.

"Solitaire" prog intro, acoustic on the rippling guitar, suave vocals; a text on the desire to live outside of the current world. Evolving music in a captivating "Inspector Gadget" mode. The sensual, intense guitar once again demonstrates its sharp playing with Florent's expressive drums; a Pain Of Salvation feel for the melancholic finale. "Jekyll" continues with Stéphane's catchy piano, an intimate piece, "if I were president", the contribution of Élise's choir mirroring and the heavy explosion. The velvety keyboard, everything is in phase on this shivering beat. " (Obviously) I surrender" with its proven groove, reverberating, flickering guitar, Élise giving the answer to JPL on a defeatist, intimate air in which the fruity and energetic solo comes to give a little hope. "Man is a wild animal" for prog metal, as fierce as the animal side that inhabits us; a hard tune reminiscent of the 80s French bands flooding the airwaves, like Trust on the soft side, Thin Lizzy for this polyrhythmic ballad moment, a true indictment against accessing today's most repressed desires; the Radiohead-esque finale is excellent.

"Puzzle" begins, recalling the touch of Knopfler, then the tune moves into a playful episode combining choral vocals with raging guitar, devastating with its rhythmic, dissonant melodic variation. Pure beauty with the solemn, contemplative outro. "Les fantômes" returns with a tortured heavy sound where electric guitar is the mainstay, like Michael Schenker. A good, greasy 80s sound, slightly nostalgic, with Élise still too much in the background and Jean- Baptiste in ecstasy. "Postscriptum" is the apotheosis, or how to make a vulgar French rock band look like a prog band, even in postscriptum! Rock, blistering blues, a steady then frenetic rhythm, a time-honored organ and the riff behind it. A few wanderings and the tune picks up steam with the final keyboard, simple, warm, almost electronic, inviting you to relax without getting carried away.

Jean Pierre Louveton has released a French gem where the lyrics blend more easily with the melodies, the female vocal contribution bringing the sound to refined melodic moments. Originally released on Progcensor.

Ever since the inclusion of Gavin Harrison as the band's drummer (about a decade ago), The Pineapple Thief have been releasing stellar albums exploring the beauty in subtlety and fragility, as their music has come to define a diligently melancholic trend in progressive rock, always with that delightful art-rock edge, brought along by the great songwriting capabilities of Bruce Soord, and his frail, soothing and shyly narrative vocal delivery, akin to the singing voice of Steven Wilson, a musician close enough to The Pineapple Thief. This latest phase of theirs has seen them release the near-perfect sorrowful excursion that is 'Your Wilderness', the tense and melodic masterwork 'Dissolution' as well as the shaky and experimental 'Versions of the Truth' and the compilation of re-recorded tracks called 'Give It Back'. Within this block of work, 'It Leads to This' from 2024 sits as a further solidification of that recognizable PT sound - nostalgic and tranquil, with the feel of gentle desperation lost amongst the ghostly chords of the subtle verses, this latest album feels like an exercise in precision and self-affirmation.

Recorded by the four-piece band including Soord and Harrison, the primary songwriters and the people responsible for the sound, structure, direction and production of 'It Leads to This', we also have the talented bassist Jon Sykes, who does a great job overall, providing smooth grooves and palpable depth to many of the songs on here, together with keyboard player Steve Kitch, with his minimal and unobtrusive "interventions" with the keys, he is the man responsible for the caressing and at times even haunting atmosphere of the album, definitely occupying a Floydian position within the band at the moment. Unlike the last few albums, this release brings along an ostensible heaviness, which might remind some of 'Your Wilderness', an album similar in spirit and structure, and in-between the roaring riffs and the mathematical drum parts, the listener shall try to breathe in the nuanced moodiness of The Pineapple Thief, as expressed in great songs like 'Rubicon', 'The Frost', 'All That's Left', 'Now It's Yours' as well as the title track - a back-to-front great collection of songs that further solidify the band's status as the kings of art rock melancholy.

A sublime evolution from neo-prog past

This is cool! Laviantica is a veteran band from Rome active for over three decades now. While they have roots and influences deep in the past glories of those old neo-prog bands, they have done a remarkable job of moving that ball forward into a fresh and modern progressive rock that doesn't feel at all dated.

And as an added bonus, this is a fully instrumental album that is engaging as hell. Not for a second will you miss some dude blathering personal opinions on geopolitics or spinning a yarn about another plate-mailed knight heading into battle in the realm of Norvelle. Instead, this album is a dream for fans of melodic instrumental rock, with all players having more-than-adequate space to evolve idea after idea.

Despite the lack of vocals, there actually is a story told in the CD/LP booklet. The Experience is a "concept album telling the journey of Galbat, an imaginary entity coming from an immaterial space, who decides to explore our physical world." What I loved so much about this 40-minute instrumental journey is simply how genuinely effective they were at being compelling without a singer. The music and melodies themselves pull you right in and affect you emotionally.

Well-constructed keyboard and guitar passages are everywhere, while the only real "substitute" for a vocal is the frequent use of the flute. While Laviantica does not sound particularly like Mike Oldfield or Camel, the experience is similar. A very lovely and almost soothing melodic ride that carries you away, not unlike The Snow Goose or Ommadawn but definitely sounding more current if you will. Spain's Gotic is actually an even closer reference with the ample flute and punchier rhythm section, but, again, Laviantica sounding 2018 and not 1978.

There is so much going on here from symphonic to RPI to updated neo-prog to even folk and jazz-fusion elements. The 12-minute opener of "The Journey" followed by the 8-minute "Breathing Flower" is a one-two punch that should lock you in as a fan. Adventurous, flawless performance, but really it is the spaciousness and color of their songwriting palette that make this one of 2018's finest. I'm surprised it is not more widely known.

While "Winged Life" sounds less than the work of two very different writers than the first 2 SHEARWATER albums, finally folds in JONATHAN MEIBURG's ornithological muses, and begins to mess around with (experiment is a bit too complimentary a term at this juncture) the longer form, it's still shockingly timid and lethargic. Luckily, it's a bit more indie pop oriented, with "My Good Deed", the JONATHAN RICHMAN-like "The Convert", and "A Makeover" reflecting back some of that OKKERVIL RIVER sunshine in an appropriately more laid back format. As for Meiburg himself, he seems to be marking time here, stealing for what would become the Island Arc trilogy, and he is otherwise incognito, which makes only half a good album. I was expecting a bit more, but unfortunately this falls somewhere between "The Dissolving Room" and "Everybody Makes MIstakes" in quality and memorability, rarely taking flight, hence 2.5 stars, rounded down.

1. Happiness Is Easy for Mark's voice, the latent orchestration based on captivating piano-bass, the school's youth choir, the cello and the invasive trumpet, this progression that restores the nobility of new wave with its ethereal keyboards; a slap with Steve Winwood on keyboard, beautiful people in addition 2. I Don't Believe in You yes I don't believe it, there is a fresh and colorful avant-garde sound in this track; an airy movement, a sexy groove, the drums that hit you in the heart, I find a mix of JAPAN and ROXY MUSIC for this hypnotic, mantra-like tune with Robbie's catchy guitar solo playing with the PRETENDERS and McCARTNEY, another distinctive sign of value 3. Life's What You Make It follows, rhythmic pad, jerky, languid vocal, whispered in the distance. The repetitive track with tinkering and David Rhodes' guitar, yes, Peter Gabriel's for the fade-in, a bit too tranquil, his guitar avoiding the conventional air. 4. April 5th for the vocals over the piano, the enlightened sounds found that highlight his voice; a hint of TEARS FOR FEARS, SIMPLE MINDS, the tenderness of a more colorful DIRE STRAITS with the Dobro resonator, the perfect drift that sends shivers down the spine almost 40 years later. That latent voice that reminds me of the beginning of 'Such a Shame', yes, I still have it etched in my head; in short, the perfect solemn track not to be listened to on April 5th or all day on replay. The sovereign organ that plays with the piano and slide guitar on the crystal fade-out.

5. Living in Another World for the solemn slap, we leave one Olympian track to enter another; Acoustic country opening, languid keyboard, and Mark attacks with his suave voice; a beautiful, easy, and addictive crescendo on the voice, on the fruity keyboards that no longer have anything minimalist like what could be criticized in new wave; long but addictive 6. Give It Up in mid-tempo, airy, solemn, and its staging of keyboards that carve out the spotlight; David still reels off his notes like sprinkling a fruit pie, torturing his strings, like on a KING CRIMSON from the 90s, yes, in the future 7. Chameleon Day for the leading trumpet in the night, a Variophon synth in fact that gives the intimate atmosphere of this short track highlighting the tortured, raw vocals 8. Time It's Time and 8 minutes to conclude the album with a drawn-out romantic-spleen ballad that doesn't add much in my opinion and can be boring given the previous tracks! Yes, I'm objective.