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AtomicCrimsonRush 
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 Posted: November 04 2012 at 18:08 |
wow I Spotified Renaissnace and theres tons on there - I sense a reviewing spree..........
Listening to Prologue now
Love the intro vocals, do do do do doooooooooooooooooo, do do do do doooooooooooooooo what a voice
and Sounds of the Sea, divine
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AtomicCrimsonRush
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 18:04 |
 Aussie-Byrd-Brother wrote:
Atomic, Renaissance are actually putting the finishing touches to a new studio album for release in early 2013! I'm quite looking forward to it, even if it will take some serious `nostalgia/rose tinted glasses' to enjoy it.
I keep noticing that `Tuscany' gets a bad rap, but although I haven't heard it in years, I do remember it was quite decent, and showcased almost all facets of the band - adult pop, sophisticated ballads, and more ambitious thoughtful pieces. A few duds too, which is really not surprising. It definately showed their age, but it wasn't truly terrible.....from what I remember!
Sigh, I may as well go and grab it off the shelf for a listen now! |
That is true too. I love Prologue but not as much as the big three that follow. I must get that album out and have a relisten as havent even reviewed it yet. I reviewed about 80 albums since I was bed ridden recovering from opration. Well at least I had the time as cant do anything else but type 
In all seriousness Renaissance new album news is exciting and i will be getting that definitely. Hope its a tad better than their 80s material.... It will be of course. I love Running Hard! Listening to it now... so powerful
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Guldbamsen
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Joined: January 22 2009
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 17:23 |
I do love me some Rajah Khan - even if it sounds like an evil conqueror of peoples 
Annie does sound more shamanistic as you point out, which could be the reason why I prefer it over the classic albums. She reminds me a bit of Catherine Ribeiroux on it, but then again only a little hahah...
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“The Guide says there is an art to flying or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.”
- Douglas Adams
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Aussie-Byrd-Brother
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 17:14 |
David, `Prologue is my favourite Renaissance album too! The full-blown classical elements hadn't totally kicked in yet, the album rocks a little more than anything after it, and Annie isn't quite as operatic and mannered as she gets from then on. I think she also sounds shamanistic and hypnotic on the track `Rajah Khan', kind of deranged and sinister too! 
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Guldbamsen
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 16:58 |
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I think I prefer Prologue to any of their subsequent releases. I guess Haslam's vocals are a bit too much for me. I enjoy them in small doses, but they're just too 'pretty' for me in the long run. Different strokes and all that I guess...
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“The Guide says there is an art to flying or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.”
- Douglas Adams
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Aussie-Byrd-Brother
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 16:53 |
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Atomic, Renaissance are actually putting the finishing touches to a new studio album for release in early 2013! I'm quite looking forward to it, even if it will take some serious `nostalgia/rose tinted glasses' to enjoy it.
I keep noticing that `Tuscany' gets a bad rap, but although I haven't heard it in years, I do remember it was quite decent, and showcased almost all facets of the band - adult pop, sophisticated ballads, and more ambitious thoughtful pieces. A few duds too, which is really not surprising. It definately showed their age, but it wasn't truly terrible.....from what I remember!
Sigh, I may as well go and grab it off the shelf for a listen now!
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AtomicCrimsonRush
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 16:44 |
I just read the reviews of this reunion album
and no wonder the band struggled after such a mediocre attempt
if a band is going to reunite it should at least produce a decent album worth more than 2 or 3 stars. Oh some reviewers loved it but it was a patchy album, and from the songs i have heard from it nothing like it should have been.
it gave the band a chance to tour again but they still had to focus on their classic material or would be a dead loss.
its sad that the band came back and produced this and nothing since 2000 so its unlikely now except for the odd live album. its just tragic
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AtomicCrimsonRush
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 16:26 |
I have been lurking in this thread fir several days and decided to spread some Renaissance love
First of all Annie Haslam is an incredible singer and deserves accolades, as a pioneer too when female fronted prog bands were scarce.
I loved their material on Ashes are Burning,
I would love to see this
as it has a stunning setlist
Disc 1 - ACT 1: Turn Of The Cards
1. Running Hard (9:47)
2. I Think Of You (3:14)
3. Things I Don't Understand (10:01)
4. Black Flame (6:57)
5. Cold Is Being (3:52)
6. Mother Russia (10:30)
Total Time 44:24
Disc 2 - ACT 2: Scheherazade And Other Stories
1. Trip To The Fair (11:25)
2. Vultures Fly High (3:31)
3. Ocean Gypsy (7:37)
4. Song Of Scheherazade (24:35)
5. The Mystic And The Muse (8:35)
Total Time 55:45
DVD:
1. Running Hard
2. I Think Of You
3. Things I Don't Understand
4. Black Flame
5. Cold Is Being
6. Mother Russia
7. Trip To The Fair
8. Vultures Fly High
9. Ocean Gypsy
10. Song Of Scheherazade
11. The Mystic And The Muse
The setlist looks better than live album
"In The Land of the Rising Sun" is the promotional live album for the final Renaissance studio release "Tuscany". As the concert promotes this 2000 album there are a lot of songs here from that album which is not a good thing as "Tuscany" was nowhere near as good as the earlier Renaissance material. From "Tuscany" the set list includes 'Lady From Tuscany', 'Pearls Of Wisdom', 'One Thousand Roses', and 'Dear Landseer'. It is interesting to hear them live but the real piece de resistance comes when the band belt out the old progressive classics.
It snice to hear her sing Moonlight Shadow tho not as great as Maggies version. also has some classic material from Ashes. etc
The best studio releases are undoubtedly the ones to grab hold of
Ashes, Cards, Scheherezade
Great band!
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kenethlevine
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Posted: November 04 2012 at 11:17 |
rogerthat wrote:
It would. Unfortunately, Betty Thatcher (RIP) hadn't parted ways with the band yet.  |
listened to Bonjour Swansong again and hadn't realized just how bad those synth sounds seem today, but I guess back then this would not have been a hindrance to becoming a hit single
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rogerthat
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Posted: November 03 2012 at 22:22 |
It would. Unfortunately, Betty Thatcher (RIP) hadn't parted ways with the band yet.
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kenethlevine
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Posted: November 03 2012 at 08:54 |
rogerthat wrote:
I tend to agree, though some of the songs too were kind of uninspired. Jekyll & Hyde for instance was not bad but a bit dated. It was styled a bit on Wind & Wuthering which was supposed to be Genesis's heroic last stand before they went pop. Pop needs to be catchy and infectious and there is really no Northern Lights on Azure. Winter Tree is pretty good but maybe they didn't push that one as much as the other songs. I have a concert video from 1979 and have traced several bootlegs from that period on youtube but I didn't find any live performance of Winter Tree. Which might have been a mistake (easy to say, of course, in hindsight) because it at least has a good groove and a haunting refrain without getting too involved.
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true, they seemed burned out. I don't even remember "Winter Tree" and I no longer own the album. I thought "Golden Key and "Kalynda" were both beautiful, and did enjoy "Jeckyll and Hyde", but that was about it. Actually, I wonder if "Bonjour Swansong" from the much maligned "Camera Camera" had been on Azure D'Or, could have been a more logical heir apparent to "Northern Lights".
Edited by kenethlevine - November 03 2012 at 10:14
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rogerthat
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Posted: November 02 2012 at 20:59 |
I tend to agree, though some of the songs too were kind of uninspired. Jekyll & Hyde for instance was not bad but a bit dated. It was styled a bit on Wind & Wuthering which was supposed to be Genesis's heroic last stand before they went pop. Pop needs to be catchy and infectious and there is really no Northern Lights on Azure. Winter Tree is pretty good but maybe they didn't push that one as much as the other songs. I have a concert video from 1979 and have traced several bootlegs from that period on youtube but I didn't find any live performance of Winter Tree. Which might have been a mistake (easy to say, of course, in hindsight) because it at least has a good groove and a haunting refrain without getting too involved.
Edited by rogerthat - November 03 2012 at 00:01
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kenethlevine
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Posted: November 02 2012 at 20:00 |
rogerthat wrote:
Well, it was certainly not a trainwreck but they needed something better to follow up the success of SFAS. They didn't deliver the goods at the end of the day and subsequently lost their contract with Warner Bros, let Tout and Sullivan go and basically lost the plot.
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It's a shame - David Hentschel's production on ASFAS was a big part of the formula, but I think he produced Azure D'Or too. Seems like he may have been as responsible for losing the plot as the band.
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rogerthat
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Posted: November 02 2012 at 10:39 |
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Well, it was certainly not a trainwreck but they needed something better to follow up the success of SFAS. They didn't deliver the goods at the end of the day and subsequently lost their contract with Warner Bros, let Tout and Sullivan go and basically lost the plot.
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infocat
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Posted: November 01 2012 at 22:07 |
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I'll just say I listened to azure d'or today and, other than the fact that it has no long songs (not really an issue; just an observation) it's still a nice prog album. Perhaps only 3 stars, but nothing for them to be embarrassed about. (Even "Only Angels Have Wings" is not bad.)
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--
Frank Swarbrick
Belief is not Truth.
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kenethlevine
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Posted: November 01 2012 at 12:19 |
rogerthat wrote:
kenethlevine wrote:
I do think Novella was marking time a bit, but also that it has some of their loveliest songs, and also their most chilling in "Midas Man". But I also thought "Camera Camera" was very good, even though I would not go to bat defending it here as much as ASFAS |
Midas Man could have been a very good single. Also Touching Once is amazing. |
I don't see Midas Man as a single. It was too slow and cerebral, and with no hooks. It's a plodding and threatening piece that hits one intellectually first, but on a visceral level. Not the stuff of top 40 at all IMO
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rogerthat
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Posted: November 01 2012 at 10:41 |
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^^^ So the problem was indeed, as ClemofNazareth said, that they couldn't really build a fanbase outside the American Northeast. Which of course is a big difference when compared to Genesis, Yes or PF. You can catch Owner of a Lonely Heart on VH1 but I have never seen Northern Lights played on these music channels. A band like Gentle Giant gets a kind of cult following on prog-dedicated communities like PA but otherwise they have more or less disappeared too. Again a band that broke up at the cusp of the 80s. ELP had the biggest live billing of these bands and they are relatively obscure now compared to PF.
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TODDLER
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Posted: November 01 2012 at 10:25 |
criticdrummer94 wrote:
I've become a huge fan of this band recently and I'm wondering why this band was never as successful as Yes, Genesis or Pink Floyd? |
I can render some information about Renaissance based on my experience. On the east coast they received great airplay! WMMR And WYSP played the band's music and included it on daily ...week to week programming. Renaissamce could be seen on late night talk shows that featured entertainment variety. They were more successful in Philadelphia and N.Y. than Gentle Giant as their popularity scaled above many artists who released their first album in 1972 ...and it would appear to mostly everyone that they were skyrocketing beyond even that particular level of appreciation. Most people on the east coast discovered the band upon the release of Ashes are Burning. Pink Floyd and Genesis had already been cemented in to the public eye years before Renaissance entered the music scene of the 70's. and so it is predictable and common for Floyd and Genesis to be remembered.
The band released several follow ups to Ashes are Burning and every one of those albums attracted the attention of "Art Rock" fans on the east coast. Renaissance were entertaining to the life style on college campus. About 6 months after the release of Novella people began to lose interest in the band. The follow up album Azure produced sounds and styles heard on Wind and Wuthering. The keyboard playing on that album was a structured style in the vain of Tony Banks circa "78. I liked the album, but to be honest..few around me did. Renaissance were pegged by a majority of fans on the east coast to have released 4 brilliant albums including Carnegie Hall the live recording with an orchestra.
The band eventually took a new direction becoming more acoustic oriented. In '81 I was touring theatres and many musicians noticed Renaissance had lowered their expectations by touring the same venues as us. We were trying to rise above this theatre circuit and Rennaissance had obviously fallen to our level. It didn't leave much room for enthusiasm or hope. I sometimes had a drink with friends and it would come up in conversation. We would make fun of ourselves and ask why Renaissance were playing the same circuit with losers like us? We were devoted Rennaissance fans in our early 20's and couldn't fathom this screwball situation which was personally disturbing and insulting to us. We felt anger toward the young hipster dwistle type record executives and placed the blame for lack of interest in Renaissance upon them. We were confused because the band also had a "Top 40's" crowd following them around. What exactly did they need to sustain their popularity?
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Aussie-Byrd-Brother
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Posted: November 01 2012 at 09:40 |
Looking at `Azure D'or' right now, there's some really good tracks like `Golden Key', several decent songs, and a whole lot of Genesis-like tricks going on in the playing and the production.
But holy hell Camp's wretched `Only Angels Have Wings' is absolute dross of the highest order!
Ditch that and you've got a mostly servicable album!
Edited by Aussie-Byrd-Brother - November 01 2012 at 09:41
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rogerthat
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Posted: November 01 2012 at 09:28 |
kenethlevine wrote:
I do think Novella was marking time a bit, but also that it has some of their loveliest songs, and also their most chilling in "Midas Man". But I also thought "Camera Camera" was very good, even though I would not go to bat defending it here as much as ASFAS |
Midas Man could have been a very good single. Also Touching Once is amazing.
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Why has Renaissance gone obscure?
