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MAKE A RISING

RIO/Avant-Prog • United States


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Make A Rising biography
Bio taken from the band's website:

"Tunneling its way out of the West Philadelphia nether worlds Make A Rising is a band that is beyond unique. The quintet's debut record is a swirling mix of violin, keyboard, guitars, drums, saxophone, trumpet, bells, whistles, and assorted noisemakers - all swelling together for subversively addictive pop gems. With orchestral crescendos combined with off-kilter vocals and fast-changing tempos Make A Rising is the sound of chaos, bliss, bravado, nerves and naivety - avant chamber rock at its most dynamic - like Daniel Johnston singing Beach Boys songs interpreted by Naked City."

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MAKE A RISING discography


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MAKE A RISING top albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

3.95 | 10 ratings
Rip Through The Hawk Black Night
2005
4.13 | 15 ratings
Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel
2008

MAKE A RISING Live Albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

MAKE A RISING Videos (DVD, Blu-ray, VHS etc)

MAKE A RISING Boxset & Compilations (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

MAKE A RISING Official Singles, EPs, Fan Club & Promo (CD, EP/LP, MC, Digital Media Download)

3.71 | 10 ratings
New I Fealing
2011
4.00 | 2 ratings
Wounded Fhealer Series: Part One
2014
4.00 | 2 ratings
Wounded Fhealer Series Part Two
2014
5.00 | 1 ratings
Wounded Fhealer Series Part Three
2014
4.00 | 1 ratings
Wounded Fhealer Series: Part Four
2015

MAKE A RISING Reviews


Showing last 10 reviews only
 Wounded Fhealer Series: Part Four by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2015
4.00 | 1 ratings

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Wounded Fhealer Series: Part Four
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by LearsFool
Prog Reviewer

— First review of this album —
4 stars With the fourth sample from the Wounded Fhealer Chronicles, Make A Rising have put out only a single track, the inevitable when the planned LP has fifteen tracks, but it is also a long, juicy one. Opening with a strings driven section as much modern indie as it almost '80's alt rock, it quickly goes through a section with playful guitar and strings towards a choral section. A percussion and bells filled musical break leads to the band's trademark vocals really shining in a tense section before suddenly loosening and slowing down; it's strictly beautiful until some strange winds/strings combo instead substitute a weirder beauty. And with that, the track ends. A fine and, as usual, ever brilliantly shifting offering from the band.
 Wounded Fhealer Series Part Three by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2014
5.00 | 1 ratings

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Wounded Fhealer Series Part Three
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by LearsFool
Prog Reviewer

— First review of this album —
5 stars For the third release of the Wounded Fhealer Collection, Make A Rising keep up the pace, once again dropping two great tracks sure to please most avant-prog fans. "Growing" at first sounds like an Interpol track from their early, better days, and then RIO grabs the wheel with surreal lyrics. Sax soon livens up the track wonderfully, and then we get new wave style synth out of nowhere. "Conspiring Visions" features some good piano, before a throbbing bass and distant synth set up a gloomy section that adds in at times some fine drumming. The piano soon returns as our vocalists sing, and then they sing alone. These two tracks are exceptional, and as such Wounded Fhealer Three has to be the first masterful release of the project. The soon to come LP just keeps looking better and better.
 Wounded Fhealer Series Part Two by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2014
4.00 | 2 ratings

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Wounded Fhealer Series Part Two
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by LearsFool
Prog Reviewer

4 stars In the second part of the epic Wounded Fhealer Saga, our heroes, Make A Rising, continue to please with some of the quirkiest and most refreshing avant-prog in years. "I Forgot To Shave" follows a man who not just forgot to shave, but seems to have forgotten how to shave, and ends up entering a crazed nightmare world... or something neat like that. Guitar and bass do well to help guide us through this strange vision. "On" starts off with some nice guitar, before going on to call and response singing with epic chamber instruments blaring, then through a lull to horns and drums welcoming in a Canterbury inspired ending. Now we're really picking up a pace, and the band seem poised to offer ever more great music to spice up our lives and discographies.
 Wounded Fhealer Series: Part One by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2014
4.00 | 2 ratings

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Wounded Fhealer Series: Part One
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by LearsFool
Prog Reviewer

4 stars Make A Rising is a band out of Philly that has endeared themselves to some of the local avant-prog lovers with two fantastic long plays. Sounding like a quirky and skilled indie band gone RIO, a third LP has been long awaited by the bands followers. Lo and behold, the group decided to record a whole fifteen track LP over the course of what will likely be a couple years, releasing the components two at a time for free to their fans while they work out the final ideas, mixes, and listings. The first of this "Wounded Fhealer Series" is a flying start: "Super Sad" starts out with some scared fiddle and playful xylophone, and ends up with our singer rather jovially telling us how super sad he is. "Hi Vibrating Life" gives us "Hot Rats"-esque saxes as several vocalists sing along with a mechanical voice, and some great guitar also figures. Lots of fun, and gives high hopes for the project.
 Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel by MAKE A RISING album cover Studio Album, 2008
4.13 | 15 ratings

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Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by frippism
Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars Make A Rising into my heart (I couldn't resist)

Make A Rising are a Philadelphia band who have managed to create an utterly strange blend of avant-pop with indie and prog altogether. "Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel" is an album which showcases a unique take on popular songwriting altogether; without shame breaking up beautiful balladry and putting the pieces back together in their very own off-putting beautiful way.

With the beginning of "Sneffels Yokul" you can hear the very keen interest the band invests in developing strong and touching melodies into off-kilter directions. A beautiful choir offshoots into this strange almost 50s rock n roll guitar riff while strange tin sounds come spinning from all over and Justin Moynihan takes up the vocal melody and plays with it until all the band joins in on the fun and it becomes this utterly strange pop song, shifting between an almost hard rock riff into a bizarre repetitive exercise of the B major and C major scales, constantly going up and down while drums roll and saxophones and keyboards join the fun, with mysterious sounds are added on top. This is me describing the first minute and a half or so of the first song. And yet the transitions make so much sense and are done without corrupting at all the atmosphere Make A Rising manage to preserve throughout the entire album. The album manage to swiftly shift between near-classical pieces such as "Woodsong Part One"- which I really mean when I say that this is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I have heard in my life, to utterly bizarre time-shift changes and bassy synth pads in "Bradford's Big Boatride"- a track that doesn't shame itself with it's confounding psychedelic freakouts and weird vocal passages.

When the closing moments "How 'Bout a Love Supreme" closes off and rolls into the "epilogue" which is "Woodsong Part Two" you are very much aware of the massive accomplishment Make A Rising have managed to pull off here. They deliver a sound here which is so much their own it while being so strangely all-encompassing that for that alone the album should be given a spin, but the songwriting here is so sharp, so heart-wrenching, that this is more than a unique album, it is a damn good album as well.

It is about time I reviewed this utterly wonderful and strange album. An album that has accompanied me in the last few years or so and has without a doubt changed changed the way I've seen music completely. Make A Rising are a strange breed. It is almost as if the Beach Boys became massive fans of Henry Cow and decided to release an album with today's more modern sounds. A combination of bizarre and awe-inspiring piano ballads with hard-hitting and strange instrumental patterns with an almost indie style of song- writing. It is a brew that took me a while to accept and understand, but once it hit me it was a slap to the face- this is one of the most original sounding albums of the 21st century; playful and filled with the strange childlike wonder that frankly I have a soft spot for. "Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel" is an album that I think should be in any pop music fan's collection as much as it should be in any prog and RIO's fans "classic collection".

 New I Fealing by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2011
3.71 | 10 ratings

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New I Fealing
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Negoba
Prog Reviewer

4 stars Truly Eclectic Prog for the New Decade

I hopped on the free music bandwagon to hear this excellent and quirky group some months ago. I've probably listened to this album 50 times and I've had mixed feelings about the album. Initially pleasantly impressed, then drifting toward "meh" and then as I really sunk my ears into the album for this review, I'm back to being truly impressed. I suppose my time here on PA has changed my ears, for I did not expect this band to be Avant / RIO. Instead, this is a truly eclectic band that gives nods to classics like Yes and Genesis, and major kudos to Frank Zappa and Gentle Giant. However, the band also utilizes very modern sounds such as electronic textures a la math masters Battles and nu-folk / pop groups like Fleet Foxes and Vampire Weekend. The closest band to this I've heard is Frogg Cafe, but this is crazier.

If this sounds like a lot of material to bite off in a 3 song, 19 minute EP, it is. Though the musicianship is superb and the execution brilliant, there is a little lack of focus. Rather than having a coherent package to communicate to the listener, this band is simply delighting in the pure pleasure of making complex, quirky music. Since I too consider this one of life's great pleasures, I really like this album. But it's not for everyone and specifically it's not for background listening. It just won't make sense.

1. Don't Don't Don't - The EP and song begins with a sad, almost Beach Boys styled harmony section which then yields to a Sergeant Pepper oompah section. These are a bit odd and hurky-jerky, but work well enough. This is repeated a second time before the song takes off with the band's signature blend of math rock and Gentle Giant composition that to me is modern prog at its best.

2. Flux Dogs - This songs begins with a guitar flourish clearly meant as an homage to Steve Howe. The main vocal line is nicely done, though is a bit limited by the singers' very non-distinctive vocal timbres. There is a fun trippy free form instrumental section in the middle, and finishes with a choral flourish.

3. Nommo Days - An angular odd rhythm song with the annoying nu-folk echo on the vocals. Some allusions to nu-folk master Sufjan Stevens. Once again, once the first instrumental section comes in, we get modern prog at its best. Just wonderful chamber rock styled composition. The song move through a pastoral bridge section and climbs to a GG-esque climax.

There are sections of this album that are just brilliant. And absolutely all of it is good, interesting. To me, this is what modern prog is. (Not another neo- rehash.) A very solid 4 star effort. Looking forward to future releases.

 Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel by MAKE A RISING album cover Studio Album, 2008
4.13 | 15 ratings

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Infinite Ellipse And Head With Open Fontanel
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by TheGazzardian
Prog Reviewer

4 stars You've been unsure about this album since you listened to the free EP that the band released in early 2011 (New I Fealing). Over the course of a full length album, can the band really top what they accomplished on that three track album? Isn't it riskier to pay money for an unsure thing, when the sure, good thing was free?

(Hey, you in the corner - yeah, you the guy looking confused. Are you telling me you haven't heard New I Fealing yet? Let me help ya out - go download that and give it a spin. If you like it even a little bit, direct your credit card to the nearest online retailer carrying this album.)

Infinite Ellipse and Head With Open Fontanel, despite having a name you will likely never remember, is an utterly superb piece of avant garde music, full of wonderful melodies, odd sounds, freakouts, weird lyrics, and songs with names like "Sneffels Yokul" and "Look, I'm Almost Dead". The cover art is laid out like all those Pendragon album covers - with all the little details and sub-stories going on - except it's a photograph instead of a painting, so they had to actually make all the weird stuff, not just imagine it. Yep, this is a weird band, thank goodness!

They can be strikingly sparse and emotional at times - Woodsong (parts 1 and 2) is a superb example of this, being carried pretty much completely by the quiet piano and the mournful horns. And they can also rock out and pound your ears with glorious, glorious sound and melody, as they demonstrate in pretty much every song. They've mastered the art of introducing a new melody or idea with a bang. Contrast is the name of the game here, and a quiet section may be interrupted by the introduction of an energetic theme on the trombone.

Seven vocalists, a marimba, trombone, cello, saxophone, flute, and the only traditional rock instrument in sight is a doublebass. And yet these guys rock pretty hard from time to time, and their music has an undeniable energy about it.

For sure, one of the better albums I have discovered in the past months. Oh, and I'm going to say this - this is better than New I Fealing. It's complex, it's fun, it's bizarre. And it's not a matter of quantity over quality - the highest moments here easily surpass the highest moments of New I Fealing. (And that's something that I never would have thought would be easy!)

 New I Fealing by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2011
3.71 | 10 ratings

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New I Fealing
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by The Neck Romancer

5 stars NEW I FEALING is a free EP by the American progressive/avant rock group Make a Rising.

Why did I rate it 5 stars? Because it's excelent. I might have been biased by free downloads (damn you Part the Second for being so good and free) but these 3 songs are just what I needed to hear.

DON'T DON'T DON'T: reminds me a lot of Slapp Happy/Art Bears, with the slightly dissonant vocal harmonies and funny woodwinds. Quite enjoyable, although the silence in the middle of the song is a bit unsettling. By the time the first part ends, a nice piano riff starts, along with a somewhat cheesy little sax solo. The chorus is wonderful; the female vocals add a bit of magic to the song. The next riff is very good; sounds quite like symphonic prog and even indie rock. 5/5

FLUX DOGS: starts with a Henry Cow-like unison section. Then there's a short part with lovely fast vocals; the chorus begins with again slightly dissonant vocal harmonies. Then the guitar kicks in the chorus; the drums go crazy but then subside to an ambient section. The band paints an impressionist sound spectrum with their instruments just until the guitars play a taste of the next motif.

All instruments kick back to a lovely riff in 7/8, until the riff in the chorus appears again (this time in full strength; there's even some piano/harp flourishes now). The chorus returns with just vocals, piano and keyboards before the song ends. 4.5/5

NOMMO DAYS: starts with a nice riff accompanied by circus like voices; the next section is ethereal; the singer sounds like he's on the moon. The violins are nice; acoustic guitars kick in with the singing grabbing your attention. A dissonant riff, very reminiscent of RIO, adds drama to the song. The Cardiacs-like lyrics add more to the crazyness of the music. The ambient section with the brass, acoustic guitar, violin and drums is magical. Vibes kick in, now mirroring the acoustic guitar.

The harp kicks in again, as the vocals start to become more distant from the listener. The second riff appears one more time for a few bars, just to disappear and start the last section of the song, with wild instruments everywhere and embezzling vocals. By this time the music just grabs you and erases everything in your mind. Beautiful ending. 5/5

Overall, a nice 5 stars to this wonderful recording. What are you doing here? Go get it!

 New I Fealing by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2011
3.71 | 10 ratings

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New I Fealing
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by Andy Webb
Special Collaborator Retired Admin

3 stars Don't don't do do

Avant-garde anything can be a thin line to walk. With art, it can be a mind-blowing masterpiece or just a weird, seemingly pointless waste of paint. In movies, a movie could either become an instant genre-defying classic, or just a creepy, weird expression of nothingness. The same pertains to music. Avant music can either be infinitely beautiful, breaking down the walls that we call the constraints of music, or could just be obnoxious and over-exerted noise. Make a Rising with their newest EP Now I Fealing walk that that thin line very carefully, teetering on overly weird at times and at others a tasteful and rather interesting output. With some of the music just having outright absurd melodic waste just for the sake of being absurd, some actually has a nice Avant harmony going for it. Overall, although being a bit weird, this EP isn't all that bad.

On tracks such as the intro to "Don't Don't Don't," the music has a nice fun-sounding circus- like quality, with some interesting harmony between vocals and the various instruments used on the EP. Although the vocal style can get a little annoying, it adds a certain dissonant and oftentimes pleasing and humorous quality to the music, especially with the rather ridiculous lyrics. The interesting compositional quality of the music also adds a nice dynamic, with the overall fun atmosphere of all the instruments communicating with one another complimenting the overall interesting melodies and harmonies. The vocal melodies may get harsh at times, and sometimes they don't compliment the interesting instrumentation, but usually they add that unique Avant touch.

One word easily attributable to this album is unique. The quality of the composition is supreme, with some adventurous atmospheres surrounding the sweeping lines of music. The eighteen minutes of music certainly has that unique style of the band too, with the bumbling lines of wind pieces and up-down percussion style. The overall feeling of the album itself is unique, with the peculiar titles and weird jazzy breakdowns dotting the music, even breaking into a classical orchestral kind of feel at times. Of course, this is avant-garde music, how can we expect any less! Overall, the album is good. For a free download, it is certainly recommended for anyone looking for something refreshing to accent their collection. Although the music is not the most remarkable stuff out there, it is an interesting and worthy output by this small, Philadelphia band. 3+ stars.

 New I Fealing by MAKE A RISING album cover Singles/EPs/Fan Club/Promo, 2011
3.71 | 10 ratings

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New I Fealing
Make A Rising RIO/Avant-Prog

Review by TheGazzardian
Prog Reviewer

4 stars New I Fealing is the oddly titled name of the free three track EP by American avant-prog band, Make a Rising, that is going to have you itching to hear more of what this band has to offer.

I've been aware of the band for some time, but what's more easy to acquire than a free download, and less demanding of your time than three tracks? Suffice it to say that there wasn't much thought between when I found out this album existed and when its sweet sounds started to enter my brain. It did take a while before the music really started to penetrate - there's a lot of odd stuff going on in here, including: vocals that combine male and female vocals into really dreamy soundscapes, loosely formed instrumental sections that could also be described as dreamy soundscapes, odd rhythms, lots of starts and stops, and underneath it all, a lot of lovely, hidden melodies.

Second track Flux Dogs is the least composed-sounding of all the tracks, being dominated by a long instrumental section in the middle, that makes me think of Moonchild but less likely to just be pointless noddling than difficult to understand. Regardless, it's the first track (Don't Don't Don't) and the last track that really have me excited for this band. Don't Don't Don't features great vocal interplay, and a catchy chorus. But Nommo Days quickly became my favorite, due to the combination of the slower instrumental sections and the vocals after the halfway point, which may be one of the oddest, most unexpectedly beautiful moments in music I've heard in a long time.

Definitely worth your time.

Thanks to avestin for the artist addition. and to Snow Dog for the last updates

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