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Topic Closed5uu’s vs Thinking Plague

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The Hemulen View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: 5uu’s vs Thinking Plague
    Posted: June 18 2005 at 19:01
The two finest exponents of modern RIO in my opinion - both from America, interestingly. The question is: Who do you prefer, and why?

For me 5uu's just clinch it - Shorter songs, wilder, more overtly GG-ish and I'm a big fan of the Anderson-esque vocals.

It's a very close call, though.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 18 2005 at 19:53

I haven't really heard much by either, or much in RIO, as I'm still new to prog. But from what I've heard I'd also go with the 5uu's. Both sound quite good to me though.

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 18 2005 at 20:43
Thinking Plague.....i prefer the vocals and i like the minimalistic bits in Thinking Plague's music, and i am not a big fan of yes......

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 18 2005 at 20:44
Thinking plague yes. The vocals are brilliant.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 18 2005 at 20:50
What do you both think of 5uu's though?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 18 2005 at 20:53
they are great as well but can't sustain my attention as much as thinking plague, i love listening to entire albums by TP, whereas it's a few songs a time by 5uu's, but both have some excellent musician's, worth seeing live! Mike Johnson is the better composer imho. 

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 19 2005 at 08:28

Both bands are among my all-time favourites. It's hard to say which one I prefer. However I think that Thinking Plague's finest offering In Extremis is a real masterpiece (or at least very close) while 5uu's best works Elements, Hunger's Teeth and Crisis in Clay are excellent but not exactly five-star masterpieces.

It's notable how intertwined the bands' histories are: Bob Drake (the man with the Jon Anderson-like voice) has been a member of both bands and so have vocalist Deborah Perry and drummer Dave Kerman (the 5uu's mastermind).

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 19 2005 at 18:05

From the little I've heard, I'd go for 5UUs - Thinking Plague are a tad prone to noodling IMO.

Thank you for reminding me to investigate these bands further Panalons presse!

'Like so many of you
I've got my doubts about how much to contribute
to the already rich among us...'

Robert Wyatt, Gloria Gloom


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 02 2006 at 14:46
Originally posted by con safo con safo wrote:

Thinking plague yes. The vocals are brilliant.

just the cocals are brilliant???.
this band is amazing...
...live for tomorrow...
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 02 2006 at 16:04
     I'm for Thinking Plague, but listen a lot to both, though I've
only one album of 5uus and two of TP. Hunger's Teeth by 5uus
is great, but Kerman's compositions and lyrics are kind of all
over the map, and as one composer friend put it, he's trying too
hard. In Extremis is fairly perfect in realizing all that it promises,
and I prefer Johnson's compositions as well, and Bob Drake is
also here with his Yes-like vocals and kick-ass Squire-like
bass, but somehow more focused. Kerman's drumming is
outstanding on both, and it's only logical that he replaced
Daniel Denis (Univers Zero) in the group Present, but his
presence is really missed on the latest TP, A History of
Madness.

     Other very much related groups worth checking out are U-
Totem and Hamster Theater (see posting for upcoming show of
Frith, Zorn & Mike Patton with Hamster Theater in Denver).
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 02 2006 at 17:15
I only have "In Extremis" and "A History of Madness" by Thinking Plague and Abandonship by 5uu's, so my exposure is very limited.  Based on what I've heard, though, I prefer Thinking Plague by a very slight margin.  Both are fantastic bands/groups/projects/whatever they are at this point.  "In Extremis" is without doubt one of the greatest things I've ever heard, and is consistently so.  On the other hand, I probably prefer "Noah's Flame", "Penguins on Dizengoff", and "Doubt Be Met" to much of the material on "A History of Madness". 

I suppose that Thinking Plague generally employs more instruments, whereas 5uu's, at least on Abandonship, emphasizes a sparser harmonic texture with digital "sculpting".  I lean slightly more toward the heavy instrumentation, it seems.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 03 2006 at 12:40
I think Hunger's Teeth and Abandonship are better than anything Thinking Plague has done, though In This Life is close. So I guess I prefer 5uu's but I'm glad I don't really have to choose one instead of another!

On the other hand, I think Kerman's work on U Totem tops either band.
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