Average Rating: 3.75 Rating Variance: 0.20 Objectivity Score: 62% (Fairly Balanced)
Sort by: Rating | Release Date | Rating Date | Name5.0 classicThe Enid Live at Hammersmith Vol. I4.5 superbAnimals As Leaders Animals as LeadersArt Zoyd Generation sans futurBanco Del Mutuo Soccorso Banco del Mutuo SoccorsoBanco Del Mutuo Soccorso Io sono nato liberoBig Big Train English ElectricBill Bruford's Earthworks Footloose and Fancy FreeBjork SelmasongsBubblemath Such Fine Particles Of The UniverseQuirky, convoluted, snarky prog with the strong influence of Zappa's mindset and Gentle Giant's frenetic instrumental interplay. The lyrical subject matter takes jabs at various bourgeois silliness, religious hypocrisy, masturbation guilt, and that kind of thing. The arrangements and ensemble work are pretty mind-blowing and there are many episodes of the album that are just plain master level. My first exposure to Bubblemath was hearing the song "Be Together" on a streaming prog radio site. It's quite an achievement, approaching and evoking, although not copying Gentle Giant's "On Reflection" and Yezda Urfa's "Cancer of the Band." Bubblemath Turf Ascension4 big tracks of rigorous Amero-quirka-prog. A briar patch of quick moving chromatic harmonies and shifting meters. Although there's certainly impressive playing, there's very little that could be called flashy in a virtuosic sense. Mostly, they get enmeshed in the fascination of the material they find themselves in the middle of. Vocal lines are carefully woven in, as melodic as they can be, with judicious harmony vocals from time to time. On first listen I'm not sure what they're singing about but based on past experience with the band it's probably snarky. There's a grand tradition of American prog bands that need to be irreverently comic and quirkily complex, but also to achieve something to be taken seriously. It comes from Zappa through Yezda Urfa, Mr. Bungle and Echolyn. Bubblemath aren't just a throwback, but an actual evolution of this style.Deus Ex Machina (I) Equilibrismo Da InsofferenzaDream Theater A View from the Top of the WorldEphel Duath Pain Necessary to KnowFrank Zappa Orchestral FavoritesIgginbottom Igginbottom's WrenchThis album is extremely underrated. Apparently springboarding off of advanced Blue Note jazz, the clever songs feature wild tempo and meter changes and every kind of chord structure you can imagine. Duo-guitarists Holdsworth and Robinson create a deceptively smooth and whispery texture and deliver lots of mayhem without the listener ever knowing they're being musically pummeled. Holdsworth plays impressively and speedily, although he doesn't have the signature rock tone yet. The real revelation of this album might be Holdsworth's lovely, Chet Baker-derived vocal style. The other guitarist, Steve Robinson is no slouch on the fretboard either, although he's a little less precise, more likely to let a string ring during a run. The rhythm section is strong and flexible too. They were out to break some musical barriers while maintaining a sweet aural package. I wish they'd had a chance to develop their sound further.Ingranaggi Della Valle Warm Spaced BlueIsland (CHE) PicturesJordsjo PastoraliaFrom Norway, a really outstanding album of Scandinavian forest prog. I found this a step up from its already great predecessor Nattfiolen. I can't resist when folky melodies are set to twisty harmonies and there's a lot of that. Often low-key compositions with a strong whiff of Grieg, a little Wishbone Ash and as always with this style, a heaping helping of Cathedral's Stained Glass Stories. Flute and other woodwinds figure heavily. Singing is sotto voce. Kenso Kenso IILe Grand Sbam FurventFrom Lyon, France, the debonair guys from PoiL return with this augmented chamber-rock ensemble, fronted by two female vocalists. This album, like the Le Grand Sbam debut album, Le Vaisseau Monde, is a mind-bogglingly rehearsal-intensive stretch of music intent on stretching every boundary. The vocal arrangements are intricate and unusual, the ensemble work is fragmented but always deliberate and meticulously arranged. That there is a place and situation in which musicians can work so intensively to create something so musically superhuman and stratospherically creative makes me extremely, extremely happy. The album is dominated by the 19-minute tour de force "Le Trace" and the 31-minute even-more-tour-de-force "Yi Yin." Both are through-composed and finely detailed. Two other 5-minute "miniatures" for piano and vocal ensemble are substantial works on their own. The playing is top echelon classical performance level. Is Antoine Arnera the greatest living rock keyboardist? I can't see why not.Mark Hollis Mark HollisSpiral Architect A Sceptic's UniverseThe Beach Boys Pet SoundsThe Beatles RevolverThe Enid Six PiecesThe Mothers of Invention Freak Out!The Pretty Things S.F. Sorrow4.0 excellent5uu's Crisis in ClayAn album of songy songs in the ColoRIO style. Smaller chunks by a degree than on Hungers Teeth but not Beatles-short. You don?t generally have to wait long for one of Drake?s skewed, thundering bass riffs driven by Kerman?s ferocious drumming. There are many points at which the non-standard production techniques coupled with the abstruse material make the music tough to parse, if intentionally. 5uu's The Quiet in Your BonesAbigor Time Is the Sulphur In the Veins of ...Agusa En Annan VärldCamel's Snow Goose is a point of reference but without so much in the melodic synth department. Although they're big, carefully arranged structures with well-thought out dynamics and some proggy rhythm play, they're not out to bowl you over with hairpin turns and finicky harmonies. Will definitely scratch the retroprog itch.Anathema Weather SystemsAndrew Hill Point of DepartureThis album feels very much like a companion piece to Eric Dolphy's Out to Lunch, which had come out nine months previously. The young Tony Williams sets the quirky groove for a set of five distinctive compositions that present unusual structures for satisfying soloing. The line-up of legendary players speaks to Hill's own confidence in leading such an ambitious session. Kenny Dorham, Joe Henderson and Tony Williams seemed to come as a package after working together on Dorham's Una Mas a couple of years earlier. Psychic musical partners Richard Davis and Eric Dolphy merge something explosive into the mix. Hill's approach is cerebral with counterpoint-filled heads, Bartok-like harmonies and unexpected contrasts in arrangement. His solos transition seamlessly between Monk-like jabbing and fluidly poetical, sometimes sentimental musings. My favorite track is "Spectrum" with its ultra-mod head construction, and a complex suite-like structure that moves from chunky swing to a spacy 5/4 musical orrery in the phrygian mode to a slow march-like section to a waltz. Hill makes room in the track for solos on both bass clarinet and sax by Dolphy. Anekdoten NucleusAngel Ontalva Angel on a TowerGreat chamber rock. Things tend to take on a modal flavor rather than lapsing into tonal ambiguity. Constant presence of bassoon gives it that distinctive chamber rock aroma. The music tends to be on the uplifting side rather than ruminating, exhorting and wallowing as this style sometimes does. His guitar style splits the difference between Zappa and Phil Miller, with a little Fripp from time to time. Almost never jazzy. Area Caution Radiation AreaArea MaledettiArt Zoyd Symphonie pour le jour ou bruleront les citesArt Zoyd Musique pour l'OdysseeAtlas (SWE) Bla VardagBig Big Train Common GroundBig Big Train Welcome to the PlanetBjork HomogenicBlack Midi CavalcadeBlack Midi HellfireBlituri BlituriExemplary chamber rock from Montreal, composed by the gifted guitarist Vincent Lachambre. This is a really noteworthy album in the genre but hasn't gotten much attention. Most of the material is dissonant but harmonically grounded with tricky and precise rhythmic interplay and incisive and clear arrangements. Skewed drum grooves and off-kilter guitar patterns intertwine with satisfying woodwind textures. Stravinsky/Bartok-rock of a high order, beautifully performed and recorded.Bonfire (Netherlands) Bonfire Goes BananasWonderful lighthearted and slightly jazzy instrumental prog from the Netherlands, well-situated with compatriots like Focus, Finch and Trace. The standout feature of the album is the wonderful interplay between keyboardist Frank Witte and guitarist Eugene Den Hoed, sometimes harmonizing riffs in thirds, sometimes in counterpoint, sometimes just enjoying traveling their harmonic structures together. It sounds like a great musical friendship. Brown vs Brown Intrusion of the Alleged Brown SoundBruford One of a KindBruford Levin Upper Extremities Bruford Levin Upper ExtremitiesCamel The Snow GooseCamel NudeCeleste (ITA) Principe di un giornoChris Potter The SirensCitizen Cain Raising The StonesContemporary Dead Finnish Music Ensemble Dark MattersA CD-long, segueing suite, like Marillion?s Brave, Fates Warning?s Pleasant Shade of Grey and Echolyn?s mei. Although this is certainly firmly in the prog category, I can?t nail their influences down easily to a certain band. There?s an arid coolness and deliberate pacing that?s unique. They?re blessed with Katja Sirkiä?s wonderful singing.David Bowie Hunky DoryEmbryo (DEU) Auf AufI heard my first Embryo track, from Reise, back in the late 1980s and I was struck that they seemed to bring the interesting parts of ethnic influences, the odd meters, polyrhythms and instrumental color. What they didn?t do is just establish a groove and veg out for 20 minutes as some in the raga rock vein were wont to do. I never really explored their catalog, which I think is vast. Fast forward to this album from November of 2021. I am very impressed by this album. It feels very genuine in its fusion of jazz, rock and Eastern instrumentation. Much like Tangerine Dream, there?s been a generational handoff from the original members to a younger group led by Christian Burchard?s daughter Marja. She?s a fantastic musician, with strong jazz keyboard (and vibraphone) chops, the heart of an explorer, and a way of generating music that?s beautifully crafted compositionally but not overwrought.Eric Dolphy Out to Lunch!Frank Zappa 200 MotelsFrost* Day and AgeFunkadelic Let's Take It to the StageGary Numan The Pleasure PrincipleGary Numan TelekonGary Numan DanceGhost Rhythms Spectral MusicA tick-tocking polyrhythmic smorgasbord, where the pocket is always the ultimate destination. Cool, intelligent and self-assured, they have a clearly etched aesthetic they don't wander from, so the material does threaten to get same-y. But there's no room to complain when the baseline of the material is so high. Expect Wurlitzer ostinatos with ghostly vocals. Fantastic, morphing drum grooves, big bass lines, cool wind instruments, expressive harmony changes, world music touches and a never-ending succession of dizzying odd-time polyrhythms. If you smashed up National Health and Art Zoyd, it might give you an idea. It's hard to pick favorite tracks because this album is consistently awesome beginning to end.Godspeed You! Black Emperor F♯ A♯ ∞Herd of Instinct ConjureHerd of Instinct Herd of InstinctJohn Coltrane MeditationsKarfagen Land of Green and GoldKraftwerk Computer WorldKraftwerk KraftwerkLa Maschera Di Cera S.E.I.Leprous AphelionMary Halvorson AmaryllisA very good album with emphasis on arrangements, combining horns and vibraphone with the guitar trio, then incorporating a string quartet on the second half. Lots of irony and detachment, sometimes in an impressionistic way. Halvorson's style is resolutely un-flashy, Guitar tone-wise, she spends a lot of attention coordinating two signals, one of which is hooked up to a pitch bender and maybe other effects. This album is similar in texture to Sean Moran's Small Elephant Band but kinder. The whole album is great, but standouts are the title track, a high-energy workout opening with bassist Dunston digging in, supporting running lines with a double-time rhythm in asymmetrical divisions, and an epic trumpet solo by Adam O'Farrill following nice chromatic chord changes. Also "Hoodwink" with modernist string quartet writing with spectral harmonics and a haze of dissonance. Halvorson enters with enchanting guitar arpeggiations, making a sumptuous texture. Halvorson later solos with intriguing pitch bendy effects and it ends with a great composed tag.Maxophone MaxophoneMcStine and Minnemann IIAn impressively executed album with diverse material. There are hints of Bob Drake, Mike Keneally and Zappa. Both McStine and Minnemann are wildly gifted. McStine has a good singing voice, although he's a little too stuck on that "working up the flemm" sound. Like he just ate a Snickers bar and washed it down with orange juice. Seriously though, there are some excellent songs and lots of ear tickling. Standout tracks: "I Don't Need It," in exciting running double time with altered mode runs - a lush and interesting short prog rock song and "Distant Bodies", a vigorous shuffle with a very cool drum break opportunity for Minnemann in the final instrumental stretch.Miles Davis MilestonesI have to admit to largely preferring Adderley's solos over Coltrane's for much of the album, because of Adderley's refined phrasing and articulation. But then when Coltrane kicks in on Straight, No Chaser, it's a whole different universe.Mr. Bungle Disco VolanteNeedlepoint Walking Up That ValleyThis Oslo-based band brings you charming neo-Canterbury wih a slightly forced hippie-dippie facade. Defiantly retro, the opening track could have come from Caravan's Waterloo Lily era. Singer/guitarist Bjørn Klakegg even has a vocal delivery that's a lot like Pye Hastings', but with Norwegian inflection. They're great players, but there's a slight sense of parody, as with Ring of Moebius or even Cheeto's Magazine. "I Offered You the Moon" is the highlight for me, featuring an intense but subdued synth lead by the gifted David Wallumrød and a breathtaking chordal climax at the end.Opeth DeliveranceParliament Mothership ConnectionParliament Up for the Down StrokePeter Gabriel MeltPorcupine Tree Closure/ContinuationRadiohead A Moon Shaped PoolSamla Mammas Manna FamiljesprickorThese Swedes have such an affable and approachable way of constructing hyper-intricate instrumental rock workouts it's hard to call them Rock In Opposition even though they're official members of the club. Lars Hollmer plays a lot of Yamaha electric grand. Since this album is contemporary with Genesis' Duke, it's interesting to compare the very different ways Banks and Hollmer use the instrument. Witness the quicksilver, hairpin arrangement of Kernel in Short and Long Casting, and the Bartok-like tritones and minor seconds of the opening track Five Single Combats. This is not a keyboard-lead ensemble though. Guitarist Eino Haapala delivers almost every major melody of the album and the crisp rhythm section shines in signature grooves like the industrial pump of The Forge.Sanguine Hum What We Ask is Where We Begin: The Songs for DaysScherzoo 05Scherzoo comes from the prog-infested environs of Lyon, France. As the title indicates, this is their fifth studio album. You'll find Canterbury-styled arrangements merged with the bluesy tritone flavor of Zeuhl. When throwing around the word Zeuhl, there's an expectation of assertive bass playing, and founding member Francois Thollot fills the role fantastically. There are two full-time keyboardists, so expect a lot of layering of chord voicings and ostinato riffs. However, they go for an electric piano-led sound that avoids wall-of-sound lushness. The spare sound of it comes across great when you turn it up loud. The mood is generally quizzical and enigmatic rather than diabolical and ominous. Shamblemaths Shamblemaths 2Simon Steensland Let's Go to HellSke InsolubiliaItalian synth wizard Paolo "Ske" Botta generously provides the world with another solo album to follow up the pretty amazing 1000 Autunni from 10 years ago. Insolubilia is a set of scintillating musical constructions inspired by left-brainy puzzle ideas. The compositions are arranged with an army of analog synths, organs and electric pianos, set on almost even ground with acoustic winds and strings. The balance of the rock band is his buddies from the great bands Yugen and Not a Good Sign. Some heavenly female vocals are another delight. Every crack and valley of the music seems to be filled with some kind of delicate little instrumental and textural detail. This is delicious stuff to mentally break apart and put back together again as you listen. It's an album to sit comfortably alongside other composerly, avant but melodic efforts of recent years from All Traps on Earth, Far Corner and October Equus.Steve Vai InviolateVai deserves a lot of credit for retaining a level of musical depth while succeeding in the world of stunt guitar. None of the pieces here go deep structurally or conceptually, but they're much more than just vehicles for shredding. There are some transcendent moments. He's good at tapping into a kind of celestial, transcendental mode - angelic chord changes for his swoops and dives.Sun Ra The Futuristic Sounds of Sun RaSupersister Present from NancySupersister To the Highest BidderTracks on this album are more extended and developed than on this Dutch group's previous release Present From Nancy. The opener "A Girl Named You" features super-tight, high-energy rhythm play and mischievous harmonic movement. In "No Tree Will Grow (On Too High a Mountain)" a spacious balled emerges from an ominous, guttural drone. "Energy (Out of Future)," which almost spans the second side of the album, starts as a triple-time march with free-form flute and traverses several episodes of varying wackiness and impressiveness. A final stretch of electroacoustic atmosphere segues into the final innocuous, melliflous track, "Higher." Beautiful, crisp production makes this album a treat to listen to.Thank You Scientist Plague AccommodationsThe Beatles Rubber SoulThe Beatles A Hard Day's NightThe Beatles Please Please MeThe Flower Kings IslandsTool ÆnimaToto DuneWobbler HinterlandA great sounding album, suitable for cranking up loud. It?s a descendant of the Stained Glass Stories/Symphonic Pictures vein of symphonic prog. Great playing and some exciting passages. Wobbler AfterglowThis second album has more of a fresh band identity than Hinterland did. Crisp production and some textures that go a little bit beyond retro cliches indicate that there?s at least an intent to develop their own voice. Deftly arranged renaissance music style passages are a new element. All instrumental except for a portion of the second track.Wobbler Rites at DawnListening through these first three Wobbler albums definitely gives an impression of going from strength to strength. Afterglow had more impact and immediacy than the debut. And then with the addition of singer Strømann Prestmo, they seem just totally jazzed to be alive on Rites at Dawn. in contrast to the mostly instrumental material of the first two albums, this is fairly carpeted with vocals, solo and harmony. The material is a bit simpler and more groove based to accommodate the big load of singing. In other words, there?s actual songwriting going on here. The renaissance period stylings of the previous album, Afterglow, aren?t followed up on this album. 3.5 great99 Names of God InterwovenAccordo dei Contrari UR-Albert Ayler Spiritual UnityAlco Frisbass Le Mystere du Gue PucelleAn all-instrumental album of nice-sounding instrumental prog. Really good musicians making really good music. Lots of big retro-ish synths. I?d be hard-pressed to choose one track over another, but maybe the funky Pulsar comes out best with its contrasting acoustic middle section. Axis (GR) AxisA very cool album that covers a lot of ground. It's first and foremost a showcase for a brilliant keyboardist, Demis Visvikis, who later became an established classical composer. I'd hazard a guess that he'd heard the basic works of Soft Machine, Egg, Mahavishnu and maybe Supersister, plus a good dose of free jazz. Most of the second side segues together. It has a wide palette. Visvikis uses the Mellotron in both expected and unconventional ways, and he's a wiz on the Rhodes and acoustic piano. His rhythm section provides great support. The bassist plays both electric and acoustic.Birth (USA-CA) BornA well-executed set of retro-symphonic prog. If Elder were 30 years older they might sound like this. As with Ring Van Mobius, Jordsjo, and others, the aim is to be a conduit of an archaic ethos. Self expression is secondary and might happen by accident. I didn?t hear much of it here. Born is a convincing forgery and achieves the purpose of excluding any element that might betray its true year of origin. Never mind that the age it evokes was an ultimate moment of innovation and change and all the instruments they?re playing and recording technology they use beat down the doors of convention and screamed to be further evolved. Metal Blade see this as an obvious marketing opportunity. We?ll see, but as much as this aesthetic is a bliss potion to its adherents and turned some tickets and wax in its day, it has proven stubbornly un-universal in its appeal. Who do they sound like? Maybe Sebastian Hardie on more qualudes or a Deep Purple-infused Nektar.Black Country, New Road Ants From Up ThereBladee x ECCO2K CrestBobby Hutcherson DialogueIn between the very accessible bookends of Catta and Ghetto Lights is a stunning variety of textures and approaches. It all comes together to make a great album of multifarious complementary parts. Although Hutcherson is the bandleader for this session, he didn't write any of the songs. Although Hill wrote most of the songs, he never takes a solo. Hill eschews doing any real soloing for the whole album. Even in the free improv he's content to supply foundation patterns. If you want to hear Hill take a solo, you have to go to the outtake from the same session, Jasper, included on some reissues.Caligonaut Magnified As GiantsCecil Taylor Unit StructuresCharles Mingus The Black Saint and the Sinner LadyCiccada HarvestCodice Alba y ocasoA pretty monumental symphonic prog album by this band from Mexico. Disc one has several songs of different types featuring especially the masterful acoustic guitar work of Marco Corona, who also wrote the bulk of the music. There?s lots of colorful synth arranging and a few vocal tunes with a more rocking feel. The second disc features a 50-minute, mostly instrumental suite called ?Iconos? custom made to satisfy those with a taste for the epic and for intricate but accessible prog arrangements.Coheed and Cambria Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking MindCrayon Phase Two Hundred PagesThis appealing album from Germany's Ruhr region offers robust symphonic prog with lots of cool changes. It's a plot-driven concept album, apparently about an amnesiac recruited to commit a crime. I'm reminded a lot of times of IQ's post-Subterranea music, or maybe the Ad Infinitum album from 1998. Keyboards are rich and thick and guitars have a bit of a metallic edge. The singer, Raphael Gazal has great pipes and a touch of Dennis DeYoung about him. Favorite tracks are "Turn of Fortune," with its memorable chorus hook and some very pretty music in the more subdued passage at the end; the action-packed "Paralyzed"; and "Retrospective," with its pastoral guitar and synth flute intro and a strong vocal performance by Gazal. Momentous-sounding and dramatic music.Cream Fresh CreamDavid Bowie LowDavid Bowie Station to StationDavid Bowie "Heroes"Death Grips The Money StoreDJ Shadow Endtroducing.....Dream Theater The AstonishingFrank Zappa The MOFO Project/ObjectFunkadelic One Nation Under a GrooveFunkadelic Maggot BrainFunkadelic Standing on the Verge of Getting It OnFunkadelic Free Your Mind...And Your Ass Will FollowFunkadelic FunkadelicFunkadelic America Eats Its YoungGary Numan IntruderDominated by musings about the connections between the living and the dead. Questions about God, frustrations about God, suspicions about God. Mostly in a post-industrial style somewhere between Trent Reznor and dark Peter Gabriel.Giant Sky Giant SkyStrikingly produced with some truly ravishing sounds and stunning arrangements. Good vocals evenly split between male and female. A moody quality that tempts one to apply the post-rock tag, especially with the diatonic movement along minor modes that happens so much of the time. A few instances of Berlin School style sequencing make for some dramatic textures. But there?s also extensive acoustic guitar in a melancholy early Anthony Phillips Genesis vein. Godspeed You! Black Emperor Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to HeavenGong ShamalHeretic (Brazil) FeastThis band from Goiânia, Brazil tends toward moody, slightly murky hard rock. The interesting aspect is keyboardist Guilherme Aguiar, who takes it upon himself to create atmosphere and fill musical space with several folk instruments of different cultures, including sitar, tabla, bouzouki and shennai. Despite the music's South American origin, the sound sounds Eastern-tinged in the vein of Ihsahn, and Heretic call themselves "oriental metal" on their Bandcamp page. Other than the double kick, there's not a lot of flashiness, although guest guitarists Thiago Tsuruda and Luis Maldonalle play mean solos on Tenderness" and "Sacred Sea." Vocalist Erich Martins evokes Dio a bit, and the songs are wordy but don't go out of their way to provide catchy hooks.Himera Sharing SecretsExtremely inventive synth music that is constantly evolving and traveling into new textures. This is the product of a restless spirit who refuses to be locked into a static state. When it does get rhythmic, it uses percussive pitched synth patches instead of drummy-drum sounds. Full of texture and cyber-fantasy. Lost me a bit with schmaltz at the final stretch of the album.Jethro Tull The Zealot GeneJohn Coltrane A Love SupremeJohn Coltrane The John Coltrane Quartet PlaysJohn Coltrane AscensionJohn Coltrane ImpressionsKanye West YeezusKraftwerk The Man-MachineKraftwerk AutobahnKraftwerk Kraftwerk 2Kraftwerk Ralf und FlorianLove Da CapoMarillion An Hour Before It's DarkMatt Berry The Blue ElephantBritish comedy star who played the misogynistic boss on The IT Crowd. He actually knows his way around a synth. In fact, he plays, guitar, bass, Moog, Mellotron, Farfisa, etc. Everything but the drums (drummer Craig Blundell shines on this album BTW). I remember reading an article in which Berry waxed about his Gong albums. The Blue Elephant is a really enjoyable and creatively produced album concentrating on groovy psychedelic textures. Any comedy content is of the understated "is he serious?" type. Mike Westbrook MetropolisA turn-of-the-70s take on big band, with a big dose of funk and a modicum of freedom. Combines a little free jazz, some funky grooves, hot solos and a couple of lovely ballads. Miles Davis Steamin' With the Miles Davis QuintetMostly Autumn Graveyard StarUnerringly professional AOR prog with a penchant for power ballads. Olivia Sparnenn-Josh is a very expressive singer and this album gives her several perfect opportunities to soar. For the first half of the album, it seems like there?s an effort to conjure up the music of the American West. Much of it?s just pretty though, with well-constructed songs that tend to build from quiet to loud.Motorpsycho The TowerOmnipotent Youth Society Inside the Cable TemplePapangu HolocenoParliament OsmiumParliament Chocolate CityParliament Funkentelechy Vs. the Placebo SyndromePatty Waters SingsThis remarkable singer and songwriter created an album full of personal meaning. The heartfelt and earthy ballads of Basho-like economy found on side A are more than noteworthy on their own. Then the single track that takes up 14 minutes on Side B offers up an avant-grade sound world that transcends weirdness and becomes a key moment in the history of ultra personal music making. She reflects the tone and poise of Nina Simone and Billy Holiday, but it?s easy for me to hear this album spinning out into the emotive guitar musings of Nick Drake?s Pink Moon, Bjork?s introspective techno world, Mark Hollis? Webern-like spaces and Hogarth?s self-explorations in later Marillion. Perhaps the exploratory vocal techniques of Captain Beefheart, Damo Suzuki and Gilli Smith reflect Patty Waters a little too.Phideaux Doomsday AfternoonPorcupine Tree Up the DownstairPraxis Transmutation (Mutatis Mutandis)Rahsaan Roland Kirk I Talk with the SpiritsRalph Towner Trios / SolosRichard Dawson and Circle HenkiHailing from Newcastle upon Tyne in England, Dawson is ostensibly a folk rocker with a literary style of lyric writing full of allusions that jump from present day to classical antiquity. The really cool Finnish experimental metal band Circle joins him as the backing combo, and it makes a great sound with a touch of sludge and occasional late 70s phat polysynth chords. On the Bandcamp page, Henki is billed as "the greatest flora-themed hypno-folk-metal record you?ll hear this year." Dawson tends toward longer song structures that embrace full on prog on this album. Somehow, he still maintains hip cred. His falsetto is likely to remind you of Robert Wyatt. Rick Wakeman The Red PlanetIn the midst of a discography that's famous for its high ratio of throwaway albums, one can't help cheering this guy on when he applies himself and comes up with a solid effort. Despite the ominous subject, there's a fair amount of Wakeman's light-hearted joking around. "Dedicated to all who would like to go to Mars and especially to those who are convinced that they have already been there." This is a very enjoyable album of pretty good instrumentals. The majority of it is memorable and substantial material. His band seems like they're having fun and the performances don't sound quantized to death. I especially liked the shadowy harmonic movement and creepy flute melody of Tharsis Tholus and the bouncy, Puckish theme of Pavonis Mons.Soen ImperialSun Ra The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Vol 1So it seems that Sun Ra was seriously concerned about the vastness of space and its divine nature. One might say was divorced from immediate reality and exquisitely attuned to a broader, more spiritually significant reality. If one is looking for an album of "other-worldly music" that makes a strong, cohesive statement, then you can't do much better than this. It begins with the two strongest tracks, "Heliocentric" and "Outer Nothingness", featuring mysterious textures of bass marimba and timpani, soliloquies, sudden hiatuses, and monumental trombone intrusions that evoke Varese. What these tracks don't have is much that sounds like jazz, although draped in the background from time to time you might hear a walking bass line or a light hi-hat swing, as if the players can't help themselves. In "Outer Worlds," a clumpy piano intro becomes a free-Dixieland morass, like colliding asteroids, with a spacy, gravity-defying episode of electric celesta. The B-side isn't as focused but still carries on exploring unknown destinations until the brief, sloppy free swing of the album closer, "Dancing in the Sun."Sun Ra The Magic CitySvarc Hanley Longhawn 20/21A competent instrumental prog fusion album by a trio based in Leeds, UK. Guitarist Nik Svarc has a teasing, cheeky style that incorporates a lot of dynamic contrast. The album starts with a dark and steamy electric piano groove that could have fit into Kohntarkhosz. The album has its funky moments, but keeps an understated cool that remained with me. There's no flashy bassist - keyboardist Martin Longhawn's left hand is more than adequate for their needs.Sylvan One to ZeroFrom Hamburg, a very good, slightly widdly neo-prog concept album (their 10th) with focused songwriting and a more than decent singer, Marco Gluhmann. As always, I'd rather he'd sung in their native German. The concept involves something about an A.I. trying to save the world. The music features a lot of swaying triple time with a sense of melancholy introspection. I liked that there were plenty of dynamics and the writing, and arrangements had some subtle sophistication. There's a touch of metallic crunch here and there, but only as seasoning.Tangerine Dream RaumTelevision Marquee MoonTerje Rypdal ConspiracySatisfying album by the Norwegian guitar hero. My top tracks were "As If the Ghost... Was Me!?" with hymn-like melodies over shimmering ride cymbal and the rocking title track with lots of distorted Hammond and a bit of Mahavishnu-like harmonic movement. Spacious enough for ECM and meaty at the same time. The Beatles Help!The Doors The DoorsThe Gathering Beautiful DistortionTommy Talamanca AtopiaTool 10,000 DaysTransatlantic The WhirlwindTransatlantic The Absolute UniverseTransatlantic The Absolute Universe...(Extended Version)Tubeway Army ReplicasTubeway Army Tubeway ArmyWitherfall Curse Of Autumn3.0 goodA Love Supreme Electric A Love Supreme and MeditationsDaniele Liverani IncompleteDrifting Sun Forsaken InnocenceBased in the UK, but started by a couple of Frenchmen, this is neo-prog that doesn't make its listeners work too hard. It might take you back to the old days of early Pallas and Pendragon. Pat Sanders delivers the synth sounds you'd expect, with some nice keyboard solos. The robust bass tone of the extremely prolific John Jowitt (IQ, Jadis, Frost*, Arena) is a welcome element. Funkadelic Cosmic SlopHey Colossus Four BiblesInjury Reserve By The Time I Get To PhoenixKanye West DondaKraftwerk Trans-Europe ExpressLiquid Sound Company Acid Music For Acid PeopleMagma Eskähl 2020 Bordeaux​-​Toulouse​-​PerpignanMatthew Shipp SignaturePianist Shipp forms a traditional acoustic jazz piano trio with bassist Michael Bisio and drummer Newman Baker. If you combine the discographies of the three of them, their arms seem to reach to every corner of the jazz landscape. This album of largely free constructions is atonal, but mostly very easy on the ears, exploring rather than inciting. There's a tendency toward the darkly lyrical, like in the wasted, open-interval landscapes of "Speech of Form" and the ruminating title track. But there are also Cecil-esque rolling rocks and boulders as in "Flying Saucer." Brief solo interludes for bass and drums are conceptual little sonic portraits rather than show-off slots. Nick Drake Pink MoonOrnette Coleman Ornette!Quasar Lux Symphoniae MitSigur Ros Agætis byrjunSiwan Nahnou HoumSpieglass JaanavarEight brief tracks that sound like a demo or statement of intent. By a musician who could do a great job scoring indie films or video games. He?s really good at constructing post-rock textures and writing a tear-your-head-off metal riff. The cinematic synthestra stuff is pretty well done too. Spiritualized Everything Was BeautifulTalking Heads Remain in LightThe Tangent Songs From the Hard ShoulderWilliam Parker Live / Shapeshifter2.5 averageAirbag A Day At The Beach2.0 poorThe Clash London Calling
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