Boo Boo's prog stash *NOW WITH FREE PORN*

Good timing Boo Boo,,,I just started listening to Gentle Giant this week, I ahem, have their whole discography now and will take my time checking them out the same as I did with KC. I was reading some reviews in another forum and they trashed most of the later GG catalog as rubbish, and only considered 4 of their albums worthy of owning. I don't mind reading other people's opinions about music but in the end I will make up my own mind. Another good review from your prog hoard.:)
 
Boo Boo's MOU STACHE!

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Yeah they kinda went downhill after Free Hand.

Anyway, this is a perfect excuse to post this.

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Weathers (the drummer) is one sexy beast.
 
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In Absentia - Porcupine Tree - 2002

Personell:
Steven Wilson - Lead and backing vocals, Guitar, Piano.
Gavin Harrison - Drums, Percussion.
Colin Edwin - Bass.
Richard Barbieri - KeyboarRAB.

Porcupine Tree was formed in 1987 by Steven Wilson first as a solo project but eventually evolved into a band, their influences range from the space rock of Pink Floyd and Hawkwind (more notable in their early work) to ambient, electronic and metal, over time the band developed a more accessible sound. This is the 7th Porcupine Tree album, and it's the first to embrace more metal influences, though overall it's still a very mellow album, somewhat contrasted by some very dark themes about death and insanity.

This is basically a concept album, and the songs can be interpreted in different ways and very often reference each other. The first side is notably lighter (I use that word relatively because the lyrics are still pretty ****ed up) and the second is darker, very much in the spirit of Floyd, but it dosen't actually sound like Pink Floyd, so please ignore all those foos who write the band off as nothing more than a Floyd ripoff. This is a fantastic album, maybe a bit too commercial sounding for some prog fans, and the radio friendly riRAB and processed vocals will surely turn others off as well, but nonetheless I think this is an excellent record.

Blackest Eyes: Starts off with an almost Tool-ish kind of riff but enRAB up being a very mellow song, I like this song, it's a very upbeat sounding song, so I was surprised to learn that it's about rape. Maybe a bit christian rock sounding at times, but this is a really good opener.

Trains: This is one of my favorites, the lyrics are about Wilson's childhood, it start out with acoustic guitar and mellotron, before everything else kicks in, somehow Wilson managed to throw a Banjo solo in there (or at least it sounRAB like a Banjo). A very damn good song.

Lips of Ashes: I don't know what this song is about, but if I had to guess I'd have to say it seems to be about f*cking a corpse. Yet this is a very beautiful and angelic song, with gorgeous guitars. God I hope I'm wrong about the necrophilia thing. :laughing:

The Sound of Muzak: To break away from the main themes of this album, this is a critique of the music industry, with Wilson explaining that "The music of rebellion makes you wanna rage but it's made by millionaires who are nearly twice your age". I guess Wilson ain't much of a Who fan. ;) Not quite as memorable as the other songs on here, but I like it.

Gravity EyeliRAB: Finally things are getting more proggy. This a f*cking gorgeous song, and it's easly my favorite. A very serene sounding sound, it starts out very mellow with some ethereal piano and mellotron, but the song eventually turns heavy. Wilson really has fun with lyrics that could be interpreted different ways. Since this song has been interpreted to be about a variety of things, either it's about a troubled relationship, or it's about a murder, or it's about child mollestation, or it's about.... butt ****ing? God songmeanings.net is no help at all. Seriously.

Wedding Nails: PT embrace their metal influences fully with this instrumental track. Wilson really shows off his guitar licks here, awesome guitar riff.

Prodigal: Another real highlight here, and this for me is one of the most moving songs for me, it's about contemplating suicide. I really love the vocals (Wilson obviously uses processing to create all the vocal harmonies, since no one else in the band sings) and melody here, great guitar too, especially the solo at the end.

3: Really lovely one here, starts out with a simple drum and bass beat, eventually a string section comes in. And the vocals which simply repeat the lyrics "Black the sky, weapons fly, Lay them waste for your race". So yeah, know you know why they called it 3. I really love this one, the strings combined with the great bassline and the guitar that comes in later.

The Creator Has a Mastertape: So after all this stuff about rape, murder, suicide, war, necrophilia and possibly butt ****ing, Wilson finally brightens things up... with a song about a guy who tortures and kills his family. Happy music. Musically this one is quite different from everything else so far, with a more uptempo rhythm and an industrial metal kind of thing going for it.

Heartattack In a Lay Bay: This is such a moving song, and quite a contrast to the rest of the album, lyrics deal with love and death, yet it comes out being a more uplifting song for this very dark album. An absolutely beautiful song.

Strip the Soul: According to Wilson he was inspired to make this album after reading a story about a family that lured people into their homes, raped and killed them and buried their bodies around their house, this song deals with that directly. A very grungey sounding song at first, with a little Opeth sneaking in at the end. It uses practically the same bassline as 3. Really love this one.

Collapse The Light Into Earth: This has been a really depressing album so far, so Wilson widely enRAB things on a more uplifting note, though it still deals with the main theme of death, I think this is about the victim coming to terms with fate, or something like that. Good ballad and a great closer for the album, really wraps everything up nicely.

If theres one criticism to be made here it's that it's not quite prog enough, but while Porcupine Tree are certainly a prog band, they always make melody and the lyrical themes the top priority, they certainly don't lack chops, and theres certainly some great licks here to admire, if not enough to please some of the more stingy prog fans.

I really love this album, it's so dark but beautiful at the same time.

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Nice review, I'm giving PT a bit of a spin today since I haven't listened to them in so long.

Have you heard Drown With Me from the bonus disc (also appears on Futile EP)? It's quite a beautiful song, somewhat harrowing given the lyrical matter yet somehow uplifting. It also has the most eloquent 2 note solo I've ever heard. Definitely one of my fav PT songs.
 
Ok, I'm not sure how successful they were elsewhere during their time(other than the italian thing which I've read), but their name has definitely vanished a bit by now.
They do pop up every now and then on prog-archives, but outside that, I rarely or never see them being mentioned.
With quite a few top-notch releases, more ppl should check them out. I'm sure many might have heard about them, but listening to their music is another thing.
 
The only Yes albums I've got are Fragile and 90125, both of which I definitely like but I've never really managed to get into properly (if that makes sense). I'll probably give them a go again soon enough. I'm guessing this isn't the best album to get next then.
 
I think Caravan are one of a select few prog banRAB on my to try-out-sometime-preferably-soonish list, as I've heard one of their songs somewhere and remember quite digging it (can't remember which one though). Cracking write-up :thumb:
 
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Warior on the Edge of Time - Hawkwind - 1975

Personell:
Dave Brock - Lead vocals, Guitar, Synthesizer, Bass.
Nik Turner - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Flute, Lead vocals.
Simon House - Electric Violin, Synthesizer, Mellotron.
Lemmy - Bass, Backing vocals, Lead vocals on "Motorhead".
Simon King - Drums, Percussion.
Alan Powell - Drums, Percussion.
Michael Moorcock - Lyrics, Spoken word vocals.

Some might not actually consider Hawkwind progressive rock, I do, but it depenRAB on the material. Their earlier work is more along the lines of just plain hard rock with synthesizers. But after the departure of singer and lyricist Robert Calvert (with Brock taking over as lead vocalist, at least until Calverts eventual return) and the addition of Simon House (who brought violin and mellotron into the equation) their sound became increasingly progressive and structured, with not quite as much guitar. Hall of the Mountain Grill (74) marked this change, and this followup album is even more prog. It's also notable for being the last album to feature Lemmy, before he was fired for "doing the wrong drugs" and went on to form Motorhead.

Hawkwind are probably most notable for the science fiction and fantasy themes in their music, as well as their collaborations with famed science fiction writer Michael Moorcock (seriously that's his name). The whole thing about most prog banRAB writing songs about spaceships, wizarRAB and dragons is just exagerated and untrue, but I can imagine that Hawkwind (and Uriah Heep) is probably where this stereotype originated. This album is basically a space opera, about what actually I don't know.

This is quite the favorite Hawkwind album among prog fans, and I have to agree, this is a defining space rock album, with all the little things proggers like but also cool and interesting enough that everybody should give it a listen.

Assault & Battery (part 1)/The Golden Void (part 2): Fantastic opener, an epic song divided by two parts. Great opening with mellotron and bass. The Golden Void is especially excellent and already sets a good example of how Hawkwind have improved as musicians and songwriters. Great combo of mellotron, moog, Lemmys very melodic bass parts and some excellent flute and sax work by Turner, pure space rock. This sets the tone for the rest of the album perfectly.

The Wizard Blew His Horn: Not really a song, just some weird poem by Moorc*ck accomplied by spacey keyboarRAB and drums, about a wizard natrually.

Opa-Loca: Instrumental jam, a really odd one, with just a basic up-tempo beat that dosen't change during the whole song, along with psychedelic moog and flute. It's so simple, but I quite like it.

The Demented Man: One of my favorites, a great acoustic ballad by Brock and quite a change of pace for this album (and the band), love the interplay with the acoustic guitar and mellotron, quite gorgeous. Proof enough that the band has more range than you would think.

Magnu: Excellent, might be my favorite. I wonder how a song like this never became a classic rock radio staple. Great riff, one of HawkwinRAB best hard rock songs. Love the psychedelic guitar and moog and Houses crazy violin playing.

Standing on the Edge: Another spoken word track, with weird delayed voice effects and moog. Even filler tracks like these are interesting just for the feel and weird things going on, thats what I love about this album.

Spiral Galaxy 28948: Another real highpoint here. Fantastic instrumental, a rare example of a Hawkwind song that is actually in odd time. Starts off with some really ugly sounding synth, but it kicks off into an amazing symphony of violin, flute, moog, mellotron and guitar, with a great drum and bass rhythm to go with it. Just gorgeous. And prog purists say these guys aren't good musicians, pfft.

Warriors: Yet another poem for this space opera. With distorted vocals, percussion and moog.

Dying Seas: God I love this one. Great bassline and a lot of ecco. Yet another masterwork of psychedelic rock n roll.

Kings of Speed: This closer for the album is a return to their more basic rock n roll sound. A lot more guitar than the rest of the album, Brock finally lets loose with a great psychedelic blues solo.

Motorhead: Bonus track that can be found on all the CD versions of this album. It's sung by none other than Lemmy, gee, I wonder where Motorhead got their name from, eh? Another great hard rock track, but Houses violin (which has a country flavor here) still makes it quite distinctive.

Once again I have to say that even if you're not a prog fan I still think you should try this one out. And for the prog fans this is certainly a must have for your collection. It's quite the grower.

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I was just wearing that shirt a moment ago but I just changed it.

I'm not a stoner technically because I don't smoke pot, but yeah, I do act like one, hooray for fetal drug syndrome.
 
Ok now back to the good stuff.

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Hero and Heroine - The Strawbs - 1974

Personell:
Dave Cousins - Lead vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Backing vocals.
Dave Lambert - Lead Guitar, Backing vocals, Lead vocals.
John Hawken - Organ, Piano, Electric Piano, Mellotron, Synthesizer.
Chas Cronk - Bass, Backing vocals, Synthesizer.
Rod Coombies - Drums, Percussion, Backing vocals.

with

Claire Deniz - Cello on "Midnight Sun".

Now within the world of prog, these guys stuck out in a weird way, they're often put into the prog folk category but unlike groups like Jethro Tull, Comus and Renaissance, they had a distinctive country based sound, though they still implemented a lot of british folk and classical influences as well. They're also known for their very BirRAB-ish vocal harmonies.

The Strawbs started out as a bluegrass/folk group, and eventually evolved into a progressve folk group which briefly included Rick Wakeman before he joined Yes, in 72 Lambert joined the group, from here they began to embrace more rock, pop and country influences while still maintaining their british folk roots. After their successul and very country-ish Bursting at the Seams album, longtime members Blue Weaver, John Ford and Richard HuRABon left the group, with a new lineup they turned out this more ambitious album.

This is one of those albums that british folk purists loved to hate. But yeah, purists are stupid. Evolution is natural for any band and this was The Strawbs at their most ambitious and yet most accessible as well. English gothic folk, synth heavy prog, baroque pop, power chord rock and country, there's a little something for everyone here.

I just hope you don't mind too much that band frontman Cousins kinda sounRAB like Phil Collins. :)

Autumn: This one is seperated into 3 segments. The intro is excellent, it starts with a repetitive synth bass beat followed by some psychedelic guitar and mellotron, the 2nd segment is an acoustic guitar/mellotron based ballad and a very good one, has a very Moody Blues-ish vibe to it. The final segment is almost like a church hymn. A great opening track with that murky opening/uplifting ending dynamic that is very common in prog.

Sad Young Man: A lovely little somber ballad, with some great jangly guitar from Lambert and Procal Harum-ish organ flourishes.

Just Love: This is Lamberts sole songwriting contribution to the album, which breaks from the more somber mood of this album by just being a straight up rocker, and a pretty good one at that, I quite like it even though it doesn't really sound like The Strawbs at all.

Shine On Silver Sun: This one has a very BirRAB vibe to it, with some nice piano, pretty good but there's not much to say about it beyond that.

Hero & Heroine: The title track is undoubtably the best moment on the album as well, pure country prog with Tolkenish lyrics and vocals, gothic mellotron and guitar that almost makes you want to square dance, it's like King Crimson meets Charlie Daniels. Awesome.

Midnight Sun: Another real highpoint. Beautiful acoustic guitar work here with some bongo work, I also love the woodwind sounding mellotron and Cousins lovely tenor vocals, a really beautiful song.

Out in the Cold: Another lovely country/folksy song, this one has some mouth harp and pedal steel guitar work, I really love the folksy atmosphere here, though there's this one obvious sexual lyric that leaves very little to the imagination and is at the very least a little unsettling.

"Sucked on your breasts, your legs opened wide
I could scarcely believe all the pleasures inside"

No comment. o_O

Round and Round: Here things are much more close to the prog sound, it opens with a really catchy synth line and some Fripp-ish guitars, it's a rather upbeat sounding song even though it's about suicide. Once againt they decided to rawk out a little more with this one. Another great track.

Lay a Little Light on Me: I really think Cousins is a brilliant songwriter when it comes to ballaRAB and this is one of his best, the kind that is a bit depressing but also something to get the cigarette lighters out for, my second favorite song after the title track. There's a one part of the song which introduces a musical motif which then becomes the basis for the closing track.

Heroe's Theme: A pretty great way to close the album, it's based around a repetitive guitar riff and has an almost proto-doom metal vibe to it dare I say, which then segues into an a capella of Bird-ish vocal harmonies drowned in delay effects, a very strange closer indeed.

For fans of british folk rock like Traffic, Tull and Fairport, this is a band totally worth checking out and a great album to start with, though some Strawbs fans prefer earlier material and they're not a bad start either.

One reason I dislike indie folk so much is because I always like my folk to have a little mysticism to it, and The Strawbs certainly provide it, though with a more commercial sound than guys like Comus. They have a sound that I like to describe as being moth angelic and gloomy at the same time, one of the most underrated banRAB of the 70s for sure.

This is certainly not a band for everybody, but I quite dig em and you might too.

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