Vulture Industries - The Tower

After reading Andrew's review on Ave Noctum of this CD I knew we might have a winner here. Comparing them with Arcturus I decided to find more information on them and soon a copy was ordered. Shortly hereafter Progpower announced the first bands for 2014 and there they were. When also Headway announced them  for next event I realized that supposing work trips are not frustrating my plans again, I might see them twice next year and I already am looking forward to these shows.

Apart from Arcturus I also read comparisons with Extol, Leprous and Faith no More. I agree with all names and you can paint the picture nicely using these names. Vulture Industries shall appeal to the slightly more adventurous prog metal fans. We go all over the place and eccentric vocals mix with widely varied speeds and Headphone requiring background noises. My favorites are the haunting The Hound, the "ballad" The Dead won't Mind and A Knife Between Us which contains one of the better line of 2013 "I'd love to love you, but there's a knife between us."

It is hard to describe the music really (at least to me it is), but I can imagine that live this band shall completely blow me away with a theatrical performance fitting nicely to the music.
Vulture Industries: Something to end the year on a high and to look forward to in 2014. 

Pallas crowdfunding Wearewhoweare

Some months ago I bought the last The Tangent album to find that I missed out on their crowdfunding campaign. As I do sympathize with these actions from bands I like, herewith a short link and recommendation to visit the Pallas campaign.

Pallas are a band that always delivers quality albums and shows with a progrock with hardrocking edges, so what is there to go wrong. I ordered the CD and tried to get the calendar along, but that did not really work through their site.

Have a look at the options, which run from GBP 2 for a download track to GBP 1000 for recording a song with the band (How great is that?)
The target is GBP 5000, so come on that should be easy. I just got a confirmation after my CD purchase that they are almost halfway.

A review of the album shall follow in April / May, now go and spend some pounds supporting great bands.
www.igg.me/at/pallas

Traumhaus - Das Geheimnis

German lyrics in music, not my everyday need really. Then I went through my collection and found a pattern. Usually in November I find one album in German that fits the time of year pretty well. Autumn, wind, rain and cold do seem the perfect background for my albums from Janus, Dornenreich, Goethes Erben, Lacrimosa or The Scorpions (no that is not English Mr. Meine) Usually the before mentioned bands (apart from The Scorpions who don't know they sing in German) make a dark rock with Gothic traces. This year I found a new German Band which adds a new dimension to my collection. A beautiful progressive rock concept album sung in German: Das Geheimnis by Traumhaus.

After the relative short opener Das Geheimnis Teil 1 we get one of the best epics of 2013 in Das Vermächtnis. 27 minutes full of solo's on guitar and keyboard passing in a wave. It actually makes you think, what if they would sing in English, they might be "big" in Progland. Well the booklet translates the German lyrics, but like Scandinavian prog that makes little sense to me since reading along doesn't work on a translated version (apart from my arrogance to believe I actually do understand German reasonably well, hallo Mr. Carell) After the Epic follows a ballad and the only band written song Frei, which is more uptempo. Closer is Das Geheimnis Teil 2, which is an extended version finishing the CD in style filled up again by great solo's.

Traumhaus seem to exist many years, but only released 3 CD's so far. I heard their album first through Progstreaming after reading good reviews and it shows Progstreaming works. I followed their slogan: Hear it, Like it, Buy it. Anyone not bothered by the German lyrics and rather flat vocals, while appreciating symphonic rock with some progmetal leanings, should surf now to Progstreaming it is still available for free listening.

The Room - Open Fire

Sometimes you buy a CD. like it and don't play it that often. Than later you pick it up again, give it a spin with headphones on and start realizing it is a great album. This happened to me with the debut CD of The Room: Open Fire. Somewhere blending Prog, AOR, classic and pomp rock I love the style on display and the songs are really easy on the ear, while also showing new dephts with new listenings.

Highlights are all around, but the threatening slow built up of 16 tonnes is one of my personal faves, as well as a Multitude of Angels, which is a great melodic rock song. Actually all nine songs have their moments and going from ballad to more uptempo work there is enough variety to enjoy the 56 minutes in one go.

The members all have different backgrounds in music and to me only vocalist Martin Wilson and gitarist Steve Anderson were known from their previous (or paralel?) band Grey Lady Down. So here we have yet another British band that sounds very convincing and as I am heading for HRH Prog/AOR festival next year in Wales they might to me appear on either stage. Highly recommended for anyone liking either, prog, pomp, aor or classic rock (speaking about huge potentials)

Queensryche - Effenaar Eindhoven 1 November 2013

The story is known, Queensryche were in the eighties one of the best bands around and one of the founders of Progmetal as we know today. The first three albums can be considered Classics in the genre and ironically enough their best selling album Empire was their first hint of loosing "it". Promised Land raised our hopes again, but hereafter some very disappointing and some reasonable albums were released. Geoff Tate also showed through the years that he could not reach his old form anymore, which even started impacting live setlists and styles on new albums. So yesterday the Effenaar was packed with people hoping to see that new vocalist Todd la Torre would make the eighties come back to live. And wishes can come true, since we saw a very convincing Todd on vocals and easily the best Queensryche show since the early nineties.

The band opened smart with Queen of the Reich. Their hit from the debut EP long disappeared from live shows and did set the pace, the vocals and the atmosphere. Standing fairly far to the back I could notice the whole place was more than a bit pleased noticing old Queensryche are back. Hereafter we got Speak and Walk in the Shadows and basically nothing could go wrong anymore. We were taken on a trip along the first 4 albums and some of my favorites like The Needle Lies or Roads to Madness passed by. It was also nice to see and hear that the three songs from their last album blended in easily, without any remarkable drop in quality. Actually it was nice to see that the ballad Silent Lucidity was dropped and replaced by the new slowsong A World Without. Definitely hope for the future. If I have to make one small complaint it should be that one of their lesser songs Jet City Woman still made it to list even as an encore (I thought this a Geoff Tate fave, due to easy vocal lines) The fact that hereafter they ended the show like any Queensryche show should end with Take Hold of The Flame, made all ending on the same high as they started. Apart from all fans present I even got the impression that the band were enjoying the evening a lot.

So Queensryche are back and we can only hope that they find inspiration for releasing many more new albums. For their live shows in the future they still have many oldies to surprise us with, so variation should not be a problem. I did see Todd La Torre two years ago already putting the Glory back into Crimson Glory. Now he managed to do the same with Queensryche. Concluding I can only state that the American judges never saw such an easy case, when (if) they ever shall decide who should keep the name. Just ask any fan. Queensryche over the past twenty years had this habit of auto-destruction. With the new CD and now this tour they regained all goodwill build up in the eighties.

Fates Warning - Darkness in a Different Light

After nine years they release a new album, two weeks later they start their European tour with two shows in Holland to promote the new album and work sends me abroad. The hit was well placed and took some time to recover, but the album got me over it. So Fates Warning  is back and I can add with a blow. After their last albums showed some flirtation with electronics and special effects this time it is all about guitars.

The hurried opening riff of One Thousand Fires makes this one  that live should come over just great to get everyone started (as I won't know due to....) One off their better riffs ever and a great song to open. Firefly I saw live one year ago, but did not recognize immediatey. A catchy song almost as good as the opener. Desire starts calm, but then tempoes up during the droning in your own desire, after another duo like that the song moves heavier; great song. Then follows a ballad in Falling. Unfortunately a very short one, but what a voice Ray Alder still has. Such emotion makes this song absolutely beautiful. Strange enough his voice is the reason why many people do not rate FW that high. To me he is one of the (if not the) best vocalists around. The short moment of rest is followed by yet another uptempo song I Am. Probably the most catchy chorus to shout along: I Am tearing Walls Down. Lighthouse is about a broken relationship and has a dark melancholic atmosphere about it carried again by Ray Alder's raw edged voice. Lyrically it is also good to realize that the lighthouse always waits for you. Into the Black hits hard again for the contrast and has some off the better riffs of the CD. Kneel and Obey for me could be on FWX as one of the heavy songs, atmospheric yet heavy enough. O Chloroform adds Kevin Moore to the writers team and moves somewhat into OSI directions to me, untill vocals kick in that is when we are back in known territories. Closer is by far the longest song And Yet it Moves, but to me also the only disappointment on the CD. Not that the parts are bad (apart from the too long folky guitar intro) it just is not what you expect when you see Fates Warning including a song of 14 minutes. You hope on a new Eleventh Hour, Still Remains or APSOG and actually get very much like Marillion sometimes does several bits and pieces glued together, without being one epic song really. Still as I said the parts are OK, so nowhere near a deception to end Darkness in a Different Light.

This CD is supposed to go back to releases of the eighties and I can see what is meant by that. Still the catchiness and way of the last albums are also very present. The best conclusion can only be that it is a typical Fates Warning album, which means that hardly anyone shall release a better album this year There might be no epic song as we came to know and love from Fates Warning this time, but in return we do get various catchy heavy songs with an edge. Great album and while you get your copy go for the special edition. The extra CD gives an extended Firefly, Falling Further is a different version of the short ballad and in One and Life in Still Water we get the show openers from the last years performed live at Progpower USA.
   

Fish - A Feast of Consequences

While the blog went quiet due to an annoying worktrip which made me miss Progpower I did find a small highlight upon return home. The special edition of A Feast of Consequences arrived by mail. And a special edition is a good description here. 100 pages booklet with foreword, lyrics and flooded with artwork of the long time Fish collaborators Mark & Julie Wilkinson. Going through the booklet before even hearing the album is already worth the money spend. The number of great drawings never ends and the information is plenty. Also did I manage to see the additional DVD with a making of, explanation of song themes as well as live performances of the songs in an earlier phase. If ever a special edition was recommended it is this one, but no it does not fit in your CD rack.

As CD's thrive about the music some words are necessary on that as well. Some weeks ago I saw Fish live in Paradiso and wrote the Fish is back. After hearing the CD now a few times I can repeat that line. I believe this one in time shall stand proudly in his top three best albums next to Vigil and Sunsets on Empires. The Opening track Perfume River is epic like on a trip to Vietnam. We get the slow introduction and and upgrade in tempo. All Loved up is his big finger up to all those participants in X Factor, Idols and whatever shit around. People who never got the idea that artists have to create something not copy. Blind to the Beautiful is a dark ballad on changing environment, which never seems to be admitted. The title track is a catching more uptempo song and brings us to the centre of the album the 5-song divided on the theme of WWI. In Holland this war passed by in reality and so also on our history lessons. For Fish this subject is very personal as both his grandparents went to this war. He visited the trenches at High Wood. I remember the impressive images live accompanying this song and probably it deserves a place among the alltime highlights in his career. Other side of me is passing slowly by with a more spoken lyric building up to a more expressive solo, by the modestly present Robin Boult on guitar. Closer The Great Unravelling is another orchestral ballad like song with some nice melodies.

So Fish is back. Lyrically at the usual poetic level we came to love from him. This time not a relationship album as he mentions on the DVD we do get some food for thought. His voice is of course not as powerful as over thirty years ago, but the expression is still very much there. Anyone who gave upon on Fish along the years give this album a try, as stated above I believe this one ranks among his best as well as the highlights of 2013. For fans of Mark Wilkinson (like me) he also shows about his best work ever, although the jester and his symbolism shall never be met again. Closing therefore with the Fish out of Perfume River recommended not to eat by pollution.