Artist: Carl Palmer Title: “Working Live” Volume 3 Label: Eagle Records Release Date: 10/19/2010 Genre: Progressive Rock Rating: 3.75/5
If you have ever enjoyed the legends of Progressive Rock then you already know the name of Carl Palmer for he is quite possibly one of the best drummers alive and still currently active. He came to notoriety with the band Emerson, Lake and Palmer and together the trio changed the framework of how Progressive Rock was going to move forward and have forever remained an influence to both fans and artists alike. The CD “Working Live” Volume 3 continues to showcase what Palmer is up to nowadays as a musician and it’s a very interesting thing to take a listen to based on just how Palmer and his trio are delivering the music. Although the master skin basher is working with a three piece group there is no keyboardist and instead a guitar god in the making in Paul Bielatowicz and the bassist Simon Fitzpatrick. The compositions presented are strictly instrumentals and we get a wide career spanning sample of them across the single disc release but if you are expecting the same sound you are accustomed to with traditional ELP then you are in for a surprise with this. I caught Carl a few years ago in concert when he was doing this show in NYC and I had to say that the use of the guitar gave these time honored tracks a whole new feel and life. I was a little on the fence with them because I had grown up with ELP as a favorite band but after a few numbers I enjoyed what I was experiencing. He is an awesome guitarist that brings a lot of talent to the table. He is also very young and displays a technique not often visible in someone of his age group. It was like listening to a younger Alan Holdsworth. Continue reading “Working Live” Volume 3 by Carl Palmer→
Artist: Magma Venue: Highline Ballroom (New York, NY) Opener: n/a Date: 9/20/2010 Label: Seventh Records
Every once in awhile you hit a show being held by a band that although having been around for a number of years and having a teeming and devoted fan base, is a group that you walk into the show blind about. Such would be the case for me when it came to the band Magma, who is a Progressive Rock band that hails from France. They’ve been around since 1969 and were founded by the bands drummer Christian Vander. Since their inception they have released about thirty albums when one adds up the entire studio, live and compiled works. Oh yes, and there is one more thing about them – they sing in their own language. That might not strike you as strange since many bands from other countries do this, but the folks in Magma sing in a language of their own creation and that is Kobaian. This was surely going to be an interesting night for me since I was not only clueless about their material but had no idea what Kobaian was all about either. The show was happening at the Highline Ballroom which I felt was the perfect choice for the event and it would be done in front of a mostly seated audience. My friends and I arrived early enough to get comfortable and we were greeted on the street of the venue by people who were looking for tickets to get in. Could it be sold out? I thought to myself and yes indeed it had. I guess it makes sense in retrospect given the fact that the band seldom gets over here. Continue reading Magma @ Highline Ballroom (9/20/2010)→
Artist: Three Friends Venue: B.B. King Blues Club (New York, NY)
Opener: Kenny Forgione from Wonderous Stories Date: 6/21/2010 Label: Independent Artist
While I like to consider myself a person who appreciates and understands the Progressive Rock movement, I have to admit that I really don’t know a whole lot about it outside of several of its mainstays. Over the years I have listened to and enjoyed the likes of Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Yes, Marillion, classic Genesis and of course Renaissance but there was one influential band that I did not have the most background on at all and their name was Gentle Giant. Originally active from around 1970 to 1980, the band was one that pushed the acceptable boundaries in Progressive Music by having multi-instrumentalists in their roster and always raising the musical bar with what they were presenting to their fans. Of course the band broke up long ago and its members never truly reunited despite some of their number having interest in doing so. Fast forwarding to today’s music realm we find a band calling themselves Three Friends forming and playing the music of Gentle Giant for all to enjoy. This would work based on its membership roster having three members of the band in Gary Green, Malcolm Mortimer and Kerry Minnear. The show would be at B.B. King Blues Club which is of course the perfect venue for something like this and would have Kenny Forgione of the band Wonderous Stories opening up for them. Here is how the night went down.
Kenny Forgione (Wondrous Stories): Musician Kenny Forgione who hails from the aforementioned band Wonderous Stories is not a stranger to many Progressive Rock fans from the region based on the level of musical delivery he brings to the table and how many gigs he plays in a given month. Admittedly, I’ve only caught that band once and that was several years ago when they opened up for Zebra at the now closed Downtown club but I was happy to see him performing for the crowd this evening. Investigation found me learning that Kenny was originally only supposed to do an acoustic set but as the show approached the premise changed and instead we got something a little more interesting and much more suitable for this particular crowd. The band Wonderous Stories is known best for playing classic Yes but this evening the guitarist would present a set of Peter Gabriel era Genesis and begin with “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway”. It was killer to see it done so well and this would be followed by “Blood On The Rooftops”. Sadly the next song would be his last but it would be the epic “Supper’s Ready” which is a long tune and when it was announced the audience collective gasp of shock could be felt at every corner of the venue. After the set I spoke to the keyboard player who mused how nice it was to play such a tune for an audience that got it 100%. The band was comprised of Kevin McAn (electric guitar), Kenny Friedman (keyboards), Harold Skeete (bass) and Gregg Bendian (drums). McAn and Forgione are actually founding members of Wonderous Stories and while not considered “official members”, both Friedman and Skeete are regular players with the group. Drummer Bendian tours with Mahavishnu and The Musical Box, that pre-eminent Genesis tribute band that I am still hoping to catch one day. From beginning to end this was an impressive opening set and one that would likely go over well on its own perhaps at a venue like The Highline Ballroom or as an opener to someone like Fish at this very place. Now it was time for Three Friends and my musical education would continue.
Three Friends: I mentioned how the band was made up of three former members of Gentle Giant with Green, Mortimer and Minnear but sadly by the time this enterprise reached NYC, Minnear was no longer a part of the lineup and had left for personal reasons. Without being curt that would make the band be more like “Two Friends” now but I digress. Another interesting turn of events would be when the bands dedicated singer Mick Wilson (of 10CC) was not going to be able to perform the US dates and instead we would find Pierre Bordeleau in his place along with Roger Carey (bass) and John Donaldson (keyboards). I guess the border patrol was once again more concerned with travelling musicians as opposed to actual terrorists but let me stop with that comment. It would be interesting to see how Pierre sang the material once delivered by singer Derek Shulman because the singer had such a unique register. The original band featured both Derek and his brother Ray but to my knowledge neither of them adventures into music performance nowadays.
The seated show was very well-attended and if you’ve never experienced a true Prog-Rock gig, you should know how the audience remains at such a silence during each tune as they absorb every melody. They only come to visible life when the song ends and the musicians appear ready for their applause. It’s quite interesting to observe and much different from the chaos often found in the populace that hit the Metal shows I primarily attend. The band was definitely on their mark this evening and began with a brief into that led us into “Three Friends”, a very appropriate choice as an early tune since this was also their name. Guitarist Green was all smiles at the reception the band was getting and acted as their main spokesman this evening. He spoke softly when he felt it was a necessity and instead let the bands music captivate our senses more than idle chit chat. Clearly the mission statement for tonight was to best present the material from the iconic band and not worry about fluff. The band was tight and this was an expectation of mine coming in because you cannot be a Progressive band and have the notes go in all directions without coming to a single point and according to some friends who were with me at the show, the repertoire did not focus on any single body of work and instead was a wide gamut of resource from across albums like “Gentle Giant”, “Acquiring the Taste”, “Three Friends”, “Octopus”, “In A Glass House”, “Power & the Glory”, and “Free Hand”. I was also told that “I Lost My Head” came from the bands most “recent” work “Interview”. I say “recent” and mean the album released closest to where we are today.
The drumming of Malcolm Mortimore was great and he seemed to be executing the songs once done by John Weathers rather well. Malcolm was only on the “Three Friends” album while Weathers played on the rest. His style was clearly a little more straight forward than Weather’s was but still a pleasure to watch as he has some complexity to his technique as well. Focusing on the vocals again I had to say that while possessing a different register from what Gentle Giant fans have long known in this material, that Pierre was really impressive. He was to be commended for coming to the bands assistance so late in the touring plan and for getting all his melodies in order for the bands audience. This would be the second and final night of the bands brief US visit. They played over the past weekend at the popular Prog event NEAR Fest but after the amps went off in New York City this band would go away for a little while. My favorites from the night came by way of “Free Hand”, “Giant” and “In A Glass House” since I had some more knowledge on those than most of the rest. It was okay by me since that let me absorb all that the band was about a little differently than I am able to usually. Truly one cannot be the expert of every band and every genre out there. It’s just impossible but if you are such a person perhaps we shall see you on Jeopardy.
The gig ended with the audience on their feet and the band accepting this much deserved attention. Although this was not packed to the very doorway there were only a couple of tables empty to speak of. One had to wonder if many of the audience around us had also attended NEAR Fest but if some folks passed on the NYC based on that they were clearly at a loss since this place gives off such a different vibe. I know the band mingled about with the fans a little afterward which was nice to see but I wasn’t sure if the bands former singer Derek Shulman was among the crowd tonight. Having seen him at shows in the past I glanced around the venue to see if he was around somewhere but alas he did not appear to be. I am sure that his presence would have been like Paul Stanley coming out to an Ace Frehley gig which means there would have been quite a stir wherever he ended up. There is also a chance that he doesn’t support the project at all and if this is the case I have only one response – Gentle Giant reunion/fare thee well tour. It’s as simple as that.
All in all this was a great time and as mentioned an education in material that I didn’t know enough about. This was also my third time in the B.B. King’s venue in a matter of four days. Tomorrow would be my fourth visit as Uriah Heep was paying the city that never sleeps a visit. Stay tuned.
Kenny Forgione Set List:
1. Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
2. Blood On The Rooftops
3. Suppers Ready
Three Friends Set List:
1. Intro/Prologue
2. Three Friends
3. Playing The Game
4. The Advent of Panurge
5. Empty City
6. Just The Same
7. Pantagruel’s Nativity
8. I Lost My Head
9. Proclamation/Valedictory
10. The Boys In The Band
11. His Last Voyage
12. In A Glass House
13. Schooldays
14. Mister Class & Quality
15. Free Hand
16. Giant
I always love when I get to see a band perform at a particular club for the very first time. That being said, here is the bright marquee from B.B. King’s as it aims to draw more Progressive’s into the room. Of course I am speaking of those with Progressive as their musical mind and nothing else.
Three Friends among Many Friends
My colleagues and I were afforded some time with the band backstage at the venue and were kind enough to let me snap these moments for all the rest of the world to enjoy. Here’s a nice group shot.
Three Friends: Pierre, Malcolm, Gary, and John
We didn’t know where bassist Gary had stepped off to when this shot was taken but were happy to get their fill in singer Pierre Bordeleau, Malcolm Mortimore (drums), Gary Green (guitar) and John Davidson (keyboards) in the shot.
Three Friends: Malcolm, Gary and John
This next one gets most of the Three Friends along with openers Kenny Forgione and his band.
Three Friends and Kenny Forgione Band
Once again we were missing Gary the bassist but we stuck our buddy Pete Pardo from the Sea Of Tranquility website in there for good measure. Thanks to his influence I know just a little bit more about the music of Gentle Giant.
Gary Green Prepares To Hit The Stage
Here’s our second to last shot of the guys before it was time to deliver the Progressive goodness to the masses. Yes Gary, I will put the camera away now LOL.
A Keith Richards Visual?
This just reminded me of something I would see when looking at Keith Richards guitar but I am sure many more do it. I couldn’t resist snapping this before getting back out among the crowd to enjoy the show. We’ve assembled a healthy number of Gentle Giant releases for you to peruse on Amazon.com so click around the widget below and expand your musical mind.
Artist: Asia Title: “Fantasia Live In Tokyo” [Blu-ray] Label: Eagle Vision Release Date: 3/31/2009 Genre: Progressive Rock Rating: 3.5/5
The standard edition of this video came out back in 2007 and it was a great one that presented to the world’s Progressive Rock fans the mighty Asia reunited and stronger than ever. Since that time the advancements in video technology have given us a higher definition format to enjoy these kinds of releases and in 2009 we saw this film upgraded to the Blu-ray format. In 2010 this format is slowly becoming the dominant version and now laptops, PC’s and gaming systems are letting you enjoy them with brighter colors and incredible audio sonic quality. Having reviewed this with its initial release and finding no real difference in the content presented, I have slightly edited my original narrative and present it to you with thoughts about the Blu-ray version.
Even though the history books will note this as fact I still refuse to believe that it has been more than twenty five years since I first purchased my original vinyl copy of the debut by Asia – the blockbuster album that was simply entitled “Asia”. Twenty five years old and this album when played today still sounds as fresh and exciting as it used to and reminds me of the Progressive Rock promise that it held for all the fans of the individual players who made up the group. For those who might be too young to remember this album and group let me bring you up to speed a little; Asia was essentially a super group when such a term was not as commonly used and that included members that were true legends from their genres. In Asia we found John Wetton (King Crimson), Steve Howe (Yes), Carl Palmer (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) and Geoff Downes (The Buggles) all working together to create a masterpiece of Melodic Progressive Rock. Their efforts were a resounding success and yes it was geared more for a wider audience than some of the more stoic Progressive Rock fans would have liked but in the end it worked out like gangbusters with Asia achieving a #1 position on the Billboard album charts and offering up six charting singles. Not bad for an album that only had nine songs to begin with. Sadly this super-combination of Rockers would not remain together in this incarnation past the second album and this release “Alpha” was not too well-received as it delved deeper into the commercial aspect of the first one. Fast forwarding twenty five years into the future we find the original and founding members of the lineup reunited for a world tour to celebrate the anniversary of their initial formation and this breakthrough album. The Blu-ray DVD film “Fantasia – Live In Tokyo” of course finds the band performing in Japan in front of a sold out crowd as they celebrated one of the many evenings on this very well-received reunion. Since I was unable to attend any of the shows that came around my area I was very pleased to see this released for the home viewing audience and thanks to Eagle Vision Entertainment who have once again brought the event right into our homes. Given this was done for the anniversary of the album “Asia” itself, the set list for the concert features the performance of the entire album but instead of doing it straight through as some bands who would be doing such a presentation would likely do, Asia mixes it up across the course of the evening. The hits from the debut release and interlaced with songs from the individual members original bands and even some music from the bands follow up release. Continue reading “Fantasia Live In Tokyo” [Blu-ray] by Asia→
Artist: Rush Title: “Icon” Label: Universal Music Release Date: 8/31/2010 Genre: Progressive Metal/Hard Rock Rating: 3.5/5
If any of your friends happen to ask what the band Rush is all about and what they actually sound like, I would imagine that handing them a copy of this release would be a good idea once you shook the numbing disbelief out of your head after being posed such a question. That being said, the compilation they are calling “Icon” is a fair example of what Rush is capable of as a band and offers a newer level listener some key highlights from across their thirty plus year history. Glancing over the contributions I had to say that some of the selections surprised me while others had my nod of approval. Clearly songs like “Freewill” and “Closer To The Heart” belong here but does “Circumstances” take precedent over “Sprit Of Radio”? I hardly think so. That makes this a release that is iconic in only five or so songs in terms of the impact of those numbers and the rest being nice additions to the mix. “Marathon” always held a special place in my musical heart and I heard it so much on the radio of the time that it became a favorite. I even used to taunt a Rush tribute band I was fond of to play it for me each and every time I saw them until they finally relented and realized how well it was going over. The ardent fans of the group might like this as a differently flavored “Best Of”, but if you already own the seminal collection of “Chronicles” or the “Gold” edition then you don’t really need this one. It’s nice to see songs like “The Necromancer”, “The Twilight Zone” and “Circumstances” getting some attention but these numbers are more for the schooled purists in the bands offerings and will not kill the appreciation in someone who is only now getting their feet wet on what they can do. I did find it funny to realize how a release called “Icon” has omitted one of the bands most iconic numbers ever. Even the newest fan must know that I am speaking about “Tom Sawyer”, the song that put the band into almost every household. Continue reading “Icon” by Rush→
![“Fantasia Live In Tokyo” [Blu-ray] by Asia](https://www.piercingmetal.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Bluray-Asia-Fantasia-e1450281090734.jpg)
