Tag: prog

280. Os Mutantes

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(August 2020) Episode 280 is OS MUTANTES. What do you get when you combine psychedelic rock, weirdness and Brazilian rhythms? Pure awesomeness. Added bonus: they used their music to subvert the Brazilian military dictatorship.  I’ve known them for a couple decades, but this review confirms them as one of my favorite bands of the 1960s. Amidst lineup changes, they did a couple of prog albums  (not bad) in the 1970s and a couple reunion recordings (just ok) in recent years. 

Favorite album: Os Mutantes

Favorite song: A Minha Menina

Compared to expectations: ↑

266. Hawkwind

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(June 2020) Episode 266 is HAWKWIND. My interest is their role as a pioneer in space rock. The acidly cosmic albums of the early 70s are good head trips. Their peak featured Lemmy before he founded Motörhead (from the name of a Hawkwind song). But then they became Yet Another British Band That Never Ends, with multiple lineup amid countless recordings over half a century. Their dip into New Wave wasn’t bad, but mostly it’s Dave Brock’s (the only consistent member) shifting efforts to put out spacey material (new age, techno, tepid prog rock).

Favorite album: Hall of the Mountain Grill

Favorite song: Silver Machine

Compared to expectations: ↓

Hawkwind-mountaingrill

261. Porcupine Tree

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(April 2020) Episode 261 is PORCUPINE TREE.  When many others were going back to basics with grunge in the early 90s, these guys were reviving prog rock.  Some of the music is enjoyable, especially the heavy metal-tinted later recordings, but the vocals/lyrics tend toward the prog-pretentious which is kind of a turn-off.

Favourite album: Deadwing

Favourite song: Shallow

Compared to expectations: ↓

Pt_deadwing

255. King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

~ ernopepper ~ 1 Comment

(March 2020) Episode 255 is KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD.  As I continue prospecting Australian psychedelic bands, I hit the friggin’ gold mine with KG&tLW (out of Melbourne, not Perth, this time). They are My New Favourite Band!  Strong prog-rock elements here, so I label their sound “Progadelic” (if no one else has coined the term).  Each album has its own personality and offers its own experience: melodic acoustic ballads, psych freak-outs, jazz fusion, thrash metal, microtonal tuning, garage rock, and a sci-fi concept album featuring vomit.  Their output is as prolific (15 albums and 2 EPs in less than a decade) as their music is propulsive, which often feels like skydiving after downing a case of Red Bull. Try it!

Favourite album: Nonagon Infinity

Favourite song: Head On/Pill

Possibly a Reincarnation of Olivia Tremor Control: Paper Mâché Dream Balloon

Special sauce: whoever’s on bass guitar

Compared with expectations: ↑↑

Nonagon_Infinity

245. Oh Sees

~ ernopepper ~ 1 Comment

(January 2020) Episode 245 is OH SEES (also known as OCS and Thee Oh Sees).  One of my favorite bands of the ’10s; a good representation of the music I’ve been into in recent years, although its style is hard to describe. Their initial lo-fi experimentalism is not so interesting, but they hit the gas around 2010 with psychedelic garage-rock freakouts.  The evolution to space- and prog-rock in the recent albums is excellent.

Favorite song: The Dream

Favorite album: Floating Coffin

Compared to expectations: ↑

Floating_Coffin

229. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets

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(August 2019) Episode 229 is PSYCHEDELIC PORN CRUMPETS. Did you know it’s the Golden Age of Australian Psychedelic Rock? You do now. And one of its highlights is this band from, oddly like many others, Perth. Put on some headphones and max the volume. PPC will exhaust you but in a good way. My new favorite band. (This is the 3rd band in the Project discovered through a podcast, and only the 2nd to start recording this decade.)

Favorite album: And Now For The Whatchamacallit

Favorite song: Ergophobia

Compared to expectations: ↑

AndNowWhatchamacallit.jpg

 

228. Primus

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(August 2019) Episode 228 is PRIMUS. It’s difficult to label their unique meld of funk-metal with Zappa-esque irreverence and weirdness. But they’ve influenced scores of bands nevertheless. What stands out the most are the sparks flying off Les’ bass, but don’t discount Ler’s calisthenics on guitar.  It’s an acquired taste, but a fun ride when you take it for a spin.

Favorite album: Sailing the Seas of Cheese

Favorite song: Jerry Was a Race Car Driver

Compared to expectations: same

Sailing_the_Seas_of_Cheese

146. Alan Parsons Project

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(November 2017) I have completed episode 146 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to a band’s full discography. This edition: ALAN PARSONS PROJECT (plus Alan Parsons solo).   Few have embraced the concept album as avidly as these guys. Some of the techno-rock instrumental tracks are of interest, but the rest has no contemporary value.   I listen so you don’t have to.

Favorite album: The Turn of a Friendly Card

Favorite song: Breakdown

Compared to expectations: same

The_Alan_Parsons_Project_-_The_Turn_of_a_Friendly_Card.jpg

134. Glass Harp

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(August 2017) I have completed episode 134 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to a band’s full discography. This edition: GLASS HARP. This power trio out of Youngstown, Ohio (!), put out three psychedelically-flavored, progressively-oriented, Christian-themed albums in the early 1970s, plus assorted later reunions. Fans of jam music will like the live recordings; guitarist Phil Keaggy has Hendrix-esque flair.

Favorite album: Glass Harp

Favorite song: Changes

Compared to expectations: same

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