Latest articles by Mike Barnes
“Some fans preferred it to Genesis”: The unexpected consequences of Steve Hackett’s Voyage Of The Acolyte
Guitarist believes his solo debut proved Genesis had a future after Peter Gabriel’s departure – but it also led to two years of soul-searching
“We fought and got drunk and all that, but it was still a great time”: These prog heroes never operated as a democracy
Their first album in six years tackles conflicts across the planet and with the planet, and sees them pushing themselves in a direction they probably won’t again
“My songs might have been successful if somebody else had done them”: Peter Hammill has calmed down
Prog visionary and punk inspiration reflects on his overclocked solo shows and admits: “Two to three hours was maybe too much Hammill for anybody!”
“Pretentious, perhaps. But let’s call it pioneering”: Why we still love Genesis’ The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
Surreal imagery, crediting classic poets and philosophers, trying to scare each other with freak-out jams, inspiration from mime artists… it’s without doubt the most adventurous music any member the band ever made
Judy Dyble was always amazed at the quality of her collaborators
In 2018, Fairport Convention’s first female vocalist found herself inspired by a trapped rainbow, a bad Elvis impersonator and her early work with Giles, Giles and Fripp
How Mike Oldfield made Maggie Reilly sing in an odd style to make Moonlight Shadow
A bottle of wine, a thesaurus and a rhyming dictionary sent his career out of the doldrums, into the Top 5, and helped make 1983 album Crises a success
David Bowie’s final message to Brian Eno – which he didn’t understand at first
The pair had been planning to revisit 1995 album Outside before Bowie’s death took fans, friends and colleagues by surprise in 2016
“If anything makes me regret anything, it’s looking at Brian Eno”: Still, BJ Cole didn’t do too badly
He set out to confound expectations of pedal steel with post-country band Cochise. Thanks to Captain Beefheart, Love and Hank Marvin, the session hero is pleased to reflect that he got away with it
“Everything was going up its own jacksie!" Lindisfarne's down-to-earth approach saw them not always aligned with prog's loftier ideals in 1973
As part of Prog's look at prog's golden year of 1973 (for a 2013 cover feature), Ray Jackson discussed Geordie folk rockers Lindisfarne's own philosophy at the time
“At one point it feels like they’re going to take off”: Tangerine Dream’s Rubycon box set
5-disc collection marks eighth album’s 50th anniversary, complete with two entire concert recordings and bonus Steven Wilson mixes
Jethro Tull’s saddest, darkest album could have been even darker
Death, dysfunction and ecological disaster surrounded Ian Anderson as his changing world shaped a “forever tainted” record
When one of prog’s biggest bands shut down, it left their guitarist facing a void. This is how he bounced back
Suddenly out of work in 2012, he started to take songwriting seriously and learned to stop feeling intimidated by other musicians
“We thought it would be hard to replace her, so we didn’t”: Prog pioneers evaded disaster in 1970
What happens when a band’s trademark vocalist leaves? In 1970, the answer for this band was to take the pain and rely on their other strengths
Danny Thompson covered more ground than even he thought possible in a seven-decade career
The revered double bassist worked with Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, John Martyn, Bert Jansch and countless others. On 2012 album Connected he assembled some of his proudest moments
Richard Sinclair’s Canterbury scene with Caravan, Hatfield And The North, Camel and others
He shares memories of Pye Hastings, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Andy Latimer and many other collaborators from his rich heritage, soon to be include with his long, long awaited debut solo album
Penguin Cafe Orchestra’s music has lasted beyond Simon Jeffes’ lifetime. But was it prog?
Simon Jeffes described his musical pursuit of the precious irrational as “imaginary folklore.” His work intrigued Brian Eno and has lasted long beyond his lifetime. But was it prog?
“A reminder of what an inspirational band they were”: Horslips At The BBC
Five discs of previously unreleased material from the Celtic rock pioneers
Five Colosseum songs that prove the jazz-rock pioneers’ pedigree
Initially active for only three years, they secured their reputation with a series of impressively pogressive releases that, it’s said, popularised the entire genre
Hawkwind’s late-career purple patch continues with There Is No Space For Us
Hawkwind return with There Is No Space For Us, another impressive blend of familiar elements and stylistic surprises in what’s effectively a sister album to Stories From Time And Space
Family vocalist Roger Chapman’s journey from local band stage invader to unique prog star
Vocalist with a one-off voice talked writing hits, co-founding Streetwalkers, going solo and overseeing the emotional reunion as he marked the launch of his most recent album
Barclay James Harvest’s 70s battles with orchestras – and why John Lees tried again
The recently-released live record from 2023 shows how much has changed in 50 years, as John Lees’ Barclay James Harvest look forward to the “progtastic” double album they’ve nearly finished
David Thomas calls Pere Ubu “avant-garage” – but how prog are they?
They’re unmistakably American, but their lead visionary names Henry Cow, Soft Machine, Gentle Giant and Van der Graaf Generator among his motivators, and explains why his band is definitely not punk
Klaus Shulze’s 101 Milky Way, rescued from the vault, is a compelling journey
80-minute work from 2009 – of which just a fraction was used in a movie soundtrack – was rescued from his vault following his 2022 death
