Welcome to Prog's brand new Tracks Of The Week. Eight brand new and diverse slices of progressive music for you to enjoy.
Congratulations to UK proggers Returned To The Earth (aka multi-instrumentalist Robin Peachey), whose Dark Morality from upcoming new album Stalagmite Steeple won last week's Tracks Of The Week at a canter, with US prog rockers IZZ in second place and WorriedaboutSatan in a very respectable third.
The premise for Tracks Of The Week is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?
The premise for Tracks Of The Week is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?
The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post. Couldn't be easier could it?
We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week we'll update you with this week's winner, and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.
If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo and biog to us here.
TIM BOWNESS - ROCK HUDSON
Tim Bowness recently announced that he's just signed to progressively minded record label Kscope, after releasing his previous six solo releases, from 2014's Abandoned Dancehall Dreams through to last year's Butterfly Mind. Bowness will release Powder Dry, his new album, on August 16 and has just shared new single Rock Hudson, an incessantly spiky slice of in-your-face art rock, on which,m like the accompanying album, he performs all the instruments.
“With its eclectic roster and open-minded and adventurous approach to music and presentation, Kscope seems like a logical home for what I’ve been coming up with of late," Bowness states. "I’m excited to see where it all leads.
"Like all of the album Powder Dry, the song resulted from an attempt to capture a fleeting feeling as accurately as I could. This time the mood was dark, and there's something of the spiky Post-Punk and Electro-Pop music of the early 1980s that captivated me as a teenager in the mix. Joy Division, The Cure, The The etc…’
MAGIC FIG - PS1
San Franciscan quintet Magic Fig are a new one on us, but the band's proggy psychedelia, typified by new single PS1, carries with it the strong whiff of Canterbury with its fuzzy keyboards and dreamy melodies, whilst the medieval costumes adorning the band members in the video certainly has not gone unnoticed. Like all those great Canterbury bands, Magic Fig know what a great pop melody is all about, mixing it with impressive musicality. They release their self-titled debut album through Siver Current Records in June 7.
“We are attempting to make a music that encompasses a lot of different images and worlds," explains guitarist Muzzy Moskowitz. "Something that can reach the outer limits of what a pop song can be. We want the music to convey a feeling of both childlike wonder and of death, myth and the unknown."
KATI RAN - SÁLA
Dutch artist and Nordic Folk pioneer Kati Rán releases her new album SÁLA today through Svart Records. The album is a real treat for anyone who enjoys the icy Nordic atmosphere conjured up by the likes of Wardruna, Heilung, Nytt Land, SKÁLD and their ilk. To celebrate Rán has shared a visualiser video for the album's title track, all tribal rhythms, changed backing vocals and Rán's own beautiful voice at the beating heart of it,
"Well well, what can I say or write about this auspicious day, where SÁLA has been born," she says. "Such a big event, when you have put all your heart and soul and craft into it makes any artist speechless at first. It’s both a strange feeling of relief and sentimental nostalgia, as we release SÁLA today, so that these songs can live their own lives and their meaning have their own interpretation for all the listeners out there, henceforth.
"In the last two years I myself and Jaani Peuhu have tenaciously co-produced, written/re-arranged, recorded and re-recorded, edited, mixed and tweaked some more and laughed and cried daily to bring this album into its final form out today as it's 'parents' of sorts. I think I can speak for both of us and say that we hope it may bring some healing and light for anyone who finds themselves in a dark place, pleasure for anyone who wants to navigate its literary depths, or simply to have fun with it for all who enjoy listening to good new Dark Folk music. Thank you all. Thanks you Svart Records. And my thanks to Jaani for believing in me and for all the help given while we produced this album together, when before only I believed in it and worked on this alone. It definitely made a difference."
THE OMNIFIC - WILL-O'-THE-WISP
Australian duo-ling (see what we did there?) bass trio The Omnific go full on fantasy prog on us in the hilarious new video for Will-O'-The-Wisp, which is taken from the trio's upcoming second album, The Law Of Augmenting Returns, out through Wild Thing Records on June 27. Helping make this the proggiest release from the Melbourne trio are guests Rohan Sharma (keyboards/programming, I Built The Sky) and Joshua Verco (double bass) and Pranav Roy on trombone.
“This song features quite a different sonic sound, when it comes to what we have done in the past, introducing many themes that we haven’t completely explored," explains Toby Peterson-Stewart, one of the band's two bass players. "This is the first Omnific song to feature a “Guitar”, the Fender Bass VI. It required 6 hands for us to fathom recording a guitar on one of our songs!"
AL DI MEOLA - AVA'S DANCE IN THE MOONLIGHT
Al Di Meola needs no introduction to readers of Prog, being both a member of legendary prog fusion band Return To Forever, or for his fearless and exploratory solo albums. Ava's Dance In The Moonlight, a tribute to Di Meola's young daughter Ava, is taken from his upcoming album Twentyfour which is released through ear Music on July 19. The new album features the guitarist on both acoustic and electric guitars - both feature on Ava's Dance In The Moonlight - alongn with lush orchestral arrangements.
"The inspiration behind Ava's Dance In The Moonlight came from a heartwarming moment in the studio," explains Di meola's record label. "As Al was composing the song, his daughter, Ava, entered the studio to bid him goodnight. Captivated by the first notes of the melody, Ava began to dance ballet-style, providing Al with a moment of inspiration that led to the creation of the song. Drawing from this enchanting performance and the tender moment shared with his daughter, Al crafted a beautiful ode to the innocence and magic of childhood."
STORM DEVA - FREE
UK prog duo Storm Deva have made quite a splash since the release of their self-titled debut album last year, with live appearances at both last year's Prog The Forest and supporting John Mitchell at his recent solo show in Camden. The duo are vocalist and keyboard player Carollyn Eden and prog rocking astrophysicist Dr. Stuart Clark, and as they prepare for a series of live shows later this year with a full band, have released the flowing Free as a second video from Storm Deva.
"I wrote Free on a beautiful, sunny crisp spring morning,” says founding member Carollyn Eden, “It's about the joy of life and the immense beauty of the natural world around us. It all just felt intensely beautiful and joyous. The evening before, an inner story from my childhood, which I had carried through the years, suddenly made sense and it felt like a weight being lifted as I at last let it go."
KAIPA - RELATIONVIEW
We have absolutely no idea how you pronounce the title of the upcoming album from Swedish prog legends Kaipa - Sommargryningsljus! That might be a right tongue-twister, yet there's something inherently beautiful about the music contained therein. Not least this folky offering, whose title is far easier to pronounce, and which features a striking vocal performance from Aleena Gibson and equally strident guitar from Per Nilsson. Kaipa release Sommargryningsljus through InsideOut Music on June 28. Be glad the days of going into a record store and asking for a record are largely over!
"The most folk music-inspired song on the new Kaipa album Sommargryningsljus with both violin and whistles," explains keyboard player Hans Ludin. "Once in a lifetime, or for some, maybe several times, you encounter that magical moment when time is out of sight, and you are just amazed by what you experience. I have chosen to call this "Revelationview". This is a song about this experience."
ORESUND SPACE COLLECTIVE - ORGONE UNICORN
Longstanding purveyors of instrumental improvisational progressive space-jazz, Danish band Øresund Space Collective have signed to renowned US prog label Lasers Edge for their [count them] 44th album! The band, fronted by Scott Heller, also known as Dr. Space, will release their opus, Orgone Unicorn, through the label on July 26, and to celebrate have released this suitably trippy video for the title track
"It is an honor for Øresund Space Collective to join the ranks of the many great bands that are or have been on Lasers Edge. Great to work with Ken, whom I have known for many, many years. I hope the fans will enjoy this new adventure in sound, as we continue to push totally improvised music into weird and wonderful places."
