Here’s some music that various members of the Prog team have been grooving to this week…
JERRY EWING – EDITOR
Moon Safari – Mega Moon
After a recent Tracks Of The Week went up, one Facebook comment suggested we should turn our attention to, among others, Sweden’s Moon Safari. There was no need as the band have been on my radar since I saw them at the one-off Winter’s End festival in 2010 (their first visit to these shores). Their latest album, Himlabacken, is by far and away their best, and Mega Moon has always been, to these ears at least, the stand out track.
HANNAH MAY KILROY – DEPUTY EDITOR
MUSE – PSYCHO
I’m heading off to Download Festival today, and while it’s not exactly the proggiest of events, Saturday night’s headliners are certainly a big part of our world. I’ve never seen Muse live and I’m excited to finally see them, and to hear them play this killer track from their new record.
**RUSSELL FAIRBROTHER – ART EDITOR **
GUAPO – OBSCURE KNOWLEDGE
“Do I have to repeat myself?” was funnily enough one of my mother’s stock phrases. Maybe she was foreshadowing my love of Guapo, the masters of polyrythmic repetition, as hinted at on this radio edit of the title track from their latest album. There’s a safe, warm, comfortable feeling having your ears massaged by layer upon layer of finely crafted musical motifs, and the subtle complexity is made more accessible by the regular themes. In fact this is great contemporary prog… Or do I have to repeat myself?!
NEWS EDITOR – NATASHA SCHARF
**Anathema – A Natural Disaster **
It might be something to do with the sudden change in temperature but I’ve had A Natural Disaster on loop all week! I love the way this song makes the most of Lee Douglas’ super-smooth vocals and the sweeping melodies are just sublime. This version is taken from Anathema’s Universal DVD, which was recorded in Bulgaria back in 2012.
GRANT MOON – REVIEWS EDITOR
Roger Waters – Amused To Death
With a remixed/remastered edition on the horizon, I’ve been revisiting Waters’ third solo album of late, with a mixture of nostalgia and wistfulness. Nostalgia because I remember absolutely loving it on release back in ‘92: no-one does grouchy like him, and all the points he made about geo-politics still stand, down to the very locations. Wistful, because although you can’t argue with Jeff Beck, Steve Lukather et al, you can’t help but wonder what Gilmour, Wright and Mason could’ve done with What God Wants, The Bravery Of Being Out Of Range, and this titanic title track. And if you needed any proof Waters was right, next time you’re on the train count the number of grown adults gawping into their smartphones and shunting coloured fruit around. Grown adults, mind you…
HOLLY WRIGHT – WRITER
LEPROUS – THE PRICE
The fact that they spent years as Ihsahn’s backing band might have something to do with the dark undercurrents that permeate Leprous’ music. Not quite as abrasive as material we’ve heard in the past but no less sombre, The Price is the first track to be lifted from their latest album The Congregation, and continues to unleash their moody avant-garde aesthetic with a strong hook on melody.
**MAGIC PIE – LIMELIGHT BAND **
TRICK OF THE TRADE
Fusing the sounds of early-era Genesis with more contemporary rock trimmings, these Norwegian prog rockers have seriously impressed Prog with their new album King For A Day.
