On the heels of their celebrated 2019 studio album Don’t Panic, IZZ is set to release a 20-minute EP entitled Half Life featuring four tracks including three new studio songs as well as a previously unreleased live version of “The Wait of It All,” a track originally featured on their 2004 EP, Ampersand Volume 1.
Half Life will be available beginning on July 28 via download on Bandcamp: izzmusic.bandcamp.com. A limited vinyl pressing and a limited run of Half Life on CD will also be available for purchase directly from the band and their label, Doone Records, via their website: izzmusic.com.
“The title track of this EP was actually written several years ago, but when we listened to it again recently, it took on new meaning given the uncertainty in the world today and it became obvious to us that we needed to finish mixing it and get it out into the world,” says bassist John Galgano.
Lyrically and thematically, the three new studio songs cover a wide range from the joy and mystery of “The Soul of Music” to the heartfelt contentment of “Into the Sun” to the escapism and wonder of the title track “Half Life.” Musically, the EP shows a different side to IZZ which the band is keen to present to their fans.
“We’re a band that never likes to do the same thing twice. We want to keep things interesting not only for our fans, but for ourselves,” says keyboardist and producer Tom Galgano.
“This EP comes at an interesting time for the band and for the world because we have been using our time at home these past few months to take a deep dive into writing our next proper studio album which we plan on releasing in 2021 and this EP kind of snuck its way into our consciousness, so we decided to go with it and follow the muse,” says drummer Brian Coralian.
The 3rd Edition of “The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock” by Charles Snider To be Released March 27, 2020
The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock, 3rd Edition
• Reviews of 510+ albums from 1967 - 1982
• 572 pages
• Fully edited, proofread and fact-checked
Back in print for 2020! The definitive record guide to the progressive era of rock music, Strawberry Bricks presents a comprehensive discography with reviews of 500+ albums, with band histories, musical synopses, key tracks, and critical commentary, all presented in the historical context of a timeline.
Beginning in 1967 and continuing through 1982, a generation of musicians took rock music in directions unforeseen as they charted what would become known as progressive rock. From art rock to krautrock, from England to Germany to Italy and all across Europe, Strawberry Bricks offers a candid reappraisal of rock’s most cerebral genre. Also for this edition, Matt Howarth has revisited his original artwork from the first edition of the book.
Says Charles, “The newly written Prologue offers a historical perspective of the pretext to the progressive era, beginning post-WWII, while the Epilogue offers a current perspective on progressive rock since the early '80s. I've also spent a good deal of time fact-checking every detail in the book, including song titles and artist names.
Further, this edition has been professionally edited and peer-reviewed, all to make this as exacting and rewarding a book as the music it covers. Strawberry Bricks is another narrative on the classic era of progressive rock, one with hopefully a novel and candid outlook on the genre, its albums and the men that made it one of the most interesting chapters in rock's history.”
With 212 more reviews, 210 more pages, completely fact-checked and professionally edited, and with a full index, the third edition is a substantial upgrade to owners of the first edition of the book. For owners of the second edition, Matt Howarth once again revisits his original artwork for Strawberry Bricks. Enjoy the music!
“Charles Snider has an encyclopedic knowledge of progressive rock and has accrued one of the world’s most formidable record collections. No one is better equipped to write the definitive discography of this rich genre of music.” - Jonathan Schang, District 97
Charles Snider has been collecting records since the early 1970s, amassing one of the most complete archives of progressive rock. “One of my earliest memories of vinyl was The Beatles' 'Paperback Writer' b/w 'Rain.'
Musically, my love for British music and everything thereafter starts with The Beatles. My daughters are even named after Beatles’ songs!” Snider's self-professed passion for the music “archaeology” continued over the decades, branching out to many other genres of music. “In the early 90s, Kevin Eden and I curated the WMO label, with the cooperation and support of Wire.
The CD was a new format, and we released a lot of hard to find records, as well as unreleased archival material and two very good tribute discs.” Upon moving to Chicago in 2000, he began writing the first edition of The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock. “I've always loved record guides. Certainly, Ira Robbin’s Trouser Press was the prototype, but growing up in the 70s with magazines like Circus, Creem and of course Rolling Stone, I've always enjoyed the passion writers convey about music.” While not listening to prog rock in his man-cave, Snider can be found blogging about personal technology or cheering on the Chicago Blackhawks.
The 3rd Edition of “The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock” will be released on March 27th, 2020. Available directly from http://strawberrybricks.com/the-book, and from Amazon.com
Rock Legends Nektar will be performing at The Token Lounge in Detroit on February 25, 2020, in support of their new album “The Other Side”!
Throughout the 1970s Nektar released a series of acclaimed albums, scoring chart success in Germany (where the British band was based) and later in the USA (where the band relocated).
Prog Legends Nektar Return With Stunning New Studio Album “The Other Side”
The Stunning New Studio Album From Legendary Nektar - Released January 24, 2020, on Esoteric Antenna
Esoteric Antenna is delighted to announce the release of the stunning new studio album by the legendary band Nektar. Throughout the 1970s Nektar released a series of acclaimed albums, scoring chart success in Germany (where the British band was based) and later in the USA (where the band relocated).
Following the passing of original guitarist/vocalist Roye Albrighton in 2016, fellow founder members Derek “Mo” Moore (bass, vocals), Ron Howden (drums, vocals) & Mick Brockett (lyrics, visual conceptions) reunited along with Randy Dembo (bass, 12-string guitar), Ryche Chlanda (guitar, vocals) & Kendall Scott (keyboards) to begin work on a new album.
Ryche Chlanda originally recorded with Nektar in 1978, and for “The Other Side” the band updated some of those ideas which evolved in the basement of Mo Moore’s house in Chatham, New Jersey. Ron Howden, Mo, and Ryche collaborated on much of the music heard on the album. The 1978 unrecorded song “Skypilot” has evolved into “Skywriter” in 2020. With new lyrics by Mick, Mo, and Ryche
“I’m On Fire” is the musical adaptation of a poem written by Mo for his soon-to-be wife, Nicki, during that same time period of 1978. The closing track, “Devil’s Door”, was originally performed live in 1974, but never featured on a Nektar album. Updated and recorded for this album, the song features the presence of the late Roye Albrighton on the introduction to the track, whose wonderful guitar part was taken from a live soundboard recording made in 1974.
Kendall Scott’s distinctive & versatile keyboard presence has enhanced this considerably, whilst Randy Dembo, who originally joined Nektar in 2004, brings a uniting presence on 12-string and bass guitars, rounding out the instrumental arrangements. Ron Howden has been a continual driving force of the band, weathering all versions of Nektar since its conception in 1969. With Mick Brockett now back in the fold (with his visual concepts and ideas as an essential part of the band making the music and light theatre a reality). “The Other Side” is a stunning album from a legendary band.
1. I’m On Fire
2. SkyWriter
3. Love is / The Other Side
4. Drifting
5. Devil’s Door
6. The Light Beyond
7. Look Through me
8. Y Can't I B more like U (2020)
Nektar US Tour Dates
FEBRUARY 20 - Albany, NY (Linda WAMC)
FEBRUARY 21 - Auburn, NY (Auburn Public Theater)
FEBRUARY 22 - Hamburg, NY (Hamburg Palace Theater)
FEBRUARY 23 - Toronto, ON (The Garrison) FEBRUARY 25 - Detroit MI (The Token Lounge)
FEBRUARY 26 - Cleveland, OH (Beachland Ballroom)
FEBRUARY 28 - Cincinnati, OH (Ludlow Garage)
FEBRUARY 29 - Indianapolis, IN (Irving Theater)
MARCH 01 - Chicago, IL (Reggie’s)
MARCH 02 - Milwaukee WI (Shank Hall)
MARCH 03 - Minneapolis, MN (Granada Theater)
MARCH 04 - Kansas City KS (Record Bar)
MARCH 05 - Edwardsville, IL (Wildey Theater) SOLD OUT
MARCH 06 - Edwardsville, IL (Wildey Theater)
MARCH 07 - Edwardsville, IL (Wildey Theater) 2 shows BOTH SHOWS SOLD OUT
MARCH 08 - Fayetteville AR, (Georges Majestic Lounge)
Keyboard Legend Rick Wakeman & The English Rock Ensemble Return To Prog On New Album “The Red Planet”
Keyboard Legend Rick Wakeman & The English Rock Ensemble will be releasing “The Red Planet” on April 3, 2020. The album features 8 newly composed pieces, especially for this project, and harks back to Wakeman's critically acclaimed debut album “The Six Wives of Henry VIII” where there were 6 heavy keyboard pieces based around a central subject matter. It is a serious return to “Wakeman Prog”...
Rick has blown the dust off his favourite analogue keyboards and along with his with the latest keyboards, has used the same formula he devised when making his legendary albums “The Six Wive's of Henry VIII” and “Criminal Record.”
Upon being asked about the expectations of his Prog Fans, that they are hoping he will have shoved the “Prog Fader” up to 11, he replied, “That could be a problem.... as it's already at 14!!!”
The first 1,000 units of vinyl come in 180-gram red double vinyl, signed and numbered, in a special “Pop-Up” album cover. The first 2,000 units of the CD edition signed and numbered, in a special “Pop-Up” CD album cover. These collector's items are sure to sell out quickly, fans are advised to pre-order to avoid disappointment, or worst still buy copies from auction sites.
The English Rock Ensemble (ERE) features:
Rick Wakeman - Keyboards
Dave Colquhoun- Guitars
Lee Pomeroy - Bass
Ash Soan - Drums
Produced by Rick Wakeman and Erik Jordan
This is the first release on the newly formed R&D MultiMedia, which is a transatlantic partnership between music business veteran and long time Wakeman sidekick Rob Ayling and rock journalist and producer Doug Harr.
Soft Machine Announce New Album Hidden Details & World Tour Dates, with First North American Dates Since 1974!
NYC - In support of their forthcoming new album, British music legends Soft Machine will embark on their first North American tour since 1974 in October 2018, followed by the second North-American leg of the tour in January/February 2019. In concert, their set list will include material from all parts of the band's repertoire from 1970 onwards, but this is emphatically not a nostalgia act resting on its laurels.
Last weekend Soft Machine played their first two shows in North America since 1974 (it was in 1974 they toured USA and Canada during the Bundles/Allan Holdsworth era). Both shows, at the Montreal Jazz Festival and Quebec City, were exceptionally well received by the enthusiastic audience and local press.
Hidden Details is a new studio album of Soft Machine, recorded at the late great Jon Hiseman's Temple Studio in Surrey, England, last December 2017, and it will be released in September 2018 on MoonJune Records (North America; on CD and HD Download), on John Etheridge's Dyan Records (UK/Europe on CD, and iTunes), and on Vivid Records (Japan), exactly 50 years since the release of the band's 1968 debut album The Soft Machine. Limited and highly collectible vinyl edition of only 200 coloured vinyl (orange, blue and tour edition orange & blue marbled) will be released on the Dutch label Tonefloat, on September 8, 2018.
“'Hidden Details' is very much the product of an active, contemporary sounding outfit striking out with its own agenda. Though informed by the past, the music here is neither weighed down nor beholden to it. Animated with the same ineffable and inquisitive spirit that has always made this group throughout its fifty years such a compelling experience, it’' good to have a new Soft Machine with us in 2018.
The yearning tenderness of 'Heart Off Guard' and the come-down reveries of 'Broken Hill' and 'Drifting White' showcase the more intimate aspects of Soft Machine's personality while in contrast, 'One Glove' gives the more pugilistic side of John Etheridge's playing an outing.
The terse angularities of the title track and 'Life on Bridges' highlight a fearless disposition, as does the buzzsaw interplay heard during 'Ground Lift' and 'Flight of the Jett,' both featuring Roy Babbington's decisive interventions. The surging lyricism of 'Fourteen Hour Dream' flirts with an almost popish sensibility, underscoring the sense that this is a quartet that is fundamentally at ease with itself.
The return of what some older fans of the band have called 'cosmic tinkles’'– the appearance of layers of cyclical electric piano motifs – is especially welcome. Their brief manifestation on 'The Man Who Waved at Trains' and Third-era, 'Out-Bloody-Rageous,' both stone-cold Mike Ratledge-composed classics, adds an extra spacey dimension to the overall sound.
Travis' use of looping technology with his flutes creates its own beguiling world and can be heard to powerful effect on the beautiful and enigmatic 'Breathe,' where his hovering notes are underpinned by Marshall's oblique yet atmospheric percussion.” - Sid Smith
Soft Machine:
JOHN ETHERIDGE - guitar
THEO TRAVIS - sax, flute, Fender Rhodes
ROY BABBINGTON - bass guitar
JOHN MARSHALL - drums
with special guest GARY HUSBAND drums on selected dates
2018 North American East Tour Dates:
October 6 - Orion Studios - Baltimore, MD, USA [John Marshall on drums]
October 7 - Theater Of Living Arts - Philadelphia, PA, USA
October 9 - Roxy's & Duke - Dunellen, NJ, USA
October 10 - Darryl's House - Pawling, NY, USA
October 12 - 14The Iridium - NYC, NY, USA
October 16 - Mod's Club - Toronto, ON, Canada [Gary Husband on drums]
October 17 - The Tralf - Buffalo, NY, USA [Gary Husband on drums]
October 18 - Beachland Music Hall - Cleveland, OH, USA [Gary Husband on drums]
October 19 - The Irving Theater - Indianapolis, IN, USA [Gary Husband on drums]
October 21 - Progtober Festival - Reggie's - Chicago, IL, USA [Gary Husband on drums]
October 22 - Shank Hall - Milwaukee, WI, USA [Gary Husband on drums]
Soft Machine is a legend and an institution of British music, a band who included Robert Wyatt, Daevid Allen, Mike Ratledge, Kevin Ayers, Andy Summers (later of The Police), Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean, Roy Babbington, John Marshall, Karl Jenkins, Allan Holdsworth, John Etheridge, Percy Jones, Rick Sanders, Dave McRae and Jack Bruce among others (Jimi Hendrix briefly jammed with the band in 1968!).
Since its creation in 1966, this band pioneered Psychedelic and Progressive Rock, led the 'Canterbury' trend, pioneered jazz-rock, and then guitar-led fusion (launching the guitar god Allan Holdsworth in 1974), influenced generations of musicians. Disbanded in 1978, recreated in few occasions in 1981 and 1984, the band resurfaces in 1999 under the name of Soft Ware.
Much was said about this band with a very complex intriguing history of constant personal changes during the 1966-1978 period. The band resurrected in 1999 under the name of Soft Ware, then as Soft Works 2002-2004 and Soft Machine Legacy 2004-2015. In December 2015, it was confirmed that the band had dropped the “Legacy” tag from their name, as the band featured three of the group's 1970s era members – guitarist John Etheridge, drummer John Marshall and bassist Roy Babbington (from the seminal 1976's album Softs), in addition to flute and sax player Theo Travis – returning to the original name from 2015, and performing numerous concerts all around Europe, South America and Japan.
IZZ Vocalist Laura Meade to Release Her Debut Full-Length Studio Album Remedium on May 18, 2018
New York, NY – IZZ vocalist, Laura Meade's debut full-length studio album, Remedium, is scheduled for release on May 18, 2018.
Meade's background in musical theatre helps define her unique approach as a lyricist and musician. Remedium combines Meade's love of art rock with the emotion of musical theatre. In addition to being a vocalist for the progressive rock band IZZ, her career includes performances around the world with many different artists and on a multitude of stages.
Remedium features progressive, adventurous extended tracks such as “Sunflowers at Chernobyl” and “Dragons” as well as songs with art-pop sensibilities such as “Conquer the World”. Meade's incredible range and versatility as a vocalist is evidenced throughout the album and particularly on songs such as “Every Step” and “What I See From Here”.
Meade is joined by her IZZ bandmates on several songs as well as Randy McStine (The Fringe, Lo-Fi Resistance) on “Sunflowers at Chernobyl” and Jason Hart (I and Thou, Renaissance, Camel) on “Irradiation”.
Laura Meade's Remedium will be available for purchase on iTunes, at Amazon.com and at your favorite online retailer as well as on all streaming music services on May 18, 2018.
