We often start naive and green and either blossom into something remarkable, or we fizzle out – resigning to the life that we feared all along; the one we’ve been resisting – an uncertain path, a repetitive/menial existence, and the promise of a life without limitations. How far are you willing to go to either abandon or protect the way of life that you’ve been leading?”
These words paint the scene for the first act of alternative progressive rock quartet Head with Wings’ next chapter.
Amidst sweeping changes felt on a global scale, aspirations were put on hold, radiant futures dimmed, lives ended prematurely, and dreams were left to rot on the vine. For so many, the struggle was a silent one – a daily war waged alone.
On their forthcoming EP, “Comfort In Illusion,” Head with Wings draws the listener into the isolated, agonizing, and momentarily euphoric struggle for self-actualization amidst the stifling frame of an increasingly unfamiliar world.
The collective’s first output since 2018’s critically-acclaimed debut, “From Worry to Shame,” presents a concise summation of the group’s collective growth as artists and individuals. “Comfort in Illusion” dives deeper into the quartet’s textural and emotive sound exploration with a timely personal narrative of self-discovery and the anxiety of change.
Says lead vocalist Josh Corum, “‘The Comfort in Illusion’ EP has a two-fold meaning, but we realize that it’s subject to the listener’s interpretation and we fully embrace that. To the band, it operates in a binary fashion narratively; connecting to the protagonist of our debut album From Worry to Shame (2018), while also paving the way for an alternatively surreal story, that is told in tandem with a specific point in the protagonist’s timeline on the debut (parallel to the songs “From Worry to Shame” and “Beyond the Wall”). Admittedly, this wasn’t my initial intention, but intuitively I wound up here some years down the line after these songs were initially conceived. The music on this EP isn’t motivically or thematically linked to the debut, but rather, connected through narrative/thematic concepts and visual interpretations through our music videos.”
“Of Uncertainty’s” hypnotic sway and surreal acoustic and electric voice-painting opens the three-movement suite in arresting fashion. A fitting bridge from the world of old to that of the new, the single embodies everything in seven crisp minutes that make Head with Wings a singular presence in a rock landscape that has been all too content to echo the hallmarks of yesteryear.
Andrew Testa’s inspired and mature drum performance radiates intention; giving the song an addicting sense of weightless movement, while Brandon Cousino and Mike Short’s soulful and dexterous lead guitars shade and illuminate the scene around the striking vocal character of Joshua Corum. These qualities are further enhanced by the single’s immersive visual accompaniment provided by Black Soil’s talented animation crew.
Cathartic and soothing, “Contemplating the Loop” exercises the group’s fluid command of abstract rhythm, leaving the listener to feel, rather than think their way through its floating, ever-shifting pulse. Anchored by Steve Hill’s silky bass runs, the song sets the constant ebb and flow of self-doubt and willful determination to sound.
Finally, the tumultuous, mathy voyage of “In a House Without Clocks” brings the concise three-track journey to a poignant coda. Bittersweet and overflowing with yearning, Corum leaves the listener with the parting questions: “Would you consider a life without a path … or would you fear it would all just fall apart—the plan that never started, the waters left uncharted?”
The odyssey feels both hopeful and grave—reckoning with an ever-fleeting sense of a gratifying future drifting further away each day, and the uncertainty of correcting course. The dark side of pursuing one’s dreams and the toll time takes on ambitions that were once so vivid are laid bare. Swelling into heart-searing vocal peaks and commanding streaks of expressive lead guitar, “In a House …” sets the tone for a pivotal moment of change, with Corum rising to the occasion as one of the eminent voices in modern alternative music.
The delicate beauty and lushness of “Comfort in Illusion” was carefully captured by Greg Thomas (END, Misery Signals) and Chris Teti (The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die) at Silver Bullet Studios. Thomas’ spacious, engrossing mix is heightened by Kris Crummett of Interlace Audio’s adept mastering – delivering a shimmering, modern sound that listeners will discover in new ways with each pass.
The themes of conviction and change, etched into the fibers of these songs, are also reflected in the band, whose own internal makeup shifted in a similarly bittersweet way. Capturing what amounts to founding drummer Andrew Testa’s most stylistically-definitive performance, the EP also serves as a fitting send off for a member who was integral to crafting the core architecture of the band’s sound. His legacy will be continued and expanded upon through the deft percussion skill of Head with Wings’ resident multi-instrumentalist, Mike Short, who shifts from his co-lead guitar role on the recording of the new songs to drums going forward.
We can never again return exactly to where we have been, and the same can be said of the distinctive lineup of performers in their designated roles on this special output—a moment in time faithfully preserved.
“Comfort in Illusion” features a unique release format, with each song being followed by a cinematic companion piece delivered by the remarkably talented Vikram Shankar. The prolific composer, who was heralded for his expressive piano interpretations of songs on “From Worry to Shame,” expands his contributions to the Head with Wings collective with fully reimagined arrangements of each movement of the forthcoming EP. These remixes transform each track’s mood into a palpable visual scene listeners can explore in their own personal way.
June 25th marks the launch of the Bandcamp pre-order for the “Comfort in Illusion” digipak CD/standard digital edition, along with the pre-order for the digital expanded edition, which contains the Vikram Shankar remixes and instrumental mixes. As of today, all three songs from this EP are represented by animated music videos on the band’s YouTube channel. All formats of “Comfort in Illusion” will be available on July 16th.
Says Josh, “Truthfully, each of our songs has its own message and baggage, but globally, I think the band would be in agreement that we want people to push themselves to lead a life that is self-fulfilling and not one that was either chosen for them, expected or assumed. We want people to find themselves in this world and then double down on who they are. Part of being an artist is giving yourself to the unknown and unabashedly believing in yourself, sometimes to the point of delusion. It doesn’t matter what you do, but that you love doing it. Have no regrets about believing in yourself. This band travels through darkness to find empowerment and we want people to feel that too.”
All of the music/lyrics on this EP were written before the pandemic/quarantine. However, the band was dwelling on concepts of isolation and withdrawal on “From Worry to Shame,” where coincidentally, the protagonist withdraws from society for one year and then begins his reemergence as a “new man.” This EP occurs during his year of isolation.
The band is currently in pre-production for the next album, which will be the finale to the saga that was started on their debut. There’s talk about shooting a music video with Ingwar Dovgoteles (The Black Soil) in Ukraine for the next one and that is certainly exciting. Says Josh, “We’re looking to shoot more live action music videos, as we’ve really gone down the rabbit hole with animated videos. Regarding gigs, we’re taking stock of the venues and festivals that are re-emerging, as society crawls out of the clutches of the pandemic. Though we’ve been rehearsing, we haven’t played a show since our 2019 tour in Germany (where we played Euroblast Festival). We’ll be announcing new shows for late summer/fall on our Facebook page as they get confirmed. There is one festival on the books for us on May 20-22, 2022 which is Festival Terra Incognita in Quebec City.” Head With Wings is scheduled to perform at Space Ballroom in Hamden, CT opening for Moon Tooth on August 5th.
“Comfort in Illusion” was recorded at Silver Bullet Studios (Burlington, CT) between December 2019 and March 2020. The EP was tracked, edited, mixed and produced by Greg Thomas with additional tracking and mixing by Chris Teti. Mastered by Kris Crummett at Interlace Audio (Portland Oregon) in Fall 2020. All songs were written and performed by Head with Wings. Releasing July 16th.
“Comfort in Illusion” Track Order:
1) Of Uncertainty (7:00) 2) Contemplating the Loop (4:52) 3) In a House Without Clocks (6:02)
Run time: 17:54
Art Direction & Layout – Darcy Kelly-Laviolette // darcykellyl.myportfolio.com Album Design Concept – Joshua Corum & Darcy Kelly-Laviolette
On this EP, Head with Wings is: Andrew Testa – Drums Brandon Cousino – Guitars Steve Hill – Bass Mike Short – Guitars Joshua Corum – Lyrics, Lead & Backing Vocals
“From the moment the picked guitars of opener ‘Goodbye Sky’ make their sun-kissed presence felt, it’s clear this is an album boasting an embarrassment of riches on the melody front.” – Planet Rock Magazine
“There are more than enough points of melancholic majesty to make this well worth a listen.” – PROG Magazine
“There’s a passion in the vocal delivery that matches the subject matter.” – Powerplay Magazine
“Although at times melancholic and stark with lyrics to match, Head With Wings have put out a winner with ‘From Worry To Shame.’ I also commend the band for tackling some societal issues that many bands wouldn’t touch. A thought provoking and rewarding listen, both lyrically and musically. Recommended.” – Sea of Tranquility
“The music is delicate and flows organically from the deep lyrics and obvious passion that the band has for both art and humanity.” – The Prog Mind
“With this delicate subject, Head with Wings achieved a masterful debut album of maturity and emotion. This album is proof that the prog does not have to be outrageously technical to succeed in touching.” – Koid’9 Magazine Rock & Progressif
“It is an incredibly intense album, both lyrically and especially musically, so much so that at times it feels there is a weight, a physical pressure, being delivered. It is all part of the presence and forethought which has gone into it. Overall this is a wonderful debut, and I for one am certainly looking forward to the next one with great interest.” – Kev Rowland, Progressor
Melodic Revolution Records is thrilled to announce our musical partnership with Ron Marquiss and the Drive In Movie Band for the upcoming release.
In a statement from Ron Marquiss I am very pleased that Melodic Revolution Records has signed the Drive In Movie Band. It’s a great partnership and both teams working together will hopefully break some waves into the giant Prog Ocean around this planet. After all, this benefits not only the listener but the artists that play this genre. PROG on MRR!
Perhaps there is something to say when music evokes a wide spectrum of emotion as does Lines & Circles. Ronnie Marquiss may have penetrated his past with a style composition very familiar with horror movies. The movie Lunicidal swells of Marquiss compositions and was nominated for Best Music Score at the Philadelphia Terror film festival in 2008.
Lines & Circles is Ron’s fourth album with instrumentals not including the music for Lunicidal. The flow and natural essence of his style are fluent throughout and a true testament toward an awesome listening experience. Marquiss draws inspiration from his son and it shows. Jordan lays the foundation and it is solid as it can be. No overplays and if you listen close enough all the fills shine through. “It’s as good as it gets right there” “Jordan is extremely talented,” Marquiss says.
The making of Lines and Circles is mostly a collaboration between friends. They have all crossed paths on the Friday Night Progressive internet radio show who Marquiss created and calls himself The King of Prog. The show has been entertaining Progressive, instrumental, and fusion listeners for over 10 years. (Nathan Ames – Sudler’s Row), (Adrianne Simioni – Astronomusic), (Astraea Antal – Monument Alley, Gentle Knife), (Bret Harold Hart – Moon Men), (Brent McDonald – Straight Light) and Joe Compagna can all be found in the FNP chat room or have been played on the show at one time or another.
This promo is not just for the listener but also aimed at the DJ next door that finds Prog interesting, will pass the torch, and keep it alive and well. All proceeds from the album, if it is not free at any time will go directly to any and all FNP promotions helping the artists gain exposure to a wonderful listenership.
Lines & Circles is a digital only release for now and features three different album covers to choose from.
Album Designs – Ronnie Marquiss
Ron Marquiss the founder of DRIVE IN MOVIE BAND will be interviewed by Stephen Speelman this Friday on FNP aka Friday Night Progressive and the album will be showcased during the show.
Tracklisting 1. Two is Better Than One 4:44 2. Sorry We’re Closed 4:31 3. Lines and Circles 5:43 4. Lockups and Lockdowns 5:24 5. Patent Pending 3:34 6. China Rose 4:04
ADDITIONAL TRACK INFO:
Ron Marquiss – Composition, Keys, Guitar, Bass, Drum arrangement. All Tracks Jordan Marquiss – Drums Tracks – 1,2,3,4,5 Joe Compagna – Bass Track – 5 and short Rhythm section on Track – 1 Nathan Ames – Guitar Track – 1 Adrianne Simioni – Violin Track – 3 Astraea Antal – Flute Track – 4 Bret Harold Hart – Guitar and other instruments Intro – Outro Track – 3 Brent McDonald – Guitar and Keys Track – 2 David Leiter – ELP sound FX intro to Track – 1
Recording Studios HipWorks Mobile Tone-Magnet’ in Eden, NC. The Hønehuset in Tofte, Norway Resonance Transfer Studio Bear, Delaware USA Mixed by Ronnie Marquiss at Resonance Transfer Studio Delaware USA Mastered by Stephen Paine at Lyonesse Studios UK
Photography for Astrea Antal by (Bert Treep) Album Design – Ronnie Marquiss
About Lines & Circles Whimsical keys, dreamy and reflective guitars, fiery drums, edgy violin, energetic and propulsive flute leaves every passage in this six-track album a wonder to behold. Composer Ronnie Marquiss and his new team have created another masterpiece album. “Lines & Circles”
Independently Produced by DRIVE IN MOVIE BAND for Friday Night Progressive
Multi-instrumentalist Daniele Liverani (formerly EMPTY TREMOR, GENIUS ROCK OPERA, KHYMERA, TWINSPIRITS, PRIME SUSPECT, COSMICS) is working on the production of a new concept album which will be titled “Incomplete”.
“Incomplete” represents for Liverani the return to the production/composition of sung music, after 10 years of exclusively instrumental music: (Eleven Mysteries (2012), Fantasia (2014), A Kind Of Soul (2014), An Innocent challenge (2016), Worlds Apart (2019), and various other orchestral compositions).
The lyrics of the album will be recorded by American singer Jack Seabaugh, a revelation multi-instrumentalist/arranger of recent years, with a recently released solo album entitled “Neon Sky” to his credit.
The drums will be recorded by Simon Ciccotti (Ex DE LA MUERTE, drummer for the RUSSEL ALLEN’s Metal For Autism Tour 2017, TURBULENCE, PAREIDOLIA) in the recently created “Ciccotti Brothers” studio.
The rest of the instruments will be recorded/arranged by Daniele.
The album will also contain, as bonus tracks, the recording of the “Concerto for violin and orchestra in D Major n.1” in three movements, entitled “Impetus”, composed by Liverani in 2017/2018, performed by the German violinist Tonio Geugelin.
The album will be released/distributed through Landr exclusively for the digital market (Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Google Play, Amazon Music, Deezer, Tidal, and many others). The publication is scheduled for autumn 2021.
Here is the tracklist and the cover of the album:
1-I Dream Of Me 2-How I Feel 3-I Won’t Cry 4-Incomplete 5-Get Out Of My Way 6-Hopefully 7-I’ll Change My Life 8-Keep The Faith 9-Move On 10-In My Heart
Bonus tracks: “Concerto for violin and orchestra in D Major n.1” “Impetus” 11-Impetus 12-Aiming For Peace 13-Millennials
NMB – release video for “Do It All Again” the first single from the upcoming album ‘Innocence & Danger’ Pre-order starts today Tour Dates revealed for US and Europe
NMB recently announced their much-anticipated fourth studio album ‘Innocence & Danger’, to be released on August 27th, 2021. Today, the band are sharing the first single and video from the album for the opening track “Do It All Again.”
Watch the video for “Do It All Again,” created by Christian Rios, here
Mike Portnoy says this about the track, “This was the first song we wrote when we reconvened for the sessions for this album. It rooted from an idea Bill Hubauer brought in and we built off it from there. Like most NMB songs, I love the sharing of lead vocals…Neal Morse on the verses, Bill on the B section and an amazingly catchy 3-part harmony chorus with Eric Gillette taking the lead.”
‘Innocence & Danger’, featuring artwork by Thomas Ewerhard (Transatlantic), will be available as: • Limited 2CD+DVD Digipak (featuring a Making Of documentary) • 3LP+2CD Boxset • Standard 2CD Jewelcase • Digital Album
*** With NMB’s previous two releases being concept albums, it’s perhaps remarkable that Innocence & Danger is a series of unrelated songs, but drummer Mike Portnoy says “After two sprawling back to back double concept albums in a row, it was refreshing to get back to writing a collection of unrelated individual songs in the vein of our first album.”
Indeed, making this album came easy to the band; while the initial inspiration came particularly from Bill Hubauer (keyboards) and Randy George (bass), the ideas flowed from everybody from there on, as George recalls: “I am excited about the level of collaboration that we achieved on this one. We even went in with a lot of ideas that weren’t necessarily developed, and I think in the end we have something that represents the best of everybody in the band.”
In fact – like its two acclaimed predecessors – Innocence & Danger is a double album by inspiration, rather than design, as Portnoy explains: “As much as we wanted to try and keep it to a single album after having just done two double albums, we wrote so much material that we found ourselves with our third double album in a row! That’s pretty prog!”
There is also plenty in Innocence & Danger to excite those prog fans who have a thirst for epics, as Neal Morse explains: “There’s one half hour epic and another that’s about 20 minutes long. I really didn’t realize that they were that long when we were recording them, which I guess is great because if a movie is really good, you don’t realize that it’s three hours long! But there are also some shorter songs: some have poppier elements, some are heavier and some have three part acoustic sections. I’m excited about all of it, really.”
NMB (Neal Morse Band) is Neal Morse (vocals, keyboards and guitars) Mike Portnoy (drums, vocals) Randy George (bass) Eric Gillette (guitars, vocals) Bill Hubauer (keyboards, vocals)
BRAZIL (June 16, 2021) — PENTRAL announce the release of the second video, The Shell I’m Living In, from their album “What Lies Ahead Of Us”. The video was premiered on BraveWords and is now available worldwide. You can watch the video here
Lead singer Victor Lima discussed the new video, “The Music video was recorded in our home town in Brazil – Belem, with many shots taken from the historic center of the city and some scenes in flashback from the previous recordings in the woods nearby, and the band playing in the forest as well. We had some issues doing that because many scenes were captured in the middle of people who were in their ordinary working days. This was intentional to make it more authentic, as many people there were doing their own things, and we naturally paid attention not to show anyone’s clear image without their previous approval. The recordings of “The Shell I’m Living In” took us a couple of days. We’ve been graced with amazing days and nights, brilliant acting performances from the actresses Anne and Duda, an inspiring direction by Roger Elarrat and beautiful Photography by Lucas Escocio. The whole team was incredible and emotive, and this intense atmosphere really stood out through the video.”
“What Lies Ahead Of Us” Track Listing:
1 – Silent Trees 2 – All My Wounds 3 – Disconnected 4 – Letters From Nowhere 5 – Aiming For The Sun 6 – A Gift From God 7 – No Real Colour In Souls 8 – The Shell I’m Living In 9 – Are You Satisfied? 10 -The Law
Produced by Pentral and Tim Palmer Mixed by Tim Palmer Co-produced by Sergio Fouad and Cesar Bottinha Mastered by Justin Shturtz
Pentral Is Victor Lima – vocals and guitar Vagner Lima – drums Joe Ferry – bass
About Pentral Pentral is the new Brazilian band that mixes hard rock and progressive metal music, and though the two brothers Victor Lima (vocals and guitar), and Vagner Lima (drums), and their third bandmate Joe Ferry (bass) had already worked together before, under that current name they are releasing their debut album this year. Pentral has been around since last year dropping some versions of classic rock songs from iconic bands through their YouTube channel, like Queen, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin.
1st June 2021. YES guitarist Steve Howe has announced he is to release the seventh edition of his Homebrew album series on 30th July via HoweSound. Homebrew 7marks the 25th anniversary ofthe guitar legend’s first album in his Homebrew collection. Pre-order the album here: https://cargorecordsdirect.co.uk/products/steve-howe-homebrew-7
The Homebrew series typically features recordings from Steve Howe’s home archive of demos and tracks, originally recorded for one of his many solo or group projects with YES, ASIA, ABWH or GTR. Homebrew 7differs slightly as none of the tracks have previously been released in any form and there are no plans for any to be rerecorded in the future.
“Many are things I’ve enjoyed saving until the right moment,” says Howe, “and the Homebrew series allows this. Some tracks have matured with my nurturing but others have been recently rediscovered.”
This collection includes tracks from the late seventies through to 2016 in Howe’s extensive range of playing styles. Each of the 21 tracks is dated and accompanied by Howe’s background notes and details on instrumentation. Most of the tracks are Howe’s solo recordings with occasional contributions from Dylan Howe and Virgil Howe on drums with Phil Spalding on bass guitar (Half Way). The booklet includes the lyrics for the four vocal tracks and is also illustrated by some of Howe’s delightfully atmospheric photography.
Homebrew 7
Track Listing:
1. The Glider (2015) Time: 1.37 2. October (1998) 1.56 3. Half Way (1997, 2009 & 2015) 3.49 4. The Only One (2013) 1.26 5. In One Life (1982) 2.41 6. Outstanding Deal (1982) 3.21 7. Be Natural (2013) 1.47 8. Cold Winds (1983) 2.38 9. Deanscape (1982) 2.21 10. Tender Hooks (2015) 2.06 11. A Lady She Is (1982) 4.12 12. Two Sided (2013) 1.45 13. Strange Wayfarer (2016) 3.00 14. Devon Girl (1983) 2.42 15. Safe Haven (2015) 1.31 16. A Matter Of Fact 1986) 17. Touchstone (2015)1.58 18. From Another Day (1979) 1.47 19. Foregone Conclusion (2015) 1.58 20. Space Void (1978) 1.05| 21. From The Get-Go (2015) 1.49 Total Running Time: 49.41
All titles written, arranged, engineered and produced by Steve Howe with additional drums by Dylan Howe and Virgil Howe.
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