BRYAN BELLER’S NEW SOLO WORK, ‘SCENES FROM THE FLOOD’, AN EPIC-SCALE MODERN PROGRESSIVE DOUBLE CONCEPT ALBUM, TO BE RELEASED ON SEPTEMBER 13TH, 2019;PRE-ORDERS NOW AVAILABLE
As a bassist and composer, Bryan Beller (The Aristocrats, Joe Satriani, Dethklok, Steve Vai) has never been accused of being insufficiently driven. But nothing he’s done before can truly prepare audiences for his newest release, the massively ambitious and unapologetically progressive double concept album Scenes From The Flood, scheduled for worldwide release on September 13th, now available for pre-order at bryanbeller.com.
A work so sweeping in scale that it took Beller nearly a decade to conceive, compose, and now fully realize, the album grapples with an existential question: When the storm comes for us, the big one after which things will not be the same, who are we and what do we become in those defining moments? What do we keep, and what do we let go? Scenes From The Flood explores themes of ambition and loss, intentionality and reality, hope and disillusionment, and uses every second of its 18-song, 88-minute running order to tell an emotionally consuming and unforgettable musical story.
Realizing Beller’s vision meant enlisting 26 musicians spread across four continents to bring Scenes From The Flood to life. Special guests on guitar include legends Joe Satriani (on the optimistic, “road trip” vibed opening track “Volunteer State”), John Petrucci (who lays down a screaming lead on the 9-minute story-climactic progressive epic “World Class”), Guthrie Govan (taking the lead on the album’s closing ballad “Sweet Water”), and Mike Keneally (going from layered acoustics on one track to furious metal riffing on another), just four of fourteen total guitarists who appear on the album. Drummers include veterans Gene Hoglan (Dethklok, Strapping Young Lad, Death), Joe Travers (Zappa Plays Zappa, Joe Satriani), Ray Hearne (Haken), and Nate Morton (Cher, The Voice)
uly 1st marked the debut of the animated video for one of the album’s signature tunes, “The Storm”, a dark and heavy odyssey that serves as one of the signature compositions of Beller’s new opus. The 7-minute piece features the aforementioned metal legend Gene Hoglan on drums and an army of four guitarists to deliver the song’s urgent, powerful message. See it here:
“Not exactly light fare, is it?” chuckles Beller, who just turned 48. “But all of my truly favorite albums take me to deep, sometimes challenging places, even upon repeated listening. Especially the double albums. Somewhere inside me, in the eleven years since my last solo album, I’d absorbed and processed a series of life experiences that, I thought, could possibly inform an extended work like this. I felt like I had something big and complex to say. And then I just dove into it.”
Presented in the classic format of four vinyl sides (or four “parts” on two CD’s), Scenes From The Flood was inspired by hallowed progressive double-albums like Pink Floyd’s The Walland Yes’ Tales From Topographic Oceans, as well as more modern expanded works, such as Nine Inch Nails’ The Fragile. The deluxe packaging (2CD 8-panel digipak + two 20-page double-CD booklets; 2LP gatefold + 24-page full-size booklet) reveals not just album artwork, but unique cover-style artwork for each of the eighteen songs, or “scenes”. The resulting sense of story urgency and dramatic narrative presents like a soundtrack to a movie suspense thriller as much as it does a double album. A limited run of 200 colored (purple) vinyl will also be produced.
Scenes From The Flood is performed by: Christopher Allis, Bryan Beller, Nili Brosh, Paul Cartwright, Darran Charles, Julian Coryell, Mike Dawes, Janet Feder, Guthrie Govan, Ray Hearne, Gene Hoglan, Mike Keneally, Jamie Kime, Fred Kron, Teddy Kumpel, Jake Howsam Lowe, Evan Mazunik, Nate Morton, Rick Musallam, Mike Olekshy, Griff Peters, John Petrucci, Matt Rohde, Joe Satriani, Rishabh Seen, Joe Travers, Leah Zeger
PART ONE The Scouring Of Three & Seventeen Volunteer State Everything And Nothing A Quickening Steiner In Ellipses
PART TWO Always Worth it Lookout Mountain The Storm The Flood
PART THREE Bunkistan As Advertised Army Of The Black Rectangles The Outer Boundary Angles & Exits
PART FOUR The Inner Boundary World Class Sweet Water Let Go Of Everything
Scenes From The Flood will be released on September 13th, 2019. Pre-orders are now available. All studio and live releases from Bryan Beller can be purchased at http://bryanbeller.com
FROST*, the band masterminded by producer, keyboard player & vocalist Jem Godfrey, has announced that they have re-signed with long-time label partner InsideOutMusic (who this year celebrate their 25th anniversary).
This new deal will encompass several forthcoming releases, including 2 new studio albums, a live album (filmed at 2017’s sold out show in London), as well as reissues of the bands back catalogue. Jem had this to say: “InsideOut have been a long suffering supporter of Frost*. Unwaveringly supportive even when I was lobbing as many toys as I could find out of my pram. As time has passed, I’ve grown up and come to realise what a luxury it is to have a record company of this calibre covering your back. Many bands don’t have that luxury so I’m absolutely raring to go with the new album and the one beyond that.”
InsideOutMusic label-head Thomas Waber adds: “I am really pleased that we managed to extend our partnership with Frost* mastermind Jem Godfrey. His unpredictable nature and humour is a breath of fresh air in this genre and provides for some of the best music we have released on the label. Let’s see what mischief we can come up with in the years to come!”
More news on these forthcoming releases will be released in the coming months.
As mentioned, Frost* played the final show of the Falling Satellites campaign to a sold-out Dingwalls in London in November 2017. The evening was filmed, and will see the light of day as a brand new live release.
Falling Satellites was released in May 2016 to much critical acclaim, with Prog Magazine calling the band “one of the most entertaining and exciting bands on the block”, while Echoes & Dust called the album “essential listening” and Heavy Blog Is Heavy said: “Progressive pop is theirs, and Falling Satellites is the benchmark.”
Jem is joined on ‘Falling Satellites’ by guitarist & vocalist John Mitchell (Lonely Robot, It Bites), drummer Craig Blundell (Steven Wilson) & bassist Nathan King (Level 42). ‘Falling Satellites’ was the band’s first album in 8 years & the follow-up to the acclaimed ‘Experiments In Mass Appeal’. Comprising 11 songs, the final 6 forming a 32-minute long suite, ‘Falling Satellites’ also sees a guest appearance from Grammy-nominated guitar legend Joe Satriani who Godfrey played with on the G3 tour in 2012.
The Sea Within – the new art-rock collective comprising of Roine Stolt (Transatlantic, The Flower Kings), Daniel Gildenlöw (Pain of Salvation), Jonas Reingold (Steve Hackett, The Flower Kings, Karmakanic, The Tangent), Tom Brislin (Yes Symphonic, Renaissance, Spiraling, Deborah Harry) & Marco Minnemann (The Aristocrats, Steven Wilson, UK, Joe Satriani) – have announced that their debut self-titled album will be released June 22nd, 2018.
Now they are pleased to give fans a glimpse at the recording process for the album, as well as a very first taste of the music.
Watch & listen to this studio teaser video here:
Let’s get one thing straight from the start. The Sea Within is more of an amalgamation of some serious talents, than a regular “supergroup”. These musicians have come together to create a unique album. Guitarist/vocalist Roine Stolt, bassist Jonas Reingold, keyboard player/vocalist Tom Brislin, drummer/vocalist Marco Minnemann and vocalist/guitarist Daniel Gildenlöw have a vast reservoir of experience. Look at the portmanteau of artists with who they’ve worked: The Flower Kings, Transatlantic, Jon Anderson, Steven Wilson,The Aristocrats, Joe Satriani, Yes, Steve Hackett, Renaissance, Pain Of Salvation, Deborah Harry, Meatloaf, Karmakanic … that of itself tells you this is something very special.
“I suppose it all began to take shape in the autumn of 2016,” explains Stolt. “I had a chat with Thomas Waber, the boss at InsideOut Music, about the idea of putting together a new band. I wanted to move in a fresh direction with new collaborations. So Thomas gave me the ‘go ahead’ to seek musicians for a new project.” First on-board was The Flower Kings bass player Jonas Reingold.- “He is a long time bandmate and friend and we were also very keen to get keyboardist Tom (Brislin) involved – after seeing his synth pyrotechnics with legends Yes ‘Symphonic’ and with Camel. Then we have been a fans of ‘Aristocrats’ drummer Marco for a long time; I first heard of him 15 years ago and he is a brilliant drummer, unique energy. Then when we discussed ideas for singers, Daniel’s name came up, he has such a great range and dynamic voice and we’ve worked together on and off over the years.” Also added later to the bands line-up for live shows was vocalist & guitarist Casey McPherson of ‘Flying Colors’ & ‘Alpha Rev’, who also sings a couple of songs on the album.
Initially the band went to Livingston Studios in London last September to begin the process of assembling all the material and recording it for the debut album. “Most of the material you’ll hear are really band compositions. Of course, ideas were triggered by all of us. Sometimes Jonas would come up with a part, chord sequence or tune and then I or Tom would write melody & lyric and some new riff section and Marco enhancing with further musical metric twists and developments – then Daniel would add or rewrite some of the lyrics, change or add more melodies. Overall, the vast majority of the tracks have been worked on and developed by all of us in one way or another.”
The entire recording situation took about six months, and the band also have some very special guests featured on the album. “We have got Jordan Rudess from Dream Theater playing piano on one song. The legendary Jon Anderson sings on another track, while ‘wind ace’ Rob Townsend, who plays saxophone and flute with Steve Hackett, is also on the record. Each of them brings a different flavour to the music.”
“People have asked me how I would describe what we have done, and it is almost impossible. I would have to say it sounds like…us, ‘The Sea Within’. Our tastes are very eclectic – from prog to jazz to classical, to heavy rock, folk, punk, electronica and pop. We all come from a different background – so here everything goes. This has been about putting those diverse influences into the music. I feel you will hear all that’s good about pop – with great melodies and hooks – plus the rawness of metal, improvisations, symphonic and movie soundtracks. We also left room for each of us to take off on flights of instrumental jamming. That was the basic idea, anyway. But until we all got together, we had no idea where it would lead or if it would actually work.” The band have ended up recording close to two hours of music, and will be releasing it all in June on what will be a self-titled album.
The Sea Within as a music collective have plans to perform live, and will make their stage debut at ‘Night Of The Prog’ in Loreley, Germany which happens from July 13-15 and will bring special guests for that evening. “As far as I am concerned, we will try do as much touring as possible. We have a great band, great label and our agent Rob Palmen on-board. We have great artwork by Marcela Bolivar, all looks bright. However Daniel will not be able to join us for touring now, as he has commitments with main band Pain Of Salvation. With Casey taking the vocal spot, now with us live, we can go out on the road and play this album and beyond and grow as a band. We have so much to offer musically, on record and on stage and I am sure we will develop a lot over the next few years. But ‘The Sea Within’ album is a great start. I am excited for everyone to hear what we have done and am now thrilled to start working on the songs for the live show.”
The album will be available as a special edition 2CD digipak, gatefold 2LP vinyl + 2CD & as digital download. You can find the full track listing below: Disc 1:
1.Ashes of Dawn
2.They Know My Name
3.The Void
4.An Eye for an Eye for an Eye
5.Goodbye
6.Sea Without
7.Broken Cord
8.The Hiding of the Truth
Disc 2:
1.The Roaring Silence
2.Where Are You Going?
3.Time
4.Denise
As mentioned, The Sea Within has recently announced their first confirmed live date, taking to the stage at Night of the Prog Festival 2018 at Loreley, Germany on the weekend of 13-15th July 2018. Tickets are available now here: http://www.nightoftheprogfestival.com/en/home-2/
THE SEA WITHIN – the new art-rock collective comprising of Roine Stolt (Transatlantic, The Flower Kings), Daniel Gildenlöw (Pain of Salvation), Jonas Reingold (Steve Hackett, The Flower Kings, Karmakanic, The Tangent), Tom Brislin (Yes Symphonic, Renaissance, Spiraling, Deborah Harry) & Marco Minnemann (The Aristocrats, Steven Wilson, UK, Joe Satriani) – have announced that their debut self-titled album will be released 22nd June 2018.
Let’s get one thing straight from the start. The Sea Within is more of an amalgamation of some serious talents, than a regular “supergroup”. These musicians have come together to create a unique album. Guitarist/vocalist Roine Stolt, bassist Jonas Reingold, keyboard player/vocalist Tom Brislin, drummer/vocalist Marco Minnemann and vocalist/guitarist Daniel Gildenlöw have a vast reservoir of experience. Look at the portmanteau of artists with who they’ve worked: The Flower Kings, Transatlantic, Jon Anderson, Steven Wilson,The Aristocrats, Joe Satriani, Yes, Steve Hackett, Renaissance, Pain Of Salvation, Deborah Harry, Meatloaf, Karmakanic … that of itself tells you this is something very special.
“I suppose it all began to take shape in the autumn of 2016,” explains Stolt. “I had a chat with Thomas Waber, the boss at InsideOut Music, about the idea of putting together a new band. I wanted to move in a fresh direction with new collaborations. So Thomas gave me the ‘go ahead’ to seek musicians for a new project.” First on-board was The Flower Kings bass player Jonas Reingold.- “He is a long time bandmate and friend and we were also very keen to get keyboardist Tom (Brislin) involved – after seeing his synth pyrotechnics with legends Yes ‘Symphonic’ and with Camel. Then we have been a fans of ‘Aristocrats’ drummer Marco for a long time; I first heard of him 15 years ago and he is a brilliant drummer, unique energy. Then when we discussed ideas for singers, Daniel’s name came up, he has such a great range and dynamic voice and we’ve worked together on and off over the years.” Also added later to the bands line-up for live shows was vocalist & guitarist Casey McPherson of ‘Flying Colors’ & ‘Alpha Rev’, who also sings a couple of songs on the album.
Initially the band went to Livingston Studios in London last September to begin the process of assembling all the material and recording it for the debut album. “Most of the material you’ll hear are really band compositions. Of course, ideas were triggered by all of us. Sometimes Jonas would come up with a part, chord sequence or tune and then I or Tom would write melody & lyric and some new riff section and Marco enhancing with further musical metric twists and developments – then Daniel would add or rewrite some of the lyrics, change or add more melodies. Overall, the vast majority of the tracks have been worked on and developed by all of us in one way or another.”
The entire recording situation took about six months, and the band also have some very special guests featured on the album. “We have got Jordan Rudess from Dream Theater playing piano on one song. The legendary Jon Anderson sings on another track, while ‘wind ace’ Rob Townsend, who plays saxophone and flute with Steve Hackett, is also on the record. Each of them brings a different flavour to the music.”
“People have asked me how I would describe what we have done, and it is almost impossible. I would have to say it sounds like…us, ‘The Sea Within’. Our tastes are very eclectic – from prog to jazz to classical, to heavy rock, folk, punk, electronica and pop. We all come from a different background – so here everything goes. This has been about putting those diverse influences into the music. I feel you will hear all that’s good about pop – with great melodies and hooks – plus the rawness of metal, improvisations, symphonic and movie soundtracks. We also left room for each of us to take off on flights of instrumental jamming. That was the basic idea, anyway. But until we all got together, we had no idea where it would lead or if it would actually work.” The band have ended up recording close to two hours of music, and will be releasing it all in June on what will be a self-titled album.
The Sea Within as a music collective have plans to perform live, and will make their stage debut at ‘Night Of The Prog’ in Loreley, Germany which happens from July 13-15 and will bring special guests for that evening. “As far as I am concerned, we will try do as much touring as possible. We have a great band, great label and our agent Rob Palmen on-board. We have great artwork by Marcela Bolivar, all looks bright. However Daniel will not be able to join us for touring now, as he has commitments with main band Pain Of Salvation. With Casey taking the vocal spot, now with us live, we can go out on the road and play this album and beyond and grow as a band. We have so much to offer musically, on record and on stage and I am sure we will develop a lot over the next few years. But ‘The Sea Within’ album is a great start. I am excited for everyone to hear what we have done and am now thrilled to start working on the songs for the live show.”
The album will be available as a special edition 2CD digipak, gatefold 2LP vinyl + 2CD & as digital download. You can find the full track listing below:
Disc 1:
1. Ashes of Dawn
2. They Know My Name
3. The Void
4. An Eye for an Eye for an Eye
5. Goodbye
6. Sea Without
7. Broken Cord
8. The Hiding of the Truth
Disc 2:
1. The Roaring Silence
2. Where Are You Going?
3. Time
4. Denise
As mentioned, The Sea Within has recently announced their first confirmed live date, taking to the stage at Night of the Prog Festival 2018 at Loreley, Germany on the weekend of 13-15th July 2018. Tickets are available now here: http://www.nightoftheprogfestival.com/en/home-2/
THE SEA WITHIN online:
www.facebook.com/theseawithin1
www.twitter.com/theseawithin1
www.instagram.com/theseawithin1
www.theseawithin.net
INSIDEOUTMUSIC ONLINE:
www.insideoutmusic.com
www.youtube.com/InsideOutMusicTV
www.facebook.com/InsideOutMusic
www.twitter.com/insideouteu
Marco Minnemann is considered one of the top and most innovative drummers, composers and multi-instrumentalists in music today. He’s recorded and performed with numerous artists including Joe Satriani, Steven Wilson and his own band, the Aristocrats. Marco’s also part of the successful trio, Levin Minnemann Rudess. BORREGO features legendary guitarists, ALEX LIFESON of RUSH (on 3 songs) and JOE SATRIANI (on 4 songs).
Now available for pre-order – Marco’s newest solo album: the epic, concept double CD, “Borrego”. The album features ALEX LIFESON of RUSH (on 3 songs) & JOE SATRIANI (on 4 songs.) The record contains 24 tracks (+ 4 bonus cuts exclusive to the CD.) The album is inspired by the beautiful and mysterious desert town in Southern California, Borrego Springs. (First 1,000 CDs autographed by Marco)
BORREGO is an epic, double CD and concept record that contains 24 tracks (+ 4 bonus cuts exclusive to the CD) and a 24 page booklet. One of the bonus tracks also includes TONY LEVIN on bass. The album is inspired by the beautiful and mysterious desert town in Southern California, Borrego Springs.
DOUBLE CD TRACK LIST:
DISC 1:
1. Sandstorm
2. The Healer – Featuring Joe Satriani
3. Thunderstorm
4. Sculptures
5. A Random Place
6. North Bound – Featuring Joe Satriani 7. Palms Inn Blues
8. Cutting It Short
9. Mirage
10. Gold Digger
11. On That Note – Featuring Alex Lifeson 12. Everyday Springtime 2017
13. South End – Featuring Alex Lifeson 14. One Margarita (and the Milky Way)
DISC 2:
1. Horsepower – Featuring Joe Satriani 2. What Brought You Here?
3. 3 Ghosts in a Saloon
4. Homicide
5. Lady in White
6. Vallecito
7. Hometown – Featuring Joe Satriani 8. Roadrunner
9. What Can I Hide?
10. Broken Part
Exclusive Bonus Tracks for CD
11. Walls
12. Why Should I Care?
13. And Over Again
14. OTN (REMIX) – Featuring Alex Lifeson and Tony Levin
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