I have been involved in developing a few mission statements over the years, and it is not something I really enjoy doing as there is always the risk of overstating/understating the intent, and then the business not living up to it anyway. Not every business does this of course, and even fewer bands, but you can read United Progressive Fraternity’s on their website, “To produce great music, as a collective concept, whilst conveying a message of peace, hope and global awareness”. There is a lot more than that of course, but this is the core. Hence we now have the second part of ‘Secondary Overload’, following on from 2019’s ‘Loss’. The core of the band are the duo of Mark Trueack (vocals) and Steve Unruh (vocals, guitars, sitar guitar, bass, bass pedals, thumb piano, violin, flute, wind chimes, tambourine, percussion, narration, harmony vocals), but then there are a whole host of guests involved including the likes of Charlie Cawood, JPL, Ryo Okomuto and Steve Hackett but if you are that interested you will need to look them up yourselves as there are about 40! Also, if the nealy two hours of music is not enough then if you purchase it from Bandcamp you get an additional album, ‘The Secret Life of Light’, featuring an additional nine songs (68 minutes) by UPF’s “Romantechs” (Christophe Labled, Mark Trueack, Steve Unruh) which takes us up to a running time of three hours!
This is progressive rock, with loads of different elements and influences as one would expect from the involvement of so many musicians. It can be somewhat overpowering at times, with so many threads and layers that they can blend into each other, yet what makes this work is at the heart of this are some really strong melodies and songs and one can never deny the power of the lyrics and words. This is all about communication and something which brings this really home are the tracks which are just speeches from the likes of Sir David Attenborough and Chief Oren Lyons – that they have been brought in without any trickery really makes them stand out and brings the message strongly home that we are damaging our planet, but we can still reverse what we have done so far, hence “Hope”. This is not an album which can be drifted into, there needs to be a deliberate decision to sit and really listen to it, played on headphones when one has the time to concentrate and not be disturbed. Given the amount of work which has gone into this, the amount of people involved, and the small matter of a global pandemic it is no surprise this album too much longer to appear than was expected, and while there are elements quite reminiscent at times of The Flower Kings this is very much an album which stands on its own. There is a lot to take in here, both lyrically and musical volume, but it is definitely worth the effort.
Recorded at the Keswick Theatre, Glenside, PA on October 21st 2022, here we find Renaissance performing alongside the Renaissance Chamber Orchestra to celebrate Annie Haslam’s 75th year. I have long been a fan of this band in its multiple iterations, and there is no doubt their 2002 live album ‘In The Land of the Rising Sun’ is one of my favourites, so when I was sent this by keyboard player Geoffrey Langley (who I know from The Twenty Committee) I was definitely looking forward to it. There have been multiple iterations of the band over the years, but most people point to the line-up of Annie Haslam, Michael Dunford, John Tout, Jon Camp, and Terry Sullivan as being the classic, but Michael and John are no longer with us while Jon and Terry long ago departed, but Annie is still there keeping the flame alive. These days she is joined by Mark Lambert (bass), who was a member in the Eighties, Rave Tesar (keyboards, piano), who played on the ‘Rising Sun’ album, drummer Frank Pagano (who has been there for more than a decade), Geoffrey Langley (who joined in 2016) and new bassist Leo Traversa, so this is certainly a valid line-up as opposed to Annie and a host of session musicians.
This double CD set covers decades in music, and we get music from Renaissance, Annie Haslam’s Renaissance and her solo albums, and there is no doubt great thought has gone into the arrangements as the use of the additional musicians provides amazing depth. There are two keyboard players, and their repertoire has been greatly expanded with the use of real strings and horns. I am sure anyone who went to see this tour would have had a wonderful time, and those who purchase the album will be the same people and will happily relive the experience, but I wonder how many will purchase this for pure listening pleasure as opposed to collectors? Musically this is wonderful, and one cannot fault anyone involved as their delicacy and accompaniment is superb, but we cannot look past the fact that Annie is now into her eighth decade, and it sounds like it. That she is not using effects to mask this is to be admired, but while the range is still there, her voice is now quavery and can be quite shrill. She hits and holds the notes, but sometimes they are a little sharp, and I soon found I was not enjoying the album nearly as much as I expected or wanted to. One could never give this to someone as an introduction, it is only for those who already know the material and are pleased to be able to experience Annie performing the songs which they did not expect to still hear played in this fashion. That she can still hit the notes in “Symphony of Light” is incredible, and “The Sisters” is a triumph with wonderful performances from all involved, but sadly somewhat let down by the vocals. Back in the Eighties I was one of the biggest Jethro Tull fanatics around, but when I last saw them in 2004, I vowed never to see them play again as Ian’s voice was totally shot in the live environment. The arrangements and performances from the musicians involved are superb, and there are plenty of opportunities for them to weave their magic, but sadly it is often let down by the vocals, which is a real shame as many of us view Renaissance as being built around Annie and her amazing voice. Sadly, time has taken its toll.
It is strange to be reviewing UPF and Unitopia one after the other as they are very much related, not only musically but also in personnel, except this time around it is a band as opposed to a 40+ musicians. This band has always been the brainchild of Mark Trueack (vocals) and Sean Timms (keyboards, backing vocals, various stringed instruments), but they have brought in new members including Mark’s UPF songwriting buddy Steve Unruh (backing vocals, violin, flute, rhythm guitars, mandolin) along with John Greenwood (backing vocals, lead electric guitar, nylon-strung guitar, 6 and 12-string acoustic guitars, mandolin, programmed orchestration). If that were not enough, we also have a massively impressive rhythm section in drummer Chester Thompson (ex-Genesis, Frank Zappa, Weather Report) and bassist Alphonso Johnson (Santana, David Gilmour, Weather Report). Even before putting it on the player one knows this is going to be something impressive, and it is.
Musically it is closely related to UPF, not only through having the same singer but also a very similar approach, but here it is less layered (although there is still plenty of complexity) which allows for more space and for the music to breathe more easily as it is not being constrained by so many threads. However, although there are far less musicians, the main players are multi-instrumentalists which means they can bring in multiple sounds so we can go from acoustic guitar to piano, violin, or something much heavier. The idea of bringing in a ready formed experienced rhythm section was inspired, given these guys have been at the top of their game since the Seventies. Johnson’s touch on different basses is wonderful, his fretless slides often combining with Trueack’s vocals, while Thompson allows himself to sit back at times and blast through at others.
Due to when these albums were released, and their place in the alphabet, I have been listening to Unitopia straight after United Progressive Fraternity and consequently have been comparing them to each other. While there is more depth within the latter, it is the former I have enjoyed most as this is a release which hist all the high notes and the more it is played the more there is to be discovered and enjoyed
We’ve got the debut album of a great new band launching today on waterfall. Many of you will know Jake Livgren who sings on this album from Jesus Christ: The Exorcist and The Dreamer – Joseph: Part 1 (and also part 2!)
The band, Emerald City Council is an American progressive rock band, formed in 2021 out of a recording project produced by saxophonist/keyboardist Brent Bristow. The band features vocalist Jake Livgren (Proto-Kaw, Kerry Livgren) and drummer Noah Hungate (The Band Perry, son of Toto’s David Hungate), along with Jeremy Nichols (Erin Coburn) on bass, and up and coming guitarist Seth Hankerson. Brandon Goff, Associate Professor of Music Industry at Francis Marion University, has also contributed significant guitar work as special collaborator to the band.
Bristow, Professor of Music at Arkansas State University-Beebe, began the project to record some of his original material, in which he wanted to feature the saxophone in a non-jazz context to show the versatility of the instrument. The rhythm section of Hungate, Nichols, and Hankerson clicked very quickly with impeccable musicianship, and Livgren’s range and versatility as a vocalist brought greater depth and meaning to the lyrics and melodies.
After hearing the early results of these sessions, Casey McPherson (Flying Colors, Alpha Rev) suggested that they move beyond merely recording together and actually form a band. Adopting Livgren’s suggested name of Emerald City Council, the band is eager to perform live shows in the near future!
You can hear their debut album, Motion Carries, streaming today along with lots more music from my and other artists catalogues.
If you aren’t yet a member, you can join at www.waterfallstreaming.com and if you’re an Inner Circle member you can get your subscription at a rock bottom price!
Melodic Revolution Records is thrilled to announce Arnoldo’s Lizards is back with “Happy Without Your Consent” their follow-up to the digital-only album “Satanic Attack or Divine Punishment” released in 2021, and the new album features eight new songs including the singles, Tonight, Keep it On, and American Dream.
Happy Without Your Consent” began to take shape in late 2021 amid a series of catastrophic coincidences that filtered through music as a healing method.
The entire album is intense. It exposes the routines we subject ourselves to day in and day out, often without full awareness of how others’ actions impact our sleep at night. Starting with ‘American Dream,’ a song dedicated to those who believe they can live at the expense of others’ dreams, shattering everything in their path for a glimpse of power, the album aims to reflect on the constant contradiction we experience just by being humans. We touch, destroy, rebuild, and are reborn again.
Vanity, betrayal, anger, and distrust are the emotions harbored within this album, aspiring to convey a clear message: no matter what happens, our only path is to never stop creating art.
Defying political correctness, we offer a message to be explored internally and another to surrender to intensity in a nighttime mosh pit. The album believes in the fusion of euphoria and joy within a worn-out and discouraged individual because that’s why we live: to sing about the broken and to remind them that as long as there is life, there are reasons to create.
Track-list
1. American Dream 03:35 2. Keep It On 02:39 3. Porno Star 02:26 4. Arabic Song 03:21 5. Tonight 02:46 6. Mood Of Dance 03:18 7. I Suprise You 03:22 8. Think It All 03:01
The Band
Alvare Goco: lead vocals and backing vocals. Jack Dimensions: backing vocals, keyboards, Hammond, synthesizers and programming. Ezequiel Volpe: bass. Gustavo Ciambotti: drums. Elías Ciambotti: electric guitars. Enrico Barboza: electric guitars. Juan Anté: electric guitars. Nacho Sosa: electric guitars. Andres Guazzelli: backing Vocals, additional programming. Willjoy: vocals. Wilko Wilkes: vocals.
Additional Credits
Recorded at Ombligo con Pelusa Records, La Nona Studio, REDRUM, (Mar del Plata, Argentina) and Ringo Records, La Plata, Argentina. Mixed by Andres Guazzelli at REDRUM, Mar del Plata, Argentina. Mastered by Andres Guazzelli at REDRUM, Mar del Plata, Argentina. Artwork by Agustin Pannagio, Argentina. Produced by Jack Dimensions.
The band infuses Progressive Art Rock with a dash of Avant-garde, Dance, Pop, and many other influences.
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