Mr. MoonJune Recommends, Vol. 1: 25 Prog-Fuse Niceties for $1

Leonardo Pavkovic, owner and musical director of MoonJune Records, has a nice download deal that you can hardly refuse if you admire the new strains of prog-fuze music which his label is such an important source of. You can go on line and download 25 prog-fuze goodies by artists both well-known and lesser-known, music that for one reason or another Leonardo was unable to release on MoonJune Records. It's Mr. MoonJune Recommends, Vol. 1

There's Chad Wackerman and Allan Holdsworth for an example of the well-known, Asaf Sirkis & the Inner Noise for something less known. This is good music regardless. The minimum is $1, a $5 contribution is recommended.

Grab it! Vol. 2 comes out next month.

Paste this URL into your browser: http://moonjunerecords.bandcamp.com/album/mr-moonjune-recommends-volume-1-1-minimum-suggested-donations-5

Say "Yes" to Wobbler? "Rites at Dawn" Pleases in a Familiar Way

Norway's progressive rock outfit Wobbler reaches back to the heyday of bands like Yes on their CD Rites at Dawn (Termo 008). In fact they sound so much like Yes (and a touch of ELP) that it is almost as if they emerged out of a time machine from 1972.

They have the high ranged lead vocalist, the close harmonies, the roto-sound stringed bass lines, the key sounds, the guitar pick and play, and elaborate arrangements and baroquely intricate songs. The mellotron gives them another retro dimension that adds to their charm and occasionally gives them an early King Crimson aura.

Most importantly the musical element is strong. They have the ability to run with a style and make something new out of it. And that is what they do. There is the large orchestrated sound that is in no sense a simple matter to achieve. They do it well.

If you are a progressive fan, this will be music to savor. If not this probably will not change your mind.

Lunatic Soul II: Music from Some Unknown Ethnic Group in Space?

Lunatic Soul is a creative enclave with Riverside principal/lead singer Mariusz Duda as the primary driving force. Like Peter Gabriel and Dead Can Dance, Lunatic Soul creates a spacey pulsating ambiance that is like some modern-day ethnic music from a peoples yet unidentified. Or as Mariusz puts it, "trance-like... oriental-alternative" music.

All this can be heard and felt on the new release Lunatic Soul II (K-Scope 161). This is reflective, intelligent post-prog in the manner of the best of such music. Duda's voice is expressive and dead center in a musical way. The instrumental arrangements are modern and vibrant in the best sense. It sounds like the music of the future. Walls-of-sound of distinctive rock reverberance, hand drums and eastern tonalities, poetic lyricism, this is music to live inside, a world unto itself.

Besides that it's a hell of a good listen.

District 97: Original Progressive Music Group in First Offering

We've had a resurgence in new progressive sorts of rock lately. Some sound familiar, as if you are listening to a new album by a group you already know. Others do not sound that way. District 97 does not.

Hailing from Chicago, the band recently released their first album, Hybrid Child (Laser's Edge 1057), and it's a good thing they did, to my mind.

Leslie Hunt has a rock voice that's worthy of the music the band creates. Drummer Jonathan Schang wrote all the songs on the CD save one, which he co-wrote with Leslie. The instrumentation of cello. keys, guitar and bass seems right for what they do. And what they do is memorable. The songs stick in the mind, the prog routines and solo spots are filled with good musicianship and attention to the craft.

To me District 97 is a great example to play if someone wants to know what's good in the prog revival. They rock hard and they have great lines to work with. What more can you ask for? We can ask for a second album, that's for sure. I hope they keep growing because this is an impressive start!

Italian Prog Rock from DFA

Originally posted on April 11, 2008

Progressive rock is surely not dead. Another good example of a band active now is the Italy-based DFA. They’ve been around for some time, but recognition in the USA has only gradually come about. Musically they hearken back to Yes, early Genesis and perhaps King Crimson for complexity and instrumental virtuosity. They have their own spin on things however, and they sound thoroughly of today.

MoonJune Records have a number of releases out of the band (See my Cadence review of last January for more.) The one on my CD player now is a live US concert recorded in 2000. The CD is named Work in Progress and that title fits them, since it seems they are constantly perfecting and reworking their repertoire to more complex and refined levels, from what I can tell. The CD in question has a punchy, cosmically expanded ambiance. It’s fun to hear and gives you plenty of musical content to contemplate.