The Devin Townsend Project arrives in London after eight weeks on the road supporting his latest studio album, Transcendence. Prior to tonight’s concert, however, Townsend has created an eager sense of expectation by announcing on Twitter that the London show will be an exclusive performance of his very first album (as Devin Townsend) Ocean Machine: Biomech in celebration of … [Read more...]
Archives for March 2017
Progressive Discoveries
The idea for the Progressive Discoveries blog came about thanks to a kind invitation from Anthony Rowsick (Progsquatch) to collaborate on his weekly radio show. Prog-Watch is a weekly internet radio programme, aired on Progzilla and ProgPositivity and available on podcast, which is dedicated to bringing people Progressive Rock music from around the world. We decided that each … [Read more...]
Kepler Ten – Delta-V
The shimmering, hazy silhouette of the sun’s dawning rays, cresting the horizon in joyful anticipation of all the possibilities of a new day sends cascading ripples of ultraviolet sound to wash the earth. The rich, dominating chords of an imposing organ emerge and swell to fill the soundscape with a powerful, majestic sense of triumphal presence, over-layed in turn by the … [Read more...]
Mike and the Mechanics – Oxford, March 2017
The New Theatre in Oxford is an impressive statement of the sophistication and the glamour of the art deco period. The expansive stage is framed by an ornate, towering archway which allows perfect visibility from all levels of the 3-tier, 1800 capacity auditorium. As is befitting of a site which has been home to music hall entertainment in various forms since 1836, the … [Read more...]
Steve Hackett – The Night Siren
The bewitching call of the Sirens is reported to have been irresistible. Mesmerised by the enchanting beauty of their songs, sailors were lured to their inevitable destruction on the rocks surrounding Scylla and Charybdis. Only two people are recorded as having escaped the compelling singing of these beautiful hybrid creatures: Odysseus returning home from the Trojan War who … [Read more...]
Justin Cronin: The Passage
I am normally dismissive of 'long' books. My general rule of thumb is anyone who needs more than 400 pages to tell a story probably isn't a good writer. Lengthy books require a significant investment in terms of time as well as emotions which is often hard to justify or feels like something of an extravagant indulgence. Even with Stephen King's frequent ringing endorsements … [Read more...]