Thursday 30 April 2015

UK REVIEW: Karnataka

Karnataka - Secrets of Angels CD (album) cover

SECRETS OF ANGELS

Karnataka


Prog Folk


3.76 | 39 ratings

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website


5 stars Karnataka released a rather momentous album in 2010, the stunning 'The Gathering Light' that garnered rave critical and fan plaudits, and after a rather long hiatus (5 years) that saw them slightly alter once again their line-up with the departure of the sassy lead singer Lisa Fury, drummer Ian Harris and keyboardist Gonzalo Carrera, they are back with a fine effort indeed. New lead vocalist (and quite ravishing lady) Hayley Griffiths, French drummer Jimmy Pallagrosi and Turkish keyboard master Cagri Tozluoglu add to the tradition of sensational voice, booming percussion and sweeping ivories, keeping the Ian Jones-led Karnataka ship in fine form. Guitarist Enrico Pinna is also back to provide some blistering leads and never disappoints. Again, they opt for another extended epic (as with the preceding album title track 'The Gathering Light', which clocked in at 14 minutes+), the whopping 20 minute opus 'Secrets of Angels' seeks to stamp the proceedings with unmistakable prog-rock credentials.Vivid pieces like the cinematographic opener 'Road to Cairo' set the mood from the get-go, introducing unpretentious, highly melodic nuggets that have all the elements to please, solid drums pushing and egging all the others forward, the melodies that infect you the very first time you perceive them, a bit like being smitten by love at first hearing, light yet resonatingly profound. From that moment on, each track seems to flow into the next, like riveting chapters in a racy romantic novel, further intoxicating the listener into a miraculous emotion- drenched fantasyland. After returning from Egypt, a delicate piano and orchestral drama on the emotionally heavier 'Because of You', slashed by a monster axe solo awaits the longing listener. A gorgeous love song. Contrast that with the slick 'Poison Ivy', a raging and tempestuous lullaby, led by a choked Griffiths vocal and diseased love lyrics. The swirling symphonics and choir elevate this to a palpitating level, tossing in a venomous verse, just to remind all of us that humans can veer from sweet to bitter in a nano-second. Both the insistent and persistent 'Forbidden Dreams' and its companion, the stormy 'Borderline' offer up instantaneous airs that do not meander in molasses-like slosh, quite the opposite really as the bombastic melodies, mammoth choruses and penetrating verses resonate with power and emphasis.
'Fairytale Lies' is a stunning little jewel, served by a classic melody, sung by a siren-like a voice that would make you feel 'reborn from the ashes' and underpinned by a Pinna solo (hihihi, as Kati would say!), a soulful Griffiths vocal that sears the skies. On a delicious track like 'Feels Like Home', the ingenuity of simplicity comes shining through, a soulful, honest internal reflection on the myriad little mosaic tiles that form our daily routine. The massive title track is deliberately kept at the end, a majestic and grandiose finale that leaves a huge impression of contentment. Brilliantly constructed with recurring Celtic themes (under the leadership of Troy Donockley) , seasoned with delicate pipes, whistles, harps and strings, and garnished with colossal orchestrations, titanic choral effects and opera-like vocals from Hayley , owner of a spectral voice that will raise the hair on your back. It's all there, folks, a heady mixture of expert playing, buzzing bass in tow, tectonic drum blasts, shimmering guitar phrasings and overpowering keyboard colorations that will leave one breathless and content. This is easily one of the finest epic pieces that one will enjoy in 2015.
As with the entire Karnataka catalog, this is not technical wizardry or complex multi-suited symphonies that many demanding progressive fans are constantly searching for but a delightful prog-folk that serves as a meticulous stargate into the prog world for the uninitiated. Accessible yet superbly orchestrated, the feminine style is ideal to woo the gentler sex, propelled by the sultry and passionate lead vocals and founded on compact melodies that will adhere to your soul forever. If you enjoy bands like Panic Room, Mostly Autumn, Harvest and a slew of similar female vocal fronted bands, Karnataka is definitely a pioneering band in this style. Team players they remain firmly, there is never a feeling of overt show-off tendencies that may be offensive, as every note is a slave to the spellbinding melody. Every song is a highlight, a lithesome pearl shining in the emerald waters of sound, gliding over well-beaten rocks like a vivid stream searching for some outlet to the faraway sea. Their best effort yet.
5 Clandestine cherubs

http://www.progarchives.com/review.asp?id=1392084



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AT GONZO:

Secrets of Angels
CD - £9.99

Storm 
CD - £9.99


THE GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Dee Palmer | Beautiful



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AT GONZO
Objects of Fantasy (The Music of Pink Floyd)
CD - £9.99

The Orchestral Sgt Pepper
CD - £9.99

THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem


Rob Ayling writes: 

"Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth and Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop)


NUDE VEGETABLES
SOME OF MY BEST FRIENDS ARE VEGETABLES!
They are all clothing optional when yanked from garden beds
Sit unclothed on naked plates awaiting devouring
Get scraped,skinned,sliced,diced,served up
to folk who often confuse broccoli with bad green bacon
Knowledge of food goes back to the Garden (of Eden)
It was not an apple-it was a pomegranate!
Yesterday i met a woman of 83 who eats grape tomatoes daily
who did not know they were in fact a fruit(not a vegetable)
Some in Texas schools call ketchup a "vegetable"
And young sprouts are addicted to fast foods
Sugar and salt addiction for our diabetic nation
who drink more sodas than water every day
They do not see the naked truth-what comes from the garden
needs to be fully seen for what it is-raw foods!


World Naked Gardening Day - May 2, 2015
allnudist.wordpress.com

‘Mountain’ drummer Corky Laing’s rock opera making NYC debut

Corky Laing of Greenport rehearses earlier this month at his Southold studio. (Credit: Rachel Young)
Corky Laing of Greenport rehearses earlier this month at his Southold studio. (Credit: Rachel Young)
It’s about starting a conversation.
That’s what Corky Laing, drummer for the band Mountain, said recently about “Playing God — The Rock Opera,” his heavy-metal collaboration with Finnish bioethics professors Tuija Takala and Matti Häyry.
“There’s no agenda here,” said Mr. Laing, who is 67 and lives in Greenport. “We’re just enjoying the academic part.”
The rock opera, which makes its U.S. debut Thursday at the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College in New York City, explores topics like artificial insemination, immortality, cloning, suicide, deities, the afterlife and the concept of “savior siblings,” said Ms. Takala, an instructor at the University of Helsinki. She co-wrote the production with her husband, Mr. Häyry, who teaches philosophy at the Aalto University School of Business in Helsinki and is a founding member of the International Association of Bioethics. The show, which is directed by Kate Muethe of East Hampton and features a predominantly international cast, has already been performed in Helsinki and Basel, Switzerland.
“These are the sort of issues people are increasingly coming across in their own lives,” said Ms. Takala, who said she and Mr. Häyry began writing the opera “after a couple bottles of red wine” in 2010. Its themes about genetic engineering are explored in the form of a narrative set in the fictional town of Happyville.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO
Playing God
CD - £9.99

WAKEMAN, SQUIRE, HACKETT JOIN SHERWOOD PROJECT

Former Yes man Billy Sherwood has signed a deal with Frontiers Records for his upcoming album, Citizens.
And he’s lined up a who’s-who of names from the world of prog to contribute to the record, which is due for release in early 2016.
Rick Wakeman, Steve Hackett, Chris Squire, John Wetton, Jordan Rudess, Tony Kaye, Geoff Downes, Steve Morse, Steve Hillage, Patrick Moraz, John Wesley and Jerry Goodman have so far been confirmed, with more names promised in the coming weeks.
Sherwood says: “Citizen is the story of a lost soul wandering through time and living through many lives during historic periods of time.”
CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ROM GONZO
Union (Standard DVD)
DVD - £9.99

Union
DVD - £12.99

Union (2CD)
2CD - £7.99

Rock Of The 70's
DVD - £12.99

The Lost Broadcasts
DVD - £7.99

Rock of the 70s
DVD - £9.99

Veteran prog rock band Renaissance will perform in Tel Aviv.

‘People used to ask me what my mission was in life, and I would say that I didn’t really know,” said Annie Haslam, recalling her battle with and subsequent recovery from breast cancer in 1993. “Then, when I was better, I went, ‘Hang on a minute.

What’s precious here?’ It made me think about how vulnerable we are and what is really special in our lives,” said the 67-year-old vocalist with the veteran British progressive rock band Renaissance.

“And I realized what I was put here to do. I don’t want to sound conceited, but my voice is a healing voice. People have told me it’s gotten them through many bad times. I really thought about that, and it made me more determined to keep going,” she said.

Haslam, who possesses a five octave range, is still putting her voice to good use with the latest reincarnation of the much-loved cult band that in the 1970s used to be mentioned in the same breath as like-minded musical adventurers such as Yes, Genesis and King Crimson.

But that determination was put to a test in 2012 when longtime musical partner Michael Dunford died suddenly from a cerebral hemorrhage. He and Aslam had just finished recording a new album, Symphony of Light, featuring guest appearances by Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson and King Crimson’s John Wetton.


CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO
Dawn Of Ananda . 
CD - £7.99

Still Life
CD - £7.99

Wednesday 29 April 2015

Fairport Convention - Myths and Heroes



Fairport Convention - Myths and Heroes - It's almost a given that Fairport Convention will tour in the winter and the spring, headline Cropredy in the summer, and be continually involved with side projects. So with all that activity its hardly a surprise that new material from them is spoken in the same breath as hen's teeth. However, they have found some time and after four years we have Myths and Heroes.

The title track opens the album sprightly and it's a marker for things to come. Take the Fylde Mountain Time, a playful instrumental, Love at First Sight a lively tale of deception and, well love. On a more sombre note, and a couple of the albums stand out tracks, are the stark Weightless, and Home, a beautifully paced pensive, amble of a song.

Experimentation is not the order of the day but they are on slightly more unfamiliar territory with the harp flecked The Man in the Water, which neatly complements the compelling banjo driven Bring me Back my Feathers.

Read on...

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO
Fairport Convention and Matthews Southern Comfort
DVD/CD - £9.99

Live In Maidstone 1970
CD - £7.99

Live At Maidstone Castle 1970
DVD - £9.99

Merrell Fankhauser & Grant Cameron (made with Spreaker)



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO
Signals
CD - £9.99

Calling From A Star
Book - £12.99

Rainbow Bridge Revisited/Tiki Lounge Vol 2
2DVD - £12.99

Rainbow Bridge Revisited
DVD/CD - £9.99

Area 51 Suite
2CD - £9.99

Tiki Lounge Vol 1
DVD/CD - £12.99

The Best Of
2CD - £11.99

The Return To Mu
CD - £9.99

Tiki Lounge Vol 2
DVD/CD - £12.99

Captain Beefheart's Teenage Home In Lancaster CA



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO

Don Van Vliet (born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American musician, singer-songwriter, artist and poet known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. His musical work..


Don Van Vliet (born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American musician, singer-songwriter, artist and poet known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. His musical work..

THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem


Rob Ayling writes: 

"Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth and Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop)

SUCH INTIMACY AND LONGING
WHEN WE STARE UP@OUR NIGHT SKY
and watch with wonder,its changes
in light and shade historic/it makes us ant eyes
in a huge holographic frame.Hubble or otherwise,size matters!
Spaces between matter matter!Everything is moving-
whether in fixed or fortuitous orbits-and we are part of this.
Small we are,watching giant Nebulae.Wondering how long
the song of space and matter existed before we emerged.
How our tiny lights are temporary as lightning-observed
from a Space Station -or we ,observing via telescope
patterns and configurations so different to our circles and squares.
Ellipses?Yes!Emergent!Constantly!Space Operas on a scale we cannot imagine.
Even when the diagram is presented on a 2d surface,we forget it is 3D and in motion.A dance,not a diagram.
Constantly moving,shifting,changing.Alluring to our emotions-calling us back to origins.
Knowing there is no other space for us.On this blue planet,spinning.
Thin veil of oxygen keeping us breathing.Millions of cars,belching exhausts.
Still we look UP! with intimacy and longing.This is where we came from..
 
YES!NATIONAL POETRY MONTH!!
wed 29-HARRIETS WRITING GROUP 1-3pm@strange brew (Host Robin Barratt)
th 30-COWBOY POETRY@DRIPPING SPRINGS!(Library)6pm-come and hear!
MAYDAY!GREENMANCOFFEEHOUSE 6.30
May 2EXPRESSIONS!Positive Poetry!@Austin Bahai center 2215 E.M Franklin .POT LUCK.POETS PANTRY.Doors 6pm.
Magic Jack's Birthday /Lydia's Press Club!
LINDA MARIE COSSA&GORDON McGILL,
NANCY FIERSTIEN,PETE SEBERT,HERMAN NELSON,JOHN BERRY,DAVE THORNBERRY
On Google (include the quotes): "Spirit Thom" poet austin
Live! on YouTube
Live! on YouTube Playlist
eBooks on iTunes
eBooks on NOOK/Barnes&Noble
eBooks on Smashwords
eBooks on ScribD
eBooks on Inktera
eBooks on TXTR
eBooks on Versent Books
The Complete Collection of Video and Audio of Open Mics Austin - Venues, Shows, and Artists
Open Mics Austin on YouTube - YouTube
More (25) of Spirit Thom's (written) work can be found (and sampled) on iTunes at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/spirit-thom/id877639262?mt=11
Open Mics Austin Shared Google Calendar
Open Mics Austin - The Complete Collection of Video and Audio of Open Mics Austin

Tuesday 28 April 2015

THE GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Louie Louie - The Kingsmen

The man who sang the most famous version of the greatest song ever written has left the building

Pete Feenstra interviews Chris Squire (Yes) 26.10.11



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ROM GONZO
Union (Standard DVD)
DVD - £9.99

Union
DVD - £12.99

Union (2CD)
2CD - £7.99

Rock Of The 70's
DVD - £12.99

The Lost Broadcasts
DVD - £7.99

Rock of the 70s
DVD - £9.99

THIS IS POSSIBLY THE STRANGEST THING I HAVE EVER POSTED ON THE GONZO BLOG



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO

Don Van Vliet (born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American musician, singer-songwriter, artist and poet known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. His musical work..


Don Van Vliet (born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American musician, singer-songwriter, artist and poet known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. His musical work..

THE GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Vanilla Fudge - You Keep Me Hanging On



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM GONZO
Two Worlds Collide
CD - £7.99

Chris Squire Interview - Yes



CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ROM GONZO
Union (Standard DVD)
DVD - £9.99

Union
DVD - £12.99

Union (2CD)
2CD - £7.99

Rock Of The 70's
DVD - £12.99

The Lost Broadcasts
DVD - £7.99

Rock of the 70s
DVD - £9.99

THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem


Rob Ayling writes: 

"Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Tom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth and Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied with in seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not? why not indeed!!" (The wondrous poetpic is by Jack McCabe, who I hope forgives me for scribbling all over it with Photoshop)


SOMETIMES,YOU JUST WANT TO WALK DOWN THE STREET
for the sheer unbridled joy of jaywalking in company
like CRITICAL MASS with bicycle brigades
One often feels safer in company
Especially when fellow travelers abide
and a hive mind  makes  a form of music
chanting,strumming,humming-or beat-based  percussion
like that Eternal Drum Circle at Eeyore's Birthday
or @concerts (especially Festival sites
where ego bubbles merge and submerge
among an ocean of Grateful Dead ravers
or Beatles Cover Bands-or Tribute Bands
that convene because every body loves to dream in company
Even when we just walk down the streets together
celebrating despite the political weather...

All the times white people rioted for reasons other than legitimate grievances with our legal system.
nymag.com|By Jessica Roy
YES!NATIONAL POETRY MONTH!!
wed 29-HARRIETS WRITING GROUP 1-3pm@strange brew (Host Robin Barratt)
th 30-COWBOY POETRY@DRIPPING SPRINGS!(Library)6pm-come and hear!
MAYDAY!GREENMANCOFFEEHOUSE 6.30
May 2EXPRESSIONS!Positive Poetry!@Austin Bahai center 2215 E.M Franklin .POT LUCK.POETS PANTRY.Doors 6pm.
Magic Jack's Birthday /Lydia's Press Club!
LINDA MARIE COSSA&GORDON McGILL,
NANCY FIERSTIEN,PETE SEBERT,HERMAN NELSON,JOHN BERRY,DAVE THORNBERRY
On Google (include the quotes): "Spirit Thom" poet austin
Live! on YouTube
Live! on YouTube Playlist
eBooks on iTunes
eBooks on NOOK/Barnes&Noble
eBooks on Smashwords
eBooks on ScribD
eBooks on Inktera
eBooks on TXTR
eBooks on Versent Books
The Complete Collection of Video and Audio of Open Mics Austin - Venues, Shows, and Artists
Open Mics Austin on YouTube - YouTube
More (25) of Spirit Thom's (written) work can be found (and sampled) on iTunes at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/spirit-thom/id877639262?mt=11
Open Mics Austin Shared Google Calendar
Open Mics Austin - The Complete Collection of Video and Audio of Open Mics Austin
...BECAUSE SOME OF US THINK THAT THIS STUFF IS IMPORTANT
What happens when you mix what is - arguably - the world's most interesting record company, with an anarchist manic-depressive rock music historian polymath, and a method of dissemination which means that a daily rock-music magazine can be almost instantaneous?

Most of this blog is related in some way to the music, books and films produced by Gonzo Multimedia, but the editor has a grasshopper mind and so also writes about all sorts of cultural issues which interest him, and which he hopes will interest you as well.