Agents Of Mercy are back with a new full-on studio album titled DramaRama.
In it's true retro-spirit it is rehearsed and recorded "live" in Varispeed Studios in Sweden, with very few overdubs...12 songs written by guitarist Roine Stolt & singer Nad Sylvan - the concept was "to find the roots of our inspiration and the sounds we love" so there's the obvious late 60's and early 70's feel.
12 titles that focus more on melody, storytelling and drama than "technical delivery" - not withstanding the fact that the band house some of the most skilled hi-profile musicians in the present prog scene.
Huge rumble and swoosh from drums, fuzzy grinding & thunder bass, Wurlizer piano, Hammond swirls and adventurous moog ornaments, Telecaster twang and vintage Vox tubes - all there to support our swinging psychedelic-dramadelic 60's tripback.
Plenty of symphonic rewards for the diehard fans of TFK or Transatlantic style prog - closer to Retropolis than Rainmaker- but yet more scaled down happy classic rock,glam & pop too. It borrows from the theatrical rock - film noir - the oddity of young David Bowie - to the energy Mahavishnu Orchestra. The new album is a big leap towards a more complete classic (prog) rock band feel - where the 1st album stayed firmly in very pastel and mellow contemplating, but yet demanding modes.
DramaRama is an independent release from Stolt's own label, designed to operate freely and adapt in this new dawn of recorded music - so buy it from us and support more new adventurous recordings from this team.
The band consists of:
Nad Sylvan (Unifaun) VOCAL & KEYBOARDS
Roine Stolt (Transatlantic, Flower Kings) GUITARS
Jonas Reingold (Flower Kings, Karmakanic) BASS
Lalle Larsson (Weaveworld, Karmakanic) KEYBOARDS
Walle Wahlgren - DRUMS
Titles:
The Duke Of Sadness
Last Few Grains Of Hope
Peace United
Journey
Gratitude
Meet Johnnie Walker
Cinnamon Tree
The Ballad Of Mary Chilton
Roger The Tailor
Conspiracy
We Have Been Freed
Time
( final running order tba)
Running time: 72 minutes
Comes in nice digipak - Artwork by Silas Toball (again)
Summer is pretty much at an end, so the countdown to the festival starts here! Tickets for all 3 days remain available at www.summersend.co.uk . Don’t leave it ‘til the last minute!
First of all, we are sorry to announce that festival openers, Huw’s band Unto Us will be unable to play due to the unavailability of the band’s keyboard player, who will be on his honeymoon! Rehearsals continue to go exceptionally well, and the band will make its live debut later in the autumn. More news of them very soon. The band will be replaced, most likely by an acoustic act, and we will announce their identity soon.
Secondly, these are the draft timings for the festival. As always, please use these details as a guideline only, as they are subject to change at any time. Please note that there will be one long break only on the Saturday, for those of you planning meals!
Friday 8th October
Doors 7pm
7.30 – 8.10 TBC
8.25 – 9.25 Tinyfish
9.45 – 11.15 Defence of the Realm
Saturday 9th October
Doors 12noon
1 – 2 Haken
2.20 – 3.20 Ark
4.00 – 5.45 Unitopia
5.45 – 7.15 Break
7.15 Doors
7.30 – 11.00 Agents of Mercy / Karmakanic (will include 30 min interval)
Sunday 10th October
Doors 12.noon
12.30 – 1.30 Multifuse
1.50 – 2.50 Dead Heroes Club
3.20 – 4.50 Phideaux
4.50 – 6.00 Break
6.00 – 7.30 Sylvan
7.30 – 9.00 Break
9.00 – 10.45 The Watch
www.summersend.co.uk
www.myspace.com/summersendfestival
6th Annual CalProg Progressive Rock Festival
Date: Saturday October 10, 2009
Place: The Center Theater in Whittier, California
Line Up:
It Bites (UK)
Karmakanic (Sweden)
Touchstone (UK)
Agents of Mercy (Sweden)
Plus Tom Brislin (Jersey) Solo on the Patio
If you are not familiar with these bands, please take a moment to visit the CalProg web site to read about them and to listen to audio samples of their music. Even if you don't know the bands, you may be familiar with some of their members: John Mitchell, Roine Stolt, Jonas Reingold, Nad Sylvan and Nick D'Virgilio to name a few. This year promises to be yet another incredible day of progressive music.
Tickets go on sale THIS SATURDAY morning (June 27) at 8AM. All seats are reserved. Prices: $100 (1st 8 rows) and $80 for the rest of the house.
There seems to be a cottage industry of Flower Kings related bands.This can be seen as both right and wrong. For example, is Kaipa a Flower Kings related band, or is it the other way around, especially as Kaipa predates the Flower Kings by several decades? Is The Tangent a Flower Kings related band, or a Parallel or 90 Degrees related band? Transatlantic? And so on…it just keeps going.The lines remain somewhat blurred with Karmakanic. Bassist Jonas Reingold’s band, Karmakanic explores a jazzier side of progressive rock. Reingold’s a hell of a bassist, and in a genre filled with a plethroa of great names, that’s saying a lot. He has chops to spare, but he can play with remarkable subtlety and grace. Fretted or fretless, it really doesn’t matter…put a bass in his hands and magic will shortly follow. Karmakanic’s latest release is Who’s The Boss in the Factory, a 5 track (with the closing track indexed with two track numbers) showcase for his excellent playing and solid compositional skills. Joining him on this release are Zoltan Csörsz on drums, Lalle Larsson on keys, Krister Jonsson on guitars, and Göran Edman on vocals. Also guesting are a few familiar names…Andy Tillison of The Tangent (here we go again), Tomas Bodin (the Flower Kings, natch) and Theo Travis (Gong/Tangent/et.al.).Where Reingold’s playing on Flower Kings releases may lean ever so slightly toward the jazzier side of things, his work with Karmakanic seems a bit more punchy and powerful. This isn’t a complaint about his presence in TFK at all…but as Karmakanic is his project, it’s only understandable that he’d be a bit more to the fore. Having said this, the album opens with a song that honestly could have possibly been lifted from nearly any Flower King’s release, the 19-plus minute epic “Send a Message From the Heart.” Filled with positive lyrical messages and some wonderfully deft instrumental interplay, it’s an audacious choice as opener. For anyone thinking that Karmakanic is just another TFK-related band, “Send a Message From the Heart” will do little to disavow them of that notion…unless they take the time to listen deeper into the song. There are some great jazzy interludes and instrumental excursions…great keyboard playing, light and airy bass/percussion playing at an almost telepathic level, and so on. In general the arrangement, while perhaps more complex at one level, is also far more stripped back…less orchestrated, less symphonic.Things change up on “Let In Hollywood.” A series of chopped acoustic guitar chords lead into some cool singing from Göran Edman and a nice groove from Csörsz. This is a powerful, bass-driven song, with cynical lyrics deriding the pre-packaged entertainment that so many people swallow whole. I love the lyrical bit that goes “I can’t hear a single, this song is 7/8”…I can catch myself singing this from time to time, so the hook did its job. The synth work is excellent, and as for Reingold’s playing…it’s almost as if he were channeling the spirit of John Entwhistle through Chris Squire’s fingers…and saying that is almost a swipe at Reingold, for his instrumental voice is entirely his own. I just can’t think of any better way to describe the power he pushes through his instrument on this track.The title track is the second ‘true’ epic on the album, at 13:04. The opening is quiet and piano based, with a touch of acoustic guitar to sweeten the mix. Vocally darker as well, the introductory moments are far more sombre and almost malevolent than anything else on the album. The track builds gently, evolving into a slightly more orchestrated take on the Karmakanic sound, with string stabs and moments that verge on progressive metal.I also want to make note of the 2-part album closer, “Eternally.” Written in memory of Reingold’s parents, both of whom passed way late in 2007. The opening movement is a gentle piano piece that may sound out of place on an album such as this, but which is played with such delicacy and beauty that it simply must be heard. I hesitate to use the word gorgeous, but…the piece is gorgeous. No doubt about it. The second part drips with raw emotion, with grand string arrangements and passionate, from the depths of the soul singing. Reingold plays a fretless on this track, judging by the sound, and his playing is subdued, restrained, yet the intensity of emotion of his playing can be heard and felt in every quavering note. It may sound odd, but for such a sad song, the piece is uplifting and affirming at the same time…it never falls into a pit of despair and wallowing pity.I greatly enjoyed Who’s the Boss in the Factory, and can’t say enough good things about it. The album has it all…impressive playing, great vocals, and writing and arranging that keeps songs fresh and interesting throughout. Don’t look at this as another Flower Kings related band and album…Karmakanic deserves far better than that.Send a Message from the Heart (19:29)
Let in Hollywood (4:53)
Who's the Boss in the Factory (13:04)
Two Blocks From the Edge (9:51)
Eternally Pt. 1 (1:51)
Eternally Pt. 2 (6:22)
Jonas Reingold on bass
Zoltan Csörsz on drums
Lalle Larsson on keys
Krister Jonsson on guitars
Göran Edman on vocals
Well now...My other writing out of the way for another month or two, I can finally turn energies back to here. Thanks for your patience over the past few days as I worked diligently at getting other stuff out of the way :-)I'm working on 'nagging' a few of my outstanding interviewees to get back to me. I am pleased to say most of them are busy with new projects, including live dates and recording, so it's understandable that their energies and attentions are elsewhere. But I hope to have a new spate of interviews to post for you soon. And there are several reviews in the works as well...I will be reviewing the new Ayreon boxed set, Time Line.I will be reviewing the new Frost* album, Experiments in Mass Appeal.I will be reviewing the new Gamma Ray 2CD 2 DVD set Hell Yeah!I should be reviewing the new Karmakanic release, Who's The Boss in the Factory?All this and more. So stay tuned, wouldn't you?
I took an enforced weekend off...spent it in bed with a nasty cold. I'm back on my feet and will be updating furiously this week...or as furiously as my time will allow ;-)In any event, here are the albums that are currently getting a lot of spins here...NEW RELEASES:Marillion - Happiness is the Road Volume 1: EssenceMarillion - Happiness is the Road Volume 2: The Hard ShoulderCardboard Amanda - Cardboard AmandaKarmakanic - Who's the Boss in the FactoryCATALOGUE RELEASES:Strawbs - Hero & HeroineStrawbs - GhostsThe Enid - In the Region of the Summer StarsThe Enid - Aerie Faerie Nonsense"I used to be half empty, but now I'm half full..."
