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
Showing posts with label unitopia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unitopia. Show all posts
11 September 2010
31 August 2010
THE TANGENT: new album and gig news
Quite a few Tangent goings on at the moment. Firstly, to thank everyone who has bought "A Place On The Shelf", and to let everyone who hasn't got round to buying know that…
A Place On the Shelf is STILL available from our website www.thetangent.org - a whole album of previously unreleased pieces including our version of a large Stravinsky piece, plus a whole new 20 minute long epic, described by some as the best track we ever did. Reviews of this have been few, but highly enthusiastic, and thanks to anyone who wrote one of them…
THE NEW ALBUM
Yes, we're recording again, heavily into the composition at the moment. Our next album is currently called "COMM" and is shaping up nicely for release in early 2011 we hope. We're agreed to work once again with Ed Unitsky on the sleeve for this one, after 2 albums with other artists, and that's something you may want to look forward to. We don't deliberately make CONCEPT albums as you may know, but we do have themes in our records, and it looks like the theme of this one is all about communications (and lack of them)…
GIGS:
The Tangent now have a few gigs coming up, mostly in the UK. We've recently had a very successful trip to Italy where we headlined a festival in Parma - the first review of which states that the audience were "blown away by their enthusiasm". There's some photos at the website and the facebook site of course.
THE TANGENT with UNITOPIA in the UK
weekend of Fri/Sat 22nd 23rd October.
weekend of Fri/Sat 22nd 23rd October.
Yup, these two Insideout bands will play together, firstly in London at the LUMINAIRE on FRI Oct 22. Then on the Saturday it's up to the CRS at the WESLEY CENTRE in Maltby, Rotherham, Yorkshire. This is a "No headline, No support" equal billing set of shows. Unitopia will OPEN proceedings in London, The Tangent will OPEN in Rotherham
THE TANGENT at the PEEL. Saturday November 13. The "House Of Progression" at the Peel in Kingston, LONDON, is now London's only dedicated progressive rock music venue and we are delighted to be playing our first gig there. This will be a full length set (around 2 hours we hope)…
THE TANGENT in BELGIUM. Sunday November 14 at the SPIRIT OF 66 at Verviers. The band return to a favourite haunt for a brief foray into Europe.
NEXT YEAR we are planning on returning more to Europe, and hopefully cracking that elusive American Festival date. Anyone who can help us with these goals, please get in touch, and - well until the next time, thanks for listening.
27 August 2010
More Unitopia Changes/additions
More new boys joining the Unitopians for their tour. Read on...
Things are getting more hectic by the minute as the tour gets closer. Having Craig and Dave (Hoppy to his friends) with us has been a huge blessing. The guys have really brought a breath of fresh air into the band, and their excitement about the tour and meeting their fans is contagious.
Something was still missing though. Peter, our regular sax player cannot be with us on tour and there was no way we were performing without one, so we had to look for just the right person to fill his shoes. After a lot of searching, Unitopia is proud to announce our very special guest sax player for the tour, Ian Ritchie.
Ian’s main activities are composing for TV programs and commercials and gigging as a saxophonist with a variety of bands. On the playing front he has completed a world tour with Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, performing ‘Dark Side of The Moon’ and other Floyd favourites from 2006 to 2008. And as if that’s not enough, his jazz group has released a CD ‘Ian Ritchie's SOHO Project’ and a new album "South Of Houston" is already recorded and due for release in October.
Speaking of albums, Ian has been featured as soloist on records by Wham, Robbie Nevil, The Beach Boys and D.C. Lee and arranged and programmed for Dead or Alive, Howard Jones, David Sylvian, Steve Hillage and David Grant.
You can read more about Ian at: http://www.myspace.com/ianritchiemusic
And http://www.ian-ritchie.com
Things are getting more hectic by the minute as the tour gets closer. Having Craig and Dave (Hoppy to his friends) with us has been a huge blessing. The guys have really brought a breath of fresh air into the band, and their excitement about the tour and meeting their fans is contagious.
Something was still missing though. Peter, our regular sax player cannot be with us on tour and there was no way we were performing without one, so we had to look for just the right person to fill his shoes. After a lot of searching, Unitopia is proud to announce our very special guest sax player for the tour, Ian Ritchie.
Ian’s main activities are composing for TV programs and commercials and gigging as a saxophonist with a variety of bands. On the playing front he has completed a world tour with Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, performing ‘Dark Side of The Moon’ and other Floyd favourites from 2006 to 2008. And as if that’s not enough, his jazz group has released a CD ‘Ian Ritchie's SOHO Project’ and a new album "South Of Houston" is already recorded and due for release in October.
Speaking of albums, Ian has been featured as soloist on records by Wham, Robbie Nevil, The Beach Boys and D.C. Lee and arranged and programmed for Dead or Alive, Howard Jones, David Sylvian, Steve Hillage and David Grant.
You can read more about Ian at: http://www.myspace.com/ianritchiemusic
And http://www.ian-ritchie.com
23 August 2010
Unitopia announces two new members for European tour
The following is from Unitopia, talking about the 2 newest members of the band. They will be joining Unitopia for the European tour in October.
The European tour is almost there and you must all wonder which musicians will be part of the tour. Well, we are just about to tell you.
We have recruited two of the finest musicians in Australia to tour with us.
Craig Kelly – bass player
Craig is a self-taught but university-trained musician, who tries not to let that get in the way of his playing.
Despite loving music from an early age, he was musically a relatively late starter – not picking up a guitar until his mid teens (inspired by heavy metal loving school mates), and not seriously taking up bass until his mid 20's when he enrolled in a Jazz degree at the University of Adelaide.
Heavily influenced in his childhood years by the music of Warner Bros cartoons, random advertising jingles, the RnB/soul/funk/jazz stylings of early Sesame Street episodes, and iconic Australian country music singer Slim Dusty (whom he emulated age 3 complete with acoustic guitar and cowboy hat), it is no surprise that he enjoys playing a wide range of styles. His musical tastes range from Miles Davis to Led Zeppelin, Ella Fitzgerald to Sepultura, the Beatles to John Zorn, James Brown to Jamiroquai – making Unitopia a very agreeable outlet for his instrumental talents.
In between learning and rehearsing the entire Unitopia back catalogue, Craig somehow finds time to teach bass and to be active in the Adelaide music scene playing a variety of pop, rock, groove, jazz and country music – as well as touring nationally with 'Laura Hill & The Tuesday Bandits' and 'Vorn Doolette'.
David Hopgood – drum player
David was born raised in the southern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia, and exposed to music from the beginning. His father, a trumpet player and trad. jazz buff, would play him records featuring drummers like Baby Dodds, Zutty Singleton and, more notably, Chick Webb. He bought him a snare drum at age 5, having noticed his propensity for wandering around the house and hitting things in rhythm, and he first took drum lessons around age 9. Before long his interest in music and drumming was super-charged by an older cousin who turned him on to Deep Purple, E.L.P., Yes and, later, Weather Report.
In his formative years David played drum-kit in jazz bands, 60/40 bands and concert bands, high school musicals and the state schools stage band. He went to university in 1986 to study music teaching and further my jazz drumming. At the same time he was involved in his first original rock band with Van Halen and Living Colour influences. Since 1991 David have been teaching percussion with the South Australian Education Department’s Instrumental Music Service and published his first book of drum and percussion solos in 2007.
As a drummer he’s known in metal circles, jazz circles and a few circles in-between. In the 90’s he drummed for rap/rock hardcore group Hobson’s Choice who released two e.p.’s, toured the eastern states and played on the Big Day Out festival in 1996. Since 2003 David has been the drummer in successful corporate band Club Schmaltz and done several shows with Cucumber Slumber, a Weather Report tribute band. Right now he is involved in at least four original music projects:
- Murdergrin, a hardcore, rock/metal group influenced by Dillinger Escape Plan,
- Outside The Square, a jazz trio with former Unitopia bassist Shaun Duncan,
- Split-Second Heaven, a just-formed rock/pop/progressive group in which he’s both
drummer and songwriter, and most recently…
-Unitopia, Australia’s foremost modern art rock band.
David has studied tabla as well as drum-kit and he plays DW drums with various Zildjian and Sabian cymbals.
His favourite music right now includes: Rush, Porcupine Tree, Spock’s Beard, Fleetwood Mac, Free, Muse, Frost, Genesis, Yes, King Crimson, Opeth, Killswitch Engage, Sigur Ros and lots of other prog rock, prog metal, jazz, jazz-fusion and alternative.
His biggest drumming influences include: Ian Paice, Carl Palmer, Steve Gadd, Peter Erskine, Bill Bruford, Dave Weckl, Jeff Porcaro, Neil Peart, Will Calhoun, Dave Lombardo, Pete Sandoval, Steve Flynn (Atheist,) Tony Williams, Elvin Jones, Ndugu Chancler, Jimmy Chamberlin, Danny Carey, Simon Kirke, Marco Minnemann, Gavin Harrison, JoJo Mayer and Zakir Hussain.
Apart from music and drumming he gets into downhill mountain-biking, gym work, yoga, meditation and spirituality, reading and following sports, especially basketball and football (Aussie Rules that is,) and he has a wife and two sons aged 7 and 3.
The European tour is almost there and you must all wonder which musicians will be part of the tour. Well, we are just about to tell you.
We have recruited two of the finest musicians in Australia to tour with us.
Craig Kelly – bass player
Craig is a self-taught but university-trained musician, who tries not to let that get in the way of his playing.
Despite loving music from an early age, he was musically a relatively late starter – not picking up a guitar until his mid teens (inspired by heavy metal loving school mates), and not seriously taking up bass until his mid 20's when he enrolled in a Jazz degree at the University of Adelaide.
Heavily influenced in his childhood years by the music of Warner Bros cartoons, random advertising jingles, the RnB/soul/funk/jazz stylings of early Sesame Street episodes, and iconic Australian country music singer Slim Dusty (whom he emulated age 3 complete with acoustic guitar and cowboy hat), it is no surprise that he enjoys playing a wide range of styles. His musical tastes range from Miles Davis to Led Zeppelin, Ella Fitzgerald to Sepultura, the Beatles to John Zorn, James Brown to Jamiroquai – making Unitopia a very agreeable outlet for his instrumental talents.
In between learning and rehearsing the entire Unitopia back catalogue, Craig somehow finds time to teach bass and to be active in the Adelaide music scene playing a variety of pop, rock, groove, jazz and country music – as well as touring nationally with 'Laura Hill & The Tuesday Bandits' and 'Vorn Doolette'.
David Hopgood – drum player
David was born raised in the southern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia, and exposed to music from the beginning. His father, a trumpet player and trad. jazz buff, would play him records featuring drummers like Baby Dodds, Zutty Singleton and, more notably, Chick Webb. He bought him a snare drum at age 5, having noticed his propensity for wandering around the house and hitting things in rhythm, and he first took drum lessons around age 9. Before long his interest in music and drumming was super-charged by an older cousin who turned him on to Deep Purple, E.L.P., Yes and, later, Weather Report.
In his formative years David played drum-kit in jazz bands, 60/40 bands and concert bands, high school musicals and the state schools stage band. He went to university in 1986 to study music teaching and further my jazz drumming. At the same time he was involved in his first original rock band with Van Halen and Living Colour influences. Since 1991 David have been teaching percussion with the South Australian Education Department’s Instrumental Music Service and published his first book of drum and percussion solos in 2007.
As a drummer he’s known in metal circles, jazz circles and a few circles in-between. In the 90’s he drummed for rap/rock hardcore group Hobson’s Choice who released two e.p.’s, toured the eastern states and played on the Big Day Out festival in 1996. Since 2003 David has been the drummer in successful corporate band Club Schmaltz and done several shows with Cucumber Slumber, a Weather Report tribute band. Right now he is involved in at least four original music projects:
- Murdergrin, a hardcore, rock/metal group influenced by Dillinger Escape Plan,
- Outside The Square, a jazz trio with former Unitopia bassist Shaun Duncan,
- Split-Second Heaven, a just-formed rock/pop/progressive group in which he’s both
drummer and songwriter, and most recently…
-Unitopia, Australia’s foremost modern art rock band.
David has studied tabla as well as drum-kit and he plays DW drums with various Zildjian and Sabian cymbals.
His favourite music right now includes: Rush, Porcupine Tree, Spock’s Beard, Fleetwood Mac, Free, Muse, Frost, Genesis, Yes, King Crimson, Opeth, Killswitch Engage, Sigur Ros and lots of other prog rock, prog metal, jazz, jazz-fusion and alternative.
His biggest drumming influences include: Ian Paice, Carl Palmer, Steve Gadd, Peter Erskine, Bill Bruford, Dave Weckl, Jeff Porcaro, Neil Peart, Will Calhoun, Dave Lombardo, Pete Sandoval, Steve Flynn (Atheist,) Tony Williams, Elvin Jones, Ndugu Chancler, Jimmy Chamberlin, Danny Carey, Simon Kirke, Marco Minnemann, Gavin Harrison, JoJo Mayer and Zakir Hussain.
Apart from music and drumming he gets into downhill mountain-biking, gym work, yoga, meditation and spirituality, reading and following sports, especially basketball and football (Aussie Rules that is,) and he has a wife and two sons aged 7 and 3.
02 July 2010
InsideOut artists tour dates
Beardfish
more Destined Solitaire concerts
14.08.2010: D-Bad Doberan/Zappanale
Devin Townsend Project
Bloodstock Festival 2010
02.07.2010: FI-Helsinki/Tuska Festival
13.07.2010: CZ-Josefov/Brutal Assault
13.08.2010: GB-Walton-On-Trent, Derbyshire/Catton Hall
Pain Of Salvation
28.08.2010: SE-Boras/Close To Home Festival
Transatlantic
An Evening With TRANSATLANTIC / Whirld Tour 2010 feat. Mike Portnoy, Pete Trewavas, Roine Stolt, Neal Morse
24.07.2010: GB-London/High Voltage Festival
Unitopia
08.10.2010: GB-Gloucestershire/Lydney Town Hall
15.10.2010: NL-Zoetermeer/De Boerderij
16.10.2010: BE-Verviers/The spirit of 66
more Destined Solitaire concerts
14.08.2010: D-Bad Doberan/Zappanale
Devin Townsend Project
Bloodstock Festival 2010
02.07.2010: FI-Helsinki/Tuska Festival
13.07.2010: CZ-Josefov/Brutal Assault
13.08.2010: GB-Walton-On-Trent, Derbyshire/Catton Hall
Pain Of Salvation
28.08.2010: SE-Boras/Close To Home Festival
Transatlantic
An Evening With TRANSATLANTIC / Whirld Tour 2010 feat. Mike Portnoy, Pete Trewavas, Roine Stolt, Neal Morse
24.07.2010: GB-London/High Voltage Festival
Unitopia
08.10.2010: GB-Gloucestershire/Lydney Town Hall
15.10.2010: NL-Zoetermeer/De Boerderij
16.10.2010: BE-Verviers/The spirit of 66
30 June 2010
Some Festival news
PROGDAY:
THE MUFFINS is one of those amazing bands that you used to hear about from the 1970s...after it had disbanded. Formed in 1973, the band released its first official album, "Manna/Mirage," in 1978. This would later be hailed as one of the best all-time American prog releases from the 70s and an essential release for any progressive music collection. But while the band developed a cult following on the US east coast, notoriety on a larger scale was elusive. Despite continuing to create excellent music and working with artists like Fred Frith (the band backed Frith on his 1980 album "Gravity"), THE MUFFINS played it's last show of the period in 1981 and broke up soon afterwards.
However, the legend of THE MUFFINS continued to grow long after its demise and in 1998 the progressive music scene was given a reprieve when the original members decided that they still had something to say and reformed. Unlike many other "reunions," THE MUFFINS really DID still have something to say and the band started writing and playing music again like they had never taken a 17 year vacation. This culminated in the release of a new critically acclaimed studio album, "Bandwidth," in 2001. Since then the band has continued to record and perform, appearing at ProgDay in 2001 and 2002, and at NEARfest in 2005. We are very happy to host the return of THE MUFFINS to the Storybook Farm stage.
THE MUFFINS is joined by Half Past Four and Mahogany Frog at ProgDay 2010. ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. The 16th edition will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5, at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information, and to hear music from this year's bands, please visit us at http://www.progday.net
NEARFEST:
Signed for NEARfest 2011 are simakDIALOG (Indonesia) and Gosta Berlings Saga (Sweden). Bios to follow shortly, or alternatively:
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=3083 (Gosta Berlings Saga)
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=4831 (simakDIALOG)
http://www.nearfest.com
CALPROG:
German progressive rock band RPWL was signed this week as the 4th performer at the 7th annual CalProg Progressive Rock Festival. The event will be held on October 2 at the Center Theater in Whittier California. The complete lineup is:
Ambrosia
RPWL
District 97
miRthkon
Tickets go on sale Saturday July 10 @ 7am. All seats reserved.
Visit http://www.calprog.com for more details and to listen to audio samples of the bands.
SUMMER’S END:
The Summers End Festival to be held at Lydney Town Hall, Gloucestershire on October 8,9,10 is delighted to announce that day tickets will go on sale on 1st July from www.summersend.co.uk. We are also pleased to announce the draft day line-ups now that all the bands have been confirmed.
Ticket prices. Day tickets Friday - £17. Saturday and Sunday - £27.50 per day
A small booking fee will be applied to each order to cover the transaction fees for online purchases. Still available: 3 day tickets £60. 2 day (Saturday and Sunday) tickets £45
Draft line up - subject to change
Friday 8th October
The Defence of the Realm with 3Js and a P - featuring Jem Godfrey, Pete Trewavas and John Mitchell (UK)
Tinyfish (UK)
Unto Us (UK)
Saturday 9th October
Karmakanic (Sweden)
Agents of Mercy (Sweden)
Unitopia (Australia)
Ark (UK)
Haken (UK)
Sunday 10th October
The Watch (Italy)
Sylvan (Germany)
Phideaux (USA)
Dead Heroes Club (Ireland)
Multifuse (UK, France, Italy)
http://www.summersend.co.uk
THE MUFFINS is one of those amazing bands that you used to hear about from the 1970s...after it had disbanded. Formed in 1973, the band released its first official album, "Manna/Mirage," in 1978. This would later be hailed as one of the best all-time American prog releases from the 70s and an essential release for any progressive music collection. But while the band developed a cult following on the US east coast, notoriety on a larger scale was elusive. Despite continuing to create excellent music and working with artists like Fred Frith (the band backed Frith on his 1980 album "Gravity"), THE MUFFINS played it's last show of the period in 1981 and broke up soon afterwards.
However, the legend of THE MUFFINS continued to grow long after its demise and in 1998 the progressive music scene was given a reprieve when the original members decided that they still had something to say and reformed. Unlike many other "reunions," THE MUFFINS really DID still have something to say and the band started writing and playing music again like they had never taken a 17 year vacation. This culminated in the release of a new critically acclaimed studio album, "Bandwidth," in 2001. Since then the band has continued to record and perform, appearing at ProgDay in 2001 and 2002, and at NEARfest in 2005. We are very happy to host the return of THE MUFFINS to the Storybook Farm stage.
THE MUFFINS is joined by Half Past Four and Mahogany Frog at ProgDay 2010. ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. The 16th edition will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5, at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information, and to hear music from this year's bands, please visit us at http://www.progday.net
NEARFEST:
Signed for NEARfest 2011 are simakDIALOG (Indonesia) and Gosta Berlings Saga (Sweden). Bios to follow shortly, or alternatively:
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=3083 (Gosta Berlings Saga)
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=4831 (simakDIALOG)
http://www.nearfest.com
CALPROG:
German progressive rock band RPWL was signed this week as the 4th performer at the 7th annual CalProg Progressive Rock Festival. The event will be held on October 2 at the Center Theater in Whittier California. The complete lineup is:
Ambrosia
RPWL
District 97
miRthkon
Tickets go on sale Saturday July 10 @ 7am. All seats reserved.
Visit http://www.calprog.com for more details and to listen to audio samples of the bands.
SUMMER’S END:
The Summers End Festival to be held at Lydney Town Hall, Gloucestershire on October 8,9,10 is delighted to announce that day tickets will go on sale on 1st July from www.summersend.co.uk. We are also pleased to announce the draft day line-ups now that all the bands have been confirmed.
Ticket prices. Day tickets Friday - £17. Saturday and Sunday - £27.50 per day
A small booking fee will be applied to each order to cover the transaction fees for online purchases. Still available: 3 day tickets £60. 2 day (Saturday and Sunday) tickets £45
Draft line up - subject to change
Friday 8th October
The Defence of the Realm with 3Js and a P - featuring Jem Godfrey, Pete Trewavas and John Mitchell (UK)
Tinyfish (UK)
Unto Us (UK)
Saturday 9th October
Karmakanic (Sweden)
Agents of Mercy (Sweden)
Unitopia (Australia)
Ark (UK)
Haken (UK)
Sunday 10th October
The Watch (Italy)
Sylvan (Germany)
Phideaux (USA)
Dead Heroes Club (Ireland)
Multifuse (UK, France, Italy)
http://www.summersend.co.uk
15 October 2008
Unitopia signs 3 album deal with InsideOut Music
(NB: their album The Garden has been reviewed HERE.)
(Press release): In a first for an Australian band, Unitopia have signed a three album deal with Inside Out Music, the largest progressive rock and metal music label in the world.
Their 2nd album, a double CD package titled The Garden with artwork by internationally renowned cover artist Ed Unitsky, will be released world-wide by the German based record company in October - November 2008.
Their signing is a result of Unitopia’s initial success with their debut CD More Than a Dream.
Asked what the signing means to the band, keyboard player and co-song writer Sean Timms said, “It means that Unitopia will now be part of the world stage, recognized as a high quality progressive rock act from Australia..... We’ll be able to tour and perform overseas with the support of a major international record label.”
Vocalist and co writer Mark Trueack stated, “We now have a greater sense of belonging and we can concentrate on excelling in the style of music that we create. We’re very proud to be the 1st Aussie act to be connected to Inside Out. Personally I had few expectations on anything we had done. It’s been all about the enjoyment of what we do, not the economic aspect. If you focus purely on the music, things will happen. I’m pleasantly surprised but as they say…the sky’s the limit.”
Unitopia will launch The Garden with a live showcase performance TBA.
(Press release): In a first for an Australian band, Unitopia have signed a three album deal with Inside Out Music, the largest progressive rock and metal music label in the world.
Their 2nd album, a double CD package titled The Garden with artwork by internationally renowned cover artist Ed Unitsky, will be released world-wide by the German based record company in October - November 2008.
Their signing is a result of Unitopia’s initial success with their debut CD More Than a Dream.
Asked what the signing means to the band, keyboard player and co-song writer Sean Timms said, “It means that Unitopia will now be part of the world stage, recognized as a high quality progressive rock act from Australia..... We’ll be able to tour and perform overseas with the support of a major international record label.”
Vocalist and co writer Mark Trueack stated, “We now have a greater sense of belonging and we can concentrate on excelling in the style of music that we create. We’re very proud to be the 1st Aussie act to be connected to Inside Out. Personally I had few expectations on anything we had done. It’s been all about the enjoyment of what we do, not the economic aspect. If you focus purely on the music, things will happen. I’m pleasantly surprised but as they say…the sky’s the limit.”
Unitopia will launch The Garden with a live showcase performance TBA.
09 October 2008
REVIEW: Unitopia - The Garden
It’s really pretty interesting when a band comes totally out of the blue and surprises me.
It doesn’t happen all that often; either that means that I am hard to please or that I’m jaded. I’m not 100% sure. But I could probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of ‘new’ bands (i.e., only 1 or 2 albums out) that I’ve come across that have caught my ear and not let go of easily. Sleepytime Gorilla Museum (in 2003) and Viima (2007) are two that come to mind immediately as bands that caught me completely unawares and hit something that made their music addicting to me.
I’m not 100% sure that Unitopia fits that bill yet, but the fact that I keep going back to their latest album, The Garden, speaks volumes.
Unitopia is an Australian sextet releasing their second album, a 2-CD set, on InsideOut Music. The press release, which I received with the album, compares the group to the Flower Kings, Van der Graaf Generator, King Crimson and…Men at Work?
Yeah, one of those things is not like the other. I’m not sure where they got the Men at Work angle unless it’s just because that band is also Australian, but that’s neither here nor there. Repeated listens make it hard for me to even find links to Crimson and VdGG, unless it’s the fact that all three bands have features some sax playing in their music. Nor really can I compare Unitopia to the Flower Kings…unless it’s the fact that like TFK, Unitopis draws some influence from bands like Yes and Genesis. The music is generally pretty uplifiting and bright…positive sounding music. I also hear some serious Queen bits as well…the track “Don’t Give Up Love,” despite the possibly slightly cheesy title, is filled with Queen-isms, from layered choral vocals to harmonised guitars. Mark Trueack’s voice does bear some comparison to Peter Gabriel (and perhaps Ray Wilson as well)…while not a dead ringer for Gabriel, they share a similar dark, slightly raspy lower tenor vocal range.
Unitopia tosses a lot of music at the listener on this release; the two CDs total about 101 minutes of material. Included are a pair of epics…”Journey’s Friend” is a 5-part suite that opens the second half of The Garden, while the 22-minute title track features some of the more overt Genesis bits, including a closing section that doesn’t necessarily mimic the end of “Supper’s Ready” as much as works in a similar stylistic arena. “Journey’s Friend” maybe sounds a bit Transatlantic-ish as well…and considering that Transatlantic was intended in many ways to mine classic progressive rock styles, this may not be surprising. The heavy section some 9 minutes in, with thick, throaty almost screamed vocals and powerful orchestration, is wonderfully balanced by a pastoral section that immediately follows. The shift might be disruptive, but it’s a great sue of light and shade to create tension.
The shorter tracks have much to offer as well. I am particularly enamoured of “Give and Take,” complete with lushly arranged vocals and guitar playing from Matt Williams (I am assuming) that sounds like textbook Steve Howe. I also get a feel that is similar to the material on Genesis’ Calling all Stations release (a pretty criminally underrated album, if you ask me, and perhaps fodder for a future article)…it’d not sound out of place surrounded by songs like “Uncertain Weather.” “321” is another powerful piece…written as a tribute to the bravery of the Beaconsfield miners, Brant Webb and Todd Russell and the tragic death of fellow miner Larry Knight following the tragic mine collapse at the Beaconsfield gold mine in northern Tasmania on 25 April 2006. It’s evocative lyrically, and the music matches the mood and tension with aplomb.
Throughout the release, many things remain constant. Monty Ruggiero’s drumming is solid, while Tim Irrgang contributes some nice percussive flourishes that I can’t help but call Australian…there’s a bit of tribal/Aboriginal rhythm there that I’d like to think he adds. Sean Timms and Matt Williams are excellent guitarists, playing with a bit of flash but keeping the song as main focus. Shireen Khemlani’s bass playing deserves special note; fluid and graceful, she’s mixed up just enough to maintain presence without distracting from the rest of the musicians. Mark Trueack, as mentioned above, is an enjoyable singer to listen to, with a delivery that is effortless and rich.
I’m impressed by Unitopia, and find The Garden to be a pretty refreshing slice of melodic, symphonic prog. Don’t let the press release sway you away…this is no Flower Kings pastiche, but a band using the same influences to create something that sounds pretty uniquely their own.
Mark Trueack, vocals
Sean Timms, keyboards, guitar
Matt Williams, guitar
Monty Ruggiero, drums
Shireen Khemlani, bass
Tim Irrgang, percussions
CD 1:
01. One Day
02. The Garden
03. Angeliqua
04. Here I Am
05. I Wish I Could Fly
06. Inside The Power
CD 2:
01. Journey's Friend
02. Give And Take
03. When I'm Down
04. This Life
05. Love Never Ends
06. So Far Away
07. Don't Give Up Love
08. 321
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