TR Forums

Kansas - Somewhere To Elsewhere

A "comeback" album of sorts, from 2000. This album reunited the original lineup for the first time since 1980's Audio Visions, the material is arguably the strongest and most consistent since 1977's Point Of Know Return, and crisp modern production makes this a very good sounding album.

Steve Walsh has lost a little of his range and gotten a little raspier, but is still in fine voice; and unlike their 1980s releases, it sounds like Kansas. They quote brief snippets from older albums here and there -- e.g. the violin line from Icarus makes a brief appearance in Icarus II -- as an acknowledgement that this is very much a "getting back to their roots" album.

If you were a fan of Kansas back in their heyday and haven't heard this, it is worth checking out.

just brew it! wrote:

If you were a fan of Kansas back in their heyday and haven't heard this, it is worth checking out.

Amazon to the rescue.

Speaking of POKR, I grokked that ""Portrait (He Knew)" was Einstein really quickly. It took me a whole lot longer to figure out that "Closet Chronicles" was Howard Hughes.

"Lamplight Symphony" is a guilty pleasure I can only listen to when alone.

Captain Ned wrote:

just brew it! wrote:

If you were a fan of Kansas back in their heyday and haven't heard this, it is worth checking out.

Amazon to the rescue.

Speaking of POKR, I grokked that ""Portrait (He Knew)" was Einstein really quickly. It took me a whole lot longer to figure out that "Closet Chronicles" was Howard Hughes.

"Lamplight Symphony" is a guilty pleasure I can only listen to when alone.

And lookee here, released just a couple of weeks ago: a new Kansas album! Odd coincidence that I decided to listen to some of my old Kansas albums yesterday for the first time in quite some time, and then I discover that this is out.

Based on some of the clips on YouTube this may be worth picking up too, in spite of the departure of Walsh (for whom they seem to have found a decent replacement), and Steinhardt (the quite capable David Ragsdale has stepped in to replace him again, as he did throughout the 1990s).

The Voyage of Eight Eighteen
Visibility Zero

Edit: Interesting symbolism in the new album cover art as well. A combination of phoenix rising and Frankenstein's monster being reanimated?

You just might enjoy this site (assuming I haven't already given you the link):

https://progarchy.com/

All Prog all of the time.

Perhaps the last time John & Paul pretended to like each other. The Rooftop Concert:

https://vimeo.com/95681569

Dolly Parton - Jolene.

Before you giggle, this is her 45 played at 33 1/3. It's the best Outlaws song they never recorded, and it just works.. There's also a lot of Kansas in there as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doz1QJ7LwjA

Ben Mink - Foreign Exchange

Digital transfer from my original vinyl copy of this obscure 1980 release. Mink is probably best known for his collaborations with k.d. Lang, and for producing bands like the Barenaked Ladies. My introduction to him was his violin playing in the '70s Canadian prog-rock band FM.

OK, I'll see that and raise you with:

Iron City Houserockers - Blood on the Bricks

The Wainwright Sisters - Hobo's Lullaby

Right now I'm listening to One Dance for the 3rd straight time 

My outdoor cat wanting to come in. She'll have to wait a few until I leave for work.

Maybe it is just me, but I get chills every time I listen to the intro of this song.

Edit: I've also wondered if the song itself was meant to be an epilogue to her recording career, or farewell to her fans of some sort. Recorded in the early 2000s but not released until 2007, it is (to date) the final recorded output -- last track on the last studio album -- from her. The lyrics seem to hint at this interpretation:

All my worries here are through
I give all my colour to you
This world lost me back two Junes
I surrender all hope to youth

When the moon comes up, I go down
For the first time
There’s a garden deep, deep in my heart
But it’s blossomed for the last time

Cold is mercy, heavy and sweet
Leaves make my blanket, root at my feet

Life is only good for the living
Time outran me, but sleep is forgiving

When the moon comes up, I go down
For the first time
There’s a garden deep, deep in my heart
But it’s blossomed for the last time

Will the angels cry over my past
Or over my love -- bringing him moss

To remember me by

Sleep

Or perhaps I'm reading too much into it, and it was just deemed to be a suitable album closer.

I've been on a Perturbator and Carpenter Brut binge lately. Good jamming music to work to.

Stealth – Judgement Day

Extreme - III Sides To Every Story

'80s hair metal band takes a shot at an extended concept album in this 1992 release, touching on politics, relationships, and even metaphysics, while also juggling metal, pop, and prog-rock musical styles. Amazingly, they manage to make this unwieldy monstrosity work. This has always been my favorite Extreme album by a wide margin... probably because it doesn't play by the usual rules. And Nuno Bettencort is an absolutely amazing (and underappreciated) guitarist.

Some other related random trivia...

One track of this album ("Don't Leave Me Alone") was left off of the CD version, to get it to fit on a single CD (it was originally issued as a double LP). For a number of years I did not realize that there was a track missing, since I never owned the LP version. The "missing" track is apparently not available for purchase/download anywhere... I do have a copy of that track captured off of YouTube, but I'm still on the lookout for an official (and uncompressed) copy.

Nuno Bettencort was married for a number of years to Suze DeMarchi, lead singer of the Aussie band Baby Animals. Check out their self-titled debut album sometime for some fantastic, energetic rock fronted by one of my favorite female vocalists. I guess I'm a sucker for that smoky contralto sort of thing. Her hard-to-find solo album Telelove is worth checking out too. (Holy crap, it looks like used copies of Telelove are going for nearly $200 on Amazon now... glad I managed to snag one a few years back before they got stupidly expensive! According to Amazon's order history, I paid only $12.24 + shipping for it a little over 3 years ago...)

Lovemongers - Whirlygig

Side project by the Wilson sisters (of Heart), released in 1997.

Aside from the goofy, tongue-in-cheek "The Vegas Game" (which parodies Vegas lounge acts) there isn't a bad track here.

Muse – Psycho (Drones, 2015)

Given his death: you spin me right round baby, right round. Like a record baby, right round round round. *androgynous hip-gyration*

Also, I emerged from synthwave's digestive tract to find... more synthwave. New retro is mixing in now, too, e.g. revisiting the Hotline Miami soundtrack (Jasper Byrne, MOON, Sun Araw, them lot). My life often has a B movie soundtrack these days and I couldn't be happier.

Sass Jordan - From Dusk 'Til Dawn

A little more Country (and a little less Blues Rock) than what are IMO her best two albums (Racine and Rats). Still really good stuff... I love her voice. And I've been listening to a little "Country crossover" lately -- Shelby Lynne, Allison Moorer, vintage Linda Rondstadt. Along with some "djent" metal (Animals As Leaders, Periphery, etc.)... yeah, my musical tastes can be a little schizophrenic.

Speaking of Allison Moorer...

Allison Moorer - Mockingbird

Just listening to this for the first time now; it's a covers album. Her version of Patti Smith's "Dancing Barefoot" is fantastic!

Alan Parsons Project - Tales of Mystery and Imagination

The debut album from APP. I haven't listened to this in its entirety for quite some time (years, maybe even a decade or more). I'd forgotten how good it is.

Justin Hines - April on the Ground

Electric Light Orchestra - (self titled), a.k.a. No Answer

Their debut album, from 1972. Another one I haven't listened to in ages. Man, this is an odd album... I'd forgotten just how weird (and unlike anything else they did afterwards) it is. If you're only familiar with their later material, this is like ELO on drugs, with sparser arrangements.

The original name of the album ("No Answer") was the result of a misunderstanding at the record label. They tried to call the band to ask what the album was supposed to be called, and when they couldn't get anyone on the phone, whoever made the call wrote down "no answer". Someone else misinterpreted this as the name of the album.

just brew it! wrote:

Electric Light Orchestra

Telephone Line was one of the first 45-rpm singles that I ever purchased.  I believe that Rock and Roll All Night was the very first.  Saturday Night was another of the early ones.

Alan Parsons Project - Ammonia Avenue

Their 7th release, from 1984. Flawless production, performances, and recording (if a bit sterile sounding at times), with some reasonably solid material. Musically they'd started to fall into a bit of a rut by this point though, and a lot of it feels like a rehash of territory they'd already explored on their first half-dozen albums. If you're really into the vibe of their previous two releases Turn of a Friendly Card and Eye in the Sky this is worth having, but otherwise I'd say it's non-essential.

The sole MoFi UHQR in my vinyl collection is I Robot. It's been played three times.

And yes, late-stage APP did get repetitive.

Talking Heads - New Feeling

and now: Nancy and Lee -  Summer Wine. That was quite a change.

No Doubt - Just A Girl. Foobar seems to really have it in for me today. 

I'm finally listening to my vinyl copy of Domkirke by Sunn O))). Beautifully haunting drone music performed live in a cathedral in Norway. If it sounds strange, it's because it is

Been listening to Florida Georgia Line lately. Saw them in concert a few weeks ago. Great show!!

I generally hate what is currently called "Country Music".

Rock is not dead!