Fall of Echoes (USA)
Red Tree (06)
9/06
Listening to the exceptional new band Fall of Echoes made me reminisce back to the first time I ever heard King’s X: the crunchy guitars, dynamite vocal harmonies, prog sensibilities and memorable hooks that captured every thing I love about music, and how Gretchen Goes to Nebraska became the soundtrack of my summer. Fall of Echoes delivers the same feeling, music to be cranked up loud and shared with your friends, sung along to as you are driving to the store, lyrics to be pondered and weighed.
Shane Lankford, the voice of the heavy symphonic rock band Orphan Project, hooked up with Rob Perez of the fusion band Visual Cliff and together they formed an exceptional new heavy progressive rock band called Fall of Echoes. Lankford’s rich, heavy Peter Gabriel-meets-Steve Walsh pipes would sound good singing Brittany Spears songs, but teaming him up with Perez and Rick Mals of Visual Cliff, as well as Orphan Project bassist Bill Yost, was a brilliant maneuver. Comparisons to Orphan Project abound, but Fall of Echoes is heavier in some places, jazzier in others, less orchestrated yet more progressive. If you liked Orphan Project as much as I did, you will definitely enjoy Fall of Echoes as much or more. If you good solid, hook laden modern rock with progressive leanings and excellent musicianship, you really can’t do wrong with Fall of Echoes. I predict that these guys will find themselves on a major label very soon, and that this band will eventually overshadow the other bands they have been apart of.
While all the tracks on Red Tree are good, two of the twelve on this 58 minute disc really stand out (and stick in your head). The title track, Red Tree, and Mr. Orion are especially strong, and I’ve chosen those two to push on my radio show. Spiritually, the songs are steeped in Christian imagery without being preachy. You can listen to some samples and read more about the band and how to order their music at http://www.fallofechoes.com. You’ll thank me later. [dt]
Farewell to Juliet (USA-CA)
Echoes of Laughter (93); Grace and Dire Circumstances (98)
Farewell to Juliet combines modern rock with progressive elements and deep lyrics to create a fine, melodious mix. The band features the former keyboard player of the prog band Animator, keyboardist Stacyy Krejci on the debut, Echoes of Laughter. FTJ's official website is found here: http://www.marathonrecords.com//ftj/ You can sample their music here (like I did since I don't have any of their cd's yet): http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/74/farewell_to_juliet.html Be sure to listen to the song, Justice. Tasty stuff. {dt}
Farpoint (USA-S.C.)
First Light (02); Grace (03); From Dreaming to Dreaming (04); Cold Star, Quiet Star (08)
First Light
Farpoint's debut album First Light was released in April of 2002. Sporting nine tracks, some them quite long (Live For Yourself clocks in at over eight minutes) it is a record that should be immediately appealing to fans of art-folk and mellow art rock bands such as Strawbs, The Moody Blues, Renaissance, Arkangel, or Wally. Sporting some Yes-like progressions and more down-to-earth vocals (performed by the deep-voiced Clark Boone and the sultry-throated Dana Oxendine), the album teems with interesting rythms, instrumentation, and Steve Howe-inspired guitar. There is even some tasty mandolin and flute playing. Unfortunately, the recording quality suffers a bit from the home-made syndrome, with the low end muddying together a bit in places. The lyrics are creatively written, subtly spiritual without being overbearing. With the exception of the blatant And You and I rip-off section of the song Circles, they have a fairly unique sound. Overall, the musicianship doesn't blow my mind, but the album is definitely a rewarding listen.
Kevin Jarvis had this to say about the band in 2001: "
We've been around for several years, getting our start by performing at Yescamp '98.
Although we don't promote our band as a Christian band, we do try to make sure that any
lyrics we write are written out of the Truth."
Farpoint's current web address is: http://www.farpointband.com
and they have some mp3's there to sample. Two of the members of Farpoint
also have an all acoustic duo called Wateree. {dt}
Farpoint has delivered a a fine folk/prog offering with their second release, Grace. The album is actually a bit less folksy than First Light, and a few songs such as Grace and Falling Down have more blatantly Christian lyrics than anything on the debut. Musically, Farpoint mix lots of acoustic and electric guitars with heavier drums and percussion to create a sound not unlike Songs From the Wood era Jethro Tull, or early Moody Blues. Clark Boone and Dana Oxendine share lead vocal duties, alternating between Boone's deep voice that is a dead ringer for Don Potter's, and Oxendine's wispy female voice. The compositions are mostly strong with many progressive instrumental sections and a few songs in 6-7 minute range. The album flows nicely from start to finish, making for pleasant listening that my wife even enjoyed and commented on favorably (she tolerates some mellower prog like Iona). I actually find myself putting Grace in my CD rotation from time to time, which is the finest complement I can give this CD. You can order the CD or find out more information about Farpoint at http://www.farpointband.com {5/11/03 dt}
Farpoint's latest CD, From Dreaming to Dreaming, picks up where their last, the under-appreciated Grace, left off. With each release, Farpoint sounds more polished and professional, and the band seems to be hitting it's stride. With the vaguely folk-influenced brand of relaxed progressive rock, mixed male and female vocals, and spiritually flavored, occasionally Christian lyrics, Farpoint has carved a unique niche for themselves that should appeal to fans of bands like Jethro Tull, Renaissance, Iona, Strawbs, and Yes. 12 Strings and flutes mix with vintage synthesizers and soaring vocals in rich tapestries of progressive soundscapes.
This album finds them exploring themes of love and loss, loneliness and communion with the Universal Light. They even move beyond their typical folk-ish sounds to experiment occasionally with a much more aggressive style, such as in the exceptional, electric, heavy guitar and keyboard driven Crying in the Rain. Other standout tracks include Sojourn, Autumn Sky, and Lux Universum Part II. There is a reason this band is gaining a lot of popularity -- they are worth checking out. {dt Nov/04}
Farpoint’s latest offering, Cold Star, Quiet Star is their strongest release yet. Based on a somewhat vague science fiction theme of being alone on an alien planet, the spiritual slant is much more allegorical this time around. The album really excels musically, with extended jams, lyrical guitar solos, tantalizing synth leads, and several fine instrumentals. Mostly the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Kevin Jarvis, Farpoint has been a consistent and productive force in the American progressive rock resurgence for many years. Their melodic brand of prog falls in the gap somewhere between Jethro Tull and Camel, and they really appeal to fans of the early 70’s classic bands. With Jennifer Meeks excellent flute playing trading lead with guitars and keyboards, and offset by Rick Walker’s tasteful and Brufordesque drumming, the power in the music ebbs and flows in a mosaic of feelings and tempos. Dean Hallal and Jennifer Meeks trade off vocal duties, and they do an adequate job of conveying the melancholy vibe of the lyrics. The instrumental segments are all creative and tasteful. Call to Arms, with its jamming intro segment, is a powerful opener. Red Shift is my favorite cut, a melodic prog manifesto. Darkness kicks it up a notch with some spirited playing, culminated by some nice interplay between the guitars, bass, and flute during the long instrumental section finale. Frank Tyson’s bass playing is especially tight and melodic here. The album peaks with Blue Shift, the story of the voyage home. Machine Symphony provides a stark instrumental epilog. All in all, Cold Star, Quiet Star is a fine work of art, and will be enjoyed immensely by any willing to take the time to give it a listen. All Farpoint music can be discovered at http://www.farpointband.com.
Finneus Gauge (USA)
More Once More; One Inch of the Fall
Female vocal jazz-rock-fusion-with-funk-inflections as they call it, echolyn keyboardist Chris Buxby's band that features Holdsworth clone Scott McGill on the guitar. Buzby claims to be a Christian, although the lyrics don't make that too evident. Wildly progressive stuff, if a little overboard in places. The female vocalist and the uncanny Holdsworth imitations are probably the weak links. McGill quit the band after the second release. He can definitely play the guitar though, and the keyboard work by Buzby is phenomenal. The band eventually broke up and now Buzby is working with Weston and Kull of echolyn again. {dt}
Fitzgerald, David (UK)
Columcille, Lux Aeterna
Iona co-founder and woodwind player who went solo, his Columcille is mellow and ethereal, with classical and prog elements mixed with jazz. Featuring drummer extraordinaire Martin Neil of Prosch/Peppercorns/Iona fame. Great for fans of Iona. Much of the vocals are classical style sung by a woman, some of which are in Latin. Certainly more contemplative than most prog. {dt}
The View from 10,000 Days (05)
This tasteful classic rock band is basically made up of two brothers, Michael and Shaun FitzPatrick. Shaun is a major in the USMC, and Mike is a Shuttle flight controller at Johnson Space Center. Together they have crafted a decent first effort, an album that grows on you with each listen. Apparently they both wrote the songs and sang, but beyond that, neither the album nor the website doesn’t really have proper credits to identify who is doing what, other than guest musicians and background vocalists. Musically, they identify themselves as a cross between Genesis, Toto, and Fleetwood Mac, and that assessment is not far off. The music is middle of the road rock and the progressive influence is fairly subtle, but the songs are strong and the singing adept. The lyrics are thoughtful and definitely Christian in world-view. Standout tracks on the album are the solid God in the Midnight Hour, the spiritually intense The Sleep, and the pastoral ballad Never Leave, which sounds like an early Collins-era Genesis song. You can find out more information on Fitzpatrick from their website at http://home.earthlink.net/~fitzpatrickband. Also, their CD and samples are available from CDbaby: http://cdbaby.com/cd/fitzpatrickmusic [dt]
Flagship (Sweden)
Maiden Voyage (05)
The Europeans are coming! So far, C-Prog has by and large been an American affair. But lo and behold, it’s becoming an international movement. A very strong debut from Sweden is Maiden Voyage by Flagship (2005). The singer, Christian Rivel, and the keyboard player, Linus Kåse, are both known for their work in Narnia, the Swedish progressive metal band enjoying world fame. Their love for progressive rock motivated them to go back to their roots outside of Narnia and record this fine disc. It offers a nice ‘Kansas-meets-Queen’ type of prog, with energetic choruses surrounded by dramatic verses and fierce instrumental passages. There are six tracks on the CD just under 10 minutes each, making it an album worth your while. Rivel and Kåse show their credentials as professionals and come up with both music and lyrics worshipping the Lord. They are supported by an excellent team of musicians and technicians, so that the sound leaves nothing to be desired. Noteworthy are appearances by Carl Johan Grimmark, with pyrotechnics on guitar, and by Kansas veteran Kerry Livgren, soloing on his own composition Ground Zero. A good choice, this cover, as it covers what Flagship are all about: quality hard prog rock. Check out samples on http://www.flagship.se {Bart Cusveller}
Florio, Mike (NY)
Arisen (06)
This album gets my "Best New Artist" award hands down! Mike Florio is a talented vocalist and keyboardist who, after years of playing in clubs and other bands, has finally released his own solo album. Blessed with fantastic keyboard chops and a great voice, Florio weaves songs of richness and lyrical depth, oozing with subtle spirituality. Joined by Bill Thomas on guitars, Dave Bailey on bass, and Steve Golden on drums, these veteran players have crafted a potent progressive rock album. Its easy to compare Arisen to Kansas, as it mixes classic rock with progressive keyboard soloing in ways reminiscent of Point of Know Return, sans the violin, and Florio's soaring tenor sounds a bit like Steve Walsh before he got raspy. Standout tracks are Fractured, a song about how children are out of control in today's society, as echoed in the book of Isaiah; Media Ride, a discourse on how the media molds the minds of America, and Paradise of Stone, a driving prog rocker about the dichotomy between the natural man and the spiritual man as discussed by the Apostle Paul in First Corinthians. Florio uses his faith as a fulcrum to comment on society, without beating the listener over the head with dogma. He told me that he spends a lot of time contemplating deep spiritual things such as the incarnation, death and the gospel of resurrection, and that this album is an expression of those meditations.
Arisen is a well crafted and recorded progressive rock gem, and it is definitely a worthy purchase for any and all interested in spiritually flavored progressive rock. Fans of American prog bands like Kansas, Salem Hill, and Protokaw will love Arisen. As Paradise of Stone says, The natural man, the world he ponders, to understand where he is led, to rise from the dead! For more information on Mike Florio, visit http://www.massdream.com, and look for his album at Tower Records and CDBaby. <dt>
Flower Kings (Sweden)
The Flower King, Back in the World of Adventure, Retropolis, Stardust We Are, Scanning the Greenhouse, Flower Power; Space Revolver; The Rainmaker
Swedish classic progressive rock band, highly recommended. The Flower Kings have re-invented classic prog for the masses. Masterminded by the multi-talented Roine Stolt, each album is chock full of everything a prog-rock fan adores about the genre. Virtuosity, creativity, killer tones and keyboard textures abound, along with spiritual searching lyrics and a nod to their influences without being clones. You find yourself thinking "this is a sound I always liked when Yes or UK or Pink Floyd played like this," rather than "gee, that sounded just like so and so..." They seem to flawlessly combine elements of my favorite prog music into one happy mesh of tuneful and tasty groove/jam progressive rock. You hear Happy The Man, Pink Floyd, Rush, Genesis, ELP, and other stuff in snippets, but every song is unique, and Stolts vocals are strong. The keyboad player, Tomas Bodin, is exceptional, and he uses all kinds of textures, sound effects, and tasty solos, and sequencers to great effect. Stolt is sort of a hippy-trippy type guy, with what can only be called new-age type Christian philosophy. But don't let the Jon Anderson comparisons scare you off. Check out the lyrics to such songs as The Judas Kiss from Retropolis, and of course, the song The Flower King from the self-titled Stolt solo CD or re-done on Scanning the Greenhouse.
Flower Power, their 1999 release, has an incredible first disc that is epic prog in the vein of Yes or King Crimson. A double disc of pure aural pleasure, these guys deliver in a big way. The Garden of Dreams suite is essential stuff. Lyrically, songs like Don't Let the Devil In and Love is the Word certainly are as spiritual as stuff in a lot of CCM records. Of course, this aint CCM, it is pure prog. Space Revolver kicks in where Flower Power leaves off musically, creating some epic art-rock and jazz fusion soundscapes. However, the lyrics contain fewer spiritual references and I personally don't groove on it as much. The Rainmaker, their newest, returns to form with deeper spiritual lyrics, perhaps inspired by Roine's collaboration with Neal Morse in Transatlantic. Apart from disc one of Flower Power, I like their earliest music best. Stardust We Are, which I have never heard, is rumored to be their best. See also Roinne Stolt for info on his debut cd The Flower King, the classic that started it all out. Flower Kings albums are available for sale through outlets like cdnow or Pendragon Merchandising, USA: http://www.pendragonusa.com. {dt}
Fountain of Tears
Joey Daub of Believer has finally come out of hiding, and he's playing with Erik Ney and Mike DiDonato of Sacrament and Jeff King from Sardonyx. Coming from their respective thrash backgrounds, you might be surprised with what they've come up with. The band is focused around the beautiful vocals of Anna DeRose, who reminds me of that vocalist who appeared on Bjorn Stigsson's solo album ten years ago. The music behind her vocals is of the Dream Theater / prog-rock variety. The instrumentation is exceptional -- especially the luscious guitar tones coming from Mike DiDonato's machine. So, the suspense is over for Believer fans, but the word is out to prog rockers -- get into Fountain of Tears. For ordering info, write: PO Box 9016, Lancaster PA 17604-9016 (info courtesy of HM)
Finesse and Fury; See What I See
A guitar driven power trio that makes you think of the Dixie Dregs (without the twang) on steroids. These guys are believers, although the music is all guitar driven instrumental rad progressive rock. You won't be disappointed, they are excellent, especially Dave Beegle the guitarist. SWIS is easier to find at Christian book stores, but both are available through their web site. Both albums are extremely good, and Dave has some solo stuff as well. Go to www.hapiskratch.com for information. {dt}