Ed’s Letter

Hello, and welcome to the new issue of

Bloody Well Write

Send your letters to us at: Prog, Future Publishing, 1-10 Praed Mews, Paddington, London, W2 1QY, or email prog@futurenet.com . Letters may be edited for length. We regret that we cannot reply to phone calls. For more comment and prog news and views, find us on facebook.com under Prog

MASTODON RETURN TO THE PROG SIDE ON NEW DOUBLE ALBUM

IF IT’S OUT THERE, IT’S IN HERE

TANGERINE DREAM BACK WITH NEW EP

German electronic proggers to release Probe 6-8 in November

ALEX CANION TO RELEASE HIS DEBUT SOLO EP

Voyager bassist’s new EP Birthmark due in October

NEW BOX SET DUE FOR HAWKWIND

Rare and unreleased material unearthed for upcoming six-disc set

CYNIC TO RELEASE FIRST NEW ALBUM FOR SEVEN YEARS

US prog metallers Cynic will release their new

MAYBESHEWILL ARE BACK WITH NEW CD

Leicester instrumentalists return from a seven-year hiatus with No Feeling Is Final.

ALBUM NUMBER THREE FROM RACHEL FLOWERS

Bigger On The Inside was inspired by Zappa and Emerson

GLASS HAMMER’S TRILOGY CONTINUES

US prog veterans debut new singer Hannah Pryor on second part of Skallagrim series

ARJEN LUCASSEN RELAUNCHES STAR ONE

Dutch prog rocker Arjen Lucassen has announced that

NEW ALBUM FOR TEARS FOR FEARS

UK pop-proggers Tears For Fears will release The Tipping Point in Feb 2022

GALAHAD ELECTRIC CO’S ‘UNEXPECTED’ ALBUM

Side-project’s new record, Soul Therapy, is out now

FAD GADGETS

Rhodri Marsden on three of the latest must-have gizmos currently putting the prog in progress

MY PROG HERO

Inspiring the wider music world…

PROG IN BRIEF

Gong (right) are to reissue Live At The

WYNDOW

Musical postcards from the Robert Wyatt-inspired duo

KLAXONS

MYTHS OF THE NEAR FUTURE (RINSE, 2007)

BIRD’S ROBE

Saluting the scene’s supporting crew

PROG IN BRIEF

Tool (right) will tour the UK and Europe

BIRTH

Astra’s leader dips his toes into Italian and Swedish prog with his latest project

The prog top 30 albums

Compiled by August 2021 1 MARILLION Fugazi (PARLOPHONE)

WIN!

FUGAZI DELUXE BUNDLE!

Now our turn…

The Editor Jerry Ewing MASTODON Hushed And Grim

THE MENTULLS

All change as the 70s-inspired Yorkshire lads tackle their third album

MAN OF MOON

Water and travel conspire with motorik beats to inspire these cosmic Scotsmen

JONAS RENKSE

Q & A

Charged With Cosmic Energy

“It was spontaneously calculated.” In Search Of Space established Hawkwind as masters of the space rock universe, but their mission to spread the counterculture to every corner of Britain was fraught with bad vibes and danger. Fifty years on, the Hawkship’s crew tell the story of a revolutionary record

They Went In Search Of Space

Born of the 60s psychedelic scene and inspired by the ensuing lunar landings, space rock took off 50 years ago with a whoosh and a fizz. But it’s not all about Hawkwind. Prog charts the genre’s history from those early years to the present day and uncovers a capsule-sized collection of new acts that are simply out of this world!

ALIEN LIFE FORMS

10 new space rock bands you need to hear!

To Sleep, Perchance To Dream…

Restless nights and strange dreams might have troubled so many of us recently, but Hawkwind mastermind Dave Brock has decided to put some of his to music on the band’s 34th studio album, Somnia. The 80-year-old musician talks about the art of good songwriting, embracing technology and the very special show he has pencilled in for 2022

The Besnard Lakes

Over the course of 18 years, Canada’s cosmic explorers have set the controls for the heart of sun. Returning after a five-year gap, the story of their current album is one of artistic vision and a lack of compromise. But now we ask the big question: how prog are The Besnard Lakes?

THE PROG INTERVIEW James Warren

Every month we get inside the mind of one of the biggest names in music. This issue is James Warren. The guitarist, bassist and vocalist was one of the original members of Stackridge – he joined the band in 1969 – and has since been part of several attempts to resurrect them. He’s perhaps best known for forming The Korgis with Andrew Cresswell-Davis but has also released three solo albums, his most recent being Innocent Bystander, which came out in October 2017. With a new Korgis album out now, Warren is currently celebrating Stackridge’s half-century with a new collection of their favourite recordings. We look back over his colourful career so far

DREAM THEATER

Vertigo? What vertigo? Prog metal icons survey all beneath them on skyscraping 15th album

STEVE HACKETT

The band light up the Palladium. WILL IRELAND

KING CRIMSON

T he modern incarnation of King Crimson are

LEPROUS

It’s a sunny evening in Norway, two days

EXPLORING BIRDSONG

Support act Evan Carson and Georgia Lewis should

RED BAZAR

P ost-lockdown, a visiting musician remarked that The

A SUNDAY IN SEPTEMBER

City slickers: Abel Ganz finally play London. A

GODSTICKS

“W elcome back to live music!” says a

MY PROG

Where’s home? Northampton. I moved to England from

Lords of Chaos

Hawklords’ blend of cosmic space rock might carry some hallmarks of the band its members were once a part of, but that’s where the similarities end. Now officially in their third decade, the collective continue their purple patch with latest album Time. Guitarist Jerry Richards tells Prog the story behind it and showcases their new line-up

Across The Great Divide

After a seven-year gap between studio releases, Yes are back with their long-awaited 22nd album, The Quest. Steve Howe and Geoff Downes tell Prog why reinvention is so important to them and why, after 53 years, they still believe that Yes have a lot to offer their fans

Taking On The World

Dream Theater are going back to basics with their new 15th studio record, A View From The Top Of The World. Moving on from the heavier sound that dominated Distance Over Time, the band have returned with a collection that they believe captures them at their progressive best. Prog catches up with guitarist John Petrucci and singer James LaBrie to discuss the most “Dream Theater album” of their career so far

A Light In The Dark

The heart and soul of Mostly Autumn, vocalists and instrumentalists Bryan Josh and Olivia Sparnenn-Josh, talk to Prog about how the emotional and personal challenges of the pandemic led to the creation of their finest studio album to date, Graveyard Star

“We just wanted to be different."

Billed as the band that could change the face of 70s rock, Faust found their audience not in the popular music halls their record label had hoped but among fans with more experimental tastes. The krautrock pioneers’ early years have now been captured in an eight-disc box set that charts their revolutionary sound and includes their lost album, Punkt. Prog finds out more about those seminal years

Tales Of Terror

On the 20th anniversary of 9/11, former Yes keyboard player Tony Kaye prepared to release his debut solo album, End Of Innocence. Two decades in the making, it explores the atrocities of the New York terror attack and shows off another side to the musician’s style. Prog finds out more about the record and discovers the truth behind that Spinal Tap rumour

Coming Full Circle

Songs about sorcerers and wizards are back, thanks to Rob Reed, who has completely overhauled his Cyan debut album, For King And Country. Prog catches up with Reed and his Cyan collaborator Peter Jones to find out more about the art of rewriting the past and hitting the high notes

Seeking Sanctuary with The Ringmaster

Rob Reed discusses the future of his Mike Oldfield-inspired Sanctuary project

Unbalancing Act

It was the collaboration that almost didn’t happen but now Peter Hammill and Swedish chamber rock ensemble Isildurs Bane have released their second full-length recording. Prog catches up with Van der Graaf Generator’s main man to discuss In Disequilibrium, the future of the arts and finding inner harmony during a period of uncertainty

The Art Of Patience

Six years after their third album, London post-metal band Tacoma Narrows Bridge Disaster have returned, armed with a new line-up, their first record deal and an album that’s a masterclass in tension and release. Prog catches up with guitarist/synth player Drew Vernon and bassist Tom Granica to find out more