Ed’s Letter

Hello, and welcome to the new issue of

Bloody Well Write

Send your letters to us at: Prog, Future Publishing, 121-141 Westbourne Terrace, London, W2 6JR, 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.

THE PINEAPPLE THIEF BROUGHT TO BOOK!

Due in June, a lavish eight-disc ‘book set’ will chart the early days of Bruce Soord’s melancholic progressive rock group, with plenty of bonus material fleshing out their story.

This month, Intro was compiled by

Jeremy Allen Dave Everley Jerry Ewing Chris McGarel

HORSLIPS GUITARIST JOHNNY FEAN DIES

Band members among those paying tribute to the Irish star, who died in April, aged 71.

HELD BY TREES: TWIN EPS WILL SEE DAYLIGHT IN 2023

David Joseph’s Talk Talk-inspired project returns this year.

“MUSICAL GENIUS” IAN BAIRNSON DIES

Paying tribute to the prolific Alan Parsons/ Kate Bush guitar virtuoso, who died in April.

INTRO extras

GENTLE GIANT TO REISSUE INTERVIEW Gentle Giant’s

DREAM ON! AVENGED SEVENFOLD ARE BACK

Life Is But A Dream… is their first LP since 2016’s progressive offering, The Stage.

NEW MATERIAL FROM ALEX LIFESON’S ENVY OF NONE

The follow-up to the group’s recent debut lands in June.

NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION RETURN

Sam Healy processes recent global events on NAO’s heady fifth album, United Wire.

INTRO extras

ROGER WATERS’ LOCKDOWN RELEASE Roger Waters will release

RING VAN MÖBIUS TO GET MORE PROG!

July’s Commissioned Works Pt II is one long concept piece, with an Italian flavour.

MOTORPSYCHO SET FOR NEW SHORT, SWEET LP IN JUNE

The 10-track Yay! is billed by the band as “a gentle creature”.

FAD GADGETS

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

CARL SENTANCE

He’s a big metal fan, but the Nazareth and Twilight Road singer is still in awe of his highly accomplished muso bandmate, Don Airey.

PROG IN BRIEF

French duo Alcest (right) will mark the

US AND THEM

Scandinavian pair tap into British folk horror for a spooky but intimate experience.

KOSMISCHER LÄUFER

(Unknown Capability Recordings, 2013)

NENE VALLEY ROCK FESTIVAL

Some progressive greats are on the bill of a brand-new classic rock festival in Peterborough this summer.

PROG IN BRIEF

Grammy-winning guiter virtuso pat Metheny release Dream Box

POLINSKI

Futuristic soundscapes from the electronic mind of 65daysofstatic noise-maker.

COVET

Life-affirming and joyful storytelling from a modern-day guitar master.

THE ENIGMA DIVISION

Former Xerath members reach for the Sky(net) with sci-fi-inspired project.

DAVID PATON

Pilot bassist and The Alan Parsons Project member reminisces about working with Kate Bush, Rick Wakeman’s unusual ice-breakers, and that time one of his songs was used to advertise a diabetes drug.

THE PROG INTERVIEW

MIKE BATT

YES

No Anderson, Squire or White? No problem. Prog’s great survivors hit a late-career upswing on album number 23.

Echoes

Old turns

PROGNOSIS

Hawkwind: masters at work. VENUE INDIGO AT O2,

FOCUS

VENUE SAGE, GATESHEAD DATE 15/03/2023 That was our

VOYAGER

Voyager know how to put on a monumental

KYROS

VENUE THE LOWER THIRD, LONDON DATE 16/04/2023 SUPPORT

HAKEN / BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME

VENUE O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE, LONDON DATE 26/03/2023

KING’S X

VENUE ARCADA THEATER, ST CHARLES, IL, USA DATE

PLINI

VENUE CLUB ACADEMY, MANCHESTER DATE 05/04/2023 SUPPORT JAKUB

THE STEVE HILLAGE BAND

The Steve Hillage Band dig those golden vibes.

FAUST

VENUE JAZZ CAFÉ, LONDON DATE 11/04/2023 There comes

WINTER’S END FESTIVAL

VENUE THE DRILL HALL, CHEPSTOW DATE 31/03/2023-02/04/2023 And

VIVIAN STANSHALL’S 80TH BIRTHDAY PARTY

VENUE UNION CHAPEL, LONDON DATE 23/03/2023 Hello, and

DEVIN TOWNSEND

VENUE KK’S STEEL MILL, WOLVERHAMPTON SUPPORT KLONE, FIXATION

PHIL STUCKEY (STUCKFISH)

The great and good of progressive music give us a glimpse into their prog worlds

IN MEMORY OF RAY SHULMAN

He was the youngest of Gentle Giant’s three brothers and was regarded as the glue that held the band’s incredible music together. Bassist and violin player Ray Shulman’s influence can be heard all over the group’s best-known work, which includes The Power And The Glory, Free Hand and Octopus. His death at the age of 73, has left behind an impressive legacy for aspiring artists who prefer their music to have a more adventurous streak.

Whatever happened to the teenage dream?

Following on from 2021’s acclaimed Aphelion, Leprous frontman Einar Solberg has dipped a toe into solo waters on his debut, 16. The accidental concept album finds him flexing his collaborative muscles with some familiar names as he revisits the life-changing events of his formative years that eventually led to him becoming a musician.

NOT SO FRAGILE AFTER ALL

As Yes achieve their quickest turnaround between studio album projects for more than half a century, Prog holds up a mirror to the soul of the seemingly unstoppable progressive giants as they consider their immediate – and long-term – future with Mirror To The Sky.

Alive And Amplified

It’s been six years since Trippin’ With Dr Faustus, and Amplifier have returned with mini-album, Hologram. But behind the scenes, everything’s changed – or has it? Even as the band wrestle with the monster they’re building for their full-length follow-up, mainman Sel Balamir tells Prog how the spirit of Amplifier remains constant through line-up changes, moving studios, and discovering fresh ways of making music.

The Remains Of The Day

After a seven-year gap, Canadian occult rockers Blood Ceremony are back with The Old Ways Remain. Inspired by 70s soundtracks, folk and women’s literature, its 10 tracks of esoteric goodness are definitely worth the wait. Vocalist, organist and flutist Alia O’Brien discusses the benefits of recording local, her teenage passion for Jethro Tull and her new-found joy for foraging.

The Impossible Dream

Despite the success of 2020’s acclaimed Love Over Fear, the last few years haven’t been an easy ride for Pendragon. Mainman Nick Barrett tells Prog about the new mini-album, North Star, and how the band are rising to the challenges of touring in the 2020s with their very own ‘VIP’ weekenders.

LOST KINGDOMS

On her latest album, The Last Kingdom – Destiny Is All, Eivør Pálsdóttir revisits her powerful collaboration with the Emmy-winning composer John Lunn for the Netflix/ BBC TV show, The Last Kingdom. Now its final chapter has been turned into a featurelength movie, Seven Kings Must Die, Eivør and Lunn have teamed up with Danny Saul to create an album of music inspired by it. The Faroese singer-songwriter discusses throat singing, her love for Enya and returning to her birthplace.

The Depths Of The Ocean

On their latest album Holocene, The Ocean dive deeper into prog rock while philosophising over the post-pandemic world. Mastermind Robin Staps tells Prog about its story – and the near-death experience that almost derailed everything.

GOLDEN BELLS

In early 1973, a 19-year-old musician from south-east England was on the cusp of mega-stardom as he prepared to release his debut solo album. Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells was unlike anything else at the time and went on to transform the former folk artist into a multi-platinum-selling global sensation. In an exclusive interview for Prog, Oldfield celebrates the groundbreaking ambient record’s 50th anniversary reissue with the story of its creation and the sequels it inspired.