TEE "The Earth Explorer"

TEE is a five piece flute front progressive rock band from Tokyo, Japan. Their so-called 'European' sound is unique considering their far-east origin. The imaginative tunes with complex ensembles and rhythms will definitely catch the attention of prog lovers all over the world. Their sound will remind you bands like Camel, King Crimson, Asia Minor or even Frank Zappa on some parts. The band was formed in 2004 when... more

Shawn PHILLIPS

At the kick off of his 2010 tour Shawn Phillips sat with us at a 24 hour diner in Davenport, IA to grant us a very special interview. At his insistence, it would be very informal. One should not expect otherwise from this splendid human being.

The hours prior to this meeting over midnight breakfast were now a recent memory, but...more

You may not know his name but you have definitely heard his music more than once or twice in your life. Maybe on HBO, or on MTV, or on VH1, Comedy Central, Discovery Channel. Doesn't ring the bell? How about American Idol Rewind, or Dr. 90210? We had interviewed Kevin Bartlett a couple of years ago when his second solo album GLOW IN THE DARK was released. Bartlett has been quiet since that time but but he has been secretly brewing new projects. A few months ago he had put a new song...more

Peter Hammill, founding member of Van Der Graaf Generator, released his 28th solo album " nearly 3 months ago. He recently got back home from a short tour covering North America, Canada and Italy. In the 70's when bands like...more

FRIGHT PIG Barque At The Lune *** REVERSAL OF GRAVITY Scuba Gear ***

AGENTS OF MERCY / THE FADING GHOSTS OF TWILIGHT

Agents Of Mercy is The Flower Kings' Roine Stolt's most recent project on which he worked with Nad Sylvan of Unifaun, Pat Mastelotto of King Crimson, Zoltan Csorsz (TFK, Karmakanic), Jimmy Keegan (Santana, Spocks Beard Live), Biggo Zelfries (Walrus Farm) and Jonas Reingold (TFK).

In January of 2008 Stolt started wading through some songs he had written over the years but never used with TFK. To take a break from the band's music for a little while he decided to start a more acoustic project.That's when he asked Nad Sylvan to sing on a couple of songs. Being very satisfied with the results, Nad ended up doing most of the vocals on this CD titled "The Fading Ghosts of Twilight".

Like Stolt planned it, the album is mostly acoustic but there are a lot of symphonic rock moments as well. "The Fading Ghosts of Twilight" and "Mercy and Mercury" reflect Stolt and Sylvan's influences of the 70's prog a la Genesis and Yes but with much smoother changes. Nad's vocals on the opening track are quite moving and theatrical in some parts. "Mercy and Mercury" sounds like acoustic Uriah Heep meets early Camel. "The Unwanted Brother" is on the neo-prog side whereas "Afternoon Skies" and "Bomb Inside Her Heart" are much like 70's folk. The ladder especially has a bit of a Latin flavor as well.

"People Like Us" most probably is not the kind of song you would expect to find on a prog album because it has a bit of R&B taste and it might be your least favorite tune on "The Fading Ghosts of Twilight".

The CD comes in an eco friendly package and a nice sleeve with easy to read lyrics and credits. Art work was done by Silas Toball. We would recommend this CD if you like classic prog and would like to see a more acoustic side of Roine Stolt.

Hande BURDG