Tag Astra
Renowned for their top drawer Doom roster, UK label Rise Above were also known to throw in the odd curve-ball every now and again just in case anyone thought they could predict them. One of those aforementioned oddities was American… Continue Reading →
With their previous release “From Silence to Somewhere” (2017), Norwegian band Wobbler managed a thoughtful, retro and rustic prog album while infusing it with freshness and creativity. “Dwellers of the Deep” is their fifth album, and my hope was for… Continue Reading →
There’s more than an element of Spock’s Beard about Pattern-Seeking Animals, with three band members in common. It was no surprise then that this album, the second from the Californian band, is lauded as progressive art rock. As for the… Continue Reading →
Spell are an interesting 3 piece band from Canada on their third album. Purveyors of retro flavoured hard rock/metal and with two members of the band (the bassist and the drummer) sharing vocal duties. Aha! Just like fellow Canadians Triumph… Continue Reading →
Psych rock and atmospheric prog rock are at the heart of this album from Norwegian band Himmellegeme, so it’s not surprising to see the points of reference as Sigur Rós, Pink Floyd, Radiohead and Jeff Buckley. To make this work,… Continue Reading →
An eastern drone, and the sound of the sitar and tabla precede a whispered chant. The drum steps up in tribal fashion. Now this is different. Monkey3 in fact are from Switzerland and describe “Astra Symmetry” as our “magic carpet… Continue Reading →
I can’t recall an album where the opening has cried out “prog!” to me in such a way as this one. But this is a prog which winds along regressively as well as progressively with a 70s hard rock fuzz… Continue Reading →
There’s been a lot of retro rock, doom rock, occult rock of late (call it what you want) and apart from The Riddles, not many bands have picked up the psychedelic tag. This American band from California really keep the… Continue Reading →
On the same day that I received this album to review, I read in one of those quirky surveys you find in the Metro free newspaper that Hastings is the place in the UK where the residents are the most… Continue Reading →
In the world of psychedelic and imaginative progressive rock, King Bathmat reigns supreme. That was the conclusion I reached after listening to “Truth Button”. Now, 6 months later, this English quartet is back with “Overcoming the Monster”. The monster, to… Continue Reading →
I go along with the commonly held view that King Bathmat are impossible to place in one single category other than the all-embracing “progressive”. Their music is comfortingly familiar. “Truth Button”, King Bathmat’s sixth album, is like a relaxing river… Continue Reading →
Diagonal released a self-titled album in 2008. Then after a gap and line-up changes, the new Diagonal emerged. This Brighton-based prog band is responsible for “The Second Mechanism” and let me tell you, it is as full of ideas and… Continue Reading →