Danny Bonte

Rock On! Wednesday, 28 October Sea Shanties (High Tide, Irish Coffee, Uriel, Pink Fairies, Black Widow)

Psychedelic, heavy, prog and more innovating sounds spanning the late 60s and the early 70s – Wednesday October 28th. Dan’s pick of the week: High Tide (Sea Shanties), Irish Coffee (Irish Coffee, Uriel (Arzachel), Pink Fairies (Never Neverland) & Black Widow (Black Widow).

Prog Archives review:”When I first listened to this album I couldn’t believe it was from 1969; it is way ahead of the time. Definitely the heaviest album of that aera. Its trademark is the constant battling between electric guitar and electric violin.
The album starts right away with a heavy electric guitar riff out of one of the boxes, a pumping bass and drums enter, the guitar riff is answered with heavy electric violin out of the other box, and then “Futilist’s Lament” is on the way.… Read more...

Art Rock Show – Alone Together (Week 43)

Rikard Sjöblom is inmiddels een vrij bekende naam in de prog wereldje geworden. We kennen hem van de Zweedse band Beardfish, maar ook trad hij toe tot topgroep Big Big Train. Daniel Levy van Prog Report: “The album starts with an epic 13min song “Traveler”. This track wastes no time in introducing Rikard’s trademark compositional elements – the quirky sounds and reoccurring motifs that will sometimes reappear over the album. Unlike his previous album Friendship, “Traveler” favors a more raw, rock sound with lesser focus on layers of instrumentations. Although there are still plenty of brilliant instrumental moments, the emphasis seems to be on delivering more straightforward hard rock beats. This first song is a good indication of the vibe the album is going with and is definitely on par with the quality of his Gungfly’s usual work – the guitar solo in the middle is one of the highlights of Alone Together.… Read more...

Art Rock Show – Versions of the Truth (Week 42)

The Pineapple Thief is een band die het geweer regelmatig van schouder veranderd. Het maakt zijn band tot een van de meest interessante uit het genre.
Maurice van der Zalm van RockPortaal.nl: “Met het titelnummer The Versions Of Truth zet The Pineapple Thief meteen de toon. Het drumwerk van Gavin is uitzonderlijk neergezet op een subtiele manier en hij weet te imponeren zonder daarbij de aandacht naar zich toe te trekken. In het geheel zijn er kleine muzikale uitspattingen, maar het wordt al snel duidelijk dat dit album niet zozeer om de afzonderlijke composities gaat, maar in het geheel meer een beleving met zich meebrengt. Een beleving waarop je je als geduldige oesters rustig kan laten wiegen en dobberen. Het daaropvolgende Break It All gaat verder op de ingeslagen weg hoewel er hier een, prettige, onderhuidse spanning voelbaar is die zich graag laat temmen.… Read more...

Rock On! Wednesday, 14 October – Focus III (Focus, Blossom Toes, Triumvirat, Tomorrow, Earth & Fire)

Psychedelic, heavy, prog and more innovating sounds spanning the late 60s and the early 70s – Wednesday Ocotober 14th. Dan’s pick of the week: Focus (Focus III), Blossom Toes (If Only For A Moment), Triumvirat (Mediterranean Tales), Tomorrow (Tomorrow) & Earth & Fire (Song Of The Marching Children).

Sputnik Music review: “Focus are a great band, sadly unknown to many, they rocked hard when they were alive. The reason they rocked hard is because they were dutch, and they knew how to play their instruments, hard. Musicianship is perhaps the albums biggest focus, but it’s progressive rock so thats to be expected and respected, you dig? Akkerman is a master of his axe, a swordsman he be not. After releasing the excellent Moving Waves record Focus were on a mission to make the best record ever, and they succeed with flying colours.… Read more...