The Far Meadow "Foreign Land"

Quarantine greetings fellow progheads!  Flattening the curve is certainly easier and more tolerable from inside the Concert Closet, so with mask and gloves at the ready let us foray deep into the prog garden and listen in with The Far Meadow on their latest release, "Foreign Land."

I have always been intrigued by bands--especially prog bands--with a strong female vocalist.  One would think the music lends itself to the sultry musings of a strong female voice, yet there seems to be so few in the genre.  Rather than lament that fact, let's enjoy those that call the prog garden home.  One again, headphones on...

Opening cut is "Travelogue" and as the curtain peels back slowly there are top notes of ELP spilling out.  Keyboards come at you subtly at first, then they explode all over the canvas...just like Keith would do.  The vocals are sandwiched between layers of keyboards and drums--and the lady can certainly hold her own.  The guitar works its way in and the vocals just continue to wind through the entire piece.  The music plays with you;  the symphonic roots The Far Meadow prides themselves on give way to a sultry ballad  at times...and the bass is reminiscent of Tony Levin.  This opening cut offers much; hopefully the band doesn't spend it all in one place...

Fear not--the second song I drop the laser on, "Mud," keeps the energy needle in the red.  The Gothic keyboards and upbeat tempo are strong with aromatics of Dreadnaught and perhaps a touch of Roxy Music to keep it interesting.  The drums are a solid foundation to this cut and everything fits like the proverbial glove.  The music is smooth as a silk necktie and cool as the zoot suit it's paired with...The Far Meadow
demonstrates the ability to make intelligent, well produced music and have fun while doing it.

Liner Notes...hailing from London, The Far Meadow is a quintet with Denis Warren on lead and rhythm guitar, Keith Buckman on bass, Eliot Minn on keyboards, Paul Bringloe on drums and percussion, and the lady behind those piercing vocals is Marguerita Alexandrou.  This is the third album in the band's catalog; the second on Bad Elephant Music.

The Far Meadow released their first album in 2012 and kept an upward trajectory.  With a sound that radiates across the prog garden from Yes to Rush to Gentle Giant, this is a band I would love to see perform live...curse you COVID-19 (and that darn trip across the Atlantic)...

You can learn more about the band at their website thefarmeadow and Facebook.  Feel free to give them a shout out on Twitter  @TheFarMeadow as well.  Of course purchasing the music is always a great way to support the artist, and you can do just that at Bandcamp.

One last selection to settle into; "Foreign Land."  Title cuts are telling to me because they shine a brighter light into the soul of the band.  In this case, I get a sense of crystals set on an antique table with lavender scented candles filling the room with a most soothing aroma.

Marguerita once again caresses you with her smooth vocals...and the tempo picks up a bit.  Not so much that the candles are blown out, but your blood is pulsing with a bit more oomph.  The song settles into a rather surprising groove as everyone lets their energy flow; you can feel it pumping through the headphones.  This is a "sit on the back of the sofa with a favorite beverage and the lights off" kind of moment, so excuse me while I fade to black...


For your own listening pleasure this week I chose "Sulis Rise," a captivating piece of music.  The drums are just enough to keep the entire piece flowing like a silk scarf in a soft breeze, the keyboards cutting through and all the while Marguerita once again crawls inside your head and wraps around your cranium like velvet.  Denis uses his guitar to splay the canvas with an array of color that bleeds from soft hues to bold flashes of brightness.  The Far Meadow takes you on quite the journey with each song...enjoy the ride... 

                  

So my fellow progheads, once again a fun week of hanging in the Concert Closet winds down.  The Far Meadow proved to be a bright light shining across the prog garden.  The music gives off a "feel good" vibe the genre needs needs a shot of every now and then...and who can resist vocals that smooth?

But alas, the search for all things prog continues on its never ending journey...until next time...