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...

Checking For Echo "The War is Never Won"

Welcome back to the Concert Closet fellow progheads!  I hope everyone is practicing social distancing and staying safe at home.  As the world continues to deal with the chaos and tragedy that is COVID-19, my objective is to bring you everything the prog garden has to offer from new and
low-under-the-radar prog bands and musicians--all you have to is log on and enjoy!  This week I catch up with Checking For Echo and their latest release, "The War is Never Won."

Released in March, "The War is Never Won" is a concept album--pretty much the standard for most new prog albums today.  Concept albums rarely deal with light-hearted subjects and this one is no exception.  War, its affects on those who served in battle, and why mankind seems to choose this option so often is the inspiration here.  I enjoy exploring concept albums not only for the music, but the story behind the curtain; the motivation to put pen to paper and music to disc.  Time once again to don a pair of headphones...

The album opens with a 16-minute piece called "The War Within."  The piano bleeds gently as the music begins to pour through your entire body.  As vocals begin to wrap around your ears you feel the melancholy mood the song is trying to evoke; the war within can truly be a harsher battle than that which your government sent you to fight.

But the message is far from being told in its entirety here--indeed the war has just begun.  The
opening tune leaps repeatedly back and forth from present to past, painting a picture for the listener of the dark and ugly underbelly of every war ever fought and how difficult the journey back from that pain really is...yes, this will be quite the introspective week...

Looking over the playlist I found an interesting title; "Imaginary Evidence."  Once again soft piano is the canvas, this time snippets of wartime radio and news messages float across the top, balanced with military "rat-a-tat-tat" drum precision.  This plays out like old movie footage; Checking For Echo is demonstrating a brilliant ability to look directly into the soul of the soldier and bring to life the emotions and feelings that torment those who "fought the good fight."  Was there justification for sending so many to inflict so much damage?  Can there ever be enough justification?  How does a soldier balance the act of killing on behalf of one's government with the fact that he/she took human life?  There are reflections of Seconds Before Landing in this entire album that I find striking...

Liner Notes...Checking For Echo is the brainchild of Jon Farley.  You may remember Jon as part of the duo known as Hollow Moon along with Darren Selesnow.  Darren did co-write and play guitar on "The War Within" and the credits list a plethora of additional people who helped Jon pull this entire thing off...but Checking For Echo is ultimately a one-man operation.

Jon resides in Moray, Scotland and has been wandering the prog garden for quite some time.  His work in Checking For Echo is abutted by the aforementioned Hollow Moon.  Jon is a multi-instrumentalist/songwriter playing every instrument and note you hear as well as writing all the
lyrics-- except for Darren's guitar and co-writing for "The War Within."

Jon refers to his work as cinematic prog and the images and visual spectacles his music evokes in the listener certainly qualify it as such.  There may not be a music "explosion" the likes of Circuline or Tangerine Dream, but Checking For Echo does find its way deep into your consciousness and  allow you to feel the music in a way only cinematic prog does.  Learn more about Checking For Echo on Facebook and purchase the music at Bandcamp.

My third foray into the heart of this album is "The Greatest Freedom."  The faint sounds of a helicopter fade quickly as piano and vocals rise up to come at you from what feels like another dimension.  The colors running softly down the canvas are the soft hues of hope and determination...inside the mind of a soldier refusing to give into the (seemingly endless) onslaught of mental and physical defeat.  Regardless of your feelings about war or the governments that start them, the view through the eye of a soldier who saw it all up close and personal adds a new dimension to the kaleidoscope through which we witness the world.

My choice for your listening pleasure is a bit different this time...a little taste of what to expect from the entire album.  I urge you to indulge your curiosity and let yourself feel (perhaps) equal parts uncomfortable and comforted...I believe Mr. Farley himself says it best; "The greatest freedom, it's often said, will come to us all when all else is dead."

                  

So thus the curtain falls on yet another beautiful performance from the Concert Closet.  Checking For Echo crawls inside your head and taps on the thinking part of your brain.  Being soothed and challenged at the same time isn't something many can pull off--so enjoy the rare treat.

Now it's time once again to take the journey in another direction as the search for all things prog continues on...until next time...