Showing posts with label Prog Music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prog Music. Show all posts

9/02/2016

Bull Funk Zoo Releases Explosive And Unruly Second Album 'Dangerous Radio'



Following the release of his fiery and ballsy singles 'Would You' and ‘Burnin’, Bull Funk Zoois on a parade and ready to take the rock industry by storm. Raw and uncompromising, ‘Dangerous Radio’ is BFZ's blindfolded rollercoaster ride of rock, funk, blues, sex and the news, all the while tipping his hat to masters like Jimi Hendrix, Chilli Peppers, Range Against The Machine, Clutch, Frank Zappa and the Sex Pistols.
While previous collaborations featured Eslam Jawad -M.C (former Gorillaz and Wu Tan Clan) and Hamdan Al-Abri,  ‘Dangerous Radio’ sees Assaad Lakkis a.k.a. Bull Funk Zoo performing and producing the whole album himself. Assaad describes ‘Dangerous Radio’ as a big bad bull rocking out, fornicating & wildly stompin' the blues to rubble. Hendrix havin' a drink with Tom Waits & RATM decided to tear it up.

Listen to Whiskey taken from the album: https://soundcloud.com/bullfunkzoo/bull-funk-zoo-whiskey

Bull Funk Zoo’s debut album was recorded in 2013 and got the highest ratings for an unsigned band’s record by Rolling Stone. In the Middle East, he has made a name for himself, playing in front of up to 30,000 people at concerts, supporting the likes of Sting, Sade, Timbaland and others. Bull Funk Zoo is continuously working on new material, videos and other creative endeavours. He says: "Creativity is my drug of choice, it has got me in a vice.”
Assaad was born in Dubai after his parents had to escape the devastating war in Lebanon in the 70s. As a young boy, music always played a big role at home, which had Assaad growing up to the sounds of James Brown and various Motown artists. When he first saw Kiss performing on TV, the energy of rock’n’roll both intrigued and scared him. Enchanted by the magic of it all, he soon discovered bands like Soundgarden, Megadeth, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jeff Beck, broadening his musical horizons and leading him to constantly crave new experiences.
At the age of 17, he moved to the US for a few years to attend university, and dig further into unknown musical realms. During this time, he also discovered punk rock and jazz, which soon lead him to realise that the mentality of these genres fitted in perfectly with his own worldview.  Both in music and life, Assaad is a free spirit who is willing to cross boundaries in order to expand his mind. He surrounded himself with like-minded people such as the spoken word artist Eric Bailey and Glen Burris, a well-known horn player who played and recorded with Miles Davison “Man With The Horn”.
“Bull Funk is the ideal description of the music; it's got attitude, heart, grace, and it’s in-your-face. The Zoo is the Bull Funk collective, hence Bull Funk Zoo.”
Dangerous Radio is out September 12th

Links:
Web: www.bullfunkzoo.com

Watch The New Promo Here

3/29/2016

The Soft Shades "Keeper Of The Groove" Album Review


This is an instrumental post rock project done right in almost every way; the ambience is subtle in places and at other times leaves you on the edge of your seat and questioning what is coming next. It is a cracking record that truly embraces everything an instrumental rock band should encompass, this is evident on tracks like “The Flare” and “First September Weekend”

My overall favourite track which feels like the lead track is “When this Day comes” and this is definitely a track that makes you think and allows your mind to wonder with possibilities.

That is the exciting element with instrumental bands, as a listener you can create the ambience and mood yourself, regardless of what the bands initial intentions were, everyone who listens to this album will take something different from this.

It is an absolutely stunning piece of work and music project and definitely a musical experience I would recommend!

The album is set for release on 22nd April




Links:
Bandcamp - http://thesoftshades.bandcamp.com/

3/24/2016

Orca New Album 'Universe' Review


Alternative metal band, Orca, are releasing their hard hitting album ‘Universe’ and it has us in awe. Their music gracefully twists and dives through a unique blend of heavy riffs with disarming melodies, soulful atmospheres and an edge of prog.



 ‘Amber’ starts the album off with foreboding sounds which draws you in before the heavy rhythms kick in hard. The fact that this album is self- produced shows the skills of these musicians as the track are beautifully layered, really transporting the listener into the stars with the band.

The strident metal sound of the band is contrasted well by vocalist Chris Edwards’ Jeff Buckley sounding voice that guides the album along. The band have live dates in London that are by the sound of the album- bound to be a real experience not worth missing.


The single ‘Aquarium’ is out now from the album Universe out April 1st
LINKS:

Upcoming gig dates for 2016:

April 1st - Rigger Stoke-on-Trent
April 8th - Barfly, London
April 18th - Surya King's Cross, London

3/18/2016

Orca Release New Single ‘Aquarium’



Described as a “cracking band” and praised for their “excellent production values” by music blog Progrockmusictalk, UK-based alt-rockers Orca have proven to be on top of their game. As pioneers and creators of the mysterious domain of ‘space metal’, the five-piece is steadily stepping up to the music industry’s spotlight.

Their fascination with space and discovering the unknown has always been part of their own musical exploration. By fusing melodic experimentation with hard hitting metal riffs, their new single ‘Aquarium’ (taken from the album ‘Universe’) is a muscular track, effervescing with a forthright and speeding energy. As a follow up to the similarly metal infused guitar styles and contemplative vocals of their first single ‘Amber’, this tune is a sensational marvel of progressive rock.

Listen here:  

The song came about when singer Chris started exploring the emotions drawn from the cryptic and riddle-like rhythmic arrangement of a demo recording. ‘Aquarium’ is ultimately about desire, beauty, identity, sensuality, and connecting with the power of nature. The video for the single was shot in a real aquarium which the band describes as a “wonderful” and “entrancing” experience. The album is called ‘Universe’ as it was written while the band were travelling separately around the world, with each band member looking out to a different part of the night sky for inspiration.

With influences ranging from Deftones to Tool the band has mastered the techniques of DIY and created a magnificent set of songs with little to no help from other producers. Their music touches upon the deeper questions in life. Orca describes their sound as being about “submission to the awe and power of the world, and the realization and self-actualization levels of awareness and consciousness.” Part of their musical diversity stems from the fact that Orca consists of a colourful mixture of different nationalities. Bassist Matt McGuinness is Irish, guitarist David Vezzoli from Italy, other guitarist Ben Murray-Smith from England but born in Brazil, drummer Kacper "Drum Kid" Stachowiak
from Poland and singer Chris Edwards is British Armenian. Orca’s sound reflects this diversity and has been celebrated by radio stations such as KSCR in Los Angeles and Aaron Phillip’s Amazing Radio Rock Show here in the UK. Musically, they have also come from a variety of backgrounds ranging from psychedelic rock and jazz to heavy metal and synth-pop.

The band has evolved from bassist Matt and guitarist Dave’s previous project called Martian Time Slip which focused more on a traditional darker kind of metal. After the break up of Martian Time Slip the two collaborators embarked upon new endeavours, forming Orca and searching for the perfect vocalist for the band. Chris approached the band with a style that was both unique and enigmatic. They were struck by his powerful voice and his ability to enrich the melodies with passion much like the late Jeff Buckley. Ben joined shortly afterwards while continuing to write songs for famous Vlogger Casey Neistat. The newest addition to the group is drummer Kacper who has had success with his symphonic power metal band Pathfinder.

The single ‘Aquarium’ is out on 4th March from the album Universe out April 1st
LINKS:

Upcoming gig dates for 2016:
March 20th – Cellar Bar, Bracknell
April 1st - Rigger Stoke-on-Trent
April 8th - Barfly, London
April 18th - Surya King's Cross, London