Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 10

 So here it is, the last match up of the first round of this year's mega prog contest. (We usually only allow 16 entrants, but this time, because it might be his last one, Friday allowed 20.)

Here's how it looks:

Collegium Musicum - Collegium Musicum

"When Czechoslovakia did not allow foreign band names except for Latin, these four Slovak composers, music theorists, jazzmen and experimentators chose a Latin name meaning "music collective" and set out to teach the world (but mostly Czechoslovakia) the extents of musical possibilities. In a society that is being drilled into its head that the only good musical genre is classical music and all that rock and jazz is just the Western usurpers trying to undermine the good communist morale, these absolute mad lads pretty much put the whole musical propagandist idea on its head, delivering rock music composed as classical concertos, elaborate jazz pieces and that sweet professional-educated-musician spiel that knocks the heathens outta park babey! Their influence is strongly felt on Czech and Slovak music scene today including various legendary bands like Blue Effect or The Plastic People of the Universe." - someone

Youtube: https://youtu.be/oKXg4PILseU

vs.

Kollektiv - Kollektiv

"Jazzy krautrock mit flute. More effects pedals than your Dad's favourite band. Viele spass fur alles. 2 votes just doesn't cut it. This write-up is short, but this album is long." - MiloRuggles

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4YXHLIh6mo

So there you have it - two experimental prog albums, both of which flirt with jazz from the early '70's. The first is Czechoslovakian, the second German. (Btw, when Milo says "2 votes just doesn't cut it", he's referring to the fact that at the start of the prog contest, the Killektiv LP only had two ratings on the Sputnik Music site. Remember that these are all supposed to be relatively obscure LPs - in order to nominate an album, it had to have had less than 30 ratings on the site (which is why no one nominated Close to the Edge or Thick As A Brick). I feel like I caught a real bargain with my Procol Harum album (which had something like 21 ratings when I nominated it, although now it has 33. I think it got overlooked because it's a live album, and Procol itself has somewhat been forgotten by time, at least with the younger generations.)

Anyway, this should be an interesting contest. And next week, we'll start Round 2.

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 9 Results

 Hmm. Well this one wasn't as close at looked, and it didn't look very close. The first six votes all went to the eventual winner, and after that, it was pretty much a foregone conclusion.

Here was my vote:

Neither of these albums is perfectly in my prog sweet spot, but one is closer than the other.

Colosseum II has several different sounds, but there's a clear Chick Correa kind of jazz going on for at the early part of it, and something close to soul towards the end.

Quiet Sun is a more traditional prog album, although even after three listens, there wasn't anything that strongly jumped out at me.

Nevertheless, while I hate to pile on, my vote goes to Quiet Sun. (Apologies to my friend Wham.)

The last few votes were split pretty evenly, but like I said, by that time, it was much too late. 

Final Result: Colosseum II 5, Quiet Sun 12.

One more match up to go in the first round.

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 9

 For this matchup, Friday chose to pair two albums that he felt epitomized excellent guitar music, pitting Gary Moore of Colosseum II against Phil Manzanera of Quiet Sun. Here's what it looks like:

Colosseum II - Wardance

"In the mid 2000's when my wife and I were DINKS (dual income no kids) there was an old record store within walking distance, with 1000's of records, the guy made everything without a name on it (Beatles/Stones/etc.) was either $1.99 or $3.99. I would spend hours in there and come home with armfuls twice a week. I got good at picking unknown stuff that fit my ear. I was stocking my shelves with perfect inclusions for this album years before there was such a wonderful thing. Which is where Colosseum II comes in. It probably caught my eye because of the inclusion of Gary Moore of Thin Lizzy fame. I promise you it will not sound like Thin Lizzy Instead this sounds like a awesome progressive jazz fusion band that makes it all work somehow. Every band members influences are on display throughout. A most fun album with changing styles coming in and out of focus." - wham49

Youtube playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPcvSmtCsrhc9CF7KjmCqGxilbZN56nQE

vs.

Quiet Sun - Mainstream

"I love the Canterbury prog style. As a real contestant for the first time, and it seems the last too, I needed to choose one of its albums and Mainstream is one of the best albums to that of the '70s. I love the album and Manzanera guitar style." - TheIntruder

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/6WUzJONHD1qkuMhbqJfgsD?autoplay=true
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQsmzpFVXkM

Let's see how it plays out.

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 8 Results

Whew, sorry I'm late again! This was another matchup that was so close it required an extra day to complete the voting, and after that, Denise and I were upstate all weekend (Where my $700-for-2-nights room at Turning Stone Casino gave me a picturesque view of the Mohawk Valley that was mostly dominated by one wall of the parking garage. Sigh.)

Anyway, here was my vote for this contest: 

I'm ready to vote.

This was a pretty tight decision for me, as I liked both of these albums.

I liked a lot of what Tarantula did with the synths, and I definitely heard a bit of a King Crimson influence in parts. This is definitely classic prog rock. I didn't always love the vocals, but they weren't horrible.

I liked Ibio's prog rock twist on Spanish music a lot. I also loved the way they used their synth.

Like I said, it was a tough choice. But my vote goes to Ibio.

I think I just found the Ibio entry to be the more colorful album, and I loved the Spanish folk influences. 

In the end, after a very back-and-forth battle, the majority agreed with me. The final tally: Tarantula 8 votes, Ibio 9 votes. 

This means there are only two first-round matches left to go. Lets see what our friend Friday has for us next.

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 8

 This week, our friend Friday13th has taken us to Spain, with a matchup of two Spanish prog rock bands from the late 1970's. Here's what it looks like:

Tarantula - Tarantula

"As some of y’all may have figured out by now, I love Spanish/Portuguese-language prog, and this album is one of my new favorites from Spain. While there are some obvious similarities to some well known bands like Jethro Tull or Marillion (synth tones are a lot like Marillion, but this came out first), they also have plenty of uniqueness to their sound incorporating touches of blues. All in all, they are a mix of quite a few of my favorite things in prog and I hope there is something for everyone on this record." - bgillesp

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_myYJZVRsY4Cn1NcL7uJL0mT5KJw4g9eHc

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/248R6Xx8B3nLiiQqhBWGNN

vs.

Ibio - Cuevas de Altamira

"Really cool 70s release, blending in spanish folk music and progressive rock which works astonishingly well. There are great compositions on here and I didn't know before that prog sounded so sweet with the spanish language." - farmerobama

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7JHzOcKxQZVRAeAHIHjjSn?si=A8sjXPI8S7uFUpY7bEtLkw&utm_source=copy-link

Voting for this one ends next Wednesday, July 14. So pour yourself a cold glass of sangria and prepare for a great week of Spanish prog!

 

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 7 Results

 We didn't have as much participation this round as we usually do, possibly due to the holiday weekend. That was a shame, though, as this was one perhaps my favorite round of the contest so far. 

Here's what I had to say:

This was a very tough vote.

I like the Regal Worm album a lot. I did feel like there were some lags -- the first four or so songs are excellent, whereas after that, it's a bit more hit and miss for me. But this is certainly right in my prog sweet spot, and if this album makes it through this round (and it's certainly off to a strong start), it should be a powerful contender throughout the tournament.

As for the Strawbs LP, I agree with what some of you have said re/I don't think it's quite as powerful the series of albums that came directly after this, which is where Strawbs really hit their stride. Regardless of this, Strawbs has always been one of my favorite bands, and this is Strawbs with one of their most powerful lineups. "Song of a Sad Little Girl" is exquisite. I wavered on this vote a little, but I'm voting for Strawbs.

Now I'm going to be honest here: By the time I voted, the vote already wasn't close, which allowed me to just vote my heart. If the vote had been close, I think I would have given them each another listen, and I'm not entirely sure which way I would have gone.

However, as I said, the vote really wasn't that close this week.

Final Result: Regal Worm 10, Strawbs 5.

And I expect that Regal Worm will be a real force in the next few rounds. As I said in my comments when I voted, it looks to me like a contender with a chance to win it all. Stay tuned.

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 7

Match 7 involves a contest between a modern prog band and a classic prog band. Here are the details:

Regal Worms - Pig Views

"Modern prog band featuring a multi-instrumentalist experimenting avant gardist music. Band is injecting Medieval and psychedelic touches in their weird kind of prog that contains start and stop patterns and eccentric turns. Alternance of punchy and pastoral ambiences give tonus to the mix. It's generally sophisticated and simple in the same time. It's really melodic, and vocals serve as an instrument. Good use of mellotrons, organs and many more keys and synths. Kinda Beck on acid, making prog." - Jethro42

On Bandcamp: https://regalworm.bandcamp.com/album/pig-views
[also on Spotify]

vs.

Strawbs - Just a Collection of Antiques and Curios

"Strangely, this is a classic prog album of the 70's but that went unnoticed even by many prog heads. This is a very important and curious album, mainly due to four things. First, technically this is a live album because it was recorded live, but in reality it's a brand new album it terms of tracks. Second, this album was the real turning point to Strawbs, the album that made of them a true prog band, in my opinion, one of the best prog folk bands ever. Third, this the first of the two albums of Strawbs with Rick Wakeman as a band's member, the album that catapulted him to the stardom, you know, Yes. Forth, this is, in my opinion too, one of the best prog albums of the beginning of the 70's." - e210013

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/4HlO9kW2BJ3M9aTqOkM7DF?autoplay=true

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsDI8kGwCdg

This promises to be a torturous round for me. I've always been a huge Strawbs fan, and from what I can tell, Regal Worm looks like they have a good chance to be right in my prog sweet spot as well. Due to the holiday, the voting for this round is open until next Tuesday. So, I'll see you then.

Prog Contest 2021: Round 1 Match 6 Results

 So last Friday, after having trouble breathing on and off over the last couple of weeks, I finally made it in to see my doctor. She sent me for an X-Ray, and at her recommendation, I soon found myself in the Emergency Room. Before long, I learned I had pneumonia, and a ton of fluid on both lungs (which is probably why it felt like I was breathing through water.)

I could tell you a ton of stories - I wound up spending five days in the hospital. But here's how it relates to this post - prior to being hospitalized, I only had the chance to listen to each of this week's entries once. Luckily, that was enough, as I had a strong enough preference to know who I wanted to vote for.

By Monday, when it was apparent I wasn't going home yet, I asked Denise if I could use her phone to go up on the Sputnik site and vote. Here's what I said at the time:

Hi guys
In hospital but I vote for hercules
Hope to be out in a day or two

When I got home the next day, I added a bit more detail, although by that time, the contest had already been called:

Just to elaborate on my vote, while I regret I wasn't able to give the albums the three listens I usually do, I heard enough with one solid listen apiece to know my vote was solid.

There were a couple of times where I thought Hercules went a little over the top, but overall, I have such a strong stylistic preference for Hercules' brand of folk infused prog over Szobel's kind of jazz prog that it was clear which way my vote was going. I will say, though, that I enjoyed the Szobel more than I usually do music of this style.

As it happened, though, this week's match up wasn't as close as last week's, and unfortunately, my pick didn't win the day.

Final Result: Hercules and Lernaean Hydra 7 votes, Hermann Szobel 11 votes.

June 2021 Song of the Day

Apologies in advance on this one. It was a good month musically, but if you're a little OCD like I am, well, let's just say that because of the theme of the month, the would-be YouTube playlist is a bit of a mess.

For new readers, this blog entry refers to the monthly Song of the Day list on the Sputnik Music website. Each month, one User hosts the list and names a theme. Everyone then recommends songs in line with this theme, and people rate the various song recommendations. The list of June songs can be found at Sputnik Music Song of the Day - June 2021.

1. The theme for the month was "Small Fries", which actually translates to local and independent artists. Sputnik Users were invited to submit their own music if they had any, or if not, music for a local or other independent artist whose music they admired.

2. We basically had full participation this month, except that one User did get to recommend a second song to fill out the month. I therefore submitted one rec for the month, which was a track called "Always the Cold Moon" by a young Long Island artist I found on bandcamp known as The Sere, from the Always the Cold Moon EP. It was decently received by the group in general, although it didn't come close to winning the wonth. The Sere - Always the Cold Moon

3. I had two tracks that tied for my highest rating of the month. One was a nice, piano-led composition called "Remission" by a User known as Divergent Thinking. The other was a dreamy instrumental by a User recording under the name Rota Fortunae called "Wayfarer" from the new album Hinterland. DivergentThinking - Remission; Rota Fortunae - Wayfarer

4. However, the group as a whole gave their highest rating to a neat little folk-pop track called "Pleasure Pier" by an artist recording under the name Higher Fiction. Higher Fiction - Pleasure Pier

5. So, the nature of indie music being what it is, I was only able to gather 20 of the month's 30 tracks onto this month's YouTube playlist. Sorry about that. June 2021 Song of the Day YouTube Playlist

Like I said, it was a kind of messy, but worthwhile month. See you in July.