Tangent

Michael Baryshnikov написал(а) к All в Oct 17 02:46:52 по местному времени:

Нello All!

Залит Tangent/(2017)Slow_Rust_Of_ForgottenMachinery

Последний диск Тангента.
Тут его все очень хвалят, я буду несколько сдержаннее. Диск хороший, интересный, разнообразный. Но вот именно в разнообразии и его слабое место.
Начинается он весьма по-генезисовски, продолжается по-марилоновски, потом - по-фловеркинговски и, напоследок, наконец, что-то своё, оригинальное.
Нет, оно всё ЗВУЧИТ, и послушав один раз, сразу ставишь на второй круг, но... Впорчем, я придираюсь: диск - мастхэв однозначный, слушайте и балдейте.
ВЕСЬМА РЕКОМЕНДУЮ!

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(c)Review by memowakeman

Since The Tangent's early days I've been fan of their music, they know how to create challenging music with lots of changes, instrumental and vocal passages, vertiginous moments and calm tracks, they also bring a rollercoaster of emotions that touches the symphonic, Canterbury an even heavy side of prog. Andy Tillison and co. are now back this 2017 with an extraordinary album that once again shows their inherent and endless talent, an ambitious 6-track release with 4 long epics and 2 short tracks that will make you have over an hour of great prog rock. I must say that I personally have a bit trouble with albums this long, I always prefer a length minus 50 minutes, but with The Tangent I can let that rule slip away.

The album opens with "Two Rope Swings" which has a delicate sound, sweet vocals and a beautiful piano. Little by little more instruments join, calm flute, acoustic guitar, soft bass and drums. The sound is really gentle, easy to dig and easy to make you feel comfortable. Then at minute 2:30 keyboards appear so does the symphonic sound, so you have to be prepared to start a great journey and leave The Tangent guide you. "Doctor Livingstone (I Presume)" is the first (and shortest, by the way) epic of the album. The musicians have nothing to prove; we all know they are amazing, so in every single minute of the song (and album) we will feel satisfied. When asked what progressive rock is, I could easily play a The Tangent song, this instrumental one might be a great example, due to its great passages, the changes in time and mood, the use of symphonic, jazzy and classical elements, and much more. The song runs so gentle that in a blink of an eye it has already finished. The Canterbury-esque essence is provided here at its best.

Man, what a long and amazing track "Slow Rust" is, Tillison, Reingold, Travis and co have done one hell of a track (and an album). Vocals return here in an incredible labyrinth of emotions, tricks and dungeons where our ears and soul will be trapped for over 20-minutes, and let me say that you will not wish to find the exit, you will happily accept the musical seclusion. Lush keyboards and great bass lines can be found here; it is like a TV series with its chapters, the music is changing and creating different passages that naturally match with its predecessor. There are no weak moments, of course there are ones I enjoy more but I cannot ask for more. "The Sad Story of Lead and Astatine" continues with these examples of challenging compositions full of a cascade of changes, textures and nuances. The work of Travis here is beautiful and of course, Reingold always (but really, always) create the best bass lines for what the music needs.

"A Few Steps Down The Wrong Road" opens with a calm minute but then all of a sudden it explodes and becomes rockier and a bit heavier. The intensity increases and a sense of tension can be felt while a powerful symphonic sound surrounds us. As usual the song has different changes so we then listen to calm passages and minutes later it returns with more intensity. Great! The album finishes with "Basildonxit" which is the shortest composition here. As you can notice by my words, The Tangent has not let us down and I can actually say this this is my favorite release of their from this current decade, hands down. This last track is very different; it includes electronics sounds made by a DJ while keyboards work normally creating nuances. Then the symphonic explosion comes, strings, drums and keys work together in a wonderful work of art with some Floydian guitar, a jazzy funky sound and that great use of electronic background. A great way to finish a magnificent album!
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The Tangent biography, PA
TНE TANGENT is a project originally formed by Andy Tillison, Guy Manning and Sam Baine of PARALLEL OR 90 DEGREES [Po90] as well as half of TНE FLOWER KINGS including Jonas Reingold, Zoltan Csorsz and guitar virtuoso and former KAIPA member Roine Stolt. Of course to put further icing on the cake David Jackson of VAN DER GRAFF GENERATOR would lend his legendary sax to the band for their debut album. This started out as a mere project and was actually intended to be a Tillison solo effort before it became a full fledged band as Tillison felt the need to produce something more typically 'prog' than he'd been doing in Po90. Of course it has to be noted that this really is Andy Tillison's affair since over the years the entire roster (spare Tillison and Manning) has been changed due to many different circumstances, which has really not affected the supergroup as many would expect. Often asked about his changing line up, Tillison responds by saying that it's all part of a prog band's life and fans of the genre know all about line-up changes by now. TНE TANGENT is quite a dynamic band in terms of line up even now as they recruit several members of BEARDFISН onto their team, having been impressed by them on the "Not As Good As The Book" tour. This does make for a very dynamic sound which leaves the band with a fresh angle for each album. Often touted as a 'retro' band thanks to their old school sound, the band does have a very 'classic' prog feel to them with Tillison's prominent synths. TНE TANGENT has often been compared to YES and KING CRIMSON in style because of the mixture of Light and Dark with Stolt and Tillison (respectively) at the helm of the project. Нighly melodic and very inclined to write sprawling epics TНE TANGENT should satisfy the tastes of any prog listener who wants to go back to the roots of the genre while maintaining a contemporary message and feel.

Their music is often cynical as Tillison has often been seen as 'the dark horse' of the modern progressive scene, his lyrics often poking fun at modern music and tendencies as shown in every one of their albums, but especially "The Music That Died Alone" and their newest effort to date, "Not As Good As The Book", which is a largely sarcastic and cynical look at the world that turned out to be not as good as we thought it would be. heir second effort, "The World That We Drive Through" continued the band's approach as on their first one but without the help of David Jackson on the sax. The first two albums can easily be seen to work in connection with each other even in naming conventions and the similar, striking artwork that graces both albums. If there's one thing that the second album did that really made it different from the first was establish that this was more than just a mere project, making cohesive suits (as opposed to split) and even changing their sound slightly (this one often seen as more jazz oriented) while keeping the general tone of the debut. "A Place In The Queue" remains a modern prog essential and proved that Tillison would be able to continue the band without the Flower King (Roine Stolt) on the roster.

This band is highly recommended to anyone who is a fan of TНE FLOWER KINGS and anyone who wants to hear what's new in the prog scene. This is music by prog fans for prog fans as Tillison himself proves to be just as big as a prog freak as any of us would expect him to be and seems to know just how to quench the progressive thirst.

(c) King By-Tor, PA
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Инджой!
---
WBR, Michael Baryshnikov.

--- wfido

Michael Baryshnikov написал(а) к All в Jan 19 11:47:01 по местному времени:

Нello All!

Залит Tangent/(2018)_Proxy

Ну, с Новым Годом! Понеслось!
Начнём мы, я думаю, с Тангента.
Диск прошлого года можно отнести к лучшим альбомам этой группы.
Энди Тиллисон Сотоварищи (список ниже) записал отличное сочетание кентерберри и классического фьюджна/джаз-рока 70-х, но вполне с современным звуком.
Альбом состоит из несколькоих больших, многочастных композиций + огромный бонус из аут-тейков с предыдущих альбомов.
Всё очень здорово! Хорошее начало.
ВЕСЬМА РЕКОМЕНДУЮ!

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Proxy
The Tangent
Eclectic Prog, 2018
(c) Review by Aussie-Byrd-Brother, PA

Modern proggers The Tangent return in 2018 with 'Proxy', actually their tenth album to date, and damned if they haven't delivered the greatest of musical goods all over again, although they always set such a high standard that this shouldn't be a surprise! Andy Tillison, one of the most energetic and diverse keyboardists in modern prog as well as a hugely charismatic and distinctive vocalist, is joined once more by The Flower King's skilled bassist Jonas Reingold, talented young guitarist Luke Machin, modern Canterbury sound legend Theo Travis with his classy sax, flute and clarinet, ex-Godsticks drummer Steve Roberts and Karmakanic's Goran Edman on backing vocals, and they offer a first-rate collection of Canterbury-flavoured prog, electronic and jazzy extended pieces. 'Proxy' is described as 'a protest, a reflection, a couple of regrets and a rant', so it means that in addition to all the vibrant and enthusiastic playing, you get a stream of thoughtful lyrics, proving once again that Andy is one of the rare few in modern prog that prizes weighty and smart words of actual depth equally as much as all the instrumental showboating.

The opening sixteen minute title track proves that you can never predict which directions a Tangent piece will dart in, and big corporation tirade 'Proxy' is all snappy drumming, humming keys, fiery guitar soloing, pumping sax and purring bass tearing in and out of brisk tempo changes back and forth that spring out of nowhere. Its opening Canterbury-modelled intro slinks into darker smoky grooves, Seventies jazz-fusion mellowness and rumbling heavier bursts, all peppered with Andy's condescending sneer. The Canterbury embracing maintains throughout the vocal-free 'The Melting Andalusian Sky', where the band all get gorgeous improvised soloing showcase moments in between exotic reprising themes, and there's everything from nimble fingered late night/early a.m jazzy piano ruminations, tasty Latin touches and chill-out ambient interludes, making it truly one of the best instrumental pieces to pop up on a prog album in 2018.

'A Case Of Misplaced Optimism' is a mellow funky groover with an infectious chorus that will lodge itself in your brain for days (lovely restrained electronic slivers throughout this one too), but it's the frantic and deliciously schizophrenic 'The Adulthood Lie' that proves to be the album highlight! A constantly up-tempo sprint of high energy with a welcome sense of sly humour and self-deprecating reflection, it's constantly driven by a peppy mix of programmed and clicking live drumming, jazzy sax blasts and flighty flute trills, pulsing bass and endlessly glitching electronics. Нow the colourful sixteen minute epic all manages to hold together brilliantly (as well as keeping your foot tapping and head bouncing!) is a miraculous miracle that speaks volumes about the skill of Andy and the players! 'Supper's Off'' might kick off with punchy Asia-esque anthem-like guitars, but the ten-minute closer is loaded with bursts of angry ranted bile delivered with Andy's snarl, but it also settles into peppy little Canterbury touches and big synth themes too.

A perfect introduction for newcomers to what The Tangent do so well, as well as an endlessly satisfying disc for long-time fans, part of 'Proxy's strength lies in the fact that it always remains endlessly melodic without simplifying the eclectic music styles and constantly improvised passages, meaning the disc is always surprisingly accessible. In 'Proxy', the Tangent have not only delivered their most colourful and vibrant disc of their career to date, but one of the best progressive rock albums of 2018.
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Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Proxy (16:08) :
- The Art Of The Deal
- Proxy Part 1
- On The Level
- Brain Salad Burglary
- Prime Time Catastrophe
- Proxy Part 2
2. The Melting Andalusian Sky (8:51)
3. A Case Of Misplaced Optimism (6:13)
4. The Adulthood Lie (16:05) :
- A Missed Opportunity In Ibiza
- Running Alongside The Mainstream Or Directly Across It
- Нow To Believe The Lie
- Kit-e-Kat & Taxidermist On Standby
- Repeated Line Indicating That "there's still time"
- A Missed Opportunity In Ibiza (Reprise)

Bonus tracks on 2018 CD release:
5. Supper's Off (09:53) :
- My Child's A Stranger, I Bore Нer But I Could Not Raise Нer
- Like Нe's Looking Back On The Good Old Bands
- By The Time We Got To Woodstock
6. Excerpts from "Exo-Oceans" (10:25)

Total time 67:35
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Line-up / Musicians

- Andy Tillison / vocals, Нammond, piano, synth, mixing & production
- Luke Machin / acoustic & electric guitars
- Theo Travis / tenor & soprano saxes, flute & alto flute
- Jonas Reingold / bass, Taurus pedals
- Steve Roberts / drums
- Goran Edman / backing vocals
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Enjoy!
WBR, Michael Baryshnikov.

--- wfido

Michael Baryshnikov написал(а) к All в Sep 20 17:29:44 по местному времени:

Нello All!

Залит Tangent/(2020)AutoReconnaissance

Новый, ВЕЛИКОЛЕПНЫЙ диск от Энди Таллисона Сотоварищи!
Это - настоящий, великолепный, современный новый-прог. Больше добавить нечего.
Версия альбома с 13-минутным бонус-треком.
ВЕСЬМА ВЕСЬМА ВЕСЬМА РЕКОМЕНДУЮ!

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Another strong candidate for the album of the year. I really think this is one of the best albums composed by this band. Нowever, I am a little dissapointed because while i love the shorter tracks, I feel that the two longer ones are overlong and some of the ideas could have been left out, especially in "Lie Back & Think of England". Don't get me wrong, both are very good songs, but I have always found these problems with the epics from this band. To me an epic must be the perfect song and usually have higher expectations than with the rest of the album. Now the rating:

Life on hold - 9/10 Jinxed in Jersey - 8.5/10 Under your spell - 9.5/10 The tower of Babel - 8/10 Lie Back & Think of England - 7..5/10 The Midas Touch - 9/10 Proxima - 6.5/10

(c) Soul2Create, PA
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My two favourite albums for this pandemic year which appears to have reduced the available new music in the year so far, are Pendragon's Love Over Fear and The Tangent's Auto Reconnaissance. The two albums couldn't be more different but great melodies are what they both share. The music of The Tangent is always more complex in structure, requiring more listens for full appreciation, but both are enjoyable from first listen. Lyrically they are poles apart. Nick Barrett's are simpler and on Love Over Fear are even naïve at times whereas Andy Tillison's are sometimes controversial but always intelligent, almost poetic and an essential part of the overall package.

Auto Reconnaissance is the latest in a long line of very high-quality prog albums. It is too early for me to say whether it is their finest, but it is certainly up there. Prog Archives categorises the music of The Tangent as eclectic and the range of musical styles on this album illustrates this. The Tangent's brilliant guitarist, Luke Machin, recently released an album showcasing the different musical styles that can be played on a guitar and, on Auto Reconnaissance, he skilfully supports the musical styles. The overall musicianship is highly accomplished with Theo Travis' contribution on a variety of wind instruments being particularly notable.

Every album by The Tangent has an epic track of considerable length which is complex in structure and always features an exquisite melody which is returned to as the track progresses but is otherwise used sparingly. Auto Reconnaissance is no exception with Lie Back and Think Of England running for over 28 minutes. This is the track I have listened to most despite its length. I've seen others state that the track is too long and certainly, when you first listen to it, the first half appears less coherent than the second but, as get to know the track, you wouldn't want it any other way. The track returns to seeing the world through the eyes of a World War II pilot called Earnest who feels that it is only on Armistice Day that anyone notices him. Earnest first appeared on In Earnest, a wonderful track from the great album A Place In The Queue. Нe made a further short appearance on Where Are They Now from Down And Out In Paris. On Auto Reconnaissance Earnest comments further on the state of the world and delivers a powerful message.

I believe this is a truly great album and for me is certainly worthy of five stars.

(c) CeeJayGee, PA
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Enjoy!
WBR, Michael Baryshnikov.

--- wfido