Progtastic
A quiet day working. Wrote nine case studies for the hogsite, and then fiddled about working on an idea for a local Brighton play competition, which was fun.
However highlight of the day for me was watching BBC4 Prog Rock Britannia which was a well overdue reappraisal of this genre. Great to see legends like Bill Bruford and Steve Howe. And listen to some fascinating stuff that I'd never heard before. Who knew that Soft Machine sounded like outtakes from Bitches Brew?
In my teens I particularly liked Yes and King Crimson. This, plus the fact that Mum listened to jazz and classical music rather ruined me for straight ahead rock music or for most stuff with a predictable 4/4 beat and chords.
Progressive music was killed by punk. I liked punk too, its energy was amazing, but musically I can't listen to it with anything other than a faint nostalgia. Even at the time my favourite new groups were the elegant Television (from New York) and The Stranglers (who were a bit like The Doors with a growling bass). And both of these were actually very musical. I actually saw live gigs by The Stranglers and Yes in the same week in 77 and had a great time at both.
What I loved about prog pioneers was their mission to serve up something that you'd never heard before. Play Close to the Edge by Yes or Red by King Crimson- and even to this day you will be taken into a unique sonic environment, where delights and wonders far outweigh the overblown indulgences.
And you don't get that sort of thing on X Factor. (Add in your own grouchy old guy stuff here at will...)
A quiet day working. Wrote nine case studies for the hogsite, and then fiddled about working on an idea for a local Brighton play competition, which was fun.
However highlight of the day for me was watching BBC4 Prog Rock Britannia which was a well overdue reappraisal of this genre. Great to see legends like Bill Bruford and Steve Howe. And listen to some fascinating stuff that I'd never heard before. Who knew that Soft Machine sounded like outtakes from Bitches Brew?
In my teens I particularly liked Yes and King Crimson. This, plus the fact that Mum listened to jazz and classical music rather ruined me for straight ahead rock music or for most stuff with a predictable 4/4 beat and chords.
Progressive music was killed by punk. I liked punk too, its energy was amazing, but musically I can't listen to it with anything other than a faint nostalgia. Even at the time my favourite new groups were the elegant Television (from New York) and The Stranglers (who were a bit like The Doors with a growling bass). And both of these were actually very musical. I actually saw live gigs by The Stranglers and Yes in the same week in 77 and had a great time at both.
What I loved about prog pioneers was their mission to serve up something that you'd never heard before. Play Close to the Edge by Yes or Red by King Crimson- and even to this day you will be taken into a unique sonic environment, where delights and wonders far outweigh the overblown indulgences.
And you don't get that sort of thing on X Factor. (Add in your own grouchy old guy stuff here at will...)
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