Bad Axe- Contradiction to the rule (1986)

I may have gone too soft on you during my last (and very seldom) posts, so to set things right I give you an extremely rare but magnificent piece of epic hard n heavy. This Bad Axe is from Flint, Michigan (there are a couple more bands of the same name) and their only known release is the full length ''Contradiction to the rule'' (1986). Very little is known about the band, a fact I intend to change soon, because I actually tracked down two of their members and they turned out to be still in the music business. Guitarist songwriter Rusty Wright is playing blues with his own band and he's actually recording and touring full time, while drummer Tommy Scott (Stewart) played with Halloween, Lillian Axe (yes, that Lillian Axe!), Godsmack, Fuel, Everclear etc.





http://www.rustywrightblues.com/

Phil Bates (Atlantic, Trickster, ELO part II)

Phil Bates is a hero in the AOR world just for singing on the Atlantic album ''Power'', one of those unappreciated gems that came through in the early 90's just to go under the radar. Despite that he doesn't seem to be very fond of this album (judging from what he wrote on an extensive bio on his personal page, which now has been vastly reduced- and strangely the refference to Atlantic was altered to the better). Anyway, Bates has been recording and touring for 40 years, he sings like only the best can, he plays a hell of a guitar, bass and some more, and sadly his most notable achievement (commercially I mean) was his stint with ELO part II. Some kind of ELO related project or reunion, I couldn't care less, I've ever payed much attention to them anyway. Nobody said this is a fair world. Guys like Phil Bates having to live a life in the shadow of a cover band... Well, ok it could have been worse, at least the guy has lived a life full of music, so my guess is he must be mostly happy about it. I just wish people who have the talents to write and perform their own music get their share of recognition for their original work and not for being related to some other better known band.

So, I was drinking some vodka caramel again after a long while (can't afford even that god damn greek politicians!) and I recalled Phil's passionate voice. Findig his material on the net is not easy if you are looking for downloads, but there are a lot of videos. It's a pitty he didn't get any breaks in the 80's, he could be big then and we could have had more Atlantic-like albums with Phil Bates (even if he would have regreted it, hahaha!). Enough rumbling, I give you a couple of songs from his solo work and a fantastic track from the Atlantic album. Sometime later I will get back with more stuff from his first recording band Trickster and his participation in ELO II. Plus anything else that I might come across and deserves to be shared.

Johnny Van Zant

Johnny Van Zant is the younger brother of Ronnie (and of course Donnie) Van Zant. The three brothers shared very similar voices, but it was Ronnie who sung for legendary Lynyrd Skynyrd. Ronnie died in a airplane crash in 1977 and became a myth. Simple man, That smell, Free bird among others defined what southern rock was about. After that it was obvious his brothers would always walk in his shadow, not because they lacked the talent, but because things are what they are. Ronnie and his band 38 Special soon strayed from their southern rock origins into a radio friendly AOR sound and enjoyed some success during the 80's. Johnny, a more gifted singer than Donnie in my oppinion, took a path somewhere in between. His first official recording was ''The Johnny Van Zant band- No more dirty deals'' (1980). A fantastic mix of classic southern rock and late 70's AOR that puts no shame to it's creators. Much better than any original Skynyrd member after the tragic accident, Jonnie and his band delivered kicking southern rock with a focus on melody. 1981 saw the release of ''Round two'' and the style was very much the same. The involvement of Journey members and production team resulted in a couple of softer songs, but the band rocked on the rest, so it’s not a sellout at all. Maybe some fewer female backing vocals would have served better. A worthy follow up nonetheless. In 1982 Johnnie’s band released ‘’The last of the wild ones’’. I didn’t enjoy that one as much as the previous, but here we have the absolute AOR anthem Can’t live without your love, which makes up. From that point on Johnnie did release a couple of more albums which have flown under my radar. Next thing I know is Lynyrd Skynyrd are back, Johnnie is fronting them and the guys are releasing new material which I love. One may have his own opinion about whether there should be a Lynyrd Skynyrd after Ronnie’s and Steve’s death, but what I think cannot be argued is the fact that Lynyrd Skynyrd have released great albums since the reunion, toured to the pleasure of their countless fans, kept the spirit of southern rock alive and honored their legacy. Born to run (The last rebel-1993) Travelin’ man (Live 2008) Edge of forever (Edge of forever- 1999) Red, white and blue (Vicious cycle-2003) God & Guns (God & Guns-2009) One day at a time (Last of a dying breed-2012)

Blackfoot- Sunshine again

If I'm good for anything it's knowing a good song when I hear it. And this one, well it's a magic moment I just came across. Originally an Axe song, released on the underrated album the Crown (2000), Sunshine again is performed live here by Blackfoot, the connection being Bobby Barth who has fronted both bands. The performance comes form 2005's Sweden rock festival and Bobby lays down some fantastic vocals and some great licks too.

Dave Meniketti

Dave of course is the singer/guitarist for Y&T, one of the greatest hard'n' heavy bands. I'm not in the mood of writing a long piece about how great Y&T are. I just wanted to give you ten minutes of beautiful music from Dave's solo albums ''On the blue side'' (1998) and ''Meniketti'' (2002). The first one is a cover of James Brown's It's a Man's Man's Man's World and the second is a nice original ballad by Dave. Enjoy!

Fates Warning- Inside out (1994)

Fates Warning happens to be one of my favorite bands. Luckily enough they were one of the first metal bands I got to know, so I spent hundreds of hours listening to some of their albums, especially anything from ''No Exit'' (1988) 'til ''Inside out'' (1994). Back in 1994 I bought those 4 albums in a period of a few months and I stuck with Fates Warning. I love them all and they have traded places as ''favorite Fates Warning album'' countless times. There's so much to connect with; the voice of Ray Alder, the guy could tear the sky in two with his screams and at the same time breath out his heart along the words he sung; the lyrics of Matheos that pierce through your inner thoughts and deepest feelings; the drum legend Mark Zonder who had a unique style of playing that always left me speechless...and so much more. Among metal fans Fates Warning always had a lot of respect despite the lack of major commercial success. ''Inside out'' though always lived in the shadow of ''Parallels''. Matheos himself has expressed some dissatisfaction for the album saying it was a repetition of the ''Parallels'' style with similar song structures. Many fans on the other hand tend to appreciate the more ambitious nature of the next album ''A pleasant shade of grey'' while others who adore the Arch era think of ''Inside out'' as the beginning of the end for Fates Warning; it sounds too commercial and besides, who needs Alder when he doesn't even scream anymore? So this is just a gesture of appretiation for this great album that stands neglected among the bands discography. A thank you for the countless hours I spent spining the vinyl in my parents house at the tender age of 15. When you are 15 albums like this one get carved in you. ''Inside out'' is a very personal album if you open up and pay attention. We all knew what Matheos is capable of writing. This time though his lyrics are a little bit simpler and more personal, less metaphoric or ambiguous, but always thought provoking and revealing. Alder makes a turn in his style too. In ''No exit'' he was hitting high notes like a machine gun. O the next two albums he had a passionate but strangely clinic style; that's vocal perfection. On ''Inside out'' he lets most of the high notes aside and concentrates on feeling. His mid-range voice is a revelation. His delivery is much more varied and colourful. It's the voice of a man trying to express his inner self. Listen to the Strand; You can perfectly sense the frustration and dissapointment Alder is portraying with his voice. His earthly tone also adds a lot of sentiment to songs like Shelter me or Island in the stream. You can blame them for being too simple and commercial for Fates Warning but truth is these are beautiful songs that would touch a lot of people if they had been written by better known bands. Unfortunately Fates Warning never made their breakthrough so they remained with their own devoted but also demanding fans who prefer (and who can blame them for that) their more ambitious works. Island in the stream was a getaway for my teenage years. It calmed and soothed a lot of the anger I had in me as a typical teenager. Face the fear was another song that had things to say. Not a macho ''I fear nothing'' type of song, but a realisation of how everyday fears affect our relations to other people and and how we need to face them. I think evreyone will find a part of himself in this album if he takes a closer look. It's very song/lyrics oriented and the music follows the emotions of the lyrics perfectly. It's not complicated as ''Perfect symmetry'', it's not perfect in the way ''Parallels'' is, it's not ambitious like ''A pleasant shade of grey'', but it's a great album full of great songs that speak to your heart. And that's not easy to achieve.

GINGERPIG

Two live tracks in one video, March of the gingerpig (instrumental) and Joe Cool (the fool) by the band Gingerpig. Check them out and enjoy some great retro rock! The band released it's first album in 2011 titled ''Ways of the Gingerpig''

IRISH COFFEE

INTERVIEW WITH INNOSENSE

 

Coming from Larisa, Thessaly, greek prog metal band Innosense made a sensational debut in 2011 with ‘’Outcast’’ and impressed fans of prog who are looking out for some great new bands. Without big label support and media coverage, but armed with tons of talent this guys will put many big names of the genre to shame. Let’s see what the guys have to say about the band and their debut album.

Innosense formed in 2005 and your debut album was released in 2011. What went on in the meantime until the release of ‘’Outcast’’?

A lot went on, we started in late 2005 when we ended up with the current lineup and practically launched the band in December 2005 supporting Sieges Even here in Larisa city. Some more live shows followed so that the fans could get to know us and in late 2006 we released our demo ‘’Life’’. All these years we tried to keep the band active playing shows and we had the chance to share the stage with big names of the scene, like Sieges Even, Evergrey and Fates Warning, while at the same time we worked on our own material. The process took so long because we paid a lot of attention to details both in composing and arranging the material and recording it. Of course due to our professional obligations, since we all have jobs and totally different schedules, we couldn’t go as fast as we would wish.

It’s been quite a while since the release of the album. How do you feel about ‘’Outcast’’ now and how do you feel about how it was received in the metal scene?

We feel like it was a very good start. It’s been exactly one year from the day the album was released and the reception from people who listened to it makes us believe we are on a good path; reviews of course were more than encouraging in their majority.

It’s obvious you like to play technically and free of any clichés. One could expect an odd and hard to follow outcome, but you manage to build strong melodies and emotions. How do you balance all this?

As a band we just want to play good music and come up with a result that satisfies ourselves first of all. We’d never put a song on the album if we didn’t like it, just because it’s a little more technical or because it has a better guitar riff. Above all it has to be a song and everything else comes next. Maybe the term progressive has been misconceived a little bit, it doesn’t necessarily mean playing everything you learned in 5 or 10 years just in one song.

While you have your sights on the future of the metal sound you still managed to win a lot of fans who are more in favor of old school metal. How come?

I think it’s because of the great variety of influences that coexist within the band. We may all like progressive, but individually we listen to very different stuff.

I think a lot of bands are troubled with finding a sound of their own, especially in demanding genres like prog rock/metal. What’s your approach? Is it something restraining or liberating? There are bands who sacrifice a lot of good material until they settle down to the sound that represents them best, leaving aside anything that doesn’t fit the style they have chosen.

The long time from the formation of the band ‘til our first full length release gave each of us time to find his own role, place and sound within the band. So when we started working on ‘’Outcast’’ we didn’t have to experiment and I can say that we sacrificed almost no material at all. Instead we focused on making the material we liked as best as we could. I also think that the fact most of the stuff was written by one person, Bill, gave the album some uniformity.

You mention Fates Warning and Conception among your influences and for the second part it is obvious both in the music as in the vocals. What about Fates Warning, what’s your favorite period of the band? Shall I guess ‘’A pleasant shade of grey’’?

I will have to disagree on the influences. I do like Conception a lot, but our music has very little if nothing at all to do with what they were playing and I’m talking about being influenced, not copying. What sounds a lot like Conception, and I don’t think that it’s bad at all, is the sound of Bill’s voice and maybe in some parts the style he sings. And again I’m sure that if you would listen to the same vocal lines from another singer you wouldn’t think of Conception. Thank god we don’t have any power metal elements because people would match us with Kamelot as well. Regarding Fates Warning, anything they’ve done, especially since ‘’Perfect symmetry’’ is a favorite.

The style of music you chose to play cannot offer fame, money etc especially when Greece is your starting point. So what’s your motivation to create music?

Like you said, when Greece is your starting point, no metal band should expect any of the above. Greek bands that enjoy fame and live off their music are counted on the fingers of one palm, and perhaps some fingers are not needed, so fame, money etc couldn’t or shouldn’t be your motive to create music. We are simply doing something we like, it fulfills us all and when we get good reactions it makes us even happier and more creative and it gives us the courage to go on.

‘’Outcast’’ is a strong album in every aspect and it has very few to be jealous of compared to bands abroad; personally I believe it had almost no rivals last year in progressive metal. But did it open any doors with record labels, managements, live shows abroad etc? Are you interested in that option or is the commercial aspect totally indifferent to you?

First of all we are very happy with the way you commented on ‘’Outcast’’ and we thank you very much. What ‘’Outcast’’ has given us is the chance to state our presence to the fans of the genre and draw their attention and that was our goal. We also got more proposals for live shows and we are discussing some, mostly in Greece, but they have to fit in our professional obligations. As for labels, right now we are with Steel Gallery, which is distributing ‘’Outcast’’. Yes, we are interested in the commercial aspect and the perspective of being on a bigger label and having a manager working for us, time will tell if we are worth or able to handle something like this. For now ‘’Outcast’’ has done enough as a debut.

Is there any plan for the promotion of the album and the band or do you rely on word of mouth? I can’t say I’ve spotted that many reviews/presentations of the album on the net, although all were favorable.

The promotion of the album abroad is mainly a task of our label, which according to its size has sent out enough promo cds and was present at events related to the genre. Apart from that every band member is doing his best on the net in his spare time to promote our work.

I’m growing bored of a load of expensive video clips of greek bands of doubtful quality but sadly you didn’t go on with such a move. Is it totally out of budget or do you think it’s not worth spending time on such a project?

No, it’s in no way a waste of time and maybe we’ll do something soon. It’s within our plans and we want to do it.

How is the life of a greek metal band in the province? Did you ever think of moving to the capital or even abroad to chase the dream?

I don’t think it’s different to the life of a metal band in Athens or Thessaloniki, nor do I believe things would be different if we lived in Athens. Going abroad was on our minds at the early stages of the band, but we were all 25-26 years old and we had our jobs here, so it would have been a very risky move.

In Greece extreme metal bands were always more success and to a smaller extent some classic metal bands too, while bands representing progressive were rather neglected, bound to minor outbursts before vanishing again. Do you have the same complaint, that the local scene does not support this genre enough?

No, we have no complaints from the local scene. Greek metalheads in general do indeed listen more to these genres, progressive always had few and loyal fans, not only in Greece but also abroad. It’s just that for some period with the huge success of Dream Theater and other big names the genre had a rise.

From the live shows you’ve played till now which one has been your strongest experience regarding connection and interaction with the crowd?

For me it was the last show we did here in Larisa in support of Fates Warning. It was a great night though we had some issues with our sound, it was also the first show after the release of ‘’Outcast’’ and we played for a crowd that really wanted to hear us and they showed.

Which band would you like to share the stage with or do a tour together?

We’ve already played with one we wanted and I wish we could also tour with them. I’m talking about Fates Warning of course. But we would also love to share the stage with Dream Theater, Pain of Salvation, Symphony X and all the bands that are our main influences.

What’s the program for the band’s near future and the plans for future releases?

We want to do as many live shows as possible in the coming summer and we are also gathering song ideas for our next album which of course will not come six years later…

Your last words…

A big thank you to all the people who support the Greek underground scene and our band by coming to our shows, buying the cd, or just commenting on facebook or youtube. Also a big thank you to Lonely Road fanzine/blog for presenting us. Hope we can see you all soon.

COMEDY OF ERRORS INTERVIEW

Comedy of Errors was formed in the 80’s and released some stuff back then, probably unofficially, I’m a little bit confused here, can you help us out with the discography/demography of the band and the lineup compared to the current one? Was there any self titled release back in 1988? What’s the story behind this rumoured cd?
As a member of COE it always surprised me that people talk actually about this so called 'self titled' album from the eighties as if it was an official release by the band. In actual fact we had nothing to do with this. What actually happened was that we had released a minialbum on vinyl. Those who recorded and mixed us then arranged the pressing of the minialbum and they , or the pressing plant, lost the original master. We allowed one of the tracks on this minialbum to be 'taped' from a vinyl copy and released on a French Distributor's compilation. Not great quality. However the same company used more tracks from this minialbum and tracks from a later demo tape called 24 hours (again NOT great quality). As I recall we had nothing to do with this, we received no payment and did not sanction release of this. We do not regard this as a legitimate Comedy Of Errors release. There are some interesting enough ideas in the songs but none strong enough that we felt we'd release this ourselves. I'm sure many bands have been treated similarly.Just thought I'd clear that up. As for now we have enough new and unreleased material of greater quality that we wish to record in future albums without having to fall back on the lesser of early material. Especially as in those days we were finding our feet and working on our newer sound,song structure and style eventually culminating years later in our newly released album 'DISOBEY'. Anyone wishing to check out the band Comedy Of Errors would be best directed to the recently released album "DISOBEY' which we regard as our 'debut' album.
Although bands of a similar style like Pendragon, IQ, Pallas managed to release a good quantity of albums and keep a strong core of fans through the years, Comedy of Errors seemingly vanished into thin air and resurfaced out of nowhere. Judging by the early and later material the music is certainly not to blame. So what went wrong?
The time wasn't right. As a new band we were a bit isolated up in Scotland with no internet to get our material out there.
After what seemed like a disappointing experience within the music business, where did you find the strength and inspiration to come back with such a great album? Did it work like a statement to those (critics, fans, managers, labels etc.) who didn’t give you enough credit during your first period?
No bitterness. I just kept writing material for songs.Sometimes the ideas are not fully formed early on and it can take some time to work out a way to use and develop them. The advent of improved technology also allowed us to produce and put our music out there by ourselves. No problem then with creative interference. We can please ourselves and simply hope others like it.
When was the material for ‘’Disobey’’ written? Are there any songs from early releases? Give us some more info on the Student Prince suite.
Disobey was an early song but since re-worked. SP1 and 2 were based on earlier material but also new sections. SP3 and 4 are recent. All the other songs have never been released and have old and new ideas often within the same song.
SP 1 - Could be any of us.. a young student perhaps, with his insecurities,hubris and search for the transcendental-all in the metaphor of a night out.
SP-2 The night over, you slump back drunkenly in bed listening to music in a sea of confused thoughts.
SP3- years have passed.Looking back regretfully. What happened? Where did it all go? What happened to the search for the unobtainable, the intangible, the transcendental? Can you break away from the grip of society's expectations? You reflect that you found it all too difficult to 'disobey' and that each generation falls into the same trap and comes around 'full circle'.
SP-4 A stage further on again looking back. Read the last page of 'The Great Gatsby"
There’s a lot of variety in ‘’Disobey’’, did it happen due to many different influences and moods or just because the material was written in different periods?
Where does it say that you HAVE to write in a certain style all of the time for every song? God forbid we deviate from what the 'genre police' have set in stone. Bands like Led Zepplin and Pink Floyd often included songs of various styles within the same album. To listen to a whole album of new music with epic after epic after epic can be pretty tiresome and detracts from the songs themselves. Sometimes shorter songs in between can bring a little relief before embarking on the next epic. Many proggers regard American Rodeo as weak song even though we thought it obvious it was 'tongue in cheek' ie satirical.The song has no pretentions to being anything other than what it is. We put every rock cliche into it we could think of- both music and lyrics. Could Have Been yesterday is thought of as lightweight by prog fans but as 'catchy and anthemic' by others. It may be interesting to know that this seemingly straightforward song is all about death ! The key thing to our songs is that whether long or short,complex or simple, they must have passion. It's the only test that counts.
Where did you record the album and who produced it? Did the label finance the production? I think it’s really good, on the same level as the bands performance.
We recorded it ourselves at a local Glasgow studio for drums and our home studio for the rest of the recording and mixing. Rob Aubrey, at Aubitt studios Southampton mastered it and gave us excellent advice while adjusting final mixes.He's worked with Yes,Spock's Beard, IQ, BBT etc.Originally we had planned a deal with a distributor (hence the ACH label is mentioned on the album cover) but in fact we decided to finance and distribute it ourselves. I think we made the right decision.
It’s been a while since the release of ‘’Disobey’’, so you pretty much have a picture of the waves it made, big or small. Are you satisfied with the reviews it got and the response from prog rock fans? Did this release open any new opportunities for tours, record deals etc?
We are delighted with the reviews it got. We hadn't a clue what to expect. I had no idea what the prog scene was like and certainly didn't tailor the music to what was expected. We just made the album and hoped for the best. The response has been fantastic. Not everyone 'gets us' but so what? We are very much a gigging band and looking forward to our opening dates in England in Feb and the strong possibility of some festivals to be announced.
What are you planning for the near future? Should we expect another release anytime soon?
We are kicking off with some dates in early Feb this year with our mates Credo. (I'll put in the dates at the end) As for future releases, the second album is already written and partly recorded. We will be playing some tracks from it in our live set. We have been working hard on this and can promise that we will be creating something pretty special and different. Like most of the first album, none of the songs have ever been released before.Haven't left out good tunes though and of course the required passion and drive. With the second album ,musically,I think we have gone to a higher level.It may be a little more demanding to the listener so it'll probably please the out and out progsters with the grandiose epics but with some quirky numbers as well. I personally can't wait to get this finished and get it out there. We are aiming to release it late summer/early autumn.
From all the neo-prog bands the only one I can really relate to your sound is Pallas, I can sense some similar qualities, especially the emotional depth and dramatic melodies. I’m sure your influences go way beyond the genre you are labeled, so which bands have influenced you both individually and as a band?
Well Pallas are Scottish too so maybe it's in the water ! I think though they are probably a bit more 'rocky' than us. In fact we recorded a version of SP 1 at their studio years ago which appeared on vinyl. Haven't seen the guys for years but we will be playing in Glasgow as their guests on Feb 24th so it'll be great to see them again. Influences? Personally...probably the classic prog bands...Genesis Pink Floyd Gentle Giant Mike Oldfield. That said I rarely listen to anything other than Classical music .In fact that has always been my ever present influence. Especially music of the renaissance-though I'm currently obsessed with Mahler . The rest of the guys in the band have tastes which vary from prog to hard rock.
If you had the chance to address every potential listener of the album what listening instructions would you give? Would you point something out as being potential to understanding your musical vision? Or did I just come up with the lamest question of all times?
Yes, you just did ! Ha ha ! I would say to the listener, sit back, close your eyes, turn it to eleven and let the whole emotional experience wash over you. Forget if it's complex or simple, tuneful or dissonant. Forget what 'genre' you think it is. Music is music ,the rest is noise.
I enjoyed performances by all members on the album but I cannot but point out how great the guitars are; everything about them, the beautiful tone, the inspired melodic solos with absolutely no nonsense showing off and the wonderful fills. That being said Mark Spalding has to give up his influences on guitar playing.
Shhhh I've been trying to keep that a secret. If he begins to realise how good he actually is, he'll be turning solo. He's actually a brilliant bass player too. Mark says there's a real mixture of influences in his playing but as a start he'd say Dave Gilmour,Wishbone Ash,Gary Moore.Eddie Van Halen but most of all probably Nigel Tufnel !!!
You were active during an interesting time for prog rock, the rise of the neo-prog movement. What are your memories of the times? Which bands did you share stages with back then?
Years ago we supported IQ Pendragon Pallas Solstice Quasar and probably a few others i've forgotten about. At that time we were very young and though we had lots of melodic ideas the structure of the songs were rather naive.I think the writing has improved dramatically since those days.
Now things are a bit strange, anything odd within rock is labeled progressive and quality gets lost in quantity. Do you like any new bands (prog or not)?
I tend now not to follow individual 'bands' as such, but individual songs. There are many great prog songs from the past but I think they are still being written even today. I like listen to radio shows which have a real eclectic mix of music and suddenly something magical will come on and stand out from the pack. My top 100 hundred songs may have very few prog songs in them. For current prog bands I am probably less aware of their music than some of the other members of COE. Rob Aubrey sent me an album from Big Big Train which I liked, and I enjoyed Credo's live set when we played with them in Glasgow. Then again, there still is a prejudice against prog more than any other genre of music. And yet, what is prog other than ambitious music which doesn't fit a category and that attempts to say more than the superficial. Maybe it doesn't always succeed. However I think prog music does try to aim higher. The internet has made what became 'uncool' as acceptable again. We can gather our numbers in each country together via the www.
I’m pretty sure the chances for a Comedy of Errors cd to show up at my local record store are practically zero. Is the album being distributed in bigger markets like Germany, US, etc or is it available only through online sellers? What do you think about unauthorized downloading? Good or bad for independent bands?
Can't see us ever signing to a big label. Whether it should be or not, prog for the moment tends to appeal only to the more serious listener. People for whom music is irreplaceable in their lives. One prog fan is worth 100 pop fans ! We are selling our music direct from our website and via distributors to all continents of the world. We don't need a label to relinquish our creative control. The release of Disobey taught us that.As for distributors, we sell to them world wide and Germany is one of our biggest markets. Unauthorised downloading is good for getting our music circulated but bad from those who would otherwise have bought the CD or downloaded legitimately. I don't know if technology wise this can be stopped. Most prog fans I think like to have something tangible in their hands such as a CD. We spend a lot of time and thought on the artwork and cover which is all part of the package and ritual of listening to a CD.
Add anything you want to, feel free to come up with questions I should and send a message to our readers.
Thanks to you and your readers for the passion and belief in serious music and the success of our album 'Disobey'. Check out our website for tour dates and news of our next album.