DAYS BETWEEN STATIONS

Days Between Stations is the creative partnership between guitarist Sepand Samzadeh and keyboardist Oscar Fuentes. The duo came together in Los Angeles in November 2003, and named the band after the 1985 novel by Steve Erickson. The band’s sound – Samzadeh calls it “art-rock,” Fuentes labels it “post-prog” – reflects their varied influences, as well as a shared disregard for stylistic boundaries... more

BILLY SHERWOOD

We are much honored this month to have Billy Sherwood (CIRCA:, former YES) as our interview guest. He just released his new CD titled "At The Speed Of Life". Currently, beside his solo projects he is one of the members of the band CIRCA:, formed by ex-YES members Tony Kaye and Alan White, along with Jimmy Haun. They released their first solo album in 2007, followed in 2008 by a live DVD. They are currently in the studio working on their second solo CD...more

Kate BUSH / Never For Ever

1980‘s “Never For Ever” is Kate’s 3rd album. The album was co-produced by Jon Kelly & Kate herself. One of the most interesting things about this album is that it is the first record by a British female artist to top the UK album charts. (Wikipedia). Kate’s progressive approach to music reaches its peak with Never For Ever. She tastefully blends different genres including folk, oriental, rock, classical and jazz. Unlike her first two albums which she wrote on piano, this one was written on synths... more

Alan Parsons Live Project with the Omaha Symphony

Officially known as the Alan Parsons Live Project, Parsons and current band have done a few dates so far this year. September 21, 2007 was the date they returned from a handful of European gigs to the U.S. The place was Council Bluffs, Iowa at Harrah's Casino Stir Concert Cove. This was a rare performance for the Project as they performed with the Omaha Symphony.

Some might wonder at the idea of reviewing Alan Parsons Project on a progressive site. Although AP is more popularly known for songs such as “Eye In The Sky” and “Don’t Answer Me” which are decidedly commercial songs, most of Parson’s discography is infused with a moody bent, not-always-typical arrangements and occasional instrumentation that more than fairly tip the hat to the progressive label. That having been said, although this reviewer did enjoy the commercial side of this APLP show it was the progressive element that spoke to me the strongest.

The show in Council Bluffs began with the well-known instrumental “Sirius” followed by APP’s most well-known song “Eye In The Sky”. As those who have seen APP live before can surely attest, seeing Parsons’ cleanly recorded songs with that live edge is a complement that is need of a well-documented live dvd (yes, there is 2005’s Alan Parsons Live In Madrid, so check out the official website-link below).

Although I was looking forward to seeing Parsons perform live for the first time, I was relieved to hear that this performance with a symphony wasn’t in any way watered down. This performance was not a collection of symphonic versions or re-workings of APP songs. It was the band playing the tunes and the Omaha Symphony merely lending occasional support.

Industry veteran Alan Parsons surely knows how to assemble a fine rock band to help him realize his music to its full live potential. It is obvious that Parsons has chosen each band member knowing what they can add to his compositions. Parsons’ band included members who have been with him for the last few years:

Stand out performances by individual band members include the spot-on drumming of Steve Murphy. Murphy sang lead on “Breakdown” and a couple of other tunes that night, doing a superb job. Everyone sang at least one lead vocal that night with the exception of keyboardist Manny Focarazzo. A nice treat as it reflected the different singers that Parsons has used over the years on various records and because they can all sing.

Alan Parsons Live Project played most of their popular (and expected) tunes from over the years. Among them were “I Robot” and “I Wouldn’t Want To Be Like You” to “Games People Play” and “Damned If I Do”. Including a 15 minute break in the middle of the show and the 2 song encore at the end, the show was a nice two and a half hours long.