Caravan’s total of just two weeks on the official UK album chart utterly belies their historical importance to the British rock landscape, and the progressive “Canterbury scene” in particular. Perhaps the best-known LP by the English outfit and seen by many as their finest hour, Grey and Pink arrived some three years after Caravan came into being. They were formed by musicians who’d all played, at varying times, with Wilde Flowers, also the basis of Soft Machine. Pye Hastings set off on this new adventure with Dave Sinclair, his cousin Richard and Richard Coughlan. An early US deal with ..read more

Camel released their second album almost a year to the day after their debut, yet it was a very different set of circumstances that greeted the release of Mirage on March 1, 1974. The band’s debut release on MCA Records had received muted praise and they decided not to exercise their option for a second record. This may have been the end for many bands, or at best slowed their progress. But with a new management team of Geoff Jukes and Max Hole of Gemini Artists guiding them, Camel moved to Decca Records’ Deram label camel and really hit their stride. Listen to Camel’s Mirage right now. Mirag ..read more

There isn’t a Frank Zappa fan who hasn’t fantasized about spending time in the late composer’s vault. Back in 1979, when Zappa was installing a state-of-the-art recording studio – the Utility Muffin Research Kitchen – in his family home in Los Angeles, the composer created a large climate-controlled space to house his archive. Packed shelves of audio and visual tape boxes – some labeled, many not – ran from floor to ceiling, representing a lifetime devoted to composition and performance. As far as was possible, Frank Zappa recorded everything. Studio sessions, rehearsals, band members’ conver ..read more

Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree has recruited Manic Street Preachers for a new spin on the artist’s acclaimed single “Economies of Scale.” One of the undisputed highlights of Wilson’s groundbreaking seventh solo album, The Harmony Codex, the track was completely reimagined by the legendary Welsh rock band at their South Wales studio earlier this year, twisting the original version’s fragile electronic soul into something claustrophobic, gothic, and intense. Click to load video “When I first heard ‘Economies of Scale’ I found myself transported back to 1984,” says Manic Street Preachers’ Jame ..read more

The first part of the 80s was a wildly adventurous time for Rush, in which they mastered keyboards, seamlessly integrated New Wave influences, and wrote shorter radio-friendly songs. With 1985’s Power Windows, it was again time to get epic. One of Rush’s richest and deepest albums, it’s full of details that reward multiple listens. Power Windows expanded Rush’s soundscape in a big way: Alex Lifeson’s aggressive lead guitar was back on the arena-shaking opener “The Big Money,” but now it was fully integrated with the keys and effects. Neil Peart had discovered electronic drums, and tracks like ..read more

Camel didn’t wear flowing, sequined capes, dress up like giant flowers, plunge daggers into their keyboards, or indulge in any of the other outrageous attention-getting antics employed by their 70s British prog brethren. Instead, they did something equally radical in its own way: They just stood there and played their butts off. It may have been their distaste for flash and flamboyance that kept them at cult hero status. It certainly wasn’t their music, which could turn gorgeously symphonic, jaw-droppingly challenging, alarmingly infectious, or endearingly odd, as the moment demanded. From th ..read more

Progressive rock keyboard legend Rick Wakeman has announced a special charity concert, “Saving Strays At Christmas with Rick Wakeman and Friends,” which aims to raise money for Saving Strays, a charity dedicated to alleviating the suffering of stray and abandoned dogs across Europe and the U.K. Wakeman is a patron of the charity. The concert takes place at the St. Mary Le Tower Church in Ipswich, Suffolk, U.K. on Saturday, December 23. Anyone who follows Wakeman on X (formerly Twitter) will know he is very much a lover of animals, especially dogs, and often posts against animal cruelty. Wakem ..read more

Legendary and multi-Platinum rockers Styx will be taking the Las Vegas stage once again for a five-night engagement at The Venetian Theatre inside The Venetian Resort Las Vegas. Shop the best of Styx’s discography on vinyl and more. The shows will be held on January 26, 27, and 31 and February 2 and 3, 2024. All shows are scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m. Tickets start at $45, plus applicable fees, and will go on sale to the general public Friday, October 6, at 10 a.m. PT. Tickets will be available for purchase at Ticketmaster.com, VenetianLasVegas.com, any box office at The Venetian Resort, St ..read more

Steven Wilson has released his ambitious – and already widely-acclaimed – new album, The Harmony Codex through Spinefarm/Virgin Records. The Harmony Codex sees Steven Wilson creating a vivid tapestry of memory and reflection, weaving mesmerizing sonics and expansive songcraft into something entirely unique, a record that exists outside of the notion of genre. Working alone in a studio tucked inside the garage of a North London townhouse, Wilson pieced together the album’s 10 tracks with remote assistance from an array of friends and fellow artists, from longtime studio partners Ninet Tayeb, C ..read more

Geddy Lee has announced “My Effin’ Life In Conversation.” The tour will see the Rush singer/bassist bring to life his forthcoming memoir My Effin’ Life, due for release on November 14th on Harper Collins. Shop the best of Rush’s discography on vinyl and more. Produced by Live Nation, the 14-city tour kicks off on November 13 at The Beacon Theatre in New York, making stops across North America in Boston, San Francisco, Chicago, and more before wrapping up in Toronto at Massey Hall on December 7. The evening promises to be a once-in-a-life-time event. After the curtain rises, Geddy Lee will giv ..read more