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Progressive Rock CD Reviews

Bill Nelson

After the Satellite Sings

Review by Gary Hill

The mix of sounds here is great. It ranges from electronic music to jazz, King Crimson like prog and a lot more. Many of the vocal parts remind me of David Bowie. The whole thing just flows quite well. It’s a great album that I’d recommend highly.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2015  Volume 2 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review
Deeply Dazzled

Electronica, jazz and a lot more merge on this cool cut. It’s somewhat mellow, but has a lot of rhythmic energy. There is a real trippy kind of vibe to this in a lot of ways. Many of the vocals are spoken. All of them are fairly understated.

Dreamster 2.L.R.
More of a rocking tune, this reminds me quite a bit of David Bowie. There is definitely a psychedelic rock vibe to this thing. It’s very cool.
Flipside
The blend of electronic music with jazz is back here. This has a lot of energy and a great groove. There are definitely some killer jazz jams on this thing. Yet, the whole energized electronic sound keeps it rooted elsewhere.
Streamliner
In some ways, this has the same kind of balance of sounds as the last track. Still, there is some of that Bowie element at play here. Add in some Art of Noise and you’ll have a good idea of what this is like. I really love the melodic guitar soloing on this piece.
Memory Babe
A cascade of church bells starts this. Atmospherics rise up as it moves forward from there. The mix of this cut overall, though is more balanced between electronic music and rock. The vocals again call to mind David Bowie at times.
Skull Baby Cluster
Some of the guitar on this is tastefully noisy. The electronics bring a different type of sound, but there are moments here that are related to modern King Crimson. This really has a great groove, though. It also has a bit of a space rock element at play.      
Zoom Sequence
Speaking of space rock, this seems to combine electronic music, Hawkwind, David Bowie and hints of ELO. Wherever you hear the influences landing, though, it’s compelling stuff with a groove. The harder rocking sections later bring back some hints of King Crimson.
Rocket to Damascus
This is very hard-rocking. The guitar seriously screams through some of this. Yet, it also has a combination of Bowie and electronic music with some modern King Crimson.
Beautiful Nudes
A very trippy piece, this is part electronica, part modern prog and part Bowie. It’s also very cool.
Old Goat
There is almost a punky edge to this, but the electronic meets rock element is the main concept.
Squirm
One of the hardest rocking numbers here, this also has some of the most traditional progressive rock in its midst. Still, it’s got plenty of the same kind of things we’ve heard throughout. This is one of my favorite pieces here. It really rocks and yet is quite quirky.
Wow! It's Scootercar Sexkitten!
There’s a playful retro vibe to this. It has some surf guitar and some space age music. It’s like The Ventures meet The B-52s in some odd electronic playground.
Phantom Sedan (Theme from Tail-Fin City)
There is a dreamy electronic vibe to a lot of this. Yet, parts of it rock out pretty well.
Ordinary Idiots
Now, this seriously hard rocking cut really makes me think of modern King Crimson a lot. There is also a bit of a Frank Zappa vibe here. Add in some space rock, and you’ll be on the right track.
V-Ghost (For Harold and Ellen)
This is a very pretty piece of music. The piano and other elements lend a bit of mysterious beauty. It’s a dreamy kind of instrumental that’s still quite spacey.
Blink-Agog
This is quite a piece. It combines many of the familiar concepts from the disc into a jam that’s part electronic, part rock and all cool. It has some of the tastiest musical passages of the whole set. It definitely was the best choice for ending on a high note.
 
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