And so the year rolls on, and another month has passed. And what has been tickling my musical taste buds this last month?
The Far Meadow were this month's Bad Elephant offering, and their second album for the label, Foreign Land, was and is some outstanding progressive rock, an accomplished piece of work and just another example of the depth that the label has on its roster.
Robin Armstrong has also produced another stunning offering in his Cosmograf guise. Mind Over Depth is his seventh album, and although not as immediately gripping as some of his earlier work - notably The Man Left In Space - this one has grown and grown on me with repeated listens, despite its harder edge: clearly being a 'live' member of Big Big Train hasn't stunted Robin's creative side.
A couple of acts associated these days with BEM are Mike Kershaw & Whitewater, and they have released a collaborative EP - Good Intentions - on a Pay What You Want basis on Bandcamp as a charity effort to help raise money for a boy's football team that Mike helps to coach. This combination has a history of working together: last year they put out another EP as Evenflow - Old Town. This time the tracks are as themselves: one as Mike Kershaw & Whitewater, one as Whitewater featuring Mike Kershaw, and the last as Whitewater; as with Evenflow nothing is over 5 minutes long, and it's brilliant stuff for a good cause.
John Mitchell has his plectrum in many bands and projects, one of which is his solo Lonely Robot venture, and the final part of this trilogy has just been released - Under Stars. It draws the journey to a fitting climax and conclusion, and there are some wonderful echoes of the earlier parts included here.
Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso have been one of the leading lights of Rock Progressivo Italiano for almost 50 years, and after a 22 year hiatus they have recently released their 15th studio album, Transiberiana. This was my introduction to the band - I've never really explored their back catalogue - but it was a delight and shows that, despite losing frontman Francesco di Giacomo in 2014, they are still a force to be reckoned with.
Towards the end of the month, and following my birthday, I invested in a couple of other albums, one a new release, the other an 'oldie'. The new one was the latest from jazz/ fusion/ big band collective Snarky Puppy - Immigrance. This is as slick as ever, and seems to make greater use of guitars than I've been aware of previously, but there are some great licks, riffs and chops here. The 'oldie' was plugging a gap I had in my collection, and followed the recent sad death of Mark Hollis: Talk Talk's Laughing Stock. Moody, evocative, contemplative and poignant, this collection continues the trajectory that the band had begun on Spirit of Eden - a grower, but I'm loving it.
One other album came my way during April, but it won't be released until May 17th, so I'll hang fire until next month's Tour - but it is Grand!
Live music arrived at the end of the month in my old stamping ground of Crookes, Sheffield, with a cracking set from the John Hackett Band, including material from John & the band's catalogue as well as some tunes from John & Nick Fletcher's excellent Beyond the Stars from last year. Wonderful to hear it performed live, and so well. There was also a version of King Crimson's 'I Talk to the Wind'. Support came in the form of an acoustic set from Howard Sinclair, who performed stuff from his 'Glorious Company of Fools' as well as some new material from a forthcoming album as yet incomplete. A great night out, and a pleasing crowd too, including some youngsters. Hope for the future!
