DPRP News Blog

Yes it’s official! Ian Anderson has announced that some forty years since the release of Thick As A Brick - the sequel,  Thick As A Brick (Whatever Happened To Gerald Bostock?), will hit the streets on 2nd April 2012.  To mark the event there is a comprehensive update on The St Cleves Chronicle in the form of the St Cleves website. And the now fifty year old Gerald Bostock has his own Facebook and Twitter pages.

TAAB2 – Whatever HappenedTo Gerald Bostock? – is a full length Progressive Rock “concept” album worthy of its predecessor. Boy to man and beyond, it looks at what might have befallen the child poet Gerald Bostock in later life. Or, perhaps, any of us. To be released in two formats: the simple jewel case CD with 8-page booklet and the Special Edition with CD, audio-visual DVD and 16-page booklet. The DVD contains 5.1 surround mixes, 24-bit stereo mix, videos covering the making of the album, interviews with the musicians and the lyric reading where ian Anderson reads the lyrics in various settings. Also on the DVD are the pages of StCleve.com, the online update of the St Cleve Chronicle, fabled newspaper of the original album, and the multilingual lyric translations in Italian, German, Spanish, Czech, Polish and Russian.

 

Ian Anderson speaks in some detail HERE.

Mascot Label Group is pleased to announce the release of the eponymous debut album from Flying Colors – the spectacular new virtuoso prog/pop/metal rock band formed by drummer Mike Portnoy (ex-Dream Theater) and guitarist Steve Morse (Deep Purple). The album is released by Music Theories Recordings in the UK on Monday March 26th, followed by a US release on Tuesday March 27th.

Flying Colors is Mike Portnoy (drums, vocals), Dave LaRue (bass), Neal Morse (keyboards, vocals), Casey McPherson (lead vocals, guitar), and Steve Morse (lead guitar). “This album has bits and pieces of what you’d expect from each of us,” says Portnoy. “The sum of all its parts led to brand new, unchartered territory for everyone involved.”

The formation of Flying Colors began with a simple idea: virtuoso musicians and a pop singer joining together to make new-fashioned music the old fashioned way. Refreshing, classic, old and new, the recordings are saturated with the many styles, tones and hues of the players who in becoming a band have delivered a unique fusion of vintage craftsmanship and contemporary music.

Touring plans for Flying Colors will be announced in the coming months.

Fire Make Thunder marks the fourth undertaking for the collaborative duo known as OSI. Formed in 2002 by Jim Matheos (Fates Warning, Arch/Matheos) and Kevin Moore (Chroma Key, former Dream Theater keyboardist), OSI is a long distance partnership, both musicians typically writing and recording alone and sending song ideas back and forth for further elaboration. Written and recorded throughout most of 2011, this latest release once again reflects the eclectic influences of both Matheos and Moore.

Returning as the band’s session drummer is Gavin Harrison of Porcupine Tree, this time co-writing one of the tracks with the band. All other instruments and programming were performed by both Matheos and Moore, while vocals and lyrics were handled exclusively by Moore.

Tracklisting:

Cold Call
Guards
Indian Curse
Enemy Prayer
Wind Won’t Howl
Big Chief II
For Nothing
Invisible Men

Release date: March 27th

Saga’s keyboardplayer Jim Gilmour had a few months ago a emerency eye surgery in Germany. After two months he’s in back in Canada with the following statement.

“Hi everyone. I’m finally home after recovering in Europe for over two months.

I was allowed to fly Thursday but still have a long way to go with the vision and hoping for the best. I want to thank you all for the thoughts and support you gave me and the band.

It was a very trying time for us all and now just feeling positive for 2012. So let’s make it a good one! Hope to see you all soon on tour again when the new cd is released. God Bless. JG”

A little info about the album? We will be announcing the title shortly, meanwhile, it will have 10 tracks, including a new Jim Gilmour lead vocal. These are the track titles (you may notice a familiar name in there!), although some may change by the time we go to copy.

So, in no particular order:

Another Day Out Of Sight
Anywhere You Wanna Go
Ball And Chain
Ellery
Lost For Words
One Of These Days
Show And Tell
It’s Not Gone
Spin It Again
‘Till The Well Runs Dry

All the recording of the album is now essentially finished and it’s in final mix mode, which will be followed by a review by the band, mastering and then…it’s all yours! I’m sure that Edel has some sort of “special” or “deluxe” edition planned as well, including DVD footage, but I haven’t any details regarding any of that at this time.

In late March/early April, Metal Mind Productions will release second live DVD by Believe – an outstanding art-rock act formed by the guitarist Mirek Gil – the former leader and composer of Polish prog-rock legend Collage.

The material entitled “Seeing Is Believing” was recorded in November 2011 in Wyspianski Theatre in Katowice, Poland. During this unique evening Believe primarily presented material from their most recent studio album „World Is Round” (Metal Mind Productions, 2010).

And today the band reveal the cover artwork of „Seeing Is Believing”.