Hello from Blackpool, UK

Hello everyone,

I've been visiting this site a lot recently, so thought it best to register and say Hi.

I'm from the UK and have recently retired, at 55, and now I'm settled this has given me time to get back into music again - never seemed to be much time before as I travelled around a lot in my past.

Oddly, I'm quite new to progressive music. Of course I'd heard the odd Yes/Genesis single in the past, but my youth was spent mainly listening to Heavy Rock/Heavy metal. I was into Rush big time until they got to their 80s poppy phase and I gave up with them. I turned to more metal (NWOBHM stuff mainly) as well as goth/indy, then just trundled along listening to pretty much anything (The Cure, The Smiths, The Mission etc.) as I said earlier time was a factor. I was never settled, travelling the UK and afar with work, so no time to appreciate music. That sounds a bit sad I suppose but I see it this way, I'm discovering bands from the 1960s/70s that many of you would be so familiar with - yet I'm hearing a lot of this music for the first time. Imagine hearing In the Court of the Crimson King for the first time again. I did, only a few months ago. So I'm lucky really with the time and inclination to find out more. From what I've listened to so far, I love: Camel, Caravan, Gentle Giant, Genesis, VDGG, Jethro Tull, Can and many others. Not really got on with Yes or ELP yet. Also, whilst I enjoy some of the King Crimson I've heard, some of it seems a bit random - a bit like filler noises. I also like the small amount of Italian Prog I've heard so far (PFM - Banco del Mutuo Soccorso). The latest Wobbler album is amazing too, I got it after seeing it recommended on this site. Also I'm impressed with IQ, and had heard Porcupine Tree/Steven Wilson and Opeth before.

I did find my love of Rush again and visiting all the albums I hadn't bother with from Power Windows onward. Thankfully they gave up with the pop sound and later albums are superb (Vapor Trails, Clockwork Angels particularly), and I saw them live on the 2013 Clockwork Angels tour.

As a retirement treat I got myself a new Hifi system - Yamaha streaming amp, speakers, CD player and a Rega Planar 1 turntable. I also rescued all my vinyl LPs that had been in storage since the mid 90s. A lot of the records I even forgot I had. I think I have quite a wide musical taste, some classical, punk, goth, rock, metal and some pop. Favourites include: Rush, Hawkwind, The Smiths, Bauhaus, Killing Joke, old Gary Numan, old Iron Maiden, Japan (on this site oddly), old Judas Priest, Radiohead, The Cure, The Cult, The The, The Damned. I'm not really listening to much new music as there was so much I missed back in the day, so now I have more time currently visiting a lot of old prog stuff - mainly Gentle Giant/Genesis/Camel/Gong/Caravan/VDGG/King Crimson/ELP/RPI for now etc. and picking up cheap music off ebay.

Suffice to say I really love much of the prog music I've heard so far and look forward to hearing many new bands/albums. Thanks for this site, the people that run it too and the wonderful resource it provides.

Take care all and Hi.

Gentle and Giant wrote: Hello everyone, I've been visiting this site a lot recently, so thought it best to register and say Hi. I'm from the UK and have recently retired, at 55, and now I'm settled this has given me time to get back into music again - never seemed to be much time before as I travelled around a lot in my past. Oddly, I'm quite new to progressive music. Of course I'd heard the odd Yes/Genesis single in the past, but my youth was spent mainly listening to Heavy Rock/Heavy metal. I was into Rush big time until they got to their 80s poppy phase and I gave up with them. I turned to more metal (NWOBHM stuff mainly) as well as goth/indy, then just trundled along listening to pretty much anything (The Cure, The Smiths, The Mission etc.) as I said earlier time was a factor. I was never settled, travelling the UK and afar with work, so no time to appreciate music. That sounds a bit sad I suppose but I see it this way, I'm discovering bands from the 1960s/70s that many of you would be so familiar with - yet I'm hearing a lot of this music for the first time. Imagine hearing In the Court of the Crimson King for the first time again. I did, only a few months ago. So I'm lucky really with the time and inclination to find out more. From what I've listened to so far, I love: Camel, Caravan, Gentle Giant, Genesis, VDGG, Jethro Tull, Can and many others. ......... Take care all and Hi.

Thanks for the welcome guys. Yes I did know Tull were from Blackpool - but hadn't heard that Tull song before. So thanks for that 

let me welcome you with "4000 holes in Blackpool, Lancashire) . nice to see you love Can. you should try some more Krautrock. some suggestions: Amon Düül 2 ("Tanz der Lemminge), Embryo ("Rocksession"), Guru Guru ("Känguru"), Lucifer's Friend ("Lucifer's Friend"), Kraan ("Andy Nogger"), Brainstorm ("Smile a While"; don't let the album cover distract you), Birth Control ("Operation"), Wallenstein ("Blitzkrieg") and many many more. since you love it heavy Lucifer's Friend, Birth Control, Wallenstein and to a certain extent Guru Guru (at least their earliest albums including "Känguru") should definitely be up your alley

Thanks BaldJean and BarryGlibb. 

Another album to add to your must-hear list is Comus' first album "First Utterance".  It's what I consider the best Prog Folk album ever.

Gentle and Giant wrote: My word. Psychedelic Paul, did you really post a Cliff Richard video in this thread? Someone tell me I'm seeing mirages (and no, that's not an invitation to post a camel video lol)

Gentle and Giant wrote: Psychedelic Paul wrote: Gentle and Giant wrote: My word. Psychedelic Paul, did you really post a Cliff Richard video in this thread? Someone tell me I'm seeing mirages (and no, that's not an invitation to post a camel video lol)   I know I'm putting my head on the chopping block by posting a Cliff Richard video here, so maybe I'll make amends by posting a Prog-Rock video on Cliff Richard's fan site. Haha, do it - maybe some Magma.

"Some People" are "Wired for Sound" - especially Prog-Rock fans whose love of music is "Ocean Deep". "Power to All Our Friends" on ProgArchives!