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Big Big Train Appreciation
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Horizons View Drop Down
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    Posted: September 15 2012 at 22:28
Surprising, there hasn't been an appreciation thread for this wonderful band!

I was introduced to this band by Andy Webb via Listening Room, and wasn't blown away though. But after a while i decided to check them out. 

Like most people, i started with the epic Underfall Yard album, and it blew me away. Truly symphonic and mesmerizing. The vocals from David and harmonies from the band with the soothing, serene atmospheres made an enticing album indeed.

Then, i went to The Difference Machine because i liked the album's structure. I loved it even more than Underfall Yard. Perfect Cosmic Storm was the true highlight (i also realized that it was the song played to me by Andy). The drumming is also a strong factor that keeps me entertained. The talented Nick d'Virgilio has played on their albums since The Difference Machine and is an official member. 

Since the release of Far Skies, Deep Time i've been hooked. I think they are one of the best bands still making music. I recently started listening to their first 4 albums. I've been liking Gathering Speed the most. Though i like them all with the few listens so far. I'm not so sure why they aren't rated a bit higher, or at least rated/reviewed more. 

I've only heard the single from their new album, English Electric, but even that has made me interested enough to already look into ordering it on Amazon. 

Here are two tracks from lesser-listened albums that i love. 




Do you love this band :O!
Do you think they're Crossover? Wacko
Favorite tracks?albums?
Have you bought English Electric already?

Also - streaming of their entire discography except Bard. 
Yes, that does mean English Electric!


Edited by Horizons - September 15 2012 at 22:34
Crushed like a rose in the riverflow.
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yanch View Drop Down
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Points: 3247 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yanch Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 16 2012 at 08:00
Good morning, I really love this band too. I only have The Underfall Yard at the moment-tremendous album. It contains everything I love about music: melody, harmonies, amazing musicianship, stellar song structure, lyrics that tell stories, etc.etc. 

I have listened to some of their earlier albums on line, but haven't been able to purchase yet. Really want to get English Electric Part 1, the excerpts I've heard sound terrific. 

They are definitely a band I want to add more and more of to my collection!
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Points: 16952 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Horizons Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 16 2012 at 13:44
^ I would follow the road i took then as well. Listen to the remarkable The Difference Machine!
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I found them on a random thread on here, I checked out The Underfall Yard. I'd become pretty jaded with symphonic prog and music in general and they seemed maybe something fresh and unfamiliar. It was pleasant but didn't grab me right away, but then I kept going back for Victorian Brickwork, and the rest of the shorter songs began to grow on me until I decided to tackle the title track again. It was in the moody depths of the track ("No band played, there was no sound...") and then the reintroduction of the Evening Star theme that I realized how rare and special this music was. Nothing takes on quite the journey that album does.

Since then I've gotten Far Skies Deep Time, which is an excellent companion piece to The Underfall Yard with some of my new favorite tracks, The Difference Machine which I'm still undecided on, Goodbye To The Age Of Steam (good music, but it's so far from the sound I'm used to from them), and now English Electric. I've had that album on repeat for the past week and a half, and it's definitely usurping a lot of albums in my favorites list. I'm really enjoying David Longdon's writing contributions and I think he and Greg strike a great balance between joy and melancholy.

I don't know if it surpasses TUY for me or not. They're both identifiably Big Big Train, but different faces of the same group. For now I'll say there's room for both in my music rotation and I think ranking them does a disservice to some very talented musicians. Also, can't wait for part 2 in March!

Apologies for the wall of text, they just get the passion flowing!
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Really want to like them as all the ingredients are there for me. It all leaves me a bit underwhelmed tho, will keep spinning English Electric tho maybe it will eventually get under my skin.
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^ I hope so. English Electric seems to be another masterful release. 
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I love Big Big Train. I have Underfall Yard, Far Skies Deep Time, and English Electric Pt. 1 and love every single one of them. I haven't listened to any of the others though since the band is so different before Underfall Yard with no David Longdon and Nick only guesting. It took me awhile to completely take to them, I found them a tad boring, but after closer listens I learned how great they are and grew to love them.
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The Difference Machine and Gathering Speed are fantastic albums that have a real strong vocalist, Sean Filkins. He has some similarities to David too imo. 
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You are in for a massive treat with English Electric Pt. 1. Blows the doors off of the others!!
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I still havent listened to it unfortunately, but it looks like it deserves all the high praise it has been getting.
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The Difference Machine is still their best album.
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I have you to thank for my love of that album! Their ep is magical though, wish I had Kingslayer though..
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Their last album is amazing! They can realize incredibly catchy melodies with extreme naturalness, and make them fit with a great sound research and a fantastic musicianship... Uncle Jack is probably the most evident example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-p-FMZimFiM&feature=related

What else should I listen to by them?
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The Underfall Yard is a must listen, and The Difference Machine is also excellent. If you haven't listened to one of those yet, I urge you to do so. 
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I was just thinking today about starting a BBT thread and find the job done :)  What inspired me was English Electric Part 1.  I said in my review that I thought it was the prog album of the century so far - that's how highly I rate it, and if you like the last 2 releases (both of which were strong) then  this just blows the socks off them!
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Originally posted by JonnyM79 JonnyM79 wrote:

I was just thinking today about starting a BBT thread and find the job done :)  What inspired me was English Electric Part 1.  I said in my review that I thought it was the prog album of the century so far - that's how highly I rate it, and if you like the last 2 releases (both of which were strong) then  this just blows the socks off them!



I don't know if it is the album of the century, because I think that it is a race between it, Echolyn and the two Haken albums... But it is surely a perfect album for me :)
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I've still got to wait another week before Amazon deliver my cdOuch
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I ordered it on the internet with Echolyn's last studio album... 45 euros :\
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English Electric pt 1 is a stunning album, masterpiece and is making a deserved impact in the prog community.
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CD arrived today, and on now, so I can officially end my "oi, postman, where the f##k is my CD?" rantLOL

First impressions - quite brilliant.
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