Looking for feedback (file under: crossover prog)

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   Hi all. I probably should have joined this message board like ten years ago when my prog pal first introduced me to this site. Nevertheless, here I am.
I put out my first album about a year and a half ago. As you can imagine, it was very difficult to get much of any press or bumps on blogs. I tried marketing it more as an alt-rock record or like a shoegaze record, but there's a lot of prog in the heart of it. Prog's a tough sell for most crowds, and indie blogs and most everyone else do not care. I get it. I'm thankful for what little press I got, but I'd love some feedback from prog fans.

You can listen to the record by going here: http://iancat.bandcamp.com
Or even on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1E62X27btywLOep7sOhHHE
Also on your Apple Musics and your iTunes, your Deezers, your Amazons, etc.

Here's the original press release we sent out from the now defunct Salieri Records:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, October 28th, 2016
[email protected]

Following the local success of his single "Baggage Claim" from earlier this year, Salieri Records is proud to announce that Massachusetts auteur Ian Cat is releasing his first full-length album, East Coast New England Boy on October 28th. Blending elements of prog-rock, shoegaze, and dreamy folk, Ian eludes all the clichéd trappings of the singer-songwriter debut by offering a heady sonic cocktail mixed with equal parts of maximalist ambition and thoughtful subtlety.

Constructed as a song-cycle chronicling a slipshod hero’s journey to the left coast and back, East Coast balances big statements (see the seven-minute long "Twist and Tumble Journey Through the Dark") with a steadfast devotion to hooky verses and choruses reminiscent of classic Britpop and such 4AD tunesmiths as the Cocteau Twins and Red House Painters. From track to track, the arrangements and production work leapfrog between the scattered fuzz-folk of the Elephant Six collective, the coded warmth of Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, and the electrifying tones of such '90s guitar heroes as Billy Corgan and Kevin Shields.

Yet for such an eclectic sonic pallet, every song on the album is anchored by Ian's emotionally fraught and deeply affecting baritone. Whether blasting through the limbic monotony of unrequited expectations on “Purgatory Blues” or murmuring heartbroken couplets in the existential breakdown of the title track, Ian’s unique voice relates the story of a soul lost in both place and time.

Combined with the cinematic pace of the album's sequence, East Coast New England Boy relates a sojourn through our gradually regressing America in search of belonging. With the deliberate churning of alt-rock aesthetics orchestrated underneath, Ian Cat has crafted an album that not only relates his own personal journey, but delivers a thorough exploration of the studio into an equally cathartic, and entirely authentic, listening experience.

Any and all feedback is welcome. Thanks in advance.

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iancat87 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Senior Member Joined: April 19 2018 Location: Boston Status: Offline Points: 119	Post Options Post Reply Quote iancat87 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Looking for feedback (file under: crossover prog) Posted: April 23 2018 at 09:19
	Hi all. I probably should have joined this message board like ten years ago when my prog pal first introduced me to this site. Nevertheless, here I am. I put out my first album about a year and a half ago. As you can imagine, it was very difficult to get much of any press or bumps on blogs. I tried marketing it more as an alt-rock record or like a shoegaze record, but there's a lot of prog in the heart of it. Prog's a tough sell for most crowds, and indie blogs and most everyone else do not care. I get it. I'm thankful for what little press I got, but I'd love some feedback from prog fans. You can listen to the record by going here: http://iancat.bandcamp.com Or even on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1E62X27btywLOep7sOhHHE Also on your Apple Musics and your iTunes, your Deezers, your Amazons, etc. Here's the original press release we sent out from the now defunct Salieri Records: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, October 28th, 2016 [email protected] Following the local success of his single "Baggage Claim" from earlier this year, Salieri Records is proud to announce that Massachusetts auteur Ian Cat is releasing his first full-length album, East Coast New England Boy on October 28th. Blending elements of prog-rock, shoegaze, and dreamy folk, Ian eludes all the clichéd trappings of the singer-songwriter debut by offering a heady sonic cocktail mixed with equal parts of maximalist ambition and thoughtful subtlety. Constructed as a song-cycle chronicling a slipshod hero’s journey to the left coast and back, East Coast balances big statements (see the seven-minute long "Twist and Tumble Journey Through the Dark") with a steadfast devotion to hooky verses and choruses reminiscent of classic Britpop and such 4AD tunesmiths as the Cocteau Twins and Red House Painters. From track to track, the arrangements and production work leapfrog between the scattered fuzz-folk of the Elephant Six collective, the coded warmth of Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, and the electrifying tones of such '90s guitar heroes as Billy Corgan and Kevin Shields. Yet for such an eclectic sonic pallet, every song on the album is anchored by Ian's emotionally fraught and deeply affecting baritone. Whether blasting through the limbic monotony of unrequited expectations on “Purgatory Blues” or murmuring heartbroken couplets in the existential breakdown of the title track, Ian’s unique voice relates the story of a soul lost in both place and time. Combined with the cinematic pace of the album's sequence, East Coast New England Boy relates a sojourn through our gradually regressing America in search of belonging. With the deliberate churning of alt-rock aesthetics orchestrated underneath, Ian Cat has crafted an album that not only relates his own personal journey, but delivers a thorough exploration of the studio into an equally cathartic, and entirely authentic, listening experience. Any and all feedback is welcome. Thanks in advance.

Hrychu Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Forum Senior Member Joined: November 03 2013 Location: poland? Status: Offline Points: 5346	Post Options Post Reply Quote Hrychu Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: April 27 2018 at 14:37
	There is some good songwriting. Definitely proggy-ish... kinda sorta... sound but with a dreamy feel. Don't Find Me Now is proabably my favorite out of the bunch. I suggest you should work on your vocals because you sometimes sound a little bit flat. Personally, I like this type of singing cuz to me it appears more emotional but I'm pretty sure a lot of people have a problem with it.
	“On the day of my creation, I fell in love with education. And overcoming all frustration, a teacher I became.” — Ernest Vong