Lazland playlist

Alright Steve! Looks like DT lit up Caerdydd in a fine, professional fashion once again.
What I love about DT is that they deliver to the audience 100% of their skills on any tour or leg.
Know one has ever told me otherwise. Truly one of the best live acts around in my humble opinion.
I must say, the DT machine really does look healthy and probably stronger than ever. Each member takes very good care of themselves and doesn't get caught up in the classic downfall of hard drugs n' alcohol. I am so curious to see how long DT can go and of course what will they do next? Personally, I hope they go really heavy again...like Train of Thought heavy. I'm sure your son may feel the same way. :)
Anyway, I'm glad to hear nice Italian food and Ronnie James DIO blasting on a PA was present before the your show. Good way to kick things off and thank you for telling/sharing with me. You've got an enormous prog heart and your son Loan, couldn't be in greater hands...I wish my dad liked prog!!! Haha.

Also, about the above mentioned link above about the 'Steven Wilson Remix for Marillion's Misplaced Childhood 4cd set/with Blu-ray' is surely gonna be a purchase by you, yes?
I can't tell you how excited I am for this box set, especially given my love for hi-res audio. Mr. Wilson always delivers. He should get the 'Prog God' award some day. :)

Cheers Laz.

progbethyname wrote: Steve. Thought of you when I found this out. I'm not wasting anytime come July to buy this one! Wow! http://teamrock.com/news/2017-05-03/marillions-misplaced-childhood-set-for-deluxe-edition?utm_source=Adestra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=17745&utm_term=3849668&utm_content=317657

It's funny, Nicholas, but, as much as I love Misplaced Childhood, I will not be getting this.

I do, occasionally, get box sets, but not as a rule. The last one I got was Crimson's Larks Tongue in Aspic, and, to be honest, there are only so many times you can listen to Easy Money without getting a bit fed up, as great as it is!

Misplaced Childhood was a fantastic album. I saw the live set of this at Milton Keynes, The Garden Party as it was billed, and we had a great day. Tull supported them, by the way, Anderson's first gig following his throat problems.

It was, however, very much an album of its time. I truly believe that Marillion are a proper progressive band, in that they have, in the ensuing 30 years, constantly strived to move their music and art forward, refusing to rest on past laurels.

So, I will continue to put the original album on as a bit of a nostalgia fest, and revel in Mr Dick's finest recorded moment, and it was great, the anger that came through on the second side especially emotional. But there I will leave it. I do not think the original can be bettered. It was extremely special at the time. But they are still vital as a band, and I do not see the need to spend money on this at all.

Steve. Thought of you when I found this out.
I'm not wasting anytime come July to buy this one!

Wow!

http://teamrock.com/news/2017-05-03/marillions-misplaced-childhood-set-for-deluxe-edition?utm_source=Adestra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=17745&utm_term=3849668&utm_content=317657

Thanks, Nick. I am looking forward to DT. It is on a Saturday night, so we will not have to rush about the following morning to get Ioan to school as we did today! I will be listening to Images and Words a fair bit over the next couple of weeks. It has been quite a while since I had that on.

And so to a sort of gig review of ARW.

We had a wondrous night. The Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff is Wales' biggest indoor gig venue. It is not bad as these places go, and it was nice not to be subjected to endless searches and rudeness by the security staff, all of whom were great. Beer was expensive, though. £4.50 for a can of Tetleys

It was not a sell out, although they have, I believe, sold out three venues on the tour. I would put an estimate in of about 90%, so, in the context of these guys in 2017, a great effort. The official Yes would not, I believe, even bother with this venue in Cardiff.

In terms of the band, this was about the most joyous Yes related gig I have had the pleasure to see. My wife and son both had a fantastic time, so it was worth every penny. This is very much a five piece. Lee Molino is a drummer with huge energy and sound. In fact, with every respect to Alan White, this was the best Yes drumming I have seen since Bruford on the ABWH gig. Similarly, Lee Pomeroy is one hell of a bassist. His rendition of The Fish was true to Squire in not just spirit, but execution as well. He is one hell of a showman, and a great addition to this tour. I am sorry, but Sherwood comes nowhere near.

As for the three "main" participants themselves, well. Anderson looks and sounds remarkable, as if his major illness, the one which got him chucked out of Yes, had never happened. At 72, he is in the shape of someone twenty years younger. Hell, I would struggle like hell to jump up and down in the manner he did with Pomeroy during the Owner end bit.

Waleman is simply still the maestro. I have to say that Awaken has never sounded more majestic than it did last night. My wife has just told me how she spent the whole track with her eyes closed, allowing the sound of a band at the top of their game wash all over her. Rick has also added his own textures and interpretations to the Rabin era tracks, and they sound far better for it, and I say this as a fan of that era.

The boy Rabin himself? Well, just as I remember him live in the 90125 tour, really. His voice is not as strong, no, but he has always been, and always will be, a rock guitarist. He will never be a Steve Howe, but his musicianship, if it ever was, will not be doubted again. He brought his interpretation to classics, and, in particular, his work on a huge Heart of the Sunrise was packed with sound and feeling.

The setlist (I will not reproduce it in full here, as it is the same as previous gigs reported elsewhere) was a healthy mix of classic 70's and the more controversial 80's and Union eras. A really pleasant surprise last night was a live rendition of a track I never really came to terms with much on the original album, this being Rhythm of Love. It absolutely soared, and was very well received. Lift Me Up, a great track from Union, was exceptional, as was Changes, Hold On, and the set opener, the rocking Cinema.

Of the classics, Perpetual Change was added deliberately as a track neither Rabin or Wakeman played on originally. It was the first hearing of this live for many years in my case, and it sounded magnificent. A real old fashioned symphonic rocker. And You & I was a lovely as ever, and Rabin handled the guitar duties wonderfully. I've Seen All Good People and Roundabout were as they have always been, Yes crowd pleasers.

Awaken, however, stood out. I still simply cannot believe just how good this band play such a soaring piece of music. The hairs stood on the back of the neck for much of it, and seeing Anderson in rapture playing the harp, whilst the band played the delicate beauty and intricacy of the mid section was a sight in itself.

We loved it all. It was as near to a perfect gig as I have had the pleasure of seeing. To share it with my family was great, and the reception these guys got throughout was sheer adoration, and they fed off of it, and gave it back in spades. The standing ovations at the end will live with them and I for some time.

If you can, get a ticket for this tour. Whilst this version of a much loved band has, I believe, plenty of legs in it, they are getting older. See them whilst you can and whilst they are capable of putting on a show such as this.

The first post of 2017 in an increasingly spartanly populated blog. Oh well, blame the government, for whom I so proudly flog my guts out, for the distinct lack of time available.

Anyhow, tonight's musings concentrate on live gigs.

I posted on the Dream Theater appreciation thread a while back that I am taking the boy (although the "boy" is now 15 years old, four inches taller than Dad, and working at the local pub part time) to see them in Cardiff next month. Ioan is really into prog metal, and purer metal, and he is really looking forward to this, as am I. I have never seen them, and it should be a great blokey night experience, given that the wife has no interest in this whatsoever.

I was sat down earlier, having returned from the said local pub with the dog, son, and four pints of ale, listening to Wakeman's new Piano Portraits album, which is a fine listen. I suddenly remembered. The Maestro, Anderson, and Boy Rabin are playing in Cardiff next Sunday, the first gig of the Europe leg of their much lauded tour.

Laz thought to himself........why the f**k have you not got tickets to this?

I first saw Yes "in the round" on the Tormato tour. I subsequently went to at least one gig of every Yes tour with Jon Anderson on vocals (sorry, but I have little interest in seeing the band without him), including the fantastic ABWH gig in Birmingham, which was issued on cd fairly recently. It is fair to say that Anderson's Yes are one of the two bands, Marillion being the other, for which I would drop everything to see.

So.....I spoke to the boss, she who must be obeyed at all times. I explained that this could well be the last time I ever see musicians who have shaped my life, musically and spiritually, in a live setting. I have seen YouTube vids of the Amercian leg, and the whole band look and sound great. We simply have to go, I explained to she who must be obeyed, if nothing else so that Ioan can say in years to come he saw them live.

And.......tickets booked. Hotel booked. Restaurant meal prior to the gig booked. Day off work on Monday a doddle. Laz is one happy bunny this evening

Of the bands who I love and admire, most of whom will be known to those who have followed my posts and reviews these past nine years, there is only one who I have never seen live, and they are absolutely now on my bucket list, certainly since getting Radical Action.....at the back end of last year. Yep, Crimson. I booked a ticket to see them in London in 2000, only to realise that my Inland Revenue Inspector final exams were the following day. Given that I had worked my backside off to get to that stage, failure in the exam would have meant being busted back down to admin grade, and I had moved away from home to West Wales to gain my promotion, not to mention the fact that I had met the lady I loved and who I would marry the following year, I had no choice but to not go. Bugger. What a life, eh?

I am hoping Crimson do one last UK tour. I will be there.

A final thought for tonight. Gigs are damned expensive these days, are they not? £85 per ticket for ARW, and something similar for DT. I heard some Crimson tickets were going for $200 plus in venues across the pond. Blimey..... The £30 I paid for Marillion in Manchester at the back end of last year was a massive bargain.

Having said that, we are here for such a short time. The music we love on this site gives us so much pleasure. It's not that much to pay, is it, really?

As Mr Anderson (only a week to go now!) would say, love and light to all

The Lazman has another milestone! happy birthday, kind sir and wishing you only the very best ! 

Seasons Greetings, Laz!


Happy birthday, Steve. You are one of the greats.
Enjoy your day and holidays.

Your friend and prog teammate.

Nicholas.

P.s Glad Marillion was able to strike your heart with sonic joy yet again this year!
No better feeling when your favourite band brings you that much joy.

progbethyname wrote: Hello Steve! Just checking in to say 'hello' and hope you are still enjoying the new Marillion album. I'm thinking about picking it up myself sometime quite soon. Keep being well, kind sir!

Hey Nicholas. I am great, thank you. I am grateful to you for prompting the first post from yours truly in 2016 on what has to be the most inconsistently completed blog in the history of blogs Oh well, I have the excuse of being ridiculously busy, I suppose.

I have FEAR on as I write this, and the better half watches her stuff on the goggle box. We have spent all weekend on a course this weekend in Brecon, the Emmet Technique, a therapy thing in line with much of what Glynis is both learning and practicing at the moment. She asked me to go along to have a flavour of what she is doing, and I rather enjoyed it, actually. For most of my life, therapy has comprised a healthy mixture of prog and booze. Erm.....as it is whilst writing this now!

You really must get this album. It really is one of those special albums which gets better and better with each and every listen, something new to raise your head to when something previously unnoticed raises its sound and hits you between the ears. I genuinely think that this album will be in my top three from the band in years to come, although it is fair to say that opinion is more divided on the Marillion forum.

I am going to see the band on 28 November in Manchester, and am really looking forward to my first gig in quite some time. About two years, actually. Hopefully, I will also be meeting Roj, one of the nicest collaborators on the site, so that will be nice.

Note to self.......review and blog more......note to my employer.......bloody well allow me the time to do so.....

Kati wrote: Lazland, for you

Kati you are a great sport.
This is awesome. Also, I agree with you that super Joe Satriani should have a spot here on PA.

Lastly. Hello Steve! Hope you are Lazing about peacefully. Talk soon, Chap.

Well done, you wonderful lazy man!
The IQ stage (double disc) is amongst the very best IQ has to offer I feel. I also feel the Nearfest, Pennsylvania show may have a slight edge over the Herzberg, Germany show. Call it atmosphere or call it the 'lighting' with in the stadium cause IQ really put it together at Nearfest. I absolutely love the performance of 'Guiding light' and 'the narrow margin (middle section.)' It just brings me to have my jaw hit the floor. Not to forget to mention as well, this DVD has a killer 5.1 audio mix! We can thank Rob Aubrey for that! Boy, I really feel that Aubrey is like the '6th' member of the band. His skills as an audio engineer are among the best I think. He's no Alan Parsons, but he still is damn good! For those who don't believe me check out English Electric: full power by Big Big Train. The sound quality is masterful on those 2 discs.
Anyhow, well played Steve and I mean that literally as well. :)
What a great family you have there. Surely they know you well cause that IQ DVD is a gift that will last a lifetime. At the moment, I would definitely list IQ's Stage as one of my most treasured in my audio world. :)
I'm really glad to hear that you are enjoying this DVD. Not a lot that I know on here, people I mean, don't have it.

I look forward to hearing your highlights, so that review of yours will be greatly anticipated by yours truly.

One last thing. IQ have a new double live album out! It's "The Road of Bones: Live" and it's a 2 cd set. I put in an order for it last week and it's only fitting that I end my 2015 purchases with that album. :)
I can't wait and I'm sure most of you on here will get it as well!