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Flower Kings Appreciation Thread
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The Quiet One View Drop Down
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Originally posted by progrocker2244 progrocker2244 wrote:

Originally posted by Roland113 Roland113 wrote:

Originally posted by progrocker2244 progrocker2244 wrote:

This could have been done before, but what is everyone's thoughts on Unfold The Future?

Also, what is your favorite song off of the album?


I forget what I said initially, current opinion on Unfold the Future, four star album, favorite song is 'The Devil;s Playground".


I think Unfold the Future has some of the greatest TFK songs ever, but didn't need to be a double disc. I think I'm gonna give it a 4.


I agree, if it were just Disc 1 it would have been a truly flawless masterpiece of the 21st Century. Being a double album, I think I would still give it a 5 star due to Disc 1 but it would be a flawed masterpiece.

Not that it's my favorite, but I think the 7 songs on Disc 1 are all perfect; solid composition, outstanding musicianship.
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Originally posted by progrules progrules wrote:

Hey guys, something completely different now ! I just heard Sound Chaser by Yes just a minute ago on Morow And it struck me that the first minute of this song is very much like a TFK song. Is it Devil's Danceschool ? Any thoughts here ? I never noticed this before and in fact the rest of the song has nothing to do whatsoever with TFK I have to say.


Well Yes's influence on The Flower Kings is huge. I think that TFKs use arrangements similar to that of Sound Chaser's opening on more than one song.

Yes is to The Flower Kings as Genesis is to IQ (that's my analogy for the dayBig smile)

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Originally posted by progrocker2244 progrocker2244 wrote:

Originally posted by progrules progrules wrote:

Hey guys, something completely different now ! I just heard Sound Chaser by Yes just a minute ago on Morow And it struck me that the first minute of this song is very much like a TFK song. Is it Devil's Danceschool ? Any thoughts here ? I never noticed this before and in fact the rest of the song has nothing to do whatsoever with TFK I have to say.


Well Yes's influence on The Flower Kings is huge. I think that TFKs use arrangements similar to that of Sound Chaser's opening on more than one song.

Yes is to The Flower Kings as Genesis is to IQ (that's my analogy for the dayBig smile)


I see where you get that from, but I truly think TFK have a bigger bunch of influences compared to IQ's really notable Genesis influence.

I mean, Roine Stolt's guitar style is very Zappa-esque in a lot of parts rather than Howe-ish. The compositions include a lot of jazz elements, something Yes barely does. You got Jonas with his fretless. Tomas seems to take influences from the big ones including Keith Emerson, Tony Banks and yes, Rick Wakeman.

Of course the positive feel is very Yes-ish, but as far as how they sound they're much versatile than IQ in my opinion.
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^ Agreed, While I love IQ as well, I think The Flower Kings have a much wider set of influences and styles.

(sorry, being brief, celebrations and all)
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Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by progrocker2244 progrocker2244 wrote:

Originally posted by progrules progrules wrote:

Hey guys, something completely different now ! I just heard Sound Chaser by Yes just a minute ago on Morow And it struck me that the first minute of this song is very much like a TFK song. Is it Devil's Danceschool ? Any thoughts here ? I never noticed this before and in fact the rest of the song has nothing to do whatsoever with TFK I have to say.


Well Yes's influence on The Flower Kings is huge. I think that TFKs use arrangements similar to that of Sound Chaser's opening on more than one song.

Yes is to The Flower Kings as Genesis is to IQ (that's my analogy for the dayBig smile)


I see where you get that from, but I truly think TFK have a bigger bunch of influences compared to IQ's really notable Genesis influence.

I mean, Roine Stolt's guitar style is very Zappa-esque in a lot of parts rather than Howe-ish. The compositions include a lot of jazz elements, something Yes barely does. You got Jonas with his fretless. Tomas seems to take influences from the big ones including Keith Emerson, Tony Banks and yes, Rick Wakeman.

Of course the positive feel is very Yes-ish, but as far as how they sound they're much versatile than IQ in my opinion.
 
Good post Pablo ! Although I also partly agree with Jeff with the comparisons. The comparison between TFK and Yes indeed goes wrong with the jazz elements.
And since we're talking about Unfold the Future:
 
1. Truth will set you free   5*
2. Monkey Business         3,75*
3. Black and White            4*
4. Christianopel                 2*
5. Silent Inferno                 4,5*
6. The Navigator                2,5*
7. Vox Humana                  3,75*
 
1. Genie in a Bottle           4*
2. Fast Lane                       3,5*
3. Grand old World            3,25*
4. Soul Vortex                     3,5*
5. Rolling the Dice             2,75*
6. Devil's Danceschool    2,5*
7. Man Overboard              3*
8. Solitary Shell                  2,75*
9. Devil's Playground        5*
10. Too late for Tomatos  3,75*
 
Well, that's just about 3,5 on average. I'm Shocked. When we realize the two superepics get the full 5 from me the 4 stars I gave this album is justified in the end.
And I don't agree obviously the first disc is top notch and the second forgettable. My truth is more divided over the two discs as we can see. But I do agree that when we put all the great tracks on one disc we would have a (near) masterpiece. In my case we would just have 4 songs at most !
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hey guys i own The Sum of No Reason and Unfold the Future. I love TSONR, but havent gotten past The Truth Will Set You Free on Unfold the Future. A friend put on a TFK album, and there was a lot of jazzy things going on, i think it was Space Revolver, can anyone clarify this?

if thats the one, i want to get it, as well as Stardust We Are (that very first song was amazing!)
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btw who else thinks The Sum of No Reason is a truly amazing symphonic album?!? i cant get enough of that album
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^ Unfold the Future is way more jazzy than Space Revolver. Skip The Truth if you didn't like it, check the rest!

Though yes, Space Revolver and Rainmaker does feature jazzy stuff, and they're both great, though specially Space Revolver.
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Originally posted by darkshade darkshade wrote:

btw who else thinks The Sum of No Reason is a truly amazing symphonic album?!? i cant get enough of that album


It's The Sum of No EvilWink  And yeah, it's a great record if you haven't heard their firsts, once you check their previous ones, you won't think it's that good. Well that happened to me.
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Originally posted by Roj M30 Roj M30 wrote:


 
So far as Systematic Chaos is concerned, I just can't believe the general poor opinions of it.  I think it's a great album.  Incidentally I saw DT twice recently and they were absolutely fantastic live.  And I already have a ticket to see them when they are in the UK again in October Big smile.
 



yes its a fantastic album, with one stinker (Prophets of War), and one average song (Forsaken). the rest of the album is A+ material IMO, some of their best stuff ever.

New one blows SC out of the water though Wink
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Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

^ Unfold the Future is way more jazzy than Space Revolver. Skip The Truth if you didn't like it, check the rest!

Though yes, Space Revolver and Rainmaker does feature jazzy stuff, and they're both great, though specially Space Revolver.


i know it wasnt Unfold the Future because i bought that album the same time my friend bought the other TFK album. I'm almost positive it wasnt Rainmaker, as i dont recall that album being in the store we bought from. I remember it getting very jazzy at least after the second track. I think it was Space Revolver.

btw i like The Truth Will Set You Free, i just havent had time to listen to the whole album, i keep listening to TTWSYF and then realizing im out of time haha!


Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

Originally posted by darkshade darkshade wrote:

btw who else thinks The Sum of No Reason is a truly amazing symphonic album?!? i cant get enough of that album


It's The Sum of No EvilWink  And yeah, it's a great record if you haven't heard their firsts, once you check their previous ones, you won't think it's that good. Well that happened to me.


oops! Embarrassed i must be thinking of something else....

anyway, that never happens to me (thinking less of later releases after hearing earlier works) unless the later ones are crap compared to earlier stuff. i like a lot of music.

anyway thanks for the help with Space Revolver. Like i said, im almost positive thats what it is.

How about Stardust? i heard the first song on that album and was blown away. Actually it was the first TFK song i ever heard. Cant remember the name offhand. But is the album worth getting?
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^Space Revolver it is! The second song is Dream on Dreamer and it's indeed a gentle jazzy song very Coltrane-ish, so yeah, that's it.

I don't have Stardust We Are, a bit ashamed for not having it, but I'm not a big fan of their 90's stuff(the other way round happens to me with Dream Theater, lol!)  The song you're talking about is In The Eyes of the World, indeed it's a excellent song, but not really the stuff I like about TFK like I just said. However I'm sure the rest from here highly recomend it.

However if I were you, to go further on checking TFK, I would get The Flower King by Roine Stolt and Space Revolver. As far as I'm concerned, The Flower King is the best album they pulled off in the 90's, even if it isn't really TFK.
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It's strange. I used to really love the Flower Kings back when I first got into Prog. But over the many years, I've grown tired of listening to that old dude sing (stolte). I mean, I just can't stand it anymore. I just can't help but see an image of this old dude with a microphone when I hear it. It bugs me so much that I can't listen to them anymore. Paradox Hotel was my favorite before this happened.

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Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

 
I agree, if it were just Disc 1 it would have been a truly flawless masterpiece of the 21st Century. Being a double album, I think I would still give it a 5 star due to Disc 1 but it would be a flawed masterpiece.

Not that it's my favorite, but I think the 7 songs on Disc 1 are all perfect; solid composition, outstanding musicianship.
 
I'm pretty much in agreement with Pablo here.  Disc one is AWESOME.  For me The Truth and particularly Silent Inferno are 5-star epics.  I love Monkey Business and Black And White too.  I have to be in the right mood for Christianopel though. 
 
There's some good stuff on disc two, Genie In A Bottle and Fast Lane stand out for me.  Devil's Playground is good too, but not as cohesive as other TFK epics IMHO.  I also have a really soft spot for Rollin The Dice.
 
Disc 1 is 5 stars, disc 2 is 3.5 stars for me. 
 
Incidentally, after three listens to Garden Of Dreams I have to conclude this is simply a work of genius.  So many good sections, but the incredible conclusion with such emotional vocals from Roine is really out of this world.  I love it.
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Well, after writing a big long post and having it disappear, I'm too frustrated to try again (I logged in, typed the post, and apparently somehow got logged out in that time so it didn't post and it's all lost ..... ARGGG!!!!!  Angry )

Needless to say, this thread is hard to keep up with Big smile 
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Originally posted by -Radioswim- -Radioswim- wrote:

It's strange. I used to really love the Flower Kings back when I first got into Prog. But over the many years, I've grown tired of listening to that old dude sing (stolte). I mean, I just can't stand it anymore. I just can't help but see an image of this old dude with a microphone when I hear it. It bugs me so much that I can't listen to them anymore. Paradox Hotel was my favorite before this happened.


That is odd.  Actually, when I first got all their albums, Flower Power was the newest and the last one I got.  His vocals on that one bothered me and I was thinking he was maybe getting too old to sing (it was getting difficult for him).  But I've since gotten accustomed to his voice and way of singing, and now I love his voice (though on one of the tracks on Agent's Of Mercy, he doesn't sound good at all to me).
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Originally posted by Roj M30 Roj M30 wrote:

Originally posted by The Quiet One The Quiet One wrote:

 
I agree, if it were just Disc 1 it would have been a truly flawless masterpiece of the 21st Century. Being a double album, I think I would still give it a 5 star due to Disc 1 but it would be a flawed masterpiece.

Not that it's my favorite, but I think the 7 songs on Disc 1 are all perfect; solid composition, outstanding musicianship.
 
I'm pretty much in agreement with Pablo here.  Disc one is AWESOME.  For me The Truth and particularly Silent Inferno are 5-star epics.  I love Monkey Business and Black And White too.  I have to be in the right mood for Christianopel though. 
 
There's some good stuff on disc two, Genie In A Bottle and Fast Lane stand out for me.  Devil's Playground is good too, but not as cohesive as other TFK epics IMHO.  I also have a really soft spot for Rollin The Dice.
 
Disc 1 is 5 stars, disc 2 is 3.5 stars for me. 
 
Incidentally, after three listens to Garden Of Dreams I have to conclude this is simply a work of genius.  So many good sections, but the incredible conclusion with such emotional vocals from Roine is really out of this world.  I love it.



I love the whole album.  A few songs don't do much for me, but I think it's their best work.  The three long tracks are superb (though Silent Inferno doesn't seem as great to me now as it did a few years ago), the improvs are awesome (except Christianople, which is a bit too aimless I think........strange that the best on of them all..........Too Late For Tomatoes.........was put on as a bonus on the special edition and not on the album proper), and most of the shorter songs work very well.  A true masterpiece of an album.
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Originally posted by darkshade darkshade wrote:

hey guys i own The Sum of No Reason and Unfold the Future. I love TSONR, but havent gotten past The Truth Will Set You Free on Unfold the Future. A friend put on a TFK album, and there was a lot of jazzy things going on, i think it was Space Revolver, can anyone clarify this?

if thats the one, i want to get it, as well as Stardust We Are (that very first song was amazing!)
 
Well, unlike Pablo I do agree Sum of no Evil is a great album, a near masterpiece really. I listened to it a couple of more times lately and it's a very consistent album though the three longest songs are clearly the best for me.
Stardust we are is also a must have or as I once told Roger (and fortunately he did): get them all !! Tongue
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Originally posted by infandous infandous wrote:

Well, after writing a big long post and having it disappear, I'm too frustrated to try again (I logged in, typed the post, and apparently somehow got logged out in that time so it didn't post and it's all lost ..... ARGGG!!!!!  Angry )


 
I know the feeling my friend. The times I have a problem like this I can't bring myself to do it all over again. It's so frustrating indeed. Since I had this experience a couple of times in a row I took up the habit of copy+paste it in Word and then submit. If you loose it then you still have it in Word and copy+paste is all you have to do. It already helped me a couple of times and avoids the frustration. Try it !!
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Originally posted by Roj M30 Roj M30 wrote:

 
 
Incidentally, after three listens to Garden Of Dreams I have to conclude this is simply a work of genius.  So many good sections, but the incredible conclusion with such emotional vocals from Roine is really out of this world.  I love it.
 
Well, if you're impressed with Roine's emotion on this one, I can't wait till you have The Flower King. The epic Humanizzimo he displays huge emotion in the last section of this superb song. Are you getting curious ??Tongue
 
By the way, has Roine's debut arrived at your home by now ?


Edited by progrules - July 07 2009 at 01:39
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