Flower Kings Appreciation Thread

J-Man wrote: Damn, i still don't have I AM. I only own Sonic Boulevard from Tomas.

You need to get on that

I do love Sonic Boulevard as well though.

Pre-ordered the You Are as well (I usually don't do that with FK and related stuff anymore......but I was so impressed with I AM I just had to........plus, it's the only way it's going to get made).

^hey guys, anybody knows who's this J-Man?

Cheers,
Pablo

Just for the record, I'm still The Catfish Man

er wait, Roland

  ^ I wouldn't sweat it man, I was just being silly.

^ that's because it wasn't Yes, don't-know-who-you-are-guy!

Let's see, first 2 albums, some ELP, some Genesis, slightly jazzy touches, few Tull, some hard rock/metal though I don't dare to name a band.
- Roine guitar is highly influenced by Zappa's, mixed with blues, you-know-who, and some hard rock/metal.
- Jonas sounds heavily influenced by bass *jazz* fusion giants, as well as that you-know-who famous bass player with it's Rickenbacker
- Tomas goes in the side of Banks when coming to climax's and atmospheres with mellotron and all, while the moog and *few* organ playing can be much alike you-know-who with the cape, and some Keith Emerson.
- The drummers are either rock-based ones, or jazz ones.
- Vocals? Pretty much Sweedish originals

J-Man wrote: I find that their main sound is Yes with some Zappa-influenced guitars with some jazz influences and hard rock sounds. The singing is VERY different, but their 70s retro sound resembles Yes more so than Genesis, ELP, Tull, Gentle Giant, King Crimson, etc. Just my opinion, at least

There is definitely Yes sounding on the positive/up-lifting melodies style, and the moog work, but really that's it for me. There's a lot of mellotron that resembles Genesis, that 'clear enough. The hammond-organ work is definitely Banks/Emerson-esque rather than Wakeman or Kaye-ish.
The bass, well, there's plenty of Squire-esque, but Jonas really shines playing his fretless.
Drums? Don't see Bruford nor White.. not that I see any other drummer from another Prog band, though.

Oh and the compositions as a whole, wouldn't name them anything alike Yes.



Edited by The Quiet One - August 03 2009 at 20:22

First thought was "Who's this J-Man?  We've got another fanboy" .  Hi Jeff.

Oh - and the Flokis - I Bought Flower Power along with another 20 to 30 prog CD's, thus that CD didn't get the listening it deserved (I shall put that right in the next few months) - Roj told me to get Stadust we are - So I did and thats when I decided that I had been in a similar situation in the late 70's - I was REALLY into Genesis, then everybody told me I must LIKE Yes - And I tried to listen to Going for the One - and didn't like it !!! - However as the music appreciation subroutines in my brain became more mature and prog-orientated - I suddenly thought - Yes - WOW and they became my favourite band overall, and now when my prog-sense has developed some more - Roine Stolte's genius has sneaked up behind me and knocked me for six with his guitar solo construction and epic track writing prowess. I now think that I don't have a favourite all time band - just Genesis, Yes, IQ, DT, TFK sort of battling it out depending on my current mood.

Roj M30 wrote: First thought was "Who's this J-Man?  We've got another fanboy" .  Hi Jeff. Time to wade into the Bodin debate and I'm going to firmly stand in his corner.  Now first I'm no keyboard player myself, so I'm not as knowledgable on this subject as say Tom is here.  The maestros in this field as far as technical ability appear to me to be Emerson, Jobson and Wakeman.  I wouldn't place Banks at that level as far as wizardry is concerned, but what he has the others don't is the ear for wonderful melody, so I prefer to listen to him than the other three. Bodin for me though is superb.  He doesn't go in for long, dramatic, show-off solos, although there are a few knocking about on TFK's albums.  Personally I find his phrasing superb.  I'm thinking of One More Time, Minor Giant Steps, Big Puzzle, Rumble Fish Twist, I Am The Sun, Monsters & Men, Serious Dreamers, Red Alert et al.   I personally couldn't imagine TFK without Bodin.  Where would they be without his songwriting?  After all he was half responsible for Garden Of Dreams. Just my two cents.

His songwriting skills are undeniably excellent. He ranks up there with Neal Morse, Lennon/McCartney, etc. etc.

As far as his keyboard skills go, I would say that he is very skilled, and fits their style perfectly, but he's not my favorite keyboard player.

I've got a need to talk about The Tangent....

Please list their albums in order of preference:

#1 The World That We Drive Through (5 stars)
#2 Not as Good as the Book (4.5 stars)
#3 A Place in the Queue (4.5 stars)

haven't heard their debut, yet