Flower Kings Appreciation Thread

zumacraig wrote: listened to some of eggs and dogs over at tomas' myspace.  not for me, at least right now.  i'm trying to fill out my tomas collection and i'll be damned if most of his stuff is way out of print and too expensive!  frustrating.

I went to the Eggs and Dogs myspace, and all I can tell you is that if I had listened to those excerpts first I might not have bought the album (which is why I don't listen to excerpts, at all, by anyone).  Still, you don't seem crazy about I AM, so You Are may not be for you.  Just suggesting you try to track down some full length tracks, as I have never found prog "snippets" to be something that made me want to buy an album.  You Are is less symphonic than I AM, but not by much.  Plus Stolt's soulful vocals really make it work better than it would have with a different vocalist (the guy on I AM, for instance).

In any case, it's not Tomas' best work (which, aside from I AM, I would say was all with TFK), but it really grew on me after many listens.  Private Skies, Silicone Bimbo Run, and the title track are easily the highlights.


Edited by infandous - February 14 2013 at 09:04

infandous wrote: I have a question for you guys.  I was a HUGE fan of Yes in the past (which was why TFK was such an immediate hit for me, along with the Zappa influence, of course) , but at that time I didn't even consider getting Tormato or Drama (I heard nothing good about them).  I've since heard a couple Drama tracks that I liked, but still haven't picked that one up yet.  I have not, however, heard anything from Tormato.  I know it's not a great album, possibly not even good.  I'm curious though, as someone who still considers 70's Yes to be number one or two best prog from that era (Genesis being the other one that I think of as number one or two, depending on my mood), is it worth picking up a copy? I plan on getting Drama at some point, but I'm not sure if Tormato is worth listening to.

This is the highlight track off of Tormato.  .  There are some other decent songs and then quirky songs like Don't Kill The Whale and Arriving UFO.  Onward is a very nice ballad, but not a progressive rock blow your mind kind of track.

infandous wrote: I have a question for you guys.  I was a HUGE fan of Yes in the past (which was why TFK was such an immediate hit for me, along with the Zappa influence, of course) , but at that time I didn't even consider getting Tormato or Drama (I heard nothing good about them).  I've since heard a couple Drama tracks that I liked, but still haven't picked that one up yet.  I have not, however, heard anything from Tormato.  I know it's not a great album, possibly not even good.  I'm curious though, as someone who still considers 70's Yes to be number one or two best prog from that era (Genesis being the other one that I think of as number one or two, depending on my mood), is it worth picking up a copy? I plan on getting Drama at some point, but I'm not sure if Tormato is worth listening to.

Thanks guys!  Silent Wings sounds pretty decent, though from what I can tell the production is not that great (I guess a youtube video is not the best way to judge that though).

I own and love the Keys To Ascension CD's, probably the last thing I really loved by Yes.  So I guess I have heard Onward a few times, forgot about that one.  It is a good song, but just a ballad for sure.

I'll try some different ways to hear more tracks from Tormato.  Drama, as I said, I've heard a few key tracks and liked them, so that one was basically a given for me to pick up.

Tormato production may not be stellar, but it's still that warm 70s sound.  best songs are Release, Silent Wings, Future Times.  I love it.

Really Dennis, that was pretty weak by comparison.

Roland113 wrote: Really Dennis, that was pretty weak by comparison.

I'm into quality and not quantity now......                                              

infandous wrote: I have a question for you guys.  I was a HUGE fan of Yes in the past (which was why TFK was such an immediate hit for me, along with the Zappa influence, of course) , but at that time I didn't even consider getting Tormato or Drama (I heard nothing good about them).  I've since heard a couple Drama tracks that I liked, but still haven't picked that one up yet.  I have not, however, heard anything from Tormato.  I know it's not a great album, possibly not even good.  I'm curious though, as someone who still considers 70's Yes to be number one or two best prog from that era (Genesis being the other one that I think of as number one or two, depending on my mood), is it worth picking up a copy? I plan on getting Drama at some point, but I'm not sure if Tormato is worth listening to.

Dude!   YES is the best.   Even at their weakest they spank most other bands.  Your two are very different items.

Drama: Wakey & Jon left the band and in came the Buggles.  It should have been pop garbage a la Big Generator, except that un-holy alliance worked like magic!  Drama is awesome from start to finish.  Very different than say Close to The Edge, but totally original.  You can't go wrong.

Tormato:  I saw that tour three times and I can state that Tormato played live is100X better then the poorly produced album.  What happened on Tormato was:  The prior record GFTO was done before Wakeman got back, some resentment on Wakey's part there.  Tormato was a more evenly created record.  It is no Tales but is still worth it.
It has three weak songs but the remainder are requisite.

On The Silent Wings of Freedom:  One of YES' best. Period
Onward.  A beautiful ballad
Madrigal:  Magic from Wake man on the harpsichord, played on Tom Goth's harpsichord???..
Future Times/Rejoice:  Are you Kidding me??? Total classic YES.  Alan White plays a military snare drum here...
Release Release:  Good fun rocker with awesome Steve Howe guitar

You should enjoy both.  

http://www.progrockmag.com/news/the-flower-kings-release-numbers-remix/