Although progressive rock's popularity peaked in the '70s, it continued to enjoy a cult following in the 21st century - and one of the noteworthy prog rock bands that came out of Europe in the 2000s was Sweden's Beardfish.
Sleeping in Traffic: Part One (2007) is Beardfish's third album, but the Swedish outfit's first for a major progressive rock record label, namely InsideOut. Even though the album went by rather unnoticed, prog rock fans should take note of it. Beardfish do not break new ground, but their take on the genre has a lot of balls and feeling. Blending an occasional Gentle Giant influence with a strong Genesis background and a deep-running blues basis, the group is particularly successful in the melody department, without devolving into ersatz melodic hard rock. In other words, these Swedes strike a very fine balance between prog complexity and sincere feeling…
Although progressive rock's popularity peaked in the '70s, it continued to enjoy a cult following in the 21st century - and one of the noteworthy prog rock bands that came out of Europe in the 2000s was Sweden's Beardfish.
Sleeping in Traffic: Part One (2007) is Beardfish's third album, but the Swedish outfit's first for a major progressive rock record label, namely InsideOut. Even though the album went by rather unnoticed, prog rock fans should take note of it. Beardfish do not break new ground, but their take on the genre has a lot of balls and feeling. Blending an occasional Gentle Giant influence with a strong Genesis background and a deep-running blues basis, the group is particularly successful in the melody department, without devolving into ersatz melodic hard rock. In other words, these Swedes strike a very fine balance between prog complexity and sincere feeling…
Backwards and Forwards: The WEA Recordings 1984-1995 is a forthcoming nine-CD box set that collects the music of Aztec Camera via five studio albums, B-sides, live recordings, remixes and rarities.