Jethro Tull 2024

The brainchild of Kevin Dodson, a former architect of the cult progressive rock band Madrigal, The Madrigal Project seeks to breathe new life into the progressive rock genre with ambitious songwriting, high production values and a stellar lineup of all-star musicians. The debut album '11th Hour' features an impressive roster of guest musicians, each bringing their unique individual talents to the project. The music on ‘11th Hour’ is inspired by legends like Gentle Giant, Peter Hammill, Jethro Tull, Yes, Genesis, Peter Gabriel and combines progressive rock’s classic elements with modern sensibilities. Kevin Dodson’s songwriting, drumming, and vocals are central to the album’s dynamic and unique sound.

The cross-generational supergroup of rock and fusion stars on the album includes Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Mike Stern, Al Di Meola, Randy Brecker, John Helliwell (Supertramp), Steve Bailey, Simon Phillips, Leslie Mandoki, Tony Carey (Rainbow), Nick van Eede (Cutting Crew), Jesse Siebenberg (Supertramp) and more.
With a setup that is hard to find in contemporary music production, and with which the band has captured a warmth and vibrancy in their music that is often lost in digital recordings, the Soulmates have created a work of musical diversity that ranges from prog to jazz rock, combining compositional maturity, playful ease, and artful solos with great arcs of tension and profound lyrics with socio-political themes.

The cross-generational supergroup of rock and fusion stars on the album includes Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Mike Stern, Al Di Meola, Randy Brecker, John Helliwell (Supertramp), Steve Bailey, Simon Phillips, Leslie Mandoki, Tony Carey (Rainbow), Nick van Eede (Cutting Crew), Jesse Siebenberg (Supertramp) and more.
With a setup that is hard to find in contemporary music production, and with which the band has captured a warmth and vibrancy in their music that is often lost in digital recordings, the Soulmates have created a work of musical diversity that ranges from prog to jazz rock, combining compositional maturity, playful ease, and artful solos with great arcs of tension and profound lyrics with socio-political themes.

The release of Opeth's Heritage in 2013 marked a fork in the road for the band and many of their fans. All but abandoning death metal in favor of creating a muscular prog rock of their own, the group's musical persona followed that direction on 2016's Sorceress and to its glorious extreme on 2019's In Cauda Venenum. Last Will and Testament, their first studio album in five years, integrates most of their musical aspects into a unified whole. Singer, songwriter, guitarist, and multi-instrumentalist Mikael Åkerfeldt brings back guttural death metal vocals alongside his clean singing.

Not often bands can evolve and present two stunning albums in a relatively short time frame, but this is exactly what DGM have done, offering a new album which is a substantial departure compared to the acclaimed "Life" which was released in late 2023.
"Endless" is a conceptual album that chronicles one man's imaginative journey to understand the choices that shaped his life. Through vivid storytelling, the album explores the eternal question - how might life be different if I had taken another path?
Musically the "Endless" offers a different side from the band which exposes a lot of different influences ranging from 70’s Progressive Rock (from Kansas, to Yes and Jethro Tull) even with a dash of Italian Progressive Rock (think Banco or PFM)…