Like Paavo Berglund’s Sibelius symphony recordings, also with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, these Brahms performances inject a certain novelty that will be appreciated especially by the listener who has wearied of them due to excessive repetition. While these are not radically desiccated renditions in the manner of Chailly or Harnoncourt, the COE’s smaller-scaled string body does require a bit of time at first for your ear to adjust to the thinner timbres. But the reward is a harvest of inner detail, much of it barely audible in full-size orchestral performances (but well captured by Ondine’s vivid recordings), which continually surprises and delights.
Eight years on from their 2005 debut and despite Pete Doherty's talent for distraction, Babyshambles have matured, musically at least, into a proper band. Rich in rueful words, gorgeous melodies and surprising ambition, Sequel to the Prequel is an album torn between bassist Drew McConnell's newfound appreciation of life (following a bike accident in 2011) and Doherty's frustrating need to curtail it, as documented in the feverish ska song Dr No. Three albums in, there is no excuse for his sloppy mumbling on Fireman and on the first single, Nothing Comes to Nothing, especially when the whimsical music hall of the title track is accorded such focus and effortless charm.
This complete set of Witold Lutoslawski's symphonies is a mixture of old and new. The second, third, and fourth symphonies are reissues of recordings made in the 1980s and 1990s during Esa-Pekka Salonen's tenure with the Los Angeles Philharmonic; all were acclaimed readings, and the 1985 version of the sizzlingly orchestrated Symphony No. 3, by now Lutoslawski's most commonly programmed and recorded work, has held up well against newer recordings.
Formed in Przemyśl (Poland) in 2009, Arlon is a Polish progressive rock band. In 2013, the group featuring Jacek Szott (saxophone, keyboard and composition), Wiesław Rutka (guitar), Maciej Napieraj (bass), Paweł Zwirn (drums) and vocalist Paweł Szykuła, releases their first studio album ,,On The Edge”. The album receives very good reviews and in March 2014 wins the prestigious First Prize of “The Werbel 2013” (a competition for the best album of the year 2013 ) awarded by the Polish Radio Rzeszow. The year 2013 is for the band the time of promoting the album “On the Edge”. The band gives concerts in many places all over Poland, including Warsaw, Cracow, Katowice, Lublin, Rzeszów and Przemyśl. At that time the band performs at a prestigious Polish festival, the 7th Festival of Progressive Rock in Gniewkowo, and participates in the first historical concert of Rock Area On Stage in Katowice. The latter, with a guest performance of Clive Nolan ( Arena, Pendragon ), takes place on 21 November 2013.
Expansive 13 disc (12 CDs + NTSC/Region 0 DVD) collection of solo material by Queen drummer Roger Taylor including albums from his side project The Cross. This box set celebrates his 35 years of activity outside of his `day job' in Queen…