Bonham Tracy City

Not a bad compilation - 13 songs cut by Bull City Red over a four-year stretch, which include gospel-tinged songs as well as country blues in the Blind Boy Fuller mode. The sound is reasonably good throughout, given the rarity of some of the records, and the analog-to-digital transfer fairly clean given the age of the source material - Red's guitar comes through in startling clarity, and surface noise is generally held in check, or at least to manageable levels. Among the highlights here is Red's version of "I Saw the Light," and which, in another form, entered the repertory of Hank Williams, among others…

Unreal City was founded in 2008 by pianist/keyboardist Emanuele Tarasconi and guitarist Francesca Zanetta. Consequently to the release of the first self titled EP in 2012, the band began an insense live activity in Northern Italy music venues, thus drawing attention from both critics and music industry operators. In January 2013 the band signed with AMS Records and joined Hilary Studios in Genoa to start the recording sessions for “La Crudeltà Di Aprile”, Unreal City debut album, that was released on 24th April 2013 amd immediately followed by the airing of a videoclip for “Dove La Luce E’ Più Intensa”, single extracted from the album.

The region of Epirus is famous for it's landscape of mammoth mountains and holy rivers - and now experimental heavy rock. Villagers of Ioannina City are deeply influenced by Greek nature and cosmic phenomena and infuse their unique brand of heavy psychedelic rock with folk instruments such as bagpipes, flutes and didgeridoos. Their second album, Age of Aquarius - originally released in September 2019 - will now be reissued by Napalm Records. Epirus may become the unlikely epicentre of the heavy rock universe: A mantra for the new Age!

The City of Tomorrow releases Blow, a collection of three works for wind quintet, anchored by the premiere of a multi-movement work written for them by Hannah Lash. Guided by their virtuosity and commitment to polished interpretation, the album is an exploration of finely crafted compositions that take advantage of the rich colors of the instrumentation in all of its permutations.

Talk about forgotten composers! Marcos Portugal (1762-1830) composed some 50 operas, all of which have disappeared. This present one was premiered in 1797 in Venice but the version recorded is one that was reassembled for Lisbon in 1804. Shorn of what I can only assume were the quasi-endless recitatives that were in style at that time in farces, what we get is 69 minutes of delightful music that makes you want to hear more of this Portuguese composer. Rossini might've been pleased with the plot about two women, one a Countess and the other a peddler, who have their identities switched by a playful magician/pilgrim and who wind up better for it (and their husbands) when all is set right.

Frontiers Music Srl is excited to announce the release of Big City's new album, "Sunwind Sails" on January 20, 2023. Big City is a Norwegian melodic hard rock/heavy metal band masterminded by Daniel Olaisen of death metallers Blood Red Throne (he is also a former member of Satyricon). The band blends classic '80s influenced melodic rock with heavy metal influences, for songs that are anthemic, uplifting, and driving. Lead vocalist Jørgen Bergersen has been favorably compared to hard rock legends like Joey Tempest (Europe) and Jani Lane (Warrant) for his melodic, powerful delivery.

For the third volume in their cycle of Schubert’s symphonies, Edward Gardner and the CBSO turn to the first and fourth symphonies. Composed in 1813, when Schubert was just sixteen, the First Symphony admirably demonstrates the young composer’s grasp of symphonic form and technique, and whilst the influences of Haydn, Mozart and early Beethoven are clearly audible, the spirit of Schubert’s own distinctive voice is certainly in evidence.

City Boy was an interesting art rock band, and it's surprising that they didn't win a more lasting legacy of acclaim. Their sound is a stew of late 70s styles, from the arty rock of 10cc to the pomp of Queen and the glossy sheen of Utopia. This is one of their later albums and is chock full of dramatic tunes driven by big riffs, clanky piano, smooth keyboards and high-pitched harmonies. There seems to be an apocalyptic theme, particularly in the opening two tracks. Proggers will interested in the 12-minute "Ambition", which features some orchestration for extra pomposity. This is definitely slick music with commercial appeal, but it is also interesting enough and has enough good musicianship to hold the attention of demanding listeners. City Boy's output was very consistent in terms of quality, so any of their albums make for a good listen.