As of mid-2018, the Ozrics are on hiatus, and the fate of the band is uncertain. Bandleader and chief composer Ed Wynne returned to England to record a studio album, and Ozric tour dates have ceased. Beyond that, not much else is known. Outside of a core group of listeners, usually decades-long fans, the comings and goings of this instrumental group have never been much of a buzz generator - even at the band's inception 35 years ago, Ozric Tentacles were something of an anachronism. Unwaveringly championing elements of Gong, Hawkwind, Mahavishnu Orchestra, mixed in with splashes and textures of reggae, electronica, and psytrance, it is no surprise that many of the group's fans are older than the band members themselves…
Cody Carpenter is at it again with his sophomore release “Force Of Nature” on Blue Canoe Records. This stunning instrumental prog-rock, fusion effort is the follow-up to the outstanding "Interdependence" (2018). This prolific songwriter and keyboardist have teamed up with some old friends and new to bring the listener into the prog glory days of Yes and Emerson Lake and Palmer.
My Morning Jacket singer Jim James has teamed with conductor/composer Teddy Abrams and his Louisville Orchestra for a new collaborative album, The Order of Nature. The nine-track album features five new songs by James alongside two tracks off James’ sophomore solo LP, Eternally Even, (“Here in Spirit” and “Same Old Lie”) and two Nina Simone classics (“The Human Touch” and “Who Am I?”). James delivered acoustic demos to Abrams, who then turned the relatively minimalist arrangements into sweeping orchestral compositions that reflected the lyrics’ examination of nature and humanity. Speaking in a press release, James said the record reflects “on the fact that nature doesn’t know how to hate.” He continued, “Humans are part of nature, obviously, but why do we have this thing called hatred and how do we get rid of it? We’re fighting nature and thinking we can prevail over nature, but we’re killing each other and killing the planet.”