[nicola]

This post is mainly aimed at Jim .... They are suggestions for albums not on AM
but the listening invitation is addressed to all the listeners of AM.

After looking in the charts of the top 10 progressive 2018 in other sites I listened to the albums outside AM and 4, described below,
I consider them worthy of attention, I am aware of the short time available to Jim and what the customer service recommends AM
that Jim repeats from time to time ... however, like other times, my remains an invitation to listen and
then if Jim will find it interesting to insert it on aural moon ....

Maybe it could help if there was at least one white listener wanting to turn green.




Kingcrow
this italian band is already present on AM with the previous album "IN CRESCENDO"

The Persistence is their last album and certainly the best of their discography as well as being
present in the two classifications published above ... has received positive praise in many other sites ..
the band is classified as prog metal ... but if in previous albums the metal was much more present in this album
is a change of direction heading towards a less metal and more progressive sound.
The album is enjoyable from the first to the last track ... I prefer those that go from track 5 to track 10.

The album is present in its entirety on youtube

Good Listening






https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA4o9Xy0vRw

► TRACK LIST :

1. Drenched 00:00
2. Closer 05:34
3. Everything Goes 10:31
4. Folding Paper Dreams 14:47
5. The Persistence 21:50
6. Every Broken Piece of Me 29:00
7. Devil's Got a Picture 35:51
8. Night's Descending 40:55
9. Father 45:49
10. Perfectly Imperfect 50:26


► Lineup :
Thundra Cafolla Drums, Percussion
Diego Cafolla Guitars, Vocals (backing)
Ivan Nastasi Guitars, Vocals (backing)
Cristian Della Polla Keyboards
Diego Marchesi Vocals
Riccardo Nifosì Bass


---Kingcrow biography

Founded in Rome, Italy in 1996 (as "Earth Shaker")
The band was originally founded in Rome, Italy, by Diego Cafolla (guitars) and Manuel Thundra Cafolla (drums)
in 1996 under the name of Earth Shaker. Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's poem Raven and driven by a will of change,
the band's name was soon altered into Kingcrow. Together with Stefano Tissi (vocals), the first promo CD Eyes
Of Memories was published in 1997. The second promo CD, Hurricane's Eye, was released in 2000, and served
as the proof of Kingcrow's evolution into progressive atmospheres performed with a subtle hard rock and
metal approach. This stylistic choice was finally consolidated in 2001 with the first official studio album,
Something Unknown. In the same year Ivan Nastasi, a guitarist of the classic hard rock / heavy metal style,
joined the band. In 2002 Stefano was replaced by Mauro Gelsomini (vocals), who contributed to the songs
with his deep and emphatic approach. In June 2003 Kingcrow recorded a 3-track promo CD entitled Matzmariels.
Ready for the next step, Kingcrow decided that the next release should be a conceptual album,
and thus Insider became reality. Kingcrow noted, We see this album as a continuous flow of emotions narrated by music.

During 2004 and 2005, Kingcrow built their own recording studio in Rome. A new album, Timetropia,
(heralded by media and fans as a true rock opera along the lines of Tommy, Jesus Christ Superstar
or even Operation Mindcrime), was recorded and published worldwide by Lucretia Records International.
In 2007 and 2008, together with new bassist Angelo Orlando, Kingcrow performed several live shows
at the biggest Italian hard rock-heavy metal music festivals (including Gods Of Metal alongside Iron Maiden
and Judas Priest to support the album release.

In February 2009, during the recording sessions for the new album, Phlegethon, Francesco D'Errico (bass)
joined the band. Also Mauro decided to leave the band due to personal reasons, and was substituted
by Diego Marchesi, a singer with outstanding vocal skills that has an emotional approach which will help
consolidate Kingcrow's status as one of the most original bands to come out of Italy in recent years.

Currently the band has just finished Phlegethon, a new overall and exciting concept, representing
the very best of their progressive rock / metal approach. According to the band This new discs
finds us exploring paths of progressive rock and metal we've never ventured before - it is an exciting
time for us and we feel more confident about Kingcrow's future then ever.

Describing the band today is quite a difficult task, but one could state that the influence of such artists
as Porcupine Tree, Riverside, Opeth, Orphaned Land or even Dream Theater in their more subtle moments are
all present in the music of Kingcrow. With each release Kingcrow has taken a step further away from
their original roots as a classic hard rock / metal band and is today one of the most exciting bands that Italy has to offer.

( Biography from official homepage:


THE PARADOX TWIN - The Importance Of Mr Bedlam




Good Listening

1) The Mir 05:43 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgN3...TcV2lU&index=1
2) The Importance of Mr Bedlam 07:07 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7dIOR4PJFQ
3) Cycles 07:26 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNUBVv2Bbm8
4) Earthbound 10:20 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trVMPXKfI5I
5) Moonblood 08:25 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpVc4AMcD6c
6) Planeta 05:58 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQOZ...WFhnLrKgTcV2lU
7) Gravity Time Dilation 06:09 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSVqyw6jNeo


From Official Site
Originating in Berkshire and fronted by main songwriter Danny Sorrell, 'The Paradox Twin' are a progressive rock quartet
who are set to make 2018 their own with their debut album 'The Importance of Mr Bedlam' which is set for a June 29th release date.

Talking about the concept of the 7 song opus that has tracks ranging anywhere from 6-10 minutes long,
Danny explains that he is "influenced and inspired by conspiracy theories and the idea that humans on Earth
are being controlled by extra-terrestrial beings." The lyrical content of the album can be linked to various alien
conspiracy theories and different ideas on the topics of otherworldly seers are gradually unveiled throughout
this fine piece of progressive work, that also features some special guests.

'The Importance of Mr Bedlam' was produced by John Mitchell, and features guest spots from both John Mitchell
and Kim Seviour, keeping with the White Star Records cross-collaboration ethos.

Danny says that to fully immerse himself in the songwriting process he tries not to listen to music during
that time period, so to not have too many obvious influences creeping in to the band's soundscapes.
However, when talking about the band's core sound, he claims that he enjoys the works of Steven Wilson,
Opeth and My Dying Bride, and the poetic artistry that comes with these acts.

The Paradox Twin is Danny Sorrell, Diane Fox, Leland Freeman, Rob McGregor.




Evership - Evership II


Evership's first album is on AM





https://friendsoftherevolution.bandcamp.com/album/ii

Good Listening


Release Date: October 19th, 2018
Genre: Progressive Rock

Band members:

Beau West / Lead Vocals
Shane Atkinson / Keyboards, Drums and Percussion, Vocals
James Atkinson / Lead Guitars
John Rose / Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar, Classical Guitar and Slide Guitar
Ben Young / Bass and Chapman Stick

“Evership II” Track-list:

1) The Serious Room 07:52
2) Monomyth 10:43
3) Real or Imagined 08:17
4) Wanderer 07:38
5) Isle of the Broken Tree: 28:26
I. Castaway
II. Meadow of Shades
III. My Father’s Friend
IV. Hall of Visions
V. My Own Worst Enemy
VI. The Tree and the Door



Special guests
Joel Grumblatt / drums (1)
Jesse Hardin / guitar solo (1)
Mike Priebe / backing vocals
Amelia West / backing vocals
The Charles Heimermann Chorale

Orchestra
Allison Cowan
Asa Graham Hartley
Nicelle Priebe
Gracie Staggenborg
Emily Walsh





https://www.sonicperspectives.com/al...p-evership-ii/

EVERSHIP
Neo-Prog • United States
From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website
EVERSHIP have been founded by a composer, multi-instrumentalist and producer / engineer Shane ATKINSON.
Shane played in Nashville bands and as a backup musician for artists in the late 80's and 90's.
As a composer he wrote on Music Row and, always having a studio running somewhere in the Nashville area,
was a composer with musical work spanning from commercials and film to orchestral and theater.
He made two records with the 90's alternative rock band CURIOUS FOOLS, but after three labels,
including false promises from a large internationally-known label that eventually dropped the band,
and with the birth of his first child, he decided to leave the music business for the budding software industry.


Shane says he never really stopped writing. "The music just kept coming, haunting me. I'd constantly wake up
in the night to record song ideas. Over those years I amassed at least a hundred hours of material. But I was
so successful in software, it became nearly impossible to get out. Something like EVERSHIP was bound to happen,
it had to happen, I was profoundly depressed."

Finally, in 2005, in response to a dream, he sold their big house in the suburbs, downsized, built a recording studio,
and opened a commercial and film music production company to finance the album effort. It would take about
ten years to make the record; not just for the actual recording, but for raising a family, building a studio,
holding down the production company and remaining business interests, and sifting through the mountain of song material.

Many of the EVERSHIP songs were already written long before the project started. Some were five to ten years
old even then, and there is purportedly enough material for four or more albums. "I've got other material,
but I wanted to do this first. Musically-speaking, prog is where my heart is." He said while growing up,
listening to bands like Led Zeppelin, Rush, Yes, Queen, Kansas and Jimmy Hotz, he had no idea it was progressive music.
He just liked it. Amongst his other influences were classical composers, particularly Bach, Rachmaninov and Ravel.
He has a sizable Opera collection and is a Puccini fan. Fusion music also played a role in the early years;
Chick Corea, Al Di Miola, Mahavishnu Orchestra, anything that challenged him musically. "Even what I'm writing
now is not intentionally Prog. It's just what comes out. These songs are life-stories, I can't tell them in three-and-a-half minutes."

After deciding on material for the debut album, demos were started in 2009, but life circumstances halted production
until 2013 when Shane shut the music production company down to focus on the record. Shane met Beau WEST,
the lead vocalist, through session singer Mike PRIEBE (who sings BGVs on the record, along with Nicelle his wife on violin).
The singer he had originally keyed the music to was longtime friend and 90's band mate Jason BEDDOE who ended up
needing to bow out due to life circumstances. Shane says, "I thought it was over. This was operatic music; these kinds
of singers just don't exist anymore. Beau was literally an answer to prayer. He had that rare range and tone that sounds
great anywhere on the scale. He could handle anything I threw at him, and had such a great attitude as well, which
was critical because so much production had already been done."

Shane choose to play drums, keyboards, and an assortment of more obscure instruments like the Theremin and Chapman Stick,
but to sub-out most of the guitar and bass work to like-minded musician friends and family. The earliest recording ("Flying Machine")
was performed by Dan SMALLEY on classical guitar and Brandon VESTAL on electric guitar. However, most of the rhythm electric,
acoustic and classical guitars were performed by the classically trained Rob HIGGINBOTHAM. Shane's brother James moved into
town later in the process and performed the lead guitars, which turned out to be a critical event for the sound Shane was reaching for.
"Having my brother here reminded me of when we were kids. We used to do these 'concerts'. We'd open the garage door and
play songs from just about every classic rock group we knew. The neighbors would set up lawn chairs and watch."
With James on guitar, the brother magic (a termed James coined to explain their telepathic ability to communicate
musically) made the lead guitar production more organic.

The infamous Nashville bassist Jaymi MILLARD rounded out the tracks.

Once the album was in full swing Shane engaged the know-how of recording engineer Mark AARTUN of Innerspeaker
Records who cut the beginning of "Flying Machine - Part 1: Dreamcarriers" on Plexiglas using a rare 1940 Presto K-8
portable record cutting machine. They then re-recorded it from a Newcomb schoolhouse tube record player.
"This gave me the vintage Victorian feel I was after."

Finally, as a last minute production idea, Shane contacted his oldest Nashville friend and classical compose
r Charles HEIMERMANN, who had been leading a professional chorale made up of session singers and singers
from both the Nashville Symphony Chorus and The Nashville Choir, to push the production over the top with
live choir recorded in a cathedral in Green Hills, Tennessee.

The debut EVERSHIP album release was on July 1, 2016. The vinyl is in the works and has been mastered
by Grammy-award winning engineer Cameron Henry at Welcome to 1979, and they are shooting for it to be
released on Record Day in April next year (2017). The release of the Evership project signifies both
the end of a very long journey and the beginning of another. In essence, that journey is what the band and music







SOUTHERN EMPIRE - CIVILISATION


The previous Souhtern Empire album is on AM






1) Goliath’s Moon 09:12
2) Cries For The Lonely 19:12
3) The Crossroads 29:14
4) Innocence & Fortune 10:22


Goliath’s Moon 09:12

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xjVXUiqxZU

Cries For The Lonely 19:12

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZuj64Dn5BM

The Crossroads live version 28:54

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3G_MsqsW1A4

Innocence & Fortune 10:22

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqe30H2rd-E



Good Listening


I do not agree that sonicperspectives.com is in first place in their Top 10, but this is only my opinion ...
however Civilization remains a good album


The present lineup is:
Danny LOPRESTO - Lead Vocals / Guitar
Cam BLOKLAND - Guitar / Vocals
Brody GREEN - Drums / Vocals
Jez MARTIN - Bass / Vocals
Sean TIMMS - Keyboards / Vocals / Saxophone / Lap Steel Guitar


From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website
Crossover Prog • Australia
Southern Empire biography
Founded in Adelaide, Australia in 2014
SOUTHERN EMPIRE was formed by Sean TIMMS after the breakup of the highly acclaimed (at ProgArchives)
group, UNITOPIA.

Influenced by the likes of DREAM THEATER, IQ, TRANSATLANTIC, KARNIVOOL and Steven WILSON,
SOUTHERN EMPIRE bring a harder, more edgy sound to their music whilst displaying a knack for catchy
songs and great melodic hooks.

Their debut, self-titled album, released in 2016, achieves the above goal with memorable melodies and lyrics,
infused with challenging prog adornments and virtuoso performances.