Progressive Palaver

Episode 47 – Yes Part 11, Big Generator This episode is another lean Palaver where Ken and Joe consider the Yes album Big Generator. Ken provides a look into the outstanding prog context of 1987 (what a year!). Regardless of the greater Palaver’s feeling about this album, Big Generator was the group’s ultimate gateway to Yes, originally via Paul. While Tom provides some scathing criticism via text...

Episode 46 – Yes Part 10, 90125 In order to help celebrate 50 years of Yes, the Palaver returns to the Yes catalog with the 1983 album 90125. Paul, Tom, Ken and Joe (including Jay and Colby in spirit if not substance) dive deep into this game-changing (for better or worse) album featuring the return of Jon Anderson and Tony Kaye to the band. The significant influence of the two Trevors is contempl...

Bonus Episode – Total Mass Retain In this very exciting bonus episode Joe and Ken get to interview three of the members from Total Mass Retain. As a featured performer at the YesFanFest – 50 True Summers event in Philadelphia on July 21st, TMR is one of the hottest trending names in the world of tribute bands. Members Joel Simches, Mark Gonzalez and Joey Cassano share their love of all things Yes...

Episode 45 – Asia Part 6 Omega, XXX & Gravitas Joe completes his solo consideration of the Asia catalog, finishing up with last three albums featuring John Wetton. These three albums are full of surprises and demonstrate a band that is in clear control of their art. Fast tempos, killer vocals, well-balanced songwriting and even a mantra are the hallmarks of these albums. Even the departure of Stev...

SCS9- Yes - Philadelphia PA - July 21 2018 by Progressive Palaver

SCS8 – Yes – Philadelphia PA - July 20, 2018 Celebrating the summer of Yes with this first of two Special Concert Series episodes, Paul, Ken and Joe discuss the Yes 50th Anniversary Tour show at the Fillmore in Philadelphia PA on July 20, 2018. The group is reveling in the bold choice of the band to open with Close to the Edge and as usual are awed by the timeless wonder that is Steve Howe. This c...

Episode 44 – Asia Part 5 Aura, Silent Nation & Phoenix Joe continues his solo consideration of the Asia catalog, finishing up the John Payne era with Aura and Silent Nation before moving on to the rebirth of original Asia with Phoenix. Aura, always a Joe favorite, fares well over time and there is much in this album to appreciate. The long list of guest musicians provides depth and interest across...

Episode 43 – Asia Part 4 Aria, Arena & Archiva 1 Joe continues his solo consideration of the Asia catalog, moving deep into the John Payne era with these three albums. Aria sees the new Asia continuing to develop as a band with the addition of Al Pitrelli. Is Desire awesome or terrifying? How much dramatic vocals is too much? Arena leads the band into new, jazz-influenced directions as the guitari...

Episode 42 – Asia Part 3 Astra, Then and Now & Aqua In this Palaver for one episode, Joe begins his solo exploration of the bulk of the Asia catalog. Picking up where the original group discussion ended these three albums cover many changes for the band from the departure of Steve Howe on Astra through the extensive use of session musicians on the studio tracks on Then & Now to the formation of es...

Episode 41 – Rush Part 16 Test for Echo, Vapor Trails, Snakes and Arrows & Clockwork Angels In this episode of the Palaver Tom, Paul and Joe finish out the Rush catalog by doing a quick burn through the last four albums. These four albums span a great deal of real time and the Palaver tries to sort out the greater context both in the Rush lineage and the larger musical landscape. Of particular not...

Episode 40 – Rush Part 15, Counterparts In this episode of the Palaver Tom, Ken, Paul and Joe spend some quality time with Counterparts. This album features the return of Peter Collins and with him a recurring theme (real or imagined) of the Queensryche influence. The context of 1993 (with the onset of grunge and the continuing demise of prog) is explored in general terms and how Rush maintained r...

Episode 39 – Rush Part 14, Roll the Bones & Rupert Hine Reflections Technical difficulties… They are bound to catch up with most podcasts sooner or later. The Palaver got them good for this section. Due to these technical gremlins we lost the recordings of both our episode on Roll the Bones and the outstanding interview Tom and Joe did with Rupert Hine. This episode attempts to recap both of those...

Episode 38 – Rush Part 13, Presto “Hitting if fresh and finding it new” - This Palaver finds Joe, Ken, Colby and Tom considering Rush’s Presto. First and foremost, the group must consider the effect of producer Rupert Hine on this record and the fact that Presto is sonically very different from other Rush albums up to this point. From there the group considers the question “How proggy is Presto” a...

Episode 37 – Rush Part 12, Hold Your Fire Ken and Joe attempt to tackle the intricate beauty that is Hold Your Fire without the usual support of the larger Palaver community. Ken begins with a outline of traditional Palaver roles in the group before he and Joe go into the greater prog context of Hold Your Fire. The track consideration allows Joe and Ken to go into the songwriting, lyrical themes a...

Episode 36 – Rush Part 11, Power Windows Pt 2 The discussion of Power Windows continues unabated with Ken, Paul, Joe and Colby. Picking up with Territories, this part of the Palaver covers the power of Neil’s lyrics and the potentials of soundtrack dissonance. What are the Mystic Rhythms and are they really everywhere? At the end of the episode Joe performs his act of contrition to the group for h...

Episode 35 – Rush Part 10, Power Windows Pt 1 In this episode of Progressive Palaver Paul, Ken, Tom, Colby and Joe discuss Power Windows. This episode covers the group’s overall impressions of the album as a whole and covers the individual songs into Marathon. How powerful is The Big Money? How prog is Power Windows? As usual there is a wide range of emotions here and Tom has his Rush “factoid” sp...

SCS7 – Steven Wilson – Glenside PA Continuing the Special Concert Series, Paul and Joe discuss the Steven Wilson concert Paul attended on April 25th at the Keswick Theater in Glenside PA. Paul provides excellent perspective on the artistry of Steven Wilson including songwriting, musicianship and stage production. This was clearly a concert to have seen. Twitter: @progpala Email: progpala@gmail.com...

Episode 34 – Rush Part 9, Grace Under Pressure Paul, Ken and Joe consider Rush’s groundbreaking Grace Under Pressure. Generally speaking, the Palaver’s opinion of this album is very high. The conversation seeks to place this album in proper context for songwriting, lyrical content and production. The conclusion is that this was a good time for the band and we love it. Twitter: @progpala Email: pro...

Special Episode – Hired Gun, Ray Parker Jr. & Fran Strine In this very special episode of Progressive Palaver Tom and Joe chat with Hired Gun director Fran Strine and music legend Ray Parker Jr.! Enjoy going behind the scenes of the award winning Hired Gun documentary and revel in Ray Parker Jr.’s stories about some of the biggest names in music. This episode is unlike any Palaver you’ve ever hear...

Episode 33 – Rush Part 8, Signals Paul, Ken, Tom and Joe tackle Rush’s somewhat controversial Signals. This is an album that generates strong feelings from Rush fans, both good and bad. The Palaver is no different and controversy abounds in this episode (Paul doesn’t really care for Subdivisions?). Analog Kid is the rare song on this album that seems to gain approval across the spectrum. Tom provi...

Episode 32 – Rush Part 7, Moving Pictures Paul, Ken, Colby and Joe tackle Rush’s cornerstone album, Moving Pictures. This album presents some interesting challenges given its near ubiquity in the classic rock radio. The extreme level of familiarity we have with parts of this record can lead to complacency but the Palaver tries to give each track its due. We discuss the songwriting, musicianship an...

Bonus Episode – Les Miserables Paul and Joe have a semi-casual conversation about perhaps the greatest stage musical ever. From the lack of award respect for the seminal Jean Valjean (Colm Wilkinson) to the impact of the current stage redesign, the Palaver treats this unusual subject matter in the usual manner. Twitter: @progpala Email: progpala@gmail.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/ProgPala YouTub...

Episode 31 – Rush Part 6, Permanent Waves Pt 2 Paul, Ken, Tom, Joe and Colby continue the discussion on Permanent Waves. Covering the individual tracks Paul describes the wall of guitars in Jacob’s Ladder and the proper kit placement of a china boy. We cover the expansive scope of Natural Science. Overall the group points out how Permanent Waves is both forward and backward looking in terms of mus...

Episode 30 – Rush Part 5, Permanent Waves Pt 1 Paul, Ken, Tom and Joe are joined by Colby for our two-part discussion of Permanent Waves. This first portion of the palaver covers our thoughts on this new, more radio friendly version of Rush. But is it still progressive? Tom suggests that one has to look at the depth in the songs on this album to find that the answer is yes. He continues to describ...

Bonus Episode – Yes, Lessons Learned So Far Paul, Ken and Joe spend some rare face-to-face time discussing some of the revelations we’ve had by doing the Palaver series on the first part of the Yes catalog. This is a fun, casual conversation among friends about a band we all love. We cover a variety of topics from songwriting to sounds to gear and wrap it all up in a Star Wars metaphor. Twitter: @...