Progressive rock
David Gilmour Transformed Pink Floyd into the Most Beloved Progressive Rock Band of All Time
There’s little left that needs to be said about Pink Floyd’s astronomical run in the 1970s. Undeniably, the creative, commercial, and critical prosperity achieved by their final four LPs of the decade — The Dark Side of the Moon (1973), Wish You Were Here (1975), Animals (1977), and The Wall (1979) — have rarely, if ever, been matched by any other rock band. Likewise, their musical and cultural influence were just as expansive and enduring, so it’s no wonder they remain almost as prevalent and adored today. (Of course, their output in the 1980s and beyond is also worthwhile, but those ’70s LPs are easily their most significant.) However, the process of getting to that point was far from quick or easy, as their earliest years were filled with crises of artistic identity and potential. Due m...
Steven Wilson Transforms into Brad Pitt, David Bowie, Donald Trump, and More in “Self” Video: Watch
Prog rocker Steven Wilson has unveiled a disturbing deepfake music video for his latest single, “Self”. The track appears on Wilson’s new album, The Future Bites, which was released last week. Following the post-modern dystopia theme of the album, Wilson used deepfake facial mapping technology for the video, transforming himself into a motley crew of notable celebrities, politicians, and musicians. If you’ve ever wanted to see Donald Trump go prog, now’s your chance. The likes of Joe Biden, David Bowie, Hillary Clinton, Brad Pitt, Mark Zuckerberg, Robert Downey Jr., and more appear in Wilson’s influencer choir. The deepfake imaging falls somewhere between convincing and downright terrifying — maybe more toward the latter, since Wilson’s face changes but his hair stays the same, resulting i...
Steven Wilson Says He Was Unaffected by Eddie Van Halen’s Passing, “Bums Out” Wolfgang Van Halen
In a new interview, progressive rock artist Steven Wilson was asked about the recent passing of guitar legend Eddie Van Halen. The former Porcupine Tree frontman bluntly replied that he was unaffected by Van Halen’s death before offering a negative opinion of the guitar “shredder” style that Eddie inspired. “Honestly, it didn’t [affect me], because I was never a fan,” Wilson told FaceCulture. “I know he’s an extraordinary musician, and it’s always sad when an extraordinary artist dies, [but] I was never a fan of the so-called shredder mentality. And I think in many ways, he was the father of that whole kind of movement.” He added: “I never understood that ‘playing as fast as you can’ thing. And I know that wasn’t all he did — I know he was a more flexible musician than that — but I think t...
King Crimson’s Robert Fripp and Wife Toyah Perform Eccentric Covers of Nirvana, Alice Cooper, GN’R, and Sex Pistols: Watch
King Crimson’s Robert Fripp and his singer wife, Toyah Willcox, have stayed busy in recent weeks with eccentric interpretations of classic heavy songs by Nirvana, Alice Cooper, Guns N’ Roses, and Sex Pistols. They’re the latest additions to the couple’s “Sunday Lunch” pandemic performance series. You may remember the couple’s utterly bizarre Halloween rendition of Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid”, which saw Fripp playing the song on guitar while Willcox sang and danced in what appeared to be a prison cell. Although the new covers aren’t quite as unconventional as the Sabbath performance, they still showcase the idiosyncratic talents of each artist. Fripp tends to handle most of the music, while Willcox sings and supplies interpretative dances, including a one-person mosh for Nirvana’s “Smells Li...
10 Bands You Probably Discovered by Playing Guitar Hero
Crate Digging is a recurring feature in which we take a deep dive into a genre and turn up several albums or bands that all music fans should know about. As classic gaming series Guitar Hero turns 15 this week, we look at 10 bands a generation of fans likely learned about through gaming rather than crate digging. In the mid-to-late 2000s, the Guitar Hero series was the party game to own. Initially a partnership between publisher/hardware manufacturer RedOctane and developer Harmonix, the brand built upon the latter’s prior music-based projects — such as Frequency, Karaoke Revolution, and Amplitude — and other genre titans like Dance Dance Revolution, GuitarFreaks, Gitaroo Man, and PaRappa the Rapper. Essentially, players had to match button combinations and rhythmic cues to the arrangement...
Five Things to Know About Puscifer’s New Album Existential Reckoning
Five years after the release of their last album, Money Shot, Puscifer are back with their fourth LP, Existential Reckoning. As with the band’s previous releases, the album comes with an abundance of intrigue and mystique. Puscifer — featuring core members of Maynard James Keenan (Tool), Mat Mitchell, and Carina Round — have crafted a 12-song album that is both experimental and cinematic in quality. The songs range from the dance-y “Apocalyptical” to the angry “Fake Affront”. The album also continues the story of the fictional characters Billy D and his wife, Hilda Berger, who’ve been portrayed by Keenan and Laura Milligan, respectively, in promotion of the band’s previous LPs. Along with the announcement of Existential Reckoning came a classified document that reported on an alien abducti...
The Sword Cover Rush’s “Working Man” for Final Conquest of Quarantine Live Session: Watch
The Sword are closing out their socially distant performance series with a heavy take on Rush’s “Working Man”. Dubbed “Conquest of Quarantine”, the three-part live session also saw The Sword cover the T. Rex classic “Children of the Revolution” (as exclusively premiered here at Heavy Consequence). Like similar socially distant… Please click the link below to read the full article. The Sword Cover Rush’s “Working Man” for Final Conquest of Quarantine Live Session: Watch Jon Hadusek You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, bloggin...
How to Recreate Phil Collins’ Legendary “In the Air Tonight” Drum Fill
There is arguably no drum fill in pop music that’s more iconic than Phil Collins’ epic break in his ubiquitous 1981 hit “In the Air Tonight”. Behind the huge sound of Collins’ drums is a combination of quality gear, choice effects, and luck. It just might be the ultimate air-drumming song. “In the Air Tonight” marked Collins’ first solo single, having already established himself as a longtime member of Genesis. And with the song, Collins kicked off his solo career with a literal bang. Even Ozzy Osbourne, who fronted Black Sabbath and launched a successful solo career of his own, declared, “That drum fill is the best ever — it still sounds awesome.” While it’s one thing to master air-drumming to “In the Air Tonight”, it’s another thing to conquer it behind the kit. Thanks to a recent instru...
Primus Reschedule Rush Tribute Tour for 2021
Primus (photo by Johnny Perilla) and Neil Peart of Rush (photo via Wikipedia Commons) Primus have rescheduled their tribute tour in honor of prog-rock legends Rush. Bowing to coronavirus concerns, the trek will now take place in the summer of 2021. With this tour, the band’s goal is simple: travel across North America performing Rush’s beloved 1977 album A Farewell to Kings in its entirety. The “A Tribute to Kings Tour” opens in Texas in June, swings eastwards through New Orleans and Orlando, and travels up the East Coast and across the Midwest before finishing along the Pacific Ocean. Along the way, they’ll be supported by Wolfmother, The Sword, and Battles. If you don’t already have tickets, you can get them here. While it takes on extra meaning after the death of leg...
Omar Rodríguez-López Announces Triple Vinyl Box Set The Clouds Hill Tapes
A Mars Volta reunion may be in the near future, but in the meantime, guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López is keeping himself preoccupied with a massive new release. This summer, he will put out a triple vinyl box set called The Clouds Hill Tapes. The 3xLP collection consists of 20 past solo songs from Rodríguez-López, all newly rearranged and produced by Johann Scheerer at the famed Clouds Hill Recording Studio in Hamburg, Germany. These new versions were performed by Rodríguez-López with assistance from a variety of guest musicians. Clouds Hill studio is considered to be Rodríguez-López’s “creative second home” and in the past has also hosted acts like The Killers, Nicolas Jaar, and Pete Doherty. The specific Clouds Hill Tapes sessions took place in late 2018 and early 2019, while the At T...
A Perfect Circle’s Mer de Noms Escaped Tool’s Shadow 20 Years Ago
Outside of a few major examples — such as Dashboard Confessional, Audioslave, CSNY, Foo Fighters, Gorillaz, The Mars Volta, Cream, and Led Zeppelin — side projects, supergroups, and spin-offs are rarely as triumphant as the bands from which they originate. Of course, Californian troupe A Perfect Circle — founded by Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan and former Tool guitar tech Billy Howerdel — must be added to that list. Over the past 20 years, and through four studio albums and numerous major tours, they’ve amassed a following that rivals those of any of the members’ outside endeavors. (Some fans even prefer APC to Tool, and for understandable reasons.) True, their subsequent records offer stronger hooks, more decorative instrumentation, and a greater emphasis on overtly political and/or ...
Tool’s Adam Jones Shares Demo of Fear Inoculum Song “Descending”: Stream
Tool guitarist Adam Jones has shared an early demo of the Fear Inoculum song “Descending”. In introducing the one-minute clip on Instagram, Jones gave a peek into the band’s songwriting process. He said that bassist Justin Chancellor initially conceived of a “killer” melody in 7/8 time, which eventually became the main verse. Together they “jammed it a LONG time trying to find other cool working parts,” and Jones eventually came up with the chorus and the 9/8 “turnaround.” Between the written description and the demo itself, it’s a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at how the mathy metalheads develop their intricate songs. Jones wrote, “Writing music Justin and I normally bring in potential riffs and demos – then the 3 of us tear them apart like wolves while [Danny Carey] ...
