FEATURED CD - The Tangent : Not As Good As The Book

[Scrotum Scissor]

^

Correct, but I suppose that's not the point. It's actually a lot easier to create music with a sincerely personal (i.e. original) mark than what's usually communicated, and this was admittedly what made those 'classic' progressive artists worthy of attention. Most self-proclaimed 'proggers' of today apparently wouldn't want to discover equally personal music, seeing how this appears to undermine the purported singularity of a long gone past.

[flatliner]

Well, I love The Tangent and own every release. Just yesterday I was listening to their latest, A Spark in the Aether, thinking just how much I love their music. Yeah, I'm an old guy and this is one of MANY types of music I listen to. I've never really cared if others "approve". It's what I like, and that's what matters to me......funny though that in the 70's when this type of music originated there was no such label as progressive rock. We, the listeners came up with that term ourselves. At least that's how I remember it.....kinda like the term classic rock. That type of music wasn't called classic rock back then either.

[infandous]

The phrase was "the most original" - there can only be one! I don't think that's what people listen to The Tangent for, although I do think AT has a certain musical personality that is an amalgam of influences no one else put together in quite the same way. Just as thousands of other artists have done.

I agree with this. I pretty much gave up on "cutting edge" music because most of what I heard that was recommended by people in here and other places as "truly progressive" just really doesn't sound like it is to me. Either that, or I found it un-listenable. That said, I do like music that at least tries to be different. The Tangent is certainly not that, but I think they have their own voice, their own "sound" if you will. If one album of theirs doesn't appeal to you, it's likely that none of them really will. But I agree with Guy here, that they have their own personality and a slightly different set of influences than your typical "retro symph" band. Of course, it's all down to personal taste in the end. I think there are always excellent musicians in The Tangent who are basically masters of their instruments. Which isn't, of course, to say they are better than others. Music isn't a competition though, IMO.

[infandous]

Well, I love The Tangent and own every release. Just yesterday I was listening to their latest, A Spark in the Aether, thinking just how much I love their music. Yeah, I'm an old guy and this is one of MANY types of music I listen to. I've never really cared if others "approve". It's what I like, and that's what matters to me......funny though that in the 70's when this type of music originated there was no such label as progressive rock. We, the listeners came up with that term ourselves. At least that's how I remember it.....kinda like the term classic rock. That type of music wasn't called classic rock back then either.

Actually, I've seen ads for shows from as far back as 1970 that use the term "Progressive Rock". One of the admins over at progarchives, Dean, posted a few in a thread a while back. Personally, I never heard the term myself until the late 1990's when I got on the internet.

[Zappyesque]

Does everyone have a crackling sound when louder sections kick in on not as good as the book? I have bought the normal cd edition and the limited edition which includes the booklet, they both sound quite dirty at times. to make sure I downloaded some versions in mp3 as well as in Flac. I played them with different types of hardware and software and I can't seem to get rid of the crackling. Might someone be so kind as to explain this to me?
Merci beaucoup!

[JAMOOL]

Based on what I've been reading here and elsewhere I was expecting not to like this album - I like The Tangent in general but do feel their Achilles' Heel is their tendency to be a bit boring sometimes. So a bit of a surprise that I wound up absolutely loving this one - to me it feels like it could've been two separate releases rather than something that should've been edited down to one disc. "Lost in London 25 Years Later" is the sort of tune that usually loses me but the second half totally rules. And the title track is top notch too - little "Sleepwalkers" reference there, isn't it? I dunno man. I'm a bit shocked.

[Camelogue]

I won't bash this release but I much prefer their first release. I have a couple of Tangent albums and that is probably the only one I listen to.

[Czyszy]

IMO CD2 is better than CD1. I especially love Four Egos One War. Fantastic epic!

[3LockBox]

Holy thread revival Batman!

I went back and reviewed my posts and by golly, I think I still feel the same about this album. The two songs I mentioned are still in my playlist rotation. I still listen to other Tangent albums more. I still don't think they were completely original but I don't think they were trying to reinvent the wheel either. They made music they wanted to hear and most of the time, I wanted to listen to it too. At this point in time, I doubt anyone makes prog albums to become rich and famous

[JAMOOL]

wonder if this one is going to get a vinyl reissue like the first 3. you'd need to fit like 28 minutes on Side A but hey, The Music That Died Alone does that on Side B and it doesn't sound too bad.