Forgotten 1990s prog

[Progbear]

I’m thinking of this subject because I recently got CDs by Teru’s Symphonia, Sithonia and Montefeltro; bands that were rather revered back in the day, but somewhat neglected now. There were big-name bands in the 90s that still get thrown around a lot these days, but there were a lot of short-lived bands back then on Musea, Vinyl Magic, Progressive Rock Worldwide, etc. that only made a CD or two, and seem to have been forgotten once their CDs fell out of print. Some of these were neo-prog, or those Korg Workstation one-man “project”-type of releases that really do deserve their obscurity these days, but there’s lots of them that probably deserve to be better-remembered these days. I’m thinking of bands like the above-mentioned, plus Algaravia, Dogma, Via Lumini, Grandbell, Trem do Futuro and Nave from Brazil, H20 and Divae from Italy, You and I from Hungary, Atavism of Twilight from the USA, Providence and Il Berlione from Japan, Sepsis from Russia and Tiemko from France.

Anyone who wants to talk about these bands some more or has other unsung “lost puppy” bands from that time period, talk about it here!

[JKL2000]

How about The Coenobite, AKA Dr. Coenobite. A one man project. Pretty good stuff.

And Barrock. Remember them and their album Oxian?

[the winter tree]

Madrigal were a good band. Kind of a cross between Jethro Tull and Gentle Giant. I was briefly on the same label as them in the mid/late nineties.

[JKL2000]

Madrigal were a good band. Kind of a cross between Jethro Tull and Gentle Giant. I was briefly on the same label as them in the mid/late nineties.

Was that Robert Wolfe's label, or the one related to Bananamoon?

[Progbear]

And Barrock. Remember them and their album Oxian?

I think Barrock had two albums. Female-led band from Italy, right? Haven’t heard either (nor the similarly-fêted Tale Cue).

[emperorken]

A favorite to this day is the one shot album by Il Trono Dei Ricordi, from 1994.

[Soc Prof]

I have the one and only Grandbell album. The singer sounds like John Anderson's long lost South American brother. Great stuff for Yes fans.

I had one of the Barrock albums and wasn't impressed, especially with the electric guitar parts.

[rickawakeman]

Ad Infinitum anyone?

[Sputnik]

Barrock actually had three albums: L'Alchimista (1991), Oxian (1994) and La Strega (1999). The final album is fairly short and does not feature the dual female vocals, but it is still a decent listen. The first two are pretty killer in my book, though their choices of sounds was sometimes a bit odd.

The Il Trono Dei Ricordi is one of my favorites from any period. It really surprised me these guys weren't more popular than they were.

Sithonia and Atavism of Twilight never did much for me, but I love Tiemko and have all their albums. I have the Algaravia album, but at the moment I have no memory what it sounds like. But I kept it, so I must like it. I'd never heard of Dogma until recently and am considering getting those.

I enjoy the French band Xaal, who had two albums, On the Way (En Chemin) in 1992 and Second Ere in 1993.

I have German band Rejoice's 1996 album. They do a sort of instrumental ELP-like thing until they last track where they trot out a female opera singer, who I don't think sings so well. I've always been on the fence about keeping this one, but it has its moments.

Looking through my list, I'm surprised to see Argentine band Antiheroe's first album in 1997. They did a second one in 2008 which is more Fusion oriented. The first one is an interesting mix of styles, sometimes a bit out there, iirc. Definitely an interesting group, and thoroughly forgotten/ignored.

Nobody talks much about Volare anymore, but they were pretty popular when their album came out. Likewise Finneus Gauge, who I like a lot, but seem not to get a lot of love. Their music is very "busy" and lacks some of the structure and melodies that make Echolyn popular, but over time I've come to really appreciate what they did.

Everyone talks about After Crying, but far better in my book were Townscream, an After Crying offshoot. Very underrated album that should appeal to After Crying fans, and avoids some of the excesses to which I feel that band were prone.

French band Priam put out two albums 3 Distances / Irregular Signs (1998) and Diffraction (2001), which is the better of the two.

Who can forget Pye Fyte - The Gathering of the Krums? This was the album Mark Cella did with his friend John McNamara before Mark joined Eccentric Orbit.

Tryptic - Rabble Gadgets Divine is another one off rarity. It's a bit vocal heavy, but it's an interesting album.

Beppe Crovella did an album in 1995 called Mosaic - Miniatures, all proggy pieces under 2 minutes. Some great stuff on this, but the idea was perhaps better than the reality, where you wish from time to time they just settle on something and plat it. Still, good in small doses.

Perhaps not quite right for this thread is Pangee's Hymnemonde from 1995. Why this one has endured in popularity to the degree it has is a mystery to me. I like the album, but find it a bit amateurish both in the compositions and the choice of sounds (basically a sonic demo for the then new EMU Vintage Keys module). But of all the OOP 90s albums, this may be the most deserving of a reissue.

Viva La 90s!

Bill

[JKL2000]

Leger de Main

[JKL2000]

Barrock actually had three albums: L'Alchimista (1991), Oxian (1994) and La Strega (1999). The final album is fairly short and does not feature the dual female vocals, but it is still a decent listen. The first two are pretty killer in my book, though their choices of sounds was sometimes a bit odd.

The Il Trono Dei Ricordi is one of my favorites from any period. It really surprised me these guys weren't more popular than they were.

Sithonia and Atavism of Twilight never did much for me, but I love Tiemko and have all their albums. I have the Algaravia album, but at the moment I have no memory what it sounds like. But I kept it, so I must like it. I'd never heard of Dogma until recently and am considering getting those.

I enjoy the French band Xaal, who had two albums, On the Way (En Chemin) in 1992 and Second Ere in 1993.

I have German band Rejoice's 1996 album. They do a sort of instrumental ELP-like thing until they last track where they trot out a female opera singer, who I don't think sings so well. I've always been on the fence about keeping this one, but it has its moments.

Looking through my list, I'm surprised to see Argentine band Antiheroe's first album in 1997. They did a second one in 2008 which is more Fusion oriented. The first one is an interesting mix of styles, sometimes a bit out there, iirc. Definitely an interesting group, and thoroughly forgotten/ignored.

Nobody talks much about Volare anymore, but they were pretty popular when their album came out. Likewise Finneus Gauge, who I like a lot, but seem not to get a lot of love. Their music is very "busy" and lacks some of the structure and melodies that make Echolyn popular, but over time I've come to really appreciate what they did.

Everyone talks about After Crying, but far better in my book were Townscream, an After Crying offshoot. Very underrated album that should appeal to After Crying fans, and avoids some of the excesses to which I feel that band were prone.

French band Priam put out two albums 3 Distances / Irregular Signs (1998) and Diffraction (2001), which is the better of the two.

Who can forget Pye Fyte - The Gathering of the Krums? This was the album Mark Cella did with his friend John McNamara before Mark joined Eccentric Orbit.

Tryptic - Rabble Gadgets Divine is another one off rarity. It's a bit vocal heavy, but it's an interesting album.

Beppe Crovella did an album in 1995 called Mosaic - Miniatures, all proggy pieces under 2 minutes. Some great stuff on this, but the idea was perhaps better than the reality, where you wish from time to time they just settle on something and plat it. Still, good in small doses.

Perhaps not quite right for this thread is Pangee's Hymnemonde from 1995. Why this one has endured in popularity to the degree it has is a mystery to me. I like the album, but find it a bit amateurish both in the compositions and the choice of sounds (basically a sonic demo for the then new EMU Vintage Keys module). But of all the OOP 90s albums, this may be the most deserving of a reissue.

Viva La 90s!

Bill

Pangee totally fits. Il Trono was very good too.

[TheH]

There where a lot of brilliant bands in the 90s, still love a lot of those mentioned here.

Eris Pluvia weren't mentioned yet, a wonderful album.

Sithonia are one of the few still active bands and there is a good chance that Divae will
release a second album soon.

[the winter tree]

Was that Robert Wolfe's label, or the one related to Bananamoon?

It was the infamous Robert Wolf's label.

[TheH]

I think Barrock had two albums. Female-led band from Italy, right? Haven’t heard either (nor the similarly-fêted Tale Cue).

Tale Cue are still one of my favourites, awesome album.

[emperorken]

Tale Cue are still one of my favourites, awesome album.

I like the Tale Cue album also- great compositions. I find the female singer a bit challenging, though.

[TheH]

I like the Tale Cue album also- great compositions. I find the female singer a bit challenging, though.

I totally love her ANGST ladden singing style, not being a native speaker might help to look
over her not so "perfect" English.

[Kai]

Providence and Il Berlione from Japan, Sepsis from Russia and Tiemko from France.

From Japan, I think Mongol's Doppler 444 and Zypressen's only release would also qualify, though I think Mongol's album is still in print and does get an occasional mention. Anyway, a great mixture of zeuhl, fusion and symphonic. Zypressen is quite good, too, sort of like Art Zoyd on happy pills.

I came to Tiemko quite late, which is a shame, as they have an interesting approach. Ocean and Parade are both strong though somewhat uneven, the first more expansive in the Arachnoid-in-the-80s kind of way, the latter a shorter, more fragmented take yet more accessible. I particularly like their way of using synthesizers. Those "cold" digital tones give the music a unique flavour.

[Paulrus]

I've got a ton of CDs from these kinds of bands. Some from the SF Bay Area include Maximum Indifference, Puppet Show, High Bird, Metaphor and Haunted by Waters. Then there was Blue Shift, a one-shot band from LA who put out a great Yes-ish album called Not The Future I Ordered.

[Kai]

Tale Cue are still one of my favourites, awesome album.

I remember liking "Choices" when I heard on Musea's compilation. However, when I got the album (admittedly, only about eight years ago, by which time I had moved on), the only other track that I found succesful was the closer "Pale Light of Morning". Certainly, the playing and the vocals have some angst and intensity, but I find the composition lacking.

[Sputnik]

I find the composition lacking.

Yeah, I checked out the Tale Cue sample posted above. The composition really did nothing for me, and I also wasn't blown away by the singer.

From Japan, I think Mongol's Doppler 444 and Zypressen's only release would also qualify, though I think Mongol's album is still in print and does get an occasional mention. Anyway, a great mixture of zeuhl, fusion and symphonic. Zypressen is quite good, too, sort of like Art Zoyd on happy pills.

I resisted mentioning the Mongol, feeling that one still gets some attention, particularly in threads where Kenso comes up. But definitely worth a mention, and your description is a good one.

I'm not familiar with Zypressen, though I remember the name. I'll check them out.

Bill

[TheH]

^^

The Zypressen Album is really worth checking out.

[JKL2000]

Don't forget Episode.
Or do...

[Scrotum Scissor]

The Zypressen Album is really worth checking out.

They were protegees of Chihiro S., a very versatile but eccentric multi-musician known for several production inputs and his own bands Lacrimosa and Golden Avant-Garde, both rather experimental stints in the "chamber-prog" vein. I personally think the Zypressen album was the greatest 90s Jap avant-progressive thing next to Tipographica, Happy Family, the first Bondage Fruit and Tatsuya Yoshida's various projects (and boy, was that a seriously extensive scene!). Highly original writing and arrangements; like a lost Nippon Cuneiform-artist of sorts. I cherish that record.

But it is, AFAIK, very difficult to track down nowadays.

[Morpheus]

Regarding little known 90s Japanese albums, I am particularly fond of the one off from P.O.N. Featuring Kido Natsuki of Bondage Fruit and Korekyojinn.

[Scrotum Scissor]

Regarding little known 90s Japanese albums, I am particularly fond of the one off from P.O.N. Featuring Kido Natsuki of Bondage Fruit and Korekyojinn.

In some circles though, this release is near-legendary! One of the most profoundly challenging albums of "out-rock" music I ever heard! THIS would truly be something for AltrOck to have reissued...