Mostly Autumn is one of those groups that I keep waiting for to make that earth shattering breakthrough album. I'm still waiting, but I have faith. How say you?
Mostly Autumn is one of those groups that I keep waiting for to make that earth shattering breakthrough album. I'm still waiting, but I have faith. How say you?
To be or not to be? That is the point. - Harry Nilsson.
You missed it. It was "Passengers".
I'm with you, but Passengers didn't set the prog world on fire.Originally Posted by rickawakeman
To be or not to be? That is the point. - Harry Nilsson.
Maybe Mantra Vega can do what MA couldn't. I checked 'em out on YT last night and was pretty impressed.
I've only listened to a few songs a friend played for me but I will check them out more fully in future.
To be or not to be? That is the point. - Harry Nilsson.
Yeah, MA kinda faded somewhat after "Passengers". I know I haven't paid too much attention to them since then, even with me still enjoying their early albums. I was happy that I was able to see them on my honeymoon over a decade ago, tho.
My love of them is more of a seasonal thing....
I was a really big fan of their earlier albums but I didn't think passengers was anything really special, I'd kind of lost faith but then they released heart full of sky which I thought would be THE breakthrough for them, I thought it was excellent. Unfortunately They followed it up with the pretty average (to my ears) glass shadows. The more recent dressed in voices was pretty good though. You certainly have to admire their work ethic they seem to be on the road a lot and put out a lot of product.
I'm mostly okay with them. Mostly.
"And your little sister's immaculate virginity wings away on the bony shoulders of a young horse named George who stole surreptitiously into her geography revision."
Occasional musical musings on https://darkelffile.blogspot.com/
<groan>
Regards,
Duncan
I have all their albums, and saw them live.
IMHO they were very good within their genre, the instrumentals were good, and of course Heather's female vox were great and she was easy on the eye. But I was quickly turned off when the male vocals started.
The guitarist / band-owner Brian Josh (?) was a solid musician but IMHO he wasn't a singer.
Regards,
Duncan
Yes, the elephant in the room was Josh's vox, but he is the leader of the band, so..
To be or not to be? That is the point. - Harry Nilsson.
I heard one album and thought of them as a sort of neo-prog version of Fleetwood Mac.
I'm holding out for the Wilson-mixed 5.1 super-duper walletbuster special anniversary extra adjectives edition.
The only album I have by them is "Last Bright Light" which I really like. Not sure why I have not explored them further though.
I like them, particularly when Heather Findlay was doing the lead vocals. And I agree, Passengers is their best release. They may not have lit the prog world on fire as StevegSr said, but who cares? They do some interesting stuff. My one gripe is that they didn't give Anne Marie Helder nearly enough to do in her time with the band. But I guess the good news from that is she was free to move on to Karnataka and now Panic Room.
MA are a band I always WANTED to like. On paper they look like a fantastic prospect - a band that combines acoustic elements with electric instruments and female vocals that presents the potential for a comprehensive reboot of the kind of music made by Tull/Fairport/Steeleye back in the day: what's not to love? They're also from the beautiful city of York, my current home when I'm in the UK, which also should, in theory, make me distinctly well-disposed towards them. In reality, however, I've always felt that the whole is considerably less than the sum of the parts. On the two occasions I've seen them (I also own one of their 'best of' compilations) they've delivered mostly turgid arena rock that combines the worst aspects of Pink Floyd and Nicks-era Fleetwood Mac into a distinctly stodgy whole. This is a shame, as every now and then they'll introduce an acoustic dimension to their sound that hints at something more interesting below the sludge. However, until Bryan Josh ditches his Wall/Rumours infatuation it's never going to happen. I have to also say that MA have quite easily the WORST bass player I have witnessed in a professional rock band, which quite probably accounts for the plodding leaden feel of much of their music. It's kind of sad that, imho, there's clearly something there, but I don't think they'll ever realise it. Still, I guess they must be happy doing what they're doing, so what the hell do I know??
Last edited by kid_runningfox; 03-01-2016 at 10:56 PM.
Have all Their stuff and like them all. I think Olivia Sparnenn has done a fine job taking over for Heather. Mantra Vega didn't do too much for me. I was disappointed. Don't know why.
LOVE the first three albums, and Passengers was good as well. I love the warmth and Earthy feel of the first three in particular, great for a relaxing day or a long vacation drive. "The Last Bright Light", their third album I believe is their most solid album. I was a huge fan at that time. But they went down hill for me when Brian Josh stopped using analog recording equipment beginning with Passengers. They also stopped doing the progged up Irish jigs, which was one of my favorite parts of the band. Then enter a sterile new drummer, then a new keyboard player, then a new lead singer... I lost interest fast.
Based on what I've heard from them, when I was checking out this kind of stuff, I too felt they were kind of more like an AOR/melodic rock band than a 'prog' one. And I'm not one hoping for clichéd genre signifiers like flashy solos and time signature changes etc.
I also was somewhat put off by the aggressive 'is this the new Pink Floyd' marketing hype...even if the band themselves weren't necessarily to blame.
Named in some circles as "Mostly Awful", I feel they have sometimes been really bland, but all of their albums have some good songs. 'Go Well Diamond Heart' is a favourite, probably because it was on rotation in the car for a while.
I've seen them a couple of times, but I was most impressed by their performance at an early Bloodstock festival, when they played a very 'rocky' set and managed to fit in well at what was basically a heavy metal event.
they used to be a good band spoiled by Brian's vocals, but I think they've hit a dead end a couple of albums or so ago.
I thought they hit their peak with The Last Bright Light. A great culmination & refinement of what they'd been doing since the start. Passengers gave me the impression that they knew it was time to change, but didn't have a good feel for how, so they fell back on the usual Floyd formula with little tweaks. Storms Over Still Water and Glass Shadows felt like Bryan and Heather trying to juggle changing lineups, which didn't leave them much energy for anything but treading water music-wise. After that it wasn't really a huge shock when they finally split. I do remember thinking Diamond Heart was a strong way to bounce back, though I haven't felt drawn back to it much since it was new.
I haven't followed them much for a while now because they got so stuck in a rut, even if there's been some good stuff on every album I've heard. kid_r put it very well. They hit magic with that mix of folk, rock and that initial writing chemistry... then they kept drifting in the wrong direction away from their strengths.
Brian Josh's vocals, while not great, have grown on me over the years. Still, it was quite a shock getting their first album and realizing he did most of the vocals on there.
I do agree that they were probably a more interesting band back when Bob Faulds was in the band playing violin. They lost something when he left and probably increased the Pink Floyd thing they do.
I agree with all that.
Yeah, exactly.
The only one I have is The Last Bright Light , and it's OK, but I've never been moved to pick up any others. Folky with female vocals should be right in my wheelhouse, but this band fails to excite.
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