Cirrus Bay - Places Unseen

[mozo-pg]

I just picked this CD up this week. This is a tremendous album! Great vocals, sophisticated instrumentation yet highly melodic. This CD holds well against any progressive rock release I've heard in recent years. Where is my next step?

[progeezer]

Look for a post from "bill g" very soon. Greg!

I too have & really dig this album (& most of Bill's music).

I'll let Bill tell you the next step.

[abhorsen]

It is probably my favorite modern progressive rock release from 1990 on. Such a beautiful record.

[aith01]

It is probably my favorite modern progressive rock release from 1990 on. Such a beautiful record.

Wow!

I need to hear this one.

[Flightwave]

All of their music is fantastic. Very relaxing and melodic to my ears. Great stuff 👍👍

[moecurlythanu]

I looked at this one on Discogs. I was amazed to see that a Russian counterfeit exists.

[miamiscot]

Really good record.

[mozo-pg]

I'm happy to see there are others who are amazed by the quality of Cirrus Bay.

[noni]

All of their music is fantastic. Very relaxing and melodic to my ears. Great stuff ����

I agree!....

[progeezer]

C'mon Bill, help my friend Greg out on the Cirrus Bay road.

[Koreabruce]

I'm a fan of this band. I have everything they've produced, and the trend has been that each new release is better than the one that preceded it. Their music manages to push all of the right buttons for me.

[bill g]

I just picked this CD up this week. This is a tremendous album! Great vocals, sophisticated instrumentation yet highly melodic. This CD holds well against any progressive rock release I've heard in recent years. Where is my next step?

I'm so very happy you are enjoying it!!

Places Unseen is my personal favorite I think. If you want my opinion on my next favorite, probably 'A Step Into Elsewhere', and maybe 'The Search For Joy'. The other 2 are hit and miss for me. I was proud of the composition on 'Whimsical Weather', but the production is really hit and miss, I felt that one could have and should have been much better. And lastly, 'The Slipping of a Day' I had the stupid idea of progression-a day meaning, a life-childhood to late adulthood. So the first few tracks are inexperienced, not recorded in a studio, and a bit of a mess, and progressing to more all out symph in later tracks. So, needless to say, I don't think the first 3 tracks are very good at this point. Just my opinion. However, I think you get about 76 minutes or so with that one.

[bill g]

It is probably my favorite modern progressive rock release from 1990 on. Such a beautiful record.

Are you kidding me?? Thank you!!!

And thank you all for your kind words, we don't get much recognition or sales so the others will be very happy there are some that are enjoying it!!

[abhorsen]

You're most welcome! You should have much more of both recognition and sales. The quality of the music speaks for itself! What I enjoy most about Cirrus Bay is that I find the music you create to be utterly unique, which is a rarity in the prog-sphere since the 1980's. I was a little too young to see bands like Yes, Genesis and ELP in their prime but I loved the classic English and Italian prog bands from the 70's. The Germans (Eloy/Novalis) would come later! By the time I was old enough to go to gigs, Neo prog bands like Marillion and IQ were the rage if you were a prog fan. While I enjoyed those bands in the 80's and many since, most of what I hear in the progsphere can definitely be placed within the symphonic or Neo traditions that make obvious connections to music that was written almost fifty years ago. When I listen to Cirrus Bay I experience all the beauty of those earlier traditions but the music remains its own thing and contemporary sounding. You do an excellent job of mixing progressive and classical influences into this lovely pastoral blanket of pure joy and that's why I love Cirrus Bay.


On a more personal note, whenever I'm stressed with work or life, I can put on a Cirrus Bay album and chill with it for an hour with my eyes closed and by the time the record is done I feel pretty refreshed, as if my mind and body have travelled to the places pictured on the album covers. Your music has helped me through some difficult times and saved me lots on therapy bills, so cheers!

[mozo-pg]

I'm so very happy you are enjoying it!!

Places Unseen is my personal favorite I think. If you want my opinion on my next favorite, probably 'A Step Into Elsewhere', and maybe 'The Search For Joy'. The other 2 are hit and miss for me. I was proud of the composition on 'Whimsical Weather', but the production is really hit and miss, I felt that one could have and should have been much better. And lastly, 'The Slipping of a Day' I had the stupid idea of progression-a day meaning, a life-childhood to late adulthood. So the first few tracks are inexperienced, not recorded in a studio, and a bit of a mess, and progressing to more all out symph in later tracks. So, needless to say, I don't think the first 3 tracks are very good at this point. Just my opinion. However, I think you get about 76 minutes or so with that one.

Thanks for the helpful response Bill. I'll keep exploring. I hear a Cantabury influence in your music. I definitely hear some jazz influences.

[Sean]

I always thought the name of this band sounded like a brand of polo shirt.

Hi, Bill!

[progeezer]

I always thought the name of this band sounded like a brand of polo shirt.

Hi, Bill!

Sean, I'm speechless. What is the story (of your life)?

[bill g]

You're most welcome! You should have much more of both recognition and sales. The quality of the music speaks for itself! What I enjoy most about Cirrus Bay is that I find the music you create to be utterly unique, which is a rarity in the prog-sphere since the 1980's. I was a little too young to see bands like Yes, Genesis and ELP in their prime but I loved the classic English and Italian prog bands from the 70's. The Germans (Eloy/Novalis) would come later! By the time I was old enough to go to gigs, Neo prog bands like Marillion and IQ were the rage if you were a prog fan. While I enjoyed those bands in the 80's and many since, most of what I hear in the progsphere can definitely be placed within the symphonic or Neo traditions that make obvious connections to music that was written almost fifty years ago. When I listen to Cirrus Bay I experience all the beauty of those earlier traditions but the music remains its own thing and contemporary sounding. You do an excellent job of mixing progressive and classical influences into this lovely pastoral blanket of pure joy and that's why I love Cirrus Bay.


On a more personal note, whenever I'm stressed with work or life, I can put on a Cirrus Bay album and chill with it for an hour with my eyes closed and by the time the record is done I feel pretty refreshed, as if my mind and body have travelled to the places pictured on the album covers. Your music has helped me through some difficult times and saved me lots on therapy bills, so cheers!

You sound like a kindred spirit!! That is everything I hope to do, and what composing does for me personally. Thank you for sharing that and letting me know!! And good to know we don't sound overly derivative.

Thanks for the helpful response Bill. I'll keep exploring. I hear a Cantabury influence in your music. I definitely hear some jazz influences.

Probably so, I love a Canterbury influence, so makes sense that there'd be some of that here and there.

[bill g]

I always thought the name of this band sounded like a brand of polo shirt.

Hi, Bill!

I'm trying to visualize that! Unsuccessfully I might add.

It's supposed to convey something else

[LEG-art]

I just picked this CD up this week. This is a tremendous album! Great vocals, sophisticated instrumentation yet highly melodic. This CD holds well against any progressive rock release I've heard in recent years. Where is my next step?

Places Unseen is a fantastic album, that isn't afraid to mix the beautiful with the sophisticated. It gets better on repeated listenings, and vocals and instrumentation are top notch!

If you want to go beyond the Cirrus Bay canon, try Willowglass.

[bill g]

Places Unseen is a fantastic album, that isn't afraid to mix the beautiful with the sophisticated. It gets better on repeated listenings, and vocals and instrumentation are top notch!

If you want to go beyond the Cirrus Bay canon, try Willowglass.

Thank you! I do have only the first Willowglass, but never connected they could sound anything like us. I will have to check out later releases. It was Willowglass in fact that connected me to Lee Gaskins, the artist, which I used on Places Unseen and likely will on anything else I do, as I really love his artwork.

[abhorsen]

Ah! I love the cover art for the first Willowglass album. I didn't make the connection between that work and the artwork on Places Unseen, but I should have. I only know the first Willowglass album well. It's quite nice. More keyboard dominated compositions I would say compared to Cirrus Bay.

[bill g]

Ah! I love the cover art for the first Willowglass album. I didn't make the connection between that work and the artwork on Places Unseen, but I should have. I only know the first Willowglass album well. It's quite nice. More keyboard dominated compositions I would say compared to Cirrus Bay.

Yes that cover is outstanding, and was why I bought the cd without even hearing it! You're probably right about the keyboards, although my main instrument that I generally end up writing around is piano. (I have many solo piano pieces that may end up on a solo project one day, perhaps with added instrumentation) And then Willowglass doesn't embark on the type of chord sequences and key changes that ends up with our stuff, going for mood rather than that type of complexity. I'm glad for the reminder, I think I'll break out that cd today! And look into some of his others, too.