Masque

"It is summer and it's hot in California. For the recording musician it means that air conditioners are causing problems and are generally too loud. So, the musician can either sit on their ass and do nothing or simply switch gears and record an album with sounds that are louder than the air conditioners. This is what Henning Pauly decided to do when he realized that moving on to his rock-opera "Babysteps" was not possible right now. He called up the singer of the new band of his bandmates from Chain, Transmission, in Germany and asked if he was available. Juan Roos immediately said yes to the project, but he only had a two week window and it was two weeks from that phone call. Henning loves deadlines and so he started writing to have the album written and recorded, minus vocals, within two weeks.Henning describes Juan's voice as a perfect blend between Geoff Tate and David Coverdale: "Juan can give you the high stuff, but he can also be really raspy and rocky...his voice just kicks you square in the nuts!"Because of the very limited time frame for the conception and production of "Credit where credit is due" Henning asked his proven writing team to join in when it comes to lyrics and melodies, so Matt Cash is on board again, as are Edward Heppenstall and Jason McSheehy. Several songs on the album loosely deal with the world of rockstars, scandals and getting credit for what one has done. No need, really, to point out here that everyone involved will get credit where credit is due.The music is loud, heavy and realism has been shoved behind production value on the list of priorities. Heavy Industrial Drum sounds are interspersed with acoustic sets. The banjo finds its way into metal again and sometimes you can draw clear parallels to the work of Trent Reznor and Marylin Manson. There's more to it than just that, but the production is clearly more modern than anything Henning is done so far.This CD was about having fun with music and production and it gives Henning a chance to be back in the studio and have fun doing what he loves the most...making music, not talking about it."

Victor Peraino once again collaborates with Arthur Brown and the results are shockingly good.  The disc adheres to the old sound - Peraino is playing a variet of analogue keys - plenty of VCS 3, Hammond organd, Mellotron, Moog, etc. The music features a combination of original tunes, reworkings of some of their old stuff, plus a cover of "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood'.  The bonus DVD was filmed in Detroit in recent times."In the 70's Victor Peraino recorded on Polydor Records in England with the father of theatrical rock Arthur Brown, know for his million sell hit "Fire" Arthur Brown's Kingdom Come “Journey” was critically acclaimed as a landmark, in the music industry the first recording to feature a drum machine. Victor played keyboards. mellotron. moog synthesizer. vcs3, theremin & vocals on this ground-breaking album. After Arthur Brown's Kingdom Come disintegrated following the release of the wonderful “Journey”, US keyboard player Victor Peraino somehow retained the name, releasing No Man's Land in '75 under the name Victor Peraino's Kingdom Come, reissued by Black Widow in 2010. After about 40 years, Victor and Arthur decide to collaborate again, resurrecting the project Kingdom Come: in this new musical adventure, reproduce in a new guise some of the best songs included in "No Man's Land" (Demon of Love, Sun Sets Sail, Empires of Steel), take up the theme of the wonderful "Time Captives" from "Journey" turning it into a cross-section sidereal enriched by the magnificence of space keyboards, revitalize ina progressive key two old classics like "Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood" and "I Put a Spell On You "... but they also offer some brand new compositions (We Only Come to Help You, Future, the title track, Walk with Angels) deploying an odyssey of lovely sounds, underpinned by the omnipresent as ever presence of Mellotron, Moog, VCS3, in an uninterrupted flow of emotions."

"Men Who Climb Mountains 2019 is an updated version of the 2014 release. This version is the same as the one included in the First 40 Years box set and only now becomes available as a separate release double CD. All the drums have been re recorded by new drummer Jan Vincent Velazco, and the whole album has been remixed by Karl Groom and Nick Barrett."Disc 1Belle AmeBeautiful SoulCome Home JackIn BardoFaces Of LightFaces Of DarknessFor When The Zombies ComeExplorers Of The InfiniteNetherworld Disc 2 Live At TwigsThe VoyagerA Man Of  Nomadic TraitsThis Green And Pleasant LandNostradamusPaintboxKing Of The CastleIndigo FreakshowMasters Of IllusionSpace CadetEdge Of The WorldIt’s only MeOur original write up:Its been three years since the last Pendragon album.  To be honest I hadn't checked in on them in quite some time so it was interesting to listen to their latest - it was very different from what I expected.  Guitarist Nick Barrett has gone all Roger Waters on us - he wrote all the music and lyrics - so this really has evolved very much into a personal vehicle for him.  The usual bandmates of Peter Gee and Clive Nolan are on board and now joined by new drummer Craig Blundell.  Men Who Climb Mountains is a concept album but Barrett isn't spelling it out - you're going to have to work at this one.  The musical mission of the band has clearly changed over the years.  Don't have any hesitation - its full on prog but much more contemporary sounding.  The symphonic flourishes from the old days aren't quite so obvious - which isn't to say you won't notice Clive Nolan's presence.  Its simply that this is a bit more of a guitar driven vehicle than decades ago and Barrett's mournful solos have that nice Hackett-esque feel that always draws my attention.  I have to say I'm impressed.  Highly recommended.