Progkast #48 - June 4, 2024

1) Dosch - Elves 0.00
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2) Himmelsgrans - The Long Dreaming Days are Over 6.16
3)Jef Bek - Riptide 11.14
4) Heavenly Vine (with Les Johnson) - Illuminate 25.36
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5) Floxyde - Clockwork Brain Disorder 32.49
6) Seven Reizh - The Middle Path 40.16
7) Izmatik - Cosmic Drama 50.12
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8) Sudler's Row - Rebirth 55.26

Progkast - 48 - June 4 2024

When I was young
so long ago
How could I
ever know
what roads I would travel
I’ve had great times
I’ve had great pain
and I’d do it all again
If time I could unravel
When I was young
so long ago
How could I
ever know
what roads I would travel
I’ve had great times
I’ve had great pain
and I’d do it all again
If time I could unravel
But the path ahead
is shorter now 
than the trail I’ve left behind
but there’s no turning back
I have to keep going
to the fate of all mankind
I’ve had great times
I’ve had great pain
and I’d do it all again
If time I could unravel
When I was young
so long ago
How could I
ever know
what roads
I would travel

When I Was Young So Long Ago

2024 Remaster version for full album release in 2025.
 
This final track of the album acts as a bookend to the project, departing via the causeway after arriving over the sands in the first track, 'The Pilgrim's Way'.

The idea behind this piece is exploring the duality of the causeway and of Lindisfarne itself. Sometimes the causeway is below the water and sometimes above. Lindisfarne is in turn an island cut off from the modern world, then reconnected for a while before the cycle repeats itself.

Connection versus isolation, spiritual versus material, water and dry land in balance, governed by the ever changing tides. Even the concept of the water itself somehow holding echoes of past times and the call of of the natural world. This last idea is also a convenient way to reprise some of the 'Foley' sounds from the rest of the album, a worthy goal for the last track of this project. This piece is truly eclectic in nature so please enjoy the journey.

This track is now part of "The Pilgrims Way Project" exploring the history and natural world of Lindisfarne.

Project Playlist
soundcloud.com/mrbouzouki/sets/the-pilgrims-way-project

Project Website
www.pilgrims-way.co.uk

Photo by Paul Everitt ... "an early morning golden hour" of the Causeway. (used with permission). As I said to Paul "This picture of yours just seems to capture the spirit of the piece I'm creating".

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Instrumentation

Causeway Dreams features strings, cello, alto flute, C flute, French horn, English horn, alto F whistle, harp, DADGAD acoustic guitar, piano, St Peter's choir, Shevvanai, timpani, Northumbrian smallpipes, bodhrán and water pumpkins. Also including vocal phrases from Shevannai and Voices of Gaia (Linda Strawberry).

Additionally, various 'Foley' sounds including featuring ones from other tracks of the project.
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Background

When composing instrumental music you can often find yourself separating a piece into various thematic sections to create a journey for the listener. 'Causeway Dreams' breaks down into six sections. One of them is very short, (A Meeting of Worlds) but this crucially acts as a musical nexus or balance point in the music,

1) Into the Depths
The journey begins by plunging the listener below the water of the covered causeway, an alien world where the natural world, history and spiritual feelings all fuse together in the restless sea. The power of the sea is very much a feature in this first section. There is peril for the unwary, man cannot control this element of nature, only react to it's moods.

2) In a Place of Wonder
This lighter section featuring harp and flute introduces a feeling of wonder as you remain below the water with the creatures that call the sea their home.

3) Island Echoes
Still below the water you begin to hear echoes of 'Foley' sounds from previous tracks in the project brought together in this underwater realm, suggesting a merging of history and nature, an 'island memory', captured in the surrounding water of the island. At the end of this section you begin to ascend back towards the emerging causeway.

4) A Meeting of Worlds
As you emerge from the water you are in that moment of balance between the two worlds. The voice you first heard in 'The Pilgrims Way' is ready to lead you home.

5) Travelling Home
As the sea finally recedes, the rolling feel of acoustic DADGAD guitar and low whistle feature to lead the listener as you travel across the now fully uncovered causeway back towards the Northumbrian mainland.

6) The Call of the Coast
As you travel further along the causeway, you hear the sound of Northumbrian pipes over a boisterous bodhrán backing. The mainland is calling to you but the voice you first heard in the Pilgrims Way soars as a final reminder of this special place.

Causeway Dreams - 2024 Remix and Remaster

Taken from the 'Beyond the Veiled Horizon' series of tracks

https://soundcloud.com/mrbouzouki/sets/beyond-the-veiled-horizon-series

Dee Zee and Mr B YouTube Channel 

https://www.youtube.com/@DeeZeeandMrB
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This track is part of an ongoing SoundCloud collaboration with accomplished keyboard player and Prog Rock enthusiast Dave Zeitlin.

Be sure to check out more of his music here :- @dee-zee

Once again, one of his instrumentals entitled "Beyond The Veiled Horizon" conjured up some imagery that inspired me to try and add something to his original track. I was thinking 'Ethno-Prog' mixing Prog Rock with a World sort of feel. 

The title and music suggested to me the mysterious world of a desert landscape with it's rhythms and music and I had the famous Led Zeppelin 'Kashmir' in my head too. John-Paul Jones added a strings arrangement to that track and I thought I could try something similar.

Since it's Prog Rock I wanted to get my electric guitar out and I feel I came up with some phrasing and a scale that works for the idea. I particularly like the solo section at the end featuring Dave. I didn't want to tread on his toes so I went for more melodic held notes and panned myself hard left and right to keep the separation. 

I used a fair amount of more exotic instruments from various parts of the world. The Persian Ney, Kavali - an End Blown Flute and percussion from ancient Greece and the fairly rare Indian Kanjira that is like a small tambourine. A bell tree, cymbal and water pumpkins were added into the mix too.

Finally, I sang in some vocal lines that I felt helped add to the immersion after doing a bit of research about Moroccan vocal phrases. You can buy VST instruments with samples of them but I thought it was more fun to sing in my own and have more control over the finished article as a result.

Be careful out there ... who knows what you might discover.

Instrumentation 
Drone - Dee Zee
Drone and Chords - Dee Zee
String Synth Intro - Dee Zee
Brass-Like Synth - Dee Zee
Percussion Organ - Dee Zee
Main Synth - Dee Zee
8-bit Pattern - Dee Zee
High Voice Synth - Dee Zee
80's-Style String Chords - Dee Zee
Drum Kit - Dee Zee
Guitar-like Riff - Dee Zee

Seistron Percussion - MrBouzouki
Bell Tree - MrBouzouki
Kavali - End Blown Flute - MrBouzouki
Ney - Persian End Blown Flute - MrBouzouki
Shaker Percussion - MrBouzouki
Kanjira - Indian Hand Drum - MrBouzouki
Water Pumpkins - MrBouzouki
Strings (VSL Appassionata Violins) - MrBouzouki
Electric Guitar - MrBouzouki
Cymbal - MrBouzouki
Ending Hits - MrBouzouki
Sung Vocal Phrases - MrBouzouki

Beyond the Veiled Horizon - in collaboration with D Zeitlin

ALL vocal sounds were synthesized.  All hardware instruments.  This song was inspired by the synthy soundtracks of '70s-'80s horror/sci-fi films.  Special thanks to my good friend, Allan Abrenica, for performing the guitar solos I composed.  Check him out soundcloud.com/lost-ph & https://soundcloud.com/ageara/tracks.  No one was bitten during the making of this song.
-

💀 ZOMBIES 💀 (inspired by '70s-'80s Horror/Sci-Fi movies 🎬)

Taken from the 'Beyond the Veiled Horizon' series of tracks

https://soundcloud.com/mrbouzouki/sets/beyond-the-veiled-horizon-series

Dee Zee and Mr B YouTube Channel 

https://www.youtube.com/@DeeZeeandMrB
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This track is is part of an ongoing  SoundCloud collaboration with accomplished keyboard player and Prog Rock enthusiast Dave Zeitlin.

Be sure to check out more of his music here :- @dee-zee

Dave had worked on an outline track for this with fairly ominous chords building into the actual storm section. It did sound quite stately rhythmically and in my head I could hear more of a driving pulse to reflect an oncoming storm and the storm itself.  The addition of more of an Eastern pulse utilising Darbuka and Rik in the early part and Davul in the ending added the feeling I was looking for. 

Some orchestral brass was added to the start of the storm section which gave it a bit of majesty and I also added a bit of string ensemble too.  I've often used the 'Eduardo Tarilonte', Shevannai vocal VST library in my music. The pure tones of 'Lara Ausensi' are perfect to add an element of mystery to a piece like this. 

Oud (a Middle Eastern short-neck lute) and Ney ( Persian End Blown Flute) add melodic interest and colour to the early part of this track. Use is also made of a Kanun (Qanun) a Middle Eastern stringed instrument, a type of zither.  This appears just before the storm hits. 

Dave had already supplied a solo section and I added some early electric guitar that morphed into more of a supporting riff when his solo started. It worked well that I could bring together electric and synth at the end of the storm alongside a final slightly dissonant chord on the brass. 

The overall piece is very much a weird hybrid of Eastern influences, Prog Rock and Orchestral instrumentation. I think we managed to capture some energy in this piece ... I  hope others think we did too. :-)  

Instrumentation

End Chords - Dee Zee
Lead  Synth - Dee Zee
Main String | Brass Chords - Dee Zee
Echo Chords - Dee Zee
Early Fx - Dee Zee
Piano Chords - Dee Zee
Block - Dee Zee
Timpani Pattern - Dee Zee 

Chris Hein French Horn Ensemble - MrBouzouki
Chris Hein Low Brass Ensemble - MrBouzouki
VSL Epic Horns - MrBouzouki
Chris Hein String Ensemble - MrBouzouki
Shevannai Vocal Library - MrBouzouki
Darbuka - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Rik - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Electric Guitar - MrBouzouki
Oud - MrBouzouki
Ney - End-blown Flute - MrBouzouki
Kanun - MrBouzouki
VSL Timpani - MrBouzouki
Albion Orchestra (Phasing Octadrone) - MrBouzouki

Into the Sandstorm - in collaboration with D Zeitlin

In another time another place
We measure our progress through our disgrace
And danced in the halls knew who we were
Escaped the race and gave it away

Now we are set and running late
Hard to believe we lived so free
Bent in the way -the branch swings
Caught in the grace of the Byzantines

Mosaic of color helps escape
The beauty of art starts taking shape
Inspiring those from under its wing
this modern world is fleeting 
remembering days of creating
Byzantine dreams run through my head
Sometimes  I live there instead
 Beautiful locks of abstract gold
Perfect icons and frescos 

Living off the dreams of the Byzantines

Dreams of the Byzantines

Taken from the 'Beyond the Veiled Horizon' series of tracks

soundcloud.com/mrbouzouki/sets/beyond-the-veiled-horizon-series

Dee Zee and Mr B YouTube Channel 

https://www.youtube.com/@DeeZeeandMrB
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This track is is part of an ongoing SoundCloud collaboration with accomplished keyboard player and Prog Rock enthusiast Dave Zeitlin.

Be sure to check out more of his music here :- @dee-zee

Ever since hearing the Armenian Duduk (a double reed instrument) in Narnia and Dune, I've wanted to include it in one of my pieces. This project with Dave gave me a perfect time for a slower piece of music set around a night at an oasis. We didn't want it to be just that, so we did decide to add in a dance section too in the middle of the piece. 

I had the idea of a traveller arriving at an oasis as the sun falls and pouring himself a cup of water.  Then after watching a dance there is the sound of two cups being filled and a female laugh, once again to the sultry sound of the Duduk and Strings. 

It is Ethno Prog though, so Dave got to work creating synthesiser parts as part of the dance section. I added in various rhythmic elements including Darbuka, Riq, Cymbals, Clapping and a Vocal part. I wanted to keep an eastern feel so I decided to use the Oud to add quasi bass guitar lines to the dance section of the piece. 

I feel all the disparate elements came together very well in the end and it drops the listener into the moment. 

Instrumentation

Intro Synth - Dee Zee
Arpeggio Synth - Dee Zee
Main Solo Synth - Dee Zee
Echo Lead Synth - Dee Zee

Pouring Water FX - MrBouzouki
Female Laugh FX - MrBouzouki
Bell Tree - MrBouzouki
Low Pedal (Smart Spheres) - MrBouzouki
Duduk - MrBouzouki
VSL Appassionata Violins - MrBouzouki
Full of Feeling Strings - MrBouzouki
EE Rhythm - MrBouzouki
Darbuka - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Cymbals - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Rik - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Clapping - MrBouzouki
Vox FX - MrBouzouki
Tam Tam - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Con Sordino Strings - MrBouzouki

A Night at the Oasis - in collaboration with D Zeitlin

Deleted scenes, momentary gods, dreamless sleep
I don’t believe what’s true 
I don’t know what’s true
I just believe what I hear most often
It’s the storm that clears the noise
It’s the storm that clears the noise
But I’m not the storm 
I am the sky
No, I’m not the storm 
I am the sky
Whispers shape worlds
Whispers shape minds
Whispers shape worlds
As the future unwinds
Lonely nights, weary world, hear the cities symphony, 
The more I walk a path the more visible it becomes
But If I don’t change direction, I may end up where I’m going
It’s the storm that clears the noise
But I’m not the storm 
I am the sky
No, I’m not the storm 
I am the sky
It’s the storm that clears the noise
But I’m not the storm 
I am the sky

It's the Storm that Clears the Noise

Taken from the 'Beyond the Veiled Horizon' series of tracks

soundcloud.com/mrbouzouki/sets/beyond-the-veiled-horizon-series

Dee Zee and Mr B YouTube Channel 

https://www.youtube.com/@DeeZeeandMrB
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This track is part of an ongoing SoundCloud collaboration with accomplished keyboard player and Prog Rock enthusiast Dave Zeitlin.

Be sure to check out more of his music here :- @dee-zee
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Expedition Journal

10th June
The hieroglyphs are faded and unclear, but the riddle might be solved.

15th June 
A secret entrance, long buried in the sands of time, finally a way inside the Sphinx.

16th June
We hear the sound of an ancient mechanism and an opening appears. Stepping inside, we discover chambers of wondrous size and form, but all are empty. Our flickering torches show air still moves inside this wonder of the ancient world.
 
Suddenly we find ourselves in danger and running for a possible exit. A mechanical sound of rock sliding over ancient rock. We barely escape with our lives.

17th June
Our entrance and hurried exit are both now fully sealed from intruders. There will be no second chance.

Flying away in the helicopter, the enigmatic Sphinx looks on.

As it always has.

As it always will.

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Dave had worked hard to create a great template of ideas in a fully realised track. Whilst thinking of the title the idea was formed of making it an almost 'Indiana Jones type adventure' with explorers finding a secret way into the Sphinx. This resulted in the journal entry above to set the scene. 

I spent a fair bit of time getting the Phrygian Dominant scale under my fingers for the electric guitar work to contrast Dave's sinuous, winding synth lines.

The end result hopefully does lead the listener on the adventure, with a grand start, a way inside, wonder, peril then danger, before a hurried escape by a different exit as the Sphinx defeats the intruders and seals all the doorways forever. Finally a tiny reprise featuring a departing helicopter closes out the track.

Instrumentation

Low Drone - Dee Zee
Sinuous Synth Lead - Dee Zee
Low Pulse Synth - Dee Zee
Drum Ostinato Pattern - Dee Zee
Shimmer Synth - Dee Zee
Warm Rise Synth - Dee Zee
High Solo Synth Lead - Dee Zee
High Pedal Synth - Dee Zee
Ending Synth Lead - Dee Zee
Choir Synth - Dee Zee

HALion Spacious Strings - MrBouzouki
VSL Altair Strings - MrBouzouki
HALion Easy Modern Funk Bass - MrBouzouki
Electric Guitar - MrBouzouki
HALion String Swells - MrBouzouki
VSL Timpani - MrBouzouki
HALion Thunderstrom (Door FX) - MrBouzouki
Sliding Stones / Gear / Chains FX / Helicopter - MrBouzouki
HALion Odyssey Synth - MrBouzouki
Darbuka (Percussion) - MrBouzouki
Tombak (Percussion) - MrBouzouki
HALion St Peter's Choir - MrBouzouki

The Riddle of the Sphinx - in collaboration with D Zeitlin

Taken from the 'Beyond the Veiled Horizon' series of tracks

soundcloud.com/mrbouzouki/sets/beyond-the-veiled-horizon-series

Dee Zee and Mr B YouTube Channel 

https://www.youtube.com/@DeeZeeandMrB
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This track is part of an ongoing SoundCloud collaboration with accomplished keyboard player and Prog Rock enthusiast Dave Zeitlin.

Be sure to check out more of his music here :- @dee-zee

In my head I had the idea of the bazaar in this track being a mixing of cultures, ideas and the buying and selling of goods. Despite the heat, it is a place that never truly sleeps although it's mood changes throughout the day and into the evening. A meeting of minds, cultures, jarring, exciting and exotic.

With that in mind I thought of an initially busy track with discrete sections to denote different parts of the bazaar that also changes from day into evening. 

I created a basic intro and then let Dave weave some of his keyboards into the mix. I then set to work on trying to give the idea of entering new parts of the marketplace and in the end a simple tam-tam crash seemed to work well to suggest a new vista or mood as the listener moves through the track. Different darbuka rhythms really helped here and also changing up the featured instruments. 

The later part of the track is hopefully suggesting later in the day, as the temperature decreases and many vendors shut up shop for the day. But it never truly closes so the outro reprises the initial riff as it fades out.

Instrumentation

Rise Synth - Dee Zee
Brass Patch - Dee Zee
Sinuous Synth Lead - Dee Zee
Echo Synth - Dee Zee

Electric Guitar - MrBouzouki
Bass Guitar - MrBouzouki
Bowed Strings - HALion - MrBouzouki
VSL Celestial  Strings - MrBouzouki
Middle Eastern Strings - MrBouzouki
Ney - MrBouzouki
Kanun - MrBouzouki
Darbuka 1,2 and 3 - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Tam Tam - Percussion - MrBouzouki
Kanun and Oud Duo - MrBouzouki
Voltage Synth - HALion - MrBouzouki

Welcome To The Bazaar - in collaboration with D Zeitlin

Progkast, the all independent Prog Rock podcast, will be leaving Soundcloud, as the podcast is no longer completely publicly funded.  Progkast - is on Patreon at www.patreon.com/julsprogkast. It is through patrons that Progkast has been able to continue for the past several years. Please consider donating through Patreon, or pm me for email address to donate personally. Thanks! 

Progkast features independently produced/distributed artists as well as some artists on small record labels.  This includes sub-genres of Prog including Lo-Fi, Psychedelic, Symphonic, Metal, Fusion, Medieval, Electronic, and Experimental, amongst others. 

Please like and or follow Progkast and Prog Rock Nation (all encompassing Progressive Rock radio show) on Facebook, Mixcloud, and Youtube, or your favorite podcast distributor. Follow on Facebook for updates, show times/changes and special announcements. :D 

Progkast is produced, curated, and hosted by Julie Sanchez, curator/host/DJ also of Prog Rock Nation (exclusively on Mixcloud), and former Freeform DJ at KUNM, Albuquerque, NM, and KTAL-LP, Las Cruces, NM.

Artists, please feel free to send your music for consideration on Progkast and Prog Rock Nation :D

Progkast - 48 - June 4 2024

Progkast

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