Back in November 2019, Vincent Carr’s SUMIC released ‘New Paeans’, a complex album blending folk, prog, a touch of world music and a love of Mike Oldfield’s grandness. It was one of the year’s best DIY releases. It was certainly one that 90% of the internet’s prog community would have missed, being busy as they were, whining about the current line up of Yes.
Twelfth Night, one of the most beloved bands from the British prog revival movement of the 80s, have announced a pair of reissues, due for release shortly.
As a contrast to the ‘Progessive Pop Sounds’ sets from Cherry Red Records subsidary label, Grapefruit, this anthology from sister outlet Esoteric opts for something far more rock oriented, and although the four disc delve into 1970 doesn’t necessary dig too deep for obscurities, it still plays very well as a compilation in its own right. In a little over four hours, it serves up nostalgia, unfamiliar curiosities and enough genuine classics to give a solid overview of the year’s prog-leaning and guitar heavy sounds.
It’s a great time to be a Yes fan. Various members of the band’s extended family tree are incredibly busy right now. The band have announced the release of a new album, ‘The Quest’ due in October. In addition, Steve Howe will be releasing ‘Homebrew 7’ – another collection of home demos at the end of July and ex-keyboard player Tony Kaye is getting ready to release his first ever solo album.
It’s a great time to be a Yes fan. Barely a week after the band announced the release of a brand new album (‘The Quest’, due in October), guitarist Steve Howe has confirmed the release of a new volume of ‘Homebrew’, his ongoing series of archive releases.
‘Homebrew 7’ will be released via Cargo Records on July 30th, and will present fans with twenty one unreleased tracks which, as before, range from short instrumental sketches to complete songs. Often a fascinating look into Howe’s working practices, previous releases have given fans the early versions of GTR’s ‘Sketches In The Sun’ and the quirky ‘Bumpy Ride’, later to become an important part of the ‘Fly From Here’ suite. ‘Homebrew 7’ is said to not feature anything that has been issued in a different guise before, nor will it feature stuff that’ll be reworked in future, making it potentially the most vital ‘Homebrew’ to date.
A full press release and track listing can be explored below.