What music are you listening to?

Many years ago, my cousin met the man she was to marry. Me, as a teenager, I was most impressed since he worked for A&M records! He was so cool and was also a drummer. One day, a large, square, stiff card package arrived for me, from him. In it were three LPs. The first was Sacred Heart by Dio. Sadly, I didn't much like it. The second was The Tubes by The Tubes. It was ok but not really awesome. The third, however, was different. When I played it I was blown away. It became one of my favourite of all time albums. The title of this wonderful gift? Crime of the Century by Supertramp! Forty-eight years later I still have it and play it often.

This offering is School.

Oo, cool. Love Supertramp, though I have not listened to them in a long time. Dreamers, Logical Song, Fool's Overture, all favorites back in their heyday. My brother had, IIRC, a live album by them plus Crime.

I have been enjoying this video. Israeli metal band Scardust with hurdy-gurdy master and vocalist Patty Gurdy. Symphonic metal+hurdy-gurdy is odd, but no odder than Nightwish having a uillean piper/flautist as a permanent member. And Patty has done it before so knows the territory.

Last night, whilst visiting my son and his family, we watched Tron: Legacy. It is a visually awesome film and the soundtrack by daft Punk is one of those which can be heard and enjoyed even without watching.

This track is Flynn Lives which is towards the end.

I think I probably saw the original Tron at some point (came out when I was in high school). Must have been one of the longest waits between original and sequel in modern Hollywood.

More Patty Gurdy

The new single from Lissie from her forthcoming album (September 22), Carving Canyons.

As mentioned in Inspirations, I caught Floor Jansen's dual performances at PinkPop Festival yesterday on livestream. Solo set, then with Nightwish 3 hours later. Amazing performances both of them. And she appropriately wore a lovely pink suit for the solo set.

A highlights reel from her solo show: "Fire" and "Storm", her first ever solo singles which both came out this year and her performance of Andrew Lloyd-Webber's "Phantom of the Opera" with Dutch stage singer Henk Poort, who she met and started working with in 2019 on the Dutch TV show Beste Zangers.

And I missed most of the Nightwish set, but did catch their performance of "Ghost Love Score", which is an amazing ten minutes of music that really gives Floor's vocal training a workout.

Quote by Mendalla

And I missed most of the Nightwish set, but did catch their performance of "Ghost Love Score", which is an amazing ten minutes of music that really gives Floor's vocal training a workout.

The very song that cemented Nightwish in my heart. Once is still their best album, in my humble opinion, which isn't to say that there is anything wrong with any of their others.

Quote by AnnaMayZing
Once is still their best album, in my humble opinion, which isn't to say that there is anything wrong with any of their others.

Oh, for sure. Once and Imaginaerum are probably my two favorite Nightwish studio albums just based on percentage of the songs on each album that I love. Among the live albums, I think I lean to Vehicle of Spirit.

Original Nightwish lead singer Tarja Turunen has gone down an interesting road for her latest project. She's teamed up with EDM musician/producer Torsten Stenzel under the name Outlanders, which features Tarja on vocals with Stenzel providing backing tracks and production. They also bring in various guest guitarists. This Depeche Mode song is one of two covers and has Vernon Reid of Living Colour on guitar.

Orchestra? Check

Choir? Check

Two powerful classically-trained voices? Check

Heavy metal band? Check

Yep, must be symphonic metal. The band is Epica and their lead singer Simone Simons is joined by her friend Floor Jansen for this performance of one of my favorite of their songs. The occasion was the band's 10th anniversary. They are still going strong and I watched a livestream of them performing at Hellfest earlier this summer.

This is a new release, today, from that great singer/songwriter, Lissie.

Her latest album, Carving Canyons is due out on September 16th.

Quote by AnnaMayZing

This is a new release, today, from that great singer/songwriter, Lissie.

Her latest album, Carving Canyons is due out on September 16th.

Beat me to it. Great song and I love her voice.

Hurdy gurdy in the 21st century sounds like something you'd find in bardcore or other medieval-based or inspired music. And Patty Gurdy does some of that. But she is also using it in some very good, interesting pop and rock music. Here she is live with her touring band doing one of her original songs.

And a recent collaboration with Israeli symphonic metal band Scardust (she's friends with the lead singer).

RIP Bernard Cribbins. A supremely talented actor.

Ghost's Impera may be my favorite album so far this year.

And there's power metal greats Blind Guardian, still going strong after nearly 40 years with lead singer Hansi Kursch in front for the whole time. Their new album is still pending, but the early releases have been terrific.

Another sad loss this week. R.I.P. Judith Durham of The Seekers. A wonderful singer.

And, of course, the ever lovely and talented, Olivia Newton-John. What a terrible week for music. Rest in Peace, Olivia.

Cry to Me - Solomon Burke

Your Love Is King - Sade

I like this new Robbie. His songs were good anyway but giving them an orchestral backing just adds that extra dimension.

Avantasia has been coming up in my Youtube recommendations for a while since the project is on Nuclear Blast, the same label as a lot of European bands I listen to (including Nightwish). I finally started listening and am quite hooked. It's the pet project of Tobias Sammet, a German guitarist and singer. The albums are generally concept albums (i.e. have a story) and are often in pairs or even trilogies. He regularly pulls in a list of other metal vocalists to join him on the albums. His latest single, for an album due out this fall, features Nightwish's Floor Jansen joining him on vocals. It is one of two songs she is featured on apparently. Previous vocalists have included Alice Cooper, Klaus Meine (Scorpions), Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation) and Floor's former Nightwish colleague Marko Hietala, as well as a stable of "regulars" who seem to be on all of the Avantasia projects.

Quote by Mendalla

Avantasia has been coming up in my Youtube recommendations for a while since the project is on Nuclear Blast, the same label as a lot of European bands I listen to (including Nightwish).

Not come across Avantasia until now, but I love this offering. I shall certainly be checking them out.

Here, though, is a track from Graveyard Star. The current album from the British band, Mostly Autumn. They are an independent, Prog Rock band that refuses to sign with a major label which I fully understand and support. They have been known to feature Troy Donokley of Nightwish.

My in car listening the last couple commutes has been the latest album from Swedish melodic death metal (the metal subgenres get a bit ridiculous at times) act Arch Enemy. I have been surprised by how much I enjoy this band, given that the vocals are mostly "harsh" aka "growling" from a singer who I know is also a very good "clean" singer, Montreal-born Alissa Gluz-White. But that seems to be my musical direction these days: listening to and enjoying music that wouldn't even have hit my radar even five years ago.

Another new release from Lissie, today. Sad. Erm, no, it's not actually sad. That's just the name of the song! 🤣

Quote by AnnaMayZing

Another new release from Lissie, today. Sad. Erm, no, it's not actually sad. That's just the name of the song! 🤣

I never post Lissie here because I know you'll take care of it. 😋

So how about pop punk redone as power metal?

Tommy Johansson plays guitar in the Swedish band Sabaton and sings and plays in his band Majestica. He's a fantastic guitar player but also an accomplished singer, arranger, composer, and producer. His solo covers are always a real treat, musically solid but often a bit tongue-in-cheek, too.

How about a step back in time? I loved this guitar solo the first time I heard it, 50 years ago! It still makes the hairs on my neck stand on end and sends a shiver down my spine.

It is an excerpt from the track Eruption, from the Moving Waves album by Focus. A really moving piece called Tommy played by Jan Akkerman.

Not listening per se, but this song by Within Temptation is earworming me something fierce.

Welcome to Jukka Koskinen, the now official bass player with Nightwish. Marko was a hard act to follow.

He took Marko's place whilst they toured, but now he is an official band member.

Here he is, at the Pinkpop festival in the Netherlands, June 2022.