The brilliance of Steely Dan is the combination of jazz-rock and cynical storytelling lyrics. No one else does that, making them unique.

Great Focus moment: They were given a three minute segment to play "Hocus Pocus" on' The Midnight Special ' but the song was nearly Five. They didn't t trim the song, they just played it twice as fast! Live on TV!

The most accessible entry point for Henry Cow is the collaboration with Slapp Happy ("Desperate Straights"). - proper songs, with Peter Blegvad's amazing lyrics. Or if you're coming from a canterbury angle, take the debut "Leg End"

I love you mentioned Sylvia by Focus...I was 17 when I heard Bob Harris play that on Radio 2...if I hadnt heard that then, I don't think I'd be watching your channel 25 years later...a proper full circle moment

Hi Andy. I absolutely appreciate your channel. You're a breath of fresh air, mate. Thanx. Greetings and respect from South Africa.

Love you sharing your take on these bands! Everyone’s got a journey and it’s lovely to hear how some bands resonated at specific times for you. And others… well… they didn’t. We can all relate. Thanks mate.

Hocus Pocus starred as a jam with Akkerman's killer riff and then Thijs Van Leer improvised the yodelling as a middle 8, something he apparently had never done before. It was all a lighthearted bit of fun and not to be taken serious, at all!! And then it became a classic!!! There is so much humour in their music..... Another superb Dutch jazz fusion group of the era was Solution......incidentally Focus used a SOLUTION tune and renamed it as Tommy from their Prog/jazz/rock classic Eruption.

Yes Andy saw you in Leeds with DT absolutely packed 👍🏾.

Give Little Feat a listen. They mix country rock jazz and soul great tight musicians. Feats Don’t Fail Me Now my favorite record by them. Apple Music has then the guitar work on kid Charlemagne Steely Dan is phenomenal.

Amazing video. I was at the Leeds Dream Theater show, my favourite two bands at the time it was the perfect line up. I remember being so excited that you were back and when we walked in and i saw your kit my jaw hit the floor. Even better once you were all out there and one of the only times I've seen them where they didn't just blow the opening act out of the water. Even if the stage manager looked to be an 'interesting character' 😅

This was fun. I hope you you do more lists of bands you don’t like and know almost nothing about. Enjoyed it a lot thanks.

I really enjoyed this discussion. When I saw the title I immediately thought of several artists, most of whom you ended up covering. I was jazzed to hear you mention Henry Cow and to do so in glowing terms. I think their importance as social thinkers and activists in the music industry rivaled the importance of their music, which was substantial. The whole Rock In Opposition movement and Chris Cutler's Recommended Records sure opened up a whole new world to me. Incidentally, that quality that you find "twee" in Focus' music...I think that's the Dutch aesthetic you're hearing.

As a fan of Uriah Heep's 70-76 output, I've gotta say, you're missing something amazing. Their 71-73 output is unparalleled.

15:00 Salisbury is my favorite Uriah Heep record; that said Magicians Birthday is also magical.

Andy, just discovered your channel, you are a star!

Two things come to mind watching your video. I’ve heard the “magic“ that I hear in Prog music, specifically Genesis, Yes, Gentle Giant, referred to as “the fairy dust“. Always loved that. I believe that your description of the English aesthetic defines that perfectly. Also must agree that a band has to hit one at the right time to have certain kind of impact. I’ve recently discovered that Henry Cow / Fred Frith are what I need right now. Keep up the good work!

Outstanding video Andy, I'm glad you've got our backs. Everything you said here rings true. Although I do think the Tubes need more love. Listen to the live album.

Well bloody nora I never thought I'd hear a mention for one of my favourite films on a primarily music channel.

Focus was the FIRST band I saw live. Of 100s of concerts. Hocus Pocus was a big hit on the radio then (1973). They opened for the Guess Who, who already had about 7 top ten hits by then. I agree with you about Focus.

Very few live bands could match the musicianship and vocal performance of the Tubes. The professionalism of the band is often overlooked because of their over the top shows.

Andy gives a refreshing angle to "Bands that........." we either should like of must like because of their reputation, Thanks Andy for your opinions on these bands !!!

So happy you mentioned Henry Cow I saw Fred Frith and John Zorn play in a GARAGE on Ave C in Lower East Side of NY . It was 103 degrees and about 120 Decibels truly intense I got excited when you mentioned Bill Laswell And was curious about your feeling on the New York Downtown Jazz scene with bands like Mediski , Martin and Woods James Blood Ulmer Soul Coughing Lounge Lizards And the great Saxaphonists John Zorn and earlier James Chance and the contortions I hope you can guess from the above how I feel about Streely Dan and Phish Last but not least Big shout out to Ed Palermo’s Big Band

I think we are all hanging on in quiet desperation for your video on the English Aesthetic! Yes, please, Andy! A special on Uriah Heep would also go down a treat……….and can you name a song by Greenslade? 😊

It bites were a wonderful live band. Saw them a few times and they never disappointed. Loved their first three albums but maybe suffered from a bit of overproduction. Their live sound was killer!

Get your Focus point. What amazes me is that “Hamburger Concerto” the side long prog suite is seldom mentioned. Including two amazing Akkerman solo’s and a declamation of a poem by a famous Dutch Renaissance poet. Wild. Over the top and brilliant.

I needed something when I was incarcerated in an abusive boarding school, aged 13...and I heard the Yes album.

Redbone !! First Album (double album) is tunes with Jam. Lolly Vegas Guitar: Rock funk jazz lines. Early 70’s. Pete Depoe drums.. A worthy band and a worthy album. Later albums were more popish but this first live off the floor band is wonderful !!

Cheers Andy, I really enjoyed that. Just hoping that when you do your video on the English aesthetic, Big Big Train is mentioned in there somewhere. And even if you don't, I can't wait.

What about The Flock. No one talks about them. I love them, especially their 1st album. They where my introduction to jazz rock back in the 70s.

“What does the wolf represent?“ Lmfao!!! I would say that the same would probably apply for jazz fusion back in the 80s.

I understand your feeling about Steely Dan. They had a unique NY meets LA esthetic that grabs people very deeply if they are from America, but people in other parts of the world don't react the same way to the music. Kind of like listening to Andy Edwards talking about biscuits. Those of us in the US don't quite get it.

I really love these videos. I always get to hear about a couple of bands that I still haven't checked out. Gonna check out Henry Cow and It Bites sometime soon. BTW, I've asked for your opinion on Phish twice before, and both comments seem to have gone unnoticed. So, I hope you'll read this one. 😉 Keep up the good work. Love your videos. Cheers

Funny! In 1972, I was 14 ("my" bands were LZ & Purple)...and a huge fan of both Uriah Heep (everything with Thain is gold for me) & Stee!y Dan. CAN'T BUY A THRILL was definitely outside my then-steady diet of Hard/Progressive Rock. I just knew I liked it. And it has only gotten better with age.

Another 10 Artists that Andy Rarely if Ever Mentions on His Channel: E.L.O.; Godspeed You! Black Emperor; Happy The Man; Ian Carr/Nucleus; If; Paladin; Spock's Beard; Keith Tippett; T2; Wishbone Ash

"Nail on the head," the very phrase I was thinking of, and then you went and said it :) I might go and have another go at Henry Cow. I'm glad you mentioned how Genesis, Yes, Pink Floyd, have that deep ability to move you when listening. I don't know the Anton Walbrook speech, so will have to find it.

Who, Rolling Stones, Fear Factory, Nailbomb, Naked Raygun, OM.

The Tubes are like Rush or Tool, the main virtuoso is the drummer - Prairie Prince. Andy, check out his work in the track Pimp from the album Now! (listen to the drums, not the lyrics, which are overly dark). His drumming in that track still drops my jaw. Henry Cow - the most accessible tracks are on the live concert and the studio album, Leg End. To hear Steely Dan with their "hair ruffled", try their second album, Countdown to Ecstasy. Tracks like Show Biz Kids, Bodhisattva and, especially, King of the World are a long way from the sterile, super perfect funk of later albums. Focus is one of my all time favourite bands. For me, their most emotional tracks are Tommy (from Eruption) and La Cathedrale de Strasbourg (which I want played at my funeral).

That Tubes album must be Young & Rich. “Poland Whole” is worth a revisit off that.. like the Mothers crossed with early Steely Dan. “Get Overture” (instrumental) off Remote Control is another excellent track by them. I think they made more sense as a live act & like the Cramps they were both heavily influenced by Zappa/Mothers especially visually/conceptually.

Andy's right about Miles Davis being able to ruffle feathers to get musicians to play what's needed. John McLaughlin said that during a recording session, Davis walk up to him and said, play like you don't know how to play. BTW there's quite a few videos on KZfaq of the Williams Hammer band with a young Jordan Rudess on keyboards.

Listen to Your Gold Teeth from Steely Dan’s 2nd album Countdown to Ecstasy …. think you might enjoy it

I met a girl, Hungarian, in 1980, 5'1", a force of nature, in West Hollywood. She was the former girlfriend of Henry Cow's drummer. We hung out and had a good time. She was (is?) an amazing poet. Maura Manta, if you are alive call me.

I havn't seen every episode but I don't think you've ever mentioned 10cc ( or Godley & Creme ), maybe the Eagles, Poco , the Doobie Brothers etc

Early Tubes: Maybe just a track or two are worth a listen, but much of it hasn't aged well. My starting point for Tubes is Remote Control, and a number of albums that follow. I classify that later period as solid, with sharp compositions, clever arrangements, playing and singing.

re HEEP -It's funny you say they are one of the 4-I think Pete P from S of T said same recently and people wonder why -and it's understandable- perhaps underrated? -I bought Very 'Eavy on holiday in France ,aged about 14 ,based on the cover -only other Heep I had was that black live album 73 -dunno what happened to both -another smashing episode x

I had the pleasure to meet Pressburger's grandson Kevin McDonald in London, who is a director too; he gave me the DVD of Colonel Blimp: what a masterpiece!

Colosseum Live one of the best live albums ever!

The Focus/school thing: could you be thinking of House of the King from Focus 3, which was the theme tune for Don't Ask Me with Magnus Pyke?

You often (including in this video) tell us to tell you what you're missing so . . . Have you ever talked about The Enid? A breathtakingly brill group that got their start back in 75/76 with In the Region of the Summer Stars. Their first three albums are over the moon brill, give them a listen. Cheers!

Re Marillion, one man's "pedestrian" is another man's "tasteful" I suppose. 😄 I love everything from Renaissance to Henry Cow, but for me what I like about "Clutching at Straws" for instance is its sense of pacing and overall flow. It's not about how densely each bar is packed with polyrhythms, complicated chromatic harmonies or virtuosic soloing etc, it's about the overall melodic connection, the quality understated musicianship, subtle arrangements, space and integrity that give it that pervasive, downbeat atmosphere. And the lyrics are brilliant imo, some of the best ever in a mainstream rock context concerning alcoholism and addiction.

If you’re interested in Henry Cow you should really listen to the American band Thinking Plague. Sleepy Time Gorilla Museum is also essential listening.

I completely agree with your opening statement and I have said this before about needing to love Peter Hammill (for example) when you're 15 or you'll never get him. I agree with most of your list here. I tried hard to love Dream Theatre but everything I heard sounds like Machine Messiah but 10 years later, I don't see the point.

I forgot to mention Uriah Heep on your last video, glad to see you've included them. I didn't get into them at the time, I remember seeing the cover to High and Mighty and I'm asking a friend ab out them, his answers was : "they're ok" and that sorry of put me off. I've listened to more now and own a few albums now, a patchy career, buy having seen them twice recently, I appreciate their music of the now. Marillion I like, but not everything, probably more a Fish man than a h man, I love Steve Rothery's guitar work. When you consider what Yes, Genesis, ELP and Gentle Giant were doing in the 80's to survive, Marillion were eat better. I understand what you mean about Focus, however, that fusion of classical music, jazz and rock unjust love, Hocus Pocus blew my mind when I first heard it, totally bonkers. From Moving Waves to Hamburger Concerto, a classic run of albums. Dream Theater I'm ignorant of really, passed me by, I need to listen more to have an informed opinion.

Hey Andy, not sure if you've mentioned Hatfield in the North - if anyone carved out their own world musically, and made their own space in an imaginary world (an eternal English summer afternoon), they did.

I've recently found some Jan Ackerman solo stuff on yt. Whooooah!!!

Please, please, please do a video about The English Aesthetic. Pretty please.

I keep waiting for you to mention The Mars Volta

Brother, Merry Christmas and I love your channel. When I was studying jazz guitar, I slept on or snubbed many bands/artists as they just didn’t ring my bell at that point in my musical “development”. Thank god one of those bands WASN’T Steely Dan. I know you have a Brit prog/fusion sensibility , however, don’t sleep on the NY/LA vibe of Steely Dan. 🇨🇦👍

I think a video about Heep would be a good one, especially f you could get Russell Gilbrook on too. I think he's a fantastic drummer. Heep's (I think) original singer was David Byrne - a huge influence on many 70s front men including Freddie Mercury. Early Heep is well worth searching out. Demons & Wizards is an album I think you'd enjoy.

IMO The Tubes are one of those bands whose 'essential' or best album is the live one. What Do You Want From Live is great but the studio album version of the tracks pale in comparison e.g. I Was A Punk..., White Punks on Dope. Prairie Prince is a monster on the drums on this record.

Andy, just wondering if you’ve ever mentioned or featured the band “Happy The Man” ? Great late 70’s American prog rock band :) ✌️

I love that: "Perfection is the enemy of music!" That is why bands like Man were so great - they jammed!

I feel compelled to wave a flag for The Mars Volta. Good god, what a band. Exhilarating blend of styles darkly mixed. Check out Frances The Mute, Amputechture, or Bedlam in Goliath. Also! I have tremendous praise for Andy's own band, Rain. I've had the album Singularity in constant rotation. Any self-respecting prog fan must have a listen. So much to like there. I hope Mr. Edwards and company have at least one more album growing in the garden.

At last!!! FOCUS!!!! Probably my favourite band. I think you had to be there when they came out.....just like the Beatles...they came out of nowhere. I was there at The Rainbow when they recorded the album and video. They are among the most harmonically clever of all prog/fusion bands of the 70's....and they are still going touring the UK atm with their great young fusion guitarist Menno Gootjes. As regards Jan Akkerman just watch the Old Grey Whistle Test clips on you tube....he was phenomenal at the time! Unfortunately like a lot of artists, I think he lost his fire when he left the band. I can talk forever about them...... I am a complete Focus nut!!!!

I discovered Uriah Heep back in 2020 during the pandemic and fell in love with their style. Unfortunately a month later Lee Kerslake dies followed by Ken Hensley. I was devastated. They have become one of my most favorite bands. Easily in my top ten. “Salisbury”, “Circle of Hands”, “Sweet Freedom”, “Bird of Prey”, “Gypsy”, “Pilgrim”, “The Wizard”, “July Morning”, “Lady in Black”, “Rainbow Demon”, “Sunrise”, “Tales”, “The Magician’s Birthday” and so much more are fantastic songs. They are definitely an underrated band. Hall of Fame worthy in my opinion. The fact that to this day I can still find old bands that can become all time favorites at this point in my life proves it’s never too late to find great bands. I’m 43 and this band is before my time, but lately I’ve discovered bands that radio had forgotten and are now in my all time favorites list like Uriah Heep, Rainbow, UFO, Sweet, etc. are bands I recently discovered during the pandemic and am in awe of their greatness as well as ‘70s era Scorpions and the one prog band that really had found a fan in me, King Crimson. I’m new to prog, but I’m exploring that at the moment.

Thanks for sharing of thoughts on Henry Cow, Andy! I could not agree more. I just love the band and everything related to it - Fred Frith's solo career and many projects, Art Bears, The Work etc. But it is a difficult listening, an acquired taste (different from Trout Mask Replica, which was love at first listening and is my desert island album). I can't like Focus at all, but I just love their Fusak album Focun Con Proby - call me a pervert. Great video. Thanks!

God this is fun. I've got a Tubes album that I've listened to once,it was alright, I don't know which box of CD's its in and I'll never play it again. I do however play "Misplaced Childhood" now and then.

"Remote Control" is the Tubes album you should listen to! Produced by Todd Rundgren. "Countdown to Ecstasy" is a great Steely Dan album. "Pretzel Logic" is amazing too. "Black Sea" is an amazing XTC album. Better than "English Settlement" in my opinion. "Peeping Tom" is my favourite Michael Powell film.

You should explore XTC more thoroughly, it was the first & my main attachment to an 80s band (cut my teeth on early '70s music). Their first 5 albums leading up to English Settlement are each fantastic & represent an evolution of the band from more punk, through New Wave to a New Wave / Prog fusion. Partridge/Moulding were a great songwriting duo & they are never truly Prog but their songs are so complex as to be a sort of neo-New Wave Prog. Always a big Focus fan - Bert Ruiter's bass solo on Anonymous (from Focus III) was my first experience of a bass being played as a lead guitar. Moving Waves, Focus III & Hamburger Concerto are all fantastic. Mother Focus is the "muzak" album you mentioned. Actually quite good in a muzak sort of way ;-)

Yeah, I had the same reaction to Marillion. That song Kaylee was nails on blackboard to me and I never understood why they were considered prog at all.

When I was a kid Birdland by Weather Report was used as the theme for a TV show, anyone remember what it was? (UK)

Please get deeper into the whole English aesthetic topic... I'm not from the UK but I've been mesmerized by it all my life....also you mentioned in another video something about a quality that prog possesses ... Something that's missing from a , let's say, a miles David tune...a dark quality, a sense of gloom... Do you think The darkness and the gloom quality of prog overlap with their English aesthetic? I personally think they do... But I have a feeling you can elaborate on that a lot more....

10 Other Artists that Andy Rarely If Ever Mentions on His Channel: Art Zoyd; Barclay James Harvest; John Cale; Man; Ozric Tentacles; Procol Harum; Renaissance; Residents; Roxy Music; Univers Zero.

Guru Guru live 1978 -Double album

Absolutely right on Henry Cow.

Agree not many ladies at DT gigs

love XTC, came to them very late but love just about every album. Give Skylarking a go, a heavy sprinkling of prog on there.

If there's only one Tubes release you need to have, it's "What Do You Want From Live", in my opinion.

THe first Tubes is the one to own. Mondo Bondage, White Punks, etc

Totally agree with your feelings about Marillion, I found them to be Genesis without the style or panache. I’m a huge fan of Dream Theater but I do understand that unless you catch a band at the right time they can pass you by. Rush meets Iron Maiden is an excellent description of them. Keep it up as that was thoroughly entertaining.

Strife, Skid Row, Edgar Broughton, Groundhogs, Babe Ruth, Greenslade, Seventh Wave, week in week out all playing around the country great live bands And never heard you mention Edgar and Johnny winter

I am with you on most of these. Tried and failed to like. Except Steely Dan got it as a Christmas present in 1976 from my brother in law I only owned a dozen albums at the time so it went on rotation. It took years for me to recognise its genius when it did I was hooked have everything and have spent years playing the albums.

I'm not a big Dream Theater fan, but their instrumental piece The Dance of Eternity is an absolute masterpiece. Definitely worth checking out.

Instead of Pawn Hearts, given your musical history, I will suggest Nadir's Big Chance. It is a solo lp by Peter Hammill. It is my favorite piece by him.

Brilliant stuff again....I love Script for exactly the reasons you give, it was a moment in time that jolts the old noggin to carefree times - but that's the only Marillion album I have ...lots of bootlegs ect from the original Silmarillion days. However - would Nektar make it onto any of your lists? Absolutely loving this channel - and I would encourage all you cosmic travellers to check out Trees Speak..... ✌🏽🫶🏽🙏🏽

What’s your thoughts on Wishbone Ash. 😊

Nice video, I think we all have bands that we are into that you had to be there or they arrived at the time that you were looking for what they were doing. I think we also have bands that we really like but whenever it comes to listing your favourites you always leave them out and then look at your list and go 'why didnt I mention them?' I got into Marillion because I saw them a number of times at the old London Marquee during the summer of 82, I even argued with a flatmate that they werent a Genesis copy band - knowing full well that Grendel or at least parts of it, is a rip off of Supper's Ready. The gap they filled for me was that they were a band with keyboard solos, after a while the solos got less and less along with my appreciation for them. I dont dislike them just not a favourite -just prefer to listen to 12th Night and IQ. Dream Theater - a mixture of Iron Maiden & Rush sums them up perfectly for those earlier albums. Usually when you see a band live they make you want to buy their albums however after I saw DT live I went off them- main reason was James LaBrie's vocals- it felt like he was shouting rather than singing. Instrumentally they're fantastic but if I had to choose between going to see them or Sons of Apollo I think I'd choose Apollo. Focus - Sylvia was the one that did it for me way back in the early/mid 70's and then getting Focus 3 and playing it to death. Saw Jan Akkerman live in the early 00's and he was phenomenal, saw Focus live a year or so later, great but not quite as fantastic as Akkerman was. It Bites - I saw that same programme with Dunnery playing his white strat - before that I thought they were wannabe pop stars due to Calling all the Heroes, after that all albums bought & very disappointed when they split. Uriah Heep - one of my all time favourites - you'd never have won on the bus if I'd been there, and they are a band whose last four or five albums are every bit as good as the first nine or ten. Steely Dan - one of those love it when listening to it but woldnt necessarily go out of my way to choose to listen to it - though I agree Fagens Nightfly is a cracker. Colosseum - was first into Col 2 one of my favourite bands ever, then got into Colosseum after Greenslade reformed and played at the CRS in Rotherham (as I wanted to hear what Dave Greenslade had done prior to Greenslade) - have to say while I really like their music I was never a fan of Chris Farlowe's voice on the later albums, same with when he was in Atomic Rooster. The Tubes - all I know of them is White Punks on Dope and whatever I've seen on You Tube which I've enjoyed - I should like them but have never ventured. Henry Cow - just cannot get into it, I have tried but its just not my thing XTC - I've never got into them because I was turned right off them when they first came out - as I sad about Marillion above I lke a nie keyboard solo and nice keyboard parts, however I just did not get Barry Andrew's style and so I ignored them. I'll need t check out english Sttlement though as Andrews had gone by then and Dave Gregory, latterly of Big Big Train of course, had come on board.

Andy, you mentioned 4 cornerstones or founding fathers of heavy metal. Would you not include Iron Butterfly in that list? BTW I have a friend who just worships the Tubes - calls them geniuses. He loves The Tubes, Completion Backward Principle and Outside Inside. They never did anything for me. And I love Steely Dan myself. They are fabulous. I've seen them live several times; boy, they are amazing live. Carlock on drums!! On XTC, try Oranges and Lemons....

Lol about naming a Uriah Heap track Regarding The Tubes im curious about buying an album you didn't like. I think im a similar age to you and music shops selling lps of that era used to have listening booths ... didn't you give that try?

Freur to Underworld was an interesting migration. Heep were the club band version of Sabbath.

Prairie Prince Drummer of the Tubes is fantastic The Completion Backwards Principle Is a great Tubes album and Remote Control by The Tubes is great

Questions from a reading continental European worker Is the British aesthetic what great minds in the 18th century were racking their brains about? At the beginning of the gap between Purcell and Elgar?

Are you planning a list of solo artists you don't talk (much) about too? I don't recall a mention of Mike Oldfield, for one 😃 And he's an interesting character to discuss.

Have you ever mentioned Nucleus?

I just checked out Focus in YT - a 1974 live show...you mention Zappa and everybody after that sounds...not in the groove. Focus does an interesting impersonation of Zappa.

Andy Greeting from NYC Being Irish and having lived in downtown Manhattan for last 30+ years ( more on that later ) I am very excited about English Aesthetic video because the English and American music scenes evolved worlds apart ( pre internet ) BBC radiophonic workshop and Dr. Who theme was engrained in brain of everyone our age My idea of English Aesthetic and some bands to mention Kinks : Village Green Preservation Society of course the greatest example Matchstick Men , Matchstick Cats and Dogs : LS Lowrey song we all grew up with Status Quo : again Pictures of Matchstick Men The Great Ronnie Lane and Slim Chance , The Poacher The Mekons and Chubawamba Housemartins And of course Britpop Can’t wait for that video Great work

Hey, what are your thoughts on Tool and Danny Carey? Less albums than Dream Theater but perhaps even more popular. Even though to be fair they are not really similar.

Looooove The Tubes ! So idiosyncratic... That album is called "Young and rich". Several Tubes classics there. Favorite song out of it is Pimp. There's a kind of tension in some of their stuff I simply never listen anywhere else ( Haloes, Eyes, Pimp, Prime Time, etc ). And I now love 70s Steely Dan after only liking them for something like 30 years. Don't know why. But one key element to get them as they deserve to be, is to look at the photo at the back of my favorite album by them, Countdown to ecstasy. The one where Fagen looks like a total freak. The gap between their image there and the sophistication of the music is kind of, I don't know, striking and revealing. Like they were "possesed". Like real artists should be. The Tubes had that too.

I was at that Southampton gig in my Frost* t-shirt…I’m with you, I’ve tried to get into Dream Theatre but they just leave me cold, even seeing them a few times I just don’t get it, I wish I did, on paper they should be, Rush, Iron Maiden mix but I think it’s the Metallica and hair metal vibe that rules it out. Pocket Sun is one of my fave Frost* tracks, I must’ve watched that video hundreds of times, no wonder Dream Theatre picked up on it. I’m gonna throw in another band into the mix…King’s X. If you like groove, melodic, heavy rock then they’re up there. Not a massive band but very influential. They were arguably the first grunge band, they influenced nearly all the early nineties bands, Jeff Ament and Layne Staley have said what an influence they were.

Dream Theater used to advertise themselves as the heaviness of Deep Purple with the complexity of Yes. A noble quest.

Andy.... you need to give Big Express (XTC) and NONSUCH (XTC) a listen