"[]as talented as Neal is with themes, he also excels at writing memorable songs. Memorable songs are the core of Neal's prog albums, of course expanded and embellished and treated with complexity and dexterity--but memorable songs nonetheless. You will never finish a Neal Morse album and not walk away with a few hooks floating around in your head, and that includes this one. A great example is the title track, one of the singles they released prior to the album, available to check out on YouTube. Listen to that and you will hear a great song with excellent hooks--and of course the instrumental break will more than satisfy any symphonic prog fan.

The bottom line is I really love this album! And how does this stack up to 'Similitude'? It is at least as good, if not better! I didn't think that was possible going into it, knowing it was a sequel. But after living with this album for a while, I can safely say that this is one of the great ones, that I will never tire of listening and discovering. There's so much here to enjoy! Five stars (Gnosis 15/15)." T-PA

"Is 'The Great Adventure' a worthy follow-up to 'The Similiture Of A Dream'? Absolutely, but that is not the point. The point is that Neal Morse Band is a group at the top of its game, doing, with immaculate consistency and persistent innovation, what it does best – the creation of mellifluous but tough Progressive Rock, at its finest. Somehow, without repeating himself, Morse and the band continue to find new ways to feed our musical souls. Maybe that is the true definition of perfection." PN-TPR



Essential Track: "'The Great Despair' will rightly be regarded as 'the' big epic moment on the album. It reprises, without repeating, the emotion evoked by The Similiture Of A Dream's climax. It is the massive, expansive, sky-kicking apex, again featuring Gillette's spectacular vocals and another (but different) 'Oh Yeah', reminiscent of the now famous 'Come on!'." PN-TPR



Read the reviews on ProgArchives.

Listen to samples and buy the CD from Radiant Records or wherever Metal Blade music is sold.

---

Click on the following link for a complete list of bands that have played for the NewEARS Art Rock Series

---

2019-02-21
The Tubes at Tupelo Music Hall - Derry, NH at 08:00 PM
$40 - $45

2019-02-22
The Tubes at Greenwich Odeum - East Greenwich, RI at 08:00 PM
$55 - $61

2019-02-23
The Machine performs Pink Floyd: 30th Anniversary Tour - Wish You Were Here, Animals, and Dark Side Of The Moon plus an extended encore at Acedemy of Music - Northampton, MA at 08:00 PM
$25 - $35

2019-02-27
Alan Parsons Live Project at Chevalier Theatre - Medford, MA at 08:00 PM
$30 - $69

2019-03-01
The Wall Live Extravaganza: “The Greatest Floyd Show on Earth” at The Strand - Providence, RI at 08:00 PM
$35 - $45

2019-03-02
Alan Parsons Live Project at Foxwoods Casino - Mashantucket, CT at 08:00 PM
$35

2019-03-02
Keaggy, Levin & Marotta - The Bucket List Tour at LoFaro Center for The Performing Arts - Henniker, NH at 07:30 PM
SOLD OUT

2019-03-03
Keaggy, Levin & Marotta - The Bucket List Tour at LoFaro Center for The Performing Arts - Henniker, NH at 07:30 PM
$50 donation

2019-03-06
The Musical Box - A Genesis Extravaganza at Tupelo Music Hall - Derry, NH at 08:00 PM
$40 - $59

2019-03-07
The Musical Box - A Genesis Extravaganza at The Wilbur Theatre - Boston, MA at 08:00 PM
$35 - $50

2019-03-09
The Wall Live Extravaganza: “The Greatest Floyd Show on Earth” at College Street Music Hall - New Haven, CT at 08:00 PM
$30 - $45

2019-03-09
The Machine performs Pink Floyd: 30th Anniversary Tour - Wish You Were Here, Animals, and Dark Side Of The Moon plus an extended encore at Higher Ground Ballroom - Burlington, VT at 08:00 PM
$25 adv, $27 day of show

2019-03-10
Queensryche - The Verdict Tour at The Palladium - Worcester, MA at 08:00 PM
With Special Guests Fates Warning
$20.25 - $47.00

2019-03-13
The Wall Live Extravaganza: “The Greatest Floyd Show on Earth” at The Wilbur Theatre - Boston, MA at 08:00 PM
$35 - $50

2019-03-22
The Machine performs Pink Floyd: 30th Anniversary Tour - Wish You Were Here, Animals, and Dark Side Of The Moon plus an extended encore at Ridgefield Playhouse - Ridgefield, CT at 07:30 PM
$50 & $100 (VIP)

2019-03-29
Jon Anderson of Yes - 1000 Hands Tour at Lynn Auditorium - Lynn, MA at 08:00 PM
TBD

All Events ...>>

In what promises to be a master class in fun and musicianship, The LoFaro Center of The Performing Arts is proud to welcome Phil Keaggy, Tony Levin & Jerry Marotta to perform music from their new album, "The Bucket List", along with some surprises. This is a very rare and exclusive event, and the ONLY show in New England - this REALLY is one you DON'T want to miss, and is yet another coupe for The LoFaro Center of The Performing Arts!

The very influential guitarist Phil Keaggy has released over 60 solo albums, is a seven-time winner of he GMA Dove Award for Instrumental Album of the Year, and has twice been nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album.

My good friend, and drummer extraordinaire Jerry Marotta has an incredible list of people he's played with: Peter Gabriel, Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, Hall & Oates, Elvis Costello, etc. And of course, he performed at TLCPA in 2018 with the Security Project.

And what can I say...the one and only Tony Levin! Tony is one of the most influential bass/stick players in history, and has played on over 500 albums: Peter Gabriel, Cher, John Lennon, Paul Simon, David Bowie, Yes, Pink Floyd, Lou Reed, etc, etc, wow. I'm so glad he's able to make his debut at TLCPA because he'll be in between tours with his other band...ummm, King Crimson?? Not too shabby that 2/5ths of Peter Gabriel's classic era band will be in da house!

The concert starts at 7:30pm, with a social gathering and food beginning at 5:30 pm (feel free to contribute a dish/snack). We’ll also have beer, wine and other beverages, but your welcome to BYOB. We are requesting a donation of $50 per person to cover these steller musicians performance, and cds will be available for sale that they will happily sign, as well as items you may bring.

Thank you, and we look forward to your RSVP and attendance for this special event. If you want to invite an additional person, let me know asap as I plan to cap the audience at 90 people. Any questions, feel free to Private Message me on Facebook, or contact at: jerrylofaro@mcttelecom.com

---

2019-02-19: Peter Hammill reveals the Not Yet, Not Now box set
Peter Hammill has announced a new live box set titled Not Yet, Not Now. The package was recorded between November 2017 and May 2018 during tours of Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden, the UK, and Germany. A total of 98 track

2019-02-19: 45 Years Ago: Greg Lake Arrested for Skinny Dipping
While it’s possible Greg Lake deserved to have his bare ass spanked for any number of misdemeanors during Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s high times of the ‘70s, it’s not very likely he thought it would ever happen. Nevertheless,

2019-02-18: Van Der Graaf Generator: The Aerosol Grey Machine 50th Anniversary Edition, 2CD/ Gatefold 180 Gram LP/ 7-Inch Single Limited Edition Deluxe Boxset
Van Der Graaf Generator were true pioneers of so-called Progressive rock, and their impressive career spanning five decades features many ground-breaking works. Always progressing stylistically in the true sense of the word,

2019-02-18: PODCAST: Cruise to the Edge 2019 Recap
It is that time of the year again where we recap the recent Cruise to the Edge. The lineup for CTTE 2019 was beyond incredible, featuring a fantastic mix of classic and new prog artists from all over the world. Sailing again

2019-02-18: The Bucket List Featuring Phil Keaggy, Tony Levin & Jerry Marotta Release Debut Album
The Bucket List is the collective effort of guitar extraordinaire Phil Keaggy, legendary bassist Tony Levin and rhythm master Jerry Marotta featuring 12 original instrumentals that showcase the strengths of these three musici

2019-02-17: 35 Years Ago: Pink Floyd’s Richard Wright Goes Pop With Zee
The only album released by Richard Wright’s band Zee will be remastered 35 years after its arrival. Sadly, the late Pink Floyd keyboardist isn't here to see if this synth-pop detour receives a better welcome than it did in 19

2019-02-16: AAJ Review: Stephan Thelen, Fractal Guitar
For his Moonjune Records debut, Stephan Thelen, USA-born/Swiss guitarist and primary composer for the post-minimalist/post-progressive band Sonar, challenges some of the foundational premises of a group that has, over almost

2019-02-16: Be-Bop Deluxe's Futurama reissue out in April
Be-Bop Deluxe's classic album Futurama is to be reissued by Cherry Red Records in April. The 1975 album will be available in both deluxe box set and two disc CD versions. The box set will feature the original album remastered

2019-02-15: The World’s Best Progressive Rock Festival Isn’t on Land: CRUISE TO THE EDGE Sails Again
Progressive Rock festivals have taken place in amphitheaters, outdoor fields, bars, indoor theaters small and large, but few venues reveal their splendor as much as sailing on the waters of the Caribbean. Now in its sixth yea

2019-02-15: Queensryche Say They’ve Been ‘Bamboozled’ by PledgeMusic
Queensryche said PledgeMusic "lied and lied" before the collapse of a crowdfunded new recording. This follows news that the embattled company has suspended all campaigns. Musicians now don't have access to money – sometimes t

2019-02-15: Casey McPherson releases new video for You Are The Peacemakers
Casey McPherson, vocalist for prog supergroups Flying Colors and The Sea Within, as well as his own outfit Alpha Rev, has released a video for his song You Are The Peacemakes, which you can watch below. The song’s lyrics take

2019-02-14: Album Review: Steve Hillage – Dusseldorf (23.8.79)
Excellent live set unearthed by cosmic guitarist Steve Hillage during a trawl of his archive tapes, offering an alternative set of songs to his previous live album, with a quality sound mix that showcases the music and the mu

2019-02-14: New Peter Hammill live 8cd box set
between November 2017 and May 2018 I undertook the most significant bout of solo touring in Europe for some time, taking in shows in Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, UK and Germany. With such a flood of performances I took the op