Author Topic: Flower Kings Official Thread (Read 234913 times)

The Letter M · « **Reply #2065 on:** January 26, 2022, 09:37:21 PM »

https://youtu.be/GTvW9YhCgA8

InsideOut has shared Mirkko DeMaio's drum playthrough of "The Great Pretender". He's got a great set up and the kit sounds great. He hasn't done much to really stand out amongst the other TFK drummers so far, but he is definitely suitable to the band's sound and fits right in. It's nice to see videos like this especially since the last live video that TFK released was nearly a decade ago.

-Marc

DTA · « **Reply #2066 on:** January 27, 2022, 06:18:49 AM »

Lots of cool details that you can't really pick up on by just hearing the song without seeing him play it. Pretty dynamic song too now that I'm listening more intently, though I wish the pace would pick up a bit earlier in the song. Awesome Portnoy fill at 5:44 too

Zydar · « **Reply #2067 on:** February 18, 2022, 10:03:56 AM »

New video/song.

https://youtu.be/BZEv8zSdmFA

HOF · « **Reply #2068 on:** February 18, 2022, 10:09:11 AM »

Quote from: Zydar on February 18, 2022, 10:03:56 AM

New video/song.

https://youtu.be/BZEv8zSdmFA

Another fairly mellow tune but lots of nice guitar work by Roine, lots of keyboards. I like the call back to A Million Stars. Looks like this track closes the first disc, so maybe tying some themes together.

majo · « **Reply #2069 on:** February 20, 2022, 02:50:08 PM »

Love this one

RoeDent · « **Reply #2070 on:** February 21, 2022, 01:07:13 PM »

Surprised I haven't found any reviews yet given the album is coming out literally next Friday.

darkshade · « **Reply #2071 on:** February 23, 2022, 06:02:21 AM »

Quote from: RoeDent on February 21, 2022, 01:07:13 PM

Surprised I haven't found any reviews yet given the album is coming out literally next Friday.

I guess it is. That sneaked up on me.

Zydar · « **Reply #2072 on:** February 23, 2022, 06:06:11 AM »

Here's one from February 7.

https://spiritofcecilia.com/2022/02/07/spirit-of-cecilia-decrees-the-flower-kings-latest-rules/

KevShmev · « **Reply #2073 on:** February 23, 2022, 04:50:31 PM »

I probably won't dig into until April anyway when the weather turns, as TFK is very much of a spring and summer band for me.

The Letter M · « **Reply #2074 on:** February 24, 2022, 01:03:10 PM »

The mail came by my house earlier today just before I left for work and my copy of By Royal Decree came in from Foxtrot Records! I didn't even get a shipping notification from Roine's shop about it, so I'm happy to get the album a week early! Can't wait to get home and listen to it tonight!

-Marc.

MinistroRaven · « **Reply #2075 on:** March 01, 2022, 08:50:56 AM »

Quote from: RoeDent on February 21, 2022, 01:07:13 PM

Surprised I haven't found any reviews yet given the album is coming out literally next Friday.

https://www.facebook.com/1751302641546920/posts/5256038574406625/?d=n

The Letter M · « **Reply #2076 on:** March 02, 2022, 11:39:43 AM »

Finally getting around to digging into this album a bit, between Troika, Revel In Time, and An Hour Before It's Dark, there just isn't much time for all this new music!

It's got a very classic TFK feel but with some modern takes and sounds mixed in. I'll need quite a few more listens to pick some stand outs, but the album has a very good flow of songs, and a lot of crossfades and segues between pieces. I recall Roine or another band member once teasing they'd have a side-length epic on this album but I think somewhere along the way, those ideas were split up across the album as there are some recurring themes and lyrics across the album that I've picked up on after a couple of full album listens.

Before I forget, there's a melody in "The Big Funk" that feels ripped right out of Tubular Bells by Oldfield. When you hear it, you'll know what I mean.

I'd say this is a step up from Islands if you wanted a more solid return to early TFK. There are moments where I would think I'm listening to music that could've been written in the Retropolis/Stardust era. Definitely one I'll keep spinning as the weeks and months go on.

-Marc.

RoeDent · « **Reply #2077 on:** March 05, 2022, 04:44:18 AM »

Listened to it twice yesterday. It's definitely got that classic TFK feel about it, even with the new drum sound of modern-era. Only thing that's missing from this lineup that would be the cherry on top is *their* defining side-long epic.

Fritzinger · « **Reply #2078 on:** March 05, 2022, 06:07:24 AM »

It's weird, Roine (as well as Neal Morse, apart from his latest NMB album) seem to like that "several short songs make a longer, album-filling suite"-approach more nowadays than composing actual 20 minute songs.

Orbert · « **Reply #2079 on:** March 05, 2022, 03:00:50 PM »

Some of that is probably down to a "been there, done that" mentality. Long epic tunes are cool, but are usually made up of smaller sections that ultimately get fit together anyway. If each of the smaller sections is developed into its own thing, then maybe you call it a suite. At the very least, the liner notes break it up into sections with Roman numerals. A suite of songs which each stand alone but also flow together into a unified piece is kinda like taking that concept all the way. A different kind of compositional challenge.

Fritzinger · « **Reply #2080 on:** March 06, 2022, 04:27:12 AM »

I'm on my first listen right now. Initial thoughts:

- Roine finally managed to mix the drums a little more into the front.

- It takes three interesting and exciting songs and 20 full min of proggy music until the band falls back on one of those TFK-children-songs that I could easily live without. On Islands it was already the second song, From The Ground, here it's A Million stars, the fourth song. If they just managed to omit these songs, I think their albums would be more concise and exciting. But it seems they just like this kind of songs. Oh, and the second song like this is We Can Make It Work. The following Peacock On Parade is a lot stronger and shows just how redundant those songs are (to me). I sound bitter, I' not saying these songs are bad, but dropping those songs would make their records more interesting in my opinion.

- I was a lot less excited about this release than about Islands, mainly because Jonas Reingold is not the (main) bassist anymore. But Michael Stolt is doing a good job, although I miss Jonas' virtuosic bass foundation. Btw, he lives here in Austria, around 20 minutes from my apartment, maybe I should drive over there and tell him to better be the main bassist on the next TFK album, or else!!!

KevShmev · « **Reply #2081 on:** March 06, 2022, 07:39:40 AM »

I don't expect another Stardust We Are or Paradox Hotel or Retropolis again (albums that are great from start to finish), but if the new album is a similar balance to Waiting for Miracles and Islands (mostly solid/good, with a few standout songs), I will be content with that as this juncture.

For me, it is all about managing expectations with this band at this point, and I pretty much accept at this point that Froberg is going to sing far more lead vocals than I would prefer, but the hope is always that Roine sings tons of lead as well, and that those end up being the best written songs, to where I get those handful of standout songs. The irony of course is that my favorite TFK album, Paradox Hotel, is one that has a pretty even balance between Froberg and Roine singing lead, but that felt like lightning in a bottle. I don't expect it again, but if it happens, awesome.

RoeDent · « **Reply #2082 on:** March 07, 2022, 02:57:15 AM »

So I got the CD this morning and I figured out that, just on the 15 studio albums alone, The Flower Kings output totals nearly 23 hours now. As I say, that doesn't include any bonus tracks and the like.

ariich · « **Reply #2083 on:** March 07, 2022, 05:39:37 AM »

Listened a couple of times and it might be their best album in a while. I've been a bit lukewarm on everything since Banks of Eden. I'm undecided on this one so far, but it's definitely capturing my interest and my desire to give it further listens, which is a pretty good sign.

RoeDent · « **Reply #2084 on:** March 07, 2022, 07:25:14 AM »

The end of Time The Great Healer radiates similar sort of energy to There Is More To This World.

Also has anyone figured out what the sample is right at the beginning of The Letter? It sounds like Hasse singing but whether it's from this album (cool) or a previous one (even more cool), it'd be good to know. My initial thought (probably wrong) is that it could be from the song The Flower King.

hefdaddy42 · « **Reply #2085 on:** March 07, 2022, 01:19:36 PM »

I listened to it this morning, and I really liked what I heard.

Need to listen more to fully digest it, obviously, but at first listen I was impressed.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2086 on:** March 07, 2022, 06:21:26 PM »

My first listen was pretty positive, which is a good sign since their style can usually take a few listens for a lot to really sink in.

The Letter M · « **Reply #2087 on:** March 08, 2022, 03:39:41 PM »

I'm finally giving BRD some decent spin-time after a week+ of listening to the new Marillion. Every time I get through BRD, I tend to like it more and more. I picked up on repeated themes and motifs and lyrics here and there, hearing more of the classic/early TFK influence in some of the songs. The use of sax in more than one song really helps drive the classic TFK feel across the album (and IIRC, sax only appeared on ONE song on Islands). Hearing Bruniusson return to the band also really gives this album that Retropolis/Stardust We Are feel that has been largely absent over the last couple of albums.

I hope that this line-up can release a live album of the upcoming tour, especially since Roine has publicly stated that they will be playing material from their first four albums, which makes sense considering they'll be touring with Michael Stolt on bass this time around. It's been 11 years since their last live album was released, and even that, that 2011 release was from their 2007 tour in support of The Sum Of No Evil, featuring Pat Mastelotto (King Crimson) on drums. No live show was released from the BOE/DR era of the band, so there's no live record of Felix on drums, or Tomas' last tour(s) with the band. I guess it's sort of like Dream Theater not having a live release of the their shows in support of BC&SL before Mike left.

At any rate, this is definitely an album of growers for me, and I'll be spinning it regularly in the coming weeks and months, balancing it with the new material from Star One and Marillion, as well as Pattern-Seeking Animals next month.

-Marc.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2088 on:** March 08, 2022, 03:46:28 PM »

Happily, it seems like Roine does the major bulk of the lead vocals on this album (at least it felt that way), as Froberg's voice seems more than a bit shaky at times. He hits a note in the last song that literally made me wince and say, "ouch," out loud to myself. Fortunately, those moments seem few and far between. Many more listens to come.

The Letter M · « **Reply #2089 on:** March 08, 2022, 03:51:45 PM »

Quote from: KevShmev on March 08, 2022, 03:46:28 PM

Happily, it seems like Roine does the major bulk of the lead vocals on this album (at least it felt that way), as Froberg's voice seems more than a bit shaky at times. He hits a note in the last song that literally made me wince and say, "ouch," out loud to myself. Fortunately, those moments seem few and far between. Many more listens to come.

Ever since you've mentioned your affinity towards Roine's vocals over Hasse's, I've been trying to listen to how much Hasse there is on the new album compared to Roine, and I think you're right - there is more Roine than Hasse this time around. I wonder if Hasse having recently release a new HFMC album had something to do with him not contributing a lot of music and/or vocals on this album?

Personally, I don't mind Hasse's vocals as I am a fan of HFMC as well, and I think he sounds fine on BRD so far, but I also haven't given it a fully attentive listen with headphones on quite yet.

-Marc.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2090 on:** March 08, 2022, 07:12:37 PM »

As usual, a new album by a favorite always gets to me go back and listen to prior albums, and I am pleasantly surprised again at how good Waiting for Miracles is. Just a damn good listen from start to finish.

RoeDent · « **Reply #2091 on:** March 09, 2022, 06:16:13 AM »

I appreciate the guest vocal appearance from R2-D2 on Time the Great Healer.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2092 on:** March 16, 2022, 06:32:27 PM »

Still trying to really hammer down a good solid opinion of the new album, but after a handful of listens, it feels similar to Islands in quality, in that it seems to have a handful or so of very good songs, a bunch of solid/good songs, and few throwaways. The first two songs in particular are complete throwaways. They are bland and tuneless. I hate to say it, because it does feel like I pick nits at him, but the songs that Froberg sings all or much of it seem to be the worst ones. His voice, quite honestly, seems shot. Fortunately, Roine sings a lot on this album, so it will be easy to lop off the fat (see: the Froberg songs) once I really get my arms around this record.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2093 on:** March 18, 2022, 05:51:10 PM »

I guess other fans do not have much to offer right now, but for my money, the standout songs so far are:

Blinded
A Million Stars
The Soldier
The Darkness in You
Revolution
Evolution
The Big Funk

HOF · « **Reply #2094 on:** March 18, 2022, 06:27:10 PM »

I ordered this from Laser CD last week assuming it was out already. Had to double check when it didn’t show up this week. It actually isn’t out in the States until the 25th? I guess you had to order from the band to get it on the 4th? I didn’t even check the release date when I ordered. Oh well!

Mladen · « **Reply #2095 on:** March 19, 2022, 04:52:47 AM »

To me, this is yet another enjoyable, fairly cheerful symphonic prog album, which is what The Flower Kings have been consistently putting out for a while now. The Great pretender and Revolution are my favorite songs. I do think Islands has more highlights, though.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2096 on:** March 19, 2022, 06:56:21 AM »

Time the Great Healer and Peacock on Paradise are also very nice (along with the ones I mentioned last evening).

The Letter M · « **Reply #2097 on:** April 01, 2022, 09:00:13 PM »

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/the-flower-kings/2022/musikens-hus-gothenburg-sweden-43894be7.html

Just took a look at their setlist from last night in Gothenburg, Sweden, and WOW what a set! I was prompted to see what they played after I saw a clip fro. The show someone had shared in a TFK group on Facebook.

-Marc.

DTA · « **Reply #2098 on:** April 02, 2022, 05:24:57 AM »

That is a good set, and I’m always pleased to see the second disc of Flower Power get some love.

KevShmev · « **Reply #2099 on:** April 02, 2022, 06:14:58 AM »

The selections from the new album are poor, IMO, but the rest of the set looks pretty damn awesome. TFK has rarely been a band in the last 15+ years to play tons of new stuff at concerts, so I won't quibble about the lack of overall representation of Royal Decree in the set list.

News: Video of online chat between fans and members of Dream Theater: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx8cLlXnHpA&feature=youtu.be (*no chickens were harmed during the filming of this chat)

Author Topic: Flower Kings Official Thread (Read 234913 times)