PATTERN-SEEKING ANIMALS - Boegehold / Keegan / Leonard / Meros

[RoeDent]

Ordered Prehensile Tales. Looking forward to hearing it.

[The Walrus]

^^ I checked out the new one with zero knowledge of the band and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Go for it!

Are you at all familiar with Spock's Beard? PS-A are mostly SB members, former and current, anyway. If you're not familiar with Spock's Beard and like PS-A so far, definitely check out their 11th album Brief Nocturnes & Dreamless Sleep.

I know very little Spock's Beard, only a couple songs that I can't remember the names of, but I remember enjoying it when I heard it. I think I heard something from BN&DS but can't be certain. That's really cool to know though. I'll check that out!

[Evermind]

BN&DS is fantastic, it starts off really strong with one of my favourite SB songs, Hiding Out. Do check it out when you're feeling like listening to good progressive rock.

[RoeDent]

Listening to Prehensile Tales for the first time now. This album grooves! I'm a sucker for a horn section and congas! Really love the Latin sounds on Why Don't We Run.

[The Letter M]

Music video for "Why Don't We Run?"
https://youtu.be/9t958GI8Xss

-Marc.

[Fritzinger]

Music video for "Why Don't We Run?"
https://youtu.be/9t958GI8Xss

-Marc.

When your mom buys you a green screen

[Evermind]

Music video for "Why Don't We Run?"
https://youtu.be/9t958GI8Xss

-Marc.

When your mom buys you a green screen

[KevShmev]

That’s probably the best song I’ve heard so far by the band, but that video is definitely not good.

[RoeDent]

Wonderful musicians, great singers, but terrible lipsync-ers. To Breathe Another Day proved that.

Thankfully this is music, and the videos aren't necessary to enjoy the song.

[RoeDent]

I picked up the first album today. I love Prehensile Tales so much that it pushed me to take the plunge.

[gzarruk]

This band was in my list to check out, but for whatever reason I didn't listen to the first album at all when it was released. Now that the 2nd album is out (has been for a while) I'm finally giving both albums a listen. There's obviously a lot of sonic similarities to SB, since this is a band of SB members anyway, but I like SB, and I'm liking these songs too!

Will be interesting to hear how a new Spock's Beard album sounds now that we have PSA out there too.

[RoeDent]

First album is wonderful! I absolutely love The Same Mistakes Again and We Write the Ghost Stories. These Are My Things is also very catchy. I do enjoy the occasionally-quirky song lyrics in Spock's Beard's output. I haven't really checked if Boegehold is a connecting factor on that front yet. But still, all very good.

[The Letter M]

First album is wonderful! I absolutely love The Same Mistakes Again and We Write the Ghost Stories. These Are My Things is also very catchy. I do enjoy the occasionally-quirky song lyrics in Spock's Beard's output. I haven't really checked if Boegehold is a connecting factor on that front yet. But still, all very good.

Out of curiosity, I looked up all the songs that Boegehold wrote or helped write with other members:
Onomatopoeia (with Nick and Al)
East Of Eden, West Of Memphis (with Al)
Ghosts Of Autumn (with Dave)
Carry One (with Al and Stan)
Moth Of Many Flames (with Al)

A Flash Before My Eyes (except Letting Go, with Al/Nick/Dave)
There Was A Time (with Al)
As Long As We Ride (with Nick/Al)
When She's Gone (with Nick/Dave)
Follow Me To Sleep (with Nick)
Broken Promise Land (with Al)

On A Perfect Day (with Nick/Al/Stan)
Skeletons At The Feast (with Dave)
All That's Left (with Dave)
The Slow Crash Landing Man (with Dave)
As Far As The Mind Can See (with Dave)

Edge Of The In-Between (lyrics by John, music by Dave)
Their Names Escape me (lyrics by John, music by John/Dave)
Jaws Of Heaven (lyrics by John, music by John/Dave)

I Know Your Secret (with Dave)
A Treasure Abandoned (with Al)
Something Very Strange
Down A Burning Road (with Al)
Postcards From Perdition

Bennett Build A Time Machine
Get Out While You Can
A Better Way To Fly
To Be Free Again
Disappear

To Breath Another Day (with Ryo)
What Becomes Of Me
Days We'll Remember
Bulletproof (lyrics mention "Pattern-Seeking Animal"!)
Armageddon Nervous

Seems like, starting with BNADS, John started writing songs with no collaborators, and got a lot of them on the last two albums. Now with PSA out, I'm willing to bet that the next SB album won't feature his writing as much, especially since on Noise Floor, only two of his five songs were picked for the main album (the first two songs on the album, no less).

Also, John has material already in the works for a third PSA album, so I'm sure much of his material is being used for that. I would like to see more Ted, Al, and Ryo compositions in the future SB albums, especially since I liked what they have contributed on the last three albums (Ryo having the least of any SB member since Ted joined, with only FOUR writing credits).

And with a third album in the works, hopefully whenever PSA finally hit the road, they can offer up a full set list of PSA songs!

-Marc.

[gzarruk]

Also, John has material already in the works for a third PSA album, so I'm sure much of his material is being used for that. I would like to see more Ted, Al, and Ryo compositions in the future SB albums, especially since I liked what they have contributed on the last three albums (Ryo having the least of any SB member since Ted joined, with only FOUR writing credits).

And with a third album in the works, hopefully whenever PSA finally hit the road, they can offer up a full set list of PSA songs!

-Marc.

This guy doesn't mess around!

[Kwyjibo]

I didn't think the first one was a "much-lauded eponymous debut". If this will be on spotify I will give it a listen but I don't get my hopes up.

I did give it a listen finally and man, Prehensile Tales is a really strong record, I'm very pleasantly surprised. May have to revisit the first one also to see if it clicks with me.

[The Letter M]

Spun both albums last night for the first time in a little while, and man, they are still so damn good, especially Prehensile Tales.

There hasn't been much news from John about the third album other than that he is still working on it, and I believe I've read confirmation of that from both Jimmy and Ted, so it's still definitely underway. I hope we get another late Spring/early Summer release for 2021.

Of the 15 songs between their first two albums, which are everyone's favorites here? From the debut, I'd say "The Same Mistakes Again", "Orphans Of The Universe" and "These Are My Things" are pretty stand-out songs, while the last three on Prehensile Tales are my favorites on their second album.

I wonder if they'll push the prog-envelope more on the third one and write a full-on 20-minute epic? "Lifeboat" is pretty close and it's one of the highlights on PT.

-Marc.

[Fritzinger]

I'm still lukewarm with this band.

I think they are at their best during 4-5 minute artpop songs. Tracks like No One Ever Died, Why Don't We Run?, Elegant Vampires and No Man's Land are my undisputed favorites by the Pattern-Seeking Animals. Songs like the long Lifeboat seem very disjointed to me, mostly because it's essentially 5 shorter lifeboats. Many great ideas are introduced, but not thought all the way through (similar to many Marillion 15mins+ songs). Soon But Not Today almost makes me angry  because the first half is awesome, it rocks and reminds me of one of SB3.0's best songs, A Better Way To Fly - and then the second half just has nothing to do with the rest and introduces that dragging, Beatles-like groove that just bores me.. The second album already introduced a tendency towards longer songs, but I hope they concentrate more on catchy, groovy artpop tunes on their next album(s)!

[RoeDent]

From the debut, I think my top 3 are 1. The Same Mistakes Again, 2. We Write the Ghost Stories, 3. These Are My Things.

From Prehensile Tales: 1. Why Don't We Run?, 2. Elegant Vampires, 3. Soon But Not Today. As much as I like Lifeboat, I would put all the other songs on PT above it.

[The Letter M]

I'm still lukewarm with this band.

I think they are at their best during 4-5 minute artpop songs. Tracks like No One Ever Died, Why Don't We Run?, Elegant Vampires and No Man's Land are my undisputed favorites by the Pattern-Seeking Animals. Songs like the long Lifeboat seem very disjointed to me, mostly because it's essentially 5 shorter lifeboats. Many great ideas are introduced, but not thought all the way through (similar to many Marillion 15mins+ songs). Soon But Not Today almost makes me angry  because the first half is awesome, it rocks and reminds me of one of SB3.0's best songs, A Better Way To Fly - and then the second half just has nothing to do with the rest and introduces that dragging, Beatles-like groove that just bores me.. The second album already introduced a tendency towards longer songs, but I hope they concentrate more on catchy, groovy artpop tunes on their next album(s)!

"No Land's Man" is definitely pretty catchy, in my top half of the first album for sure.

I do agree though that their shorter songs are all pretty well crafted and performed.

It's a crime that this band hasn't been able to tour yet because I bet a live show would really make these songs even better than they already are.

-Marc.

[Kwyjibo]

Here In My Autumn is my favorite from Prehensile Tales, but all songs are good.

Haven't listened to the debut enough to have a clear favorite song.

[The Letter M]

Here In My Autumn is my favorite from Prehensile Tales, but all songs are good.

Haven't listened to the debut enough to have a clear favorite song.

HIMA is a good pick. Honestly, every track on Prehensile Tales is so good, I wouldn't argue with anyone picking ANY of them to be their favorite!

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

Jimmy just posted this on Facebook about 6 hours ago:

Well ... we started a little something yesterday. Album 3 is officially underway. Okay, technically John has been working on it for a while now but yesterday was my first day. 3 songs in the can. 2 drum kits this time. One in the big room and one in the little room (I didn’t give Rich time to clear out stuff). First time tracking with the Yamaha Drums Tour Custom drums. They sound so good!!! Also the first time tracking with the new Yamaha FP9 pedals. Maybe the finest pedal I’ve ever played.

More to come ... stay tuned!!!

Until then, make sure to get the first 2 Pattern-Seeking Animals albums wherever you buy music!!!

SABIAN, Aquarian Drumheads, Vater Drumsticks, Audio-Technica USA, Ahead Armor Cases

This is very exciting! Depending on how fast they all recrd their own parts, we may get PSA3 by next summer or fall! Getting 3 albums 3 years in a row would be an astounding feat, especially if the next one is as good as the first two!

Edit - the band shared a video of Jimmy tracking his drums at the Mouse House for one of three songs (about half the album) that they're currently working on.
https://www.facebook.com/178087842910735/posts/693965417989639/

-Marc.

[kirksnosehair]

That's the same kit he used to record "The Battle - An Opioid Story" (The ANABASIS) - such a HUGE sound 

[The Letter M]

https://youtu.be/LTvS381arJ4

Jimmy posted a new video playthrough of "Raining Hard In Heaven" with some extended drum parts! Haven't seen it yet, but I figured I'd share it here.

-Marc.

[HOF]

I’m not totally sure why but I still haven’t even given the first one a fair listen. They’re gonna be 5 albums in before I ever get around to it at this pace.

[The Letter M]

I’m not totally sure why but I still haven’t even given the first one a fair listen. They’re gonna be 5 albums in before I ever get around to it at this pace.

Well, John did say that, during the recording of their debut, that this was going to be a yearly venture, so yeah, if you wait til 2024, you WILL be five albums in before you get there!

Definitely get on it, because I was luke-warm to the debut at first, but it wasn't until I really dove deep into Prehensile Tales that I really appreciated the first album, and now I love both. The snippet of Jimmy recording for the new album really excited me, and it seems like he's doing drums for three songs now, and then 3 or 4 more in February according to John, so I suspect the album will get finished by late Spring for a Summer/Fall released next year.

-Marc.

[gzarruk]

I’m not totally sure why but I still haven’t even given the first one a fair listen. They’re gonna be 5 albums in before I ever get around to it at this pace.

Well, John did say that, during the recording of their debut, that this was going to be a yearly venture, so yeah, if you wait til 2024, you WILL be five albums in before you get there!

Definitely get on it, because I was luke-warm to the debut at first, but it wasn't until I really dove deep into Prehensile Tails that I really appreciated the first album, and now I love both. The snippet of Jimmy recording for the new album really excited me, and it seems like he's doing drums for three songs now, and then 3 or 4 more in February according to John, so I suspect the album will get finished by late Spring for a Summer/Fall released next year.

-Marc.

I second this. For whatever reason I completely ignored the first album when it came out (big mistake) and it took them to release the 2nd one for me to check both, and they are phenomenal. Can't wait for the third.

[HOF]

Maybe I’ll start with the second one then and see how I like it.

[Kwyjibo]

I was the same regarding the first record. I listened to it when it came out but nothing did grab me. Then I listetend to Prehensile Tales when it came out and it instantly clicked, such a great record imo. Then I got back to the first one and now I appreciate it more, it's really good. That said Prehensile Tales is still miles better. So here's hoping that the third one is more like the second.

And I really wouldn't mind a yearly release as long as the ideas and the quality is there.

[RoeDent]

I second this. For whatever reason I completely ignored the first album when it came out (big mistake) and it took them to release the 2nd one for me to check both, and they are phenomenal. Can't wait for the third.

This was pretty much my experience, really. I did consider picking up the debut once or twice in 2019, but other albums took over. It was definitely getting and enjoying Prehensile Tales that made me finally take the plunge on the debut, and while I could think why didn't I pick that up sooner, it is what it is. I have them both now.

[The Letter M]

I’m not totally sure why but I still haven’t even given the first one a fair listen. They’re gonna be 5 albums in before I ever get around to it at this pace.

Well, John did say that, during the recording of their debut, that this was going to be a yearly venture, so yeah, if you wait til 2024, you WILL be five albums in before you get there!

Definitely get on it, because I was luke-warm to the debut at first, but it wasn't until I really dove deep into Prehensile Tails that I really appreciated the first album, and now I love both. The snippet of Jimmy recording for the new album really excited me, and it seems like he's doing drums for three songs now, and then 3 or 4 more in February according to John, so I suspect the album will get finished by late Spring for a Summer/Fall released next year.

-Marc.

I second this. For whatever reason I completely ignored the first album when it came out (big mistake) and it took them to release the 2nd one for me to check both, and they are phenomenal. Can't wait for the third.

I actually pre-ordered their debut album with cautious excitement, especially since Spock's Beard didn't seen to have anything in the works, but I think after it was released and I had it in my hands, I just sort of let it slip under the radar. Maybe I was expecting something radically different, or maybe at the time, I felt like it was TOO similar to SB for me to really get excited about it, or perhaps there were just too many other new albums/music for me to dive into at the time.

Either way, their second album really set them apart from SB in my ears, and so I went back to their debut with better understanding of their sound and intent, and I picked out things in those songs that really stood out to me as being fresh and different from SB for me to really see them as being something apart from them (despite being a spin-off band of sorts).

I think they've got a great thing going, and if SB remains on indefinite hiatus for awhile, I'll happily accept yearly PSA albums from John, Ted, Jimmy, and Dave. Ted really gets a chance to shine as both a vocalist AND a guitarist, and Jimmy gets to flex his drumming muscles in a way that he might not have gotten to in Spock's Beard. And Dave...well, Dave is ALWAYS amazing at bass, and is one of the most underrated and underappreciated bassists in prog over the last 25 years. John, being the mastermind of the band, really brings it all together with his writing and keyboards, and of course the mixing talents of Rich Mouser really bring them to life (really, anything he touches becomes gold, I swear).

-Marc.

[The Letter M]

John posted this update on his Facebook just a bit ago:

"Yesterday at the Mouse House with Rich Mouser and John Fumo recording trumpet and flugelhorn for the next Pattern-Seeking Animals album. We only did one song, but it's 13+ minutes long. Drums with Jimmy Keegan for a few more new songs next week."

Slowly but surely, PSA3 is coming together! I keep forgetting it's coming this year!

-Marc.

[Mladen]

I have kind of ignored these guys because it seemed like a side project for former and current Spock's Beard members. I thought to myself that we already have Spock's Beard, so why is there another band with the same guys?

Now I understand that Spock's Beard hasn't been heard of in years, and these fellas are already working on the third release. I guess I should pay attention and check out the albums at some point.

[The Letter M]

I have kind of ignored these guys because it seemed like a side project for former and current Spock's Beard members. I thought to myself that we already have Spock's Beard, so why is there another band with the same guys?

Now I understand that Spock's Beard hasn't been heard of in years, and these fellas are already working on the third release. I guess I should pay attention and check out the albums at some point.

They're really good, and if you're a fan of SB, or any of its members, you owe it to yourself to check them out. I would say their 2nd album is better than their first, as it definitely gave the a more distinct sound being further removed from SB than their debut, but the first album has some great tunes as well.

If you decide to check out both albums chronologically, don't give up on them if the first one doesn't click right away. It didn't for me until after the second album came out, which I instantly loved.

-Marc

[Kwyjibo]

If you decide to check out both albums chronologically, don't give up on them if the first one doesn't click right away. It didn't for me until after the second album came out, which I instantly loved.

Yep, this so much. Thought the first one was boring, loved the second one, went back to the first and it grew on me. But the second one is definitely better.

Hopefully the third one will also be good.