May 1, 2009
APRIL 29, 2009
CD Reviews: Marsupial Genus Thylacinus
BY BRENT FLEURY
MARSUPIAL
Genus Thylacinus
http://marsupialmusic.com
Opening with an eight-minute Fleetwood Mac-esque tune which quickly morphs into a trippy extended guitar solo, I initially wasn’t sure where this band was either coming from or headed. But after a few cycles through the album…I still wasn’t sure. Suffice it to say, these guys are part rock band, part jam band, part jazz quartet and part everything else. Obviously heavily influenced by the Grateful Dead (right down to the vocal harmonies), Marsupial doesn’t allow itself to go more than a single track without changing up its style (sometimes just barely) and giving the listener something new. I always respect bands that make it difficult to pigeonhole them. It does make my job harder of course, but it makes my soul happier.
“In Between” mixes a carefree reggae feel with an ethereal pedal steel guitar to create an intriguing composition by the end of which it’s simply impossible to not be wearing a smile. “Naked in the Hall of Seduction,” the longest track on the album at nine minutes and 39 seconds, alternates distortion-heavy licks with lighthearted, Jerry Garcia strumming and even tosses in some odd transitional effects evocative of Pink Floyd’s 1975 Wish You Were Here or even Mr. Bungle’s sophomore album, Disco Volante. “Sucker Punch” lives up to its name, taking the listener by surprise with a head-banging instrumental complete with 80s-style hammer-ons, a flash or two of Living Colour’s Vernon Reid and even a nod to the late, great Dimebag Darrell. As a result, (and this should be no surprise to anyone who regularly reads this column) this is my favorite song on the album.
Genus Thylancinus is probably one of the best all-around listens I’ve had in several months. I like each song for completely different reasons, and that almost never happens. Keep it up, guys.
April 28, 2009
MarsupiaL — Genus Thylacinus
When your aspiration is to traverse as many musical boundaries as possible, there is bound to be some friction along the way. As one of the most prominent members of the North Carolina progressive scene (see also: jam band), Asheville’s MarsupiaL (www.marsupialmusic.com) has successfully melded rock, jazz, Southern roots and whatever else happens to strike them into four albums of worthy musical praise to their pronounced influences.
Their latest, Genus Thylacinus, bears the imprint of years spent immersed in the sounds of the Grateful Dead, Frank Zappa and King Crimson — eight tracks of sharply produced and well-polished playing. But like a lot of prog rock, it sometimes just doesn’t seem to go anywhere. The opening track “Lead On” seems to speak to their propensity to break down musical barriers in their work, but while the five-minute instrumental bridge sounds nice, it’s purpose to the piece is somewhat dubious. Pair that with the nine-minute “Naked in the Hall of Seduction” and the album seems repetitive and formulaic at worst. At best, however, their instrumentation is inspired and stimulating. “Sucker Punch” is a forceful sludge-rock instrumental that brings most of the album’s hard bite, while “In Between” is an island-flavored quickhitter that offers a much needed break from the extended jams. It ends on a lyrical high note with “There Is a Better World,” an evocative track about letting go. Applaud them for being able to shift directions as an entire unit on a dime, though exploration merely for exploration’s sake can easily get you lost.
by Ryan Snyder
April 27, 2009
MarsupiaL
Genus Thylacinus
Release Date: March 24, 2009
Produced by: J Ferris and MarsupiaL
Format: CD
MarsupiaL is a band from North Carolina that taps into the soundstream of the ’70s. Their 4th album, an 8-song work named Genus Thylacinus, wonderfully blends the musical styles of Pink Floyd and Dire Straits that leaves no doubt as to their period of influence. Considered Prog-Rock, although I find that pigeon-hole a bit too confining for this band, this album delivers two large songs clocking over 8-minutes in length (one at 9:39, “Naked in the Hall of Seduction”).
The album opens with one of those songs (“Lead On” - 8:46). The song begins much as Mark Knopfler might begin one but then moves into deeper territory with accomplished guitar work and a multi-path musical force. It soon slips into a Pink Floyd-like piece. It leaves a pleasant feel as the album moves through its content. And for all of that, the band touches on a country feel in their vocals as heard on the album’s second track, “The Man Who Knows Things,” providing an Eagles-like experience.
“Naked in the Hall of Seduction” doesn’t seem to speak as well as the other songs of what this band is surely capable of, but the following “In Between,” an obvious single choice from this album leads the band into smaller, more accessible selections.
I find Genus Thylacinus to be a super album, one to be visited. It’s a bit hard to classify this band for people looking for such a thing however, if you are a ’70s fan, that starts you on the right path. Many of the songs have a Pop appeal and so the album has track download-ability.
MarsupiaL is the kind of band that we like stumbling on, a feat necessary as they release their own albums, and thus very dependent on sites like MusicTAP to gain them exposure. MarsupiaL earns this exposure with their excellent new album.
April 10, 2009
Rogues’ Gallery Playlist April 2, 2009 - Show #293 - Progressive Rock Podcast
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Description: Rogues’ Gallery Playlist April 2, 2009 - Show #293 - Progressive Rock Podcast
New music by SAGA “The Human Condition,” Roswell Six “Terra Incognita” and MarsupiaL “Genus Thylacinus.”
Prog it forward this week - a triple set of Neal Morse (Morse Portnoy George - “Cover To Cover,” Neal Morse - “Sola Scriptura,” and Neal Morse - “ONE Demos.” - if you are interested, send me an email and I will hook you up with the amazing anonymous prog benefactor!
PLAYLIST
1. Lunatic Soul - Where The Darkness Is Deepest (3:57)
2. The Wishing Tree - Ostara (5:16)
3. Forgotten Suns - Flashback (4:12)
4. MarsupiaL - Lead On (8:49)
5. MarsupiaL - The Tide (5:38)
6. Talk Talk - Such A Shame (9:01)
7. Nik Kershaw - Wouldn’t It Be Good (Acoustic Version) (4:57)
8. Roswell Six - Ishalem (11:01)
9. Roswell Six - I Am The Point (5:43)
10. Roswell Six - Here Be Monsters (5:30)
11. Alan Parsons - Return To Tunguska (8:48)
12. Saga - The Human Condition (6:49)
13. Saga - Step Inside (4:57)
14. Saga - Hands Of Time (5:31)
15. Pendragon - Eraserhead (9:04)
16. A.C.T. - Hope (4:29)
17. Marillion - Essence (6:22)
18. Marillion - Mad (5:09)
19. Marillion - The Great Escape (6:29)
20. Marillion - Accidents Will Happen (3:00)
21. MarsupiaL - Sucker Punch (4:09)
22. MarsupiaL - There Is a Better World (2:50)
23. No-Man - Song of the Surf (6:11)
24. RPWL - River (7:52)
25. Roswell Six - Merciful Tides (5:07)
26. Roswell Six - Letters In A Bottle (5:04)
27. Saga - Avalon (4:46)
28. Saga - Now Is Now (4:14)
29. Nine Stones Close - Ran Aground (3:53)
30. Karmakanic - Two Blocks from the Edge (9:52)
31. Stu Cameron - The Adventures of Alfonso the Exploding Duck (4:40)
32. Braintoy - Theft Prevention (3:37)
33. Agah Bahari - Revolving Universe (3:44)
34. Porcupine Tree - The Sky Moves Sideways [Alternate Version] (34:42)
Rogues’ Gallery - Thursdays 8PM-12AM Pacific (11PM-3AM Eastern) on The Dividing Line (countdown clock on playlist page)
Playlist: http://www.the dividingline.com/rg.html
Download MP3 (show #293):
http://progressiverockpodcast.com/stream.090402.0.mp3
RSS (weekly subscribe): h ttp://progressiverockpodcast.com/roguesgallery.xml
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php? gid=41904173340&ref=ts
April 6, 2009
(antiMusic) Welcome to Singled Out! where we ask artists to tell us the inside story of their latest single. Today Jam Band/prog-rockers MarsupiaL tell us about “The Man Who Knows Things” from their brand new album “Genus Thylacinus”. Here is the story they sent over:
This song was written by guitarist / vocalist, Ian Reardon, in 1998 as part of Ian’s former band, Wherever It Goes, concept album “The Green Monkey Fugue”. Reardon explains, “The song is a reference to speaking to God, or listening to your inner voice, and following your destiny. It’s the realization that everything is fine and there is no reason to worry. Life is unfolding as it is meant to be.”
As a student at Appalachian Sate University, bassist Brad Mehder would go see Reardon’s band perform at local venues in Boone, NC. “I was a big fan of this song the first time I heard it performed”, says Mehder. “To me, this songs was the perfec t example of Ian’s ability to take a simple song, and add that magic touch that transforms the song in to a great song”. For MarsupiaL, this is an example of a song that was frequently talked about being recorded and performed. However, it took another eight years for MarsupiaL to add this song to their repertoire.
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album - right here!
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