Mark Monforti, Author at PROGROCK.COM

Mark’s Quick Reviews: Sproingg – Sproingg

by Mark Monforti | Dec 14, 2017 | News, Reviews

If you have never read the key for my ratings below please do so one time. I feel my ratings are tougher than my peers. Also Check my last.fm link to see how compatible our music tasts are.

So, this album does not really align with my taste in progressive rock, but I can still hear the quality in the music. This space-punk, psychedelic, instrumental album with a King Crimson meets Genesis vibe to it. Even Sugarwax Nailface has a spoken opening that hearkens to the time of Peter Gabriel fronting Genesis. So, my ratings may be lower than it deserves just based on my personal taste.

We have added it to the library so request it and see for yourself.

PREVIOUS BAND RATING:	(0.0 / 5)
ACCESSIBILITY:	(1.5 / 5)
HEAVINESS:	(2.0 / 5)
MELODIC:	(3.0 / 5)
ARTWORK:	(2.5 / 5)
DRAMA:	(2.5 / 5)
OVERALL RATING:	(2.5 / 5)

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: Request And The Mountain Rat Saw God Here

Click Below to purchase at Amazon US or Amazon UK and we’ll get a little referral bonus on your whole order. Even if you don’t order this album

Key:
These ratings are just attributes and may not have correlation to the most important: OVERALL RATING

PREVIOUS BAND RATING
0: Never heard of them or debut album.
1: Someone recommended. I give them another shot.
2: Some good moments in the past but never put together an album I really liked.
3: Some 4 or 5 star songs but albums can be hit or miss for me.
4: I like 80% of their songs and probably went to see them live.
5: I would, and probably have gone on a plane to see them live.

ACCESSIBILITY EXAMPLES
1: Weather Report
2: Zappa
3: Genesis – Selling England by the Pound,
4: Marillion – F.E.A.R
5: Kino – Picture

HEAVINESS EXAMPLES
1: IQ – Seventh House
2: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
5: Opeth – Black Water Park

MELODIC EXAMPLES:
1: Opeth – Black Water Park
2: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
5: IQ – Seventh House

OVERALL RATING:
1: Will Never listen to again and deleted under no circumstances should you buy this
2: Not my thing maybe one redeeming song.
3: I like parts of this and I would check them out if they were near me.
4: I would get in the car and road trip to see this album live
5: I would get on a plane to see this performed live

See if our likes are similar See my Last.fm Page

https://www.last.fm/user/mon40/library/artists

Mark’s Quick Reviews: Khan Tengri’s – KT2

by Mark Monforti | Dec 13, 2017 | News, Reviews

If you have never read the key for my ratings below please do so one time. I feel my ratings are tougher than my peers. Also Check my last.fm link to see how compatible our music tasts are.

So, this is the second album by Canadian psychedelic act Khan Tengri, the follow-up to 2016’s Aeons. This is billed as, psychedelic music, space rock, progressive rock, and ambient, which sounds like a great mixture to me. Unfortunately, this not an album I can recommend. It falls flat in many ways, including the very unfortunate, poorly-executed, getting laid-off sequence midway though the album.

If you feel you must check out this album give it three tracks. After that the little glimmers of hope that I had for this album fade away into a chasm of nonsense for the remaining 30 minutes.

PREVIOUS BAND RATING:	(1.5 / 5)
ACCESSIBILITY:	(1.0 / 5)
HEAVINESS:	(2.0 / 5)
MELODIC:	(3.5 / 5)
DRAMA:	(1.5 / 5)
OVERALL RATING:	(1.5 / 5)

Click Below to purchase at Amazon US or Amazon UK and we’ll get a little referral bonus on your whole order. Even if you don’t order this album

Key:
These ratings are just attributes and may not have correlation to the most important: OVERALL RATING

PREVIOUS BAND RATING
0: Never heard of them or debut album.
1: Someone recommended. I give them another shot.
2: Some good moments in the past but never put together an album I really liked.
3: Some 4 or 5 star songs but albums can be hit or miss for me.
4: I like 80% of their songs and probably went to see them live.
5: I would, and probably have gone on a plane to see them live.

ACCESSIBILITY EXAMPLES
1: Weather Report
2: Zappa
3: Genesis – Selling England by the Pound,
4: Marillion – F.E.A.R
5: Kino – Picture

HEAVINESS EXAMPLES
1: IQ – Seventh House
2: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
5: Opeth – Black Water Park

MELODIC EXAMPLES:
1: Opeth – Black Water Park
2: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
5: IQ – Seventh House

OVERALL RATING:
1: Will Never listen to again and deleted under no circumstances should you buy this
2: Not my thing maybe one redeeming song.
3: I like parts of this and I would check them out if they were near me.
4: I would get in the car and road trip to see this album live
5: I would get on a plane to see this performed live

See if our likes are similar See my Last.fm Page

https://www.last.fm/user/mon40/library/artists

Mark’s Quick Reviews: Cirkus’ – Live Dogs

by Mark Monforti | Dec 12, 2017 | News, Reviews

If you have never read the key for my ratings below please do so one time. I feel my ratings are tougher than my peers. Also Check my last.fm link to see how compatible our music tasts are.

This is a 3-hour monstrosity. I kept waiting for this to get better, but that time never came.

PREVIOUS BAND RATING:	(0.0 / 5)
ACCESSIBILITY:	(1.0 / 5)
HEAVINESS:	(3.0 / 5)
MELODIC:	(3.5 / 5)
ARTWORK :	(2.0 / 5)
DRAMA:	(1.0 / 5)
OVERALL RATING:	(1.0 / 5)

Click Below to purchase at Amazon US or Amazon UK and we’ll get a little referral bonus on your whole order. Even if you don’t order this album

Key:
These ratings are just attributes and may not have correlation to the most important: OVERALL RATING

PREVIOUS BAND RATING
0: Never heard of them or debut album.
1: Someone recommended. I give them another shot.
2: Some good moments in the past but never put together an album I really liked.
3: Some 4 or 5 star songs but albums can be hit or miss for me.
4: I like 80% of their songs and probably went to see them live.
5: I would, and probably have gone on a plane to see them live.

ACCESSIBILITY EXAMPLES
1: Weather Report
2: Zappa
3: Genesis – Selling England by the Pound,
4: Marillion – F.E.A.R
5: Kino – Picture

HEAVINESS EXAMPLES
1: IQ – Seventh House
2: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
5: Opeth – Black Water Park

MELODIC EXAMPLES:
1: Opeth – Black Water Park
2: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
5: IQ – Seventh House

OVERALL RATING:
1: Will Never listen to again and deleted under no circumstances should you buy this
2: Not my thing maybe one redeeming song.
3: I like parts of this and I would check them out if they were near me.
4: I would get in the car and road trip to see this album live
5: I would get on a plane to see this performed live

See if our likes are similar See my Last.fm Page

https://www.last.fm/user/mon40/library/artists

Mark’s Quick Review: Chaometry’s – Mental Projection

by Mark Monforti | Dec 11, 2017 | News, Reviews

If you have never read the key for my ratings below please do so one time. I feel my ratings are tougher than my peers. Also Check my last.fm link to see how compatible our music tasts are.

Yet another instrumental submission to your’s truly. This is a bit of a different situation for me. I actually know them pretty well. I first met their keyboard player when she was part of Grand Parade, a Genesis Cover band. She was the first person I ever saw play Firth of Fifth.

Their first album I saw performed live at a studio on the south side of Chicago. The set was great and their first album is wonderful, but the band took a back seat to life and the lineup changed and then 10 years later I get an email from one of their members about this new album.

So, after giving it a listen I don’t think this album is quite up to par with their first release. I think there are some good moments on this album especially on the back 1/2 of the album.

Request it below and see if you like it or check out their bandcamp site linked via the album image.

PREVIOUS BAND RATING:	(4 / 5)
ACCESSIBILITY:	(2 / 5)
HEAVINESS:	(2 / 5)
MELODIC:	(3 / 5)
ARTWORK :	(4 / 5)
DRAMA:	(3 / 5)
OVERALL RATING:	(3 / 5)

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: Request Handelbar Here

Click Below to purchase at Amazon US or Amazon UK and we’ll get a little referral bonus on your whole order. Even if you don’t order this album

Key:
These ratings are just attributes and may not have correlation to the most important: OVERALL RATING

PREVIOUS BAND RATING
0: Never heard of them or debut album.
1: Someone recommended. I give them another shot.
2: Some good moments in the past but never put together an album I really liked.
3: Some 4 or 5 star songs but albums can be hit or miss for me.
4: I like 80% of their songs and probably went to see them live.
5: I would, and probably have gone on a plane to see them live.

ACCESSIBILITY EXAMPLES
1: Weather Report
2: Zappa
3: Genesis – Selling England by the Pound,
4: Marillion – F.E.A.R
5: Kino – Picture

HEAVINESS EXAMPLES
1: IQ – Seventh House
2: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
5: Opeth – Black Water Park

MELODIC EXAMPLES:
1: Opeth – Black Water Park
2: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
5: IQ – Seventh House

OVERALL RATING:
1: Will Never listen to again and deleted under no circumstances should you buy this
2: Not my thing maybe one redeeming song.
3: I like parts of this and I would check them out if they were near me.
4: I would get in the car and road trip to see this album live
5: I would get on a plane to see this performed live

See if our likes are similar See my Last.fm Page

https://www.last.fm/user/mon40/library/artists

Mark’s Quick Review: Lunatic Soul’s – Fractured

by Mark Monforti | Dec 10, 2017 | News, Reviews

If you have never read the key for my ratings below please do so one time. I feel my ratings are tougher than my peers. Also Check my last.fm link to see how compatible our music tasts are.

As I am reviewing this people are starting to put out their top 10 list for the year despite the year having 30 days left. This album is showing up on a lot of peoples’ lists. I think If I made a top 10 list for this year, it would probably just miss the list. This is a good album in another exceptional year of prog rock. Mariusz Duda’s vocals are iconic and as usual add so much to the mood of the album. This is a must purchase for any Riverside or Lunatic Soul fan.

PREVIOUS BAND RATING:	(4.0 / 5)
ACCESSIBILITY:	(4.0 / 5)
HEAVINESS:	(2.0 / 5)
MELODIC:	(4.5 / 5)
ARTWORK:	(4.0 / 5)
DRAMA:	(4.0 / 5)
OVERALL RATING:	(4.0 / 5)

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: Request A Thousand Shards of Heaven Here

Click Below to purchase at Amazon US or Amazon UK and we’ll get a little referral bonus on your whole order. Even if you don’t order this album

Key:
These ratings are just attributes and may not have correlation to the most important: OVERALL RATING

PREVIOUS BAND RATING
0: Never heard of them or debut album.
1: Someone recommended. I give them another shot.
2: Some good moments in the past but never put together an album I really liked.
3: Some 4 or 5 star songs but albums can be hit or miss for me.
4: I like 80% of their songs and probably went to see them live.
5: I would, and probably have gone on a plane to see them live.

ACCESSIBILITY EXAMPLES
1: Weather Report
2: Zappa
3: Genesis – Selling England by the Pound,
4: Marillion – F.E.A.R
5: Kino – Picture

HEAVINESS EXAMPLES
1: IQ – Seventh House
2: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
5: Opeth – Black Water Park

MELODIC EXAMPLES:
1: Opeth – Black Water Park
2: Vanden Plas – Chirst 0, Dream Theater – Scenes From a Memory
3: Porcupine Tree – In Abstentia, Shadow Gallery – Tyranny
4: Discipline – Unfold Like a Staircase
5: IQ – Seventh House

OVERALL RATING:
1: Will Never listen to again and deleted under no circumstances should you buy this
2: Not my thing maybe one redeeming song.
3: I like parts of this and I would check them out if they were near me.
4: I would get in the car and road trip to see this album live
5: I would get on a plane to see this performed live

See if our likes are similar See my Last.fm Page

https://www.last.fm/user/mon40/library/artists

Mark’s Quick Reviews: Sproingg – Sproingg

Mark’s Quick Reviews: Khan Tengri’s – KT2

Mark’s Quick Reviews: Cirkus’ – Live Dogs

Mark’s Quick Review: Chaometry’s – Mental Projection

Mark’s Quick Review: Lunatic Soul’s – Fractured

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