Latest articles by David West
“Marrying the idea of death to a singalong chorus is interesting”: This band love sneaking prog into record collections
American quintet are more inspired by Billy Joel than Jethro Tull – except their keyboardist – practice a non-virtuoso style of prog, and limit themselves to one 19-minute song per decade
Jethro Tull ex Martin Barre dismisses the idea he’s underrated, and explains why he has no time for egos
Guitarist reveals what he learned from one of his band’s opening acts, names a guitarist who’s a “real yardstick” of brilliance – and touches on what he misses about being in Ian Anderson’s band
“He persuaded me to stay. I never felt good about it”: When Martin Barre tried to quit Jethro Tull
Their musical partnership finally ended after 43 years – but the guitarist says he wanted to break it up decades earlier
“I was afflicted. I never conquered it, but I dealt with it”: Jethro Tull ex Martin Barre’s struggle with shyness
His world changed when he realised that playing in bands meant he’d never have to dance
Steve Hogarth on creative risks, bad advice, and his first 30 years with Marillion
Marillion's Steve Hogarth discusses embracing artistic tension, avoiding the well-trodden path, escaping his narcissism, and what really went wrong with the record industry
“Lends credence to the idea they’re embracing pop influences”: Leprous’ An Evening Of Atonement
It’s all ears on Einar Solberg’s unique voice during this 21-track recording from the Netherlands from early 2025
Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention’s One Size Fits All, five decades on
The original nine tracks expanded to 58 – and while there’s some repetition and flawed live production, the energy is vigorous
“It’s a straight line from her heart to yours”: Kate Bush’s Hounds Of Love, by artists it inspired
The Anchoress, Within Temptation’s Sharon den Adel, Auri’s Johanna Kurkela, The Blackheart Orchestra’s Chrissy Mostyn and Exploring Birdsong’s Lynsey Ward celebrate the 1985 album’s enduring magic and influence
“They go for the heart as well as the head”: Marillion’s 20 best songs (they can’t believe No.7)
Does the only album with four entries suggest there’s a definitive record from the neo-prog giants? Does the split between the Fish and Steve Hogarth eras reveal a preferred vocalist?
“We were shocked it went so well!” Auri abandon the Nightwish tanker to drift on a luxury yacht
Tuomas Holopainen, Johanna Kurkela and Troy Donockley step off the Nightwish oil tanker to drift on the luxury yacht of their ethereal offshoot’s third album
Between The Buried And Me’s The Blue Nowhere brakes for no one
Their 11th album arrives via a slimmed-down line-up, but they remain as musically wide-ranging as they’ve ever been
Steve Rothery and Thorsten Quaeschning, as Bioscope, go on a journey with Gentō
Cinematic soundscapes offer a widescreen experience for those who want to commit
“A worthy reminder of Jon Hiseman’s considerable talents”: Colosseum’s Live 05
Selection from three European shows pays tribute to late bandleader the way he would have wanted – live and loud
How Thank You Scientist made the Oops! … I Did It Again of prog rock
Tom Monda explains the importance of humour, the nature of genres and how he plays his band like a piano
Prog stars choose the 40 greatest Kate Bush songs of all time
Members of Marillion, King Crimson, Nightwish, Big Big Train and others compile a list of a uniqe artist’s most powerful and persuasive creations
Why A Perfect Circle’s Billy Howerdel is glad he copied David Gilmour badly
A Perfect Circle guitarist recalls deciding to become a musician during 1988 concert, and hails Gilmour’s substance-over-quality approach
Eivør can’t escape the Faroe Islands’ influence, and doesn’t want to
An abandoned school, a studio that’s about to close, Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre… she specialises in finding the magic in a space and channelling it into her music
“As I grew, hopefully my writing was growing too”: Five great Al Di Meola albums
From fruitful fusion forays to gentle world acoustica, the revered guitarist has covered a lot of ground since joining Return To Forever at the age of 20
Chris Squire’s greatest musical moments, by bandmates, friends and fans
Members of Yes, King Crimson, Gentle Giant, and later-generation musicians are among 30 artists who choose their favourite performances to mark a decade since the bass powerhouse’s death
Mostly Autumn don’t just make records. They also make limited-edition companion records
As their 30th anniversary looms, band leader Bryan Josh discusses the joy and challenge of continuing to create big, long songs with big, long guitar solos, even if some people think it’s too much
“Is this a feel-bad album?”: 10th anniversary edition of Bruce Soord’s solo debut
New vinyl version proves that songs he writes outside The Pineapple Thief’s domain still deserve to be heard
How Caligula’s Horse searched for a new direction and new message with Rise Radiant
Guitarist, writer and producer Sam Vallen was as surprised as anyone else when a bid to avoid making another concept album resulted in a record with an underlying – and refreshingly positive – theme
Despite death threats, Roine Stolt will keep doing what he does with The Flower Kings
The band’s 13th album, titled simply Love, may or may not contain some political points, but it does contain more examples of the music their leader has loved to create for over five decades
