La Tulipe Noire - Matricide (2013)

Artista: La Tulipe Noire
Álbum: Matricide
Año: 2013
Género: Neo progresivo / Rock sinfónico / Heavy progresivo
Duración: 58:40
Nacionalidad:Grecia

Lista de Temas:
01. A Letter From Patmos
02. The Death Chamber
03. In God We Trust?
04. Midas Touch
05. Post Scriptum, Pt. 1
06. Sinking Sun
07. Radio Days
08. Nemesis
09. Poseidon's Wrath
10. Post Scriptum, Pt. 2
11. No Ark
12. Funeral Pyre
13. Epimythion

Alineación:

- Julie Massino / Vocals
- Marios Mourmouras / Guitars
- Gavin Scott / Bass
- Hyde / Keyboards
- Alix / Piano, Organ, Synthesizers
- Michael Osborn / Drums, Percussion

Y sigo presentando álbums internacionales del 2013, ahora con uno que recién recién salió al mercado, y que viene desde Grecia. Un disco conceptual que está en el límite justo del rock sinfónico, el heavy prog y el neo-progresivo. Si les interesa saber más entren al post, pero recuerden que estos posteos de lo nuevo del 2013 no trae links de descarga.

Los tulipanes negros griegos vuelven a la carga, con más volumen que nunca. Y eso es lo que define mejor a este álbum, no sé si en su parte positiva, porque tiene los niveles de volumen tan pero tan altos que da miedito. El resultado de semejante bestialidad es la consiguiente pérdida del rango dinámico y consecuente cansancio auditivo antes de que termine el disco, que si bien está muy bueno musicalmente se arruina por esta moda, una razón técnica que tanto encanta a los productores de álbums, sean quienes sean... a m{i me cuesta terminar de escuchar este disco, y no porque sea malo, nada que ver, musicalmente me gusta, pero me cansa antes de terminar de escucharlo...

Para quienes no entiendan de que estoy hablando, acabo de encontrar un PDF donde justamente sobre todos estos temas, léanlo que está bueno, especial para los obsecionados del buen sonido como uno (y si es que buscás música en lossless seguramente también para vos): http://www.cetear.com/rangodinamico1.pdf
Copio solamente una parte de ese texto:

La música que escuchamos hoy en día no es nada más que ruido con ritmo. Y esto no es así porque la música sea mala. Es así porque carece de rango dinámico. Cuando la música no tiene rango dinámico, pierde la pegada, la emoción y la claridad. La industria discográfica insiste en culpar a los P2P, los MP3s, las grabadoras de CD y muchos otros por la caída de las ventas de CDs.
Y aunque hay algo de verdad en sus constantes quejas, sólo deben culparse a ellos mismos por el robo que están cometiendo contra los consumidores. No soy un abogado de ese robo. Sin embargo, la industria musical necesita reevaluar lo que considera como buena música. La moderna música de consumo no es musical en absoluto.
Se puede describir mejor como anti-musical.
Es anti-musical porque la están dejando sin vida a través de la sobrecompresión durante las etapas de tracking, mezcla y masterización. Es, simplemente, no-musical.
No es nada extraordinario que los consumidores no quieran pagar por la música que se produce hoy. Cuesta demasiado y suena mal.
Nuestra herencia musical está siendo amenazada por esta anti-música. ¡Ya es hora de que despertemos todos en la industria musical!

Bueno, algo parecido había dicho Artie en una entrada, hablo de esta: Guerra del Volúmen (Loudness War).

La cuestión es que estos tulipanes negros son los pioneros de la nueva generación de rock progresivo griego, un talentoso grupo que realiza un rock progresivo refinado que desarrolla melodías barrocas y solemnes y pomposas dentro de los límites del neo-progresivo, del rock sinfónico y del heavy prog.
Yo había conocido a esta banda en su disco "Nostimon Hemar" del 2006, álbum conceptual muy bueno, con una fuerte influencia de Marillion pero mucho más pesado y con más fuerza, disco muy cuidado y bien producido y con una clara personalidad, y con un concepto muy ambicioso sobre una odisea griega, vista a través de los ojos de un poeta griego. Así que cuendo ví que habían sacado un disco este año, procuré tenerlo enseguida.

Este nuevo álbum desarrolla otra vez un concepto, ahora acerca de la destrucción de la Tierra por parte la humanidad, y como a los seres humanos se los considera hijos de la Madre Tierra, lo que están haciendo con este planeta puede ser llamado "Matricidio". Es un álbum que hace referencia a la contaminación, la guerra, la explotación y todo daño al planeta, aunque no habla particularmente de los agrotóxicos, ni de ¿Montsanto, ni de los sojeros plantando porquerías y envenenando a pueblos. Musicalmente, se mueven en base a bases machacantes cercanas al metal, teclados omnipotentes cercanos al progresivo sinfónico, voces potentes e inconfundibles, melodías pegajosas, muy buenos y cuidados arreglos.
Quizás le falte un poco de texturas, de cambio de intenciones porque termina siendo medio monótono hacia el final, sobretodo porque esos niveles de sinido también tienden a unificar todo... en definitiva, a este álbum lo jode la puta moda de subir los niveles al máximo.

Más allá de esos apectos que hacen a la calidad de sonido y al matricidio que están haciendo sobre la Madre Fidelidad de Sonido, acá dejo algunos otros comentarios:

After APHRODITE'S CHILD, VANGELIS and SOCRATES during the Seventies, Greece is once again waking up to Progressive rock. The leading band of this new generation, LA TULIPE NOIRE is a classically composed quintet. This talented line-up performs a refined and quiet progressive rock that develops baroque and solemn melodies. Singer IMA's clear and pure vocals can remind of that of Virginia ASTLEY. Kostas SAVVIDES's guitar sounds like David GILMOUR's whereas ALIX's keyboards weave quiet layers that marvellously complete precious and melancholic themes. As for the rhythm section, assured by drummer Nick KASSAVETIS and bassist HYDE, it is definitely solid. Leaving somehow aside the MARILLION inherited influences, "Faded Leaves" (2002) could develop an original sound, while keeping the assets that made the success of their album "In The Gates Of Dream" (1996) and "Shattered Image" (1999). Quickly pick this rare flower, it will nicely decorate your secret garden devoted to Progressive rock... Many artists in the Progressive rock sphere borrowed from HOMER's "The Odyssey", quite particularly in this beginning of the New Millennium. But who else could pay a better tribute to the most famous epic of Antiquity but a Greek outfit ? LA TULIPE NOIRE thus took the challenge on the basis of contemporary writer Konstantinos KAVAFIS' writings, particularly his poem entitled "Ihtaca". This results in "Nostimon Hemar" (2006), a concept-album lasting about 70 minutes and respecting the canons of typical Progressive rock as MARILLION or PENDRAGON established them. Standing on this basis, the musicians put all their personality and originality in these eleven pieces, achieving a really successful result. Seventeen years after its first studio effort, the greek outfit is now firmly established in the present Progressive rock scene. And its new opus "Matricide" (Musea, 2013) clearly marks a new step forward. This new concept-album deals with futuristic and ecological themes, telling the story of the planned destruction of planet Earth, from the point of view of incredulous extraterrestrials. The music itself is up to the ambitions of the band, just fantastic. To be discovered !

Musea Records

A very versatile progressive rock album with a somewhat mysterious, and at parts even an ominous overall feel to it. Lots of orchestral and choir sections to keep things interesting. Seems to have a wide range range of different instruments too, lots of audio samples also.
The excessive amount of samples on some songes is also on of the few weaker parts that I found on the album. The soundscape feels a bit crowded at parts and the samples don't seem to build the song itself in any way.
All in all, managed to catch my attention at first listen, doesn't really have any weak songs and has a nice feel to it throughout the album.

olio

This is one of my most anticipated albums in a while, mostly because La Tulipe Noire's great voice Ima had left the band and I have been curious to hear her replacement. Also because I love their two previous albums so much. So, after two careless listens I feel like I had been listening to a sloppy version of Nostimon Hemar. I hear the same themes and riffs repeated, less progressive songs and less versatile, captivating vocals. I am not disappointed or surprised really - if they would have reached the level of their prev. works, then I would have been surprised. It's a pretty nice album anyhow.

herrahuu

What about one of the most underrated groups in Greek music history [see press], but one of the most essential ones? What about some Neo Prog music that goes beyond that genre and permeates lots of musical traditions and genres? What about some music that initially captures but then rejuvenates the wholeness of human emotions with its unpredictable variability? Yiannis-Hyde of LA TULIPE NOIRE doen't HIDE himself at all and unfolds the nuts and bolts of this unique Greek group plus some advanced info that you cannot imagine at all! Still waiting? Sink yourself into that interview and you will immediately understand why music is so comprehensive and crossover in the contemporary era.
Well, Hyde, thanks a lot for your participation in that interview! It’s our honor to host your point-of-view in our radio!
Hello Hyde! Where this interview finds you exactly?
In front of my computer trying to complete the booklet of our upcoming album “Matricide”!
Tell us some essential things about the history of LA TULIPE NOIRE! How did you decide to form such a band?
As a person I always believed the “follow your heart” motto. Prog was my favourite music and I did not see any reason to abandon my favourite music just because I lived in Greece, a place where this kind of music is not appreciated. I had some material, I wanted to release, and I began looking for others. Initially, I found Alix who was feeling the same about music and had some material of her own, and Lena and the core of LTN had been established.
What about the other members? Give us an overview for each member during the history of LA TULIPE NOIRE.
... then we found Babis Leontiades a very good drummer, who was already a fully professional musician, at that time. Spiros Kondakis, a fantastic guitar player and George Aksiotakis a magnificent acoustic guitar player. This was the line up of Mavri Toulipa.
In the next years a lot a talented and highly skilled musicians participated in LTN’s recordings. For “In The Gates Of Dream”: George F replaced Leontiades in Drums, Aksiotakis left the band and Yannis Barkoulas made a pair with Kondakis in guitars. “Shattered Image”: Lena left the band and Ima took over the vocals, Barkoulas left the band as well as George F who was replaced by Nick Kassavetis in Drums.
“Faded Leaves”: K. Savvides appears as guitars guest star. “Nostimon Hemar”: Kondakis leaves the band and Chris Pertsinides appears as Guitars Guest Star. And we come to “Matricide”: Massive changes in the band, Ima leaves the band to be replaced in vocals by J. Massie, better known in Greece as Julie Massino, Savvides leaves the band to be replaced by Marios Mourmouras in guitars. I move to the keyboards to create a pair with Alix while Gavin Scott takes my place in the bass guitar and finally N. Kassavetis leaves the band to be replaced by Michael Osborn. All the above were excellent musicians and helped a lot the band, all these years their contribution being great! I feel though I have to add a few things about Gavin Scott, graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston MA, who became the first recipient of the Quincy Jones Award for Musicianship. He has worked with artists like Earth Wind & Fire, Liza Minnelli, Rod Stewart Elton John etc. etc.!! .. and Michael Osborn, drummer and percussionist, who studied percussion at the ..Royal Academy of Music. He has recorded and toured with many varied artists including Bette Midler, Kiri Te Kanawa, Vanessa Mae, Freddie Mercury etc! These two guys are top level and above all they are good friends! They live permanently in London and they come when there is need in Greece. I learned a lot of things working with them!
What’s your influences as a musician? Musicians that you have as role-models in your life.
The first group I loved was “Pink Floyd”. Then came in my life “Jethro Tull”, “Emerson Lake and Palmer”, “Yes”, “Gong”, “Amon Duul”, “Pulsar”, after them Radiohead, Coldplay etc. etc. I cannot tell whether they were influences in my career as a composer or not. I leave this to the audience.
You are the bass player of the band but you also add some keyboards in some records. Are you the main composer or is that a collaboration process? What are the roles (the tasks) in a band such as LA TULIPE NOIRE?
The kind of music we play requires a central plan around which the band will play. The complexity of the parts does not leave space for improvisation. So I bring a rough sketch of the material to the band and then every musician fills in the gaps.
We adore each one of your albums! Yet, me (Demetris “All round” Katsikis) I especially love “Nostimon Hemar”! I think this is your apogee as a band till today! What’s so unique about this album?
I don’t know Demetris. For me all the LTN albums are the same. Like a father who loves equally all his children, beautiful or not so beautiful, clever, or not so clever. Each album has a part of me so I cannot make distinctions between them.
Strange thing is that Greece has a limited still good past background in Psychedelic/Hard/Progressive Rock during the 70's and 80's. However your sound has strong links with the Neo Prog and Symphonic Rock sound of the time, albeit more modern. How did you decided to follow this style, which is very unpopular in Greece and what were your expectations back at the beginning of your music journey?
Our fellow countrymen hate all kinds of Prog music. There was not a decision “Let’s follow this or that style.” We simply wrote the kind of music we liked… and waited for the consequences!
We had no expectations as a band. We released our material as an internal need to express ourselves. We never expected that this thing would go so far.
As far as I know your first record that features you Greek name “Mavri Tulipa”, released in a vinyl format only. How many copies were cut? And, why not in a cd format yet? That would be absolutely collectible!
You are referring to “The words of the wind”, I suppose. The album was released through Wipe Out in one thousand copies. They were sold, not right away, I think in the first year it sold around five hundred copies, but gradually it was “sold out.”
We ll see about a CD release. It’s an interesting idea!
Between early-90's and late-90's many things went on. An unknown Greek band with an LP on a Greek label was now supported by a monster prog label like Musea. Also the lyrics changes from Greek to English in this period...propably to reach a wider audience? Please unfold for us the story behind it. How did you come in touch with the guys in France?
After we released “The words of the wind”, we split. Spiros Kontakis went to London. Alix went to Paris.. and I began working, in Athens. I lost contact with Leontiades and Aksiotakis.
Around 1996 we decided we wanted to release another album and we gathered in Athens. Soon we realised that the band could not survive if it was limited in Greek territory. We wrote the lyrics in English (this is a rule for the international scene) and sent, through mail, copies of “In The Gates of Dream” to five companies of abroad. To our surprise all five labels were interested for the band. We chose MUSEA because it was the biggest and better known. A decision we never regretted!
Tell us some things about the differences and the similarities of the rest of your albums, “In the gates of dream”, “Shattered image” and Faded leaves”. Also, your favorite songs from these albums!
Each LTN album is a visit to a different area of human emotions. “In The Gates Of Dream” deals with the half dreamy sensation we experience just before sleeping. “Shattered Image” deals with hope. Despite the difficulties there is always hope in life. “Faded Leaves” talk about alienation and solitude in big cities.
Each emotion, at least this is the way it works with me, leads you to certain sounds. “In The Gates of Dream” was more on the symphonic side. “Shattered Image” was focused more on feeling so a very rich orchestration might obscure the message and “Faded Leaves” was more on the dark side and it also required a very specific orchestration.
I have no favorite songs in the albums. In all the songs me and the band tried hard for a good result.
I (Apostolis ''Retromaniac'' Psarros) think that there is an evident development on your production values over the years. Your very first albums have a bit of an average sound to end up in '' Nostimon Hemar'' with a crystal clear production. What did you do to make this impressive change happen?
I always tried for the best. Perhaps, Apostolis, as I grow I am getting wiser. I don’t know!
How did you approach bass playing on LA TULIPE NOIRE records?
For me the bass guitar was just a part of a whole. I never wrote songs with the bass part enhanced. I tried to serve the composition. I also avoided complicated motions since I believe that rhythm section must provide solid support to the melodic instruments.
We equally like vocals of Lena (in the first two records) Ima in the rest three! How did (do) they approach their vocal parts? And, what are the differences between the two?
Lena was from classic music. She helped the band, but in some time the techniques involved in rock were the opposite of what her classic studies required, so she had to stop singing rock. Ima was nearer to rock. They both were very talented and extremely enjoyable persons to work with! I must add, though, that working with J. Massie was a totally different experience since she is not only talented and highly experienced but she also happens to be a vocal teacher. She took the vocals and boosted them to new heights by adding 2nd voices, 3rd voices and talking parts etc etc.
It’s more than obvious that the fonts of your titles are like MARILLION’s (otherwise, we are biased for sure, haha!!). Is this some kind of MARILLION reference that you wanted to instil in your albums?
The release of an LTN album is a complicated, exhausting and very demanding process. It cannot be done without discipline and focus of each participant to his job. The fonts and things like that were the job of the graphics designer, and the final OK was by the company.
I (Demetris “All Around” Katsikis) learnt from Ed Unitsky (!!!) that you are going to release a sixth studio album during 2013 titled “Matricide”!! This is great news!! Any revelations about your upcoming album and your collaboration with Ed are most than welcomed!
I admired Ed’s work for years! In his kindness, he admired our work too. So it was inevitable for our courses to meet.
Since I was a kid, our world seemed to me, unjust, cruel, and crazy and ultimately self catastrophic. I was asking myself, what an intelligent alien, visiting Earth, would think of us and the way we treat each other, as well as the environment of this planet?
“Matricide” is a dystopia, (the opposite of Utopia), a thing we don’t want to happen. In the future, Earth is destroyed due to global warming from massive floods and gigantic fires. An alien expedition arrives and lands on the desert. (The whole planet is a desert). They are from a race that values life, like all sentient beings should do. They want to know what happened to this, once alive, but now dead, planet. The archaeologists begin excavations near ruined cities. In such a digging they find an old object (a CD), which they quickly understand contains sound. They decipher it and they discover a collection of songs about the situations that led humanity to destroy the planet and itself. After leaving this destroyed planet who is filling his heart with sorrow, Mnemon, the captain of the expedition, shocked by what he saw and heard, inserts all the data he gathered, into his computer and asks, referring to the human race, “What had this race done?” The answer, that comes, haunts him for the rest of his life. “Matricide”! They had killed their own planet... their mother!
We didn’t find about any upcoming live shows! What are your plans? Do La Tulipe Noire play live performances in Greece or is that to much for the Greek audience, which is in general not aware of what is progressive rock? And, what are the reactions of people when they see you playing live?
We plan a series of gigs for Greece and the rest of the world. I can’t be more specific for now. Regarding Greece the rarity of our gigs is due to the places and the equipment available. We respect our audience and we do not want to play in places with lousy acoustic properties and with the lousy equipment the sound companies rent for gigs.
The audience response is very good both in numbers and enthusiasm. In my opinion prog gigs in Greece have a great future once the above problems are fixed.
What’s your personal philosophy in life? How do you cope with barriers? And, simultaneously, how do you build your strengths?
Be honest to yourself. Do what you love and accept the consequences of your choices.
When you are honest to yourself you will discover that inside us we hide limitless sources of power.
What would you suggest to an aspiring bass player? Also, to someone who desires to play some prog music out there?
Study, be prepared and have patience! Express yourself and remember in a Band we work as a team serving a common cause.
Do you write lyrics? If yes, with what issues do you deal with?
With whatever affects our lives. Love, work, family, loneliness etc. etc.
Could you give us a review of your musical collaborations besides LA TULIPE NOIRE?
Before LTN only some student tries not worth mentioning. I had the luck from the beginning of my music career to write and serve my own stuff!
What is prog rock for you? And prog music in general, anyway? What do you think about the future of prog rock and music in general? [We see prog music as a concept that goes beyond more traditional forms of music and not as a specific genre]
I agree with you. Prog is a way of seeing things and not a specific way of playing music. Whoever is not satisfied with barriers is a potential proger. For prog and music in general I predict a bright future. History tells us that in hard times music flourishes. And I’m afraid that hard times await us for the years to come!
What music do you listen to this period?
Unfortunately I am so busy writing LTN stuff that I have no time to listen to music. There might me diamonds out there but I have no time to listen to, unfortunately!
We know about your collaboration MUSEA RECORDS (in the last three albums). You also released one album with Europa and the first one with Wipe-Out. How was (and is) your collaborations/relationships with the label(s)? And what about the promotion of you records in general through all these years?
We cannot compare MUSEA with the rest of the companies you mention first of all because of its size. Wipe Out and Europa were small Greek companies based on some people’s good will and their friendship toward us. MUSEA, on the other hand, is professional and they know exactly what the band represents. Over the years we became good friends and learned to appreciate each other’s views. I have said it to Bernard Gueffier, president, and the rest of the MUSEA stuff “Without you guys we would have done nothing!” This label and its huge distributing network gave the band the chance to be heard from UK to Russia, from USA to Argentina and from Japan to Indonesia! What more can I say about a company that gave us the opportunity to be heard in all the countries of the world?
Many press people label LA TULIPE NOIRE under the Neo Prog category.
We believe that you play prog music with a tapestry of sounds, definitely. Yet, we will leave it up to you to describe LA TULIPE NOIRE’s music to someone who's never heard of your music!
All this genre and subgenre stuff is for the convenience of the reviewers. I don’t think that any band, especially in our field, uses these definitions. At least no one from the bands I know, and believe me all these years I’ve met all the important people around! LTN at first was seen as Gothic Band then as a symphonic Rock Band. Then they used the neoprog characterisation and then some said that the band was heavy prog, while others talked about post-neo music. I would describe LTN’s music as an effort of some people to express themselves, without using the typical main stream rules.
Which are some of the LA TULIPE NOIRE plans for the future?
Some gigs will follow but there is nothing to be announced at this time. You will be among the first to know!
Is there any possibility to see you playing in the near future?
Make that a certainty!
A message from your part for the listeners of JustIn Case Prog Radio and all the prog’n’rollers out there is…
Keep listening to your favourite music, support all the good efforts (like your radio) in the field and ignore Prog haters. Prog is alive and kicking!
Anything that you might add?
Thanks for the opportunity you gave me to speak on behalf of the band.
Dear Hyde, thanks a lot about answering those few (lol!!!!) questions!
With honor,

Psarros

The album is about the destruction of Earth by mankind. Human beings are considered children of Earth so what they are doing to this planet can be called Matricide. It is an album referring to pollution, war, exploitation and whatever activities hurt the planet. Earth is envisioned as a respected mother-queen who is slowly poisoned by her treacherous advisers (Capito, Autorio, Exploito) while her subjects (her children) just watch and pray for their mother’s health, but they are doing nothing to stop the killing.

Thomas Szirmay

Un buen disco sin duda, no es una maravilla, pero es algo que tendrías que escuchar, sobretodo si te gustan el Neo-Progresivo sinfónico más potente. Lástima sus niveles de sonido tan altos...

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