theEndorphins – See It Clearer Than It Ever Was
23rd July, 2007 by Chewbacca
theEndorphins are a melancholic progressive-ish rock band from the Netherlands formed in 2003. The three band members Astrid van der Veen, Arjan Hoekstra and Dennis Edelenbosch create a smooth mix of music with many different instruments and dueling dual (see what I did there?) vocals. Astrid has also worked with previously featured Ayreon, creating the progressive metal Ambeon project. Whilst looking for labels to work with, they have already put out several songs, available for free from their theEndorphan (see what they did there?) website, but they say their real best performance is in live shows. This track is “See It Clearer Than It Ever Was”:
- Official Website
- theEndorphanpage where you can download free MP3s
3’s great new album, curiously titled “The End Is Begun” is released next week – and it’s full of the great dark, bizarre and catchy music we’ve come to love from the band. Personally I prefer the earlier albums over their last “Wake Pig” which was harder-sounding – but this new piece manages to get the balance just right. This song is a great example of some of the albums best tracks which really take full advantage of Joey Eppard’s voice put against the always-weird lyrics and atop of the excellent rock. It’s a great mix that makes “Live Entertainment” well worth a listen, and the album well worth a buy!
White Willow is a famous Norwegian band trained in the mystic arts of… art rock! Which can basically be described as a mix of everything in a big pot. Their latest album released last summer, “Signal To Noise”, features today’s track – the aforementioned melting pot of folk, progressive rock and the beautiful voice of their new vocalist, Trude Eidtang. Aptly titled, “Joyride” is one of the most upbeat tracks of the album, and you definitely need to hear it:
Now, as a rock fan, in general I shy away from 
And now it’s time for a progressive rock band from Wales! The name: Karnataka; the music: epic! The vocals of Rachel Jones are simply something else – haunting and mesmerising, and put atop of guitars and keyboards by Ian Jones and Johnathan Edwards builds amazingly deep and exciting music. Unfortunately, the band parted ways in 2004 citing “personal reasons” (that’s always the way!) but recently Ian has resurrected the band with a new lineup. The new band are currently touring, and maybe we’ll see an album soon? Here’s “Time Stands Still” from their last album “Delicate Flame of Desire”:
Ten consistently put out great records of very typical progressive rock nature – epic stories of fantasy, history and love, backed up by a good load of hard melodic rock. Their latest album, “The Twilight Chronicles” is no different – and features over 70 minutes of awesome music. AOR – is it album oriented rock, or adult oriented rock? No one can seem to decide on genres these days – and that’s why they’re no good. Whatever it comes under, its just good ol’ rock! Here’s “Oblivion”:
The Fall of Troy take from progressive rock, add a dash of mathcore, and a mix of post-hardcore and there you have their final product. Their latest album, “Manipulator” is a little more approachable than their previous outings, with a slightly more pop feel to it (though Thomas Erak’s habit of screaming might still put you off). They go on record saying “we wanted to expand upon our band in every direction musically and attitude-wise”. The album is top-notch quality with excellent production values. This song, “Quarter Past” gives me memories of 
Now I already 
I thought it might be somewhat ironically iconic to start off the second month’s barrage of music with an alternate take on the very first track. But my logic tells me I’ve already gone and ruined that, because yesterday’s post was technically the 32nd track. Never fear, it has only delayed the inevitable! So, you heard 
Arjen Lucassen is well known in the progressive rock scene as Ayreon – and for selecting wide ranges of musicians to perform vocals in his various projects. Stream of Passion was his latest project, enlisting Marcela Bovio (previously in an Ayreon project) for vocals and several little-known musicians. “Embrace the Storm†– the band’s first album – was released in late 2005. I also have a sad story of woe to go with this band. They were due to perform a small gig in Sheffield earlier this year – however all the shows were cancelled when UK officials denied access to the Mexican members of the band, even though they had all their paperwork. Needless to say, the shows did not go on. In any case, Stream of Passion is a hard hitting progressive metal band, and here’s “Wherever You Areâ€: