Howling At The Moon - The Punk Panther's Album Reviews

Simple Minds began as a derivative, Magazine and early Roxy Music-influenced introspective post-punk group. A few years later they were a massive, somewhat pretentious stadium-rock band.  Their progression was a bit like U2's from a few years later, although their descent was as rapid as their ascent, something U2 didn't experience. Rather like Roxy Music, Fleetwood Mac and Santana, Simple Minds were a group whose eventual hordes of arm-waving fans who crowded out huge US stadiums had literally no idea about their early albums or their initial incarnation. As I said, a strange band, and one I never really "got", I have to be completely honest.  Click on the images to read the reviews.

I never really got into The Cure. I knew a few singles and I think I saw them live, sharing the bill with Wire, but I can't quite remember.  Their seemingly impenetrable brand of dark-clad post punk just wasn't really my thing. I much preferred the energy and fist-pumping of punk. However I have delved into quite a bit of their stuff here. I'm sort of half and half with them. I respect them but I'm not really into them. Click on the images to read the reviews.

Yes were in many ways the archetypal prog rock band - lots of keyboards, indulgent, bloated compositions, classical influences and a vocalist with a bleaty, high-pitched voice. Everything you would expect me to despise. You would be correct in many ways, but, in the name of egalitarianism, I have given the hairy old proggies a chance and reviewed eight (yes - eight!) of their albums..... Click on the images to read the reviews.

I have never been quite sure what Jethro Tull were - rock, folk, prog.  guess they were a bit of all three. They had a rock power to their sound at times, but also the folky interjections of Ian Anderson's folky flute were integral to their music. Furthermore, "concept" albums like Thick As A Brick and A Passion Play were as prog as it gets. Anyway, it's time to stand on one leg and play that air flute.... Click on the images to read the reviews.

Look, I think most readers will realise by now that Genesis weren't really my thing and there is no real way that this will get too many airings but I am certainly not blind to some of its good points, however. It is like a movie that I may watch once, think is ok, acknowledge its credibility, but not watch again. Among all the many artists whose work I have reviewed remains the hulking spectre of Genesis - a group who had two distinct phases, neither of whom I really liked at all. For whatever reasons, I never got it going with these ex-public schoolboys and what I always viewed as a particularly pretentious form of prog rock. I didn't go for their Phil Collins-led poppier phase much either. As far as prog rock goes, I prefer Jethro Tull, East Of Eden, Atomic Rooster, Wishbone Ash - all artists at the rockier or folkier end of the genre. Although Genesis were rockier than, say the keyboard-dominated giants ELP or Yes, there was just something about their lyrical oddness and pe...