The More You Live, The More You Love

After a hiatus of five years I was asked to return as an editor for the Dutch progressive rock magazine iO Pages. I decided to return back to the music which I hardly listened too for the past years, and see what it would do to me. It was quite a surprise to receive the new album of Pallas as a review copy, since their last studio album was released five years ago. So let me come straight to the point, I think for a lot of us it will be a strange experience to listen to an album of Pallas, where, for the first time in 25 years, Alan Reed is not the singer. Paul Mackie is the replacement, an Aberdeen local, who does a very good job. His voice sounds pleasant, and somehow the vocal arrangements with Graeme Murray are stronger than during the heydays with Alan Reed. It's a gamble, but it pays back very well. Without a doubt musically the album is as strong as you can expect from Pallas. In eleven songs the band returns to Atlantis, where after the optimistic celebratory ending of The ...

No-Man is the band of Steven Wilson and Tim Bowness and dates back to the late eighties. After playing in Karma and Pride Of Passion Steve Wilson decided to start his own band. The first release, From A Toyshop Window, of this band, called No Man Is An Island Except For The Isle Of Man was released on the compilation album Exposure (1986). On this track Wilson plays all the instruments. It's a very progressive rock orientated song. On the Double Exposure album from 1987 the name is cut to No Man Is An Island, and ex plenty vocalist Tim Bowness and Stuart Blagdan on guitar have joined the band. Faith's Last Doubt is the track featured on this compilation. In 1989 The Girl From Missouri 12" is released which shows a hugh step forward towards the music No-Man is known for these days. Violin player Ben Coleman has joined the band and Blagdan has left. Later that year they change the name to No-Man and release the Swagger tape. From 1990 till today No-Man releases albums durin...