Solstice | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Milton Keynes, England |
Genres | |
Years active | 1980–present |
Labels | |
Members | Andy Glass Jess Holland Peter Helmsley Steven McDaniel Jenny Newman Robin Phillips |
Past members | Emma Brown Ken Bowley Clive Bunker Barbara Deason Marc Elton Mark Hawkins Heidi Kemp Sandy Leigh Shelley Patt Sue Robinson Craig Sunderland Martin Wright |
Solstice are a progressive rock band formed in 1980 in Milton Keynes, England. They are led by guitarist Andy Glass, who is the sole founding member still in the band. [1]
The band formed in 1980, and performed BBC sessions and received national music press coverage before splitting in 1985 (with one guest appearance in 1986). Their only album release in this period was 1984's Silent Dance. [2]
Interest generated by a CD reissue of Silent Dance led to a reunion in the nineties with two studio releases, New Life and Circles, and a live album, The Cropredy Set. [3]
Guitarist Andy Glass once more put the band on hold in order to focus on band 3sticks. A DVD release of the Cropredy performance preceded another reunion in 2007, with the entire back catalogue being remastered and issued in expanded "Definitive Edition" form. The band then toured the UK and, for the first time, mainland Europe. In Spring 2022, Solstice undertook an extensive tour of the UK and mainland Europe in support of the Sia album. They also previewed a track from their then-to-be-released seventh studio album. Anyone pledging to pre-order the as yet unnamed album also received a free download of "Solstice Live at MK11" - a digital only live album recorded at the Crauford Arms in Wolverton, Bucks, UK on two nights in September 2021.
The new album, entitled Light Up, was launched at a one-day festival, also called Light Up and staged at the MK11 venue on 6 November 2022. Pre-ordered copies of the CD version were available at the show and had been distributed the previous week. The band toured extensively to support Light UP into 2023 whilst at the same time previewing new tracks for a third album in the Sia / Light Up Trilogy, as originally conceived by Andy Glass. The tour included a slot at Glastonbury Festival as well as regional shows in Colchester, Wavendon, Kidderminster, Great Yarmouth, a return to the Cropredy Festival with a mid-afternoon slot and opened the final day of Towersey Festival in Venue 65. The album received extensive critical acclaim in the music press and online.
Band members Andy Glass, Peter Helmsley, and Jenny Newman also work together in the band "3 Sticks".
Spock's Beard is an American progressive rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1992 by brothers Neal and Alan Morse (guitars), John Ballard (bass), and Nick D'Virgilio (drums). Ballard was replaced by Dave Meros before the release of their debut album, The Light (1995), and Ryo Okumoto (keyboards) joined soon after. Neal Morse left the band following the release of their sixth album, Snow (2002), and D'Virgilio took over as the band's frontman. In 2011, D'Virgilio also left and was replaced by Jimmy Keegan (drums) and Ted Leonard, from Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep (2013) onwards. As of 2024, the band have released thirteen studio albums and numerous live recordings.
Camel are an English progressive rock band formed in Guildford, Surrey, in 1971. Led by guitarist Andrew Latimer, they have released fourteen studio albums and fourteen singles, plus numerous live albums and DVDs. Without achieving mass popularity, the band gained a cult following in the 1970s with albums such as Mirage (1974) and The Snow Goose (1975). They moved into a jazzier, more commercial direction in the early 1980s, but then went on an extended hiatus. Since 1991 the band has been independent, releasing albums on their own label.
The Flower Kings are a Swedish progressive rock band formed in 1994 by guitarist and singer-songwriter Roine Stolt. The group began as Stolt's touring band to support his third solo album The Flower King. They continued performing after the tour and have gone on to become one of the most prolific studio recording units in progressive rock, having released over twenty hours of music spread across sixteen studio albums. Their music is similar to early symphonic progressive rock groups such as Yes, marked by sharp dynamic changes, polyrhythms, heavy bass, vocal harmonies, abstract and occasionally nonsensical lyrics, and extended song lengths.
IQ are a British neo-prog band founded by Mike Holmes and Martin Orford in 1981 following the dissolution of their original band The Lens. Although the band have never enjoyed major commercial success and had several lineup changes, IQ have built up a loyal following over the years and are still active as of 2024, currently with the original recording line-up. In 2021/22, IQ performed a series of concerts in the UK and Europe celebrating their 40th anniversary.
Aisles is a six-piece Chilean progressive rock band originally from Santiago, Chile.
Soft Machine are a British rock band from Canterbury formed in mid-1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. As a central band of the Canterbury scene, the group became one of the first British psychedelic acts and later moved into progressive and jazz rock, becoming a purely instrumental band in 1971. The band has undergone many line-up changes, with musicians such as Andy Summers, Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean, John Marshall, Karl Jenkins, Roy Babbington and Allan Holdsworth being members during the band's history. The current line-up consists of John Etheridge, Theo Travis, Fred Thelonious Baker and Asaf Sirkis.
Anathema were an English rock band from Liverpool. The group was formed in 1990 by Vincent and Daniel Cavanagh, bassist Jamie Cavanagh, drummer/keyboardist John Douglas, and vocalist Darren White.
Fates Warning is an American progressive metal band, formed in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1982 by vocalist John Arch, guitarists Jim Matheos and Victor Arduini, bassist Joe DiBiase, and drummer Steve Zimmerman. There have been numerous lineup changes over the course of their 42-year career, and Matheos is the only constant member. As of 2020, the band consists of Matheos, vocalist Ray Alder, bassist Joey Vera, drummer Bobby Jarzombek and guitarist Michael Abdow. Fates Warning also had a revolving cast of drummers and guitarists by the time Jarzombek and Abdow joined the band in 2007 and 2020 respectively.
Mostly Autumn are an English rock band. The group formed in 1995 and have built their reputation through constant touring, never signing to a major label. They produce music heavily influenced by 1970s progressive rock. According to the BBC, Mostly Autumn "fuse the music of Genesis and Pink Floyd with Celtic themes, hard rock and strong, emotional melodies". They have also been compared with other progressive bands from the same era such as Renaissance, Jethro Tull and Camel, blended with traditional folk music. Later albums also include more contemporary influences.
The Strawbs are an English rock band founded in 1964 as the Strawberry Hill Boys. The band started out as a bluegrass group, but eventually moved on to other styles such as folk rock and progressive rock.
Apocalypse is a progressive rock band from Brazil that plays symphonic rock with strong electronic keyboard orientation.
Pure Reason Revolution is a British rock group formed at the University of Westminster in 2003. Their music incorporates elements of progressive rock and electronic. Members have a shared appreciation for the work of bands such as Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree, Nirvana, Justice, Kraftwerk and Fleetwood Mac.
Ultrasound are an English indie rock band. With roots in the British underground psychedelic and experimental rock scenes of the 1980s and early 1990s, the band emerged in 1997 and soon gained attention for their "operatic prog-glam ambitions" and "violent reworking of the idiosyncratic compositions of Captain Beefheart and the staged ambisexual pop idioms of the likes of Marc Bolan and David Bowie".
John Young is a British rock musician hailing from Liverpool. He is currently the keyboardist and singer for the progressive rock band Lifesigns.
Big Big Train are an English progressive rock band formed in Bournemouth in 1990. The current line-up includes band founder Gregory Spawton, along with Nick D'Virgilio, Rikard Sjöblom, Clare Lindley, Alberto Bravin and Oskar Holldorff. Until 2009, the band were active as a predominantly studio project led by Spawton and co-founder Andy Poole, who departed the band in 2018, with changing line-ups and guest musicians. They have released fifteen studio albums and six EPs.
Quasar was formed in 1979 by founder Keith Turner. They found themselves to be amongst a movement of British bands during the early 1980s, including Marillion, Pendragon, IQ, Twelfth Night, Solstice and Pallas, that continued in the progressive rock style created by 1970s bands such as Genesis and Yes. Though Quasar has had quiet times due to leaving members, they are now based in San Francisco.
Leprous is a Norwegian progressive metal band from Notodden, formed in 2001. The group was founded by singer and keyboardist Einar Solberg and guitarist Tor Oddmund Suhrke.
Solstice Coil is an alternative progressive rock band formed in Israel in 2001. The band's core members are Shir Deutch, Opher Vishnia and Shai Yallin.
The Also Eden story goes back to 1993, when vocalist Huw Lloyd-Jones moved from his native South Wales to Cheltenham and — looking for like minded people to hang out with — answered a ‘singer wanted’ ad in the local paper. The band was a metal band called Morgan and, after an audition, he was offered the job. The keyboardist of the band was Ian Hodson.
Jon Davison is an American singer, musician and songwriter who has been the lead vocalist of progressive rock band Yes since 2012.