By Michael Popke

The moniker RPWL came from the initials of each original member’s surname: Phil Paul Rissettio, Chris Postl, Kalle Wallner and Yogi Lang.

“Of course, the name was a joke,” admits vocalist/keyboardist Lang. “Since the day of our very first album production, we didn’t have a name. But the record label made very clear that they couldn’t release an album without a band name. Silly idea, I know. But as long as the spirit of the band is still the same, we keep the name.”

And 10 years later, the name remains the same — even though some of the members have changed.

Meanwhile, RPWL’s sound has evolved from a Pink Floyd cover band to something that Radiohead and Genesis fans can equally appreciate. The band, which recently split with InsideOut Music after that label ran into financial trouble, has formed its own label: Gentle Art of Music. To celebrate its 10-year anniversary, the German band released “The Gentle Art of Music,” which traces the collective’s evolution via 11 songs from five albums on one CD. A second disc presents 11 acoustic reinterpretations of other songs from RPWL’s back-catalog. (The band’s newest album, “Beyond Man and Time,” is scheduled to be released in the U.S. on March 13, 2012.)

Goldmine caught up with Lang and guitarist Wallner.

RWPL's lineup most recently consisted of (from left) Markus Jehle (piano/keyboards); Marc Turiaux (drums); Yogi Lang (vocals/keyboards); Chris Postl (bass); and Kalle Wallner (guitar). Postl parted ways with the band in August 2010, opening the door for Werner Taus to pick up bass duties. Photo courtesy Freeman Promotions.

Q: When and why did RPWL move beyond being a Pink Floyd cover band?
Yogi Lang: In 1997, we met to jam over old Floyd songs. We all were involved in a lot of studio work and missed playing live on stage. To be honest, we didn’t have the time to rehearse a lot. To play the music we grew up with gave us the possibility to have fun on stage again, and that was what we wanted to do at that time. But, by and by, the urge to write songs and do our own music came back. The deciding step was that we did our first album together. A guy from a record label heard a tape with a couple of songs we did and wanted to release it. Some weeks later, we were on the front cover of a rock-music magazine.

Q: How did the band’s sound evolve from heavy Pink Floyd influences to what it is today?
Kalle Wallner: We’ve never been a strict Pink Floyd cover band. Everyone in the band was able to compose songs, so it was a natural step to write our own songs as a band. I think it is a good thing that every album sounds a bit different, and the last one [2008’s “The RPWL Experience”] is far away from our debut. This shows the development of each musician and the entire band. We’re not standing still, but still go on. The solo works of Chris, Yogi and I are yet another demonstration of the creative potential of RPWL. So I’m really looking forward to what’s coming up next.

Q: What has been the highlight of the past 10 years?
KW: When we started off, it was just for fun. Nobody expected that anyone could be interested in what we were doing. Meanwhile, we did so many albums and tours that it might be hard to pick out only one highlight. All the 10 years have been a big highlight for me. Of course, when we came to the States for the Rites of Spring Festival [in 2004] for the first time, and so many people in the audience sang along with our songs — that was a really big moment for me.

Q: “The Gentle Art of Music” might be many listeners’ first exposure to RPWL. How did you choose which songs to include?
YL: We compiled the first disc as some kind of time travel. Beginning with our first album, “God Has Failed,” you can follow the musical path of the band up to our last studio album, “The RPWL Experience.” It was interesting and unbelievable at the same time, sitting there listening through 10 years of our own history. Every record is also a fragment of our personal life. We took at least two songs off each studio album for the first disc.

Q: Why did you opt to record a second disc with acoustic arrangements? And how challenging was it to incorporate strings, horns and Indian instruments into those songs?
YL: It came clear to us that a simple “best of” compilation wasn’t able to reflect all our musical experiences. We love to work with friends and other artists. It was so much fun to re-record the songs on the “Revisited” part of the album. It is always special to get input from other artists. I mean, you have a certain way you see and feel your songs. Other artists add other aspects to the songs. It was a very inspiring atmosphere in the studio and a great way to celebrate the birthday of a band.

Q: The packaging for “The Gentle Art of Music,” a sturdy, oversized digibook, is unusual. Why did you design it that way?
KW: We wanted to do something special for our anniversary. It should look like a book — the book of the first 10 years of RPWL — like a “book of life” or a diary. We wanted it to be a retrospective. That’s why we did our first press picture for the cover again. And, of course, it should be a preview, as well. So this is the reason for the two discs: The first is the compilation of what we’ve done; the second shows the potential the band has.

Q: So, the cover photo on “The Gentle Art of Music,” featuring band members sitting in a movie theater, is intentionally similar to a photo that appeared in the packaging to “God Has Failed” …
YL: Yes, of course. We thought that it would be a great idea to go into the same location. By the way, the cinema has also changed a lot, not just us!

Q: Congratulations on RPWL’s slot at CalProg in October. How do you rate the band’s success in the United States?
KW: RoSfest 2004 was our very first show in the States. We enjoyed it a lot; people were very friendly, and we had some very nice chats. But our second show at RoSfest in 2008 beat it. We met so many people again, and we had a really good time. For me, personally, it was a special thing to play twice — with RPWL and Blind Ego, my solo project. At the second RoSfest, we felt quite confident in having our first real release with “The RPWL Experience.” All albums before were imports, and the band was only known by fans of the art-rock/prog-rock scene. So I think the band is quite new for U.S. people.

Q: How do prog fans in the United States differ from those in other parts of the world?
YL: Music lovers in the States listen very carefully to our music. It gives us the chance to have a very intense connection with the audience. I like that very much, because music is a kind of conversation, not a monologue.

Q: RPWL collaborated with former Genesis and Stiltskin singer Ray Wilson. What do you remember most about those sessions?
KW: When we wrote the song “Roses” in 2002, we always thought that Ray’s voice would fit it perfectly. It was great to hear that we were right! When I listened to the track for the first time, I was deeply impressed. Ray has an awesome voice, and I really enjoyed the live shows we did in Europe.

Q: The album titled “9” seems to be a hard one to find. What’s the story behind that album? And is it now a collector’s item?
YL: At the time of “9,” everyone was quite busy with their solo material. So we decided to have a short break and do something that was absolutely different from the usual production process. First of all, it had been my dear wish to release the rest of the live tracks that were actually meant for the “Start The Fire” live record. In addition to those five songs, we gave each of the four band members the chance to write and arrange a song on their own and record it with the whole band. So we had nine tracks on this album. Why not call it “9” and produce a limited edition of 999 pieces? It sold out in less than three weeks. You’re definitely right calling “9” a collector’s item, and we’re very proud of this special release.

Q: Kalle, tell how the Blind Ego project with John Jowitt and John Mitchell came about, as well as Blind Ego’s plans for the future.
KW: Over the years, I had so many songs in mind that never fit RPWL. So I decided to initiate Blind Ego. I met John Jowitt and John Mitchell at many festivals, and we always had a great time. So I asked the guys if they were interested in being a part of my new solo project. I never thought of a band, but I liked the idea of having many guests on the album. So I released “Mirror” in 2007. The songwriting for the second Blind Ego record,  “Numb,” was within a smaller time period, and I decided to work only with Paul Wrightson as a vocalist. “Numb” is a bit rockier than the first one. I’m pretty sure that I will release a third album after the upcoming RPWL release. In the meanwhile, RPWL will be the main focus.

Q: What’s next for RPWL and the band’s own label?
KW: First of all, we released Yogi’s solo album this autumn [“No Decoder”]. And, of course, we are working on the upcoming RPWL album. It is quite an exciting feeling to hold your business completely in your own hands.

By Stephen M. H. Braitman

Progressive rock, as a mainstream music genre, blew out its welcome in the punk era where the D.I.Y. ethic effectively shut down music that was pretentious and pompous. Pretentiousness and pompousness were still to be found, even in punk and post-punk intellectualism, but prog rock’s distinctive elongated grandiosity left the limelight.

However, like rockabilly, country blues, swing music, and disco, it never went away. Unlike those other ancient music forms, progressive music has actually grown stronger as a niche genre than it ever was mainstream. A short breeze through Google listings will show robust activity world-wide with hundreds of bands categorized as prog on a dozen or more labels solely dedicated to the music. Comparable to the success of metal and jam bands, prog rock knows who its audience is, and its audience knows what it likes.

(Dig deeper into progressive rock.)

From a collector standpoint, prog has many opportunities for discovery. And profitability. Some of the highest selling records on eBay and elsewhere now are progressive rock. This is due to a few factors.

First, many of the more distinctive, odder, and strange releases were on small labels with limited marketing (Spark, Delta, Stable, Cube, Nasco), or they were simply swamped by the dominance of Yes, Genesis, Emerson Lake & Palmer, King Crimson and the other major acts of the time.

Second, many of the records being sought now were not originally identified as progressive rock when first released. In the late ’60s and throughout most the 1970s, there was so much experimentation and (mind/music) expansion that no one really could keep up with all the tangents being explored. Prog rock 35 years ago pretty much meant rock with a symphony orchestra, or at least a band playing like a symphony. Now it can mean a much wider range, from some of the jazz rock fusion ensembles of the ’70s to heavy metal with a Lord of the Rings complex. German experimental bands like Neu and Can have been accepted under the prog rock banner, as well as some of the more idiosyncratic English folk rock bands, and, yes, even “On The Corner” by Miles Davis.

Third, the influence of progressive rock on music around the world had an immense impact, with completely separate lines of development spinning off the original sources. Italy, Peru, the Scandinavian countries, even the Philippines all had their prog rock bands and thriving scenes. It is a keenly competitive game finding many of those original vinyl LPs. It’s a challenge, and often a major investment. A copy of the 1972 album by Tarkus from Peru last sold on eBay in 2009 for $3,050. The “One” album by Norwegian band Flax from 1976 topped out at $900+ in its last eBay appearance last November.

Not all prog rock is highly valued, or at least much can still be had for relatively bargain prices: Traffic Sound (Peru), Terco (Brazil), Crucis (Argentina), Kozmic Muffin (Spain), and Egg (U.K.) all sold for under $100 last year. One can argue quality, or quantity, or ignorance as factors affecting value, but generally it’s still happy hunting grounds for the savvy collector.

Searching for unknown treasures still yields good results if one is willing to expand the parameters. The fact is that almost any obscure album from the 1970s (extra points for unpronounceable name; double extra points for incomprehensible cover art) that is not instantly recognizable as something else can be called prog rock. It’s a genre that one never needs to explain, yet fits so many in its very big tent.
The Prog Rock Archives (www.progarchives.com) is the definitive starting point for all things prog, from histories and discographies, forums, buying and selling, and even listening: They have a comprehensive list and links to progressive rock radio programs around the world. This Quebec-based Web site could hardly be more comprehensive.

Stephen M. H. Braitman is a music writer and collector. The first LPs he ever purchased for himself were Tim Buckley’s “Goodbye & Hello,” Kaleidoscope’s “Beacon From Mars,” and Pink Floyd’s “Piper At The Gates Of Dawn.” He is also a music appraiser; visit www.MusicAppraisals.com.

By Michael Popke

Beardfish
“Mammoth”
InsideOut Music (41212 IOMCD 061)
****
No two Beardfish albums sound alike. While the Swedish progressive band’s fifth album, “Destined Solitaire,” ran the musical gamut from Phish to the Flower Kings to Frank Zappa, “Mammoth” is ultimately more listenable than its challenging predecessor.

This thing still takes several spins to sink in, with the fuzzy, dense opener, “The Platform,” reflective of the seven-song album’s title — which band members say stemmed from watching old cartoons from the Eighties with their kids. The retro vibe continues, as “Mammoth” invokes Yes on “Akakabotu” and at least a half-dozen other vintage prog bands throughout, all while still boldly stomping forward in a never-ending effort to define the enigmatic Beardfish sound.

That’s no easy task: The 15-minute sax-savvy jazz-rock behemoth “And the Stone Said: If I Could Speak” contrasts sharply with the folk flair of “Tightrope” and the metallic Wolfmother-meets-Savatage jaggedness of “Green Waves” (featuring Rikard Sjöblom’s uncharacteristically throaty vocals and chugging guitar riffs). Most out of place here is the pretty solo-piano piece “Inside/Outside,” which clocks in at less than two minutes but provides a welcome respite from the rest of the album’s intensity.

Participants will get the chance to ask questions to ex-Yes vocalist Jon Anderson. Anderson has ventured on his own again, releasing a solo album this year called “Survival & Other Stories,” by Voiceprint Records.

The live interview with Jon Anderson is FREE on Monday, July 25 at 8:00 p.m. eastern.

To ask your questions, simply type in your questions in the specified text box. While Jon Anderson is interviewed by Goldmine editor Pat Prince, you can comment on anything you like: ask Jon to elaborate on an answer, or come up with your own questions.

The live interview will last approx. 60 minutes.

When you sign up:

• Each attendee will be entered into a sweepstakes.* One lucky winner will be picked at random to win Jon Anderson’s new solo CD “Survival & Other Stories” and a YES lithograph signed by Jon Anderson!

Jon Anderson’s new album “Survival & Other Stories” can be found at Amazon.com (click here)

The unique Yes “Relayer” lithograph is hand signed by Jon Anderson. The lithograph is in near mint condition and measures 21 1/2 x 34 inches. Lithograph Provided by Backstage Auctions.