Old progger here...just discovered SB glad for your video and advice...great to discover an artist with a large catalogue which you need to work through....fun listening ahead
SPOCKS BEARD V Is My Favorite Record Of All...2 Tracks On The Same Record In And Around The 20 Minute Range...At The End Of The Day & The Great Nothing...
SB fan? OK, take my subscription. I loved you put the X album in that position, I think is an underrated one. IMO, is probably the best album post-Morse era.
Other than the song, "Thoughts" (which blew me away), I know very little about SB, so thanks for this excellent show, and helping point the way to a clear path for me to continue to dive into their catalog!! Love your shows, Nathan! Keep up the great job!!
Thanks for this great show, most ranking shows just go from one album to the next but you do a really good of giving some background and your favourite songs, I only know the Neal albums but I'm going to check out a couple of the other ones, would LOVE you to do my favourite band, DREAM THEATER, here's hoping 👍
Thx Nathan, love this. You're a real prog nerd, and I mean that in the most positive way 😉. Time to revisit the albums, especially the ones after Neal left. I'm a big NMB fan and one of these days I need to attend Morsefest. Love your channel 👍
I'm a major Neal fan and love all of his solo albums as well. The run from Testimony to Sola Scriptura is pretty much perfect for me and rivals my favorite Spock's albums (as well as the one-two punch of Similitude and Great Adventure with the Neal Morse Band). I need to do a full Neal Morse ranking next...
Great to hear your perspective on all these albums as a Spock's beard 'Superfan'. I've only come to Spock's Beard more recently (from the Neal Morse Band and Transatlantic albums). I am familiar with the Neal Morse-led albums (and like them alot), but haven't yet heard their subsequent albums, so this gives some good guidelines of where to go next. I'm wondering where would you place the new Ryo Okumoto album on this list (as it is practically a Spock's Beard album)? Also, what about the recent Pattern-Seeking Animals album? I really like both of those. Would they rank among the other more recent Spock's beard albums, or a bit lower or higher? Thanks for this one. Very helpful.
Thank you, I appreciate that! Some good questions here...I truly love the new Ryo Okumoto album and the latest Pattern-Seeking Animals. I'd probably place both of them just above Spock's Beard latest ('Noise Floor' which came in at my number 9), but not quite topping 'Day For Night' at number 8 (because of how dear to me the Neal Morse era of the band is). But it really is splitting hairs, because these are all great records. It is going to be hard for me to choose which I prefer between Ryo's album and the Pattern Seeking Animals one. A decision I'll have to make on my year-end album of the year rankings!
Good list Nathan. Oblivion would probably be last for me but Brief Nocturnes definitely deserves to be as high as you have it. I like Beware of Darkness a little better than The Light but overall I agree with most of your list.
mine would be 1. Snow 2. V 3. Octane 4. Feel Euphoria 5. The Light 6. The Kindness of Strangers 7. The Oblivion Particle 8. Spock's Beard 9. Noise Floor 10. X 11. Day For Night 12. Beware of Darkness 13. Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep
I am surprised you think your grandparents would have had a hard time finding these albums in stores. I remember seeing most of the bands you review in FYE and other record stores.
Good point. I even mention how me and my dad went to a record store (Virgin Megastore) and picked up the first Spock's album back when I discovered the band. I think I picked up a couple more at a local Best Buy. My grandparents lived out on a farm and weren't really the type to go into a record store or a mall, so it still surprised me at the time...but I clearly underestimated them incorrectly. I actually think they probably ordered it (as well as a Flower Kings album I asked for) online.
To disagree with your ranking would be knit picking. V will always be number one for me. Snow is incredible though...the second disc from Freak Boy to Ladies and Gentlemen, Ryo Okumoto is maybe the best 15 to 20 minutes of prog I have ever heard. Ps, Are you Simon D'Progcat? (Names Escape Me).
Old progger here...just discovered SB glad for your video and advice...great to discover an artist with a large catalogue which you need to work through....fun listening ahead
SPOCKS BEARD V Is My Favorite Record Of All...2 Tracks On The Same Record In And Around The 20 Minute Range...At The End Of The Day & The Great Nothing...
SB fan? OK, take my subscription. I loved you put the X album in that position, I think is an underrated one. IMO, is probably the best album post-Morse era.
Other than the song, "Thoughts" (which blew me away), I know very little about SB, so thanks for this excellent show, and helping point the way to a clear path for me to continue to dive into their catalog!! Love your shows, Nathan! Keep up the great job!!
Thanks, that means a lot!
Great show Nathan. Your views are very insightful and well worth listening to. Keep the great reviews coming 👍
Thanks!
Thanks for this great show, most ranking shows just go from one album to the next but you do a really good of giving some background and your favourite songs, I only know the Neal albums but I'm going to check out a couple of the other ones, would LOVE you to do my favourite band, DREAM THEATER, here's hoping 👍
You’re in luck- I’ve already done one for Dream Theater! th-cam.com/video/dUA0W171PHo/w-d-xo.html
Thx Nathan, love this. You're a real prog nerd, and I mean that in the most positive way 😉. Time to revisit the albums, especially the ones after Neal left. I'm a big NMB fan and one of these days I need to attend Morsefest.
Love your channel 👍
I have fond memories of listening to V on repeat during college. One of my favorite albums for sure! How do you like Neal’s solo albums vs SB stuff?
I'm a major Neal fan and love all of his solo albums as well. The run from Testimony to Sola Scriptura is pretty much perfect for me and rivals my favorite Spock's albums (as well as the one-two punch of Similitude and Great Adventure with the Neal Morse Band). I need to do a full Neal Morse ranking next...
I only have one Spocks album so we have the same number one. Love the album!
Can't go wrong with that one!
I would be interested in seeing a video with some lesser-known prog. Like maybe Glass Hammer or Phideaux
Great to hear your perspective on all these albums as a Spock's beard 'Superfan'. I've only come to Spock's Beard more recently (from the Neal Morse Band and Transatlantic albums). I am familiar with the Neal Morse-led albums (and like them alot), but haven't yet heard their subsequent albums, so this gives some good guidelines of where to go next. I'm wondering where would you place the new Ryo Okumoto album on this list (as it is practically a Spock's Beard album)? Also, what about the recent Pattern-Seeking Animals album? I really like both of those. Would they rank among the other more recent Spock's beard albums, or a bit lower or higher? Thanks for this one. Very helpful.
Thank you, I appreciate that! Some good questions here...I truly love the new Ryo Okumoto album and the latest Pattern-Seeking Animals. I'd probably place both of them just above Spock's Beard latest ('Noise Floor' which came in at my number 9), but not quite topping 'Day For Night' at number 8 (because of how dear to me the Neal Morse era of the band is).
But it really is splitting hairs, because these are all great records. It is going to be hard for me to choose which I prefer between Ryo's album and the Pattern Seeking Animals one. A decision I'll have to make on my year-end album of the year rankings!
Good list Nathan. Oblivion would probably be last for me but Brief Nocturnes definitely deserves to be as high as you have it. I like Beware of Darkness a little better than The Light but overall I agree with most of your list.
Awesome, thanks! I can totally get behind placing Beware of Darkness higher 👍
mine would be
1. Snow
2. V
3. Octane
4. Feel Euphoria
5. The Light
6. The Kindness of Strangers
7. The Oblivion Particle
8. Spock's Beard
9. Noise Floor
10. X
11. Day For Night
12. Beware of Darkness
13. Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep
I am surprised you think your grandparents would have had a hard time finding these albums in stores. I remember seeing most of the bands you review in FYE and other record stores.
Good point. I even mention how me and my dad went to a record store (Virgin Megastore) and picked up the first Spock's album back when I discovered the band. I think I picked up a couple more at a local Best Buy.
My grandparents lived out on a farm and weren't really the type to go into a record store or a mall, so it still surprised me at the time...but I clearly underestimated them incorrectly. I actually think they probably ordered it (as well as a Flower Kings album I asked for) online.
To disagree with your ranking would be knit picking. V will always be number one for me. Snow is incredible though...the second disc from Freak Boy to Ladies and Gentlemen, Ryo Okumoto is maybe the best 15 to 20 minutes of prog I have ever heard.
Ps, Are you Simon D'Progcat? (Names Escape Me).
I wish I was Simon D’Progcat, I always liked hearing that in the song. No, my name is one of the boring ones 😉