Monday, July 26, 2010

Is it Genesis Rewired? Is it Garden Wall? No! It's The Watch!!


I first introduced The Watch early in the year when I "accidentally" discovered them. I more recently promoted their upcoming US tour hoping to start a "grass roots", word-of-mouth publicity campaign. Now, I'd like to take it to the next level by offering you a chance to hear this incredible band.

Before you scroll to the goodies below, I'd like to say that, aside from a few supergroups formed in the 80's and 90's, I think The Watch is the best new prog rock band since the punk revolt in the late 70's. Unlike neo-prog outfits such as Dream Theater and Magellan, The Watch is more faithful to and influenced by the original progressive rock movement brought on by bands such as King Crimson and Peter Gabriel era Genesis. Also, unlike many neo-prog bands, The Watch has a sense of style. They don't get flashy just because they can like Jordan Rudess of Dream Theater. Sorry Jordan. It's not how fast you play, but how well you play fast. Keith Emerson can attest to that. Even Keith would go flipping mad on the keyboards sometimes back in the day, but he also knew when to show restraint. Such is the case with The Watch.

Check them out as the perform Damage Mode from their album Vacuum. . .



Here they are performing the classic Genesis song Return of the Giant Hogweed . . .



Phenomenal, yes? Here's another original composition from the Ghost album called DNAlien. . .



Here they are performing one of my favorites among "the short" songs that appear on the Genesis album Foxtrot. This one is called Can Utility and The Coastliners. A song based on the legend of King Canute . . . .



I hope that these songs whet the appetites of fellow US prog rock fans. I'd like to see The Watch have enough success in The States to keep touring here for years to come. If you like what you've heard, please pass the word!

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