Big Big Train - 2018-07-13 - Night of the Prog XIII Festival - Loreley Amphitheater, St. Goarshausen, Germany

BIG BIG TRAIN

July 13, 2018
Night of the Prog XIII Festival
Lorely Amphitheater, St. Goarshausen, Germany
Audience HD Recording, Good Quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and MP3 (320 kbps) versions

English progressive rock band Big Big Train recently released (July 2021) their latest new album,  Common Ground, and it is just fantastic, probably their overall best since their earlier masterwork, English Electric Full Power (2013), and certainly a strong candidate for Best Album of the year 2021. In honor of this great new album from the band, here is a live show from a few years ago (and is the only unreleased live show I have by them). For those not familiar with Big Big Train, they are a modern progressive rock band that plays music in the Symphonic Prog tradition, certainly influenced by bands such as Genesis, Yes, Jethro Tull, Camel, and the lot, but with a flourish and style all their own. They are uniquely English, and much of their catalog deals with story songs detailing aspects of British history, mythology, and folklore. They work with grand themes and melodies, from gentle folk songs to majestic orchestral soundscapes to complex prog instrumentals. In addition to the usual instrumentation, they often feature flute, violin, cello, and a horn section, as well as beautiful harmony vocals.  

Big Big Train was originally formed in Bournemouth, UK by songwriter/guitarist Greg Spawton and Andy Poole (bass) in 1990, and with the subsequent addition of Ian Cooper (keyboards), Steve Hughes (drums), and Martin Read (vocals), they started making demos as a band. Their first album, Goodbye to the Age of Steam was released in 1993, followed by English Boy Wonders (1997). However, the band struggled and sputtered, with numerous personnel changes around the core of Spawton and Poole in the ensuing years, and little recognition or building of a fanbase. By 2009, the band needed an overhaul, and a new version of Big Big Train was launched. Drummer Nick D'Virglio (Spock's Beard) and Dave Longdon (vocals) were added, as well as guitarist Dave Gregory (XTC), first as a guest artist, then later as a member. The result was The Underfall Yard (2009), which gathered much acclaim and attention from the Prog community, and launched the most productive and successful phase of the band. English Electric Parts 1&2 followed (2012-2013) (to be later combined into the phenomenal Full Power version) which lead to them winning the Breakthrough Act Award at the 2013 Progressive Music Awards. Subsequent albums continued their winning streak, with Folklore (2016), Grimspound (2017), Second Brightest Star (2017), and The Grand Tour (2019), all filled with different aspects of their wonderful music. And now, the newest addition, Common Ground (2021), which is certainly one of their very best, and I am currently loving it. 

But here is a show from 2018. This is a band that was primarily a studio outfit for many years and did not perform live much at all, but beginning in 2015, and continuing onward (Unfortunately, the 2020 and 2021 tours were cancelled due to Covid, but will tour again in 2022), they have become a great live band as well. This is a show from the 2018 Night of the Prog XIII Festival, held at Loreley Amphitheater in St. Goarshausen, Germany. It is a pretty good audience recording, but does have many sound limitations (heavy bass and drums) and some instruments are somewhat lost in the mix. But still, overall pretty good, and you can get a good overall impression of the music they play, as they feature a mix of songs from several different albums.      

Tracklist:
01 Intro                01.10
02 The First Rebreather  08.56
03 Folklore                08.36
04 A Mead Hall In Winter  16.37
05 Kingmaker                11.45
06 Summer's Lease        06.25
07 Brave Captain            13.37
08 Prelude and Fugue       02.56
09 Judas Unrepentant       08.01
10 <band introduction>    03.13
11 The Transit Of Venus Across The Sun    08.39
12 The Permanent Way     08.27
13 East Coast Racer          16.03
14 <encore break>             01.22
15 Drums and Brass Intro to...  03.54
16 Wassail                         07.51
17 Outro                           01.40


Nick D'Virgilio - drums, vocals
Dave Gregory - guitar
David Longdon - vocals, flute
Danny Manners - keyboards
Greg Spawton - bass
Rikard Sjoblom - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Rachel Hall - violin, vocals
w/
Robin Armstrong - guitar, keyboards, vocals
Dave Desmond - trombone
Ben Godfrey - trumpet
Grant Jameson - euphonium
Nick Stones - french horn
John Truscott - tuba

FLAC - Big Big Train_2018-07-13_Loreley_St.Goarshausen_FLAC.rar

Mp3 - Big Big Train_2018-07-13_Loreley_St.Goarshausen_Mp3.rar