Single from Isle of Man collective, Peachy. Bubble Gum Prog!
You know, when a band contacts me, even after all these years of it happening, I feel a frisson, a thrill of excitement that I am going to be introduced to something new. Speaking to my friends after watching the Mike Oldfield TB Experience the other night (review can be found by clicking on the Gig Reviews button halfway down the Homepage), I said just how much the new, the different, interests me. Yes, revisiting classics is great, but I want the genre to move forward and attract a new generation of devotees and musicians.
So, when Peter Marshall of Peachy contacted me and described the words which had been allocated to their music, and eventually taken up by the band themselves, as “bubble gum prog”, I was intrigued. Unlike many other progressive music commentators (and, yes, I know that this comment is in itself somewhat stereotypical), I have always enjoyed commercial music and the success this brings to intelligent artists. Popular music simply means that people enjoy it, and many of today’s fans forget, or do not realise, that the classic bands of the 1970’s were THE most popular artists on God’s earth, shifting untold millions of albums.
The band, consisting of Pete on bass, and his founding colleague, Dave, on guitars, joined now by drummer Sean, release this work, their first as a three piece.
The opening segment is playful and jazzy before the rock element enters with a pleasing noise of riffs. There is more than sufficient complexity to please progressive fans, whilst classic rock fans will also appreciate the subtle nods to bands and sounds of yore. The track races along nicely and I personally think there is far more to this piece than simple pop infused prog. Those keyboards and gorgeous guitar chords halfway in serve as a lovely interlude before a far heavier passage of music kicks in. The movement which closes is guitar led with a pounding rhythm section.
You can hear the track above. I would recommend that you pay a visit to the Bandcamp page at https://peachytheband.bandcamp.com/
On Los Tropicos released in 2021, the very short guitar piece Asleep is a melodic treat which presages a rather more dystopian song, reminiscent in parts of Numan, called Dreaming, which, in turn, is followed by the very strong psych synth of Floaty, all of which I embed as well below in order to give you a bit more of an idea of a band who have some interesting musical ideas which I look forward to being translated into a full-blown album, because there is a strong one within this collective.
Bubble gum? Well, fine. Let’s chew!