Episode 058 : Walk Into the Water with The Gift

Powerful prog music comes in many flavors. Sometimes you want that power to come from virtuosic instrumental displays, and sometimes you want that power to be more understated and goosebump-inducing. The Gift, from the UK, fall in the latter camp. Vocalist Mike Morton has served as the muse for the band since its inception in the early 2000s and two albums, 2006's Awake and Dreaming and this year's Land of Shadows. Joined by guitarist David Lloyd, bassist Stefan Dickers, keyboardist Samuele Matteucci, and drummer Scott James, Morton isn't afraid to tackle heady subjects like war and religion through melodically-driven music that is reminiscent of the likes of Roger Waters and Alan Parsons. Host Mark Ashby talked with Morton about those challenging subjects and his philosophy on them, which band first stirred his interest in progressive music (which is the same as the host's), and his involvement in the recent Resonance festival. They can be found on the web at www.thegiftmusic.com. Featured songs/excerpts: "Dark Clouds Gathering" "The Willows" "Awake and Dreaming" "The Comforting Cold" "Walk into the Water" "Like" Progtopia on Facebook (www.facebook.com/Progtopia and www.facebook.com/groups/1380357308874546/) and follow Progtopia on Twitter (@Progtopia) to send a message about the show and to receive news about current and upcoming interviews. Please also visit our partner stations IAAM Radio at www.itsallaboutmusic.net and PRM Radio at www.progrockandmetal.net, where you can listen to and request songs hundreds of bands in the genre. Thanks for listening! Originally posted 16 September 2014