Blissful Behemoth performs original progressive rock, as well as occasional Gentle Giant and other prog rock covers. A few Behemoth songs are parodies of GG's style, sound, arrangements, and other idiosyncrasies. All Behemoth songs were written and produced by Adam Levin -- who's delighted to re-connect with his prog-inine side and nurture his inner Giant!
The Blissful Behemoth CD is available via Different Drum Music, CD Baby, GarageBand, and affilated record stores worldwide. For more info and audio samples, click here .
Another project to which the Behemoth contributes is the Global On-Reflection Giant Gathering's (GORGG) CD series . Along with music by other excellent artists, Behemoth songs are included on GORGG's albums Giant for Another Hour and A Reflection .
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Excerpts from noted rock musicologist Alan Kinsman's comments
on GORGG's new A Reflection CD...
To the outside world, the idea of a CD of music inspired by, or in tribute to, a specific band might imply a fairly uniform end-product. When the band in question is Gentle Giant, such notions are instantly rendered redundant, and the only truly consistent factor here is quality. One thing’s for sure -- the end-product is not only fascinating, but thoroughly enjoyable...
As its name might imply, Blissful Behemoth (a.k.a. Adam Levin) performs wonderfully affectionate Gentle Giant tributes, described by their creator as "tongue-in-cheek… parodying Gentle Giant's style, sound and other idiosyncrasies". Tongue-in-cheek they may be, but these are no throwaways.
In the first of three parodies on this CD, Giantessence marries Kerry Minnear's keyboard style to a funky, fractured bass-line reminiscent of Ray Shulman's work around the time of In'terview, cleverly encapsulating several key elements of Gentle Giant's unique sonic tapestry in a delightfully playful piece.
The 'B' section, in 7/4 time, was originally written in 1979, while Adam was at Berklee and Indiana University music schools. Originally conceived as a piece for string quartet, it lay dormant for more than a quarter of a century, as Adam explains -- "It was completed and arranged in 2006, inspired by GORGG and the re-emergence of Gentle Giant's music, at which time the other musical sections were written. Thus, the music stretches from Gentle Giant's last year as a band to our 2006 tribute projects."
Following it is Adam Levin's own Fanfare, an excellent piece that twists and turns, refusing to be tied down for more than a few seconds, and not letting the listener's attention wander for a single moment. This deft musical collage builds a number of short, often relatively simple musical figures into an intriguing whole...
Next up is Adam Levin's excellent House On A Hill. Adam cites Canterbury legend Dave Stewart as one of its influences, but I also detect something of Tony Banks' style. Dramatic and atmospheric by turns, with some neat changes of pace and mood, this enormously expressive performance has all the necessary impact to make it a successful film theme. There are some pieces of music that are just perfect for the piano
-- this is one of them...
Blissful Behemoth pops up again with Still As Young As I'm Old, an instrumental sequel to As Young As I'm Old from Giant For Another Hour ...
Giantology brings us full circle from the earlier Giantessence, echoing the latter but with a few surprises à la Giant, aptly marking the end of the main body of music on this collection...
Everyone involved in the production of this CD should be proud of their efforts -- the quality shines through every composition and every performance. There’s passion, professionalism and pure enjoyment in equal measure, and the end result is a joy to behold.
To read the entirety of Alan Kinsman's liner notes on A Reflection and its other artists, click here .
For info on GORGG artists and CDs, click here .
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Hear Adam's other (contrasting) music at...
myspace.com/AdamLevinMusic__________________________________ ___________________________
Excerpts from
Adam Levin & Company's "SEE IT" DVD...
(Note: Given the technical limitations of web videos, the video/audio clips are inferior to the quality of the DVD.)
TITLE SEQUENCE:
LYING (IN MY SLEEP):
ISLANDS, PART ONE - PANDORA'S BOX:
ISLANDS, PART TWO - NEEDLE'S EYE:
ISLANDS, PART THREE - TESTAMENT:
All songs and videos (C)(P) Different Drum Music
All rights reserved (ASCAP)
Additional DVD info at
differentdrummusic.com/See_It.htm