Why does nobody talk about Brighteye Brison?

[runciblemoon]

I know "underrated" can be a controversial term, but surely it applies in the case of Brighteye Brison, a phenomenal and bafflingly overlooked Swedish symphonic/retro-prog band. Their last three albums in particular (Believers & Deceivers, The Magician Chronicles and V) stand shoulder to shoulder with the very best from the likes of Spock's Beard, TFK, The Tangent and other top tier retro-prog acts, but I feel like they get constantly overlooked. Sumptuous, detailed, grand-scale compositions, gorgeous vocal harmonious, jazzy touches, lashings of vintage keys... What's not to love?

[boilk]

Listening now. Way too proggy-prog for my wheelhouse, so I guess that I can't answer your question with any degree of usefulness. They seem pretty talented, but it's not for me.

Neil

[Steve983]

The first answer would be because they've never heard of them..until now. On a first listen they sound very good but I have kind of heard it all before. Sounds like the usual mix of Genesis & ELP with a shiny new set of wheels.

[bigjohnwayne]

I think something happened to the prog community around 2008. Maybe it had to do with the recession, but it really feels like the way bands got popular with is progheads changed around then. I know I started buying less stuff from new bands around then. Brighteye Brison's best stuff came out 2008 and after. Unless you put out something on the level of The Raven that Refused to Die, English Electric, or the 2012 echolyn record, what you mostly get is crickets. RIO and prog metal folks still seem to be investigating new stuff, but the third wave prog revival that was built on InsideOut, NEARFest, Progday, Progression Magazine, Neal Morse songs, and Roine Stolt solos seemed to lose a lot of energy right around the time Brighteye Brison hit their stride.

I like their stuff. I love a little jazz in my symph prog. My dad loves those Brighteye Brison albums and I like when he has them on when I visit.

[SRS]

I have V and yes it is really good. I've always meant to get the rest of the catalog but I found their CDs were hard to find and often quite expensive. Are they all OOP? Thanks to this thread I just ordered a used copy ofThe Magician Chronicles and I'll be on the search for Believers & Deceivers

Is there any talk of a new album from the band?

[SteveSly]

I have always liked what I have heard from them, but never purchased any of their albums. I have no great reason why. Maybe I need to change that.

[Digital_Man]

I know of them but never heard them. There's another Swedish band you never hear about from around the same time period called Brother Ape. Anyone know them?

[Splicer]

If I ever listened to them before I don't remember. I'm listening to V now (on Amazon Music) and I'm not sure what it makes me think of. Certainly I hear Genesis in there and at times Kansas as well. I do agree with another comment that it's derivative. It has moments where it's decent, but for my part there is a spark missing.

[moecurlythanu]

Listening now. Way too proggy-prog for my wheelhouse, so I guess that I can't answer your question with any degree of usefulness. They seem pretty talented, but it's not for me.

Neil

Interesting. I need to start a thread asking how many came to the genre with proggy-prog, but no longer like it and are looking for something else. It seems bizarre to me, but appears to be widespread based on what I read on PE.

[moecurlythanu]

I know of them but never heard them. There's another Swedish band you never hear about from around the same time period called Brother Ape. Anyone know them?

I have one CD that I bought cheap from maybe ProgRock Records or somesuch. I thought it was pretty dismal.

[boilk]

Interesting. I need to start a thread asking how many came to the genre with proggy-prog, but no longer like it and are looking for something else. It seems bizarre to me, but appears to be widespread based on what I read on PE.

That would be an interesting thread. I've been meaning to start a similar one alone the lines of changing musical tastes, even though you first came here loving classic symphonic prog. I mean, I like bands like Wobbler and IZZ and The Chronicles of Father Robin quite a bit; not sure why. Maybe, for me, it's anything that overly smacks of neo, or lots of poppy-prog elements or anything too seemingly aping the prog past, but perhaps not being as good, that is no longer to my taste.

As has been mentioned elsewhere, even some examples of RIO have become somewhat overdone. Genre mashups seem to be where it's at now, and that can be a rewarding but challenging tightrope-to-walk style of risk/reward.

Neil

[Man In The Mountain]

The thing is, bands like Spock's Beard, TFK, The Tangent etc., had the benefit of striking when the iron was hot. And holy hell, it's been nearly 30 or 25 years already since these bands came into our lives. The third wave filled a void that cannot be duplicated. So now, what band that we haven't heard yet, is going to fulfill something that we're needing in our music lives? Hmmmm.

[Bytor]

stand shoulder to shoulder with the very best from the likes of Spock's Beard, TFK, The Tangent and other top tier retro-prog acts... What's not to love?

This, that's probably why I never heard of them since it is not the modern prog scene I follow (with some few exceptions like a Beardfish, a Wobbler or a Ring Van Möbius for example).

[Digital_Man]

I have one CD that I bought cheap from maybe ProgRock Records or somesuch. I thought it was pretty dismal.

Do you remember the name of it?

[Digital_Man]

The thing is, bands like Spock's Beard, TFK, The Tangent etc., had the benefit of striking when the iron was hot. And holy hell, it's been nearly 30 or 25 years already since these bands came into our lives. The third wave filled a void that cannot be duplicated. So now, what band that we haven't heard yet, is going to fulfill something that we're needing in our music lives? Hmmmm.

I would add Anglagard, Echolyn, Ozric Tentacles, Porcupine Tree and Anekdoten to that list but I would take out the Tangent (they seem a little late for me).

[SteveSly]

Interesting. I need to start a thread asking how many came to the genre with proggy-prog, but no longer like it and are looking for something else. It seems bizarre to me, but appears to be widespread based on what I read on PE.

My musical tastes has diversified immensely over the years. I even like some more “difficult” (for lack of a better term) music that I would not have given the time of day 20 years ago. But I still love my proggy prog too. I still like bands that do classic / neo / prog metal styles.

[Digital_Man]

My musical tastes has diversified immensely over the years. I even like some more “difficult” (for lack of a better term) music that I would not have given the time of day 20 years ago. But I still love my proggy prog too. I still like bands that do classic / neo / prog metal styles.

Same here. I'm still picky with my avant/RIO but I'm more likely these days to give it a chance. The thing is it's just not a high priority for me and since there's so much music out there realistically you can't get to everything especially if you happen to like other stuff besides prog like I do.

[SteveSly]

Same here. I'm still picky with my avant/RIO but I'm more likely these days to give it a chance. The thing is it's just not a high priority for me and since there's so much music out there realistically you can't get to everything especially if you happen to like other stuff besides prog like I do.

I know what you mean. I also like a lot of blues, metal, classical, singer-songwriter, some jam bands, and other styles. Hard to fit everything in for sure.

[Steve983]

I find that I am rarely listening to any new prog these days, it sounds like yet another re hash, and most of the prog that exploded in the 90's like Spock's Beard/Transatlantic/Neal Morse and The Flower Kings I have become completely bored with and have got rid of, or rarely play anymore anyway.

[moecurlythanu]

Do you remember the name of it?

Their 3rd album On The Other Side. From 2003.

[Digital_Man]

Their 3rd album On The Other Side. From 2003.

According to progarchives that's their first full length album (and it's from 2005). I think anything before it was a demo or unofficial (ie the ones listed on RYM). I actually like that one though or at least it's not too bad. A Rare Moment of Insight is probably better though. I never felt the need to buy any more from them though.

Anyway, what is the best album by Brighteye Brison? Is it B&D?

[Splicer]

If I listen to music and it clicks, it's good (for me). If it doesn't, I'm off to something else.

[runciblemoon]

Some surprising takes in this thread, but each to their own, I guess! I guess I don't see much of a distinction between someone doing retro-prog in 1992 vs 2008 or indeed 2024. It's all iterating upon sounds established in the 70s, and there's no harm in that IMO. Like, don't get me wrong - I love unique, pioneering artists and I've got a lot of time for avant-prog. My favourite band since I was teenager has been Cardiacs! But my gateway to discovering my own musical taste was Yes, Focus, ELP, Mike Oldfield... Maybe it makes a difference that I was discovering them all in the early 00s, so even likes of TFK and Spock's were well established and just part of the proggy melange for me by that point. Like, where do you draw the line if originality is key? Do England pass the test? Nektar? Supersister?

Ultimately, I don't really see the harm in music that iterates upon classic sounds, so long as it's done with love and to a high standard (both of which I think is absolutely true is Brighteye Brison's case). Where I really struggle with retro-prog is when it's shoddily executed or one can sense it's been done purely to churn out new product for a locked-in market (like whenever Neal Morse does his album again).

Anyway, what is the best album by Brighteye Brison? Is it B&D?

Either that or V, IMO. My one criticism of Believers & Deceivers is the sequencing, which bizarrely puts the tracks in order of length from shortest to longest. Having a 20 minute and 35 minute epic back to back is ludicrous! So what I do with that album is resequence it with "The Harvest" as track one, then the two shorter pieces and then ending on "The Grand Event". It flows so much better that way.