Manafonistas

Only a few of the Manafonistas living in Scotland, USA, Germany, Scotland and The Netherlands have ever seen one another. Soulmates, strangers, something in between. Is there any other blog in the world that works this way? Never seen one. Nothing new under the sun, but some of the old things have become quite rare. The resistance of a dying breed. We’re walking in parallels, unhurried by deadlines, ready for the unexpected, dealing with the art of breakfast, the magic factor „x“ in music, the systems of chance, good stories and food, the praise of high windows, jukebox culture, pure realism, fake travels, poetry lectures, tea ceremonies, washing machines, bondage techniques, textural minimalism, armchair journeys, road movies, film noir, lost classics, lucid dreaming etc. There’s humour with subtle shades of black, a sense of wonder. A bunch of believers, agnostics and atheists. Now we’re waiting for the last man or woman joining the circle. Sometimes the person who comes at the end, is a kind of joker, a clown, a dancer. This is a smoking sign from the blue nowhere, an old radio is burning, and the world keeps turning away, like in that old Neil Young song from „On The Beach“. No reason to forget breathing. Hey, hey, my, my, storytelling will never die.  P.S. The first Manafonistas Meeting will take place on a long weekend in May 2015, on the island Sylt. Details soon. 

Yes have nearly always been an overdose of kitsch. As time goes by they once in a while get a kind of nostalgic reevaluation. Rick Wakeman, a keyboard player coated with sugar like no other in  pop history, has been part of the game. That they were once called „prog“ casts a dark shadow on the whole idea of „prog rock“! Believe it, or not: they are still well and alive (that is the good news), and now, with their new opus and its telling title „Heaven and Earth“ they definitely prove that they love big screens, nice singalongs, soft harmonies, and, best of all, that the summer of 68 has never faded away. It’s peace on earth, and the electric guitar is a lesson in playful nirvana. Samsara, samsara, samsaleikum! The most profound moment comes when they sing about „getting to know the empty space / Beneath the surface of common days“. It’s a bit more self-referential than originally intended. Regression therapy has found a new classic!