After 40+ years of making music, you may think you know what to expect from a Kansas record.  However, their new record, The Absence of Presence , shatters your classic rock expectations and brings you into firmly into the word of 21st Century progressive rock.  Thanks to an infusion of new blood, the band sounds as vital and modern as ever.  Keyboardist Tom Brislin is a huge part of this fresh sound and took some time to talk about this exciting new release. Please press the PLAY icon below for the MisplacedStraws Conversation with Tom Brislin: On how he joined the band - The first performance with (his band) The Sea Within was in Germany in summer 2018 at the Night of the Prog Festival. It was an opportunity for me to get reacquainted with the head of our label, Thomas Waber from Inside Out Records. I think he first saw me play with Yes in Germany in 2001, I had appeared on a few Inside Out titles over the years, but this was really a great way to actually have a face to fac

Sometimes a band is more than just the sum of its parts.  That is certainly the case with Sons of Silver.  Made up of current and former members of Pearl Jam (drummer Dave Krusen), Candlebox (bassist Adam Kury), and Skillet (guitarist Kevin Haaland) as well as dynamic frontman Peter Argyropoulos and keyboardist and engineer extraordinaire Brina Kabler, the band has just released an EP titled Doomsday Noises . In a conversation with Argyropoulos, he mentions how the members worked together in other projects before evolving into a band and writing songs together.  Make no mistake, as you listen to Doomsday Noises you hear that Sons of Silver is very much a band with each person involved in the writing and working together to create the sound of the band.  Argyropoulos mentions that each member has diverse musical tastes, from Radiohead to Fugazi to The Clash, but when they get together to play all of those influences melt into a rock n' roll band. Press the PLAY Icon below for

For decades fans have held out hope of a reunion of the classic 70's Genesis lineup of Gabriel/Hackett/Collins/Banks/Rutherford.  While it doesn't look like that will ever happen, the next best thing is Steve Hackett's Genesis Revisited shows.  The Hall of Fame guitarist recently rereleased his legendary 2013 show at England's Royal Albert Hall and took some time to talk about it. Please press the PLAY icon below to hear the MisplacedStraws Conversation with Steve Hackett:  On the importance of the Royal Albert Hall - It is a place that we've seen so many great people, so many great performers. But it's right across the arts, isn't it? It's rock, pop, country, classical, boxing matches, VE Day celebrations.  All sorts of stuff, from Vera Lynn, who just died recently at the age of 103, to Farewell Cream concerts which I saw way back, I think it was the 1960s.  All that history and you just know that every great performer has played there at some

If you're looking for the perfect mix of power pop sensibility with Rock N' Roll excess there's one band that's been doing it better than anyone for over 30 years, Enuff Z'nuff.  They just released their 15th studio album, Brainwashed Generation , and Chip Z'nuff, the man who's been with them through it all, took some time to talk about the record as well as the past and possible future of the band. Please press the PLAY icon below for the MisplacedStraws Conversation with Chip Z'nuff: On building on the momentum generated with the last release, Diamond Boy - We were out on the road with (Ace Frehley) for I think we did like 30 shows with them. Everywhere you want to play, to every House of Blues..up to San Diego working our way around the country. It's all big theaters where he sold out everywhere...And as soon as we finished up that tour with Ace Frehley I think they gave us renewed confidence. We were right back in the studio, started

Not many bands have the pedigree found in Tokyo Motor Fist.  Its members, Steve Brown, Ted Poley, Greg Smith, and Chuck Burgi have been in Trixter, Def Leppard, Danger Danger, Blue Oyster Cult, Rainbow, Billy Joel, and countless other bands.  They are about to release their second record, Lions , and Steve Brown took some time to talk about it and his incredible career. Please press the PLAY icon below for the MisplacedStraws Conversation with Steve Brown: On the band coming together -  Getting back to the debut album we when we put the band together from Frontiers Records, and I got to give a shout out to Sarafino (Perugino) and everybody at Frontiers because it was their idea, they're known for putting together these so-called "Super Groups". So it was a logical step because Bruno Revel who also coincidentally mixed Lions , the brand new Tokyo Motor Fist record with me,  Bruno is my bandmate in Danger Danger, he has a great side band called The Defiants. So I t

It's been 25 years since the debut record from Spock's Beard redefined modern progressive rock.  Since that time, former Beard leader Neal Morse has forged a path unlike any other.  With more than 50 live and studio releases Neal is the catalyst for the modern prog-rock movement.  Along with long-time bandmates Mike Portnoy and Randy George, they are about to release the third volume in their Cover To Cover series and Neal took some time recently to talk about it. Please press the PLAY icon for the MisplacedStraws Conversation with Neal Morse: On how the band started doing covers - Well it became a tradition that when we were done working on the progressive rock epic kind of albums that were really difficult and intricate and so involved, it became kind of a tradition it started in the late nineties with the request from record companies.  I remember the Japanese company would say, "Hey can you give us a bonus track?" And so it started off like that, what can