It is with the greatest of pleasure the The Ministry of Prog proudly presents, for your delectation and delight, the inaugural Proguphoria festival to be held at the rather spiffing Mr Kyps rock and roll venue in Parkstone, Poole, Dorset, England on Saturday 20th October 2012 from 4pm onwards. This celebration of modern popular music will feature several well respected bands loosely associated with the rock/progressive genre, namely:

Galahad will be playing a selection of songs from both their new studio albums Battle Scars and Beyond The Realms Of Euphoria as well as a few golden galaclassics.

"Here is the latest Galanews!," declares Galahad's Stu Nicholson. "The Battle Scars limited edition (300 copies only) 180gm vinyl LP complete with gatefold sleeve will be released officially on Monday 28th May 2012 in conjunction with Ritual Echo Records: www.ritualechorecords.com.

"Each LP will also come with a copy of the full album on CD in a clear plastic wallet containing the bonus track 'Sleepers 2012' plus a Galahad logo window/car sticker.

"Copies are available to order from the official Galahad website: www.galahadonline.com and also from the Ritual Echo Records website.

Knifeworld return with their strongest release to date - Clairvoyant Fortnight, out on Believers Roast, 11th June 2012. The EP follows 2011's critically acclaimed EP Dear Lord, No Deal and their 2009 debut album Buried Alone: Tales Of Crushing Defeat.

With their trademark uncompromising psychedelia in full effect, Knifeworld still sound like no-one else. Intense and kaleidoscopic, this release offers another piece of the curious jigsaw.

Clairvoyant Fortnight (Radio Edit), the free single and title track of the EP is available to download via our [A Badge Of Friendship's] Soundcloud page. The full version of the track will be available on the EP.

Henta [who most recently provided vocals on Echo Us's Tomorrow Will Tell The Story] writes immersive music, taking you on a kaleidoscopic journey melding the ambient and acoustic, with her sensual voice as your guide.

Butterfly Song is a story of metamorphosis, transformation, passion and compassion. It documents the flight back into the world following a time of reflection, self-discovery and recaptured joy, gained during a new chapter of life. It speaks of freedom from the paralysis of fear so deeply and inherently engrained within us. It is also a call to action for people to awaken from a state of passive observation into a proactive mindset that benefits both community and the planet.

Finally reunited again with their original singer Michael Sadler, Canadian rockers Saga will release the ultimate AOR/progressive rock album, 20/20, worldwide on July 6.

Since Saga's foundation in 1977, the band has toured the globe various times, won many awards and has sold over eight million albums worldwide. Their musical style is defined by prominent guitar riffs, often in harmony with a synthesizer, and complex keyboard arrangements.

The title 20/20, first of all, refers to the album being the 20th of Saga, but in addition, it's a good luck wish to Jim Gilmour, who had to undergo an eye operation during Saga's latest European tour. 20/20 stands for the perfect eyesight.

Italian progressive metallers Despite Exile have set the release date for their upcoming Re-Evolve EP for May 15. The band has just finished a new video for their song "Mechanical" – stay tuned, as this video is a very interesting one!

Despite Exile - Re-Evolve Tracklisting:

1. Oscillate: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ugMSa5agRI
2. Perfection Neutralized: www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJHmez-yvkY
3. Mechanical: coming soon ...

Fates Warning: a classic name not only on the Metal Blade roster but within the metal scene in general. In the course of our ongoing re-release series, the band's classic Inside Out is another must have item. Fates Warning have always been one of the most influential bands within the metal scene. Being one of the founders of the progressive metal movement they have influenced the likes of Queensryche and Dream Theater among many others.

This re-release comes as a double CD plus bonus-DVD. It contains the classic original album as well as live tracks from a German show Fates Warning played in Dusseldorf in 1995 and unreleased demo takes. The bonus-DVD contains an assortment of live clips, from 1993-1995. The full track listing is below. A sample clip from the DVD, "Monument," as well as one of the re-mastered tracks, 'Pale Fire,' can be viewed now over on metalblade.com/fateswarning.

37 years after their first album Pampered Menial ("Julia"), 8 years after their reunion, and 2 years after the comback album Echo & Boo, legendary band Pavlov's Dog from St. Louis/USA will come to UK:

August 21st: The Borderline, London
August 23rd: The Robin 2, Wolverhampton

"A band should start a comback only if they can perform bigger and more sophisticated as they were when they left. Pavlov's Dog did this terrificly successful. It's a furious, a moving to tears comeback!" (Eclipsed Magazine voted Echo & Boo on rank 13 of 2010's most important releases)

Two years after their great comeback on the musical scene with the album Melapesante, the new prog italian band is back with a new concept album. An high voltage symphonic rock album, with the special participation of the Moody Blues’ co-founder Ray Thomas on flute.

Syndone prog band presents the new album The Beauty Is The Beast (AMS/BTF 2012, 12 tracks, 46.30 min.). An important comeback for this group led by the composer and keyboardist Nik Comoglio, who put the group together again in 2010 after years of silence. After the Melapesante concept-album, which may be considered like their “starting over album," now it comes The Beauty Is The Beast: a new concept album written by the vocalist Riccardo Ruggeri, based on the symbolism of 1756 Beaumont's tale and open to various interpretations and suggestions. For this new album – fourth in the group’s career - Syndone comes back to the trio but with more maturity and fantasy: Nik Comoglio (all keyboards), Riccardo Ruggeri (vocals and lyrics) and Francesco Pinetti (marimba, vibraphone, percussions) are such the "basic personnel" which has orchestrated the whole work creating the best “musical scenery� for the characters interpreted by the vocalist.

Since the release of their most recent album, Pterodactyls, last August, The Mercury Tree found itself at a turning point. Pterodactyls was an epic concept album whose songs felt very much of a piece, and upon its successful completion, it seemed time for a fresh approach. New bass player Aaron Clark has brought a spacier mood to the proceedings, using creative techniques such as E-Bowed bass.

On the new album, the band wanted to try to bridge the gap between its highly layered studio sound and its more direct live sound. To that end, many of the new songs are based around live looping. This allows a combination of complex layered guitar parts with the power and energy of organic live drums and bass. "We wanted the new songs to be both more progressive and more melodic," explains guitarist Ben Spees. "'Inflexus' is one of the harder-edged examples of this new approach. We are really excited about these new songs and can't wait to finish recording the new album."

The new, still untitled album will be released this Summer. Listen to Inflexus .

[Source: Prog-Sphere Promotions]

Due on May 22 via Radiant Records, Cover 2 Cover is the new CD from Neal Morse, Mike Portnoy and Randy George. Together, this group of musicians hand-picked these classic cover songs to complete the second such CD in the bands extensive catalog. This widely diverse selection of songs is sure to capture the essence of the age of music that has impacted these accomplished musicians!

"One of the first things myself, Neal and Randy usually start talking about when we gather for one of Neal's solo albums is what we can cover should we have some leftover time at the end of the session. And now over the course of both CDs, we have covered 28 songs!" says Portnoy. "Ranging from the obscure to the classics. Like the first Cover To Cover, most of the song choices on this CD are rooted in the '70s and are songs/bands we grew up with."

It Bites has released their second preview video allowing fans an inside look of their new album Map Of The Past, which was released in North America on May 8 via InsideOut Music. The first video of the three part series was revealed last week and can be seen here.

The second preview video can be seen here.

"We tried it but we understood in a short time that it would have been really impossible to have our friend and drummer Alex Holzwarth playing for both Rhapsody and Rhapsody Of Fire. In these conditions there was simply no way to go on and right now, having two tour agencies working for us and starting the planning of the live activity, we agreed that the best is to keep the two bands completely independent from each other. That's why some time ago we found the only possible solution. Alex Holzwarth will go on playing for Rhapsody Of Fire and this makes sense because also his brother is playing in that band, too. From our side, after thanking Alex for all the wonderful moments shared together and to have recorded the new album, showing once more all his great technical skill, we started looking around trying to find a special person that could have taken his important place. Well, we can tell you that we found that person and it is surely special, very special... honestly one of the best drummers around we had the chance to listen to.

On May, 18th, the new Sonata Arctica album Stones Grow Her Name will be released via Nuclear Blast. The media response is already overwhelming, expect a unique, rocking and progressive jewel.

You can watch the new video for the first single "I Have A Right" here

Read following what bandleader Tony Kakko says about "I Have A Right":

Affector, the new international progressive rock/metal act, has been preparing for the release of their debut album Harmagedon, due out on May 22 (North America, May 21 Europe) via InsideOut Music. In anticipation of the release, Affector has made a special "radio edit" version of their song "New Jerusalem." The radio edit version can be heard on Affector's official Facebook page, here, under the 'listen to our music' tab.

Affector's Collin Leijenaar and Daniel Fries commented on the release of the new song:

May we introduce the titles Musea Records are issuing this month? We start this round up with Minimum Vital - Chapitre 3: Minimum Vital is most certainly among the most original groups to emerge from the eighties progressive rock scene. The first works from twins Thierry & Jean-Luc Payssan mix influences from Yes, guitar playing to the fluidity worthy of Mike Oldfield, an amazing technique legacy of jazz-rock fusion and countless innovations, with a strong impregnation of medieval music and Occitan traditions. This French band has forged an identity of style and originality incomparable, and is now recognized as a benchmark in itself. Envol Triangles/Les Saisons Marines includes the first cassette (1985) and the first vinyl (1987). A magnificent opus recorded for the label Musea, Sarabande gives vent to light the strong personality of training in Bordeaux.

The progressive rock outfit Headspace will release their first full-length album, I Am Anonymous, May 22 in North America (May 21 in Europe). The artwork for the album was created by Blacklake (a design team from Holland), and they took the band's original concept of a bleak war-torn landscape and created the chaotic scene for the front cover, contrasted by the innocence of a young child.

Osada Vida, one of the most interesting Polish bands on the prog-rock scene, reveal new details of their first live DVD. The material entitled Where The Devils Live features the recording of their live appearance at the Wyspianski Theater in Katowice, Poland in November 2011 and is scheduled for release on June 18th in Europe and July 24th in USA. And from today [Apr 24] you can see the trailer of the DVD – track "Hard-Boiled Wonderland" is available on Metal Mind Productions' official channel on YouTube.

The 14-string guitar player, Felix Martin, a graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music, born and raised in Venezuela, is about to launch his sophomore album this summer. The follow-up to 2010's Bizarre Rejection features Nathan Navarro on bass and Marco Minnemann on drums. The album was previously scheduled for April, but it's been delayed for June.

In support of the new album, Felix will be promoting his music on an extensive European tour, kicking off on May 23 in Lisbon, Portugal. The full list of tour dates is as follows:

Joe Satriani (Chickenfoot), John Petrucci (Dream Theater) and Steve Morse (Deep Purple) will join forces for the South American edition of the G3 tour in October.

Confirmed dates so far are as follows:

Oct. 11- Citibank Hall - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Oct. 12 - Credicard Hall - Sao Paulo, Brazil

More shows will be announced soon.