Saturday, June 14, 2025

Rosalie Cunningham - Number 149


Rosalie Cunningham, well known on progressive rock circles as the driving force behind the well-received band Purson, grew up in a home with music all around her. She was writing her own songs and picking out melodies on a piano before, at 12 years old, she began seriously learning the guitar. With an ear for The Beatles, early Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Small Faces, Genesis and Black Sabbath, she had musical tastes beyond her years. At 13, she formed her first band, Suzie's Lip. Her first professional band, Ipso Facto toured with Magazine and The Last Shadow Puppets. In 2011, she formed the band Purson, which spread her music around the world, and culminated with the highly acclaimed album, Desire's Magic Theatre. Since the breakup of Purson, Rosalie has worked towards a solo career, and released her self-titled album in 2019.

Her first solo album was excellent, but here on her second, I feel she has outdone her previous masterpiece, Purson’s ‘Desire's Magic Theatre’. While her self-titled solo debut is beautiful and superbly crafted, on this one she has re-energized her progressive leanings with a vengeance. Her wit and whimsy are still on full display here, and I would say even more so than on DMT. I am tempted to mention my favorites from her lyrics, but I think each listener should experience the joy of hearing her words by listening to the album themselves. Every track is exquisite prog, and Rosalie manages to create perfection in every style she weaves into her compositions, be it symphonic, jazz, honky-tonk, and even a Beatles-like raga. Speaking of which, ‘Tristitia Amnesia’ absolutely blows me away, starting with the above-mentioned raga, and seamlessly escalating into an amazing psychedelic rock finale. I've mentioned this about her previous albums, but I find that Rosalie is one of the few artists whose albums consistently make me feel like I did a half century ago, when I would come home with a pile of records and find some that would send my mind soaring to new places. In simple terms, her music makes me feel young again.

From: https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=11303