The Giant Progweed:
Frequently Asked Questions and General Information
I. The Giant Progweed
1. What is the Giant Progweed?
2. So
how do I know if you’re full of shit or not?
3. All
you do is reviews? Doesn’t that get boring?
4. You
only cover progressive rock? Isn’t that a bit narrow minded?
5. What
is progressive rock? I would like more information on your topic
of choice sweetie.
6. So,
you guys like getting high? What's with the name?
7. Where
are the stars, man?
8. How
do you guys choose stuff to review?
9. Hey,
you got those CDs for free; don’t you feel obliged to give them
a good review?
10. Is
Alex Temple really a chick?
11. Can
I contribute to the Giant Progweed?
Well, welcome
to our humble contribution to the growing digital community
of Progressive Rock related websites and fan forums. This page
is here to simply provide you with some general information
about our music, our site, our goals and what you can expect
from us. Hopefully, we can provide you with a valuable voice
and resource in exploring the often convoluted, vaguely defined
yet oh-so-rewarding musical genre we all know and love. Here
are some answers to various questions that have either been
asked of us or we were otherwise compelled to provide. Onward...
The Giant Progweed
1.
What is The Giant Progweed?
Simply put, we
review progressive rock albums from the past and the present,
and hopefully guide the readers towards new things they might
enjoy. It would be appropriate to stress that this site is really
just a hobby. We don't claim to be professional journalists,
yet we treat our subject with the professionalism it deserves.
Essentially, we are a collective of fans that are passionate
about a type of music we enjoy, and would like others to share
in our enjoyment of said music. Our reviewers are passionate,
unabashedly opinionated, and can always be counted on to give
you their honest thoughts on an album, take it or leave it.
2.
So how do I know if you’re full of shit or not?
Certainly, one
essential aspect of the site comes from getting to know the
reviewers and their tastes, and finding whose might fit yours
the best. It's important to understand that many of the albums
on the site are works we've heard, purchased, traded for or
taped on our own. The site essentially reflects a personal exploration
of music at the same time. All we're saying is to expect a high
degree of honesty and thought put into all the reviews on the
site. It also bears mentioning that there are a wealth of other
progressive rock review sites out there, and we don't claim
to be the only resource you'll ever need. In fact, we encourage
you to cross-reference reviews across various websites to try
and come up with a definitive idea of what you may like.
3.
All you do is reviews? Doesn’t that get boring?
In addition, we
provide the occasional interview, along with a number of links
and concert reviews in an attempt to be slightly more comprehensive.
Still, the meat of the site is the reviews, and we hope, if
we've done our job, that's what will keep you coming back.
4.
You only cover progressive rock? Isn’t that a bit narrow minded?
Yes, it would
be if that were true. Truth is, Progressive Rock is a rather
archaic term that has really outgrown its initial use to cover
a much broader spectrum than originally intended. We’re not
just covering symphonic rock here – we see the site as a place
for information on any band we feel to be progressive and adventurous,
including innovative pop like XTC, Post-Rock such as Tortoise
or the more avant garde like 5uu's. We would much rather be
inclusive than exclusive when defining our borders.
5.
What is progressive rock? I would like more information on your
topic of choice sweetie.
<Insert indignant
glare here> *sigh* There is no good definition of Progressive
Rock. We’re currently at work on making a guide that will provide
a basic outline to this question, so stay tuned.
6.
So, you guys like getting high? What's with the name?
Well, maybe. Actually,
the name is derived from the Genesis song "The Giant Hogweed"
from the Nursery Cryme album. Other than expressing our obvious
enjoyment of Genesis and progressive rock in general, the name
has no other connotations…
7.
Where are the stars, man?
We've gradually
become disenchanted with the idea of using stars in our reviews.
At first, we had them, but many of you seem to have noticed
that they've disappeared over the past few months. The reason
is this: we feel that anyone can go up there and throw an arbitrary
number of stars at an album. As part of an effort to become
a more complete and informative site, we want to focus in on
the actual writing of the reviews, which are able to express
a greater complexity of opinion and thought on a release rather
than the unwieldy application of a 1-5 star rating. Some of
us don't like using star-based rating systems, because they're
liable to change, while text based reviews are able to illustrate
more thoughtful and in depth articulation that remains valid
for a longer period of time. Plus, this forces you to actually
read what has been written.
8.
How do you guys choose stuff to review?
We have the freedom
to basically review whatever we want whenever we want, and are
not limited to anything. One advantage that this yields is that
we are not "promotional dependant". Essentially, we don't depend
on the influx of free CDs from bands or labels in order to survive.
That means we don't give good reviews to CDs we get for free
simply because of how we got them, so you as a consumer can
count on us to always tell you what we really think of an album,
regardless of its source.
9.
Hey, you got those CDs for free; don’t you feel obliged to give
them a good review? Some starving prog artist had to spend money
to ship them.
We don't buy into
the philosophy of "its prog therefore it is good", or its close
cousin, "support the scene and give every album a good review,
man". No, overall that attitude weakens the pool of music we
have available to us, and will hinder growth by scaring off
prospective fans. However, we do get our share of promos, and
enjoy many of them. When one gets a good review, you can rest
assured that we really think it’s as good as we say it is.
10.
Is Alex Temple really a chick?
Umm... We're too
afraid to lift up his skirt.
11.
Can I contribute to the Giant Progweed?
Sure. We'd like
to apply a ten-review minimum on our reviewers to ensure that
we don't get someone who gives us two or three reviews and then
drops off the face of the earth. While this may sound elitist,
we are not looking for someone who can rate a few hundred albums
of one style. We’re looking for people with decent writing skills
and a little breadth to their exposure to this music. Email
us a couple of sample reviews and we'll let you know what’s
up.
- FAQ Compiled by Greg Northrup + Mike Prete [November 2001]