When German prog rockers RPWL released their album Crime Scene back in 2023 singer and keyboard player Yogi Lang was grilled as to what exactly floats his prog boat...
Where’s home?
I live in Freising, a small town north of Munich, close to the airport.
Your earliest memory of prog?
When I was 10 my older cousin recorded some cassettes for me, and on one there was a catchy tune I thought about a lot. It was Dogs from Pink Floyd’s Animals.
What’s the first prog album you bought?
Kraftwerk’s Die Mensch-Maschine, released in English as The Man-Machine, from a big record store here in Munich.
And the last?
Quite some time ago, it was the SACD of Peter Gabriel’s Up.
First prog gig?
Saga, 1982, in Munich. I was 15 years old and annoyed my mother until she took me. It was fantastic! I was amazed by all these synthesisers onstage.
And the latest?It was Genesis on their Calling All Stations Tour [in 1998]. I loved Ray Wilson’s voice.
The best prog show you ever saw?
Pink Floyd on their Momentary Lapse Of Reason Tour in 1987. It was so cool to see them perform. This show was like finally reading the end of a novel – their music was a faithful companion throughout my younger days.
What’s your newest prog discovery?
After Jeff Beck died I rediscovered There And Back,
a vinyl album I bought a long time ago. I had forgotten how good it is – extraordinary musical class surrounds that album.
Guilty musical pleasure?
Don’t know if this is a guilty pleasure, but I’m a real big fan of the US band The Residents. Honestly, I’m a fan of everything they did!
Favourite prog venue?
Night Of The Prog Festival at the wonderful Loreley [Freilichtbühne]. It’s a real historic place to be in Germany, and is a real pleasure. I saw Manfred Mann’s Earth Band there in the 1980s, and playing at the same place still feels
a bit spooky.
Your prog hero?
Manfred Mann [below]. He was my keyboard hero when I started doing music.
Outside of music, what are you into?
I’m interested in what’s going on in the world. Knowledge is a real good medicine in our modern world filled with populists and conspiracy theorists.
Ever had a prog-related date?
Haha! No!
What is the most important piece of prog music?
I think it’d be Supper’s Ready from Genesis.
Recommend us a good read?
If you want to drift through a wise mind, Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is a real pleasure.
Which prog album gets you in a good mood?
King Crimson’s Discipline. The sounds on it were so new
and unconventional. It always makes me smile.
What’s your favourite prog album cover?
The Dark Side Of The Moon.
And what are you up to at the moment?
Our new album, Crime Scene, is out now, and after touring with the new material there will be some time for producing other bands again. And, of course, we’re also planning new solo records. It never gets boring!
