Spocks Beard
| Spock's Beard | |
|---|---|
Spock's Beard in 2007
Nick D'Virgilio, Ryo Okumoto, Dave Meros, Jimmy Keegan and Alan Morse |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Progressive rock, progressive metal |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Labels | Mascot, InsideOut Music |
| Associated acts | Enchant, Thought Chamber |
| Website | spocksbeard |
| Members |
Alan Morse Nick D'Virgilio Dave Meros Ryo Okumoto Ted Leonard |
| Past members |
Jimmy Keegan Neal Morse John Ballard |
Spock's Beard is an American progressive rock band formed in Los Angeles.
The band was formed in 1992 by brothers Neal (lead vocals, keyboards) and Alan Morse (vocals, guitars), John Ballard (bass) and Nick D'Virgilio (drums). Ballard was replaced by Dave Meros before the release of their debut album, The Light (1995), and Ryo Okumoto (keyboards) joined soon after. Neal Morse left the band following the release of their sixth album, Snow (2002), and D'Virgilio took over as the band's frontman. In 2011, D'Virgilio also left and was replaced by Jimmy Keegan (drums) and Ted Leonard (lead vocals) from Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep (2013) onwards. To date, the band have released twelve studio albums, and numerous live releases.
The band, particularly the Neal Morse line-up, are considered to be at the forefront of modern progressive rock music. Four of their first six albums featured in the Prog Report's "Top 50 Prog Albums 1990-2015", with the The Light and Snow featuring in the top ten.
Spock's Beard was formed in Los Angeles in 1992 by brothers Neal and Alan Morse. Both had played together in bands in the 1980s and initially intended that their new project would be just the two of them, with Neal Morse performing lead vocals and keyboards and Alan Morse on guitar. The brothers soon decided to form a full band and recruited Nick D'Virgilio on drums after meeting him at a blues jam in Los Angeles. John Ballard, a friend of Neal Morse's, was brought in to play bass, but was replaced by Dave Meros before the band began recording demos for their first album. The band's name is a reference to the "Mirror, Mirror" episode of Star Trek. According to Alan Morse:
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