AND NOW EVERYBODY TO THE STAGE

In the mid-Eighties I witnessed this pleasant neo-prog band for the first time in the (in) famous Dutch youth-center Het Paard in The Hague, Holland. After the concert we had a vivid conversation with the band members who were enjoying their marihuana stuffed sigarettes, a famous Dutch treat! Watching this DVD they still make the same kind of music after more than 20 years: a blend of straightforward neo-prog rock songs with a catchy beat and harder-edged guitar riffs (No Place For The Innocent, Nostradamus, The Last Waltz and Masters Of Illusion) and more compelling, symphonic prog inspired compositions with bombastic eruptions and sensitive guitar work (Breaking The Spell, The Black Night and Am I Really Losing You?). The 'setlist' spans their entire carreer: from the anti-Vietnam war song Kow Tow and the 'crowd pleaser' The Black Night (strong rendition) from the early era to tracks from their latest CD Believe (like the wonderful The Edge Of The World). The band plays inspired, there is pleasant interaction with the crowd, the lightshow is beautiful and I enjoyed Nick Barrett his sensitive, often howling guitar soli, especially the Floydian slide guitar play in some tracks. So nothing wrong with this professional and pleasant DVD, an excellent addition for every neo-proghead, this band is still 'alive and progging'!

I really didn´t know what to expect from this DVD. After all it came on the heels of a (relatively) disappointing CD (Believe) and the band, with a established line up for 20 years, lost one of their most celebrated members, drummer Fudge Smith. To top that they had released in 2001 one of the best neo prog DVDs ever, Live At Last. Could they face those challenges and still come up with something extra to offer?

Fortunately they did. The overall quality of this DVD is superior: better stage, bigger audience, more cameras, very good photography and editing. The only major let-down is the keyboards sounds that are mixed too low. Still,at least on the Believe songs, they are more prominent here then in the studio, which is plus. Besides I´m really glad to say that the Believe stuff works far better live than on CD.

After a pinkfloydian intro (a flick that reminds me of Floyd´s Take It Back) the band hits the stage with power and passion. Their stage movements are much more fluid and natural than on Live At Last and this is more so of Nick Barrett. Nick´s voice is definitely not in his prime, but he makes that up by doing some great interpretation of the repertoire. He definitely never sounded or appeared so natural and convincing on stage (watch Am I Really Losing You, the concert´s final number).

Newcomer Joe Crabtree may not have Smith´s charisma, but he´s got the chops. The guy bashes his drum kit all the way through the show and does a fine job, injecting an extra punch to the group´s performance. He is really good and you don´t miss Smith as much as I thought. In fact, by the end of the DVD I found myself not missing him at all.

Sure I´d like to have some more old songs included here and some others already available on Live At Last deleted, but you really can´t satisfy everyone. However I´m pleased they included Kowtow (from the much maligned album) and a superb version of The Black Knight. I only wish they played Sister Bluebird in full, instead of only a verse in a medley of Not Of This World songs during the encore.

Conclusion: a great DVD by a great band. An excellent companion for the Live At Last DVD and a must have for any neo prog fan. Highly recommended!

I really haven't extended my neo-progressive investigations much beyond Marillion, who I really like, and IQ, who I absolutely adore. However, through the miracle of youtube, I discovered a complete recording of this DVD and played it a few times.

At first I was pleasantly surprised: the band have a very fine keyboards player (Clive Nolan) and a singer/guitarist (Nick Barrett) who plays guitar very melodically and with plenty of skill - he doesn't tap or use advanced techniques like Mike Holmes, but he plays some lovely solos. The rhythm section is solid and inventive, Pete Gee conjuring up some dynamic and interesting bass lines and newcomer Joe Crabtree showing off some really excellent chops. Nick Barrett's voice is a bit of a conundrum; he isn't the most tuneful singer and his delivery is a bit laid back, but he has lot of emotion and his style grows on you. Clive Nolan sings very well on backing/harmony vocals

Not being familiar with much of their material, since I've only really listened to a few of their albums once or twice, it took some time to get into their songs, but they clearly show influences of Genesis and Camel and that can only be good. By about the 4th play, the sheer quality of their music began to shine through, so I bought the DVD. The Wishing Well, Dance of the Seven Veils and Paintbox are all excellent, but the material gets even better towards the end. From the brilliant Breaking the Spell onwards through the encores, the band make some of the finest music I've heard, and I began to really like Barrett's delivery. They're not as arty as IQ but Nick Barrett's songs are melodic and at times almost anthemic. The Polish crowd are extremely enthusiasic and Barrett knows exactly how to interact with them.

Down sides: Barrett's stage dress is basically surfing gear, which wins no prizes for sartorial elegance, and Clive Nolan's keyboards are slightly low in the mix. And it's going to be expensive, because I now have to buy all their CDs too.

Other than that, I love this DVD. There's a lot of extra material but I don't bother with it much. The main DVD has kept IQ and Camel off my DVD player for a week and anything that can do that must be 5*.

Unhesitatingly recommended.