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Garion81 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Calprog October 10-11, 2008
    Posted: October 13 2008 at 15:13
I have a t-shirt that Stacy bought me for my birthday. It features a keyboard with the question "Got Keys?" above it. That question could have been the theme for Calprog 2008 at least early on.

We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather for the festival as the highs were in the low 70's and the lows in the upper 50's with not a cloud in the sky. Starting at Friday pre show we ate our Patron Dinner sitting with Sylvan the band from Germany and had a great time. They were personable and knowledgeable and we had a great conversation. I also spoke with old friends Greg DiMiclli and Tom and John Galgano of IZZ briefly as well. The preshow band, Gable Ratchet a Genesis clone, started the keyboard woes as their keyboard player was in in the hospital with kidney stones. They found a guy who hadn't played with them for 8 years and while he was a good keyboard player he had some trouble throughout forgetting some of the material particularly Ripples. Still the band played bravely on and did an admiral job under the circumstances.

The next day we got to the theater about an hour before the show and was able to check out some of the merchants and picked up more than a few CD's. I bought one CD from every band and got some Calprog related merchandise to support the festival.

The first group on was Presto Ballet starting at 11 am. The keyboard woes for the festival continued when Kurdt Vanderhoof informed us they had to let their keyboard player go about a month prior to the gig and had not been able to find a replacement. He said rather than cancel again (they had to cancel in 2006 because their drummer quit three weeks before the festival) they decided to sequence the keys in and play around it. Not the best set of circumstances indeed because the vintage 70's analog keys they use in the band is an extremely important part of their 70's rock sound (think Kansas). The music was good and I am going to hold off any judgement of the performance until such time they can perform as a complete unit. I think they did the best they could and all the musicians were excellent with good vocals as well. They were extremely engaging when I spoke to them after the show and I asked Kurdt if he plans on keeping this going and he said absolutely. He was more astonished with the type of audience they had yesterday compared to the metal crowds he had in his other band Metal Church. His direct quotes was "there's no mosh pit and they sit and listen! I should have done this years ago!" Looking forward to it Kurdt. They did no prog cover as Kurdt explained it "we would do more but our keyboard player doesn't know any more."

The second group was the top group for me IZZ. They played almost an 80 minutes and covered I think every album. They started out with the burning guitar of Paul Brememer, in full formal Scottish attire including Kilt, in Late Night Salvation and didn't stop. They played a new song as well that has a little bit different styles with some jazz mixed in and it is a nice direction. I spoke with drummer Brian Coralian and guitarist Paul Bremmer afterword and they are both very excited about the new material that hopefully should be recorded and released next year. This band is always on and they played inspired and their blend of technical and melodic music was just spectacular. The one band that stayed true to the tradition of Calprog and played a hauntingly good Trilogy by Emerson Lake and Palmer. Tom Galgano was just perfect on the keyboards and the vocals while drummers Brian Coralian and Greg DiMiceli were perfect ON Carl Palmer's parts. Thanks Guys that was beautiful. (I hope this makes the Calprog bootleg CD Jim.) And not being done with this they had promoter Jim Harrel take over the bass duties freeing bass player John Galgano to sing a spirited cover of a Fish song He Knows You Know

Sylvan was the problem band for me this year and I hesitate to say something negative about them. The positives are they play with with very great energy and emotion. They are all very competent musicians and the played music form all across their 10 year carer. The problem I have their music has certain sameness to it that doesn't really change from song to song. I find this problem with most Neo Prog bands (and Pink Floyd) and really can only listen to them in small doses. The Keyboards, played by Volker Sohl, and Bass, played very well by Sebastian Harnack, seems to dominate the sound. The guitar is really down in the mix I think by design and Jan Petersen's solos might have been interesting if I could of heard them. Drummer Matthias Harder was competent and vocalist Marco Gluhmann was solid but again the sameness of him being the only vocalist (no backing vocals were used) was hard for me to sit through for almost 2 hours. I wasn't really impressed with the prog cover they chose either a Song from David Bowie's Life on Mars.  This song could have been one of their own as it kept the same tempo and slowly moving progressions they same to favor. Not my cup of tea.

Echolyn closed the show and wow, what a way to go out. They just steamrolled us through a set of music covering all 14 years of their history. They played a lot of Cowboy Poems which should be re-released this year. Some other highlights for me were a snippet from Mei, Georgia Pine, The End is Beautiful and As the World. This band was just so good. Outside of the great vocalist Ray Weston saying "Go Phillies" to a large group of Dodger fans was about the only thing I can say negatively about them. Oh and Radiohead's Airbag is not a prog classic cover!  LOL Anyway Guitarist Brett Kull was on fire the whole night extending some solos in very high energy moments. I love the energy drummer Paul Ramsey and Bassist Tom Hyatt brought to the mix as well. Keyboardist Chris Busby had some great fills and solos as well. It was a fitting way to end the day.

We almost lost one tradition as the Radisson had changed their lobby by well turning it into a restaurant that was closed by festival end. Calprogs are memorable because those that will including musicians, staff and fans all sit in the lobby and party for quite a while afterwards. My better half sweet talked the manager to move the furniture so we had a spot to go and the club that had taken over the old restaurant allowed us to go in and purchase drinks so this tradition survived another year.

Some of my favorite moments was just spending time with my friends which is what these festivals are really all about. It is just really sad that most of us live so far apart.


Edited by Garion81 - October 14 2008 at 18:33


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 13 2008 at 23:34
Spot on review there Brian, my boy!
 
IZZ and Echolyn ruled the day. I can't say who I preferred, both bands rocked the house and me. IZZ gets better every time, and Trilogy? Whoa doggy! Smokin'. I wish they played more of that style in their own music. Powerful, over-the-top, self-indulgent ear candy. Sweet.
 
I'd like to hear what a really good record producer could do for Sylvan. Drop a lot of that mid-range tonal fluff and boost the highs and lows... give the music room to breathe. That wall of sound can actually become painful. I almost walked out a few times, but I kept falling asleep before I could get to my feet. That last funky track was alright. Almost like another band took the stage.
 
Second row seats were nice, eh Bri! Too bad Laura was on the wrong side of the stage.
 
 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 15 2008 at 00:08
 Wow! In three days there is one response and that by the guy who sat next to us? Sorry, but that is why I pretty much have given up on this site as any kind of real correspondence for progressive rock music.  Glad none of you came or were even interested even reading about it.  Ouch
 
 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 15 2008 at 01:23
I thought Calprog was in early summer?
I'm always keep missing 'em
Anyway, it sounded like a good time.





Edited by KoS - October 15 2008 at 01:23
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2008 at 08:40
Garion 81,it's true that this forum sometimes lacks life,but when debate is on it's explosive.The festival must have been nice.I hope someday to go to an american prog festival.Do you know Progrésiste?It's in Belgium 1000 kms far from home.I will be there this weekend.By the way could you suggest me Izz records?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2008 at 08:45
awesome....  great review Brian... can't wait to catch next year's show 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2008 at 15:16
Originally posted by fusionfreak fusionfreak wrote:

Garion 81,it's true that this forum sometimes lacks life,but when debate is on it's explosive.The festival must have been nice.I hope someday to go to an american prog festival.Do you know Progrésiste?It's in Belgium 1000 kms far from home.I will be there this weekend.By the way could you suggest me Izz records?
 
Is this a one day or two day festival FF?  Tell me more about it?  Do you have a hotel you convene at?  Looks like a good lineup. 
 
For IZZ I would start with My River Flows then I Move those are the best ones and Live at Nearfest is a really solid live CD as well. The other two Sliver of a Sun and Ampersand you could get later to fill in the gaps.  They are a fantastic band. 
 
 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2008 at 18:14
Wonderful review sir. As a European, I find myself very jealous of everyone who has managed to see Echolyn play live. I understand that their last trip over the pond was not a happy one and as a result they have chosen to stay stateside which is an understandable but crying shame nonetheless. They are one of my favourtie bands but by the way you described the event, it sounds as if the whole festival was a great success. You described it beautifully.

Now if only Man On Fire and Echolyn were on the same bill, I'd be on that plane like a shot. But I digress...Smile
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 16 2008 at 21:21
Originally posted by si god si god wrote:

Wonderful review sir. As a European, I find myself very jealous of everyone who has managed to see Echolyn play live. I understand that their last trip over the pond was not a happy one and as a result they have chosen to stay stateside which is an understandable but crying shame nonetheless. They are one of my favourite bands but by the way you described the event, it sounds as if the whole festival was a great success. You described it beautifully.

Now if only Man On Fire and Echolyn were on the same bill, I'd be on that plane like a shot. But I digress...Smile
Thanks!
 
Well this was the first time they had played on the West Coast since 1994 so I can understand your pain.  Their performance exceeded my expectations.  I have most of their albums and like them enough to give them a spin several times a month but I had no idea the energy those guys had.  They had a so so report card from their Nearfest performance earlier this year so I wasn't sure what to expect.  They came out an blew the doors down from the start. 
 
Correct me if am wrong Dan but they started with Gergia Pines. That song rocked big time. 
 
Man on Fire.  I know very little about them but I am going to check into them. 
 
Echolyn and Izz I might fly to see that. Wink


Edited by Garion81 - October 16 2008 at 21:21


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 17 2008 at 01:27
I would have loved to see Echolyn, even though I'm not a fan of half of their discography. I'm sure I would enjoy seeing the songs I don't particularly care for. Are you saying that they covered "Airbag?"
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 17 2008 at 11:04
^ Yup.  In their encore. They started out with Never the Same then Brittany then a Jam with their sound man coming up and trading chops with Brett then Airbag.
 
 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 21 2008 at 16:12
Yeah, Brian, They opened with Georgia Pines and continued to melt the house down for the rest of the show.
 
Man On Fire is a damn good band. The guitarist/bassist is a monster and I dig his fretless work. They are working on a new one, or so I've heard. They've got a lot of RUSH in their sound, but I'd put them on the bill with Salem Hill... IMHO,
 
I would have been happy if IZZ and Echolyn were the only two bands playing... much longer sets though!


Edited by Dan Bobrowski - October 21 2008 at 16:14
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 26 2008 at 06:58
Garion 81 it's a two day event by the end of october:There is the Hotel de la gare near Verviers'train station.
This is rather cheap(50-55 bucks for singles)but the owner seems not to like people who only book for 2 or
3 days,he prefers 1 week booking.Nevertheless if you book 4 or 5 months before.I don't think there will be problems.The 2 day ticket is about 60 bucks.I wrote a short sum up of the event in the European tours section.Thanks for the advice!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 27 2008 at 17:37
Originally posted by Dan Bobrowski Dan Bobrowski wrote:

Yeah, Brian, They opened with Georgia Pines and continued to melt the house down for the rest of the show.
 
Man On Fire is a damn good band. The guitarist/bassist is a monster and I dig his fretless work. They are working on a new one, or so I've heard. They've got a lot of RUSH in their sound, but I'd put them on the bill with Salem Hill... IMHO,
 
I would have been happy if IZZ and Echolyn were the only two bands playing... much longer sets though!
 
I will check them out.  I just found out that the members of that group also own 10T records and that one them opened up a state of the art studio in South Carolina.
 
I anyone want so hear some samples of the live music Jim had a few in his podcast from his radio show.  None are complete but they are good:
 
Select  the 10/25/2008  show
 
 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2008 at 14:27
Originally posted by fusionfreak fusionfreak wrote:

Garion 81 it's a two day event by the end of october:There is the Hotel de la gare near Verviers'train station.
This is rather cheap(50-55 bucks for singles)but the owner seems not to like people who only book for 2 or
3 days,he prefers 1 week booking.Nevertheless if you book 4 or 5 months before.I don't think there will be problems.The 2 day ticket is about 60 bucks.I wrote a short sum up of the event in the European tours section.Thanks for the advice!
 
Thanks for the Info FF.  Maybe I will be fortunate to see this someday.
 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2008 at 14:35
I really hope we'll be able to make it to the next Calprog, even if we live on the other side of the country. Unfortunately, as to now I'm still stuck here (family problemsUnhappy), but I definitely will be in the US for Thanksgiving. I've even started collecting turkey and pumpkin pie recipes!LOL
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2008 at 14:41
Sorry, Brian.  I read your original review when you posted it.  I didn't respond because I didn't really have anything to say.  It was a good review.  I think that if I were in your shoes I probably would have enjoyed the Sylvan portion of the show, but they are one of my favorite newer acts.  I don't really find there to a sameyness problem that you do. (I would have inserted a shrugs shoulders emoticon if there was one).  I've been gushing non-stop in the forums over IZZ, Echolyn, and the latest Presto Ballet album, The Lost Art of Time Travel, so I am quite certain that I would have been in prog heaven with this show.  It is too bad that PB had let go of their keyboard player, because in my opinion he was definitely a marked improvement from the debut album.  I apologize for not posting earlier.  I suppose that time has healed, and I have gotten over my jealousy of not having attended that show too. Wink
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2008 at 17:02
Originally posted by rushfan4 rushfan4 wrote:

Sorry, Brian.  I read your original review when you posted it.  I didn't respond because I didn't really have anything to say.  It was a good review.  I think that if I were in your shoes I probably would have enjoyed the Sylvan portion of the show, but they are one of my favorite newer acts.  I don't really find there to a sameyness problem that you do. (I would have inserted a shrugs shoulders emoticon if there was one).  I've been gushing non-stop in the forums over IZZ, Echolyn, and the latest Presto Ballet album, The Lost Art of Time Travel, so I am quite certain that I would have been in prog heaven with this show.  It is too bad that PB had let go of their keyboard player, because in my opinion he was definitely a marked improvement from the debut album.  I apologize for not posting earlier.  I suppose that time has healed, and I have gotten over my jealousy of not having attended that show too. Wink
 
I was just so excited from the show and the party afterward  I just couldn't understand how anyone else couldn't have been. Wink
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Sylvan was OK and I don't want to seem overly critical.  It wasn't the musicso much  but the tone and tempo that casued the sameness through the set. Start off with lots of mid range tones and not enough tonal dynamics high and low.   For instance the guitar which should have been louder was way down in the mix and I could barely hear him.  It may have been because he chose a tone closer to to what the keyboard was using and they do a lot of riffs that are harmonies between the guitar and keys much the way Genesis uses except they sound the same in Sylvan.  There were a couple of his solos that if I hadn't been looking at him wouldn't have known he was playing them.  Then had to strain to hear him through the bass and keys.  The mix wasn't bad because I was at their sound check prior to the show and they were very happy with it.  They just choose to understate the guitar and I think that detracts what they are trying to do.  I am not in a small minority in my thinking from that show  but there were many there also who were huge fans and I do respect that.  However I am trying to be honest without being negative. I think the band was very professional and for sure great people.   
 
 
 I also think their placement between IZZ and Echolyn might have something to do with it.  If they had opened the fest or played  just after Presto Ballet it would have been better in my mind.  IZZ and Echolyn were absolutely on fire and should have played IZZ then Echolyn  PB was good but really want to see them again with a keyboard player.  Kurt wrote some good music and he is very passionate about it so I hope to see them again with a full band.
 
 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 28 2008 at 17:08
Originally posted by Raff Raff wrote:

I really hope we'll be able to make it to the next Calprog, even if we live on the other side of the country. Unfortunately, as to now I'm still stuck here (family problemsUnhappy), but I definitely will be in the US for Thanksgiving. I've even started collecting turkey and pumpkin pie recipes!LOL
 
Hope to see you there next year Raff!! Smile
 
You missed a very good one this time but Jim will cook something up for next year.
 
I certainly don't want to coach an already accomplished cook (at least that is what I understand from Michael) but whatever reciepie you use for the Turkey makes sure you keep some broth in the pan (I use veggie broth) and baste often (3 times an hour at least) to keep the turkey moist. It will just melt in your mouth.
 
 
 
 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: December 11 2008 at 22:49
Yo Bri... I ordered the Official 2008 Bootleg. Cool. Cool 
 
IZZ' cover of "Trilogy" is on it! Woo Hoo!
 
I wish they could have included Echolyn's "Never the Same" though.


Edited by Dan Bobrowski - December 11 2008 at 22:50
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