ProgDay 2016

we awoke Sunday to another picture perfect day... perhaps the best weather weekend of all the times I have gone. Met again for talk and weak coffee (next year I do think the Starbucks across the street will be seeing me). To my horror I saw I only had 4 beers left in my cooler.  I did some mental calculations and in horror realized just how much I had drunk the day before I decided I'd go a bit easier on the stuff today. So I decided to limit myself to those and not make another Total Wine run (not that I could have.. thanks to N.C blue laws haha).

Well the Sunday Church of Prog was .. as it almost always was... a great choice.  For those of us slightly in a daze and not completely woken up the first band In the Presence of Wolves would wake up anyone. Bunch of young kids playing high energy high octane sh*t.  Some where put off by the vocals but to my mind that sort of goes hand in hand with bands like that.  They are not a prog band, and probably was the first prog show they played, may ever play. They were kids and likely do a roaring trade playing to kiddies who dig that stuff.  I really enjoyed it for what it was. I don't think I would have found any albums interesting.. but in a live setting they were quite good.

During the break I had a lot of fun tossing a frisbee around with a bunch of little tykes. That is another thing I love about Progday. The families that come down. Progday is many things.. but a sausage fest it is not.  Lots of children, lots of women. During one of the breaks in bands they got all the 'prog women' together for a photo session and there were quite a few.  I did have to laugh a few times to see.. for perhaps the first time.. a line to the women's rest room.  That NEVER happens at prog shows damnit.

Next up was Ad Astra from New York.  Whatever energy I gained from the kids in Wolves rapidly dissipated during this performance and I broke out my book and enjoyed them for good background reading music. Good musicians.  Not much interesting to my ears musically. They could have used a vocalist IMO.

Well that Sanderson dude is a hell of writer so I continued to read as the last of my unknown bands had played. The last two up were the two bands I knew of the whole weekend. Discipline and Bent Knee.  Both I like, Discipline more so but neither were bands I was gaga about.

Discplines set was pretty good, I especially was pleased to hear finally (after seeing them recently multiple times and not hearing it) the Rogue. It was well done and that guitarist my dear wife has the hots for really did a great job with Jon Preston Bouda's parts.  The rest of the show... ehhh.. had heard it before and thought something was off in the sound. They sounded better in other shows we had seen of them. Thus the C grade. Not helped by the debut of a new song that really did nothing for me. 

Last up was Bent Knee. The present darling of the progressive scene.  We saw them a couple of months ago at the Orion and while the show was good. Raff enjoyed it far more than I did, I didn't see the buzz.  The singer was top notch but while the lyrics are supposedly a strong suit, lyrics mean nothing to me. I listen to the music, not lyrics, and musically they left me ...wanting. Perhaps I was a victim of the 'hype' or better yet.. the love of those who I respect... I just did not see what they did. Musically... I saw nothing special about them.  So with that in mind I was curious if seeing them at Progday might change that.  Take a group I found good. .and raise them to the level that many whose opinions I respect have of them.  Well it didn't. Like more than a few I talked to.. I don't think the soundman really did get Courtney's voice figured out and her voice was far too overwhelming and at time to the point of irritation and pain to the ears hahaha.  I really didn't get anything out of their performance I'm sorry to say. Still unconverted and still pretty firm on my notion that musically... they are good.. but not interesting which is what floats my boat.

So with that musical part of Progday ended and it was back to the hotel. Raff and I did our usual Sunday night dinner with H.T. (joined this year by his wonderfully precosious gem of 13 year old son Thomas ) at our Indian Restaurant.  We were pretty wiped out and skipped the pool party this year (we missed you Paul) which was probably wise as it was said to have gone on till past 3 in the morning hahha.

Monday morning was full of lots of sad farewells for another as I have to come to see, as many do, that Progday is much more than a music festival.. but almost like some sort of family reunion. We had a nice drive back Monday to end it. Thus ended another Progday weekend.. if you haven't gone to Progday but have considered? Do it... once you go.. you'll always come back. It is sort of special.

why wait a few days... that is what Raff needs to create the perfect insightful meaningful review. She is the brains of the two of us..I am the soul of the two of us.  Thus my off the cuff reviews to her more thoughtful.

so off we go!

We left early on Friday as we normally do. As much to try to beat the I-95 traffic as much to arrive for our usual lunch with our dear friend Michael Inman (who after a year absence was coming!).  In past years we would zoom down there... 3 and a half hours... 4 if I couldn't browbeat Raff into forgoing bathroom stops . Well it wasn't to happen this year.  Some a****le decided his car looked better in a tree rather than on the highway so we got stopped on I-95 for 45 minutes south of Fredricksburg while they opened the highway back up. Then we hit another accident between Richmond and Petersburg. Then we hit two construction zones on I-85 inside North Carolina.  So after 5 hours we arrived. 

All eyes and ears were on the weather with that hurricane moving into the Carolinas. Part of the strong appeal of Progday versus the other major prog festivals is its outdoor setting.  We haven't been to one yet that has been moved indoor and though we would surely still have a good time, it wouldn't have been the same.  The forecast did have it moving far enough east to not interfere with Saturday's shows but it wasn't until late on Friday we got word that it didn't turn more north and thus the outdoor shows would go as planned.  So to celebrate I went on a search and destroy mission to Total Wine and blew like 75 dollars on the pick of the best 4 packs of lethal American Craft brews, mixed with a nice selection of English stouts for my weekend. As everyone rolled into the hotel we got our normal group together and headed off to our favorite Tex-Mex place for dinner.

After dinner it was back to the hotel where we overran the lobby and turned it into teh Progday bar and longue (and smoking room ). I was proud of myself this year. After falling off the wagon (20 years) last year I retained enough willpower to refuse to partake in smoking a J when offered. Yeah I felt lame but it is too much of a risk for me with my job.  So after a good night socializing, catching up with everyone and drinking like fish it was off to bed to prepare for the first day of Progday!

Very enjoyable with friends, good weather, a few lite ales and some excellent music. The weather was remarkably cooperative, if I can order a hurricane to blow through and clear the air and drop the temperatures next year that would be great. It was great to see so many friends again had lots of time for chats. Of the bands

Luz De Riada - A- - really liked their sound Ramses is really excellent on sax & EWI which he used to replicate guitar and tambla. Luis is a great addition to the band, his bass had great tone & sounded real fat. Great start to the festival, bought the new album.

Jonathon Scales Fourchestra - C - not really my kind of thing, I'm not a fan of noodly fusion where the soloing every track overtakes the music, also steel drum, while a very interesting lead instrument, gets grating & a bit boring after a while. A lot a people seemed to love them so it's probably just my personal taste.

Eye - B+ - 60's hard rock psyche with references to Purple, Uriah Heep, Sabbath, Hawkwind, Neu, keyboardist was outstanding and the highlight of the band, great fun & very entertaining

Deus Ex Machina - A+ - wonderful stuff from one of the big draws of the festival, Alberto has lost none of the power and fire in his vocals and the band played really well, rapt attention for full set and they were hugely entertaining

In The Presence Of Wolves - B - Hard Rock/Prog Metal for a Sunday morning to clear the cobwebs, vocals not really the highlight but lots of energy and fun, a 'see live' rather than 'buy' band for me.

Ad Astra - D - instrumental symph with lots of classic sounds from the 70's/80's on the keyboards and lots of cliques but very little memorable, didn't really do anything for me, again seemed popular with others.

Discipline - A+ - Very strong performance, loved the guitarists playing and Matthew was in top form, not many other bands are close to Discipline for dark angst ridden symph, I was too tired last time I saw them this was a much better experience for me

Bent Knee - A++ - I love this band, took the soundman one track to get the level on Courtney's vocal right, not sure he was ready for her power, but this is one of the strongest performances I've seen from them & I've seen them 6 or 7 times, the new material sounded great, had me grooving away to all the stuff off the last two albums. They are such a well balanced band with the violin coming more to the fore than I've heard before. The interplay between guitar, bass & drums is fantastic with lots of fun going on between them. Loved this set. 

Many thanks to all the organizers for putting on a great festival and making the tough but right decision to stay in the field.