Slippermen - Seven Virgins Toronto Sept. 9th 2006

 

Here is a review that came out last night :

 

Subject: Saturday Night Is Prog Night!



They say imitation is the highest form of flattery.
If so, then both Genesis and ELP should be very
flattered, indeed! Both bands were represented
Saturday night at the Opera House by Seven Virgins and
a Mule (I LOVE that name!) and the Slippermen from
Montreal. Seven Virgins were the opening act, and
they were superb! They bill themselves as Canada's
only ELP tribute band; which is just as well. If
anyone else were to attempt an ELP tribute band, they
needn't bother, these guys do it more than well
enough! And I must say, although I've never seen ELP
perform Tarkus live, I'd be hard to imagine how it
could be done better. Of course, the concept of vast
spans of time in terms of evolution is not a unique
one to the prog world; many great prog bands have
emphasized this idea. However, Seven Virigns and a
Mule take this to new heights as they use performance
art to enhance the concept, and it is done in a
spectacular fashion! To be honest, I doubt ELP
themselves could present it any better.

As for the headliners, the Slippermen seemed a bit
nevous, especially at the start of the show. There
were a few miscues that were probably not noticed by
most people, but for Genesis fanatics like myself,
they were present.
However, that being said, the Slippermen's
performance was nothing short of sensational! At
times it was hard to tell who was having more fun, the
band or the audience! They love what they do, and it
shows in every aspect of their performance.
Most importantly, to this reviewer, at any rate, was
that they did not try to capture Genesis note for
note, although they did an excellent job of it. No,
more importantly, they performed the music as if it
were not only great fun, but a great delight as well.
It takes a great deal of talent to put on a show of
such calibre, but to do so with such joie de vivre was
wonderful! The members of the band were enjoying
themselves, and the crowd loved it!
I would encourage any and all prog fans to take in
this delightful group as soon as possible! Hoepfully
we will see them in Toronto again. They are very,
very welcome! Frontman Michel Sergi seems to sing
Phil Collins better than Phil Collins does! To
everyone who thought of going, but didn't, you missed
a wonderful night of prog. I hope we see the same
again, and soon. Doug LeBlanc.

Doug LeBlanc
Canadian Progressive Music Society