..also the first unofficial progarchive.com meeting as I shared a few beers with Andy (Blacksword) and Simon (sigod).Good to meet some fellow proggers!

It was an extremely enjoyable gig from IQ.The new drummer Andy Edwards has added a flair and dynamism that was lacking perhaps with the ultra solid previous incumbent of the drum stool Paul Cook.Most of the set was taken from 3 albums The Seventh House,Dark Matter and Nomzamo.They also did Paul McCartney's 'Jet' and for the encore the Petshop Boys 'Its A Sin' which has us all singing and clapping and looking like right prats 

And if all the excitment of IQ live wasn't enough after the gig we were treated by Simon to a tour of the local area and ended the evening in a Macdonalds (no lap dancing clubs though ).I look forward to the first official Progarchive curry night whenever that should be..(with lap dancing??!  )

I'm happy to see that everybody had a good time...

hope to join you the next time...

IQ

 The Mean Fiddler (London)

Saturday 10^th December 2005-12-12

This was my first visit to The Mean Fiddler in London, and the first time I had ever experienced IQ live. I wasn’t disappointed. It made my night to be accompanied by sigod and richardh to this, the IQ Christmas party. Indeed, the band came on wearing Santa hats, comedy wigs and rather dubious womens clothing. Pete Nicholls did say to the audience, at one stage ‘I hope we don’t look silly’

Too late, Pete!

IQ were high on Christmas spirit and it looked like they were thoroughly enjoying themselves on stage. They opened with ‘The Wrong side of Weird’ and I was immediately struck by how good the sound was; not too loud and excellently mixed, with good definition on the bass drum, keyboards and vocals. I’ve often thought that many bands would benefit from not playing on 11 all the time. IQ clearly agree. I was delighted to hear ‘Scared Sound’ from ‘Dark Matter’ which sounded very powerful. The crowds reaction to this was testimony to the songs popularity, and confirms that the band, even after 20 years plus in the business are still climbing the ladder of invention and excellence with their music, and not on a creative nose dive, as many artists would be after such a long time.

They played a fair few old songs, including ‘Intelligence Quotient’ 'It all Stops Here' 'No Love Lost' and 'Promises' all of which sounded great, although I'm no expert on 'old' IQ, so this was the first time that I'd ever heard some of these songs.  

Other incredible hi-lights for me was ‘The Seventh House’ and ‘Harvest of Souls’ where, during both, I must have come close to, what can only be described as a ‘prog melt down’ one of those great moments as a music lover where you know you are experiencing something brilliant and you somehow feel privileged to be witness to it. Sounds a bit much? A bit pretentious, maybe?? Well, I like to think that the company I keep around here, will know exactly what I mean, and ‘The Seventh House’ is a contender for my favourite IQ song of all time. It would probably be in my top 20 prog songs of all time. All the changes of mood, melody and pace were executed brilliantly throughout, confirming for me that IQ are indeed an excellent live act. ‘Harvest of Souls’ was perhaps the crowning moment for me, and the contribution of new drummer, Andy Edwards added a great sense of drama and urgency to the more dramatic parts of this epic song. Cooks drumming had been ‘on the beat’ but as Richard pointed out after the gig, Edwards drumming was ‘ahead of the beat’ giving the songs momentum, where it was needed most. I agree.

There were a few covers, Wing’s ‘Jet’ sounded great and a rather unexpected rocked up rendition of ‘It’s a sin’ by The Pet Shop Boys, certainly raised a few eye brows, but in all fairness it was a good version. All in all a great evening, a performance which confirmed  IQ’s tremendous musical ability, their obvious prowess as a live act, and their healthy ability to laugh at themselves and generally have a good time while presenting seriously crafted music. It’s a combination that works brilliantly and here’s to another 20 years plus of IQ.

Set List:

1 Wrong Side Of Weird
2. Sacred Sound
3. It All Stops Here
4. Intelligence Quotient
5. No Love Lost
6. Seventh House
7. Jet - Wings cover
8. Guiding Light
9. Harvest Of Souls
10. Promisies
11. It's A Sin - Pet Shop Boys cover.

Sounds good guys, I'll have to see them play "Harvest of Soul" one day.

Looking forward to the prog beer'n'curry night after Christmas (sorry Richard, I can't afford the lap dancing).

chopper wrote: Sounds good guys, I'll have to see them play "Harvest of Soul" one day. Looking forward to the prog beer'n'curry night after Christmas (sorry Richard, I can't afford the lap dancing).

We weren't planning on going anywhere expensive

richardh wrote: chopper wrote: Sounds good guys, I'll have to see them play "Harvest of Soul" one day. Looking forward to the prog beer'n'curry night after Christmas (sorry Richard, I can't afford the lap dancing). We weren't planning on going anywhere expensive

You mean you know a cheap lap dancing club?

I have been planning to be there since last august when I bought my ticket.

Unfortrunately at the end, I couldnt attend the gig and this makes me very sad...
Happy to see your positive comments especially about the new drummer which is slowly achieving Cookie's skills and probably even better..

Hope next year, for their 25th anniversary, IQ will make a tour with more dates and more countries in Europe...

Luca

chopper wrote: richardh wrote: chopper wrote: Sounds good guys, I'll have to see them play "Harvest of Soul" one day. Looking forward to the prog beer'n'curry night after Christmas (sorry Richard, I can't afford the lap dancing). We weren't planning on going anywhere expensive You mean you know a cheap lap dancing club?

I get the feeling you know more about this subject than i do .Ok just prog and curry then ..or we cut back on the Poppadoms and save some cash!

I sat down to write this review on Monday the 11^th (the day after the gig) with a cup of tea and the thought that I’d be in and out in an hour or so and nobody would get hurt. The truth of the matter is that it has turned out to be something a little more involved than that.

For those of you who love brevity in all things (why are you a prog fan?), this piece is more than likely going to disappoint although I do have a reason for it’s inordinate length. It deals (I hope) not only with the gig but with a little about the journey IQ has made as a band over the last two and a bit decades. 

My reasons for doing this are twofold. Firstly, there is a new member of the band (drummer Andy Edwards who took over from Paul Cook about ten months ago I think) who, along with John Jowitt, has made a considerable impact upon their sound. Secondly, having been an IQ fan for almost as long as the band has been around and due to the fact that they have recently celebrated 22 years together, I felt it appropriate to review the show in the larger context of how they have evolved into the unit that exists today.

So as Bill Hicks said “Don’t worry folks, there are dick jokes on the way.”

------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------

It funny that a review of the IQ Xmas show should begin with Queen’s ‘Ogre Battle’ but it’s shaping up to be one of those nights. I’m standing outside the Dominion Theatre in Central London shaking hands with none other than Richardh (along with fellow Prog Archives stalwart Andy ‘Blacksword’). The theatre is currently putting on a Queen Tribute show and serves as good a place as any to meet up. Introductions over, we smile politely at the man selling ‘The Big Issue’ and step around the tramp repeatedly yelling “Yeerrfugginwenkas!!” so that we can make our way to the gig and few hours of talking/listening to prog.

The Mean Fiddler began its life as a small venue in Harlesden (South West London) and rapidly grew to become one of the biggest event organisers in the UK. The new venue nestles in the busiest part of Central London, namely Charing Cross road and has largely taken over the mantle of ‘London Prog Venue of Choice’ from the Marquee Club in recent years. Richard, Andy and I install ourselves at the bar and await the show.

Very few groups put on a performance quite like IQ at Christmas. I’ll admit that Marillion have come close on occasion but even they cannot equal the sheer insanity that is Messer, Holmes, Nichols, Orford, (the new boy) Andy Edwards and Jowitt in full yuletide flow. Much like an office party, all of the work & effort of the previous twelve months finds vent in this show and as such all of the safety valves are open tonight.

I’ve seen this spectacle a few times in the past and the band’s take on celebrating this seasonal holiday is shall we say…unique! The light’s go down and after a brief fanfare, each member appears in various seasonal guise; Nichols as a rather emaciated Santa, Holmes as an extra from Flash Gordon, Orford as a half mad bearded court jester, Edwards as…er, a drummer and lastly, there’s John Jowitt.

Oh…my….god.

Jowitt saunters onstage clutching his bass ginning manically, dressed as Wonder Woman (right down to the high heeled boots and hot pants)! The cheer that erupts is mixed with whoops of laughter as boys wave enthusiastically at the crowd and launch into the first song of the evening The Wrong Side Of Weird. It’s a growling, beast of a song that powers its way through the crowd and a fine way to begin the celebrations.

Sacred Sound follows on amidst a sea of chattering hi-hats and the band gradually begin to feel comfortable with their surroundings. Having missed the last few tours, one thing that is immediately apparent to me is that the new drummer (Andy Edwards) has brought something significantly new to their collective table. Where Cookie’s careful rhythmic framework once stood, Edwards has replaced it with something that can only be described as sheer naked velocity. It might seem ungrateful to say it after all the years of loyal service Paul put in but imagine difference in sound between Rutsey & Peart and you’ll have some idea of the gear change IQ have made.

With two of the more recent numbers under their belt, the band wind the clock all the way back to their debut album as Nichols introduces It All Stops Here. The familiar keyboard arpeggio gives way to the opening instrumental section that once again becomes a fundamentally changed beast in the hands of the new line up. Nichols bobs about the stage, Santa hat whipping two and fro as the band lock into a subtly complex groove. I exchange approving looks with both Andy and Richard as the audience punch the air and nod their heads in time with what many consider to be one of IQ’s seminal tracks.

Nichols introduces Intelligence Quotient as a song that most people last heard them play way back in the old days of The Marquee, much to the glee of some of the older lags in the crowd and is delivered with both grace and style. Not one of my favourites, it has to be said but even I cannot deny that this is a band playing their music with more confidence and verve than they have in years and as such, everything on show burns in a new light…

…and John Jowitt is still dressed as Wonder Woman!!!

On a more serious note, the impact of a rhythmic partnership like Jowitt and Edwards is never more evident than during the next song No Love Lost. When this song was written during the mid 80’s, IQ was a technology driven, almost semi pop band with only two (Holmes & Orford) of the current personnel in its number. Today’s line-up is a much more sonically driven, almost feral collective who make the hall shake with a subsonic menace. Unfortunately, it also sees the dubious introduction of one of my least favourite musical interludes; the drum solo. Edwards is quite obviously a technically superior drummer to Cookie but this (although understandable, considering IQ now have a musician that can play it as hard and as fast as they can) is rarely a good reason for showboating and indeed, smacks slightly of self satisfaction to me.

As the opening guitar figure of Seventh House mingles with the smell of dope, we’re into the first major epic of the evening. IQ has never been afraid to tackle weighty matters and this song being no exception, concerns itself with the hell on earth that was The First World War. The three screens behind the band flash both real and cartoon images of the Battle of Somme and I’m reminded of the other prog rendering of this conflict that I know of by Twelfth Night (Sequences) which although an excellent song, lacks some the profundity of the piece currently being played. Andy leans in and comments quite tellingly that there is an element of the Led Zeppelin track ‘Kashmir’ in the dark swagger of the piece and I have to agree. IQ perhaps more than most, understands how to marry such a subject matter with music of an equally profound nature.

After such a weighty number the guys lighten the mood considerably by launching into their first of two excellent covers for the evening, Jet by Wings. The crowd respond in kind and the smiles (which were never far way) return as we all lamely attempt to sing the minimoog solo.

Holmes, Edwards and Jowitt leave the stage for the intro of Guiding Light as Nichols and Orford manoeuvre through the song’s gentle and introspective introduction (it reminds me a little of the kind of territory Kate Bush is currently exploring). The full line-up returns to the stage for the middle section and a more familiar IQ sound and form. This isn’t really one of my favourite tunes by the band but nevertheless I enjoyed the performance which is executed flawlessly to my ears.

Before the final song of the main set, Nichols takes a few moments to thank individually the crew that have kept them on the road thus far (which was nice), the fans (that’s us) and Andy Edwards (as do we all, I suspect).

With the acknowledgements out the way, we are treated to the most recent IQ epic Harvest Of Souls which appears to have found a special place in the hearts of many fans despite (or maybe because of) its anti-American sentiments. Having only heard this song once before the gig, I watch the music unfold in front of me with fresh ears and try to put the preconceptions that often go with this song to one side. I’m aware that it’s not like IQ to court controversy that often but when they do, it appears to be done so with every fibre of their being. Musicians are often social critics and indeed mirrors in which their generation is reflected so I for one encourage this kind of musical discourse. The trouble is that such subject matters tend to date very quickly and I wonder how this song will sound ten years down the line when most of the current sentiment will have been lost. Just listen to Marillion’s ‘Berlin’ and you'll understand what I mean.

It’s interesting to see how IQ has changed as a song writing team since their first epic The Last Human Gateway. Gone are the enthusiastic 70’s references and in their place is a more mature, prescient sound. The siege ways between movements flow with purpose and intent and the lyrical subject matter however you might agree or disagree with its sentiment, positively drips with pathos.

The band inevitably leaves the stage to rapturous applause only to return a few moments later for the first of two encores, dresssed in suitable stage attire this time with the exception of that man Jowitt, who is now in a skimpy black pair of Speedos and a white collar (a-la the Chippendales). The crowd dissolve into peals of laughter once again (cue the dick jokes) as John minces around the stage, bass in hand, while they play a danced up version of Promises followed by the biggest and most surreal surprise of the evening, a cover of the Pet Shop Boys It’s A Sin, which closes the show in spectacular style. I can’t help but applaud the sheer outrageous fun of it all which is exactly what a party should be about. The signoff is courtesy of a computer animated Pete Nichols singing Christmas carols on the backdrop screens and the night is over bar the disco that follows all the gigs at the Mean Fiddler.

I’ll freely admit that among all these fervent people smiling happily and swapping their own personal take on the show, I was the secret ‘doubting Thomas’. I haven’t always been convinced that IQ deserves the amount of devotion and awe that their fans give so readily. Equally, I feel that time served treading the stage, doesn’t always equate to a strong body of work. I honestly believed that this group’s best days were well and truly behind them but it turns out that I was wrong. This is a band with twenty plus years of the world in its lungs who have learned to speak with a confident, readily identifiable voice.

In short, IQ in 2005 is a marvel to behold.

Excellent review Simon

Thinking about your comments on 'Harvest of Souls' regarding the subject matter dating, I would agree there is always that danger. I like to think that HOS will survive through time as the music IMO stands up on its own. There are passages where war and conflict is an obvious theme (even if not listening to the lyrics), but there are others which could be plucked out of the main work re-worked as songs in their own right.

I must have heard 1001 cold war songs that have obviously dated very badly because the theme is reflected so prominantly in both the music and lyrics, but just remember a song like Stagnation by Genesis, all about the aftermath of a nuclear war. It still stands up today because the music is strong and you can ignore the fairly ambiguous lyrics if you really want to.

Twas a great night!  Looking forward to the next one.

AAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHH HHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

I missed it!

Simon, that was a brilliant review. I'm looking forward to that prog curry already!

Excellent review Simon. 

I quite liked the drum solo (surprise surprise  ).It was a bit of outragious self indulgence admittedly but I think it also served to introduce the new guy behind the kit.Its also extremely rare to see IQ do something like that so was quite interesting and fun.Andy Edwards I believe is capable of taking the band to a new level.All great prog bands are driven by a talented and versatile drummer and Edwards is a major find. 

those guys must be quite funny to see live!

I'll always remember the first time I listened to IQ's living proof: nicholls to say before a track starts: "the next song is from our first album"; a man in the crowd to reply: "widow's peak!" and nicholls to answer : "widows peak is not on our first album!" Man! i whish i was there to see nicholls' reaction!

greenback wrote: those guys must be quite funny to see live! I'll always remember the first time I listened to IQ's living proof: nicholls to say before a track starts: "the next song is from our first album"; a man in the crowd to reply: "widow's peak!" and nicholls to answer : "widows peak is not on our first album!" Man! i whish i was there to see nicholls' reaction!

They do have an exceptionally unique humour. If you see the 'intros and outros' section in the IQ20 DVD you understand what I mean.

I'm new, BRAND new to this website, and glad to be here among kindred spirits.  I am an American, living in the USA (Iowa) and I've been a huge IQ fan since 1985 when we picked up "Tales from the Lush Attic" in the independent record store I worked at here in Cedar Rapids. 

I've followed them religiously since then, and I must say I'm sorry to hear that Paul Cook is out--I always admired the smacking authority of his drumming.  But I'm equally pleased to read that the band has found a more-than-competent replacement, although I promise that Paul Cook's contribution will not be forgotten.

I want to assure the European readers that half or better of this nation is in full accord with the sentiments expressed in "Harvest of Souls."  Disgust is too mild of a word to express my feeling for the war of aggression launched by this off-its-rocker government.  Our nation leads the world in many categories, including, tragically, irrationality.  Just last week I read in our local newspaper that a NASA guy came to do a presentation for an area high school and asked for a show of hands of those who doubted that the 1969 moon landing actually occurred; something over 50% of the hands went up.  Mercifully he did not ask how many believed the Earth is flat.

However, returning to IQ, I want to share your enthusiasm for their Xmas show and express my regret that those of us a hemisphere away have no opportunity to share the occasion.  IQ has played several events in "the colonies," but (by neccesity I'm sure) only in the big urban centers that can guarantee a decent crowd.  Unfortunately those shows have been prohibitively distant for me (Philadelphia most recently that I've been aware of--half a continent away).  I saw Caravan/Nektar September 2004 in Chicago (incredible) and I'd certainly drive that far for IQ.

Or, as we say in the USA, "bring it on."  Keep progging.