Go Back   Aural Moon - Progressive Rock Discussion > Prog Rock Discussion > Concert Happenings
Register FAQ Members List Calendar Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Reply
 
Thread Tools Rate Thread Display Modes
  #1  
Old 06-27-2008, 11:24 PM
Rick and Roll's Avatar
Rick and Roll Rick and Roll is offline
Moderator
 
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Baltimore suburbs
Posts: 5,039
Nearfest review - Rick

Synergy - I like Larry Fast's music more than most of that kind, but I ran into Ray and Tom from Echolyn and Chris Lamka (Of Sound Mind vendor). By the time we were finished catching up on things, Larry Fast was finished too. I was able to hear the music via the screen, but I missed it and therefore have no review. I did hear that his stories between the songs were informative.

Fish - My third time seeing him - first time, it was the Sunsets on Empire tour, and he ripped it up, with Assassing, Johnny Punter, and Worm in a Bottle (where he downed a half-bottle of wine during the guitar solo. During Assasing he was giving people in the crowd headlocks and saying "my friend"). Second time I saw him my friend got a limo from Baltimore to DC, we were blitzed, and I remember little except I had to pee really bad. All that said, I was hoping Fish would be engaging, and he certainly was. He tried his best to get the crowd going, even walking on the seats during Faith Healer. I hope Rob LaDuca's neck is ok, he pressed on his head pretty hard to balance himself!

The sound was not the best - the bass and keyboard was way up, and the guitars and drums were not to the loudness they should have been. But by the end it was much better - however, a lot of that had to do with Frank Usher's fantastic lead during Cliche. That is one of the best leads of all time. Here's the set list, courtesy of Progressive Ears:

Slainte Mhath
Circle Line
Square Go
Open Water
So Fellini
Manchmal
Hotel Hobbies/Warm Wet Circles/That Time of the Night
Zoe 25
Arc of the Curve
Dark Star
Faithhealer
White Russian
Cliche
Incommunicado
Sugar Mice
Last Straw

The stories between songs were funny. I've heard that he was hard to hear in the back. I empathize, with his accent and the sound, it must have been a pain. I've seen comedy acts like Steven Wright, where when you can't hear the punchlines, it's not worth it. His one story about the fairies, and how he "came" when he destroyed his ex's collection was hilarious.

I would have like to have seen some other songs other than the 13th star, and Incomminicado bores me, but I knew what I was getting into. Plus he mentioned he was 6'5" a number of times...we know that, man. It was good to hear his story of Manchmal - one of the few words I remember from High School German class. The Straws cuts were excellent, and breaking them up was a great idea.

His band is always killer, especially Frank Usher.

Koenji Hyakkei - Now that's sick, I actually typed in that name by memory. I was apprehensive about them - I'm not into bands that are discordnant (Guapo for example) - but I was wrong. They were a treat. They bill themselves as the Japanese Magma, but the focus is on the music (Magma the second time at Nearfest was more enjoyable due to this fact). The drummer's vocals were a bit growly but ok - and the vocals of Nami Sagara were like two people. Her shouting vocal was kind of annoying, but when she sang melody, it was like another instrument. The keyboardist and bassist handled the bulk of the leads and were the musical backbone - I thought the reed player was a bit extraneous (although immensely talented). But I enjoyed the hell out of them, pleasantly surprised.

Discipline - I have a long history with the band, and Matthew Parmenter is one of my favorite people. Mat Kennedy (bass) also plays with Eyestrings, Matthew's nephew Ryan's band and is also a nice guy. So I could listen to them play the phone book and I'd be good. But as was the case with Crack the Sky at Rosfest, I was more interested in having others experience them for the first time. So I will try to review it not comparing it to my expectations.

They went right into it with Into the Dream, easily their longest and most demanding piece. This was 1/4 of the album Unfolded Like Staircase, my favorite record of all time. The nail it so well, the live version from Orion is the same song length as the studio. It can be a bit difficult live to get through listening - it seems to end multiple times. It's a song that's structured like I wish I could make love

So what do they do after a 25 minute opener? Go into their new song Rogue...24+ minutes, another amazing Parmenter composition. That's tough on the crowd...but they played it like they play together all the time. Truth is, they're together rarely.

Circutry, and the great Crutches (from Unfolded) were next, and Crutches just kicks ass live. It's half the length of Into the Dream and more riveting. Carmilla, from Push and Profit, was done a bit differently than usual, but no complaints - another fantastic number, awash in mellotron. Finishing up with Canto IV (Limbo) was awesome. I wish they would have played some more off of Push and Profit, for the crowd's sake (not mine), but the songs played were long (Carmilla and Crutches were also 10+ each), leaving no time. In fact, there was very little banter, just a thank you here and there. Very unusual.

I've seen Matthew twice solo and Discipline maybe 7-8 times, as far back as 1995. At Orion, when he did "Between Me and the End" it was incredible. But for a full show I'd never heard him in better voice. Many times he sung emotionally, more so than usual. You could tell he was into it. Jon Preston Bouda is a soulful, intelligent artist on guitar. Usually I can only focus on those two - Mat Kennedy is solid and you know he's always there and on time. But I was pleased and surprised with Paul Dzendzel's position on the stage. The drums were moved up to almost a parallel position, enabling me to focus on his work. It's easy to forget he's there, but he's a fine technician.

Peter Hammill - His set was quite riveting. I was stunned by the depth of his vocals for someone his age. And the passion from just a voice and a piano (or sometimes an acoustic guitar) was fantastic. I wish that a) I knew more of his solo output and 2) I didn't have this narcoleptic habit at times at shows. After the 4th tune or so, I would nod off mid-song and wake up near the end. It was Groundhog Day - every song seemed to end the same way and I was addled for a few seconds after I came to...what song are we on?

I enjoyed when he came out for the encore and said "Guitar or Piano"? However, he opened himself up for criticism with his "heading any questions off at the pass" about a US tour comment (he wanted to not answer questions later about it). It's certainly his right to not tour, but to say that, then to reference VDGG's upcoming Japanese tour a number of times was a bit contradictory.

A true artist that in the Joe Jackson vein, in that he's demanding, but it's worth the trouble. I still like his voice, although it sounds like he's hollering at kids to get off of his lawn. And having him play right after Matthew was an interesting pairing. I hoped Matthew got a chance to see him (I asked him after the Discipline set if he was going to get down there) - Hammill is one of his idols.

Liquid Tension Experiment - I've seen Dream Theater four times, but not in six years. I can't get into it anymore. But I respect their output and like the LTE in moderation. Individually the band is technically the best you will see. But as a unit I would have like to see more subtlety. I enjoy a heavy show, but I like my rock with some variation. I don't get that feeling from LTE.

What I tried to do instead was watch the individual members. Rudess is always a treat (often you cannot see the fingers fly on a keyboardist), and Mike Portnoy is the hardest working man in prog (except for maybe Tony Levin, and they're in the same band here!). Portnoy reminds me of Bruford - dead center on the skins, always accountable.

"When the Water Breaks" was excellent (how come the baby cry wasn't in the middle), and I was entertained by the goof a few rows up who nailed every note on his air guitar. Plus he'd let us know when the solos would occur by pointing to the soloist a second in advance. What was interesting was the fact that he was with a woman. I thought guys like that stand in the corner, air masturbate, and reproduce by fission.

All in all, what I expected - having them as a headliner was a stretch I thought, but no matter - a fun show, to a point.

Morglbl - From Hidria to Sleepytime to many others, day 2 openers tear down the house. Sorry to admit it, I knew nothing about this trio. I plan to know more tomorrow in Baltimore...What a fun show! Their silliness hides the fact that they are world-class musicians. Ivan Roughny on bass was simply magnificent. Many guitar runs are made by the supporting bass line, and he was dead on all show. And what to say about Cristophe Godin - he's so talented. Buster was mentioning that Petrucci was probably somewhere crying. Genius on the guitar. This is fusion as it should be, my favorite type of music. I must special mention drummer Aurelien Ouzoulias - his solos were always in time...a pet peeve of mine is drum solos that ramble - he was to the point. When they came back for the encore they said they would do a cover, my friend Jeff guessed "Smoke on the Water"...and he was right! A version that smoked so much it made forget that Pat Boone once covered it

RMI - After trying to fit in seeing all my friends, partying, catching up with artists, doing disc golf, and having a difficult Friday morning before I drove up, I needed some "me" time to make sure I was ready for the evening. RMI is talented but not my style. I reluctanly sacrificed their set.

Echolyn - A band that I know so well yet never really know what they will play. In the very early days they would hit Baltimore and do a lot of what was to become their first two records. Meaning and the Monent and Shades and Velveteen Rabbit were staples of the sets. but as they've progressed and made more fantastic records, they have a ton of great material to choose from. And As the World is in my all-time top 10.

Adding to all of that, I've seen them open a show with Close to the Edge near Philly, do a Sabbath trilogy at Progday, and see Brett, Ray, and Paul do their Always Almost/Still thing. So anything goes....set list was as follows:

Georgia Pine
As The World
Too Late For Everything
The Great Men
Entry 11-19-93
Winterthru
The Cheese Stands Alone
Another Lovesick Morning
Texas Dust
The End Is Beautiful
Mei (Excerpt)
Never The Same
Those That Want To Buy

Pine, Lovesick, and Beautiful are from their last record - I'm one of the few that hasn't completely warmed up to it, but I will...Ray was especially good on those songs. As the World is usually a must, and the talking that they all do at once at the end is always funny. I asked Ray and Tom the day before if thet's rehearsed...nope, all seat of the pants. A bit weird not hearing Uncle after that, one of their most intricate and satisfying songs. But Too Late for Everything was a treat. Featured Brett on vocals, who can sing a hell of a song.

Great Men was surprise. And while they had plenty to choose from with As the World, Entry was a Ray vehicle, sung expertly. Winterthru (also guessed by Jeff, damn him!) was done in a jazzz style, and the crowd favorite Cheese was tasty (sorry I had to). I liked the 10 minutes of Mei - all the good parts with some cookie monster moments from Ray. Wish Hammill would have joined him. Never the Same was done so well. A bare minimum of instrumentation, all 5 of the band sung. It was good to have Chris out there, he does yeoman's work with his keys and vocals each and every show. It's not Echolyn without him (it's Still!). I was glad Ray didn't bite when Tom tried to crack him up at the beginning of the tune.

The only thing that could have topped it was tacking on Suffocating the Bloom at the end of the Everyman excerpt, but who's complaining?

Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - my Italian prog leanings generally fall into two categories: the wild (eg Deus Ex Machina) and the fusion (eg DFA). Symphonic Italian prog is a blur...Banco though pulls it off well, as does PFM. I've enjoyed the bands at Nearfest in this vein, save for Le Orme.

Di Giacomo can sing, and he's well-loved, but I find him distracting at times. Agreed he doesn't move real fast, but I always preferred the singer doesn't take the focus from the band too much. Vittorio Nocenzi is a hell of a keyboardist, and I found myself drawn to his playing.

I did nod off somewhat, but the late dinner and the weekend catches up quickly.

My wrists are sore and to type in the many anecdotes and experiences are just too much. I just want to say that it's always a pleasure to see everyone again, an honor to be so busy with good friends, and a priviledge to attend these shows.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 06-28-2008, 01:56 AM
MauiBassPlayer's Avatar
MauiBassPlayer MauiBassPlayer is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: I live on Maui.
Posts: 24
Send a message via MSN to MauiBassPlayer
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Thanks Ric for the great reviews, I have not heard most these groups, and now I have a sense of their music. Mahalos, Ken
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 06-28-2008, 03:41 AM
KeithieW
 
Posts: n/a
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

As ever Rick, a great review. I got out the pipe and slippers while I read it. Excellent.

Sorry to hear that you have sore wrists. Maybe you shouldn't have spent so much time with that guy in the balcony and his air guitar.

Great effort mate.......I really wanted to see Discipline. Maybe another time.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 06-28-2008, 09:14 AM
OverHillandDale's Avatar
OverHillandDale(Admin) OverHillandDale is offline
Show Host & Administrator
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Soddy Daisy, Tennessee
Posts: 1,531
Send a message via AIM to OverHillandDale Send a message via Yahoo to OverHillandDale
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Very thourough review there Rick. Thanks. I mean, I did nod off a few times there, but you know how that is.
__________________
OverHillandDale


Happiness is a worn pun!
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 06-28-2008, 10:26 AM
kevishev's Avatar
kevishev kevishev is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 87
Send a message via AIM to kevishev Send a message via MSN to kevishev Send a message via Yahoo to kevishev Send a message via Skype™ to kevishev
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Great review Rick. Anybody that can work Joe Jackson, Pat Boone and masturbation together into a prog show review is alright by me!
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 06-29-2008, 01:12 PM
NorCalKurt's Avatar
NorCalKurt NorCalKurt is offline
la familia patron
 
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 962
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Nice reviews Rick. I agree with you for the most part. Except with LTE. But then I am more of a fan of their music than you. IMO. Which brings me to last nights show at BarFest by the afore mentioned group. With to performances to compare, He is my opinion. Last night was by far better than the Nearfest performance. Better sound, tighter performance by the guys and a much longer show. They played almost all of LTE2 and most of the 1st album. They did a long jam of more less space rock and blues/jazz fusion. I almost didn't go do to lack of sleep from the previous day. Damn, I'm glad I went! I will try to get more reviews of the rest of bands up at a later date.
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 06-30-2008, 09:39 AM
Giloeada's Avatar
Giloeada Giloeada is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Houston, Texas
Posts: 211
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Thanks, Rick, for allowing those of us in the far reaches of the country to experience the shows vicariously. Would have loved to see Echolyn. They didn't play anything from the upcoming album, huh?
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 06-30-2008, 10:47 AM
Rick and Roll's Avatar
Rick and Roll Rick and Roll is offline
Moderator
 
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Baltimore suburbs
Posts: 5,039
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Quote:
Originally Posted by Giloeada View Post
Would have loved to see Echolyn. They didn't play anything from the upcoming album, huh?
I don't think they had enough time to rehearse, and they were struggling with which songs to play...let's hope the record doesn't take forever
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 06-30-2008, 10:51 AM
dinosaur's Avatar
dinosaur dinosaur is offline
Fossils are Rock!
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Houghton, MI, USA
Posts: 243
Re: Nearfest review - Rick

Great review, Rick. Makes me feel like I was there.
Wait, I WAS there.
You make me feel like I saw more than I actually saw.
(No, I did no drugs or alcohol all weekend!)
I'm right with you on Discipline.
And now I need to check out more Echolyn and Banco recordings...
Reply With Quote
Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 11:01 AM.