PROGFEST

By Dave Schwartz  davybass@dabelly.com
Photos by Keith Durflinger  photoguy@dabelly.com  
Transatlantic Photos by Paul Wells

Progfest!

PROGFEST? What in the hell is a "Progfest"? Almost by accident, or perhaps it was luck, I was handed the fliers. I have lived here in Southern California for more than ten years and never heard of this festival. My loss! For the uninitiated or those to young to remember progressive music (the prog in Progfest) had its birth during the late '60s and '70s with the emergence of bands like Pink Floyd, Yes, Emerson Lake and Palmer (ELP), RUSH and older Genesis to name but a few. The music was characterized by complex, almost orchestral themes that were often expressed over the course of entire albums. Examples? Well, how about Pink Floyd's "The Wall," RUSH's "By-tor and the Snow Dog," "2112," "Cygnus X-1 Book 2" or, more recently, Dream Theater's "Scene From a Memory." Progressive music was most popular during my days of pitch-black bedrooms and WZMF in Milwaukee playing the entire album side of "Dark Side of the Moon."

But you can't stop the world from turning can you? For better or worse those days are gone, but progressive music isn't. On September 1-2 bands from around the world made La Mirada, California the veritable hub of technically diverse, sonically mature and inescapably intense music.

September 1st

First band up was Códice. Hailing from Mexico, Códice was billed as one of the most promising up-and-coming progressive rock bands playing today. Their debut CD, "Alba y Ocaso," has received rave reviews since its release a year ago. Their music weaves almost like an orchestral piece with bursts of adrenaline followed by floating astral periods of calm. The crowd was very quiet and sometimes struggled with knowing when to applaud. When there is an obvious break it was met with a thunderous response. The music is instrumental with the rare exception where a guest vocalist emerges on stage to sing what seemed like fragmented lyrics. If you liked King Crimson or ELP you will enjoy this band.

Kenso was next. Kenso's music has more of a rock feel than Códice. They are much more groove-orientated in their arrangements. Between each song, the guitar player would do his best to speak with the audience, reading from a prepared text that attempted to explain as much as entertain. From the press release, I knew that this was the first time that Kenso had played America, but was surprised to learn from guitarist Yoshihisa Shimuzu that "this is the first time we have played anywhere outside of Japan." Utterly remarkable when you consider the caliber of musicianship and that the band has been together for more than 25 years. The music is passionate with a mixture of some serious crunch and ballads. At the end of each piece the crowd was spontaneous with their applause, frequently standing after many of the songs. Bassist Shunji Saegusa was incredible. One of the best all-around players that I have ever seen. His remarkably fluid runs are made even more astounding by his economy of motion -- making the difficult appear effortless.

Percussionist Masayuki Muraishi had a very natural jazz feel to his cymbal work, while at the same time a ferocious hard rock attack to the skins. The guitarist and bassist displayed extremely evolved exchanges of melody / counter-melody which allowed much of the dynamic of each song. I was fortunate enough to speak with the Yoshihisa and Shunji a couple of days after the show. The interview, perhaps their first one done in the west, will be posted in our next update, Oct. 1st. Watch for it.

Transatlantic was the final band of the evening. The set was very loose, very relaxed. The stage setup was unusual in that Mike Portnoy's (Dream Theater) drums were stage left and facing toward the center of the stage leaving us with a side perspective of him. Neal Morse and his keyboards were on the opposing side of the stage. The two created a sense of  bookends for the guitar and bass players in the middle.

Guitarist Roine Stolt was plagued the entire evening with low frequency feedback problems through his monitor. To the extent that Morse commented that they were in "Transatlantic Hell". As true professionals, the show must go on and it did. When music allowed, Stolt took every opportunity to adjust his monitor, a boot here. a nudge there, eventually pushing it away from him and flipping it onto its side. Problem solved! As for the show, in what has become almost a trademark with bands associated with   Portnoy there were musical surprises. This night they finished one Transatlantic tune with an excursion through the Beatles' "Magical Mystery Tour." After which Morse commented, "Well if you like that one I'm sure you'll recognize this." A classic version of "Strawberry Fields" followed.  Bassist Pete Trewavas demonstrated his musical ability by donning a Richenbacker doubleneck (bass and 12-string) in, what for me, was a flashback to Geddy Lee and RUSH's "2112" days. Trewavas stepped up to the mike to sing backup, play his doubleneck and occasionally work the bass pedals while he played the 12-string. The press release has billed Transatlantic as a "super group". They could be nothing less. The musicianship speaks for itself.

The day after the show, I ran into guitarist Roine Stolt. He was nice enough to answer a few questions for DaBelly.

DaBelly: "I wanted to congratulate you on the show last night. It was amazing."
Stolt: "Thank you, we had fun."

DaBelly: "Transatlantic hasn't played very many shows have you?"
Stolt: "No, actually this is only the seventh show we've played. The funny thing about that is we have only rehearsed as a band twice!"

DaBelly: "You're kidding, that's incredible!"

DaBelly: "Are there thoughts of a tour?"
Stolt: "No, nothing organized. It is much to difficult for us to all be in the same place. We all have commitments to our other bands."

DaBelly: "Yes, I understand."

DaBelly: "How were the sales of this CD, I mean did it sell as you had expected?"
Stolt: "Actually the record company in Europe was surprised with sales. The CD did better than expected and because of this we have had offers to tour Europe. But as I have mentioned, previous commitments are what's stopping us right now."

DaBelly: "Will there be a follow on CD for Transatlantic?"
Stolt: "Yes, we are committed to doing another CD next year. We will keep working together as long as it remains fun."

DaBelly: "Who's idea was it to form Transatlantic?"
Stolt: "It was Mike Portnoy's idea. He wanted to put this band together so he called everyone up."

DaBelly: "I can't believe how busy that guy is!"
Stolt: "Yeah, you should've seen him on the bed last night after the show. He was exhausted. This morning he had to fly back to New York."

DaBelly: "Between Dream Theater, Liquid Tension Experiment and Transatlantic he never stops."
Stolt: "He's doing drum clinics too."

DaBelly: "Yes, I saw that on his Web site. I believe he will be in Arizona, Michigan and California.  I want to thank you for your time. I look forward to seeing Transatlantic again."
Stolt: "Sure, anytime."

Perhaps one of the most amazing things about Progfest is the audience contact with the bands. It was not uncommon to find entire groups milling around the lobby, chatting with all that would listen. This personal contact is what makes this festival so special for many of the concert attendees.

September 2nd

Day two of Progfest and the first band up is the Brazilian band Tempus Fugit. Like many of the other bands on the bill, their music is mostly instrumental. The band has more of a rock feel to their music; large sweeping melodies dominate the musical landscape. Tempus Fugit's debut CD, "Tales From a Forgotten World," was released in 1997, with a follow-up CD, "The Dawn After the Storm," coming out last year. I enjoyed this band and hope to see them again.

Mona Lisa was the next band on stage. This group was very unique, musically they seemed to be a straight-ahead rock band, but their progressive nature was evident in performance. Mona Lisa opened the show with the French national anthem; they appeared in the back of the auditorium and worked their way through the crowd. After the band had made its way to the stage they were joined by singer Dominique Le Guennec, dressed in an ogre or troll's mask and robes, carrying a giant book. He brought it to the front of the stage and opened it. As smoke poured from inside the book, Le Guennec was transformed back into human form and he began to sing. Mona Lisa played a list of visually dramatic tunes that included several costume changes. At the halfway point of the show, Le Guennec announced that the band wanted to share a piece of their French culture with us and they served wine and cheese to the crowd. To say the least the stage performance was entertaining and the audience showed its appreciation at every opportunity.

SUPERSISTER played an unusual show. For me, this Dutch band was more background then anything else. Musically, they were more like something I would hear in an elevator. They lacked the energy that I enjoyed with many of the other bands on this two-day bill. Not my cup of tea, but interesting nonetheless.

Banco (Del Mutuo Soccorso) was the final act of the festival. Their show was delayed for better than an hour as the band endured the sound check from hell. Equipment failures (keyboards) as well as dead microphones abounded. The vast majority of the Progfest patrons were left out in the lobby as each of the sound check problems were eventually resolved, until the only thing left, was for the crowd to take their seats. Banco plays a passionate blend of music that incorporates the spectacular voice of Francesco Di Giacomo with that of complex musical arrangements. For some 30 years this Italian band has filled each show with energy and intensity. Their approach to music can be characterized by "the finesse of classical themes combined with the ferocity of rock." If you can; when you can. SEE THIS BAND!

When all was said and done, I felt that KENSO stole the show this year. I must admit that I was completely unfamiliar with this band before Progfest, but I walked away a fan. They put together a set that brought a standing ovation after most of the songs. They were absolutely incredible. I would like to thank the promoters of Progfest for putting on a spectacular show. I look forward to next year.