I've been to every ProgPower, and nothing short of death will keep me from missing this event. I also attended the last three Powermad festivals (1999-2001). I heard about Powermad in 1998 after meeting this really cool lady at a Lynch Mob concert in Chicago. Oddly enough, she had been living in Chicago for seven years at the time, but she was moving to the east coast in about a month. We had exchanged mailing addresses, and she sent me a bunch of tapes of all of these cool bands whom I previously never knew to exist. Among those tapes, I heard Angra, Conception, Dreamscape, Edguy, Kamelot, Pain Of Salvation, Stratovarius, Vanden Plas, and Zero Hour for the first time. I knew enough of the cock rock bands, the shredding instrumental guitar heroes, and the classic metal bands, but my two favorite bands have always been Dream Theater and Fates Warning. Up until I met my pen pal, I couldn't find any other bands that reminded me of my all-time favorites. It was a thrill for me to be turned onto so many great bands!
This friend of mine had told me about Powermad 1998 about a month or two before it took place. Being 17 at the time and figuring it would be hard to convince my parents to let me take time off of school to go to Baltimore for a weekend of bands that nobody in this country has ever heard (not to mention having very limited funds), I opted not to go that year. However, I swore that if the fest was running in 1999 that I would attend. I kept my promise to myself, and I'm glad I did. Powermad was a haphazardly run show to say the least, but I'll be damned if it wasn't a blast every year.
Fast forward to the end of 2000: I'm working at an independent music store, and someone puts up a flyer about a festival taking place in February of 2001 featuring a whole bunch of bands I've been dying to see. The best part of it all was that it was being held at a bar located a half-hour drive away from my house! How could I pass that up? Unfortunately, that bar happened to be J.J. Kelley's, a place I where I had tried to see shows in the past but was denied access due to being underage. I didn't care about drinking. I just wanted to see the bands! I never understood why every band I wanted to see at the time played 21 and over shows. Needless to say, I was one sadly disappointed 19-year-old kid.
Then I saw a major lineup change for the fest: Nevermore (one of two bands on the bill I actually didn't care to see) was replaced by Symphony X! Symphony fucking X! I had heard about them after they released "Twilight In Olympus," and I had been eating up their music like a fat man at Old Country Buffett for the next two years. At the time, these guys had never played anywhere in this country outside of New Jersey. To Hell with the 21 and over rule! I was going to buy a ticket and cross my fingers. After all, even if I was turned away, I simply wanted to support a festival that was bringing my favorite bands together in hopes that there would be future ones that I'd be guaranteed to attend. There wasn't much time left, so I sent my payment through express mail hoping the show hadn't sold out. Thankfully, Glenn responded quickly, telling me that though the show was sold out, he would keep a spot open for me for sending my payment so fast. The excitement was building up.
Come the first day of the fest, I was nervous as hell. I just waited in line and tried to play it cool. As it turned out, J.J. Kelley's didn't have their usual doorman checking IDs. Instead, Glenn was at the door, and he was merely checking IDs to cross the names off of his list. I was in! To this day, that show stands out as the best concert I've ever seen. Sure, I've been to better venues (Center Stage being the best), but there was just this magic surrounding that weekend's event. It was such a great combination of bands, the likes of which had never been seen in this country before. Add to the fact that it was held in such a small club to such a small but mighty crowd, and you have one of the most memorable moments of a young man's life. For having had that experience when state laws normally would have prevented me from enjoying it, and for being allowed to attend when the show had already sold out, I pledged my undying allegiance to Glenn.
Since that milestone event, I've brought as many people into the fold as possible each year. Some of my friends have attended one or two fests, whereas others have attended every year since their first, and all of them leave each year telling me it's the best show they've seen all year. I currently hold three gold badges, and they never go unused.
On a final note, I have another reason to thank Glenn. If it wasn't for this festival, Dustin Mitchell would never have heard me sing, and thus, I would never have been given the opportunity to join Katagory V. After working on my vocal chops from the age of 14, I finally found a band that suits me perfectly.
Glenn, I hope you can keep this festival going for years to come. I know the current economic status is delivering quite a blow to you, but I'd like to think that fest is merely down and not out. As long as this fest runs, come Hell or high water, I'll be there with an oversized concert shirt and short jean shorts on. Thanks again!
Stay metal. Never rust.
Albert
