Impressions of ProgPower
First of all, it was an amazing weekend of Metal. Without doing a band by band review, here are some of my impressions and my awards:
The Weekend Theme: By my count, 7 of the 10 bands had never played in the US before. Some of them had never been here before. On the other hand, DC Cooper of Silent Force, a Pittsburgh native, spoke later how nice it was to finally speak English at a show. He said he hadnt played in the US for over 10 years. Many of the bands spoke about hearing that metal was dead in the US. Kudos to Glenn Harveston for bringing in such an array of talent for ProgPower. (On a side note, I am always amazed by foreigners coming in and speaking better English than many people I know). Many of the bands promised that they will return here for full tours. We can only hope.
Most Energetic band: Edguy. Tobias was jumping around the stage, and they looked like they were really having fun. He kept haranguing the people sitting in the back, since they were too docile at times. Edguy had a great set, including Avantasia, and was one of the best bands of the weekend. They were obviously out there having fun, and it really showed.
Most anticipated set: From pure observation, it looked lie the crowd was most hyped up for Gamma Ray and Blind Guardian. No real surprise here.
Band that Brought out the Moshing: Gamma Ray had the fans on the floor jumping around the most.
Gamma Ray Downer: This was the only band that played some solos. This included a five minister typical metal drum solo. I apologize to any drummers out there reading this, but I did not want to see the normal metal drum solo that consisted of: Pound pound, stop, jump up, get people to scream, sit down, pound pound, stop, get up, etc
I think that a band that:
Is playing the US for the first time
Has an extensive catalog of hits (9+ albums)
Has only 90 minutes
Should NOT be wasting that much time on a drum solo! I would MUCH rather have heard Razorblade Sigh or No Stranger or any number of other songs instead.
Biggest Fan Reaction to a Song: Id say it was tied between Angra finishing off with The Number of the Beast, and Gamma Ray doing Ride the Sky and I Want Out for an encore. Actually, I think I Want Out won this, overall. People just went bonkers.
Biggest Surprise: For me, it was Threshold. They just blew me away. I had heard a few of their songs, but they played so well live. Right after the set, I went out and bought two of their CDs. It was just an amazing combination of prog and straight on rockers. Id suggest checking them out.
Ho Hum of the weekend: Devin Townsend. I tried, but it just wasnt for me. Too much screaming. Too punkish for my tastes. Oh well.
Best Vocals: There were many great vocalists this weekend, but DC Cooper of Silent Force was far and above everyone else. He had such range, and such expression. He just sounded perfect live. He also did a dead-on Halford impression with Youve Got Another Thing Coming. Ive known how talented he was on Royal Hunt and his solo projects. He sounded every bit as good live.
Tightest Band: Angra. Very skilled (not that I didnt know that). The guitars during that set were amazing.
Angra Thing I learned: Angra can still rock without Matos. The new singer filled in very nicely.
Blind Guardian Oddity: Hansi does not have a very strong voice. He sounded amazing on the slower songs, such as Lord of the Rings (which brought down the house). However, on the more aggressive songs, such as Into the Storm, he was often drowned out by the fans. Now, I am all for fan participation, but I really came to hear Hansi sing, not all the headbangers around me :> Dont misunderstand me. Hansi has a great voice. I just think that, live, he does not have an overpowering voice.
Best Spinal Tap Impression: Bassist for Gamma Ray. Wearing just a leather vest and a long mustache, he looked just like Derek Smalls of Spinal Tap. It didnt help that his occasional contribution to the audience between songs was a loud screaming: Than You Verr Muchhhhh
Biggest mistake: Reading Zero put on a very good show.. They played well, but they are a progressive band. On the last song, they brought Evergrey bassist Michael Håkansson on stage, and he flat out took over the stage with his energy. It was a very interesting contrast.
Nonperforming attendees: Rob Rock was there the whole time. Jon Schaffer and Evergrey were also around much of the time.
Final Impression of the Weekend: I stayed at eh Grenada. I had a very early flight on Sunday, and got only two hours of sleep. As I staggered out to check out at 5:50 am, I watched Angra stagger back in for the evening. :> That capped off a sleepless but outstanding weekend of metal. I hope those bands see that metal can live in the USA, and dont wait too long for a return.
Thanks again for a great time.
First of all, it was an amazing weekend of Metal. Without doing a band by band review, here are some of my impressions and my awards:
The Weekend Theme: By my count, 7 of the 10 bands had never played in the US before. Some of them had never been here before. On the other hand, DC Cooper of Silent Force, a Pittsburgh native, spoke later how nice it was to finally speak English at a show. He said he hadnt played in the US for over 10 years. Many of the bands spoke about hearing that metal was dead in the US. Kudos to Glenn Harveston for bringing in such an array of talent for ProgPower. (On a side note, I am always amazed by foreigners coming in and speaking better English than many people I know). Many of the bands promised that they will return here for full tours. We can only hope.
Most Energetic band: Edguy. Tobias was jumping around the stage, and they looked like they were really having fun. He kept haranguing the people sitting in the back, since they were too docile at times. Edguy had a great set, including Avantasia, and was one of the best bands of the weekend. They were obviously out there having fun, and it really showed.
Most anticipated set: From pure observation, it looked lie the crowd was most hyped up for Gamma Ray and Blind Guardian. No real surprise here.
Band that Brought out the Moshing: Gamma Ray had the fans on the floor jumping around the most.
Gamma Ray Downer: This was the only band that played some solos. This included a five minister typical metal drum solo. I apologize to any drummers out there reading this, but I did not want to see the normal metal drum solo that consisted of: Pound pound, stop, jump up, get people to scream, sit down, pound pound, stop, get up, etc
I think that a band that:
Is playing the US for the first time
Has an extensive catalog of hits (9+ albums)
Has only 90 minutes
Should NOT be wasting that much time on a drum solo! I would MUCH rather have heard Razorblade Sigh or No Stranger or any number of other songs instead.
Biggest Fan Reaction to a Song: Id say it was tied between Angra finishing off with The Number of the Beast, and Gamma Ray doing Ride the Sky and I Want Out for an encore. Actually, I think I Want Out won this, overall. People just went bonkers.
Biggest Surprise: For me, it was Threshold. They just blew me away. I had heard a few of their songs, but they played so well live. Right after the set, I went out and bought two of their CDs. It was just an amazing combination of prog and straight on rockers. Id suggest checking them out.
Ho Hum of the weekend: Devin Townsend. I tried, but it just wasnt for me. Too much screaming. Too punkish for my tastes. Oh well.
Best Vocals: There were many great vocalists this weekend, but DC Cooper of Silent Force was far and above everyone else. He had such range, and such expression. He just sounded perfect live. He also did a dead-on Halford impression with Youve Got Another Thing Coming. Ive known how talented he was on Royal Hunt and his solo projects. He sounded every bit as good live.
Tightest Band: Angra. Very skilled (not that I didnt know that). The guitars during that set were amazing.
Angra Thing I learned: Angra can still rock without Matos. The new singer filled in very nicely.
Blind Guardian Oddity: Hansi does not have a very strong voice. He sounded amazing on the slower songs, such as Lord of the Rings (which brought down the house). However, on the more aggressive songs, such as Into the Storm, he was often drowned out by the fans. Now, I am all for fan participation, but I really came to hear Hansi sing, not all the headbangers around me :> Dont misunderstand me. Hansi has a great voice. I just think that, live, he does not have an overpowering voice.
Best Spinal Tap Impression: Bassist for Gamma Ray. Wearing just a leather vest and a long mustache, he looked just like Derek Smalls of Spinal Tap. It didnt help that his occasional contribution to the audience between songs was a loud screaming: Than You Verr Muchhhhh
Biggest mistake: Reading Zero put on a very good show.. They played well, but they are a progressive band. On the last song, they brought Evergrey bassist Michael Håkansson on stage, and he flat out took over the stage with his energy. It was a very interesting contrast.
Nonperforming attendees: Rob Rock was there the whole time. Jon Schaffer and Evergrey were also around much of the time.
Final Impression of the Weekend: I stayed at eh Grenada. I had a very early flight on Sunday, and got only two hours of sleep. As I staggered out to check out at 5:50 am, I watched Angra stagger back in for the evening. :> That capped off a sleepless but outstanding weekend of metal. I hope those bands see that metal can live in the USA, and dont wait too long for a return.
Thanks again for a great time.
