ProgPower USA XII Roster Discussion

  • "ProgPower USA is definitely one of the better organized festivals we have attended and was a highlight on our first U.S. tour. We feel honored to have been invited again, and will prepare something special for the event, as this is the one and only chance for our US-fans to see us live in their country," comments THERION's Christofer Johnsson.

AND THIS will help assure a sold out ProgPower USA XII.

bank on it.

:Smug: <--- yeah, that's me being smug.
 
OK, I have to admit, I have NEVER ever listened to Arcturus....and honestly, probably wouldn't have if they weren't coming to ProgPower. I just got done listening to The Sham Mirrors and all I can say is :OMG::headbang: Totally unexpected and a very pleasant surprise!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
All I'm gonna say is...

"CRAWLLLL ONNNN YOURRR KNEEEEEEEES, THE SLAUUUUGHTER IS ONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

All Hail Sanctuary!
 
At first I was like WTF and dissapointed, there was one band that I got all excited..

But, I've been disapointed in the past, and Glenns choice has been a pleasent surprise to me

So.. I come to the conclusion that I will never ever doubt Glenn, I just look at this as an oppurtunity to get into a lot of new music.....
 
Holy balls. I just listened to the Haken album and it's a monster!! For me the standout tracks are "Drowning in the Flood" and "Celestial Elixir". It's similar to Mercy Falls in that since it's a concept album it has the same melodic theme throughout so you hear some passages multiple times but overall it's a really solid disc with a lot of variety.
 
Here's a breakdown of my thoughts for each of the bands as the video played:

Creation's End--Could be interesting (I later heard the album and thought it to be fantastic--one complaint being Mike DiMeo's forced gritty vocals. He sounds much better when he sings the way he was made to sing)

Voyager--I see why folks would be happy with this band, but they're just not for me. It just sounds like Depeche Mode with heavy guitars and the occasional growl.

Eldritch--In the 90s, this would have been awesome. Their later material has me scratching my head, though.

Mob Rules--Nice! This band has really grown over the years. This should make a lot of the power metal fans happy, as it certainly makes me happy.

Arcturus--Really? This must be the oddball band. What the hell are furries doing in the video? Anywho, this will definitely appeal to folks outside of the normal ProgPower crowd, but I could care less.

Sanctuary--I seriously did not see this one coming at all! If Warrell can pull this one off, I'll take back everything I've said in my dreams to Zod (after all, that dude is jacked! He best lay off my James LaBrie, though!)

Haken--I've been hearing about this band, and it sounds like something I'll dig. I'll be checking them out in the near future.

Red Circuit--Nice! I like Chitty.

While Heaven Wept--Yes! This is worth the price of admission alone (I'm pretty sure that all that was heard amongst the crowd was Joan and myself screaming at the tops of our lungs. I looked around, and most people had a look on their faces that exclaimed, "Who?").

Labyrinth--Yes! This doubly ensures my attendance at the festival (as if I'm ever going to miss this festival! That said, I own all of Labyrinth's CDs minus the Piece Of Time EP, and I can't say the same for any other band in this lineup)

Dream Evil--I figured this would happen at some point, but that doesn't mean I have to be excited about it.

Therion--Not again! Oh, well. At least Joan's happy.

At any rate, I'll be eagerly watching more than half of the lineup next year. That's more than I can say for any other festival in this country. Besides, there are still bands to be announced for Wednesday and Thursday.


Stay metal. Never rust.
Albert
 
Sanctuary--I seriously did not see this one coming at all! If Warrell can pull this one off, I'll take back everything I've said in my dreams to Zod (after all, that dude is jacked! He best lay off my James LaBrie, though!)

:lol: I hear you on that. I was talking to Zod about this year's lineup via text and regarding the interviews for next year's fest, and here's what I get from him:

"If I'm not interviewing Warrel, there will be blood."

Considering that Zod is only a little more jacked than me, I can offer you this in advance: I won't be doing the Sanctuary interview.

:lol:
 
:lol: I hear you on that. I was talking to Zod about this year's lineup via text and regarding the interviews for next year's fest, and here's what I get from him:

"If I'm not interviewing Warrel, there will be blood."

Considering that Zod is only a little more jacked than me, I can offer you this in advance: I won't be doing the Sanctuary interview.

:lol:

ROFL! Just get him drunk and talk to him about cds, that's what I did. I got him to buy 2 that he had no intention of buying, rofl. I'm still waiting on his opinions of them though!
 
I'm really excited to see Arcturus, Labyrinth, Voyager, Therion and a few of the others.

Question though. Will Hellhammer be drumming for Arcturus? Will the lineup be the same as Sideshow Symphonies? I sure hope so.

Also, I vote that we pool our money together and each person give 20 bucks to get Labyrinth to play all of Return to Heaven Denied.
 
Well, there's all sorts of comments floating around about this band or the next...but all I gotta say is ProgPowerUSA rocks no matter who's playing, sure I've got my favorites and some more than others, but Glenn has provided more glorious memories than I can count and given his track record, as far as I'm concerned PPUSA has been, is, and always will be an annual pilgrimage no matter what, finance and business obligations extant...so, say what you will, all I gotta say is...thank you again Glenn (and yes, Jen too!) for yet again another precious opportunity to celebrate the best and most interesting progressive and power metal from all over the globe performing today. Rock On as long as we all can together and forever.:headbang::kickass::headbang:
 
Now I can totally see Glenn looking at all of the predictions and just grinning... evil laughter... the little horns showing up behind his head...

Either we really suck, or the son of a bitch is good at it. :lol: Knowing the guy's mind, I don't think anyone will *ever* predict the full lineup correctly.

He has the mind of a frigging Promoter Genius, but have you noticed Milton, no matter what he does there is always some nay-sayers, in the past it has been, "too much Prog" or "to much Power", gues the old saying is true, "you can't please all the people all the time". I too only got 2 right, and that sucks, I remember the first year they did the video, there was no contest, but a guess the line-up post and if i remember correctly I got like 9 right, but those days are gone, my mind drawsa more blanks than ever before.
 
He has the mind of a frigging Promoter Genius, but have you noticed Milton, no matter what he does there is always some nay-sayers, in the past it has been, "too much Prog" or "to much Power", gues the old saying is true, "you can't please all the people all the time". I too only got 2 right, and that sucks, I remember the first year they did the video, there was no contest, but a guess the line-up post and if i remember correctly I got like 9 right, but those days are gone, my mind drawsa more blanks than ever before.

John, at the end of the day you can't please everyone. Too much power? Get over it! Too much prog? Get over it. I don't mind only getting two right especially when there's some really special things going on next year. I still can't believe I'm gonna be able to catch a Sanctuary gig! Do you have any idea how nuts I'll be during that set? :lol:
 
John, at the end of the day you can't please everyone. Too much power? Get over it! Too much prog? Get over it. I don't mind only getting two right especially when there's some really special things going on next year. I still can't believe I'm gonna be able to catch a Sanctuary gig! Do you have any idea how nuts I'll be during that set? :lol:

Yes I do, and I don't want to ba anywhere near you and Brent durning that set.

It is so much fun to read the remarks everyone has posted, but the one that gets me is the "IF it ain't broke don't fix it" Glenn is not fixing a proven formula he is just adding more avaiable options. As he has said in the past, with all the big name bands touring regularly it is hard to get a line-up that is withing budget and will conform to his proven formula. With that said, also his loyal fanbase will come, though it has taken a hit over the past years, not because of line-ups, but because of life, changes in people's lives are keeping some away, case in point Milton who has been to damn near all of them missed this year because of a life changing event in his life, but he will be back next year, and with someone new in tow. I personnaly love this line-up and am famailar with all bands, and think it is the most diverse and appeal to all lineup every. So before you complain, Remember FREK KITCHEN, most everyone complained and what happened? Crowd favorite. Just my $.02 worth.
 
Considering a decent-sized portion of the forum was expecting James LaBrie to be headlining, the confusion and negativity isn't entirely surprising to me.
Just out of curiosity, why did anyone think that? I know people speculate about it and campaign for it, but was there some reason to expect it this year?

I don't want to fall into the cliche of bashing prog fans, but the fact that none of the top 4 bands are traditional prog probably has a lot to do with it.
I know exactly what you're saying and I'm not at all trying to give you crap. However, I can't help but find the phrase "traditional prog" somewhat amusing. That said, hopefully we get Vanden Plas at the Thursday night show.

To me this isn't an issue of unfamiliarity. I have heard all but two of these bands, most of them extensively. The truth of the matter is there is only one band on the entire bill I like enough to consider spending all the money to go see. Labyrinth in case anyone is curious.
The line up I was least familiar with, at time of announcement, was PPII. To this today it remains my favorite.

I will be SHOCKED if this show gets with in 250 tickets of a sell out.
Care to place a wager?
 
Just out of curiosity, why did anyone think that? I know people speculate about it and campaign for it, but was there some reason to expect it this year?

Stupidly and I hate to admit to falling for it as well, people thought that based only on the fact that Glenn came to Chicago, had his picture taken with James at the Maiden show.