Ah, the few perks of living in Atlanta. an awesome metal festival that just keeps getting better, 10 minutes from home.
first off, i must say that overall, as far as the performances go, this was the most solid ProgPower yet, and that the changes as far as organization and crowd control were all for the better. like i said, it just keeps getting better.
This year couldn't hope to match the all-star lineup of US debuts from PPIII. at least i thought so, but once again, the performance level got turned up a notch despite having slightly "smaller" names.
and the review:
Pre-party:
got to meet Jon Oliva and hang out for a while. the man is awesome. truly awesome. MUCH more down to earth than i was expecting. one of the coolest personalities i've ever met in the metal scene.
the bands:
Kategory V: wasn't expecting much because I don't like the song on the PPIII sampler (and i seem to be in the vast minority). However, I was blown away. You guys were awesome. great job, and keep it up
Stride: perfectly played, but not at all my thing. Very DT-ish, and i'm just not the world's biggest fan of that genre.
Prymary: had to leave about a song and a half in, but what i heard was pretty good.
i think this was a more solid lineup than last year. Magistral was great last year, but i wasn't a big fan of the other two.
Friday:
Redemption: my least favorite set. not outright bad, but not too good either. i think i was too close to the left speaker because i had a lot of sound complaints from their set that no one else seemed to have. In general, there were a few moments where I started to get into them, but they never lasted. Ray Alder sounded great, though the man has very little stage presence. I was also kind of hoping that Joey Vera would be their bassist as listed on the Progpower webpage, but i wasn't really expecting it to be true given how busy the man is, and unfortunately it wasn't. not that their bassist sucked or anything, but Joey is cool!
Mercenary: holy shit! these guys felt like the true kickoff to the festival; they tore away any memory i had of Redemption. they ripped it up entirely, and i definitely agree with the guy who thought Mikkel reminded him of Halford up there. they were dead on (like nearly all the bands this year) and sounded awesome. And i got a drumstick!
Oh, and a note to the Vanden Plas/ Nightwish/and/or/Symphony X fan that was parked in the front row up against the rail and SITTING ON THE FLOOR during Mercenary's set: be glad that i only heard about you doing this and didn't actually see you, or you might have been "accidentally" kicked. If you're going to be up at the front for a band, even if it's only so you can be there for your favorite band later, show them at least a SMIDGEN of respect. thank you.
Vanden Plas: Never have gotten into Vanden Plas. I've tried several times, listened to various things, and never gotten past thinking they were a total Dream Theater clone. Just never have been able to get into their sound. Until now, that is. Their set really won me over. and having just seen Dream Theater a month or so ago, i must say that other than the drumming, Vanden Plas wins (not that there's a thing wrong with VP's drummer, but come ON). my clone accusations are through, and i actually think VP are better. Kudos.
Nightwish: extremely similar situation to Vanden Plas. I kind of like their studio stuff, but it's nothing i would buy, and i was expecting Nightwish to put on a similarly stuff-shirted and holier-than-thou performance to Blind Guardian's set last year (admit it, BG was pretty disappointing). They really surprised me. they looked like they were having a ton of fun up there, and Tarja is just gorgeous. I had to leave the room to go to Circle II Circle's signing because it started so late, and after telling myself it was time to go to the signing, it took me two more songs from that point before i could tear myself away from Nightwish's performance (and trust me, i came right back ASAP). very impressive.
Symphony X: not as familiar as i should be with the new album, but their set was definitely killer. I do have the same complaint as everyone else that Romeo's guitar was way the hell too loud; their sound was better at PPII but i think their performance was better this year. and they played my current favorite of theirs ("Out of the Ashes", not that they didn't at PPII) so that was cool. It's always awesome to watch these guys do their thing. a great closer to an awesome night of metal.
Saturday:
Pagan's Mind: I think these guys surprised the hell out of everyone. Robin loves them and made me listen to them, and i hadn't quite gotten into them by the time of the show. i really like the first album but hadn't really gotten that far into the second one, but i knew they were good, at least. we got there right at 3:30 and went up front for them, and they wre still finishing their sound check. until we got up to the stage and saw that they were up there playing, we thought it was the CD going, they were so tight. This boded very well for the actual set, and it did not disappoint. By far the best opening act I've seen at the 3 Atlanta Progpower shows (and I'm a big Zero Hour fan), and quite possibly the best act of the weekend. Quite simply, they ruled.
Secret Sphere: They sounded much heavier (read: better) than i thought they would, and their set started off great. they got hindered by having just released a CD of mostly crap that they felt like they had to play several songs from. "Under the Flag of Mary Reed"(sp?) was awesome, but the set did get bogged down by "More than Simple Emotions" and "Runaway Train" and the like. i also agree that the vocalist was a little at odds with the crowd, culturally. however, I do not understand the complaints about their actual sound that i've been reading. I was up front, slightly to the left, and i thought they sounded awesome, as far as that goes. another complaint was "Lady of Silence". A lot of people seem to like that song but I think it's stupid. Having just listened to "A Time Never Come" for the first time in a long time after Progpower, there are a ton of songs on there they could have played instead of the three i mentioned that really got in the way of them having a solid metal set. overall, though, they were good and don't deserve the horrible rap they've been getting on the forum.
Circle II Circle: these guys were the band i was anticipating the most, and they did not dissapoint. i can't say they won the weekend for me, but they came very close. i think that with all the bands playing that were better than i thought they would be, seeing one play exactly as well as i thought they would didn't have that extra push. I was astounded (and thrilled) to hear Taunting Cobras. I never would have expected that one. also, hearing Gutter Ballet as a duet between Jon and Zak was awesome. Zak was was more of a frontman than i was expecting, and deserves massive props for that. they all looked like they were having a great time up there, and their set sounded awesome. Unfortunately for them, Savatage (Poets tour with Damond on vocals) still ranks as the godliest live performance I've ever seen, so that memory overshadowed CIIC a bit, especially hearing some of the same songs. Anyone who's wondering why Zak started his own band instead of rejoining Savatage should find footage of that tour and observe why 'Tage can't take him back. I'm just as happy having the two bands in tandem, though.
Evergrey: They play their stuff. they play it very, very well. a lot of it is awesome. a lot of it puts me to sleep (see Trilogy of the Damned. me. literally. asleep in my chair.) The bassist is always fun to watch, and was the only thing i liked about Reading Zero last year. Overall, i think their set at Progpower II had more energy, either that or seeing them live the first time blew me away more than seeing them live when i knew their stuff a bit. the first song of the encore was the high point of the set for me. good stuff, but i just can't get into all of it.
Rage: I was extremely pissed off at their set. very upset. and, of course, the reason was that the theater was so FUCKING EMPTY!!! what the HELL, people? They ruled! that set was easily the most powerful of the fest. (note i did not say best; that's a really tough call) For having three people, they lit the stage on fire! granted, the drum solo was too long (though impressive; Mike could teach classes on drumstick tricks), and the guitar solo was almost of Nigel Tufnel-esque proportions (sans the violin), but JESUS... so they were late and it was a bit chilly if you weren't on the floor, but it was worth it. Rage also score massive points in my book (and you can bring the flames) for starting the first ever Progpower mosh pit. and like i said on another thread, it was a good, clean, old-school mosh pit: just jumping and shoving, no kicks and elbows and bullshit. I got out of my seat to join it for a little while. woke me right back up from the long day. Rage's songs to tend to be a bit repetitive, but it was perfect for a live setting. and Dies Irae fucking DESTROYED. great set.
Feeble attempt at ranking the bands in my order of enjoyment (and i loved everyone except Redemption, before you get offended)
1. Mercenary, Pagan's Mind, Rage (can't pick, all god-awesome, sorry)
4. Symphony X (turn down the guitar and join the first 3)
5. Circle II Circle (if only i hadn't seen Savatage first)
6. Nightwish, Vanden Plas, Secret Sphere (you saw that my reviews were identical on the first two, and the 2/3 awesome, 1/3 crap of secret sphere lands them in a tie here)
9. Evergrey (see review)
10. Redemption (needs a little work)
there you go. there's my opinions. now you have them (if you read this whole massive thing)
(the editing was to correct two typos, not alter the content other than this note)
Ryan
first off, i must say that overall, as far as the performances go, this was the most solid ProgPower yet, and that the changes as far as organization and crowd control were all for the better. like i said, it just keeps getting better.
This year couldn't hope to match the all-star lineup of US debuts from PPIII. at least i thought so, but once again, the performance level got turned up a notch despite having slightly "smaller" names.
and the review:
Pre-party:
got to meet Jon Oliva and hang out for a while. the man is awesome. truly awesome. MUCH more down to earth than i was expecting. one of the coolest personalities i've ever met in the metal scene.
the bands:
Kategory V: wasn't expecting much because I don't like the song on the PPIII sampler (and i seem to be in the vast minority). However, I was blown away. You guys were awesome. great job, and keep it up
Stride: perfectly played, but not at all my thing. Very DT-ish, and i'm just not the world's biggest fan of that genre.
Prymary: had to leave about a song and a half in, but what i heard was pretty good.
i think this was a more solid lineup than last year. Magistral was great last year, but i wasn't a big fan of the other two.
Friday:
Redemption: my least favorite set. not outright bad, but not too good either. i think i was too close to the left speaker because i had a lot of sound complaints from their set that no one else seemed to have. In general, there were a few moments where I started to get into them, but they never lasted. Ray Alder sounded great, though the man has very little stage presence. I was also kind of hoping that Joey Vera would be their bassist as listed on the Progpower webpage, but i wasn't really expecting it to be true given how busy the man is, and unfortunately it wasn't. not that their bassist sucked or anything, but Joey is cool!
Mercenary: holy shit! these guys felt like the true kickoff to the festival; they tore away any memory i had of Redemption. they ripped it up entirely, and i definitely agree with the guy who thought Mikkel reminded him of Halford up there. they were dead on (like nearly all the bands this year) and sounded awesome. And i got a drumstick!
Oh, and a note to the Vanden Plas/ Nightwish/and/or/Symphony X fan that was parked in the front row up against the rail and SITTING ON THE FLOOR during Mercenary's set: be glad that i only heard about you doing this and didn't actually see you, or you might have been "accidentally" kicked. If you're going to be up at the front for a band, even if it's only so you can be there for your favorite band later, show them at least a SMIDGEN of respect. thank you.
Vanden Plas: Never have gotten into Vanden Plas. I've tried several times, listened to various things, and never gotten past thinking they were a total Dream Theater clone. Just never have been able to get into their sound. Until now, that is. Their set really won me over. and having just seen Dream Theater a month or so ago, i must say that other than the drumming, Vanden Plas wins (not that there's a thing wrong with VP's drummer, but come ON). my clone accusations are through, and i actually think VP are better. Kudos.
Nightwish: extremely similar situation to Vanden Plas. I kind of like their studio stuff, but it's nothing i would buy, and i was expecting Nightwish to put on a similarly stuff-shirted and holier-than-thou performance to Blind Guardian's set last year (admit it, BG was pretty disappointing). They really surprised me. they looked like they were having a ton of fun up there, and Tarja is just gorgeous. I had to leave the room to go to Circle II Circle's signing because it started so late, and after telling myself it was time to go to the signing, it took me two more songs from that point before i could tear myself away from Nightwish's performance (and trust me, i came right back ASAP). very impressive.
Symphony X: not as familiar as i should be with the new album, but their set was definitely killer. I do have the same complaint as everyone else that Romeo's guitar was way the hell too loud; their sound was better at PPII but i think their performance was better this year. and they played my current favorite of theirs ("Out of the Ashes", not that they didn't at PPII) so that was cool. It's always awesome to watch these guys do their thing. a great closer to an awesome night of metal.
Saturday:
Pagan's Mind: I think these guys surprised the hell out of everyone. Robin loves them and made me listen to them, and i hadn't quite gotten into them by the time of the show. i really like the first album but hadn't really gotten that far into the second one, but i knew they were good, at least. we got there right at 3:30 and went up front for them, and they wre still finishing their sound check. until we got up to the stage and saw that they were up there playing, we thought it was the CD going, they were so tight. This boded very well for the actual set, and it did not disappoint. By far the best opening act I've seen at the 3 Atlanta Progpower shows (and I'm a big Zero Hour fan), and quite possibly the best act of the weekend. Quite simply, they ruled.
Secret Sphere: They sounded much heavier (read: better) than i thought they would, and their set started off great. they got hindered by having just released a CD of mostly crap that they felt like they had to play several songs from. "Under the Flag of Mary Reed"(sp?) was awesome, but the set did get bogged down by "More than Simple Emotions" and "Runaway Train" and the like. i also agree that the vocalist was a little at odds with the crowd, culturally. however, I do not understand the complaints about their actual sound that i've been reading. I was up front, slightly to the left, and i thought they sounded awesome, as far as that goes. another complaint was "Lady of Silence". A lot of people seem to like that song but I think it's stupid. Having just listened to "A Time Never Come" for the first time in a long time after Progpower, there are a ton of songs on there they could have played instead of the three i mentioned that really got in the way of them having a solid metal set. overall, though, they were good and don't deserve the horrible rap they've been getting on the forum.
Circle II Circle: these guys were the band i was anticipating the most, and they did not dissapoint. i can't say they won the weekend for me, but they came very close. i think that with all the bands playing that were better than i thought they would be, seeing one play exactly as well as i thought they would didn't have that extra push. I was astounded (and thrilled) to hear Taunting Cobras. I never would have expected that one. also, hearing Gutter Ballet as a duet between Jon and Zak was awesome. Zak was was more of a frontman than i was expecting, and deserves massive props for that. they all looked like they were having a great time up there, and their set sounded awesome. Unfortunately for them, Savatage (Poets tour with Damond on vocals) still ranks as the godliest live performance I've ever seen, so that memory overshadowed CIIC a bit, especially hearing some of the same songs. Anyone who's wondering why Zak started his own band instead of rejoining Savatage should find footage of that tour and observe why 'Tage can't take him back. I'm just as happy having the two bands in tandem, though.
Evergrey: They play their stuff. they play it very, very well. a lot of it is awesome. a lot of it puts me to sleep (see Trilogy of the Damned. me. literally. asleep in my chair.) The bassist is always fun to watch, and was the only thing i liked about Reading Zero last year. Overall, i think their set at Progpower II had more energy, either that or seeing them live the first time blew me away more than seeing them live when i knew their stuff a bit. the first song of the encore was the high point of the set for me. good stuff, but i just can't get into all of it.
Rage: I was extremely pissed off at their set. very upset. and, of course, the reason was that the theater was so FUCKING EMPTY!!! what the HELL, people? They ruled! that set was easily the most powerful of the fest. (note i did not say best; that's a really tough call) For having three people, they lit the stage on fire! granted, the drum solo was too long (though impressive; Mike could teach classes on drumstick tricks), and the guitar solo was almost of Nigel Tufnel-esque proportions (sans the violin), but JESUS... so they were late and it was a bit chilly if you weren't on the floor, but it was worth it. Rage also score massive points in my book (and you can bring the flames) for starting the first ever Progpower mosh pit. and like i said on another thread, it was a good, clean, old-school mosh pit: just jumping and shoving, no kicks and elbows and bullshit. I got out of my seat to join it for a little while. woke me right back up from the long day. Rage's songs to tend to be a bit repetitive, but it was perfect for a live setting. and Dies Irae fucking DESTROYED. great set.
Feeble attempt at ranking the bands in my order of enjoyment (and i loved everyone except Redemption, before you get offended)
1. Mercenary, Pagan's Mind, Rage (can't pick, all god-awesome, sorry)
4. Symphony X (turn down the guitar and join the first 3)
5. Circle II Circle (if only i hadn't seen Savatage first)
6. Nightwish, Vanden Plas, Secret Sphere (you saw that my reviews were identical on the first two, and the 2/3 awesome, 1/3 crap of secret sphere lands them in a tie here)
9. Evergrey (see review)
10. Redemption (needs a little work)
there you go. there's my opinions. now you have them (if you read this whole massive thing)
(the editing was to correct two typos, not alter the content other than this note)
Ryan
