Progmotion Festival: September 1, 2012 De Pul, Uden (NL)
Progmotion is a foundation established in 2012 in order to give Dutch progressive rock music a new impulse. The
foundation sees several opportunities to increase the interest for the genre to a wider audience.
Organizing and promoting live concerts are one of the main goals. They organized their first Progmotion Festival
at venue De Pul in Uden. By doing so they also took into consideration the already existing concert initiatives and
the geographical spread. Therefore I guess De Pul was a right choice because lovers of prog rock wouldn't
have to travel that long to reach this venue.
After several months of preparations the organizers came up with a rather strong line-up. However, only a week before the festival would take place, they had to face their first serious problem. Headliners Wolverine were forced to cancel their show, because lead singer Stefan Zell had contracted pneumonia which made it impossible for him to sing. He was diagnosed on Tuesday and the doctor thought he might be lucky enough to sing by Saturday. Zell had taken his medication which led to some improvements, but not enough to breathe properly. Only one day before the festival they let the organizers know that they couldn't come. In the meantime several bands were asked to replace Wolverine if the band would fail to come. Dutch band Kingfisher Sky was one of the first acts that were willing to perform instead. They made it in time to save the festival... Minor Giant
Galahad
Unfortunately, this Swedish band didn't become the headliners of the first Progmotion Festival and instead of Bug Eye the audience could enjoy a fine version of Termination as an encore. Kingfisher Sky
The songs Kingfisher Sky performed were a good mixture of tracks from the two albums they recorded so far: Hallway Of Dreams (2007) and Skin Of The Earth (2010, see review). However, live on stage the songs sounded heavier than the original versions. Maybe this isn't that strange if you know that they have two guitar players on stage. Both Edo van der Kolk and Chris Henny are fine guitarists who can play decent solos and metal riffs. One of the highlights was an excellent guitar duel on which they got a big hand from the audience. I think not all visitors were familiar with the band's repertoire and therefore had mixed feelings about the band's performance. But it's to the band's credits that they took the risk to do this show knowing that most people had come to see Wolverine. From that viewpoint they succeeded well in bringing the festival to a happy conclusion. They delivered a good set, but maybe in front of the wrong audience... A final word goes to the organizers of Progmotion. They were extremely pleased with the course of the first festival that attracted more than 220 visitors. Hopefully the same visitors will come to the next Progmotion Festival as well, because people who presently have the guts to organize a progressive rock festival simply deserve a large audience! Henri Strik (edited by Peter Willemsen, pictures by Arthur Haggenburg) |
Setlist Galahad: Battle ScarsSingularity Sleepers Bitter And Twisted This Life Empires Never Last Suspended Animation Beyond The Barbed Wire Seize The Day Encore: Termination |
Pictures Galahad by Arthur Haggenburg Click on the picture to enlarge. |
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Line up Galahad: (left to right)Dean Baker: keyboards, backing vocals Roy Keyworth: guitars Spencer Luckman: drums Stuart Nicholson: lead vocals Mark Spencer: bass, guitars, backing vocals |
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Setlist Kingfisher Sky: MultitudeLike A Shadow We Love Our Heroes Balance Of Power Through My Eyes Hallway Of Dreams The Edge Of Insanity Mushroom Wall Liquid Clocks My Better Part Rise From The Flames Seven Feet Persephone Brody The Craving |
Pictures Kingfisher Sky by Arthur Haggenburg Click on the picture to enlarge. |
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Line up Kingfisher Sky: (left to right)Edo van der Kolk: electric and acoustic guitars David Gutiérrez Rojas: keyboards Ivar de Graaf: drums Maaike Peterse: cello Judith Rijnveld: lead vocals Chris Henny: electric guitars Eric Hoogendoorn: bass |
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