Since February 2020 the Background Magazine team has not been able to witness any concerts. Due to the pandemic, that has been going around since that time, concerts were not allowed to take place. Therefore the annual Northern Prog Festival could not take place in 2020. Now finally one year later another edition of the only progressive rock festival in the northern part of the Netherlands could take place again. The festival that started in 2013 had every edition 5 bands on their stage at De Uthof in Siegerswoude. But now for their eighth edition they decided that only 4 bands would be enough to satisfy the diehard progheads. For me personally that's the right number of bands, because when the fifth band entered the stage a lot of people already went home or got too tired or sleepy. For this year the following Dutch bands were booked: Mangrove, Hackberry and Perfect Storm. And of course the band who organize this event each year. Namely Leap Day. But the day before the festival Mangrove had to withdraw. Due to personal circumstances of one of the musicians in the band could not take the trip to Siegerswoude. So on very short notice a replacement had to be found. Thank God Hangover Paradise was willing to fill in for the band that had to cancel their performance.
 

Hangover Paradise

The band from Assen had the task of bringing the audience in the right mood. Well everybody who has witnessed one of their concerts knows what to expect. Even with a changed line up, compared to their first performance at the festival back in 2015 when they were for me personally the highlight, they can still entertain a crowd. Even without the excellent singer and performer Elias de Vries they showed to be a real professional unit. Because

Henk Brugge (►more pics)

Henk Brugge is also a rather strong entertainer and singer. Dressed in black, wearing a long coat and a high hat, he from time to time was in a real funny mood. Making jokes with Peter Zwerus. Peter is of course one of the two excellent keyboard players together with his twin brother Henk Zwerus. The other star in the band is without doubt guitarist Richie Saimima. His melodic playing and fantastic solo's are a real treat for your ears. However we must not forget the fine rhythm section consisting of drummer Daniel Brans and bassist Cynthio Ooms. Surprisingly a lot of new compositions could be heard during the bands second performance at this festival. This would of course mean that less of my favourites were on the setlist. Most of all songs from their fantastic debut Mirrors (2013, see review) were left out. Songs such as I Rest My Case and Army Of Innocents. However I still could enjoy Coming Home and Religious Minds. Unfortunately also some favourites from their second album Out Of Sight (2017, see review) were not done this time around. Therefore I certainly missed a piece such as Wrong. But also from this release enough material was done to give me a good feeling. Songs such as Not Worried, Flowers In The Rain (only put on the setlist last minute instead of Out Of Sight) and Life Is Too Short. With five new songs to enjoy, the band can certainly make plans to record a third studio album. Even more if you know that they are a again of a very high level just like the bands older pieces of music. All in all the bands second performance since the lockdown was one to remember for a very long time. Well done!
 

Leap Day

It's an understatement to say that lot has happened to the band Leap Day since the bands 10th anniversary album Timelapse (2018, see review). First the excellent bass player Peter Stel had been replaced by Harry Scholing and could already been seen on stage during the 2019 edition of the festival. A festival which was done without the bands lead singer Jos Harteveld and replaced by several other singers. It turned

Hans Kuypers (►more pics)

out he couldn't combine singing in more bands next to Leap Day. Therefore he made the rather difficult decision to leave the band even before the earlier mentioned festival. But life goes on and also for Leap Day. So a replacement was found before the 2021 edition of NPF could take place. His name Hans Kuypers. The band even managed to put together a brand new studio album. Titled Treehouse. Unfortunately not available during the festival due to lack of supplies to get the album in production. However during the bands fine performance some brand new pieces could be heard. Songs such as the instrumental Sun Stood Still, the already earlier performed Like Icarus and Clementine. The last title was certainly one of the songs where the bands new lead singer could show all of his singing talents. Maybe not so strange, because he is one of the co-writers of this compositions. During the bands opening tune When Leaves Fall I had at first serious doubts if his voice would fit the band. Maybe the sound wasn't yet properly mixed yet or maybe the song just wasn't written for his voice. A voice which sometimes moved towards a hard rock or metal voice. After the concert Kuypers admitted he had been singing in this musical genre. Later on during the new compositions and the final two songs Changing Directions and Walls (both musical highlights) the doubts were gone. During those songs Hans turned out to be a real entertainer on stage. Moving his arms and hands like a real rock star. As for the other musicians on stage I can give them only compliments for delivering a splendid concert. Even though they had not been on stage for such a long time. Bravo! Finally I'll have to say that the new repertoire shows that the new album Treehouse is something to look out for.
 

Hackberry

To be honest I had never heard about Hackberry before I went to the NPF. I had no time to check them out before actually seeing them. So for me personally and probably also for the largest part of the audience they could have been a dark horse. This 5 piece instrumental band from Groningen played a mix of progressive rock, stoner, metal, grunge. This musical cocktail they presented wasn't bad at all. But as with many bands, whose music stays instrumental,

Marijn de Boer (left) and Francesco Bonardi (►more pics)

it is not always easy to keep the audience focused all the time during their set. The problem with the songs taken from their first EP Desert Orchid (2016) and their self-titled debut album Hackberry (2018) is that they last way too long. The band sounds a bit like the German band Long Distance Calling. Also playing long instrumental tracks with repeating musical patterns. However I have to admit that what the musicians presented on stage was clever and they certainly master their instruments. Most of all the interplay between the two guitar players Francesco Bonardi and Marijn de Boer was of a very high level. Also the twin guitar parts they both presented was really something to enjoy. However keyboard player Tim Hidshes (standing in the back) should have been more involved in the compositions they presented. He has only an accompanying role in the band. Why do they not let him do a synthesizer solo or bring his keyboards more upfront in the final mix. It certainly will give the band more variety in the repertoire. Variety is the spice after all. But I won't be negative in my final verdict, because they certainly could entertain the crowd and they gave a lot of energy during their performance. So a little thumbs up after all.
 

Perfect Storm

The headliners Perfect Storm are also located in the Groningen area; the northern part of the Netherlands. The band's debut album No Air (see review), released this year, made a big impression on our reviewer and got a well deserved five stars score. But how are they on a live stage? Well actually nobody knew it before their performance at the NPF. Because this concert was their first concert ever. And I must say they succeeded with flying colours. All the songs from their debut were played in the same order as on the album tracklist. And I

Hiske Oosterwijk (left) & Adel Saflou (►more pics)

must say they came close to the original album versions. And that's a big complement for a band which makes their first baby steps on stage. Most of all the album opener Strength, the highlight on the album, was done with a lot of passion and precision This is a really a strong piece of music to open a concert with. The sequences of keyboard player Ard Offers starts this song and soon gets some help of guitarist Gert-Jan Schurer with some catchy riffs. The rhythm sections joins in and soon the strong lead vocals of Adel Saflou and Hiske Oosterwijk makes the picture complete. Wow what a strong vocal performance they both delivered. The harmony vocals of this band are excellent on their debut album but also on stage they make it possible to sound the same way. Complements also to Hiske for letting herself completely go loose during How It ends, the final song of the album and the regular set. It was obvious that the audience wanted more when all songs of the album where done. The people behind the festival suggested if an encore was requested to do Strength one more time. Because they had no more songs on their repertoire. So they ended their splendid performance with this great tune. The band can certainly look back on an excellent debut concert. They can most of all be proud of what they achieved on stage in front of a highly positive audience. Most of all stand in drummer Niels Voskuil ,who replaced Jesse Bosman on short notice, has to be given a big complement for learning the drum parts during only one morning. It has to be said that he already knew most of the parts, because he was involved in recording the album! This is certainly a band to look out for and I hope to see them more often.


Like every year I can say that once again the organizers can look back at a well organized festival. Even with one act less those attended can be satisfied with what they got presented. The bands got a perfect sound made possible by the people behind the mixing desk. Those bands all came from the northern parts of the Netherlands, to do their thing on stage in a wonderful way. So once again there's nothing to complain, I guess. Furthermore the food and drinks were good and you could again feel the wonderful atmosphere between the many lovers of progressive rock. So all I can say is thanks to everybody involved making it again the best festival in the Netherlands!

Henri Strik (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen)