NEARFest 2001 (June 2001)

Date of Performance: June 23 - 24, 2001
Venue: Zoellner Arts Center, Bethlehem, PA, US

2001: A NEARFest Odyssey

Pennsylvania is beautiful, lush, green, and expansive. I fell in love with scenery immediately. Lehigh University, and the Zollner Arts Center, is located in historic Bethlehem, a town about an hour outside of Philadelphia. The grounds of the University are wonderful, a mix of old and new, where at least one brick building was erected in 1878 (though I'm guessing some may even be older than that). The Zollner Arts Center is the new, celebrating its fifth year anniversary this year (if I recall correctly). Because we kept getting lost in our travels around Pennsylvania, we were able to see quite a bit of this area of the state, and quite a bit of Bethlehem as well.

The Zollner Arts Center itself is a simple but elegant structure perfectly suited for a festival - except, as those who wanted tickets found out - no longer big enough to meet demand. Rather than it being a flaw in the venue, it is a measure of the success of NEARfest and a credit to organizers Rob La Duca and Chad Hutchinson. As most of you know, this year's festival sold out in two hours, and but for some extremely good fortune, I might not have attended myself. As a warning to those thinking about next year - don't hesitate, even if the venue is bigger. That good fortune came by way of the fellow sitting next to me, who I regret to say I cannot remember his name. Had his friend elected to go, and had that extra ticket not been returned to the organizers ... well, very good fortune indeed, so I say a sincere thank you.

Rob and Chad had a bet, such that if the event sold out, Chad would wear a dress. Well, while I didn't nab a picture of this, Chad did indeed wear a dress - a flowery blue number.

The vendors had plenty of room to display their wares in the side rooms and had I come with more money ... well, as it was I had to do some creative packing to take back what I did buy. The bands themselves were set up in the foyer, and most were available after their sets for autograph signing and chatting with the fans. Here could buy CDs and tee-shirts, as you might expect, though at the Underground Railroad table you could also buy caps, the Porcupine Tree table had vinyl versions of some PT albums available, and some of the artists had glossy black and whites available, some free some for a fee. In the center of the foyer was the snack bar, with a host of items, bagels and chocolate bars, coffee and soda, water, etc, as well as sandwiches. Upstairs too were a couple of eateries, though I did not visit them.

Also upstairs were a few more vendors, including those fine folks from the ProgDay festival - Peter Renfro, Debbie Bradshaw and Sean McFee, from whom you could buy a sampler CD of the artists scheduled for their festival in September.

Roger Dean was the guest artist with artwork on display and for sale. Dean, of course, designed the NEARfest 2001 logo which graces the program and official festival tee-shirt. There was a raffle, for which one item was a print of the logo signed by Dean himself. Other prizes included a wooden box with the logo burned into it - quite nice - plus a vinyl version of Banco's second album.

Ah, but what about the festival itself? What a wonderful weekend of music. I wasn't disappointed by anybody, and pleasantly surprised on a least one occasion. Personally, I was there to see Djam Karet, After Crying, White Willow, and Under The Sun. When PFM backed out and Banco came into take the Sunday night headliner spot, I knew I was going to experience another rare moment, as I had been fortunate enough to be at Progfest last September when Banco played their first ever US show. NEARFest 2001 was to be their second ever US show. Prior to the festival, I was unfamiliar with Birdsongs Of The Mesozoic, Deus Ex Machina, and California Guitar Trio.

Massachusetts' Birdsongs Of The Mesozoic opened the festival Saturday morning with an eclectic mix of jazz and rock, playing selections from much of their catalog, including, of course, material from their most recent Petrophonics. The band is such that they'd feel equally at home at an electronic music festival as at a rock or jazz festival. Helpful was the set list handed out before they took the stage - something I wished all the bands had done. This must have been the idea of Cuneiform Records, as their other artist on the line up, Djam Karet, also provided a set list. In a festival setting, where one might be seeing a band they aren't familiar with, I think this is a good way for a "newbie" to know what they liked and how to find the album it's on. Even though often you're told "this song is from our [whatever] album...," will you remember it? Or am I the oddball for not taking notes?

Anyway, I quite liked Birdsongs Of The Mesozoic, but hearing the sample track I downloaded from the NEARfest site (another terrific idea), I knew going in that I would. Birdsongs are Micahel Bierylo on guitar, computer, and percussion, Ken Field on sax, flute, synth, and percussion, Erik Lindgren on piano and percussion, and Rick Scott on synths and percussion. Included in their set were "Theme From Rocky & Bullwinkle" which originally appeared on their Magnetic Flip album (1984, currently out-of-print), and "Theme From The Simpsons" (Pyroclastics, 1992), each of which elicited a collective chuckle from the audience.

Under The Sun were in the second slot. This L.A.-based band, whose debut album Under The Sun was released by Magna Carta last year, have had many positive things said about them in the press, including from myself. I heard some wondering aloud whether their live performance would live up their recorded sound - it does and more. Which makes the muddy mixing at NEARfest all that more unfortunate. Because I was already familiar with their music, and because I was closer to the stage, I think I had a better time of separating out the various elements that those who were new to the band, or way at the back, though because this is a theater, I wouldn't say there is a bad seat in the house. What suffered the most in the mix for me were Chris Shyrack's vocals. Had they been mixed up just a little bit, I think the audience response would have gone up with it. Their sound is just so big and classic, yet very warm. Because of that big sound though, I think it really suffered from the muddy mix, as I can tell you these guys were really putting everything they had into it.

They played nearly everything from their debut (leaving out only 2 - 3 tracks), plus debuted a new track. As I was listening to "Reflections," during the harmonious choruses, the word "sublime" came to mind. There was shear magic in the Shyrack's delivery, a true depth of feeling. Not to sound like a "fan-girl" here, of course. But the album itself is full of just such moments - on "Breakwater" on "Henceforth Now And Forever," etc.

For those who saw bassist Kurt Barabas with his hand bandaged, I asked him about it later and he assured me it wasn't anything serious, just what happens when he plays. Talk about suffering for your art! As an aside, during their performance, I was struck by how much Barabas made me think of both Yes' Chris Squire and Jon Anderson. Keyboardist Matt Evidon was quite energetic throughout the set, and I must say his and Shyrack's voices blend together well.

The irony here, and with Djam Karet later on, is that these bands often play gigs not all that far from where I am, and yet never on a day I can make it. While I can't blame the band for that, and I certainly don't, the irony is that I had to travel all the way to Pennsylvania to see them.

If you didn't get a chance to see them at NEARfest, try and catch them at one their other dates (something I'm going to say about nearly everyone that played this weekend).

White Willow released last year the stunning Sacrament, a beautiful and haunting album full of wonderful sonic dynamics. One thing that impressed me most was the vocals of Sylvia Erichsen. And, going into NEARfest, I wondered "can she do that live?" In these days of studio wizardry, a capable vocalist can be made to sound stellar, but put them in a live setting and they remain capable. Well, I certainly think Erichsen is NOT of that category, as the dynamics and warmth of her recorded voice is exactly what you get live.

I think they played a terrific set, though I've seen mumblings elsewhere that seem to disagree. Coming after the energy of Under The Sun, of course, White Willow do seem a bit low key and even remote. So the sequencing was a little strange, though I'm not quite sure where you could have put White Willow that wouldn't have put them coming after a more energetic band, though perhaps between the California Guitar Trio and After Crying would have been ideal. Nevertheless, with 30 - 45 minutes between bands, one did have a few moments to switch gears.

Guitarist/band leader Jacob Holm-Lupo mainly stayed in the background (physically, his guitar was certainly heard), leaving frontperson duties to Erichson and flutist Ketil Vestrum Einarson. Einarson is a very talented flutist, whose style of play at times made me think of, yes, Ian Anderson. He didn't stand and play as if he were a flamingo, of course, but there was a force of energy at certain points that were very Anderson-ish - trills and stops and such. Because of Einarson and Erichsen, and maybe more so the former, the band did get a standing O in the middle of their set, and then again at the end. But an encore was not to be -- whether it was because the band were reluctant to or Messrs. La Duca and Hutchinson wanted to keep close to the schedule, I don't know, but one was certainly warranted.

Along with selections from their recent release ("Paper Moon," "Anamnesis") the band dipped into their back catalog - which I realize I'm going to have to refamiliarize myself with as I didn't recognize anything. Certainly not a bad thing.

Deus Ex Machina. Well what can I say? Although I have the Progfest 95 promo cassette on which they appear, I haven't listened to it very much since 1995 so I wasn't really familiar with Deus Ex Machina's contribution. And, having only listened to the sample track available from the NEARFest site a couple of times, I gathered that Deus Ex Machina were much like Banco, if maybe not so much classically influenced. What I did know was that the vocalist - Alberto Piras - sang in Latin. So it was with much surprise the metallic power that burst forth from this band. I was taken aback. In a good way, of course. Piras has an amazing voice, though to look at him you'd expect maybe a Kurt Cobain or Chris Cornell clone (at least on this night). But, then again, a look over at the keyboardist Fabrizio Puglisi, and you'd think maybe Devo inspired music, or Kraftwerk -- it's the jumpsuit, you see. No inverted plant pots as hats however. Guitarist Maurino Collina exuded jazz fusion cool, while violinist Alessandro Bonetti is non-descript, though his playing certainly isn't. And that's what comes through is that this band has chops.

Again, as I've heard others mention, the sound mixing was a little muddy, perhaps more so the further back one went. Unfortunately, I think this happened in part because each performer, at least with the rockier bands, want everything turned up ... so everything was maxed, resulting in a mishmash. (What I did notice mixing-wise that often keys were up a little too high, though I don't recall this necessarily with DXM).

Not being familiar with their output, and they being the only Cuneiform artist that didn't have set list printed, I can't share with you what they actually played, other than some was from De Republica; certainly from Equilibrismo Da Insofferenza, their most recent release from 1998. According to the NEARFest program, the band were planning to debut selections from their upcoming album (due 2002). Their appearance at NEARfest marks their first US performance in about five years.

As did White Willow, Deus Ex Machina also played a few acoustic tunes.

Earlier in the day I overheard one of the Zollner staff being reminded that were no pictures to be taken during Porcupine Tree's set. The house rule thus far had been no audio or video recordings - which makes perfect sense as the event was being filmed by Studio M Live for broadcast later in July. By the time we went into the auditorium for Porcupine Tree's set, no pictures had become "only during the first three songs, no flash." Well, um ... after being told three pictures in that I still had the flash on, I didn't want to risk any other faux pas that might piss the band off enough to leave the stage. Steve Wilson at first seemed aloof and very "I'm a rock star"-ish, wearing shades inside. However, recalling my very brief stage days (that is - high school drama), stage lights can be bright so maybe shades are necessary. Or at least the very pale, very thin Wilson thought so. Rather that should be the VERY thin Wilson, though next to someone like Callista Flockheart, he might look a little pudgy.

Addressing the crowd though, Wilson seemed affable and down-to-earth, so I suspect I'm all wrong about him. Or perhaps I was just a little embarrassed about being the one who left on the flash. I'm sure that policy has to do with the band controlling how their image is used and reproduced. Well, they've got no worries about me, for sure, as only two of the three shots I took are worth sharing, and even they aren't going win me any Pulitzers (admittedly true of all these pics, by the way. No illusions here).

Porcupine Tree's set consisted of material from Stupid Dream and Lightbulb Sun mostly ... their second encore consisted of "Voyage 34." Wilson elicited a laugh from the crowd in introducing "Hatesong" -- actually a few. As you know, there is a terrible disease plaguing England, Wilson said. Something that infects the US, too. Mad Cow Disease? Nope. Boy bands. And their so-called love songs ... which Wilson shared that he doesn't find very romantic. I am, of course, summarizing Wilson, as he played out the joke a bit longer than that (but not much).

PT played an entertaining set, keeping everything moving, and playing many of the songs I think the fans wanted to hear live. There are very good live, meaning that what they bring to the studio is what they bring to the stage. The sound was quite good and well mixed, I think, at least from my vantage point.

Throughout the day (and the next), there was a fan in the second row who played cheerleader/conductor for nearly every band that played -- I could see that Colin Edwin was often amused, as he almost near had a hint of a smile on his face. Richard Barbieri seemed very intent on his keyboards, and as drummers usually are, Chris Maitland was hidden behind his drums. As had other bands that evening, PT also played an acoustic set - only it was, as Wilson joked, simulated through technology. This for a mellow tune from Lightbulb Sun.

The Underground Railroad were Sunday's openers. Their debut album Through And Through was a mix of influences - as I heard Echolyn, King Crimson, and ELP, along with Rongey sounding a bit like Steve Hogarth. The band played selections from their debut including "The Doorman" which was followed immediately by a new, sequel track that picks up where the story in "The Doorman" leaves off. The band are Kurt Rongey on vocals and keyboards, Bill Pohl on guitar and vocals, John Livingston on drums and new comer Michael Richardson on bass and vocals.

Most bands suffer in the vocal department, but The Underground Railroad isn't one of them. Rongey, Pohl, and Richardson all have very good voices that work together well. And, of course, they play their instruments well as well. So from a talent point of view, they are quite balanced. However, good as they are, in a live setting you realize just how much their arrangements need to be tightened up a bit. There was one point where the audience thought the end of a piece had been reached and started to applaud, but it wasn't quite over at that point. During their set, the crowd was a bit restless. I was disappointed to see that it wasn't a full house for the band, though.

The band that I was most familiar with was Djam Karet, having been a fan since I first heard Reflections From The Firepool. And it was through an article in I/E magazine that was I first interested in hearing what they had to "say." From there I have bought most of their releases - finding them easily at the Claremont Rhino Records - owned by drummer Chuck Oken, Jr. "Lights Over Roswell," which features on their The Devouring album from 1997, is a particular favourite of mine, as is "Topanga Safari" from Burning The Hard City. Neither of those tracks were played that night, but the equally cool "Forbidden By Rule" (the NEARfest featured track) was, along with material from their most recent release New Dark Age - while a review of the album will appear elsewhere, this shows yet another side of the quartet that is Djam Karet.

Along with Oken on drums were Mike Henderson and Gayle Ellett on guitars and guest bassist Aaron Kenyon (Controlling Hand). Most (if not all) published photos of the band - at least the official ones - show the band hidden behind their instruments. Interestingly enough, Henderson and Ellett seem reluctant to be in the spotlight anyway, as Henderson spent most of the set in his assigned position at stage right (to the audience's left), while Gayle Ellet stayed at stage left (to the audience's right), though each did occasionally move to the front of the stage. They seemed bemused by not only those taking photographs but most especially by the enthusiastic fan in the second row - yes, the same fellow as mentioned before. Of course, said fan has said since on E-prog that the bands themselves told him how much they appreciated his enthusiasm.

Oken is an energetic drummer, but seemed very sedate in comparison to Kenyon who moved about the stage, stomping and marching as one sees with alternative and metal bands - his mane of long, dark hair, burly beard, and long shorts only added to the image. But he can play, which is definitely something to be said about the whole band. I was enthralled, and was still so in awe of their performance that whilst in the autograph line for California Guitar Trio, I spoke to Mike Henderson in what must have seemed like a "fan-girl" manner -- well, not really all that bad. I wasn't gushing. blushing, and being cute, mind you, though I did mention the irony of coming from CA to PA just to see them. Henderson mentioned some September dates and then he wasn't sure what they'd be doing after that. But I'll be checking the website for local dates.

California Guitar Trio are, well, a trio of guitarists, but not just any trio of guitarists, a trio of guitarists who are former students of Robert Fripp that more than just play guitar. Anyone who thinks that an acoustic (even amplified) is just for mellow or country music hasn't heard CGT play their rendition of Yes' "Heart Of The Sunrise" or their rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody." I mention these two covers first because, having already been bowled over by their playing anyway, I was kicked off the edge by Bert Lams perfectly echoing the piano of the original. You'd expect that from a synth, especially as you could program in the same and just cue it when needed. Nope this was live on an acoustic and it sent chills up my spine. Their "Heart Of The Sunrise" was aided by the legendary Tony Levin on bass. It wasn't until this moment that I really realized what purpose his funk fingers served ... but for Levin to be both percussion and bass simultaneously, it suddenly made perfect sense. The audience handled vocals on this track, and ... well ... we all need a little work. CGT got a very well deserved standing O, played an encore or two, and had what seemed like the longest line for autographs that night, even longer than the PT line the night before. Now, I'm sure that a percentage were there for Levin, given the number of folks that were holding sleeves of Levin projects (solo, BLS, etc.).

Now, perhaps the single worst moment of the weekend -- worse than even getting lost the numerous times we did getting from Philly to Bethlehem and even in and around Bethlehem -- happened whilst I was in line for autographs. I'm not really an autograph seeker, out timidity and shyness perhaps mostly, but also because the whole idea often seems to me very strange. But nevertheless, there I was, in line for a CGT w/TL autograph. Along the way, since the line slipped past their table, I got Djam Karet's autographs, too. Not so much afterthought as I didn't realize they were still sitting there signing. As I mentioned, each artist had a table of wares, so I just assumed that the CGT wares would be where CGT were sitting. So, after twenty minutes, I'm at the front of the line and to my chagrin, there are not CDs or pictures at this table, just the band members, cheerfully signing CD covers and programs etc. My program was back in the hotel room. All I had in my hand was my DK signed photo -- which I could have had CGT sign on the back, but if I ever wanted to frame the photo? Luckily, I didn't lose my voice (something I did once when getting Anthony Daniel's autograph nearly 15 years ago), and said to Paul Richards, "Well this embarrassing." He smiled sheepishly, suggesting I could get back in line. Well, after finding that the next table over was the one where they were selling CGT CDs, I purchased one (I'd have bought more but my funds were gone) and got back in line. And yes, even another twenty minutes later, Richards recalled me. Not sure which now is worse, being embarrassed at having nothing to sign, or being remembered for being embarrassed at having nothing to sign.

However, back to CGT's set, as they also played original material and, I'm sure, some Crimson material (though in this different setting I personally didn't recognize the piece - their recent live CD includes "Discipline"). One piece had a country-western flavour, and Richards "warned" the audience that if they saw anything strange during the piece, it was Robert Fripp's fault. That "something weird" was a little square dance (forward, over, back, over). Ironic that Fripp would suggest that, as I hear he's pretty static on stage (aside from his hands), but it did raise a chuckle or two or three from the crowd. Of the bands that had played thus far, CGT were the most personable.

Earlier in the weekend, Rob announced that Chad had proposed to his girlfriend, and it was his fiancé who, having liked the CGT when she saw them prior to NEARfest, asked to introduce the band - and she did. She herself, received applause from the crowd before she'd even spoke.

Next up were Hungary's After Crying. This was a band I was most anxious to see live, having been simply taken aback by, first, Almost Pure Instrumental, and later by subsequent and previous works. Their recent Bootleg Symphony is, at first hearing, a stunning live work. And here, they were equally amazing, though I've heard comments from others at finding their Emerson tribute a little overlong - that is quite true. Vocalist Gábor Légrádi has a wonderful voice, very much like Greg Lake or John Wetton. All of the material was sung in English, except for one of their encore performances, which, Légrádi said, was in response to requests that play something that's sung in their native language. I'm not yet familiar enough with After Crying to name particular pieces, and I don't recall at any time it being said before or after what they were playing, other than the "Conclusion (A Tribute To Keith Emerson)," which is an 11-minute composition that originally appeared on 6.

Cellist and leader of the band Péter Pejtsik borrowed the cello he played from cellist and frequent rec.music.progressive poster Laura Dent. When he wasn't playing cello, he was on bass, which he seemed to play more often than the cello. Also in the lineup were two keyboardists Bal´sz Winkler (who also played trumpet) and Zoltön Lengyel. At one point they moved to the same keyboard at stage left to play "Burlesque" ... which, uh, means they must have mentioned titles at some point, I guess. Having fun with it, they would get their arms intertwined as one reached for the higher keys and the other reached for the lower.

Now, sadly, the battery powering my digital camera was fading, and I wasn't sure if I'd have enough time between After Crying's set and Banco's set to recharge the battery. So the pictures here are all that I was able to take (fortunately, I was able to recharge the battery and get back in plenty of time for Banco).

During the dinner break as well, Chapman Stick artist Greg Howard played outside the venue -- just he, the Stick, and some triggers. Though if you weren't looking, you might think there was more than one person playing, such is the nature of the Stick. I only caught the last two pieces of his set, but have made a note to explore further.

After the dinner break, it was time for the Sunday night headliners Banco, playing only their second US show. I was fortunate enough to have seen them at their first ever US appearance back in September 2000 at Progfest, a festival they certainly would have walked away with hands down but for Kenso, who also turned in a terrific performance. Certainly this time, Banco won in the audience appreciation stakes, as the band returned for more than the expected encores - or so it seemed. And not undeservedly. The sound problems did affect Banco somewhat, in that there times when Alessandro Papotto's sax and flute weren't audible. This was true only for one to a few songs. At Progfest, Papotto also had sound trouble. Speaking as a larger sized person, it seems the vocalist Francesco DiGiacomo has slimmed down in the past year or so, making him in ever finer shape for this performance.

I haven't yet become an expert at the Banco repertoire, so the only song I knew the title of and would have even if DiGiacomo hadn't intro'd it, was "Canto Di Primavera." But I think, though I'm not sure, "Moby Dick" was part of the set. Seeing it mentioned in the NEARfest brochure, and hearing the name echo with me from that night, some bells are ringing. Well, I've been listening to Darwin a lot since, and will slowly work my way through the catalog so that for their third US appearance (whenever that is), I'll be able to speak more authoritatively about the band. [March 2008: While that has not yet come to pass, Banco has returned to the US for the third time, for NEARFest X in 2008 (though they'll come close to US this month with a performance at BajaProg). -ed.

They played a mix of instrumentals and vocal tracks - some that were both. Each member was allowed room to solo, though only Papotto (winds) and Masi (drums) got a true solo spot. Vittorio Nocenzi is quite a character on keyboards as he has this "mad genius" look about him. I found that the keyboards in their mix were much better balanced than at Progfest, which served to enhance their performance.

The emotion the band felt at our thunderous applause was quite touching - you could see that Francesco DiGiacomo was quite moved. At one point, he and Nocenzi returned to the stage (3rd or 4th encore I think) to play a somber yet beautiful tune. After which the rest of the band returned to the stage, playing yet another tune.

Overall, NEARFest was another success and I certainly had a great time. I want to say Bravo! again to Rob and Chad and all of those who made NEARest 2001 one to remember.

[There were 10 more NEARfests after this one (as there wasn't a festival in 2011), and NEARfest 2012 - dubbed NEARFest Apocalypse - was the the finale to the "series." -ed.]

Bands: Birdsongs Of The Mesozoic, White Willow, Deus Ex Machina, Porcupine Tree, The Underground Railroad, Djam Karet, California Guitar Trio, After Crying, Greg Howard, Banco

Links: ProgDay, Cuneiform Records