Pendragon - And Now Everybody To The Stage

Year of Release: 2006
Label: Metal Mind
Catalog Number: MMP DVD 0085
Format: DVD
Total Time: 240:00:00

While I didn't know it at the time, there was a good reason why I plugged in Pendragon's And Now Everybody To The Stage DVD this past week. Now, admittedly, I did start to watch it shortly after their ROSfest appearance, but for various reasons having nothing to do with the DVD itself, one of which was that I sidetracked by many things, I didn't get the chance to watch it properly or fully. So last week I was moved to plug the DVD in again and just sit to watch. That good reason, there's a new album in the wings. Oh, and this is a great DVD.

Most music DVDs I've seen so far have had a modicum of bonus features. This DVD seems jam packed. There is a lengthy interview with Nick Barrett about all phases of the band, their history and where they're going; a home-made documentary feature about the making of Believe, which is both interesting, from a music creation point of view, and funny, as Nick (and Clive) can be quite silly and goofy - or lets say affable and friendly. There's even a bit of a travelogue section as part of the doc where Nick goes by some of the band's early haunts. There's a pair of photo galleries, a complete biography, and wallpapers.

And the main part of the DVD is the band's May 22, 2006 performance at the Wyspianski Theatre in Katovice, Poland. This is a fabulous show, the band were on that night (and notes about this CD from their website indicate that the band tried to keep the sound as true to live as possible). Nick's vocals are a little wobbly right at first on "No Place For The Innocent," but from then on, his voice has warmed up. Instrumentally speaking, the band were in sync from the word go. When a song required atmosphere, atmosphere was there. The audio mix was just right, making each instrument as distinct as on (good) studio recordings.

And while you would think, because the band were touring in support of Believe, that would form the bulk of the set, it does not. Only three tracks are from Believe. The rest is a wide balance of material from all of Pendragon's albums - from The Jewel to Not Of This World? Although the new material has a slightly different feel from their catalog material, it naturally fits smoothly into the set. Included also was a medley of sorts featuring "The Lost Children - Green Eyed Angel - Sister Bluebird - The Last Man On Earth."

While there isn't a lot of running and jumping around, perhaps because it was being filmed, it's clear the band were enjoying themselves and the audience. From what Nick says, it had been some time since they'd been to Poland - thus perhaps the far-reaching set list. There aren't many crowd shots, but I got the feeling that they were mostly seated for the performance? which I personally don't find odd, given that's the modus operandi at the festivals I've been to here in US? perhaps again that was because the show was being filmed.

Short of trying to relay to you the video in word, just take my word for it that this was a terrific performance and you should seek this one out*. That Nick doesn't just sing his songs, but injects feeling into them, as if they're fresh (even if the song itself is some 30 years old). He dedicates "The Edge Of The World" to his Polish audience (which he may do at other venues in other countries as well; which is ok, because it's more a dedication to the dedicated fans).

Two things struck me: The Wyspianski is, to me, an odd shaped theatre. Not in a bad way, but it's full of curves? we don't see it from the outside (the lead in is actually some landscape footage over a Celtic sounding vocal piece from Believe, which leads into "No Place For The Innocent"), but inside, the audience are in a tier of horseshoes while the stage is beneath another horseshoe. Some of the camera angles give a view from an upper tier down to the floor level crowd and the stage? it can be dizzying. Secondly, the color on this video is vibrant, alive. I don't really think about such things except when editing photographs, but? it is a very crisp and clear picture. This seen on a 33 year old TV and budget-priced DVD player.

If I have any quibbles with the video it's that sometimes there are some too-quick cuts. It's a minor quibble and frankly, maybe I'm paying too much attention to this sort of things now? I don't know. But, it certainly doesn't spoil the enjoyment of watching the video.

Do you need some tech info? Region Free, DVD-9 with a running time of 240 minutes (including the bonus features). At present there are two clips from the DVD on the Pendragon website - found here: www.pendragon.mu/uk/files/video.htm - one for the "Two Roads" segment of "The Wishing Well" and the other for "The Edge Of The World."

Terrific DVD, terrific performance, terrific band

Licenced from Toff Records; distributed in North America by MVD Visual

* as of this writing, it's out of stock at the Pendragon site itself, but surely to be had from other vendors (CDUniverse has it; Amazon.com ? just in a quicky search)


Tracklisting:
No Place For The Innocent / As Good As Gold / Guardian Of My Soul / Kowtow / The Wishing Well / The Edge Of The World / Nostradamus / The Dance Of The Seven Veils / Paintbox / The Last Waltz / Breaking The Spell / Masters Of Illusion / The Black Knight / The Lost Children - Green Eyed Angel - Sister Bluebird - The Last Man On Earth / Am I Really Losing You?

Musicians:
Nick Barrett - vocals, guitar
Clive Nolan - keyboards, backing vocals
Peter Gee - bass, backing vocals
Joe Crabtree - drums

Discography:
Fly High Fall Far (ep) (1984) (OOP)
The Jewel (1985)
9:15 Live (1986)
Kowtow (1989)
The R(B)est Of Pendragon (1991) (incl. Fly High... ep)
The World (1991)
The Very, Very Bootleg - Live In Lille, France 1992 (1993)
The Window Of Life (1993)
Fallen Dreams and Angels (ep) (1994)
Utrecht... The Final Frontier (1995)
The Masquerade Overture (1996)
As Good As Gold ep (1996)
Live In Krakow 96 (1997)
The Masquerade Overture (digi-pack w/bonus trk) (1999)
Once Upon A Time In England Vol 1 (1999)
Once Upon A Time In England Vol 2 (1999)
The Round Table (1985-1998) (1999) (Sth Am. mkt)
The History: 1984-2000 (2000) (Polish mkt)
Not Of This World (2001)
Acoustically Challenged (2002)
The Jewel (remastered) (2005)
Believe (2005)
Pure (2008)
Concerto Maximo (2009)
Passion (2011)
Out Of Order Comes Chaos (2013)
Men Who Climb Mountains (2014)
Masquerade 20 (2017)
The First 40 Years (book/CD) (2019)

Live... At Last! (VID) (1997)
Live...At Last And More (DVD) (2002)
And Now Everybody To The Stage (DVD) (2005)
Past And Presence (DVD) (2007)
Concerto Maximo (DVD) (2009)
Out Of Order Comes Chaos (DVD) (2012)
Masquerade 20 (DVD) (2017)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin UK

Added: July 6th 2008
Reviewer: Stephanie Sollow
Score:
Artist website: www.pendragon.mu
Hits: 4378
Language: english