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Daevid Allen was the court jester and master of madness for Gong, the European progressive rock group who formed and 1969. He left the planet on March 13, at 77. He was a scientist of spacerock, evangelist of glissando guitar, one of the earliest loopers and cosmic Dada philosopher.
This past week saw a study in Progressive Rock contrasts when two bands from the classic progressive rock era, Three Friends, A.K.A. Gentle Giant and Styx came through the Philadelphia area. Gentle Giant represented the adventurous experimental side of Progressive Rock, mixing jazz, blues, madrigals and classical music into a heady mix of time signature…
NEARfest shoots their final hoop, hitting nothing but class It was a great ending to probably the best and most highly regarded Progressive Rock festival in the country. It wasn’t the finest NEARfest, it wasn’t the worst and it wasn’t just average. But it was typical of what they have been doing for 14 years…
The day started and ended with the two highpoints for NEARfest Apocalypse. Despite a more than 90 minute delay, and about 10 minutes of a dimly lit stage and no music or musicians, UK finally hit the stage a little before 11PM. They lived up to their reputation as the last great band from the…
On Day Two of NEARfest Apocalypse, Heritage Rules Helmet of Gnats How do you know you’re at a progressive rock concert? An abridged version of a song is ten minutes long. And they leave in the drum solo That was the story with Helmut of Gnats and their epic closing tune, “Chimps in Space,”…
The North East Art Rock Festival, better known as NEARfest, comes to an end this weekend with the final edition, dubbed NEARfest Apocalypse. That kind of ostentation is so Progressive Rock. But that’s what Nearfest was all about. I went to my first Nearfest in 2005, expecting clones of Yes and bands past their prime. …
It’s Progressive Rock Week on Echoes and we’ll be featuring interviews with NEARfest founders Chad Hutchinson and Rob LaDuca, Gentle Giant, Steve Hackett, The Muffins, Roger Dean, Gong and Iona as well as a live performance from Ozric Tentacles in the Echoes Living Room. To see what’s ahead on Echoes Progressive Rock Week go here.i…
If you missed out on tickets for Nearfest Apocalypse, the final edition of this venerable festival, then hang on until October for Farfest, a four day progressive rock festival happening in Wilmington, Delaware at the Grand Opera House October 4-7. The festival has put together an impressive array of 70’s Progressive rock acts, all from…
After announcing that they were resurrecting NEARFEST in 2012, the festival organizers have decided that 2012 will mark the last NEARFEST. In true ProgRock fashion, they’ve labeled it NEARFEST APOCALYPSE. Prog was never known for understatement. Well, like just about every classic prog group they’ve presented over the years who were resurrected from the grave,…
Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, or maybe King Crimson rising from Robert Fripp‘s mind, NEARFEST, the venerable progressive rock festival, will return in 2012 after cancelling the 2011 show due to poor ticket sales. With the original founders back at the helm, look for the festival to return to it’s mix of vintage…