Having two successful progressive rock festivals in Pennslyvania is just too wonderful! This one is in Phoenixville, PA, which is less than ten miles from our house! We just had to support this one as patrons along with NEARfest. Links to all the bands for 2005 are below. It's going to be another great one! The banner, again this year by audre, links to the fest's main site.

 

The banner at the left (designed by artist Roger Dean, who has attended the fest for the last few years) links to the home page of the North East Art Rock Festival (AKA: NEARfest). This very successful progressive music festival, is now in its seventh year. After trying for three years to get there, we finally managed to get tickets in 2003 and got to see Magma!! For 2004, Cathi and I signed on to be patrons for the festival which entitled us to paticipate in the lottery for tickets and we got first row orchestra seats. This year, our third NEARfest, we are even higher in the lottery and hope to get closer toward the center. Below are links to all the bands we are going to see this year.

 

Wayside Music and Cuneiform Records

This is one of my favorite music vendors. It also has great links for you to discover more about the current musical underground.

 

Eurock Distribution

Here is a site from another one of my favorite music vendors. I've been buying music from Archie Patterson, who operates Eurock, for many years while he was with one mail order outfit or another. You can't order online, but the website itself, maintained by Archie's son Aron, is great and provides much information about the music he has made available and, of course, how to order.

 

ReR Recommended Home Page

Recommended Records began limited edition reissue company, making available long out of print prog classics like the early Faust albums and new works by Univers Zero and Art Zoyd. Then it became a mail order vendor that also offered a "subscription" quarterly magazine and accompanying record, later a CD. It is now the center of a fairly large music distribution network for Europe and the U.S.

 

Musea

Musea is a French company that puts out some great European progressive music, but also reissues some classics. They are very heavy on French music, but there are some great bands from France! They were responsible for the Edhels, Minimum Vital, Tiemko, and others in addition to reissuing long sought after prog classics from the seventies from Zao, Mona Lisa, Shylock, Cos, etc. The on-line catalog is extensive and their offerings can be ordered on-line, too.

 

CALYX

This site is dedicated to the so-called "Canterbury School" of progressive rock. Bands that have been associated with this sub-genre include Soft Machine, Caravan, National Health, Hatfield and the North, Gong, Gilgamesh, Matching Mole, etc. The umbrella has over the years been spread to include groups such as Egg and Henry Cow by association, even though none of the members hailed from Canterbury, Kent.

---

Links to Progressive Band Sites

The bands at ROSfest 2005

Friday

Arena

Myriad

Dennis Haley

Saturday

Mostly Autumn

Sylvan

Tiles

Eyestrings

Sunday

The Tangent

Magenta

Man on Fire

Cryptic Vision

---

The bands at NEARfest 2005

Friday

Premiata Forneria Marconi (PFM)

Proto-Kaw

Saturday

IQ

Present

Steve Roach

Frogg Cafe

Wobbler

Sunday

Le Orme

Kenso

Matthew Parmenter

The Muffins

Riverside

---

These are US prog bands (in no particular order), all are in one way or another associated with Cuneiform Records.

Birdsongs of the Mesozoic

Thinking Plague

Doctor Nerve

5 uu's

Djam Karet

Forever Einstein

Curlew

---

Still more progressive sites:

Amy Denio

Amy is a very talented, multifaceted musician and composer who seems to have been working incessantly since her work with the Tone Dogs in the eighties. One of her latest endeavors were compositions that were premiered by the Philadelphia based contemporary music ensemble Relache.

The Residents

The cryptic band based in San Francisco since the early seventies are still around and touring ! I saw Valentine's Day 2001 show at the Trocadero in Philadelphia and it was great! It presented the best live sound I've ever heard - not too loud, with every nuance audible. It was quite bizarre though. The tour is to support their new DVD Icky Flix. The official unofficial website, RzWeb, has more information that anyone should ever need about the Residents! .

Ozric Tentacles

Using electronics, flutes of every variety, and searing guitar propelled by a solid bassist and drummer, Ozric Tentacles vacillates between supercharged psychedelic romps and loping space reggae. They are superb live (I saw them fall 2000 - great show!) and love to play outdoor festivals. The official website is very well done.

 

Magma

After thirty years, Magma still exerts an enormous influence on progressive rock. Zeuhl music lives on! The official site contains a lot of information and pictures. Apparently, Christian Vander and various old and new members still play live in Europe. The reissues and unearthed vintage live recordings continue to be issued.  They will be headlining 2003's Nearfest!!

 

Can

Can is also a long lived group that started in Germany in 1968.  They have been officially disbanded since the early eighties, but all four of the original German members cross each others' paths frequently and their official website tracks the current work of each of them.

 

Henry Cow

The first Henry Cow record was released by the then fledgling label Virgin in 1973, the same year as the company's runaway hit for Mike Oldfield, Tubular Bells . By the time of their final record in 1978, the group had established themselves as one of the most creative progressive ensembles. In addition, they joined with several other European progressive bands to form Rock in Oppositon, a collective with no rules other than to cooperate in staging concerts of their music throughout the continent. Too bad the idea didn't last long enough to reach the U.S., but it had no small influence on some of the American bands that have continued to play progressive music.

 

Univers Zero

This Belgian band released its first recording in 1977.  The music is dense, dark, and rhythmically complex, with explosive outbursts contained within repeated angular patterns of throbbing bass lines and the exotic sounds of instruments like the bassoon and harmonium.  They were also a part of Rock in Opposition.

 

Congreso

Formed in Chile in the early seventies, they they are still producing some of the most beautiful fusions of progressive rock and South American rhythms.  Many of their recordings are available on CD.

 

Flairck

A Dutch all acoustic band with multi-ethnic influences that still exists and still performs live.  Most of their recording are available through their official website.

 

---

Back to The Studio Vheissu Home Page

To The 1002 Home Page