2011 Summer of Gigs #11: High Voltage Festival - Day 1

Last year’s inaugural High Voltage Festival was sublime, and enabled me to see many of my favourite bands (Marillion, Magnum, Asia, Uriah Heep – to name a few) live for the first time, as well as introducing me properly to the likes of Pendragon, Wishbone Ash and Gary Moore (not a moment too soon in the latter’s case, sadly). This year’s second outing then was going to struggle to match it, so I quickly determined to try and avoid all comparisons with the previous event and just enjoy what was on offer. Which, as it turns out, was plenty. While I briefly (and it has to be said, not very seriously) considered giving the Saturday a miss this year, as I wasn’t already a fan of more than a couple of scheduled acts, common sense quickly asserted itself and I found myself with another weekend pass.

I therefore had most of Saturday afternoon to check out what the festival site had on offer, as well as to investigate a lot of music that, regardless of how long ago it was first performed, would be new to me – most of which, it has to be said, was on the Prog Stage. I still don’t consider myself to be that much of a proghead, but my progness has definitely been in ascent in recent years…I blame Marillion…

Michael Monroe

Knowing that the day was going to be filled with prog I elected to start at the main stage, where opener Michael Monroe really got the festival off to a rocking start. Looking like a rock star should (albeit a little on the girly side) and leaping about and beyond the stage like a madman (exemplified by his mid-set scramble up the scaffolding with microphone cord in mouth-set, and not missing a note on his descent) Monroe’s high-energy set was a crowd-pleaser. I wouldn’t say that I’ll be rushing out to explore his catalogue, but the set was great fun, and he was the consummate showman, if ever there was one. (8/10)

So to the prog stage, where Amplifier were far more restrained, but put in a good solid set, and although it didn’t make a huge impression on a first-time listener, there was enough there to suggest further investigation could be well-rewarded. Anathema were more of a mixed bag, with some good songs and a couple of duds. Continued attempts from various band members (but especially the guitarist) to convince us that this was good ‘clap-along’ material grated after a while, as, to be frank, they were wrong. Regardless, both bands seemed to go down pretty well with the crowd (well, apart from the trio of morons who decided talking loudly about nothing in particular was a better use of their time than actually listening to Anathema – thankfully the dirty looks they were getting finally convinced them to sod off!). (7/10 each)

Sandwiched in between these two acts was Caravan, who turned out to be the revelation of the day for me. I had heard of them (although only very recently, especially when you consider that they formed in 1968 – me being just a bit slow, as usual!), but still knew next to nothing about them. The songs were captivating, particularly 20-minute closer Nine Feet Underground, and while the lead vocals could perhaps best be described as passable, the musicianship on display was astounding, and more than made up for any minor shortcomings in the vocal department. Multi-instrumentalist Geoff Richardson impressed most of all, proving equally adept on violin, guitar, flute and, erm, the spoons! A great set whichever way you cut it, and they definitely jumped straight to the top of my ‘must investigate further’ list.  (9/10)

Caravan

If there was one act that made sure I’d be there for the Saturday it was Neal Morse and he did not disappoint in the slightest. Performing most of his recent Testimony 2 album (a few sections had to be dropped due to time constraints), Morse and band demonstrated that their blinder of a gig in London last month was no one-off. Superb playing from one and all, not to mention the highly impressive multi-layered vocal s on Time Changer which deservedly gained much applause. Having been caught out last time, I was mentally and emotionally prepared to get through Jayda without bawling, which I more or less managed. Something I was certainly not expecting was for Morse to leave the stage during The Truth Will Set You Free. Even though he’d done this in London, coming into a smallish club crowd is one thing, but going for a ‘singing wander’ through a festival crowd is quite another! Maybe he just really wanted to go and say hello to his ex-Spock’s Beard bandmates, who he’d spotted from the stage earlier in the set. Morse seems to be a bit ‘marmite’ judging by comments I’ve seen online, but he was definitely the highlight of day one for me. (10/10)

Neal Morse during Jayda

Rounding off the Saturday line-up (at least on the prog stage) was John Lees’ Barclay James Harvest, who suffered slightly for following Morse, but still put on an excellent gig. I had seen them as recently as last November, and while I enjoyed that gig more, I was nonetheless pleased that they had completely revamped their setlist – indeed, there may have been as few as three songs that they played on both occasions (Poor Wages, Mockingbird and Hymn were the ones I spotted). This time there was more of an emphasis on the earlier BJH material, especially the Once Again album (honoured due to it celebrating its 40^th anniversary this year). It’s very easy for veteran bands to get stuck in a rut with their setlists, so such a shakeup gets a ‘highly commendable’ rating from me.  John Lees is another whose vocal range has decreased dramatically over the years, but his guitar playing remains as good as ever. Craig Fletcher, on bass and vocals is a much stronger singer, and also contributes a great deal of the ‘fun’ side of the band both during and between songs. By comparison, Lees isn’t quite Graham Nash’s ‘man with no expressions’ but it’s a close thing at times! While I couldn’t help feeling that Neal Morse should have been the Saturday headliner, this was still a fine way to close the first day, especially with the final number being the crowd singalong that was Hymn. (8/10)

BJH's Craig Fletcher (and son?)

BJH's John Lees

Outside of the music there wasn’t an enormous amount of extras this year (which is fine, I doubt there’s many people heading through the gates who aren’t mainly there for music and/or beer in the first place) but a great Ferris Wheel was situated close to the mainstage to the annoyance of many, and elsewhere there were plenty of decent food stalls to choose from, as well as a handful of market stalls for something to browse through. Oh, and Morris dancers, who can forget the Morris dancers…anyway, a better overall layout than last year, and a great atmosphere throughout. All in all a great day but (most of) the best was yet to come...

Summer of Gigs #4: Neal Morse at Tutus, KCLSU

I only ‘discovered’ Neal Morse a little over a year ago, when I saw him with Transatlantic (the first band I saw upon arriving in the UK, as it happens) and he completely blew me away. I would have thought that anyone who saw him on that tour would have taken any opportunity they could to see him again, but it seems not, as disappointing ticket sales led to the cancellation of two other UK shows, and the London gig moved to a smaller venue than initially planned.

Perhaps it is the overtly Christian nature of his lyrics or his forthcoming appearance at the High Voltage festival that put people off seeing him a mere six weeks earlier. Whatever the reason, he and his cracking seven-piece band delivered the goods to a smallish (though, as a result of the venue change, cramped!) but enthusiastic crowd of progheads and anybody else missed out in a big way, as he is one of the leading proponents of Christian Prog (What do you mean? Of course there’s more than one!).

With Transatlantic the first 80 minutes of the show was their new album, The Whirlwind which I’d had for a couple of weeks and been able to listen to about 3 times before the gig, while the rest of the set was brand new to me. I expected this show to follow a similar pattern, as Morse’s new solo album Testimony Two has been out for less than a month, and it was well-known that it would be played in its entirety (Well, the first disc anyway…), and I was right. Except it was the other way around.

Beginning with a pair of ‘short’ songs (including Beware of Darkness, originally recorded in this version by Morse’s old band, Spock’s Beard, and sufficiently different from George Harrison’s original for me to completely fail to recognise it!), we then moved on into ‘epic’ territory, which is Morse’s forte. These included the 26-minute Seeds of Gold from the second disc of Testimony Two and as such the only number I recognised during the first set (the bulk of the audience greeted every offering with recognition and delight, so it was clearly a devoted crowd in attendance) and demonstrated the abilities of the entire band. Special mention must go to…well, them all, really – as a collective they clearly have a joy in playing together, and their musicianship is beyond question – however, I’m going to single out electric violinist Ben Whatshisname (Hey, it’s always tough to pick out an unfamiliar name when it’s announced onstage…due to choice of instrument and hairstyle I’m tempted to say Steinhardt, but it wasn’t that…), whose playing added textures rarely heard in a rock situation, and were, quite simply, wonderful. The first set ended, fittingly, with the closing section of Testimony (or Testimony One, as it’s now called…) and Neal announced they’d be back after a short break with Testimony Two.

The original Testimony album was Morse’s first solo album following his departure from both Spock’s Beard and Transatlantic, and detailed his full conversion to devout Christianity. While I’m not familiar enough with that first album to say for certain, lyrically the follow-up seems to be more of a prequel or perhaps a further colouring in of an existing picture, than a direct sequel/continuation of the story. Apparently Morse ‘left out’ a key part of that story on that first album, namely that his conversion came as a result of his daughter Jayda’s miraculous ‘self healing’ – born with a hole in her heart, her condition vanished to doctors astonishment prior to planned surgery. The rest of the story makes it clear that the conversion wasn’t sudden. In any case you don’t have to have religious beliefs to appreciate the story or the music, as it’s about as far from evangelical bible-bashing as it’s possible to get. Instead it is a deeply personal exploration of a man in deep conflict with himself, his lifestyle and his beliefs, but it is also a tale with multiple happy endings. It’s abundantly clear that Morse made the right decision for him, and that’s enough for this agnostic.

In a live situation, even more so than on the album, the result is both emotional roller-coaster and musical tour de force.  The Jayda section provided perhaps the most cathartic experience of any gig I’ve been to. As detailed before I’m prone to the odd blub here and there, but this had me in full flood, and that was even before Morse joined in, to the point that at it’s conclusion he had to take a few minutes to get himself together in order to continue. Anybody who failed to be moved by the performance, or its effect on the man himself, could only be described as soulless, but I don’t think such an accusation could be levelled at anybody present, be they in the audience or onstage.

Soon though, he was back to his usual self, revelling in the joy of the music, juggling guitar and keyboard duties in addition to his singing, and even leaving the stage to perform in the audience at one point.

Having plumbed the depths of his emotions and delivered an outstanding performance in the process, he’d have been forgiven for ending his (already near 3-hour) set right there, but we were treated to an encore featuring Transatlantic’s Bridge Across Forever performed solo, before he was rejoined by the band for one final number, and then band and crew alike crowded the stage for a joyous celebration of the end of the tour. As I mentioned at the start Neal Morse will be back (and I’ll be seeing him again) at High Voltage in July -  indeed it’s about the best reason I can see for going on the Saturday at all this year –see you there! (9/10)

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Bonus review: Don McGlashan at the Bush Hall

I added a last-minute, unexpected bonus gig to the ‘Summer of Gigs’ as a friend (No private joke this time, it really was *just* a friend!) recently relocated from New Zealand, just in time for us to catch one of our country’s premiere singer-songwriters/bandleaders/general overachievers in action.  Despite his success with bands including Blam Blam Blam and The Mutton Birds, and as a solo artist, between us we could only name two of his songs off the top off our heads (Dominion Road and Anchor Me). I expected to recognise a lot more when I heard them – but didn’t.

Never mind. Armed only with his voice, acoustic guitar, loop pedals and, erm…tuba (of course!) McGlashan delivered an entertaining evening, with NZ-specific references a-plenty in the lyrics, which created a nice, nostalgic vibe amongst the audience, I’m sure almost entirely made up of fellow ex-pats. Nice.

While unfamiliar with much of his material he proved that the esteem granted to him in New Zealand is well-earned, and he is every bit as deserving of wider attention as the brilliant (but overrated) Neil Finn. (8/10)