The overall status of ProgPower USA X left me a lot to ponder. Obviously, the economy was the biggest factor in the festival not selling out. However, I have to be realistic and look in the mirror to see if there were other factors that contributed as well. As much as I wanted to believe that the festival had evolved from an attendee perspective over the years, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Power sells the event, not prog. The evidence is overwhelming now. After years of chasing the holy grail, I not only book the legends of the prog genre, but I book them for a rare headline performance. If that were not enough, it ends up being an U.S. exclusive for 2009. That still wasn’t enough to draw the prog fans. I stack the roster with some of the most wanted returning bands on the prog side and it didn’t help either.
I did my part. Prog fans did not do their part. I’ll be brutally honest and say that the prog snob stereotype has been enforced strongly in my mind. That obviously does not apply to the majority frequenting this forum. However we all know that I have to appeal to the average attendee outside of this forum in order for the festival to succeed. Thus, the pendulum now swings back to the days of PP USA III & IV in an effort to recapture that success.
Festival planning starts and stops with the headliners. This not only determines how the roster balance is built overall, but what your budget is. I needed power. I needed a band that had draw outside of the forum. I needed a band on the upswing. I needed a band with a new release to promote. Also, headliners are going to tour now. There is simply on way to avoid that so, what makes sense in that scenario? I just have to remember that everyone that attends the festival is not on the Northern/Big City tour route that the majority of the bands take these days.
Kamelot was first on the list. I consider myself good friends with Thomas and called him to discuss it. The band was enthusiastic about the possibility. I will tell you right now that it makes all the difference in the world to me when that happens. I’ll spend the extra buck when necessary if a band treats the festival as a positive experience instead of just another gig. Kamelot was also one of the big three we all grew up with (SX & Evergrey are the others) and they haven’t forgotten us. They were one of the first bands to add something special to their sets (female vocals, Midnight/Ben Jackson for ”Nights of the Call of the Sea,” exclusive performance of the Epica trilogy). I will always be grateful to them. Anyhow, I don’t have some big story about booking them. They were my first choice and it went smoothly once they cleared their schedule.
The bigger dilemma was the other headliner. While I wanted someone new, I went ahead and checked all of my options. The timing for Blind Guardian just never works out. They would love to do it, but they aren’t coming until the end of 2010. Rhapsody remains in the eternal legal hell fight with Joey and Magic Circle. Avantasia…I hadn’t hit the lottery yet. Nightwish was going on hiatus. Helloween & Gamma Ray…too soon. Within Temptation…don’t get me started. Neverm…what the fuck was I thinking.
Hammerfall was the remaining band on the headliner list. They were not the last band on the list, just on the list as I wanted to keep all my options open. They fit the profile perfectly as it enforced the big name power bands at the top with the draw for the “regular joe” draw. They also added some freshness to the top of the roster so I decided to go full force after them. I made an offer and basically had to sweat it out for about three weeks. The band decided to discuss it at Wacken and get back to me. An agreement came back a few days after Wacken so it was time to step it up on the rest of the roster.
Before I go further, let me just get the “ones that got away” portion over with. I sent my annual email to Shadow Gallery. I sent my annual email to Arjen. The one that most will grit their teeth over is Pretty Maids. I made an offer to the band and waited…and waited….and waited. The band was all over Europe on holiday, playing shows, etc. and it just took forever to get them to talk about it. The bottom line was they would love to play, but my offer simply wasn’t good enough for a one-off. When you are a band that has been around 20+ years, you honestly need everything covered and then some. I can understand that completely. However, it just didn’t make sense from a budget view . Finally, I did speak with Symphony X for the first time in a few years. Most around here believe that I have a very poor relationship with the band for various reasons that have been speculated on in this forum. However, Mike & I had a great conversation on the phone, and that is not the case. I fully anticipate them to be back on the roster in the immediate future once they establish a timeline for new music.
With the headliners in place, that meant it was time to start building from the opening slot up. I knew that I needed to bring in fresh blood and continue to open up the roster in terms of styles. I went safe first though…
I actually had received the Illusion Suite demos from Mike (Circus Maximus) a long time ago. He was friends with the band and was obviously doing a sell job for them. I had a listened and liked what I heard. They fit the bill as the warm & fuzzy proggers. There is always a demand for that particular style. However, I put them on the backburner. It was a few months later that he sent me the video for “Scarlet Skies.” That did the trick. You may disagree with me, but music videos do sell a band sometimes.
The next was the easiest and no-brainer pick. In fact, if I hadn’t booked Seventh Wonder there may have been an online lynching. The demand was overwhelming on the forum. Plus, there was actually some positive posting on the Portnoy forum about them outside of the regular 4-5 people that do their damndest to get people to listen to things other than what Portnoy says is good. If you can get some positive buzz there, you can anywhere! Anyhow, the band was more than ready to come over so it was a rather quick negotiation.
While this was going on, it was time to send my annual email to Nocturnal Rites. Contrary to popular belief, I had actually been trying to book them for a few years. It just never worked out. In fact, it never even came close. I’ll be honest and say that this was the one I worked for the most. Their European booking agent plays a very polite and professional game of hardball. Between him and the internal dynamics in the band, it was just hard as hell to get this deal done. However, I *really* needed them in my grand scheme of plans to bring the power hard this year. It took three months to pull it off, but damn…whew.
The last great white whale left on my list was Tarot. Any Tarot discussion starts and stops with Nightwish’s schedule. I had actually spoken to Marco about it on the first leg of their tour in Atlanta and he really liked the idea of having the guys over. However, it never came close to serious discussion prior to this year because the Nightwish tour just kept going and going and going. However, I contacted their Finnish agent (who had actually come to the festival with Nightwish the first time). I had to bump my numbers up considerably to get things moving. Once again, I reminded myself that I had to hit it out of the park with some new power this year. I also reminded myself that it was either now or five years from now because of Nightwish. Tarot confirmed.
So..four power bands..two prog bands… Time to mix it up a bit.
It has been a few years since we had some female vocals in on the roster so it was time for their return. The biggest new name in terms of sales and draw overseas at the moment was Delain. If I’m going to book a new band, then I’m going for the one with the most buzz. With me having no chance in hell at Within Temptation, they fit the genre also. I had Marco already booked so the wheels began to turn faster as I may be able to pull off something that nobody else in the world had done yet. They had also just signed to Sensory so they would actually have a push and distribution here in the States. Done deal.
I still could use some prog to help balance things. DGM had been on my list for years and it was simply their time. Their new vocalist brought a heavier vibe that I truly felt would translate better live. It also helps when you release what I believe is one of your best discs to date. These guys have morphed into the heavier side of melodic prog and there honestly aren’t that many bands with their type of track record around that haven’t played the festival already. The SX crowd should see some appeal in them as well. Welcome back, Italy.
Four power metal bands..one goth/pop..three prog bands.
It was time to swing the pendulum back to the power as designed. However, I had four melodic type power metal bands at the top. I needed some speed. I needed a band that would appeal to the Helloween camp. Enter Stormwarrior. I had been intrigued by the band ever since I read about Kai Hansen joining them on stage for the old Helloween classics. I then found out he was producing the band as well. I had checked out their older stuff and liked it, but didn’t love it. However, the moment I heard the title track from “Heading Northe,” I knew I had found my band. They would get the blood going early and satisfy a niche that I hadn’t filled yet. Plus, they have mighty fucking Yenz! That solidified it right then and there! ‘Nuff said.
So, I had five power metal bands. Was I through with the power? No. I’m selling this show out this year. However, with that said, I knew it would be better if I could appeal to a slightly different genre. I started looking towards some heavier stuff. Thrash was where I wanted to go for the first time ever. I actually went to a website to look up Thrash bands for ideas. Paradox was on the list. Hell, I had almost forgotten about them. They had been around forever so the old-schoolers would have something to enjoy. Bonus. They also actually had a bit of a progressive tinge for a Thrash band as well. I bought “Electrified” and heard the excellent mix of all that with the power. The opening riff on “Infected” sealed the deal in my mind. The trick was that I wanted them in the opening slot. Even though they had been around forever, they still only had four albums out with limited appeal over here other than a minor cult following. I also wanted a high power opener to balance out the other night. The allure of finally appearing here in the States was enough to convince the band that ProgPower was the show they wanted to do.
So…four big power metal bands… one goth/pop band….three melodic prog bands….one speed band..one thrash band. I had two spots left and honestly felt that I could do whatever I wanted with them. It was time for the Glenn pick.
The Glenn pick is simply that. I want to see the band. I don’t care if anyone else knows the band or if anyone else cares about the band. In my best Devin Townsend voice, “It’s all about ME ME ME ME ME!!!” With that in mind, I go back and check the play count on my pod. For me, repeated listens = getting my ass kicked regardless of genre. Guess what? “The Arrogance of Ignorance” was number one overall for the past few months. The album was a MONSTER. I had actually emailed the band several months before I even started putting the roster together to simply tell them I loved the disc and congrats. Nothing more. The band replied with the “keep us in mind” email that I always get. However, this time I did keep them in mind. Here was a band that defied the standard genre description. Someone else called them Amorphis meets Riverside. That’s pretty damn solid in my book. Throw in some doom elements and you get a progressive band that fits not only my tastes, but the prog quota as well. I shared the confirmation with a few people in advance and it was always “Who?” Muhahaha! I just told them "that’s the everyone can kiss my ass band.” I expected silence for them during the video presentation and got exactly that. I honestly chuckled at all the confused “what the fuck was that?” looks I saw. The last time I saw it that kind of response was for Mercenary. That turned out rather well.
So I have one spot left. This was the spot I was holding open for Pretty Maids that didn’t work out. I also made a second run at Shadow Gallery with the idea of Mike Baker tribute show. It didn’t work out, but they band was cool enough to send the tribute video on to Atlanta.
I honestly had no idea who I wanted with the remaining spot. I just wanted a band that would draw outside the normal circle if possible. Enter the video for “Hold the Heathen Hammer High” and that insanely catchy-as-hell chorus. The light bulb went off. Pagan/Viking was where I wanted to go. The genre was gaining in the States and tours were doing reasonably well to different crowd. So before anyone jumps my shit for calling Tyr not true Pagan/Viking, bite me. You should have gone to Heathen Crusade for that. I’m out to sell a festival out this year and make sure it lasts for a few more years. If I’m going to open it up to this style, I’m going to open it with who draws, and fits the budget. Tyr did. I bought my plastic sword and horned helmet the next day.
I’m not asking anyone to agree with my choices or my rationale behind them. What you read it what you got: the brutal truth.
I did my part. Prog fans did not do their part. I’ll be brutally honest and say that the prog snob stereotype has been enforced strongly in my mind. That obviously does not apply to the majority frequenting this forum. However we all know that I have to appeal to the average attendee outside of this forum in order for the festival to succeed. Thus, the pendulum now swings back to the days of PP USA III & IV in an effort to recapture that success.
Festival planning starts and stops with the headliners. This not only determines how the roster balance is built overall, but what your budget is. I needed power. I needed a band that had draw outside of the forum. I needed a band on the upswing. I needed a band with a new release to promote. Also, headliners are going to tour now. There is simply on way to avoid that so, what makes sense in that scenario? I just have to remember that everyone that attends the festival is not on the Northern/Big City tour route that the majority of the bands take these days.
Kamelot was first on the list. I consider myself good friends with Thomas and called him to discuss it. The band was enthusiastic about the possibility. I will tell you right now that it makes all the difference in the world to me when that happens. I’ll spend the extra buck when necessary if a band treats the festival as a positive experience instead of just another gig. Kamelot was also one of the big three we all grew up with (SX & Evergrey are the others) and they haven’t forgotten us. They were one of the first bands to add something special to their sets (female vocals, Midnight/Ben Jackson for ”Nights of the Call of the Sea,” exclusive performance of the Epica trilogy). I will always be grateful to them. Anyhow, I don’t have some big story about booking them. They were my first choice and it went smoothly once they cleared their schedule.
The bigger dilemma was the other headliner. While I wanted someone new, I went ahead and checked all of my options. The timing for Blind Guardian just never works out. They would love to do it, but they aren’t coming until the end of 2010. Rhapsody remains in the eternal legal hell fight with Joey and Magic Circle. Avantasia…I hadn’t hit the lottery yet. Nightwish was going on hiatus. Helloween & Gamma Ray…too soon. Within Temptation…don’t get me started. Neverm…what the fuck was I thinking.
Hammerfall was the remaining band on the headliner list. They were not the last band on the list, just on the list as I wanted to keep all my options open. They fit the profile perfectly as it enforced the big name power bands at the top with the draw for the “regular joe” draw. They also added some freshness to the top of the roster so I decided to go full force after them. I made an offer and basically had to sweat it out for about three weeks. The band decided to discuss it at Wacken and get back to me. An agreement came back a few days after Wacken so it was time to step it up on the rest of the roster.
Before I go further, let me just get the “ones that got away” portion over with. I sent my annual email to Shadow Gallery. I sent my annual email to Arjen. The one that most will grit their teeth over is Pretty Maids. I made an offer to the band and waited…and waited….and waited. The band was all over Europe on holiday, playing shows, etc. and it just took forever to get them to talk about it. The bottom line was they would love to play, but my offer simply wasn’t good enough for a one-off. When you are a band that has been around 20+ years, you honestly need everything covered and then some. I can understand that completely. However, it just didn’t make sense from a budget view . Finally, I did speak with Symphony X for the first time in a few years. Most around here believe that I have a very poor relationship with the band for various reasons that have been speculated on in this forum. However, Mike & I had a great conversation on the phone, and that is not the case. I fully anticipate them to be back on the roster in the immediate future once they establish a timeline for new music.
With the headliners in place, that meant it was time to start building from the opening slot up. I knew that I needed to bring in fresh blood and continue to open up the roster in terms of styles. I went safe first though…
I actually had received the Illusion Suite demos from Mike (Circus Maximus) a long time ago. He was friends with the band and was obviously doing a sell job for them. I had a listened and liked what I heard. They fit the bill as the warm & fuzzy proggers. There is always a demand for that particular style. However, I put them on the backburner. It was a few months later that he sent me the video for “Scarlet Skies.” That did the trick. You may disagree with me, but music videos do sell a band sometimes.
The next was the easiest and no-brainer pick. In fact, if I hadn’t booked Seventh Wonder there may have been an online lynching. The demand was overwhelming on the forum. Plus, there was actually some positive posting on the Portnoy forum about them outside of the regular 4-5 people that do their damndest to get people to listen to things other than what Portnoy says is good. If you can get some positive buzz there, you can anywhere! Anyhow, the band was more than ready to come over so it was a rather quick negotiation.
While this was going on, it was time to send my annual email to Nocturnal Rites. Contrary to popular belief, I had actually been trying to book them for a few years. It just never worked out. In fact, it never even came close. I’ll be honest and say that this was the one I worked for the most. Their European booking agent plays a very polite and professional game of hardball. Between him and the internal dynamics in the band, it was just hard as hell to get this deal done. However, I *really* needed them in my grand scheme of plans to bring the power hard this year. It took three months to pull it off, but damn…whew.
The last great white whale left on my list was Tarot. Any Tarot discussion starts and stops with Nightwish’s schedule. I had actually spoken to Marco about it on the first leg of their tour in Atlanta and he really liked the idea of having the guys over. However, it never came close to serious discussion prior to this year because the Nightwish tour just kept going and going and going. However, I contacted their Finnish agent (who had actually come to the festival with Nightwish the first time). I had to bump my numbers up considerably to get things moving. Once again, I reminded myself that I had to hit it out of the park with some new power this year. I also reminded myself that it was either now or five years from now because of Nightwish. Tarot confirmed.
So..four power bands..two prog bands… Time to mix it up a bit.
It has been a few years since we had some female vocals in on the roster so it was time for their return. The biggest new name in terms of sales and draw overseas at the moment was Delain. If I’m going to book a new band, then I’m going for the one with the most buzz. With me having no chance in hell at Within Temptation, they fit the genre also. I had Marco already booked so the wheels began to turn faster as I may be able to pull off something that nobody else in the world had done yet. They had also just signed to Sensory so they would actually have a push and distribution here in the States. Done deal.
I still could use some prog to help balance things. DGM had been on my list for years and it was simply their time. Their new vocalist brought a heavier vibe that I truly felt would translate better live. It also helps when you release what I believe is one of your best discs to date. These guys have morphed into the heavier side of melodic prog and there honestly aren’t that many bands with their type of track record around that haven’t played the festival already. The SX crowd should see some appeal in them as well. Welcome back, Italy.
Four power metal bands..one goth/pop..three prog bands.
It was time to swing the pendulum back to the power as designed. However, I had four melodic type power metal bands at the top. I needed some speed. I needed a band that would appeal to the Helloween camp. Enter Stormwarrior. I had been intrigued by the band ever since I read about Kai Hansen joining them on stage for the old Helloween classics. I then found out he was producing the band as well. I had checked out their older stuff and liked it, but didn’t love it. However, the moment I heard the title track from “Heading Northe,” I knew I had found my band. They would get the blood going early and satisfy a niche that I hadn’t filled yet. Plus, they have mighty fucking Yenz! That solidified it right then and there! ‘Nuff said.
So, I had five power metal bands. Was I through with the power? No. I’m selling this show out this year. However, with that said, I knew it would be better if I could appeal to a slightly different genre. I started looking towards some heavier stuff. Thrash was where I wanted to go for the first time ever. I actually went to a website to look up Thrash bands for ideas. Paradox was on the list. Hell, I had almost forgotten about them. They had been around forever so the old-schoolers would have something to enjoy. Bonus. They also actually had a bit of a progressive tinge for a Thrash band as well. I bought “Electrified” and heard the excellent mix of all that with the power. The opening riff on “Infected” sealed the deal in my mind. The trick was that I wanted them in the opening slot. Even though they had been around forever, they still only had four albums out with limited appeal over here other than a minor cult following. I also wanted a high power opener to balance out the other night. The allure of finally appearing here in the States was enough to convince the band that ProgPower was the show they wanted to do.
So…four big power metal bands… one goth/pop band….three melodic prog bands….one speed band..one thrash band. I had two spots left and honestly felt that I could do whatever I wanted with them. It was time for the Glenn pick.
The Glenn pick is simply that. I want to see the band. I don’t care if anyone else knows the band or if anyone else cares about the band. In my best Devin Townsend voice, “It’s all about ME ME ME ME ME!!!” With that in mind, I go back and check the play count on my pod. For me, repeated listens = getting my ass kicked regardless of genre. Guess what? “The Arrogance of Ignorance” was number one overall for the past few months. The album was a MONSTER. I had actually emailed the band several months before I even started putting the roster together to simply tell them I loved the disc and congrats. Nothing more. The band replied with the “keep us in mind” email that I always get. However, this time I did keep them in mind. Here was a band that defied the standard genre description. Someone else called them Amorphis meets Riverside. That’s pretty damn solid in my book. Throw in some doom elements and you get a progressive band that fits not only my tastes, but the prog quota as well. I shared the confirmation with a few people in advance and it was always “Who?” Muhahaha! I just told them "that’s the everyone can kiss my ass band.” I expected silence for them during the video presentation and got exactly that. I honestly chuckled at all the confused “what the fuck was that?” looks I saw. The last time I saw it that kind of response was for Mercenary. That turned out rather well.
So I have one spot left. This was the spot I was holding open for Pretty Maids that didn’t work out. I also made a second run at Shadow Gallery with the idea of Mike Baker tribute show. It didn’t work out, but they band was cool enough to send the tribute video on to Atlanta.
I honestly had no idea who I wanted with the remaining spot. I just wanted a band that would draw outside the normal circle if possible. Enter the video for “Hold the Heathen Hammer High” and that insanely catchy-as-hell chorus. The light bulb went off. Pagan/Viking was where I wanted to go. The genre was gaining in the States and tours were doing reasonably well to different crowd. So before anyone jumps my shit for calling Tyr not true Pagan/Viking, bite me. You should have gone to Heathen Crusade for that. I’m out to sell a festival out this year and make sure it lasts for a few more years. If I’m going to open it up to this style, I’m going to open it with who draws, and fits the budget. Tyr did. I bought my plastic sword and horned helmet the next day.
I’m not asking anyone to agree with my choices or my rationale behind them. What you read it what you got: the brutal truth.
