Author: William Seay
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ProgPower 2015: Day 2 (Thu, Sep 10)
ProgPower XVI: THURSDAY The Thursday Kick-Off Show originally featured Royal Hunt frontman DC Cooper performing a set that would span his career; that fell through. No big deal – just add heavy metal legends Armored Saint and Saxon to the bill, and you have yourself a fucking show. But it started with Brazil’s Almah, a band…
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ProgPower 2015: Day 1 (Wed, Sep 9)
ProgPower XVI: Wednesday We arrived to Wednesday’s Midweek Mayhem show in time for Ashes of Ares just beginning their set. We missed out on local stalwarts Halcyon Way, because we arrived in Atlanta a little too late to get there in time. Halcyon Way’s sound has evolved over the years, but it’s basically proggy power…
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Sigh – Graveward
There are bands that we call progressive; bands that think outside the box. Then there are bands like Japan’s Sigh, which have never acknowledged that there was a box in the first place. I got into them with the album Imaginary Sonicscape (2001), an album that to this day still pushes the envelope of what…
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Why ProgPower Still Matters
In the mid 1990s, heavy metal in the United States was hanging on by a thread. The ’80s were an amazing time for the entire heavy metal realm. The New Wave of British Heavy Metal blossomed with titans like Iron Maiden and Diamond Head, as well as the speed-obsessed Motörhead paving the way for the…
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More Maryland Deathfest 2014 – going full bore at MDF
This review is quite long. But then, Maryland Deathfest was a long festival. It was full of bands I wanted to see. I also remained sober through the entire festival. This meant a few things: I saved money for the massive amount of merch that was available. I didn’t wake up each morning feeling like…
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Ghost and King Dude, Lawrence KS, April 22, 2014
Ghost w/ King Dude At Granada Theatre, Lawrence, Kansas, Tuesday, April 22, 2014 Live review and photos by William Seay I like Ghost. I’ve liked them since they began as a band in 2010. So let’s get that out of the way, because there aren’t many more galvanizing bands in our genre than Ghost. Or…
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MaYan – Antagonise
Mark Jensen has become one of the more prominent and prolific composers and musicians in the prog/power/gothic metal arena these days. And his Mayan project is his nod to some of his European contemporaries like the quirky genius Arjen A. Lucassen (Ayreon, Star One, Stream of Passion) or the power metal overlord Tobias Sammet (Edguy,…
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America Noir tour interviews: Atrocity, Leaves’ Eyes, and Moonspell
Interviews with Atrocity, Leaves’ Eyes, and Moonspell The Riot Room, Kansas City, Missouri, Friday, February 14, 2014 Alexander Krull (Atrocity/Leaves’ Eyes) We begin with a conversation with Alexander Krull from Atrocity and Leaves’ Eyes. Most of our discussion was about Atrocity, although since both bands share members it’s difficult to keep them 100 per cent separate. When…
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Dave Brockie, Oderus Urungus, In Memoriam
Gwar is not just a band. One look at a promotional photo should tell you that, but Gwar isn’t just a group of dudes in weird costumes either. If you’ve ever been to a Gwar show, then you might know what I’m hinting at. And if you’ve been to nearly a dozen or more Gwar…