10/28/06
King's Church, Eastbourne, England
Concert review and photos by Dave Taylor
In late October, I had the amazing privilege of traveling to England to see Iona perform live in concert in support of their epic new progressive rock album, The Circling Hour. Since the first hour that I spent listening to their amazing blend of ethereal Christian/Celtic/folk/progressive rock on their self titled debut back in 1990, I have pined to see Iona play live. Living on the West Coast of America, the chances to see a gig have been few and far between. When I knew I was going to be doing a stopover in England on my way to Kenya this fall, I checked the internet to see if the trip coincided with any Iona shows. Lo and behold, the blessing was ripe to be plucked. Their dynamic performance at King’s Church in Eastbourne was everything I could have asked for, and will surely live in the annals as one of my greatest live music experiences thus far.
My son Elias and I arrived at the venue in the afternoon, while the band was still setting up. Dave Bainbridge had provided me with tickets and kindly invited us to sit in on the sound check, which was an opportunity I couldn't pass up. Troy and Joanne hadn't arrived yet, so Dave and I chatted for a bit as he plugged in his various gizmos and Frank pounded away on his drums. I then got the opportunity to meet the show's promoter, a colorful character by the name of Simon Rooksby.
(Promoter Simon Rooksby of Computers for Charities shows off his ankles)
Simon is the founder of a great organization called Computers for Charities, which takes donated computers to school kids in developing countries like Africa. We had an interesting conversation, since I was on my way to Kenya, a country he'd visited often through his work. The sound check was delayed, so Simon encouraged us to “bugger off” for a while and get some rest. We ran back to the hotel for a quick nap in hopes of warding off the jet lag that the 9 hour time difference was beginning to inflict. When we returned, the band was in full swing, running through a couple of songs. After the sound check, Dave invited us backstage to meet the band and have a bit to eat. The band members were all extremely friendly and chatty, and full of good humor. Frank was friendly, Phil a bit quiet, and Joanne and I discussed the Todd Bentley book she was reading and the difficulties of outreach in Ireland. Troy cracked jokes and showed off his stash of micro brews for the post-show wind-down. Dave was great, and he was gracious enough to give a quick video interview before the show. I asked him some questions about the new album, his musical influences, and other interesting tidbits. The interview is available here.
(Photo: Dave Bainbridge rips it up)
When I got out of Dave’s hair a few minutes later, the band took the stage in front of a near capacity crowd. The venue was King’s Church, a fairly large facility as far as churches go, with a fair sounding hall filled with some nice original art. The stage and lighting setup wasn’t the best, but typical for a church setting. We were fortunate enough to find seats in the front row, which was the perfect spot to fully soak in the performance. The band was in good spirits, with Joanne looking radiant and relaxed as they launched into the opening track from their exceptional new album, the Circling Hour, Empyrean Dawn. The sound was fantastic, with Frank's drums snappy and thick, Phil's bass tight and chunky, Troy's pipes, flutes and bouzouki loud and crisp, and Joanne's stellar voice high and clear. Only Dave's keyboards were a bit hard to discern at times, although his guitars sounded perfect, and his chops were impeccable as always.
(Photo: Joanne takes wing)
The performance was accompanied by a man who feverishly swirled and twirled multicolored flags along with the music. While it added an interesting element to the show, and he generally stayed out of the limelight, at times it was a bit of a distraction. He was good at it, though, as you can see in this video clip from the show. The guy doing cartwheels at the beginning was at the behest of Troy, who offered a free CD to whomever could pull off such a stunt, with bonus points for doing it in their underpants. It certainly made for a memorable, if unusual, evening!
(Castlerigg/Reels live, crowd shot video)
It was impressive to watch Iona flow effortlessly through their songs, in sync with one another and nailing all the intricate parts that you wondered if they could pull off live. Throughout the show, they dipped into their entire catalogue, with at least one or two tracks from each release. All the new songs sounded exceptional live, and the old favorites were given new life with added twists here and there. Troy's driving new song Wind off the Lake was tight and powerful, and his lead vocals sounded great. They did a new, amped-up version of Today that featured a lively keyboard solo by Dave, a fantastic surprise. Other highlights for me included Greenfields of Canada, Edge of the World, Encircling (a favorite of mine), Castlerigg/Reels (see video link above), and a nearly acapella version of Beyond These Shores by Joanne, dedicated to some newlyweds. The crowd was enthusiastic, and seemed to grow as the evening went on. They clapped along to the reels, and even joined in the festivities with some dancing in the front for the finales. I’d been hoping to see Iona play live for years, and here I was in the front row, in England, and they played almost all of my favorite tunes right before my eyes - a heavenly band putting on a heavenly show - what a treat! All in all, it was an exquisite evening.
(Photo: Troy and Phil looking serious)
Here are some of the songs they played, from what I can remember, in roughly the right order:
Empyrean Dawn, Wave After Wave, Children of Time, Strength, Today, Wind Off the Lake, Machrie Moor, Flight of the Wild Goose, Jigs, Factory of Magnificent Souls, Greenfields of Canada, Edge of the World, No Fear in Love, Encircling, Irish Day, Reels/Castlerigg, Bi-se I part 2, Revelation, and Beyond These Shores.
(Photo: The band takes a bow after another fantastic show. From L to R: Frank Van Essen, Phil Barker, Troy Donockley, Joanne Hogg, Dave Bainbridge)
If you ever get the opportunity to see Iona live, don’t pass it up. It’s worth whatever it takes to get you there. {dt}
(Photo: Elias and I with Joanne Hogg after the show)
Salem Hill and Glass Hammer
Live at Belmont University, Nashville, TN, 11/05/05
Review by Dave Taylor
Photos by Dennis Hoenich and Dave Taylor; Video clips by Dave Taylor
As part of the Past Watchful Dragons conference at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, Fantasy and Faith in the works of C.S. Lewis, two of the hottest progressive rock bands around played a fantastic double bill. It was enough to lure me down from Alaska for a weekend of great music and intellect-expanding dialogue.
(Salem Hill, photo by Dennis Hoenich)
Salem Hill recently celebrated the release of their incredible new album Mimi’s Magic Moment with a party and a live show/DVD shoot the week before, and they were in top form as they opened their short 45 minute four-song set with January from their album Not Everyone’s Gold. The band, all Belmont graduates, were obviously having fun back in their old haunts, and they played extremely tight. Carl Groves belted out the vocals, and he also adeptly played electric guitar, piano and synthesizers as he capably fronted the band with golden-locked boyish charisma. Michael Dearing, recently of the Gretchen Wilson band, added electric guitar and vocals; Patrick Henry laid down the groove on bass and added backing vocals; and Kevin Thomas solidly pounded the drums. Special guest Randy George (Ajalon, Neal Morse) stepped in with additional keyboards and guitar.
(Mike and Pat, photo by Dennis Hoenich)
After January’s rousing introduction, the band launched into The Joy Gem, one of the new songs off of Mimi’s Magic Moment. With this new album, Salem Hill left behind the structured, more song-oriented, guitar rock of Be, and they play a more free-form, old-school style of progressive rock punctuated by extended instrumental interludes laden with intricate guitar and keyboard parts. I hadn’t heard the new album before the show, so it was all like fresh baked bread to me.
(Carl and Pat, photo by DT)
The Joy Gem is a song that sounds very Kansas like in its intro on the album, partially due to the keyboard sound, as well as the inclusion of Kansas veteran David Ragsdale on violin. Live, the band pulled it off splendidly without Ragsdale (or Neal Morse, for that matter, who adds vocals to the recording), with Carl doing the solo parts on a synth. It was a very progressive song, and the crowd of several hundred was really into it, cheering the band along. Next came the song Beings, one of my favorites from their last album. It’s a very pretty tune, punctuated by excellent harmony vocals from the other band members. After humorously bantering with the crowd a bit (someone called out for the song Stolen by Ghosts, and Carl replied that the song they were going to do had a lot of the same notes in it), they launched into the Crimson-esque multi-layered guitar rhythm intro of their new epic, The Future Me, while introducing the band members.
(Randy and Carl trade solos, photo by Dennis Hoenich)
(Mouse over below to watch video clip of Randy George's guitar solo with Salem Hill)
This song was amazing, full of passionate vocals and searing instrumental interludes. At one point, Randy George strapped on a guitar to solo and play Carl’s parts as he handled the keyboard solos, only giving way to Glass Hammer keyboard whiz Fred Schendel as he appeared to play a quick piano solo during the finale.
(Fred Schendel sneaks out for a piano solo, photo by Dennis Hoenich)
(Mouse over below to watch Fred and Carl jam))
The crowed roared their approval, and their show ended, much too short as was the common sentiment among the attendees I spoke with afterwards. Salem Hill is a veteran band that knows how to perform, and the combination of a great stage, professional lights, killer sound, and a band in in a groove overlaying their instruments and vocal harmonies in perfection as they performed powerful, heartfelt songs was an event not to be missed.
* * * * * * *
Glass Hammer, hailing from Chattanooga, then came out onstage with flourish as classical music thundered through the auditorium, and they launched into Long and Long Ago from their new album The Inconsolable Secret.
(Glass Hammer with choir, photo by Dennis Hoenich)
The band had two newcomers, French guitar virtuoso David Walliman (see my review of his album Deep Inside the Mind), apparently a permanent replacement for guitarist Walter Moore, and the multi-talented Carl Groves of Salem Hill, who lent his lead vocal prowess to the band for the show. Apart from nailing the vocal parts, Carl pranced around like a pro, playing air guitar, joking with the cute background vocalists, and encouraging the other musicians. The mix was decent from the front row, although Mr. Walliman’s guitar was hardly audible for the first several songs. It was apparent right off that the fellow could play, and with Trevor Rabin-like flash, he elicited an ovation from the crowd after his first masterful solo.
(Mouse over below to see Dave Walliman in action)
(Carl Groves, David Walliman, and Fred Schendel, photo by DT)
Fred Schendel, hiding behind an array of digital keyboards, also showed off dexterous fingers with ample Wakeman-like flourishes. The band was rounded out by the capable Steve Babb on bass, Eric Parker on steel guitar and percussion, and Matt Meridian on drums. They also had their three usual background vocalists and a string section, including cellos and violins.
(Glass Hammer strings, photo by DT)
Glass Hammer followed up with One King from Lex Rex, a drum solo that morphed into the beautiful tune Run Lisette. The background vocalists then took the lead on Farewell to Shadowlands, a fitting song for a C.S. Lewis conference. That was followed by Through a Glass Darkly with Susie B. on lead vocals.
(Steve Babb, photo by DJ Harmony)
Carl returned for the epic tune Knight of the North, a new one from The Inconsolable Secret. Aided a bit with the obscure words with some nearby lyric sheets (he complained that he asked for a teleprompter, a massage, and a fine rug in his rider), he sounded like he’d sang it a hundred times.
(Carl belts it out, photo by Dennis Hoenich)
Knight of the North featured some great syncopated keyboard soloing by Fred that had the audience wowed. After that seeming finale, the crowd was awed when a huge choir of what must have been nearly a hundred Belmont students shuffled in for rousing renditions of When We Were Young and Having Caught a Glimpse. As impressive as they were to look at surrounding the band, they were unfortunately difficult to hear from where I sat in the front row. Even so, I couldn’t help but wonder how many of those youngsters singing their hearts out had ever listened to progressive rock before this experience, and if any came away new fans.
(Glass Hammer with choir, photo by DT)
After a rousing applause, the band returned for a compelling encore of the band's classic single from Lex Rex, Heroes and Dragons. Carl’s voice soared, and the audience sang along, and there were more than a few teary eyes in the audience.
(Mouse over below to see a snippet of the finale)
The crowd gave Glass Hammer a loud ovation at the end, and although several hours had passed, it all seemed much too short. It was an emotional finale to an incredible show, three hours of prog-rock heaven, or heavenly prog rock, whichever you prefer.
Both bands hung out after the show, mingling and signing copies of their latest CD’s for the appreciative crowd. People had come from as far away as Ireland, France and Japan for the show, and no one was disappointed. If you enjoyed the short video clips, you should know that both bands professionally filmed the performance for an up and coming DVD release, so you too can appreciate the show from the comfort of your living room sometime soon. I highly recommend that you buy the DVD.
After the show, I capped off the evening by taking in the Nashville Symphony's fine performance of Howard Shore’s The Lord of the Rings, so I didnt get to hang out with the bands as much as I wanted to. However, all in all, it was an amazing day of music, well worth a trip down from Alaska for.
Here is a bunch of folks from the CPROG list on Yahoo Groups that showed up to hang out before and after the concert:
First row, L to R, the crew was Steve Babb and his son, Mark and Lenna (DJ Harmony), and Randy George. Second row was Rachel Jorgenson, Terri Jorgenson, (not sure), and Dennis Hoenich. Back row was Dave Taylor, Elias Taylor, Phil Bradley, (not sure), and Carl Groves in the back. If anyone knows the two folks I couldn't remember, please email me.