SIEGES EVEN — a band playing progressive metal in russia. What does that even mean? russia has never had anything like this. Prog rock has always had its titans — GENESIS, V.D.G.G., PINK FLOYD — but it is, in general, extraordinarily difficult music to absorb, with an extremely complex structure that demands maximum virtuosity and shatters any notion of classical songwriting conventions. Instead of verse-chorus-verse you might hear, say, a nine-part epic with something resembling a unifying theme. Prog metal is essentially heavied-up prog rock: by absorbing elements of heavy metal, a unique genre emerged; later, progressive was crossed with power and prog-power was born. So: virtuosity — that's one; the absence of mere accompanying instruments — that's two: in prog rock all members are equal, the bassist no less important than the lead guitar, the keyboards often playing long solo passages. In short, to understand what prog metal is at a basic level, it's best simply to listen to the 90s albums of the genre's most celebrated band, DREAM THEATER.
But let's continue reasoning — who constitutes the audience for progressive rock and metal? It's connoisseurs; aesthetes, in a sense. There aren't many of them, but they are, as a rule, not teenagers — they can afford to spend a reasonable sum on a record or a concert, and in their turn most progressive bands don't seek out large venues; some communicate with their audiences exclusively in intimate settings.
So: russia — a country that has seen neither DREAM THEATER, nor QUEENSRYCHE, nor VANDEN PLAS, PAIN OF SALVATION, AYREON, or FATES WARNING — the list could go on indefinitely. The only band to have visited, and more than once, is the prog-power act ROYAL HUNT, whose leader is a native of the USSR — though personally I'd be more inclined to call the band's style melodic power, as the progressive element has diminished over the years while melody has always occupied first place. EDENBRIDGE have also visited, also leaning more toward power metal.
In other words, the news that russia was to be visited by a band playing progressive metal — not just playing it, but one of the founding forces of the genre in Europe, two of whose members are, firstly, brothers, and secondly (and more importantly), members of two celebrated collectives: Oliver Holzwarth has been the live touring bassist for BLIND GUARDIAN for many years (in recent years Hansi has concentrated entirely on vocals, and Oliver also handles studio bass recordings), while his brother Alex is the permanent drummer of RHAPSODY (to be objective: for all the complexity of the music and the guitar-keyboard parts in that celebrated epic power metal band, the drums have always played a supporting role there — it was a genuine revelation to me that this Italian band actually has a drummer of the highest calibre).
The band was formed as far back as 1985 in Munich and at that time consisted of the Holzwarth brothers, guitarist Markus Steffen, and vocalist Franz Herde. The current lineup differs only in the vocalist, though there have been other changes along the way. The band's first lineup released two albums — Life Cycle in 1988 and Steps in 1990, after which the vocalist changed and A Sense Of Change appeared in 1991. In musical terms, the first album has an unmistakably metallic sound; the second is notable for the seven-part epic "Tangerine Windows Of Solace" — the sound overall is more prog-rock in character, even with elements of psychedelia, and the same is true to an even greater degree of the next album. In 1993 Markus Steffen left the band, the vocalist changed again, two more albums were recorded (in 1995 and 1997), and the project soon effectively disbanded — by that point the brothers were fully absorbed in work with BLIND GUARDIAN and RHAPSODY. The reunion took place in 2003; notably, Markus Steffen returned; the decision was made not to include in the live repertoire songs from albums on which he hadn't participated. A new vocalist also joined — someone new to the world of progressive rock, Arno Menses. In 2003 only one concert was given, in Munich; two more shows followed in 2004; in 2005 the band recorded another album — with an unusually lengthy title for them — The Art Of Navigating By The Stars (the album was released by the russian label SOYUZ). The album differs from everything that came before it: the most colourful sound, beautiful melodies; in terms of genre I'd call it melodic retro-prog. The tour in support of the album was very small — two concerts in Greece; then a third show, in moscow, followed by two concerts in the Netherlands, one each in Belgium and Switzerland, and three in Germany. Oliver and Alex currently have a great deal of work in their primary projects. The fact that the band played in russia was a fortunate coincidence that befell our city, because a small number of people experienced something extraordinary. How often, after a concert, do you feel euphoria — while the concert was completely devoid of any show elements, the lighting minimal, the musicians simply playing — but how they played. More about the concert below.
On December 11th, 2005, a small number of people pass through the inner courtyard connecting Bolshaya Sadovaya street to the interior of Club B2, climb three floors, and there it is — the fourth: a bar, in front of which a small, almost miniature dancefloor, with several VIP spots around it, and finally a small stage where everything was destined to take place.
The concert began with an introduction from Vladimir "Impaler" Milovidov, editor-in-chief of the IN ROCK magazine, to whom we owe this concert — a draw for several CDs was held, after which the support act took the stage: naturally, HIERONYMUS BOSCH. The reason is simple — there is no worthier companion in moscow. Yes, this is progressive from a different angle — progressive death, to be precise; heirs to the Italians SADIST and the Americans ATHEIST, CYNIC, and also the later DEATH, they released their first album as far back as 1995, reunited not so long ago, and have already appeared at the festival in Toruń; in 2006 they'll appear at Metalmania in Katowice, Poland; in russia they are known in narrow underground circles as the most technically accomplished band in the country. I have absolutely nothing against fervent admirers of NATISK and KHARIZMA considering their heroes to hold that title — but there are inexorable facts, and all of them are on the side of this band named after the abnormal genius of the 16th century. (I'm not writing about them for the first time, but they deserve it.) That day their set went extremely badly: instead of the planned 7 songs, only two were played to begin with; during the second song, guitarist Vladimir Leyviman's amp burns out; during the delay, Andrei Ishchenko saves the situation by playing the drum solo that many love, but the situation is beyond salvaging — the band plays, or rather attempts to play, two more songs, after which bassist-vocalist Vsevolod Gorbenko announces that playing as a trio is somewhat unsatisfying, and for technical reasons the band is obliged to end their set here.
Vladimir "Impaler" reappears on stage, sympathises with BOSCH, while also stating that SIEGES EVEN's equipment situation is perfect and that the band was extremely surprised by how smoothly everything had gone (the band had previously encountered problems in similar situations).
Some time passes, after which the intro from the band's third album — the best-known to the audience — begins to play, and the concert begins. Everything that followed is impossible to describe in words: on one level it's all maximally simple — to the audience's left the guitarist, to the right and slightly back the bassist, behind the drum kit, naturally, the drummer, and in the centre the tall figure of the vocalist holding a small microphone.
What these four people can do — what they can do with music alone — is something extraordinary. First: a singular harmony, never heard from any other collective; the musicians are truly one whole — each member an equal element of the musical process. Second: virtuoso performance of course. Alex delivers genuine wonders of drumming; Markus creates something miraculous on his guitar; Oliver is not behind his colleague, executing every part masterfully on his five-string bass. As for Arno — in my view this is the ideal variant for a prog-rock vocalist: the voice is high, but not the forced-high of power metal vocalists — more expressive, and with a magnificent range.
The sheer pleasure of simply watching them — how they play their music, what pleasure they take in it themselves — was extraordinary. There were a few amusing moments — a stage diver, for instance, which at B2 was particularly funny — Arno laughed warmly — simplicity and sincerity prevailed throughout the whole concert. On another occasion someone simply extended a CD and a marker during a song and all the band members signed it (I stress — not the booklet, the disc itself!).
In general, the only audience I can remember like this was at CANDLEMASS: not a single drunk person, not a single person who came to be seen — everyone who came, came to listen and enjoy the music. Average age 28–30; older audience members were also in evidence; the demographic one might describe as "young ARIA fans" was entirely absent.
Sound — this deserves its own discussion. At the end of the concert we learned who the sound engineer had been, but more on that later; for now let's just say that the sound was everything one could dream of.
Now a few words about the compositions performed that day. As already mentioned, it all began with the intro from the third album, followed by "The Waking Hours" — in other words, exactly as on the album. And then the first extended composition of the day: "Styx" from the latest album. SIEGES EVEN represent arguably one of the most unique examples of a progressive band: they play without keyboards and virtually without keyboard samples — only bass (Oliver, rotund, constantly smiling at the crowd alongside Arno), guitar (whose owner, Markus, was, by contrast, intensely focused — as if slightly afraid to make a mistake), and drums — drums that were beyond any praise.
Next, another track from the latest album — and an even longer one; the crowd is in rapture, but everyone is waiting for songs from the first three albums. Except for part of the audience who hadn't known the band until the poster appeared — the rest had loved and valued the band's work primarily from those years. Well — the audience gets what it was waiting for: "Epigram For The Last Straw" — again from the third album. The impression forms that the whole concert will be in this vein — but no: light guitar playing gives way to heavy riffs as "Repression And Resistance" from the band's very first album, Life Cycle, rings out.
After that, apart from "These Empty Places" — again from the third album — the new material continues. The question arises: what about the second album? The answer arrives: the entire epic "Tangerine Windows Of Solace" is performed — from the first to the last, seventh, part. This I simply cannot describe; I have no words. The hall opened its mouths and savoured every moment, forgetting everything — even the bar and its restorative beverages. Indescribable rapture — that was what shone in the eyes of every single person present, without exception. For the first time since the concert began I looked at my watch when the final movement — the outro "Elegy" — faded out, and realised the band had played for nearly an hour and forty minutes. The band leaves the stage, but literally within a minute they're back, playing one more song from the new album, and then the title track of the first album — "Life Cycle" — apparently to stir up anyone who'd grown a little tired, and it worked: under one of the band's most intense compositions the crowd ignited — all of them, those standing on the floor and those seated at tables alike.
This is the end, obviously… an energetic, powerful finale… this… is not the end — the band plays one more song: "Prime," another from the third album A Sense Of Change, and truly the last of the evening. The setlist is enormous — two hours — bands rarely play sets this long, as it's physically very demanding. Given that the band covered material from four albums, we should note that two songs from the first were played, half of the second (if you count the epic as seven separate compositions, which it is), five of the eight from the third, and six of the nine from the latest.
Sincerity, simplicity, virtuoso mastery, and above all — complete dedication and joy in their own music from the musicians' side. The audience didn't come away short-changed, either. The only regret: too few people were there. And yet the event was unique in its kind.
Well, now progressive connoisseurs can look forward to the In Prog festival, which is traditionally held in the spring…
PS — the sound engineer that day was the same one who once worked on THERION's album Theli, so it's no wonder the sound was exceptional.
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Report by Alan
Special thanks to Vladimir "Impaler" Milovidov for providing accreditation.
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Setlist: Prelude: Ode To Sisyphus The Waking Hours Styx The Weight Epigram For The Last Straw Repression & Resistance Unbreakable These Empty Places To The Ones Who Have Failed Stigmata Tangerine Windows Of Solace:
- Alba
- Epitome
- Apotheosis
- Seasons of Seclusion (The Prison)
- An Essay of Relief (A Tangerine Dream)
- Disintegration of Lasting Hope
- Elegy (Window of Perception) —encore— The Lonely Views Of Condors Life Cycle Prime