RoSfest 2014 Lineup To Feature Prog Legends Caravan,
Beardfish, Collage, Sound Of Contact, Clepsydra and Others – May 2-4, 2014
Featuring Caravan, Beardfish, Clepsydra, Elephants of
Scotland, Sound of Contact, Thank You Scientist, Fright Pig, Red Sand,
Subsignal and Collage!
Gettysburg, PA - The most
anticipated music festival of 2014, the legendary RoSfest, will take place this
year May 2-4, 2014, and will feature progressive rock icons Caravan, Beardfish,
Collage, Clepsydra, Sound Of Contact and others! The Rites of Spring Festival,
or RoSfest as it's commonly called, is an annual progressive rock festival held
every spring in Gettysburg, PA. RoSfest is in its 11th year, and are thrilled
to be presenting UK prog icons Caravan, who has not performed in the US in many
years, along with 9 other amazing bands this year. RoSfest has always been at
the forefront of bringing new and upcoming progressive rock bands to an
American audience, while also bringing in bands that were at their peak during
the heyday of prog rock in the 70's. This year's lineup features 10 bands over
three days, with Friday night's show featuring Clepsydra (Switzerland) and
Caravan (UK). Saturday's show features Elephants of Scotland (US), Sound of
Contact (UK), Thank You Scientist (US), and Beardfish (Sweden). Sunday's lineup
features Fright Pig (US), Red Sand (Canada), Subsignal (Germany), and Collage
(Poland). All three days feature a strong lineup with a mix of different sounds
and styles within progressive rock.
Says George Roldan, founder of
RoSfest, “It's really an honor to be featuring a classic band like Caravan at
RoSfest. They are so well known in the genre, and they have been very
instrumental in developing the Canterbury sound that has become familiar to
prog fans. We really are thrilled to host Caravan's first show on American soil
in years. Our Sunday night headliner, Collage, is one of the most famous bands
in Polish progressive rock, and indeed Polish music in general. They’ve just
reunited, and this will be their biggest show in years, so we are honored that
they agreed to perform at RoSfest for this special occasion. In addition to the
classic bands, we also continue to bring in new rising stars of progressive
rock, such as Sound of Contact, which is a project from Simon Collins, Phil
Collins' son, and they bring a refreshing modern sound to the genre. This whole
lineup is incredible, and we’re looking forward to bringing all of these
wonderful bands to the stage!”
With a history going back to 1968,
Caravan is one of a dwindling amount of bands around that merits a description
as living legends. They were one of the two principal bands in the Canterbury
Scene, a movement that saw bands blending elements from progressive rock and
fusion with whimsical lyrics, quirky instrumental movements and a distinct
English sound - but often without any major superficial likeness shared between
the bands subscribed to this style. Caravan peaked commercially early on, with
1971's 'In the Land of Grey and Pink' their best-selling album. Their early
70's albums in general are all considered classics today, and while they never
made much of an impact in the UK or US in these early days their stature have
continued to grow following the resurgence of interest in progressive rock.
Following spells of inactivity in the 1980's and 90's Caravan have been a
mostly going concern since 1995, albeit with a number of line-up alterations
along the way. The current incarnation of the band dates back to 2010 and
consists of Pye Hastings, Geoffrey Richardson, Jan Schelhaas, Jim Leverton and
Mark Walker. Twelve years have gone by since Caravan had their last triumphant
return to the US at Nearfest.
While Beardfish is still regarded
by many as a fairly new band on the scene they have actually been around for
more than a decade already, with seven full length albums to their name.
Initially renowned for their fairly eclectic take on retro-progressive rock
they have developed towards a harder edged variety of that sound in later
years, firmly documented on their 2012 album 'The Void'. An album they finished
promoting in October 2013.
Says George Roldan, “As many will
see from the bands we have signed for 2014, RoSfest is in development. There's
a steadily increasing number of fine new bands that comes forth that we feel
deserve the chance to play at a festival such as ours. Some established with a
small following already, others are fresh entities just starting out. We feel
we have an obligation to the best of those new artists to make them somewhat
better known, especially when conditions for recording artists in general and
new artists in particular are as challenging as they are. All of them represent
the finest quality in music of course, we do owe our audience a high quality
festival after all. They are just not that well known yet. We do take care to
sign better known bands too. Newly reunited Clepsydra and Collage for instance,
Beardfish as one of the top names among the new generation of progressive rock
bands, and in Caravan we managed to sign one of the few remaining giants from
the golden age. But all in all RoSfest 2014 has a somewhat higher percentage of
lesser known bands than before. We hope our audience understand and support
this slight alteration in approach.”
Multinational band Sound of Contact
is a new player on the scene, so to speak, but with a potential that secured
them a contract with prestigious label InsideOut for their first release. The
instigator of this band is one Simon Collins. As a solo artist he has released
three full length albums over the past decade, establishing his credentials
firmly prior to venturing out into band and progressive rock circles. A vital
part of his music resume and presumably more important for him than many
others. Simon Collins is a vocalist and drummer both, just like his father Phil
was. And Phil Collins is a musician that easily merits a description as famous.
With an already established career, Simon has seen to it that he isn't merely
regarded as the son of his father when now following in his footsteps. The
reception given to Sound of Contact's debut album 'Dimensionaut' in 2013
emphasize that clearly, with a steadily growing number of glowing reviews
following in it's wake. Sound of Contact live, for live purposes consisting of
Simon Collins (vocals, drums), Bill Jenkins (keyboards, vocals), Matt Dorsey
(bass, vocals), Randy McStine (guitars) and Ronen Gordon (drums).
RoSfest once again will be held at
the Majestic Theater in Gettysburg. Eighty years ago, the doors of the Majestic
Theater opened for the first time, welcoming audiences to the largest
vaudeville and silent movie theater in south-central Pennsylvania. Built by
Henry Scharf as an annex to the historic Gettysburg Hotel, the theater seated
1,200 patrons and proudly served as the cultural crossroads of commerce,
college, and community.
MAJESTIC THEATER
25 Carlisle Street
Gettysburg, PA 17325
RoSfest Schedule:
Friday May 2nd
Clepsydra – 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm
Caravan – 9:00 pm to 11:00 pm
Saturday May 3rd
Elephants of Scotland – 11:00 am
to 12:30 pm
Sound of Contact – 2:00 pm to 3:30
pm
Thank you Scientist - 5:00 pm to
6:30 pm
Beardfish – 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm
Sunday May 4th
Fright Pig – 11:00 am to 12:30 pm
Red Sand – 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm
Subsignal – 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm
Collage – 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm
Also, doors will be opened at
5:00 pm on Friday, 10:00 am Saturday-Sunday; doors will be closed every night
at 11:30 pm.
Regular seat tickets may only be
purchased on the Majestic Theater website or through the box office by
calling (717) 337-8200, or in person at 25 Carlisle Street during box office
hours (Sunday: 3-7:30 pm, Monday-Saturday: 12 noon-7:30 pm).
Single
day passes go on sale Friday March 14th at the Majestic Theater box office for
all three days and online.
