For 15 years guitarist JOHN FONTANA played in numerous bands on the NYC music scene. Then he set out to create music on his own that recalled his progressive rock roots. During the process he met four other musicians who enthusiastically embraced the developing music, and SHADOW CIRCUS was born.
Often inspired by literary works from the likes of Ray Bradbury and Stephen King, the music of SHADOW CIRCUS pulls from the progressive past, yet is firmly anchored in today. The symphonic label with which their recordings are usually categorized only serves to indicate a small portion of SHADOW CIRCUS's diversity of musical exploration. Epic tracks, ballads, theatrical presentations, in-your-face rockers and everything in between are all delivered with impeccable musicianship and style. While bands like SPOCK'S BEARD, STYX, THE TANGENT and CRACK THE SKY are sometimes used to reference their sound, SHADOW CIRCUS's personal mix of adventurousness, accessibility, drama and fun carves out its own place in the world of modern prog.
SHADOW CIRCUS is joined by Flash, Mars Hollow, The Muffins, Half Past Four and Mahogany Frog at ProgDay 2010. ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. The 16th edition will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5, at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information, and to hear music from this year's bands, please visit us at www.progday.net. Two more bands to be announced!
Showing posts with label Progday 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Progday 2010. Show all posts
Monday, August 2, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
The Muffins To Peform At Progday 2010
Progday 2010 has announced that the band The Muffins will be peforming at this year's event. THE MUFFINS is one of those amazing bands that you used to hear about from the 1970s...after it had disbanded. Formed in 1973, the band released its first official 
album, "Manna/Mirage, " in 1978. This would later be hailed as one of the best all-time American prog releases from the 70s and an essential release for any progressive music collection. But while the band developed a cult following on the US east coast, notoriety on a larger scale was elusive. Despite continuing to create excellent music and working with artists like Fred Frith (the band backed Frith on his 1980 album "Gravity"), THE MUFFINS played it's last show of the period in 1981 and broke up soon afterwards.
However, the legend of THE MUFFINS continued to grow long after its demise and in 1998 the progressive music scene was given a reprieve when the original members decided that they still had something to say and reformed. Unlike many other "reunions," THE MUFFINS really DID still have something to say and the band started writing and playing music again like they had never taken a 17 year vacation. This culminated in the release of a new critically acclaimed studio album, "Bandwidth," in 2001. Since then the band has continued to record and perform, appearing at ProgDay in 2001 and 2002, and at NEARfest in 2005. We are very happy to host the return of THE MUFFINS to the Storybook Farm stage.
THE MUFFINS is joined by Half Past Four and Mahogany Frog at ProgDay 2010. ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. The 16th edition will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5, at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
album, "Manna/Mirage, " in 1978. This would later be hailed as one of the best all-time American prog releases from the 70s and an essential release for any progressive music collection. But while the band developed a cult following on the US east coast, notoriety on a larger scale was elusive. Despite continuing to create excellent music and working with artists like Fred Frith (the band backed Frith on his 1980 album "Gravity"), THE MUFFINS played it's last show of the period in 1981 and broke up soon afterwards.However, the legend of THE MUFFINS continued to grow long after its demise and in 1998 the progressive music scene was given a reprieve when the original members decided that they still had something to say and reformed. Unlike many other "reunions," THE MUFFINS really DID still have something to say and the band started writing and playing music again like they had never taken a 17 year vacation. This culminated in the release of a new critically acclaimed studio album, "Bandwidth," in 2001. Since then the band has continued to record and perform, appearing at ProgDay in 2001 and 2002, and at NEARfest in 2005. We are very happy to host the return of THE MUFFINS to the Storybook Farm stage.
THE MUFFINS is joined by Half Past Four and Mahogany Frog at ProgDay 2010. ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. The 16th edition will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5, at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
For more information on Progday, visit their site at www.progday.net
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Mahogany Frog To Play Progday 2010
MAHOGANY FROG AT PROGDAY 2010!
ProgDay is pleased to present Canadian proggers MAHOGANY FROG as our first band announcement for 2010.
MAHOGANY FROG was formed in 1998 when GRAHAM EPP (guitar, keyboards, trumpet) and JESSE WARKENTIN (guitar, keyboards) joined forces with NATHAN LOWEWEN (bass). With a shared interest in loud, psychedelic/experimental music, MAHOGANY FROG began to explore the basis of their sound and often coordinated functions at various halls, venues and cafes that created intense atmospheres with the use of film projection, interactive installations, performance art and an uninhibited spectrum of music.
Their first album was released in 2001. Since then the band has released four other recordings of their genre-defying mix of psyche, prog, jazz and electronica, and has continued to expand their musical direction and outlook. "Do5," the band's most recent release, has been hailed as their most complex and eclectic release to date.
The music of MAHOGANY FROG can be both challenging and soothing to the listener. Stabbing riffs using unusual notes and time signatures often dissolve into lush electro-soundscapes, and straightforward, rhythmic interludes can merely lay the foundation for syncopated counter-melodies or sound effects. The orchestration of the instruments can be unorthodox at times, using complex modal progressions or phrases as a basis for experimentations in arrangement, and the rhythm and lead sections trade roles quickly and often.
Considered to be one of the best bands to come out of Canada in recent years, ProgDay is happy to host their first festival appearance in the United States.
ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. ProgDay 2010 will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5 at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information, and to hear music from this year's bands, please visit us at www.progday.net
ProgDay is pleased to present Canadian proggers MAHOGANY FROG as our first band announcement for 2010.
MAHOGANY FROG was formed in 1998 when GRAHAM EPP (guitar, keyboards, trumpet) and JESSE WARKENTIN (guitar, keyboards) joined forces with NATHAN LOWEWEN (bass). With a shared interest in loud, psychedelic/experimental music, MAHOGANY FROG began to explore the basis of their sound and often coordinated functions at various halls, venues and cafes that created intense atmospheres with the use of film projection, interactive installations, performance art and an uninhibited spectrum of music.
Their first album was released in 2001. Since then the band has released four other recordings of their genre-defying mix of psyche, prog, jazz and electronica, and has continued to expand their musical direction and outlook. "Do5," the band's most recent release, has been hailed as their most complex and eclectic release to date.
The music of MAHOGANY FROG can be both challenging and soothing to the listener. Stabbing riffs using unusual notes and time signatures often dissolve into lush electro-soundscapes, and straightforward, rhythmic interludes can merely lay the foundation for syncopated counter-melodies or sound effects. The orchestration of the instruments can be unorthodox at times, using complex modal progressions or phrases as a basis for experimentations in arrangement, and the rhythm and lead sections trade roles quickly and often.
Considered to be one of the best bands to come out of Canada in recent years, ProgDay is happy to host their first festival appearance in the United States.
ProgDay is the longest running progressive rock festival in the world. ProgDay 2010 will take place on Saturday, September 4, and Sunday, September 5 at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information, and to hear music from this year's bands, please visit us at www.progday.net
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