Progressive Nation 2009 in Helsinki and Stockholm

BogFires checked the Helsinki (Sep 23) and Stockholm (Sep 25) shows of the Progressive Nation tour featuring Dream Theater, Opeth, Bigelf and Unexpect (only in Stockholm). In Helsinki, I stood among the audience, but in Stockholm I had a great opportunity to follow part of the show behind the scene. It was not only fascinating to see my two big favourites Dream Theater and Opeth from that angle, but also another interesting possibility to experience how things work backstage in such a large organisation.
However, through my blue and white BogFires glasses, my specific focus on both nights was on Bigelf, the L.A. based but “half Finnish” band. It is not generally known, not even in the Finnish media, that two Finnish members have been part of ithe band for several years alredy: Esa “Ace” Mark on the guitar and “Duffy Snowhill” alias Repe Lumikumpu on the bass. Bigelf may not be as big in popularity as our other case bands (and certainly not as big as they should be on the basis of their originality, big sound, and quality songs), but they make an interesting case of Finnish rock export/import/whatever by building up the Finnish image abroad in their own manner. As Bigelf is now part of the high profile and long Progressive Nation tour (thanks for DT’s Mike Portnoy’s persona preference for the brand), new potential fans become surely aware of their existence. The new emergence is even accompanied by their recent warming up gig for Porcupine Tree, another big name in the loose category of progressive rock. The concept of Progressive Nation concept, created and nurtured by Dream Theater, is, in effect, quite interesting in its variety. Perhaps all participating bands (slightly different line-ups in the U.S. and Europe) can somehow be grouped under the progressive label, but they are quite different from each other in terms of their styles and influences. This of course might also be a risk with regard to consistency, but probably appeals a more heterogeneous crowd to the venues than would the participating bands do individually.

Bigelf started the evening in the Helsinki Ice Hall that had some empty seats left on the upper level but was almost full. This was first show of the tour in Europe after a small break, and a few days after the aforementioned Porcupine Tree gig in the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles. As the recent album “Cheat the Gallows” already showed, the band is in top form, an impression that is further strengthened by their live appearance. In itself, Bigelf’s music and whole concept is interesting while, on one hand, it is very familiar with its strong references to the 1970’s but, on the other hand, also quite unique in the contemporary polished and supercharged sound environment. The band also uses authentic vintage gear at stage, which makes a distinctive visual impact and creates unique sound that is rugged, warm and rich at the same time. The Helsinki set had a slightly tame start, perhaps because of the extra excitement caused by playing for the Scandinavian audience (which the main man Damon Fox mentioned to be their favourite one) for the first time after a long break. As commented by Esa, playing in the home city was also a somewhat nervous experience for him. Anyhow, the set was soon set in good motion, and especially the songs “Blackball” and the set closing gorgeous “Money Machine” were pleasant pieces of music. The good vibe was continued in the Hovet in Stockholm with perhaps slightly better sounds than in Helsinki. In general, the sound in this venue, also designed originally for ice hockey, seem to always outperform that in the Helsinki Ice Hall. Damon’s singing in Hovet was better heard on the floor and Esa’s guitar sounded more powerful despite the afterwards reported pedal problems. And Bigelf was not only fun to listen but also to watch: all members are active and charismatic onstage, Damon Fox with his impressive keyboard gear and tiny Yoda mascot drawing the main attention. In Stockholm the audience was also treated by an extra number, already familiar from many U.S. shows, when Mike Portnoy himself staffed the drums during the Blackball.

The Bigelf setlist in Helsinki was three songs longer than in Stockholm. The reason for this was the absence of the opening band Unexpected in Helsinki. As told by the keyboard player ExoD after the Stockholm gig, cancellation was due to budget reasons. In Stockholm, the band performed an energetic, but the band’s complex and multi-instrument songs were difficult to grasp for a first timer. But this colourful gang from Montréal is definitely a band worth checking out. ExoD told me that, unsurprisingly, it was again Mike Portnoy who had included the band in the PN package.

Opeth was as massive sounding, serene and powerful, and small gestured as always. Such short set lists may not do justice for the band’s impressive catalogue, but song choices were really interesting. Both shows had identical set lists; starting in a moody mode with restricted blue spotlights and the ecstatic “Windowpane”, soon changing to a more heavier storming for the rest of the show. As an extra service for the fans, three unexpected songs were performed: Helsinki was written in the Opeth history as the place where “Reverie/Harlequin Forest”, “White Cluster” and “Hex Omega” were played live for the very first time ever. In Helsinki, we heard one of the trademark questions of Mikael Åkerfeldt in connection to their gigs in Finland: Should he use English or Swedish? The former was chosen, again. In Stockholm, the band’s home town, selection was natural, and Mikael appeared somewhat more serious than usual. When I met Mikael afterwards, he admitted that also for him it was rather exciting to appear in front of the home public and lots of familiar faces.

The close relationships between Opeth and Dream Theater, especially those of Åkerfeldt and Portnoy, have been reported several times in media. Åkerfeldt mentioned again that seeing Dream Theater in Stockholm during their Awake tour in 1995 is still one of his greatest concert memories. I can well understand this comment, while seeing the band in the Tavastia club in Helsinki during the same tour, which was a mind-blowing evening and got me seriously hooked with the band for several years afterwards.

By the way, Mikael was really surprised to hear that DT had really played in such a small place as Tavastia. And yes, tour after tour, the audiences of Dream Theater have become bigger and bigger. And even though the latest two albums have been somewhat less interesting and innovative than many of their predecessors, DT concerts are always top-of-the-line experiences. Also this time, both in Helsinki and Stockholm. The band also included two songs from the masterfully crafted Awake album in both shows. In Helsinki, we heard “Erotomania” and “Voices” and the Stockholm crowd was served with “the Mirror” + “Lie”, one of the heaviest, grooviest and gloomiest metal song pairs out there. In overall, Portnoy’s idea of playing remarkably different setlists in subsequent shows was this time very true. Of course a massive numbers of good pieces have to be left out in such a short set, in DT terms, but Helsinki and Stockholm lists formed a very varied collection of songs, which seemed to receive really good response from the audience (that in Stockholm was a bit smaller than in my earlier DT visits to Hovet). Quite rare moments were also experienced in Stockholm, when the PA crashed three times during the “Dance of Eternity”, leaving Portnoy a bit unsecure about the continuation of the set. But the problem was soon fixed and, as many times for big bands, the incident just added an extra flavour to the show. As a dressing on the cake, I also managed to shake hands with John Petrucci just before their performance. He warned about his guitar amplifiers positioned backstage being particularly loud. Oh my goodness, they really were loud...

Warm thanks to Esa for being such a good host in Stockholm and to other people in the Bigelf, Opeth and DT teams who I had a pleasure to meet.

TMK

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SETLISTS

BIGELF

Helsinki: The Evils of Rock & Roll, Neuropsychopathic Eye, Pain Killers, Madhatter, Blackball, Disappear, Money Machine

Stockholm: The Evils of Rock & Roll, Madhatter, Blackball, Money Machine

OPETH

Helsinki & Stockholm: Windowpane, The Lotus Eater, Reverie/Harlequin Forest, White Cluster, Deliverance, Hex Omega

DREAM THEATER

Helsinki: A Nightmare To Remember, A Rite Of Passage, Hollow Years, Erotomania, Voices, Forsaken, The Spirit Carries On, As I Am, The Count Of Tuscany (encore)

Stockholm: A Nightmare To Remember, The Mirror, Lie, Keyboard Solo, Sacrificed Sons, Wither, The Dance of Eternity, One Last Time, Forsaken, The Name Of God, The Count Of Tuscany (encore)