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Coming to Town - Live in Katowice
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Dutch Progressive Rock Pages review by Geoff FeakesOliver Wakeman must consider himself to be a very unlucky man at the moment. He should have been halfway through a prestigious tour of the USA replacing his father as the latest in a long line of keys men with Yes. Following concerns over Jon Anderson's health the tour was of course cancelled which is particularly unfortunate as this is the first time in the bands forty year history I can recall that happening. One of several spin offs from the tour would have surely been the inevitable DVD. By way of compensation Oliver's own live DVD has recently hit the shelves. Billed as The Oliver Wakeman Band he is joined by a quartet of musicians some of whom appeared on his most recent Mother's Ruin album from 2005. In my review of the album I noted that the band had already acquired a new bassist and vocalist and as such it would be interesting to see how the songs faired live. The line-up consists of Paul Manzi (vocals and acoustic guitar) David Mark Pearce (electric guitar), Paul Brown (bass) and Dave Wagstaffe (drums and percussion). Almost every track from the last album is included in the set along with a selection of tunes from previous releases including The Hound Of The Baskervilles and Jabberwocky projects co-produced by Wakeman and Clive Nolan. The recording was made at the Wyspianski Theatre in Katowice, Poland which judging by recent releases has replaced Tilburg in the Netherlands as the location favoured by acts and their labels for such events. The band ventured to Poland from the UK specifically to record the concert which took place on 31st October 2007. If both the date and venue sound familiar it's because they shared the bill with Caamora and Pallas whose DVD's were also recorded that same evening. For those of you that hanker for a separate audio experience you'll be pleased to know that it's also available as a double DVD and CD package. I can't comment on the CD but both the audio and picture quality on the DVD are startlingly good in their clarity. The camerawork and editing is professionally executed with a varied combination of full stage images and ample close-ups although as is often the case the lens favours the three leads more than it does the drummer and bassist. There is a particularly impressive shot which is thankfully not overused where in one continuous pan the camera swoops from the rear of the auditorium down to the front of the stage. The lighting is imaginative although with an over emphasis on greens and blues. The band appears almost uniform like dressed in mostly black with only Pearce's purple guitar catching the eye. Oliver's youthful good looks on the other hand are more than capable of turning a few heads. Concentrating on material from Mother's Ruin, the first part of the set is made up of hard rock numbers laced with the occasional ballad like Dangerous World. The end result is more Deep Purple and Uriah Heep in tone than say Yes. That's despite Oliver's keyboard interjections being very similar to Wakeman seniors, especially his rippling piano technique and synth noodlings. Unlike his dad's solo ventures however Oliver plays more of a sideman role allowing the heavy metal vocal and guitar histrionics of Manzi and Pearce a degree of freedom. Oliver also favours a bright and digitally clean sound, there's no gritty Rhodes, fuzzed Hammond or lush Mellotron excursions here. In fact his modest rig looks positively skeletal compared with the legendary stacks pioneered by Rick. The proggier tracks are mostly bundled together in the middle of the set starting with the lively instrumental Three Broken Threads from The Hound of the Baskervilles. Here Wakeman's lighting fast synth agility would make his old man proud. Having made himself scarce for the instrumental, Manzi returns to the stage and acoustic guitar in hand gives a soulful rendition of the reflective Burgundy Rose. Minus points here for the camerawork which fails to acknowledge Brown's fretless bass solo other than glimpses over Wakeman's shoulder. The title track from Mother's Ruin is next up which eschews some of the frills of the album version in favour of an acoustic bias. By this juncture the band really has the audience on their side and they are all clearly moved by the ecstatic response. The last part of the show is book ended by two pieces from Jabberwocky, Enlightenment and Coming To Town. The former skilfully juxtaposes quieter moments with strident guitar driven parts. The highlight of the song (and possibly the show) is a soaring solo from Pearce followed by an infectious chorus where Clive Nolan's influence is clearly present. If You're Leaving is an unashamed tearjerker of a ballad but this version doesn't quite do it for me with Manzi's otherwise fine vocals sounding curiously strangulated here. I Don't Believe In Angels and Wall Of Water raise the heat once more with impressive guitar and keys interplay and finds Manzi in more comfortable Ian Gillan inspired territory. Walk Away is one of the catchier songs on the last album and is no less compelling live with Manzi going all out to whip up the audience's participation in the sing-along chorus. Following a brief exit from the stage and enthusiastic encouragement from the fans, they return for the encore Coming To Town. Not in my view the most inspired of closers but it does allow each musician a stage credit and the opportunity to shine with a short solo. Wakeman makes smart use of the pitch wheel to liven up his synth contribution. As with the Par Lindh Project DVD I covered just a few weeks back Metal Mind have done another superb job with this package. It comes with a short but informative booklet which contains extensive production notes but no pics from the show other than the cover montage. These are included on the DVD however along with a neat array of other extras crowned by an interview with Oliver. In addition to the close resemblance, his easy going anecdotal recollections sound incredibly like his dad. He reveals (unsurprisingly) his early penchant for Deep Purple and Styx, his introduction to Clive Nolan through Mick Pointer and his working relationship with Steve Howe. Talking at length about the recording process he discloses that (unlike many artists) he actually enjoys listening to his own albums. Moving onto the biography section, in addition to the band it thoughtfully includes a page dedicated to each individual member. So there you have it. Although extremely well performed, not for me a set with the strongest of material but certainly one of the best looking and sounding DVD's in the recent spate of releases. Conclusion: 8 out of 10 GEOFF FEAKES |
New Horizons review by Simon HillThe night of October 31st 2007 was a pretty busy night at the Wyspianski Theater in Katowice, and for those that attended the proceedings it is one that will be remembered for a very long time, thankfully for all the right reasons. It was a night that saw performances first from The Oliver Wakeman band, followed by Pallas and then Caamora. With all three shows being recorded for DVD releases there was a lot at stake and little margain for error or overrunning, and so sets had to be performed to a fairly tight time line. With only one full album behind them to date, it is natural that the tracks chosen for the show are predominantly taken from the recent 'Mother's Ruin' release. The set opens with the track 'Don't Come Running' which, as I commented when I reviewed the 'Mother's Ruin' album, sets the tone nicely for the evening's entertainment. This is a solid rock number with runs along at a fair old pace and demonstrates what the band are capable of musically. There is a definite Deep Purple vibe lurking beneath the surface here, and Olivers keyboard sound is superb. Here is a band that captures the spirit of seventies rock but at the same time manages to add a very modern edge to the sound. Although there seems to be a slight degree of nervous tension in the opening number of the set, this quickly passes and the band move from strength to strength as the show progresses. By the time we arrive at the last few numbers there is a real confidence among the band members, who perform so well as a team that it seems that given the chance they would happily have played all night! This spirit is really infectious and the audience reaction is very appreciative! In addition to the material from Mother's Ruin, Oliver Wakeman fans will no doubt be delighted to note that there also four pieces from 'Jabberwocky' and one from 'Hound of the Baskervilles' included in the set, both of these albums Oliver recorded with Clive Nolan. These tracks help to create a very balanced setlist, while at the same time their nature helps to maintain the Rock overtones amd they fit in well with the Oliver Wakeman Band material. Paul Manzi proves to be a real revelation throughout. Although he did not appear on the original Mother's Ruin album recording, the band did record an E.P. to showcase his abilities. He handles all OWB songs with coomensurate ease, and when the band launch into 'Dangerous World' from Jabberwocky early on in the set he proves to be more than up to the challenge. As ever Metal Mind have made excellent use of the various cameras around the hall, and the cuts to different shots from the stage and the auditorium certainly help to capture the atmosphere of the night and it is very easy to imagine yourself there at the heart of the action. As well as the concert footage, the DVD also features a 25 minute interview with Oliver in which he talks about his life in music so far, his influences, and the projects he has worked on so far. The sound quality as far as the interviewer is concerned sadly seems a bit off, as the guy seems to mumble a little and some of the questions I struggled to catch what was being asked, but regardless of that minor quibble, the answers themselves are clear, informative and above all interesting! The disc comes with the usual array of biography, discography, photos and desktop images, which while fairly simplistic are nevertheless nice touches that add to the overall presentation. All in all this is another fine DVD release from the Metal Mind stable and one that should appeal not just to Oliver's existing fan base but also to anyone who has more than a passing interest in rock music. Highly Recommended! Simon - July 13th 2008 |
metalperspective.com review by Stefanos LountzisIt is often said that the children of famous artists never reach the success of their parents. Generally, this viewpoint seems valid, however it does not apply to all cases. We all know Rick Wakeman and it's about time we met his son Oliver, a most gifted keyboardist (how else could it be?) and songwriter. Having already released several personal albums and having teamed up with Clive Nolan and Steve Howe, he felt certain enough to release this live performance of Oliver Wakeman's Band at Katowice. They opened the show, Pallas took the baton and finally that glorious evening came to an end with Caamora. It was one of those nights... Set list includes 13 songs, of which 8 come from "Mother's Ruin" while the others from Wakeman's collaboration with Nolan on "The Hound Of The Baskervilles" and "Jabberwocky". A laconic description of this DVD should be the following: choruses full of 70s hard rock and AOR flavour, while the themes lean towards progressive techniques and soundscapes plus a strong emphasis on melody. Moreover, the show is highly energetic even if 4 songs in the middle are balladesque. One of them of course is "Mother's Ruin" with a remarkable melodic line and an emotionally intensive chorus, and another is "If You're Leaving" a song made under the rules of US AOR. Other highlights are "Agent" which sets off based on prog metal riffs to blossom through its art rock interludes, the hard rocking "I Don't Believe In Angels", the fantastic "Wall Of Water" where a fierce fight between keys and guitar takes place to make room en route for some new age hints. Not to mention "Walk Away" and its AOR-prog heart, all you have to do is listen to how Oliver plays the keys and, in no time, Asia will come to mind. Really enjoyable set list by all means. Wakeman through his Olympian calm, Manzi through his slick vocal performance and Pearce through his poseur look and attitude stole the show that evening. In a time that proggers egos are not as boosted as they used to be, I suggest a third collaboration between Nolan and Wakeman. This would work marvels. Stefanos Lountzis rockarea.eu review by Piotr SpyraAnother DVD published by Metal Mind. Yet again we have a chance to live through in our own homes what fans of progressive playing had a chance to see on October 31, 2007. One of the stars of that evening in the Slaski Theatre in Katowice was the Oliver Wakeman group. I usually approach tapes of concerts, which I have had a chance to see, from the back, so I start with the extras. And that is how I'm going to start this review. Metal Mind as a publisher of concert DVDs delivers again. The album, apart from a typical cover, also has an additional inlet in which one can read about the details of this realisation. The disc itself has a standard set of extras. Traditionally, there is an interview, in this case it is a 25 minute interview with Oliver Wakeman himself. The picture gallery, and I couldn't count how many pictures there were, is somewhat interesting because the pics were taken from almost all possible places in the Theatre... an additional spice are the rehearsal pictures. Of course, the extras had to include information on Oliver's career in the form of a biography and a discography. There is also a traditional set of wallpapers for your computer screen. Unfortunately, this time there were no films from behind the scenes, from the tour, or from other concerts... I must admit that I was disappointed by that... but who knows, maybe the group did not document their tour this way... Let us move on to the main course - the concert of the Oliver Wakeman's band. The film starts with no introductions. When the first letters are shown on the screen, the sounds of the first song hit the speakers. The sensational rocker "Don't Come Running", the first track on "Mother's Ruin", was my personal cert for the concert. One could easily predict that such an energetic song would serve as the opener or the culmination of a concert. In this case the first theory was right. The first thing that one notices is the covered-up side stage sets already in place for the Caamora concert. Wakeman's band has no visual tricks up their sleve. Actually, the lack of additional setting does not bother the viewers for one second because the first song has already heated up the audience. If there were any people not knowing the newest studio album of the band, the second song makes smiles show up on the faces of the more and more eager audience. The second track of the evening is "Dangerous World" from the album "Jabberwocky". After the first adrenaline hit, those whose blood pressure has returned to norm have surely noticed other details than a well arranged set. The side stage sets have narrowed down the stage a bit making the group less spread around it. Oliver, surrounded by the keyboards, was standing on the left. His stage presence may be a bit modest, but the way he plays fully makes up for the lesser commitment to the show itself. The lead singer, and as it later turned out also the person working the acoustic guitar, Paul Manzi, in the very middle. This musician on the other hand has enough charisma for two. Apart from the impression his voice makes, the guy doesn't lack stage presence. Paul can encourage the audience to clap and to sing with him, it has to be noted that the band was the opening act that night and usually such acts are treated like a poor cousin. Of course, a sure advantage of Paul's voice is how well it fits with the songs from both "Mother's Ruin" and "Jabberwocky". Another musician in the foreground is the guitar player David Mark Peace. At the first glance a person from a different era. Violet stratocasters, scarves attached to the belt, make-up, backcombed hair make the musician look like a hard-rock virtuoso from twenty years back... I have to admit that David's image seemed a bit funny at first, but after a few solos, which he extracted from his guitar, one could easily forgive him his eccentric image. During the slower songs the bass player and the drummer, who were more in the back but on a platform, were shown a bit more. But maybe it was me watching them more carefully, because during the ballads Paul Brown played on a fret-less bass, and I am a huge fan of its sound. The drummer calmly beat the rhythms, only towards the end I saw a bit passion in his behaviour when it was time for his solo. There were 8 tracks of "Mother's Ruin", 4 tracks of "Jabberwocky" and just one of "Hound of the Baskervilles", and instrumental, in the set. "Shadows of Fate" awaited by most of the fans I think was not played that night, unfortunately. However, the tracks of the last Oliver's group's album got an extra edge on stage, and they were lacking it in the studio sound. I don't know if its a question of the charisma of the musicians, and the viewer sees it differently, or the guys really did come up with a bit more power. The band coped very well with interpreting the songs from rock opera, and Paul's vocals well replace Bob Catley's voice. The set was arranged very skillfully, and the audience never got bored, even during slower songs. And during the quicker ones, people even started dancing. For me it was a memorable performance, and I am sure that many who were present there at the concert would like to have it on their shelf. I would like to encourage you to buy the version with an extra CD album containing the whole set. The music from this concert is a great listen and it brings great pleasure even without the visuals. If some one has not seen the concert - I strongly advise buying this DVD. It is not only a record of a great performance, one can find hard rock meeting progressive at its best. Many solos (both keyboard and guitar), a pleasant rhythmic section, many memorable melodies, and great versions of the classics of "Jabberwocky". Piotr Spyra Thanks to Lech Jankowski for the translation of the article progarchives.com review by Bob McBeathAnother Katowice concert classic The 31st October 2007 was quite a night at the Wyspianski Theatre in Katowice, Poland. On that night, the charming old building hosted not one but three fine gigs. The centrepiece of the night was Clive Nolan's Caamora making their debut presentation of his ambitious "She" rock opera. Supporting this were Pallas and the Oliver Wakeman Band. Oliver and Clive have worked together several times in the past, so it made a lot of sense for Wakeman's band to play that night, their music being of a type which was bound to please the partisan but appreciative audience. Recordings of the Caamora and Pallas performances have already been released on DVD, so with the arrival of this DVD the unique night has now been captured in full. Given that Caamora's set ran for the best part of two hours alone, it is perhaps surprising to find that we get a full set of 13 songs from Oliver here the gig running to about 75 minutes. This is the first DVD release for Oliver, who chooses the band environment for the excursion. Hence this is not simply an exercise in keyboards wizardry, but a full blown rock band presentation. The five piece line up focus mainly on the 2005 album "Mother's ruin", on which guitarist David Mark Pearce and drummer Dave Wagstaffe also performed. No less than eight of the nine tracks on that album feature in this set. The remaining numbers are taken from Oliver's two collaborations with Clive Nolan, "Jabberwocky" and "The Hound of the Baskervilles". The set gets off to a rousing start with the first track on "Mother's ruin", "Don't come running". There is a sort of Rainbow feel to this song, with singer Paul Manzi sounding reasonably like Ronnie James Dio. While Wakeman's relatively modest keyboards array is naturally fairly predominant in the sound, equal prominence is given here and throughout the gig to Pearce's guitar work. Pearce's style is similar to that of Nick Barrett of Pendragon, the overall sound often being reminiscent of that fine band. The mood soon changes for the fine ballad "Dangerous world" from "Jabberwocky", the lead guitar being particularly appealing here. Manzi turns his hand well to the four Jabberwocky songs included here, displaying admirable versatility with songs originally performed by a variety of singers. The sole track from "HoundÖ" is the instrumental "Three broken threads", which offers Wakeman and Pearce the opportunity to compare dexterity. There are a number of fine ballad style songs throughout the set, including the excellent title song from "Mother's ruin". Towards the end of the gig the band seem conscious of the number of ballads and the desire of the audience to party when introducing "If you're leaving" (Also from "Mother's Ruin"), promising "a few fast ones after this". The song is a superb Journey like number, Manzi now sounding admirably like Steve Perry. Given that he did not sing on any of the songs here when they were first recorded, great credit is due to Manzi for the way he adopts them as his own. He also makes an excellent front man too. "Wall of water" is introduced as the "epic track from the last album" ("Mother's ruin"), the song running to around 11 minutes. Even here, while Oliver does slip into some of the family magic, it is more in the form a Yes like Wakeman/Howe duel, the lead guitar remaining equally prominent. The gig climaxes with the crowd pleaser "Walk away" ("Mother's ruin") and the encore "Coming to town" ("Jabberwocky"), Oliver describing the latter as one of his favourites. While the Wakeman name will naturally attract interest from fans of Oliver's illustrious father, he is very much his own man. He tends to avoid the flamboyant excesses of his father (on stage at least) preferring to remain towards the rear of the limelight. Rick's influences can naturally be found in Oliver's style, but the band environment means that he is happy to simply take his place as a contributor to the overall sound of the band. This in turn results in a highly satisfactory set of great diversity, played flawlessly by a quintet of fine musicians. The sound quality is superb throughout, the 5.1 surround sound capturing the well balanced sound with great precision. The main DVD extra of interest is a 25 minute interview with Oliver, which shows him to be articulate, interesting, and a right chatterbox! Bob McBeath www.bloggernews.net review by Simon BarrettI have been looking forward to this DVD since I first heard about it. Oliver Wakeman is Rick Wakemans oldest son. And like his father has embraced the keyboards as his weapon of choice, and like his father has as chosen the genre of Prog Rock as his starting point. This is the first live DVD of this band, I am a big fan of live performances, the faults can not be covered up and rerecorded, it is what it is. The band itself is made up of Oliver Wakeman on keyboards, I counted four, including a T1 Korg and a Roland XP-30, the other two I couldn't get a good angle on. The Korg I believe came out in 1990, so it is not what you would call cutting edge, but it sure has a nice 'Moogy' sound. Paul Manzi handles the vocals, and does a very fine job. David Mark Pearce is on guitar, Paul Brown on bass, and Dave Wagstaffe supplies the drumming. Many celebs offspring follow in their parents footsteps, and generally speaking they are dreadful! That is not the case with Oliver Wakeman, he has inherited the Wakeman gene for composing, arranging and playing. This DVD showcases a highly competent prog rock band with huge amounts of potential. Mixing prog rock with an almost symphonic quality every track stands out. One of the fascinating aspects of this new generation of prog rock, I guess in this internet centric world we should call it Prog Rock 2.0 is the amazing interaction between bands, they are all one big family. Gone are the days of isolationism, the bands collaborate. Oliver has played with Clive Nolan (Neo, Pendragon) on a number of occasions. Maybe the greatest high, and then the greatest low for Oliver Wakeman has to be some recent events. Yes had decided to do a 40th year anniversary tour, and unfortunately prior commitments prevented Rick Wakeman from joining the tour, Oliver was invited to take his fathers place. Alas Jon Anderson has been sidelined because of medical problems and the tour has been canceled. If you like great prog rock, you will certainly want this in your collection. It is currently available in Europe, and has a US street date of July 8. You can order your copy from Metal Mind Productions (Europe) or MVD (US). Simon Barrett |