31 October, Northern Progfestival, Westcord Hotel Leeuwarden

 

Where I usually opt for concerts by one band, at most with support act, on one evening I decided to go to the renewed Northern prog festival because I finally wanted to see Karfagen, Antony Kalugin's band, live. Fortunately, I was able to convince good friend Erno to come along and he came up with the idea to spend the night in the same hotel where the festival would take place, the Westcord in Leeuwarden. I used to go to Bakkeveen regularly because the first festivals were organized there under the name Northern prog. Nowadays I'm much more critical, and if there are four bands on the bill, I have to find at least two of them worth making the trip.

After some changes, the next four bands remained on the bill.

The Ceres Phenomenon, of which I knew the music, and I also own CDs of its predecessor Timelock . Although nice, I didn't have such high expectations.

Cambrian, a band from Eindhoven with young guns that probably make too heavy prog for me and I had no expectations of this at all.

Karfagen, the reason for me to go.

Quantum Fantay, the Belgian space rock band with a harder edge. I had just bought their latest album (The Butterfly Effex) and I sometimes play it loud to get into higher spheres. Not exactly my thing but sometimes very nice.

After a successful trip we checked in and went to the first floor where you could feel the relaxed atmosphere and there was plenty of opportunity to catch up with many people you otherwise don't or hardly see or speak. There were also plenty of band members who took the time to talk to people. Of course there were merchandise stands but since I have all the CDs I want we skipped those. After a few tasty beers, it was time for The Ceres Phenomenon. In the spacious hall it was already noticeable that there were not too many people, estimated to be about a hundred or maybe just a little more. Far too little of course, but well, that happens more and more often, unfortunately. The band around Ruud Stoker and Julian Driessen played several songs from their 2025 debut album. Unfortunately the sound was not very good, the drums were put in the mix way too loud so that guitar and keys were difficult to hear and Stoker's vocals could hardly be distinguished. I missed passion and so it remained a performance that didn't touch me that much and I think this was true for more people given the somewhat lukewarm reactions. In their defence, it is definitely not easy to kick off such a festival at half past three in the afternoon.

After we had eaten a meatball sandwich, the catering was fine by the way (the alternative choices were “snert” (Dutch pea soup) , hot dog or nachos with salsa topping), it was time for the band that attracted me the least beforehand, Cambrian. The music is clearly prog metal but with some moments of introspection from time to time. The young guys played with dedication and enthusiasm and that in front of a room with a lot of old men. The appreciation from the audience was therefore certainly justified. Nice to see that such young guys provide variety on this festival. Not really my music, especially with the grunts and screamy vocals, but still I enjoyed it somehow. They played their debut album Oceans away in its entirety. Here too the drums were quite dominant by the way, that could/should certainly have been done better.

And that it could be done much better became immediately clear when Antony Kalugin entered the stage with his band Karfagen. What a perfect sound and what a passion. This is what I had come for. The optical part was also well taken care of, both female singers (Olga and Maria) not only sing really fantastic but also provide a beautiful, very beautiful, picture. Anton Bursakov was the guitarist on duty and he just plays fantastic, by the way, the whole band is really of a very high level. As a booster, Kalugin went to the limit and his singing was good, assisted by both ladies. But above all, he is of course a gifted keyboard player and composer. Because of the short duration of the set, less complex tracks were chosen with occasionally a high sing-along content. It is understandable that they did not play some of the very long tracks from their albums but I would have liked to hear some of them. But in the end, it was a feast for the ears and eyes, a top set! When you think about what this band has to do to be able to play here, my admiration only increases. If you have released so many class albums you just deserve more, period.

After having eaten something, and indeed, also a few beers, it was time for the Belgian men of Quantum Fantay. I'm not so fond of completely instrumental music, I just miss the vocals as a counterpart to the instrumental pieces. But boy, can these guys play. With banging drums, which were now perfectly put in the mix, and a roaring bass, the foundation for the escapades of keyboardist Pete Mush and guitarist Tom Tee (aka Tom Tas) was perfectly laid. The music thundered into the room and at what a pace they played at times. Star of the band is guitarist Tom Tee, who frequently showed his qualities with super-fast solos and sharp riffs. The invitation, "dancing is allowed", was taken to heart by some men, but to say that this was aesthetically completely responsible, well no. All in all a great ending to a successful (at least musically) festival.

There will be another festival next year and of course it remains to be seen which bands can be booked. I found the location to be perfect and the catering was also well taken care of. It's just a pity that there weren't more visitors, that would certainly increase the atmosphere and the organization would really deserve this (thank you very much again for doing a great job).  Such a shame. But never the less , prog on people!