DREADNAUGHT - Hard Chargin' CD Release Show!!

**veteranof1000psychicwars** · 08-19-2017

Hi,
For you folks in New England who can't or won't be attending Progday this Labor Day weekend, Dreadnaught would be thrilled if you could attend the CD release show for their new album, Hard Chargin'!

Billed as "An Evening Of Odd Meters And Slightly Offensive Sounds", the festivities will take place on Friday, September 1st, at the Portland House Of Music, in Portland, Maine. Doors at 8 PM. More info is available at www.dreadnaughtrock.com/events

If you have yet to experience a Dreadnaught live performance, I highly encourage you to attend. You will be rewarded with an evening of mind-blowing musical virtuosity, liberally sprinkled with excellent vocals, with a high level of fun and hilarity on top!

As Tony Levin said after performing with them on NPR, "I'll try not to gush about how good your band is". There's a recommendation for you!

And, you will more than likely get the chance to "Have A Drink With Dreadnaught", which is an opportunity not to be missed...provided it does not lead you into an endless time-loop in another dimension, or an alien dreamscape of your own making.

The new CD, Hard Chargin', as well as many of the band's back catalog discs, and solo and side projects, are available at www.redfezrecords.com

We also highly encourage (in fact, prefer), that if you are willing to plonk down your cash for this fantastic record, that you consider purchasing it from our friends below at:

Wayside Music www.waysidemusic.com

Syn-Phonic www.synphonicmusic.com

and hopefully available from more distributor friends soon, as I ever so slowly get my shit together, as usual.

Thanks for your time, hope you can make it to the show!
Geoff / Red Fez Records

**Sputnik** · 11-06-2017

I got this last week and have given it one spin so far. Have to say I was very impressed with the first listen. It defied and exceeded my expectations of where I thought the band was going based on the first track. Definitely and album worth hearing, I'm looking forward to digging into it more.

Samples here: https://dreadnaughtmusic.bandcamp.com/

Bill

**Scrotum Scissor** · 11-06-2017

Haven't been listening to them since The American Standard, which is a bit of a shame. That's a genuinely *interesting* modern take on the 'progressive rock' vision, and the performance is truly stellar.

So thx for headsup.

**Sputnik** · 11-06-2017

Originally Posted by Scrotum Scissor

Haven't been listening to them since The American Standard, which is a bit of a shame. That's a genuinely *interesting* modern take on the 'progressive rock' vision, and the performance is truly stellar.

So thx for headsup.

I agree with you about American Standard. That album is pretty fresh sounding and quite unique, even today, ~16 years after it was released. They did an album three years after that called Musica En Flagrante. It strays into a lot of very different territory (almost soundtrack-like music at times) and I've never bonded as well with this one. Probably need to revisit.

Hard Chargin' is more in line with what they were doing on American Standard, but still has a somewhat different sound. Need to listen more to put my finger on what is different, but at first blush it seems to have a harder edge and seems a bit more intricate. Definitely a worthy successor to America Standard, which is one I need to revisit as well.

Bill

**Zappathustra** · 11-06-2017

Originally Posted by Sputnik

I got this last week and have given it one spin so far. Have to say I was very impressed with the first listen. It defied and exceeded my expectations of where I thought the band was going based on the first track. Definitely and album worth hearing, I'm looking forward to digging into it more.

Samples here: https://dreadnaughtmusic.bandcamp.com/

Bill

Thanx Bill. That's instantly liked, very interesting and fun stuff.

**Zappathustra** · 11-06-2017

Stuff like Fatta, Fatta Puck Puck could be ommited though. This is not serious enough to be progressive. Progressive rock is intellectual music and this is not intellectual.

**Sputnik** · 11-06-2017

Originally Posted by Zappathustra

Stuff like Fatta, Fatta Puck Puck could be ommited though. This is not serious enough to be progressive. Progressive rock is intellectual music and this is not intellectual.

I'm not certain if you're being serous about this or not. I'm guessing not, given your screen name.

Bill

**Zappathustra** · 11-06-2017

Originally Posted by Sputnik

I'm not certain if you're being serous about this or not. I'm guessing not, given your screen name.

Bill

No man, I am not. I love it actually.

**Sputnik** · 11-06-2017

Originally Posted by Zappathustra

No man, I am not. I love it actually.

You had me for a second there!

**Zappathustra** · 11-14-2017

People should definitely hear this. This is quality music that is fun too, which is not an easy combination.Hell, you can even dance to it. It's far harder than being quality music and serious as fuck. Uncle Frank approves (and this guitar player, he can play everything, and enjoy it too. This is far harder than playing it and not enjoying it).

**Sputnik** · 11-14-2017

Coincidentally just spun this again last night. The last half of the album reminds me a lot of American Standard, not so much in sound, but in feel. It's largely instrumental, largely three piece with periodic other instruments, and Justin is using that same chord/melody approach he does on A.S. To me, this is their best stuff and sort of defines their sound. There wasn't a lot of that on Musica En Flagrante and I'm happy to hear them return to it now, and give us a fresh spin on that sound to boot.

Bill

**Tom** · 11-15-2017

Originally Posted by Zappathustra

People should definitely hear this. This is quality music that is fun too, which is not an easy combination.Hell, you can even dance to it. It's far harder than being quality music and serious as fuck. Uncle Frank approves (and this guitar player, he can play everything, and enjoy it too. This is far harder than playing it and not enjoying it).

I can't be certain about the quality, but this sure is fun. I can see it becoming a guilty pleasure: "Well, I ought to man up and try to finally get my head around Sing to God, but you know what? I think I'll listen to Dreadnaught instead."

Also what is with the bear? It made me think of Bob Drake.

**veteranof1000psychicwars** · 12-13-2017

Originally Posted by Tom

I can't be certain about the quality, but this sure is fun. I can see it becoming a guilty pleasure: "Well, I ought to man up and try to finally get my head around Sing to God, but you know what? I think I'll listen to Dreadnaught instead."

Also what is with the bear? It made me think of Bob Drake.

Hey Tom,
The bear is actually Knut, a little polar bear who you may recall was in the news a few years ago. He makes an appearance in a short story I wrote called "Have A Drink With Dreadnaught"...which inspired the EP title (or was it the other way around?), and the song of the same name (and most of the lyrics) on Hard Chargin'.
Design space prevented its inclusion in the HC cd booklet, but I have been sending copies of it along with discs ordered directly from Red Fez. If it happens that you don't have a copy, here it is:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This has happened to you before.

You feel a familiar, cold, scratchy sensation on the left side of your face....as your consciousness slowly floats to the surface.
Your vision gradually clears...and you find yourself eye-level with the pavement. Once again.

You struggle to your feet, and find yourself enveloped in pea-soup fog.
If you owned a watch, the hands would be frozen.
The blood trickling from your nose and lip is annoying, but not a big deal.

There is a half-full, half-pint bottle of 100-proof Mr. Boston in your coat pocket...which you prudently polish off while pondering your next move.
You hear a cry in the distance. They sound like screams of pain, tinged with a touch of enjoyment. You walk through the fog toward the sound of the screams.
The cries get louder.
You find the source, down an alley, to your left. The fog is gone. Your vision is fuzzy, but you are seeing clearly.
Upside down on a meathook in the alley, is Dennis DeYoung...screeching in Broadway-worthy yowls. With that voice. And...POW!
You see Duane Allman clock Dennis in the balls with a Grand Slam Carlos May model Louisville Slugger.
Why you know this specific, arcane information about the bat Duane is wielding, is unclear....but you know it, regardless.

Duane sees you, smiles, and shouts, "Where you been, brother? That band I want you to see is gettin' ready to go! Go get a drink!". And POW! Again. And again.
You watch for several moments, blank-faced...then nod, with one of those "Hmm" faces.
Relieved that nothing of consequence is occurring in the alley, you stumble a few steps forward...and find yourself in front of a bar, called "The Brain Cell".
The sign on the door says "Come on in...you're already here!!"....but the cute graphic of a brain behind bars strikes you as oppressive and contradictory.
You'd think whoever was in charge would fix that. Ah, well.
But, Duane said to go in...and he called you "brother", which is pretty damn cool, come to think of it. So in you go.

There is a band, "Obscured By Clowns", finishing their set when you walk inside...3 guys. all playing calliopes, smoking weed. Playing "The Nile Song".
Uh..wow, ..you think...did I miss something? Or did I get here just in time?

You wonder, but not for long. As you stare at the stage through the weed haze, you see three extremely handsome fellows begin to quietly set up their equipment. They look familiar. If not in this life, you have undoubtedly had a run-in with them before.
As if to confirm this intuitive thought, the drummer points a stick at you, winks, smiles, and mimes a "glug" motion. You smile back.

Just then, a bespectacled guy onstage, with 5 shirts on, mutters, "Need my bass...".
A man suddenly appears out of the darkness, from behind the PA speakers. He is dressed in a World War I pilot's uniform. He is here in the bar, alive, moving in real time, but his body is in black-and-white. You recognize him, from old war photos. He has a beautiful bass, except for the compromised varnish on the back. It looks like it's been melted off, somehow.
He hands the bass to the gent onstage...who perks up, and says "Thanks, Eddie!".
They seem like interesting fellows.

You turn to the barfront to order a drink...but you pause....you are blocked from the bar by a rolling, massive punch-up.
Peering into the dust cloud, you can pick out John Entwistle, Steve Howe, Chet Atkins, and Janis Joplin. It is a real-life version of an Andy Capp bar brawl., a large ball of chaos from which fists, faces, and feet periodically emerge.......from a massive puffy cloud of dirt and dust, of indeterminate origin.
Even though it is taking place right in front of you, they roll by in slow. violent motion.
You notice as they roll by that white X-shaped bandages appear on their injuries...even though the scuffle never ceases.

Just then, with no introduction, the band onstage begins their set. They open with a number called "Roopy, The Son Of Sons", which is very short, and curiously, composed entirely of rests. It is a quiet number. It ends by consensus...to rapturous applause....and ----boom!
The band thunders into a wicked intense 12 minute version of their unreleased Number One hit, "Who's Got The Pox?"
Hearing the band tear into this number, the Andy Capp combatants instantly decide to reconcile and decide a round of pints is in order. Janis declines the pint and raises a Southern Comfort toast to her punch-up pals.....for trying to give their best in a fistfight. A laughing Tony Levin, sitting at the bar, picks up the tab.

You finally take a seat at the end of the bar. A lanky fellow in cowboy gear next to you turns around and says "Hey, it's me, Hank! Good to see you, friend! Don't tell Miss Ordrey you saw me here!".

If you did know Miss Audrey, whom you don't, you certainly would not rat him out.

Hank turns back to his conversation with Jeff Tweedy, Isaac Asimov, and Tony Iommi.

A socially inept barmaid gives you a look of recognition and brings you a Mason jar of peach moonshine, complete with peach slices.
She stares at you for a moment...and inexplicably tips you 20 bucks. Then.....you have a slug of the greatest moonshine ever known to man. You have several more glorious slugs. You feel quite at home, now.

Suddenly you notice, at your right, the most beautiful woman you have ever seen, in a minidress, with long, flowing black hair. You are unable to not stare. She smiles at you, and says "Hi, I'm Vida". You are paralyzed, and turn back to your Mason jar.

A deep laugh you recognize makes you glance to your left. At a shadowed table in the corner you see Frank Zappa chatting over coffee with a guy who looks like an Italian gangster.....after two seconds, you realize it is Igor Stravinsky, showing Frank his mugshot.
Something moves in Frank's lap....it's a baby polar bear, on his back, wrapped in a poncho, smiling. It's Knut. Frank is cuddling him and scratching his belly.

Finally, your brain goes into "holy shit" mode. Wow, you think, I've never seen anything cuter than that little polar bear.

Just then the cool-looking guitarist onstage announces their next number, "Teddy Eats A Hot Dog", which is as beautiful and intricate as anything you have ever heard.

Duane appears behind you...a tad sweaty...his work done, or just taking a break, perhaps. He claps you on the back and says,
"I'm so glad you made it, brother! Isn't this band great? They're called Dreadnaught. You should hang around, and have a drink with Dreadnaught."
He waves to the band, who instantly play 4 bars of "In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed", then go back into "Teddy".
Peering through what is left of the weed smoke, Duane spots Charlie Christian at a table digging the band. He takes off to say hello, and talk shop, you imagine.

A bit of fresh air to clear your increasingly clouded head seems to be in order at this point...so you step outside. The fog outside has returned.
You can't see two feet in front of you....but it feels good to walk.

Then, somehow...you know he is coming. You brace yourself. The mop of black hair. The sweatshirt emblazoned with a target. It's him. He is 20 years old. He doesn't see you. The two of you slam into each other, in the fog.
Keith grabs your arms and looks at you with that innocent, genuine smile. He is at his best....healthy, and jovial.
"DEAR BOY!" he exclaims. "My my, well now, this club is a bit difficult to find, eh? But, I'm here, and you're here! Let's have a sip of medicine for old time's sake, yes?"
He produces a half-pint bottle of vodka and takes a pull. As he hands you the bottle, you both hear the strains of "905" coming from the band inside the bar.
"AHH! I musn't miss this!!! John should be inside, yes?". Before you can answer, he bolts past you, down the street toward the bar.

Alone, standing in the fog, you take the Keith-mandated shot from the bottle of vodka, then drop it in your coat pocket. You'll whip it out later, when you, Duane, Keith, John, Charlie, Hank, and everyone, raise a toast, and have a drink with Dreadnaught.

That is the last thing you remember.

This has happened to you before.

You feel a familiar, cold, scratchy sensation on the left side of your face, as your consciousness slowly floats to the surface.
Your vision gradually clears...and you find yourself eye-level with the pavement. Once again.....

Geoff Logsdon

© 2017 by Geoffrey Logsdon and Dreadnaught. Permission granted to reprint whole or in part, provided authorship is noted.

**Zappathustra** · 12-14-2017

Honestly, I don't understand lack of interest shown in PE for this beautiful record. Two, three people posting and that's it. This is an excellent achievement and a token of where progressive rock could/should be heading to: not ignoring the variety of contemporary musical tendencies but integrating them (there's even some drum'n'bass somewhere...). To me this band sounds like the American equivalent of Knifeworld, if that makes any sense.

And isn't that a familiar bouzouki at the beginning of phat phat?

**Tom** · 12-14-2017

3 guys. all playing calliopes, smoking weed. Playing "The Nile Song".

**veteranof1000psychicwars** · 12-15-2017

Originally Posted by Zappathustra

Honestly, I don't understand lack of interest shown in PE for this beautiful record. Two, three people posting and that's it. This is an excellent achievement and a token of where progressive rock could/should be heading to: not ignoring the variety of contemporary musical tendencies but integrating them (there's even some drum'n'bass somewhere...). To me this band sounds like the American equivalent of Knifeworld, if that makes any sense.

And isn't that a familiar bouzouki at the beginning of phat phat?

Amen, my friend. It is ironic writ large; that which is truly "progressive" is generally ignored. For further confoundment please check out the band Farquhar.

**veteranof1000psychicwars** · 12-15-2017

....and it's a shame to me that no one will ever really read "Have A Drink With Dreadnaught"...I was hoping it would be explained to me someday.

**adap2it** · 12-15-2017

As a long time fan and friend of Dreadnaught...they have always been a great example of American Prog, no one else like them.

**3RDegree_Robert** · 12-19-2017

Good guys they are too. Their drummer drove quite a while to come and see us play in NH which I'll always remember.

Quick note-before this new LP they put out two EPs.

As for being surprised no one talks much about them it might be their location mixed with slight lack of social media presence, etc. It's very tough to break through especially when there's SO many prog bands putting out stuff even compared to just a decade ago IMHO. That said, they did play ProgDay in '12 and then the ProgDay pre-show (with us) in '13.

**progholio** · 12-19-2017

got a copy of Hard Chargin' on the way because of this thread, sorry, i can't explain why it took so long.

**veteranof1000psychicwars** · 12-19-2017

Originally Posted by 3RDegree_Robert

Good guys they are too. Their drummer drove quite a while to come and see us play in NH which I'll always remember.

Quick note-before this new LP they put out two EPs.

As for being surprised no one talks much about them it might be their location mixed with slight lack of social media presence, etc. It's very tough to break through especially when there's SO many prog bands putting out stuff even compared to just a decade ago IMHO. That said, they did play ProgDay in '12 and then the ProgDay pre-show (with us) in '13.

Thanks for the thumbs-up, man! I know they enjoyed hanging with you guys and playing at the 506.
Just to get your advice, where do you think they (or we...I have taken over their label ops) are lacking social-media wise? They've got a really cool webpage and Facebook page...in your opinion is there something else I can do to increase their 'social media profile'? And I do agree that their being located in a 'geographically challenging' part of the US is a problem.
"Gigging" too far away from their homebase is extremely challenging...for those of you who don't know (and might care), bassist Bob Lord's full-time job is running PARMA Recordings (www.parmarecordings.com), the parent company of label imprints Navona Records, Ravello, Big Round, MMC, and Capstone Records. He's a busy dude! We barely have time to discuss Dreadnaught business/promotion as he is literally almost always off to Poland, Cuba, Czecho, etc.
For anyone further interested, a HUGE feather in Bob's cap was the completion and release of "Method Music" by Lawrence Ball (too much to go into here but it is an album achieved using "The Lifehouse Method" of composition), which he had the pleasure of collaborating with, and co-producing with Mr. Pete Townshend...hence the thanks to Pete on "Hard Chargin", if anyone was wondering.

**veteranof1000psychicwars** · 12-19-2017

Originally Posted by progholio

got a copy of Hard Chargin' on the way because of this thread, sorry, i can't explain why it took so long.

Good on you, Richard, you pal o' mine. I hope it blows your mind! If so, please help spread the word!

(And of all people I thought YOU would like my "Have A Drink With Dreadnaught" story. Bummer.)

**3RDegree_Robert** · 12-20-2017

Originally Posted by veteranof1000psychicwars

Thanks for the thumbs-up, man! I know they enjoyed hanging with you guys and playing at the 506.
Just to get your advice, where do you think they (or we...I have taken over their label ops) are lacking social-media wise? They've got a really cool webpage and Facebook page...in your opinion is there something else I can do to increase their 'social media profile'? And I do agree that their being located in a 'geographically challenging' part of the US is a problem.
"Gigging" too far away from their homebase is extremely challenging...for those of you who don't know (and might care), bassist Bob Lord's full-time job is running PARMA Recordings (www.parmarecordings.com), the parent company of label imprints Navona Records, Ravello, Big Round, MMC, and Capstone Records. He's a busy dude! We barely have time to discuss Dreadnaught business/promotion as he is literally almost always off to Poland, Cuba, Czecho, etc.
For anyone further interested, a HUGE feather in Bob's cap was the completion and release of "Method Music" by Lawrence Ball (too much to go into here but it is an album achieved using "The Lifehouse Method" of composition), which he had the pleasure of collaborating with, and co-producing with Mr. Pete Townshend...hence the thanks to Pete on "Hard Chargin", if anyone was wondering.

They've actually done a good job of getting some interesting gigs up there but looking from down here in the NYC area, Boston and the whole of New England is not too welcoming to prog bands that are based there or want to come up there. No festivals, no reliable promoters, etc. We however did play that one gig at The Hatbox Theater in Concord, NH and will play next year again but it's not a well known place. Some bands are "loud" and "available" themselves, some bands are quieter and let their music speak for them mostly and then there's bands on labels that have surrogates spending money and blasting their name all over the place. Some of the best bands are the quietest and least known and some of the most overrated are ubiquitous at festivals and in Prog Magazine. Social media wise, I guess they're doing alright but it really seems like 50% or less of prog bands have at least one guy really "handling" the non-musical, non-sexy promotional stuff. The bands that have no one in their ranks doing that stuff probably suffer. As good as a band's music is it seems making friends and schmoozing is just as important like it or not. Personally sometimes I like it and sometimes I just want to make music and stay off Facebook, PE, PA, Twitter, etc.

Have to look into the Lifehouse Method!