NEARfest reflections

[eporter66]

After reading the post on Yezda Urfa, it got me reflecting on NEARfest, and so I listened to the live Steve Hackett and Miriodir CDs from NEARfest....and just thought about all the great weekends over the years. I sure miss that festival, and remember how cool it was waiting for the announcements. Not that it was ever hard to decide to go, but all the speculation, and then hearing the announcements start rolling in. What great times - thanks for the memories Chad, Rob, Kevin and all involved. I am having a NEARfest day as I sit and work on a final paper for a course I am taking.

Are there any possibilities of more releases from NEARfest records? These are some really good shows, and I know there are more out there we would love to hear.

[rcarlberg]

In the past two weeks I have picked up DVDs of the Isle of Wight Music Festival (1970) and Monterey Pop (1969) and I already had Woodstock (1969). In each case the festivals were financial disasters, in part due to audience feeling that the music should be free. The promoters of course shelled out a lot of money to make them happen.

I know the ProgmanCometh festivals in Seattle (2002 & 2003) lost a lot of money, causing the bankruptcy of the guy who put them on. I can't imagine that most festivals are big moneymakers, unless they're something like Lollapalooza with big corporate sponsorship. Which changes the whole dynamic, attracting a vastly different crowd.

Which is too bad. Bringing a lot of bands together for a weekend seems like a great idea. Just one of those things you wish you could make work, but all the elements seem to be aligned against it.

[Mr. Toad]

NEARfest used to be the Event of the Year. I looked forward to it more than going to Ocean City, fishing or the beginning of the NFL season. We would go into our offices at work so we could get the maximum 'Net speed when NF tickets went on sale.

My first NF ’01 was the best musically but the only person I knew there was Scott but then we met up with Lynnette of The Red Masque at the pre-show. I was in awe of The Red Masque because I had NEVER heard music like that before and the next day Birdsong of the Mesozic came on, I knew this was going to be an excellent festival and it was with Porcupine Tree as my main attraction.

The rest of the NFs I attended were a fantastic time of drunken debauchery with some of the coolest people I have ever met and sometimes we went to see a band or two. Hanging out at the Micro-Tel picnic or the top parking lot at Lehigh are the best memories I have of NF. There was Vinnie, Supp, Lino, Lurch, Scott, Mark Bailey, Sarah, Lynnette and the band, Ed, Oog, several other Scotts, Floyd, Sean and the rest. (I am sorry if I forgot someone. I have a horrible memory for names)


I most certainly miss those days and I am sure I am not alone with missing NEARfest.

[Fracktured]

Even though the first NF in Bethlehem wasn't my favorite I think it provided me with the most memorable moments. I'll never forget that hot hot weekend. I think the temperature was 99 degrees. I didn't get home until 3am Monday morning and left for work at 5am. I was so tired, but most likely not even half as tired as Chad and Rob must have been. It was the first prog festival I ever attended and didn't know what to expect but came away with enough memories to look forward to each year with anticipation. Over the years it became harder and harder for me to get time off from work to attend and ended up missing many acts that I will always regret missing especially Hemet of Gnats. I do miss those wonderful weekends though.

[SteveSly]

I was lucky enough to make it to all of them, as well as having tickets to the aborted one. Great memories and made some great friends. Too many standout performances to list.

[mozo-pg]

It was the premier festival. Since it's end, I've been attending Terra Igcognita in Quebec City. Really looking forward to it in a few weeks! I don't have the stamina or patience to sit through multiple bands so I pick the 2 I like the most for each day. Wait, this is about NF, right? A great fesitival indeed. There was nothing like it and there will never be. Even though I don't drink I did make it to the Microtel and the top of the hill.

[Firth]

Nearfest 2002 was my first, bad seats at the back of the balcony, but bands were great. Skipped 2 years and then in 2005 my first Zoellner show was perhaps my favorite.

IQ
Present
Steve Roach
Frogg Café
Wobbler
Le Orme
Kenso
Matthew Parmenter
The Muffins
Knight Area
PFM
Proto-Kaw

Skipped 2006 and then made every one after that. Great run. Will there ever be festivals as good, I think so, but it won't be Nearfest. Rosfest and Progday don't get the big classic names like Nearfest did, but Rosfest has become more successful and perhaps if the big classic prog names are around, maybe we will see more there. I'd like to see more prog fusion, and if Rosfest could book Kenso, oh how great that would be.

[rickawakeman]

I agree with Fraktured, '99 will always stand out for me as my first fest, no expectations, the Sunday morning surprise, the no-reserved seats coolness...can never have your first twice. Of course I loved the many subsequent iterations I was able to attend as well, but I'll always have a special place in my heart for the first.

[wilcox660]

It was never perfect, but it was always perfect.

[Werbinox]

Two absolutely stellar moments stand out in my mind: seeing Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso play one of the greatest sets Ive ever seen, and a wild drunken sing-a-long with Mike Keneally in some hotel lobby after his show. My great memories of these events could fill a book, but these two come to mind immediately.

[Werbinox]

Also seeing Nektar perform "Nelly the Elephant" and all of "Recycled", and Magma. Just damn!

[Prog Lives]

i wonder what the possibility is for a NEARfest reunion; such as on the 5 year anniversary from Apocalypse?

What a great formula these guys created. Always a diverse line up, something for everyone, located in high prog fan density area, in a perfect venue, and extremely well organized.

I'm sure this is a ridiculous amount of work and it's always a risk to the legacy to have a restart but yolo and I'd be shocked if there wasn't an itch that needed scratching in foundersville.

One can dream

[Steve F.]

i wonder what the possibility is for a NEARfest reunion; such as on the 5 year anniversary from Apocalypse?

What a great formula these guys created. Always a diverse line up, something for everyone, located in high prog fan density area, in a perfect venue, and extremely well organized.

I'm sure this is a ridiculous amount of work and it's always a risk to the legacy to have a restart but yolo and I'd be shocked if there wasn't an itch that needed scratching in foundersville.

One can dream

Not meant to be insulting, but:
Spoken like someone who never did something really hard for a period of time, saw it through to the end (their definition of the end) and put it to rest.

[zombywoof]

For us, things like NEARfest are vacations. For the people who organize them, they are really hard work and a financial and logistical headache / nightmare. I remember on the old PE, Rob posted the Visa process for getting VdGG to play and it was ridiculously staggering to pull off. And it's easy forget that, despite the extremely professional production, these guys all have day jobs and families and lives beyond our beloved festival. Do I miss it? Absolutely. I can't possibly understand exactly how they feel, but I do try to think in their shoes and despite how much I wish NEARfest would return, I can understand why they don't want to do it anymore.

[nearfest]

yolo and I'd be shocked if there wasn't an itch that needed scratching in foundersville.

yolo? That's why whoever was in the leadership team did this sheer lunacy 13 times.

itch that needed scratching? my butt itched so hard last night it kept me awake

so totally done with the stress of this.
lovely to hear about fond memories though :-) I have many, many, many lifelong memories from NF that I will always cherish.

[Plasmatopia]

I only made it to the last four, but those are some great memories. No other festival I've been to has felt the same.

Seeing how well it was put together...I can only imagine how much work it was. And I completely understand the desire to eventually say it was time to end on a high note.

[eporter66]

I only made it to the last four, but those are some great memories. No other festival I've been to has felt the same.

This says is all - nothing has ever felt the same!

[eporter66]

yolo? That's why whoever was in the leadership team did this sheer lunacy 13 times.

itch that needed scratching? my butt itched so hard last night it kept me awake

so totally done with the stress of this.
lovely to hear about fond memories though :-) I have many, many, many lifelong memories from NF that I will always cherish.

Glad you enjoy our stories about what a great time in our lives this festival created! My favs were the early years 2000-2003 - HTM (dream come true), (2001) Seeing PT for the first time, and discovering Birdsongs, (2002) meeting the guys in echolyn, seeing them live for the first time, and hearing MEI live (and listening to the CD all the way home), plus Steve Hackett!! (2003) Camel...enough said!

[NogbadTheBad]

Only got to two NF's '10 & '12, though I had tickets for '11. Great festival, got to meet a lot of online friends in person for the first time, & see a bunch of great bands. Highlights of the first one Forgas Band Phenomena (who I did not know at all), The Enid, Three Friends, Moraine & Steve Hackett.

[zombywoof]

NEARfest changed my life in about 100 different ways. If not for the experiences I had and friends / connections I made, I honestly think my life would be quite different. There would likely be no Deep Cuts, and I probably wouldn't have anywhere close to the interest I have in modern prog (seeing Gosta Berlings Saga is a pivotal, crucial moment in my musical experiences).

That means, no yearly ProgDay excursions ... And I probably wouldn't have gone to NYC to see Magma or Baltimore to see the Orion fest. I would never have bought the Romantic Warriors documentary on a whim, either, so I probably wouldn't care about avant prog / RIO. Heck, I probably wouldn't even have a PE account (as I joined for NEARfest updates / discussion). So yeah, NEARfest is important to me.

[Firth]

The big reflection:

NEARfest Apocalypse (2012)

U.K., Renaissance, Van der Graaf Generator, Änglagård, Mike Keneally Band, Twelfth Night, Il Tempio delle Clessidre, Gösta Berlings Saga, Helmet of Gnats, and Aranis

NEARfest 2011 (cancelled)

NEARfest 2010

Steve Hackett, Eddie Jobson's Ultimate Zero Project, Three Friends, The Enid, Riverside, Pineapple Thief, Iona, Forgas Band Phenomena, Astra, and Moraine

NEARfest 2009

PFM, Gong, Van der Graaf Generator, Steve Hillage Band, Trettioåriga Kriget, Beardfish, DFA, Cabezas de Cera, Oblivion Sun, Quantum Fantay

NEARfest X (2008)

Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Liquid Tension Experiment, Fish, Peter Hammill, Synergy, echolyn, Discipline, Radio Massacre International, Mörglbl, and Koenji Hyakkei

NEARfest 2007

Magma, Hawkwind, Pure Reason Revolution, Magenta, La Maschera di Cera, NeBeLNeST, Indukti, IZZ, Robert Rich, and Bob Drake
(Progressive Arts Preshow: Allan Holdsworth, Secret Oyster and One Shot)

NEARfest 2006

Keith Emerson, Ozric Tentacles, Ange, FM, Michael Manring, Richard Leo Johnson, Niacin, Riverside, Guapo, and KBB
(Progressive Arts Preshow: Hatfield and the North and The Tony Levin Band)

NEARfest 2005

Le Orme, IQ, Present, Kenso, Steve Roach, Matthew Parmenter, The Muffins, Frogg Cafe, Wobbler, and Knight Area
(Progressive Arts Preshow: PFM and Proto-Kaw)

NEARfest 2004

Strawbs, Univers Zero, Mike Keneally Band, Planet X, Richard Pinhas, Sean Malone, Metamorfosi, Pallas, Yezda Urfa, and Hidria Spacefolk
(Progressive Arts Preshow: The Musical Box)

NEARfest 2003

Camel, Magma, The Flower Kings, Änglagård, Kraan, Tunnels, Glass Hammer, Alamaailman Vasarat, High Wheel, and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum
(The Laser's Edge/Cuneiform Records Preshow: Miriodor, Woodenhead, and IZZ)

NEARfest 2002

Steve Hackett, Nektar, echolyn, Caravan, Isildurs Bane, Enchant, Miriodor, Gerard, La Torre dell'Alchimista, and Spaced Out
(The Laser's Edge/Cuneiform Records Preshow: McGill/Manring/Stevens, Doctor Nerve, and Dysrhythmia)

NEARfest 2001

Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Porcupine Tree, Deus Ex Machina, After Crying, White Willow, California Guitar Trio with Tony Levin, Djam Karet, Birdsongs of the Mesozoic, The Underground Railroad, and Under the Sun
(Independently organized preshow: Land of Chocolate, The Red Masque, Electric Sheepdog and Wine of Nails)

NEARfest 2000

Transatlantic, Happy the Man, Anekdoten, Pär Lindh Project, Iluvatar, Il Balletto di Bronzo, DFA, Thinking Plague, North Star, and Nexus
(Official Preshow: echolyn and Priam)

NEARfest 1999

Spock's Beard, IQ, Solaris, Mastermind, Larry Fast, Crucible, Scott McGill's Hand Farm, Ice Age, Alaska, and Nathan Mahl

[Firth]

I wish I had seen them all, but until 2000 I thought prog had died, and then HTM reunited and played an Orion show with Iluvatar. Knowing the HTM were playing at Nearfest, I learned about it, but stayed home because I got to see HTM here. 2001, I think sold out before I tried to book. 2002, Hackett attracted me, but I didn't get to buy tickets early enough and ended up in the back of the balcony with bass keys dropping plaster from the ceiling.

[Steve F.]

I saw 2000 - 2008, and then 2010 & 2012.

I worked at the festival through 2007 and consequently missed a lot of bands I would have liked to have seen (the list posted above reminds me of how many I didn't see due to work and/or exhaustion). Even so, I saw a boatload of great stuff.

It was much more fun attending and not working, though! I can say that with utter sincerity!

[Digital_Man]

I was lucky enough to make it to all of them, as well as having tickets to the aborted one. Great memories and made some great friends. Too many standout performances to list.

I made it to seven proper Nearfests(99-03 then 07 and 12; I had to sell my ticket for 08) plus several of the pre shows(I think I only missed about 3 or 4 of the pre shows). I had a great time for the most part. I think out of the shows I attended(not counting pre shows) the only bands I missed were the first two bands in 02(La Torre dell alchimista and Miriodor) which was due to my roomate and I oversleeping.

[Digital_Man]

i wonder what the possibility is for a NEARfest reunion; such as on the 5 year anniversary from Apocalypse?

What a great formula these guys created. Always a diverse line up, something for everyone, located in high prog fan density area, in a perfect venue, and extremely well organized.

I'm sure this is a ridiculous amount of work and it's always a risk to the legacy to have a restart but yolo and I'd be shocked if there wasn't an itch that needed scratching in foundersville.

One can dream

Well you never know. Anything is possible I suppose. The thing is there are currently other festivals such as Rosfest who are doing a great job at the moment.