Gloria Theater, Cologne, Germany1st May 2014
Dredg - El Cielo
US American band DREDG is counting to the most progressive powers in alternative music for one and a half decade now. After an extensive world tour accompanying the release of their latest album, ‘Chuckles And Mr. Squeezy’, the band now offers something very special for their fans. In the course of the German concerts in April and May, the band performs both album classics, 2002 ‘El Cielo’ and 2005 ‘Catch Without Arms’ in full length. Any concert is characterized by one of the albums. So, for example, the band performed in Frankfurt ‘El Cielo’ while Munich stood in sign of ‘Catch Without Arms’. For Cologne, the third station on tour, there were two shows scheduled, on concert per album. The shows in Cologne were both sold-out.
American band DREDG was founded in the mid-90s in the San Francisco Bay area. Back then the band played themselves a name through gigs in their hometown and their demos. DREDG undoubtedly has a special status in contemporary alternative and progressive music. While the debut album ‘Leitmotif’ wouldn’t be named a first favourite by long-time fans even, 2002’s ‘El Cielo’ would bring the four-piece widespread critical acclaim and a huge fan base to the present day. The art-influenced concept album melded a variety of different elements form all kinds of genres to a unique sound. But DREDG weren’t willing to remain at the same level for all eternity and with the follow-up ‘Catch Without Arms’, the sound shifted towards poppier rock while maintaining a loose concept of antagonisms. The following time mainly was marked by touring and studio work to work on the album’s successor which, after several delays, dropped in 2009 with ‘The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion’, continuing in the wake of the last album but with more of an art rock/pop feel to it, supported by a few successful dates. Much to many fan’s surprise, the announcement for the fifth album came quite quickly with the recording taking less time than expected which is why the odd-titled ‘Chuckles and Mr. Squeezy’ is coming out at the end of April 2011. Dredg is Gavin Hayes (vocals, slide guitar, guitar), Drew Roulette (bass, synthesizer), Mark Engles (guitar, backing vocals) and Dino Campanella (drums, piano, organ). http://www.dredg.com / https://www.facebook.com/dredg
Music & Performance
As already said, the show was sold-out and so, short before the first show of the evening was about to start some when between 18:00 and 18:30, the venue was packed and heated up quickly. There was a lot of admiration for the band and the announcement of this double concert (whereof we sadly could only attend the first one) attracted not only German fans. You could also hear people speaking English or Flemish around you. And I guess, there were not many people who had only tickets for one of the shows. Most people were eager to attend both shows. And those two concerts were surely worth all money. Finally, all waiting had an end and the band entered the stage which was tinted completely in red, starting with Salvador Dali, and his painting titled “Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee Around a Pomegranate a Second Before Awakening”; the first letters of this title belonged to the set opener ‘Brushstroke: dcbtfoabaaposba’. Right from the first second, DREDG proved that they are extraordinary musicians. From now on, the while cult album ‘El Cielo’ was performed in chronological order. The concert was based just on the music… on the masterpiece… ‘El Cielo’! There was neither a extraordinary stage performance needed nor an extensive light show. Music was all that counted and the album was masterfully presented. Not to mention the perfect sound in the venue.
The audience was deeply drown into the music… taking far away. And they showed their huge admiration for the band who was rewarded with honouring applause. When the band ended ‘El Cielo’ with its final song ‘The Canyon Behind Her’ they did not leave the stage. There was no need for the usual “encore ritual”. Instead, DREDG stayed on stage to perform two more songs from other albums. As first one we got ‘Pariah’ from ‘The Pariah, the Parrot, the Delusion’ and afterwards a very old piece, ‘Movement V: 90 Hour Sleep’ from the band’s debut album ‘Leitmotif’. When the band afterwards had left the stage, probably anyone wondered if that was all. But well, it was for now… another highlight should follow very soon, ‘Catch Without Arms’ in full-length. But before, anyone had to leave the venue and the entrance ceremony had to start anew…
Setlist
01. Brushstroke: dcbtfoabaaposba
02. Same Ol' Road
03. Sanzen
04. Brushstroke: New Heart Shadow
05. Triangle
06. Sorry but It's Over
07. Convalescent
08. Brushstroke: Walk in the Park
09. Eighteen People Living in Harmony
10. Scissor Lock
11. Brushstroke: Reprise
12. Of the Room
13. Brushstroke: An Elephant in the Delta Waves
14. It Only Took a Day
15. Whoa Is Me
16. The Canyon Behind Her
17. Pariah (not ‘El Cielo’ - from 2009 album ‘The Pariah, the Parrot, the Delusion’)
18. Movement V: 90 Hour Sleep (not ‘El Cielo’ - from 1999 album ‘Leitmotif’)
Rating
Music: 10
Performance: 10
Sound: 9
Light: 5
Total: 8.5 / 10
All pictures by Daniela Vorndran (http://vorndranphotography.com / http://www.facebook.com/blackcatnet)
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