Progpower USA VII 2006 / By Tuno
Tuesday, 11 April 2006 
Ok, let´s talk about this years Progpower USA VII. This excellent prog metal festival based in Atlanta, Georgia, will feature great bands. So far, the list includes:
Evergrey, Mercenary, Freak Kitchen, Savage Circus, Pyramaze, Jorn, Epica, Thunderstone, Vision Divine and Wastefall. All those of you going to the Festival, can expect an incredible show!.
The Pre-party will also be amazing!, we have read from the official Progpower USA VII, that a band from Athens, Geogia called Theocracy, a melodic, power metal band, will be performing live at the show!, also Circus Maximus, Norwegian based progressive metal band, will play live. That’s great news, because last year we had the opportunity to see them and we have to say that they f….. ruled!!!, one of the best performances I ever seen, so a splendid time is guaranteed.
Another band called Leatherwolf - the rejuvenated California metal legends are kicking their comeback intro high gear with a brand new album, due out in May, will also play at the pre-party.
Circle II Circle, a band that played ProgPower USA IV, will return to Atlanta. So, I think we can all expect a hell of a show!!.
Tickets went out on sale on April 1st. Only 900 tickets were made available; according to the official site, as of the 7th of April, only 99 tickets remained, so, we don’t know for sure if there are any more available as of today!!.
Progpower USA VII, like previous years, will be an incredible experience!, only the best of the best get to perform there!, however, one thing we didn’t like about this year Progpower USA VII, are the strict rules established. I was very pissed when I found out that the organizers are not going to allow not just any kind of digital photography. According to the official web page, there will be a one time $10 fee charged at the door. You will be given a bracelet after your camera has been inspected. This bracelet verifies to security that your camera is ok. At this point, it sounds ok, $10 dollars is a fair price to use a digital camera on such an amazing event…. But wait, that’s not all…. You will go through a separate line for digital camera inspection, a list of banned cameras will be made available in the "event details" section one month prior to the festival. If your camera has the option to video over 30 seconds of video, it is banned. If you are caught using your camera for just those 30 seconds of video, you will still be escorted from the venue and not allowed to return. What????????, what the hell!?? This really sucks! And it’s a really stupid thing!! Almost all of today digital cameras have the option to record digital video!, and almost all cameras have the option to record more than 30 seconds of videos!, hell, almost all cell phones have that option…. The question is…. What’s going to happen to people who have cell phones with cameras? Are they going to ban those to?. What is this? And what about if I want to take a picture and to get it right on focus, more than 30 seconds pass… Will I be a suspect of recording video and will be escorted out?.
We understand that there are some copyright laws, but taking a picture or a small video doesn’t hurt anyone or any band, on the contrary, its free publicity. I mean I haven’t seen anywhere a bootleg video of Progpower. We are not talking about Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera!
“No backpacks will be allowed this year, only small camera cases”. WHAT???????????. What about all those who are not from Atlanta? What about those who want to take an extra set of clothes or want to carry personal belongings o some lunch?, come on you guys!
“Flash (regular film) photography is free and you can go through the main line for regular inspection”. Mmmm… I don’t think any person today uses that kind of cameras, well I don’t, I threw mine from the window a couple of years ago, simply because regular film sucks, and almost everyone prefers digital cameras. Additional paid spies in the audience. That really sucks, that is gonna make a lot of people feel very uncomfortable, I mean, you will be looked upon as a suspect of every move you make!
“No Moshing. Period”. What in the #”$&$#””!!/&(=?? I almost had a heart attack!. No moshing? I been attending to rock concerts every since I was 16 and never encountered a rule like this. The organizers claim it’s for security reasons and to avoid lawsuits. I think if some guys want to join the mosh pit, it’s their own decision, and if they break a foot or an arm, that’s their fault and no one else to blame.
ProgPower is an excellent event, one of the best in the world, don’t let rules like encourage metal fans to look somewhere else or even worse, discourage them to attend Progpower.
Well, that’s our opinion!!
Keep the metal scene alive!!
Feel free to drop any comments:
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Commentsi agree
Written by symphonyx on 2006-05-14 04:52:54sorry to say this, but progpowerusa this year sucks!!! , i cant bealive all this new rules, it does not make sense to me and to anyone!
i remember that progpowerusa VI in 2005 the tickets sold out in 3 days!, now, with those new rules, the shit bands that are going to play (vision divine except) there still tickets left!, i cant bealive that!, i mean, dont you get it Glenn Harveston? are you stupid or what! haha i hope next year you realice that you are making a BIG mistake....for the ones that dont know who Harveston is, well, besides of an idiot he is the progpowerusa festival producer...a big boooooooooooooo for him! hehehehe
