Thu, May 25 - 8pm - $10adv/$12door

Detroit-based prog/metal band Imminent Sonic Destruction, was formed in 2008 during an unexpected lunar eclipse, which wiped out vast swaths of humanity and ushered in the so-called New Age of Progressive Super Metal. Maybe you remember. It was a Tuesday.  Even though some of that is made up, the band was initially formed around the strong songwriting of guitarist/vocalist Tony Piccoli, and consists of Pat DeLeon (drums), Pete Hopersberger (keyboards/vocals), Bryan Paxton (bass) and Scott Thompson (guitar/vocals). Imminent Sonic Destruction’s sound is a satisfying blend of styles, at times melodic, complex, epic and crushingly heavy, drawing on the members’ various influences, which cover the full spectrum of prog, rock, and metal.  Imminent Sonic Destruction recorded and released their debut full-length CD, Recurring Themes, in 2012 to critical acclaim. Based on the strength of that album and an energetic live show, they toured North America with prog giants Pain of Salvation and Fates Warning, among others.  In between tours, the band spent time excitedly writing and demo-ing a diverse collection of songs. Which brings Imminent Sonic Destruction to 2016, and the announcement of Triumphia, an ambitious concept album featuring over 69 minutes of music, including the 22+ minute epic “Arborous Calm.” Triumphia will be released worldwide on Luxor Records on September 2, and features artwork by acclaimed artist Travis Smith.

District 97 is undoubtedly the most musically adventurous rock band in the world to feature an American Idol Top 10 Female Finalist. Formed in the Fall of 2006 by drummer/primary composer Jonathan Schang, keyboardist Rob Clearfield, bassist Patrick Mulcahy and guitarist Sam Krahn, the band drew upon influences from heavy metal to avant-garde jazz. The foursome from Chicago honed a no-holds barred style of eclectic and intricate Instrumental Rock before deciding the right vocalist was needed to complement their sound: enter 2007 American Idol Top 10 Female Finalist, Leslie Hunt. With a look, sound, and stage presence comparable to a young Ann Wilson from Heart, Leslie's dynamic performances pushed the band into a new direction that forged a unique marriage between accessible, catchy vocal melodies and an adventurous instrumental prowess. She was followed shortly thereafter by one of Chicago's finest guitarists, Jim Tashjian. With this new blend of charisma and stellar musicianship in place, their live shows over the past several years at festivals such as RoSfest, Prog Dreams II and V, and numerous appearances across the USA, UK and Europe cemented the band as a force to be reckoned with onstage as well as in the recording studio.Hybrid Child, the band’s 2010 debut on record label Laser’s Edge, immediately made a big impression worldwide. The album garnered praise such as “District 97 is a wildly ambitious progressive-rock group whose youth belies its accomplishments onstage and on its new Hybrid Child CD” (Jim Derogatis of NPR's "Sound Opinions" and Rolling Stone Magazine). The release of 2012's critically-acclaimed followup Trouble With Machines proved the band was the real deal. They had attracted the attention of legendary bassist and vocalist John Wetton (King Crimson/UK/Asia), who sang the role of Chicago serial killer H.H. Holmes on Schang’s “The Perfect Young Man.” With the collaboration heralded as a “tour de force” (dprp.net), the band and Wetton joined forces in 2013 for tours of both Europe and the US, later documented on 2014's live release, One More Red Night: Live in Chicago. 2013 also saw the band nominated for a Breakthrough Artist Award by Prog Magazine. Rather than rest on their laurels, District 97 took to the studio in 2014 to record the new material they'd been honing at home and on the road. The resulting album, In Vaults (released June 2015), continued and accelerated the upward trajectory of great songwriting and incredible musicianship that had become their hallmark.In August 2015, Rob Clearfield and Patrick Mulcahy left the group and were succeeded by Andrew Lawrence and TIm Seisser, respectively. The new lineup debuted in highly successful tours across Europe and North America in 2016 and 2017, with highlights including joining the trailblazing prog rock band Yes on their Cruise To The Edge and supporting Pain of Salvation on the In The Passing Light Of Day North American tour. In 2016. District 97 launched the Inside The Vault Club via their website, a monthly subscription series featuring exclusive audio and video downloads, as well as physical releases, the first of which being their stunning Live At De Boerderij DVD. They joined the Dave Kerzner Band for the joint STATIC VAULTS US tour in Fall 2017, and ended the year with a pair of shows with the NYC-based Consider The Source.2018 saw the band complete a much-lauded North American 10th Anniversary Tour, as well as completing tracking for Screens, their highly-anticipated fourth studio album, and first with the new lineup. Released October 2019 through the UK's venerable record label Cherry Red, the band featured music from it to great acclaim on Cruise To The Edge, and will continue to do so at Marillion Montreal Weekend, Seaprog, Summer's End, and other dates throughout North America, UK, and Europe in 2019. One listen perfectly illustrates why iconic drummer Bill Bruford (Yes/King Crimson/Genesis) said, “It’s almost intimidatingly skillful; tremendous refinement on previous work – you’re doing what you do only better. Great recording sound." Mike Portnoy (drummer extraordinaire of Dream Theater/Transatlantic/Liquid Tension Experiment) adds "District 97 continue to prove to be one of the most unique bands in modern Prog!

 Nomadic came together as a result of Eric and Tom's desire to create some music inspired by their mutual love of classic progressive rock, along with other styles that exhibit texture, dynamics, free-form creativity, and originality. They decided early on to go for it without a full-time keyboardist, but wanted another element to keep from being "another power trio" so to speak. That's where Chuck comes in. A fully trained classical musician who has done extensive theater work, and has performed with the CSO, Chuck has another side. With his 7 string violin through a full blown guitar rig, Chuck can go from beautiful violin melodies, to over-driven power chords.  Henry and Tom have worked together with a variety of artists, both on stage, and in the studio, and have a great working relationship and understanding of each others' playing. Henry's impeccable timing, and solid, hard hitting style made him an easy choice for the drummer position. As a trained pianist, he also understands music and song structure as a whole.  Eric's versatility and theoretical knowledge make for some great dynamics in the guitar department. A true "texturalist", he goes from clean, complex chords voicings, to shredding leads and crunchy rhythms.  Tom adds his multi-tasking skills to the mix. Primarily a bass player, he also adds texture by way of bass pedals triggering various synth patches, and is also the group's lead vocalist. Originally a mostly instrumental band, Nomadic is gradually finding more and more vocal tunes coming into the mix.

 What words define the Edensong sound? Even a term as unwieldy as “epic orchestral progressive acoustic metal-infused rock” does little to categorize Edensong’s music.  Edensong draws deeply from classic symphonic progressive acts, with complex song structures that resemble those of early Genesis or Yes, but Edensong does not simply rehash the music from this Golden Age of prog rock. Edensong experiments with wide-ranging musical styles, adding orchestral instruments like flute, violin and cello into the mix of a versatile hard rock band. With what other act would you hear heavy metal guitar riffs, a classical guitar, flute and cello chamber trio, a full church organ, and North Indian tabla playing all in the span of a single album?  Edensong’s music can be as serenely melodic as the music of Simon and Garfunkel and Cat Stevens, or as aggressive as that of Metallica or Opeth. Not even Jethro Tull (another important influence for the band) is quite as eclectic. Using sophisticated and unpredictable compositions, not unlike the large scale works of Dream Theater or Rush, Edensong’s music tells a story, at times attaining the epic feel of the scores of Hans Zimmer or Nobuo Uematsu, while at others achieving a “folkier” simplicity, a singer/songwriter sound that might be more reminiscent of Billy Joel or The Beatles.  Edensong gains inspiration from many styles and eras of music, whether it be from the millennium-long history of Western classical music or the past half-century of rock. While influenced by so many from Gregorian chant to grunge, Edensong rejects any superficial trend in pop music and instead forges its own path through the droves of homogenous sound-alike acts. Edensong, along with a handful of other new bands, such as The Mars Volta, Coheed and Cambria, Three, and Dredg among others, attempts to creatively revitalize rock music in a movement away from the corporately-constructed “mainstream” and toward artist-driven freedom and true originality.