Orphonic Orchestra

This was in regards to the M.A.R.S. Progressive Metal Fest that we played at on June 9th. The full article can be read at: http://usaprogmusic.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=69&Itemid=1

"Orphonic Orchestra 11:45 AM (Scheduled for 11 – 11:45 AM)

This band was very good; almost too good to be an opener. It was also gender neutral as the guitar and drums were piloted by men while the singing and bass were captained by women. This includes Kassandra (vocals), Johnny Mars (guitars, vocals), Chad Novell (keys, vocals), Desiree (bass), and Bryan Bloodsoaker (drums).

Kassandra's voice sounded fabulous in sound-check. It turns out she is classically trained and a student of opera. They were all spot on, but the bloody drumming was unusually solid. While this band was responsible for the late start, you could say the additional preparation paid off.

The most interesting aspect of the band is that they had literally no persona before and after each song. Yet, when they played, they had plenty of stage presence and charisma. This goes to show a lot in terms of a musician's pretend façade, pretense, and guise, but they did much more than going from introverted to outgoing. The phenomenon was closer to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

For Progressive Rock, the songs were extremely hard-hitting. Novell's keyboards and the tight compositions gave this simple outfit their glamour. George Roldan (promoter of RoSfest who sat in at these events) said the band sounded like Brave. I also heard it mentioned that Kassandra was an American version of Marcelo Bovio. Not to mention, Novell and Mars had lots of energy and hit difficult notes too. I would consider them a less tactful Mostly Autumn with Stream of Passion at the helm.

At one point, Mars said it was weird how they were tired from playing and still not awake yet. In some ways, this was the mantra of the festival and they dunked the fool who taunted them on his first throw.

Mars talked about how they started with a violinist who left the band. Novell joined them on keyboards, which resulted in a more complete sound. There is a reason this format of drums, bass, guitar, and keys works, and I think his contributions really tied everything together. They played a song that required the guitarist to fill-in for the part originally played with a violin. The difference was unnoticeable. Come to think of it, the disparity was negligible. Likewise, the acoustics in the theatre complemented their sound.

Altogether, Kassandra sang with honesty and emotion. The bassist was the weakest link, but helped the others stand out. She deserves a feather in her cap as she was sturdy and reliable

Orphonic Orchestra is a great name for a band and it fit, and no, that sentence is not out of order. I tend to be critical of female singers. I have often heard others contend that this tone and range is a dime a dozen, but Kassandra's voice was one of the better ones. In many ways, she is a heavy metal Dolores O' Riordan. Evanescence and Nightwish are the influences they name, and they aren't too far from the mark either.

The concluding song was different from the others. As it turns out they quintessentially saved the best for last. It was catchy, accessible, but still progressive. They could have been accused of going mainstream, but it was definitely deviated from the bell curve's median. This song hit upon the punk of Green Day and Red Hot Chili Pepper's at times. What's more, many operatic notes were intertwined. As they rocked out, they whipped their long hair around. This cherry bomb splattered their traits throughout the spectrum.

As for style, they wore mostly Harley Davison attire. This wasn't all for show as they were later found with helmets in their hands. Some were even seen driving away from the scene on motorcycles.

Their only failing had to do with the sound engineering. It was pristine at the beginning and got unnecessarily louder later one. Sometimes you have to leave the controls alone.

All around, I really enjoyed this act. Looking back, it wasn't that the music was complex. It was just well-executed and it came with some very strong guitar solos that reminded me of Bryan Josh (interesting last name, huh?). For an un-established band, everything had unnaturally-accurate timing. Personally, I found them impressive and others shared my opinion. I had to wonder, "Did they schedule the best band first?"

At this point in the morning, there weren't many in the crowd, but they played as if there were many. After Kassandra's set, she had to scuttle away to another gig with, if you can believe it, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. If that doesn't say Progressive Rock, what does?

8.5/10" - Written by Josh Turner for www.usaprogmusic.com