Photograph by Ian D. Hall.

Originally published by L.S. Media. September 5th 2010.

The world of Progressive Rock has moved on someway over the last few years with only the bravest and best from the previous century retaining and moving on with their fan base.

Newer groups such as The Reasoning have taken the genre to new pastures where it is flourishing and attracting an audience unheard of back in the time when Ark decided to finally call it a day in 1995, however; when you have something to say and an audience keen on reliving some of the finest Prog to come out of the Midlands then it’s advisable to give those thoughts an airing and see what happens.

The guys kicked of a night of high theatrics, superb musicianship and a bucket load of fondness with a song from their new album Wild Untamed Imaginings, the bouncy Gaia which saw lead vocalist and flautist Anthony Short come on stage and announce in no uncertain terms that they were back.

The band concentrated for much of the set on the new album which saw a delightful return to the fold for John Jowitt on bass. To see him alongside Steve Harris on guitar left a lump in the collective throat of those assembled and it was a sight to see the years rolled back in an effective and cheerful way.

The songs that were played flowed so well that they could have jammed on well into the night delivering such tunes as Flag Day, the energetic Hagley and the jaw dropping Coats of Red were interspersed with tales, costumes and the appearance of a wolf, all of which captured the audience’s imagination.

By popular consensus the band managed to take the loyal and energetic audience through the awkward stage of re-appearing on stage again after such a long departure and offer a fantastic evening that sent the message out that the lads from Ark still have something very tangible and real to offer the general public, not least a sense of fun which is sometimes missing from other bands.

The Midlands answer to Prog ended a top night with the storming Boudicca’s Chariot amongst the encores.

Ian D. Hall