On April 19th, Montreal’s Corona Theatre was witness to Sons of Apollo first concert of the North American leg of their tour. The band is an alliance of known prog and rock musicians: Mike Portnoy, Billy Sheehan, Derek Sherinian, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal and Jeff Scott Soto. Their name is inspired by the Greek god of music and the very talented children he had.
The venue was welcoming as always, especially given that it was my 3rd concert during the week at the same place, but only the ground floor was open given the turnout that the show had. People seemed very eager to hear the songs from the debut album “Psychotic Symphony” and had arrived early to give a listen to the opening to act, Felix Martin.
Now, I was also very much looking forward to listening Felix Martin live given that he is a fellow Venezuelan countryman expat doing extraordinary things with music and bringing attention online through his compositions and videos to what the country was and is facing. Felix, a Berklee graduate, composes complex arpeggio-rich songs that gravitate around his custom-designed 14 and 16-string guitars, which he plays similar to how Tony Levin or Alfonzo Johnson play the Chapman stick, using a tapping method that uses both hands. His video from May of last year (which you can see HERE) showcasing a Venezuelan song he rearranged has garnered more than 500k views and more than 12k shares at the time of writing.
Unfortunately, his set was short, about 30 minutes long, but it did showcase his and his bandmates skills, impressing many and leaving others wanting to hear more, including me.
After almost 30 minutes of wait time, while the stage was set up, the lights dimmed and an oriental soundscape, similar to the one that starts their studio album, started playing, indicating that Sons Of Apollo was about to take over the stage.
Each member walked on stage and took their place, lights came on and the music for the song “God of The Sun” started playing. Synchronicity, that was the first word that came to my mind as I tried to grasp what was happening on stage. There were at least two of every instrument, a double guitar, a double bass, three keyboards and Portnoy’s famous drum setup with double bass drums, and everything was going to be played that night.
Jeff, the singer, was an extraordinary showman, feeling the music, enjoying the moment and being the medium between the band and the crowd. His mannerisms, moves and finger licking on stage reminded me of Jack Black and Michael Jackson. By the second song he was already starting to sweat from the power he was putting into the show, encouraging the crowd as well as making sure the band delivered their full potential.
Song after song was presented with precision, complexity and, what could only be called, Rock n’Roll. Being so close to the stage allowed me to see the bass face from Billy Sheehan, the virtuosity of Bumblefoot, the concentration and enjoyment of Portnoy and the guitar-like keyboard playing from Derek Sherinian along with his Zoolander-like poses and faces.
I could describe here each song and retell the order in which they were played, but I have always felt that doing so on reviews is insufficient and is akin to describing a sunset via emojis, while setlist can be easily found online nowadays.
What I will say is what can’t be easily found in the studio album: space, freedom, and encouragement given to each member with their extensive solos was the highlight for me of the night. Not knowing some of the members from the bands they used to play with and were known for, but listening to them on their own was an opportunity for them to shine and demonstrate why they are part of this supergroup.
The second highlight for me was the tribute paid to Freddy Mercury by Jeff and Bumblefoot. Remembering Queen’s infamous concert in the city Jeff wanted to keep the tradition alive and sing “Save Me” on stage. The rendition was beautiful and was one of the songs every soul that night was able to sing along to.
Many “supergroups” seem to destined to failure as soon as they are conceived, be that because of the music that comes out of the mix or due to the incompatible egos that can’t and won’t fit, but Sons Of Apollo seems to be a project born out of long-term friendships, excellent musical taste and a healthy balance of egos (at least on stage), accompanied with many smiles (even a couple from Sherinian), inside jokes, lots of hard work and equal amount of fun.
There are a lot of expectations for what is to come and hopefully the next concert in the city will be fully packed with fans, friends and curious people looking to be blown out of their fucking minds.
Review – Ricardo D. Flores
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