The Route 309 Blues
Yes, another Nearfest was in bloom. Before I recollect on this weekend, let’s take a look back. The Nearfest madness began in 1998 when Chad Hutchinson called me at work to say him and this guy I only knew vaguely, Rob LaDuca, who wasted no time in telling me I was saying Par Lindh incorrectly, had this crazy idea about a two day festival set somewhere in the northeast of the U.S., with 8 to 10 bands performing to be labeled as ‘the’ premiere progressive rock festival in the world. The first thing I uttered to Chad was, “hey…great idea….but you know…you are going to lose a fortune. People won’t come out for this. But I also think that if you are patient, and are willing to make a sacrifice, it could work.” It did. When 1999 came around, the event was stellar. A complete success. That year I just brought a hand held recorder and did brief interviews. I roomed up with 91.7 WLFR DJ Greg Orlandini. The drive to Moravian was a trek into the unknown. But none the less, it was great. The weekend ended, and I thought that maybe Nearfest would as well. Not the case. The Duck Billed Ducks wouldn’t have it any other way. Rob and Chad needed our show more than ever for the next Nearfest, Nearfest 2000. This Nearfest would be my favorite of all prior and future Nearfest's. Anekdoten, Happy The Man, Thinking Plague, Transatlantic, and the Echolyn reunion. It seemed like the radio show was taking off into higher planes as well. The biggest thrill? Getting a thank you at the end of Nearfest 2000 and 1999 from Rob and Chad both on stage, and personally. At this point, I had a full staff, and full support from the Nearfest crew. Obviously there was me, then George Piatkowski my Co-Producer, Roger Beckwith, host of Roadhouse Radio who helped with equipment and setting levels, Big Bob Lovin’ as he is affectionately know as, who was our driver, and protector of our equipment. Then of course there was the newly acquired Jack Webster who may be the only ‘fan’ of the show to get directly involved with programming. He got turned on to many bands because of the show and because of his electronically gifted self, along with his toys, became and still is, my right hand man.
Changing Of The Gaurd
Nearfest moved in 2002 to Trenton which was a complete disaster. Not with the event, but how impossible the War Memorial was in dealing with Chad and Rob. That’s a story for another day. The highlight of 2002 was having Steve Hackett for an hour plus interview and how receptive he was to me, my staff, and his knowledge of the show. That is a memory I won’t forget. Despite the turmoil in my life, Nearfest 2002 was a turning point for me. My life would change shortly after, in some ways for the better. By Nearfest 2003, Bob and Roger had gotten fed up with certain aspects of the event. They felt that all the hard work that they were doing with us, they could have at least gotten a hotel in the same building as everyone else. Lugging equipment got to be a pain. Then one year, we were getting asked to do interviews for other people. They had gotten tired of the arrogance of some of the people we would interview, the attitudes from vendors, etc. I told them that the NEARfest operation is very hectic and there is no time to set people aside with all the other media there. Things happen as they happen. But they insisted that all they wanted was a thanks......something. They felt the show wasn’t getting enough respect from the Nearfest staff. At first I thought they were over reacting and making mountains out of molehills. Roger then brought up a valid point. “If they can have other people go up on stage not directly involved with NEARfest and introduce a band, then jeez, you should at least be able to bring on Tunnels. Dude, you do like 6 months worth of programming for these guys…having guests on…featuring CD’s of the scheduled artists…you do a 4 hour show every February…jeez, do they know you are even here?” I stopped and thought about what he said, and fluffed it off. Then by the time NEARfest 2004 arrived, Roger and Bob wanted no part of it. I was devastated.
…And Then There Were Three….
The comic relief keeping me from killing George from year to year was gone. Despite returning to Zoellner, I couldn’t get the gang to get on board. Jack was still into it and did what was asked and kept things lively, but nonetheless, change was coming. Roger wanted out, and eventually left. By the time 2005 arrived, a live broadcast wouldn’t even lure the guys back. My idea of reinjecting Nearfest and its staff with something even bigger and badder did little for my guys the first year. But, the stage gang of Kevin Feeley and Ray Laboda went above and beyond to help make sure our live broadcast from Nearfest 2005 was a success…..and it was. Unforgettable. Chad was helpful and got some of the artists to step up and visit us for interviews. But the questions now started coming from my bosses at the radio stations. What is it that this Nearfest is doing for us? Are they putting you up in your hotel? Are they setting you up with interviews? Are they making mention of the Z889 and the gagliarchives in a public forum? Are they giving you free tickets? Free advertisements? What are the giveaways? What are the benefits? We need to see something mutual from them, or else, find an event that is more receptive to our station. This equipment costs money to operate. This all came down a few months before Nearfest ’06. So I started doing some rethinking. I gambled. Another live broadcast should reinforce the solvency of the station and the show, by our support for NEARfest. After long conversations with our new station manager we seemed to be on the way.
The Land Of Ghiyoregay
The weekend started out with insanity. George’s clumsiness began before he even took the rest of the flight from Georgia to Philadelphia. He wasn’t even here yet and he lost his cell phone. How does that happen? Once I picked up George I realized how much I missed my former partner in crime. Moving to Florida was life changing for him in more ways than one. But when he comes home, he is back to his element. Not always for the good. The man in the mirror is the only one that can fix this problem. Can it be fixed? We began our trek for Nearfest on Friday after a series of obstacles stopped me. Thursday night after I picked up the remote and the rest of the equipment I went to pick up my clothes from the dryer. They weren’t dry. I stuck them in another dryer, only to find them early Friday afternoon still not dry. This was getting to be a bit much. At this point Jack was ready to go, but I was the one holding us up. Then we are ready to walk out the door and, I can’t find my wallet. I search my entire apartment, I can’t find my wallet. My keys I lose constantly, but not my wallet. After yelling at George to look in my bag, George goes, “Why don’t you call it?” “Call it?” I replied. “Yeah, maybe you can hear it ring.” He said matter of factly. “GEORGE! I AM NOT LOOKING FOR A CELL PHONE, I AM LOOKING FOR MY FRIGGIN WALLET!” I felt bad, but this is how I get with someone that is constantly not following along with the rest of the group. My wallet was found in my driver’s seat. Grrr as Mike Straka would say.
Revenge Of The GPS
Jack decided we would use the GPS to go to Bethlehem, PA because he had gotten wind that there were going to be some major traffic problems if we took the major routes. Well…the GPS had a mind of its own. It was giving Jack wrong directions, wrong places to turn, when all was said and done, we still made good time, but it doesn’t help when you have someone comatose from not sleeping nearly falling on you as you turn. Oh god, how can I do this again? Once we got to the Comfort Suites in Bethlehem, PA, I realized I was spent already. Stressed, had crap to go over on the script, had emails to answer, and had to try to get to the pre-show. Well, once we got in and felt the AC, it was time to just chill out. We had to unpack, test equipment, and by then I had said to George, "Go to sleep now, I want you awake the whole weekend." We all fell asleep by 11, and were on the way to day 1.
Let’s Go To Riverside, And No, Not The Town
I was the first to arrive at Nearfest Saturday morning to watch some of KBB. They were good but I really knew nothing about them since I couldn’t get them to send me any music to air. I was more eager to see the next band in Poland’s Riverside. I watched the set beginning to end and it was powerful. The song that got me the most was the title cut to their last album, Second Life Syndrome. Puddin was already booking his trip to the land of Ghiyoregay and people were noticin’. Thank god for Jack. That’s all I can say. We had our blow up at Nearfest ‘03 and since then, we have been fine. Jack has always been my voice of reason. I think at this point, I had had it with Puddin and the constant sleeping was getting to be too much. I saw a few minutes of Richard Leo Johnson and began stressing over the upcoming broadcast. For me, Nearfest has always been a meeting place to connect with allllllllllllllll the people I rap with every night on email and Instant Messenger throughout the course of the year. Unfortunately at times, I miss out on some of the bands. But I had to be honest, there were only a few bands I really wanted to see this year. I rank the Nearfests’ like this:
Nearfest 2000
Nearfest 2002
Nearfest 2004
Nearfest 1999
Nearfest 2001
Nearfest 2005
Nearfest 2003
Nearfest 2006
It’s not a bashing thing. Just my ranking that’s all. I liked FM, but only saw a minute of them as we had to head to the University Station bar with Carl Eisenhart, Kevin Feeley, Ray Laboda, and the rest of the crew to set up for the live broadcast. I was still fired up. I hung out with Ray Weston from Echolyn while Tom Hyatt’s staph infection just got uglier. Jack was exhausted. His work schedule prior to us leaving had been stressful, while I was just happy to be away from work. Jack wanted to lie down for a little while as a migraine set in. Jack entered the land of Ghiyoregay and was not heard or saw from again. Well, at least until 9:30 when he woke up in a panic. “You are set up already?!??!” He yelled. “Yeah Jack, its fine. We are done. Relax. As long as you feel better it’s all good. And anyway, you looked too peaceful.” I smiled as I shut the hotel door. The show began. It was a whirlwind. I *finally* had the chance to have Aural Moon’s staff there. Davin Flateau, Roger.Lee, and Jim Brennan. Finally! They were there for the broadcast and had Roger Lee hang out with us for quite sometime. We had some great guests, Riverside, The NJ PROGHOUSE guys, Michael Ostrich, Chad Hutchinson, Roger Lee, Cam Hawkins, Richard Leo Johnson, and other various peeps as the night drew on. Jack came down to help but I could see he was spent. He filmed and took some pictures that turned out great. Engineering wise, there were some flubs on track #’s for songs and UW that Anchor had some difficulty with, but nonetheless, when all was said and done, it was another success story. As always, I felt uninspired after the broadcast. Like no one really cared. I mean they did, but I just felt that they didn’t. Rob didn’t even come down to check on how things went. Montreal started dancing in my mind. They seem VERY receptive to us and already have laid out some things for us if we do in fact go. We’ll see how it goes. I hung out for the after party till about 3ish, then realized, like last year, I can’t fall asleep. I finally hit the hay after answering some emails by 7am. I woke up the latest I had ever awoke at a Nearfest, compared to 1999, I woke up at 12:45. After taking care of some PR things, I ran to eat, and made it back to Nearfest in time for Niacin. I had no rushing urge to see Ange, but was more upset I missed the person I wanted to see most, Michael Manring. But Niacin made up for it. They played with reckless abandon through their catalog and blew minds. Who need’s coffee when you have Niacin? We went back to our hotel room to change and get ready for The Keith Emerson Band. It was great. The crowd went wild. He opened with some classic ELP tunes, while Marc Bonilla did a hell of a job singing the vocals of Keith’s one time counterpart. All in all it was great, but then the drum solo in Tarkus got to be a bit much, and I struggled to try and figure out Jack’s camera and keep it from flashing. I finally did. It was back to our hotel for a night of laughing and carrying on. But the harsh realization was there, and Jack made it clear. Are we really needed here at NEARfest? Is it time for the Gagliarchives to move on? Or check out other possibilities? Or just stay with Nearfest and do broadcasts from other festivals where it would be maybe a bit more receptive. I have loved watching Nearfest grow from year to year, but maybe our show really isn’t needed that way anymore. Time to reinvent? Maybe…but I think now that it’s up to Jack and I. We are the carriers of the show. Somehow, someway it will all work out. But until then, it remains to be seen. Montreal will be the barometer. I drove home and listened to Mei while George slept. Surprise, surprise. Once we crossed into Burlington County I could smell the green of the Pines and hear it speak. “Welcome home buddy….here are some old roads to study…” “Oh thank you for being here.” I replied with a smile as we drove down this old, lonely road. “Thank you for coming home, we missed you.”
I swore I heard that.

This Program Ran 3 Hours and 52 Minutes