Misiek Having a Nap

Couple of shots of Misiek having an early afternoon nap after a long walk here:

Szczebrzeszyn (Poland): Gothic-Type Shots

Went down near where the sugar factory once stood on the edge of Szczebrzeszyn on a walk with a dog, and came back with these dark, Gothic-type shots overlooking the river down there:

Was in the sleepy, small, eastern Polish town of Szczebrzeszyn for a few days over Christmas:

Really like the shot below where the late afternoon mist enshrouds a tower where the old sugar factory once stood:

Warsaw (Poland): The 'Child Soldiers' Statue

Can never pass this small 'Child Soldiers' statue at the Popiełuszko church in Warsaw without getting a picture of it.

Warsaw (Poland): Two Great Concerts on One Day

Why did Calexico and Riverside have to end up on the same day?  Really like both 'Tex-Mex' specialists, Calaxico, and Polish Prog band, Riverside.

Had already bought Calexico tickets for me and my wife at Warsaw Palladium before the Riverside tickets came out for Warsaw Stodoła, so I went to watch Calexico which was excellent.

But still would've liked to have seen Riverside too.  Anyway, I've seen Riverside three times in Warsaw over the last few years, and hadn't seen Calexico since the early 2000s (at Manchester Academy 2).

A Great Prog Song

Have kind of always been aware of Symphony X, but I'm only just getting round to giving them a serious listening.  And now one song seriously stands out:  the majestic 25-minute epic, 'The Odyssey'.

Kadavar Live at Warsaw Klub Progresja 12th December 2015

Finally, after three good preceding acts (Horisont; Satan's Satyrs; The Shrine), it was time for the headliners, Kadavar, who I'd only discovered about 6-8 months ago but immediately liked.

With Kadavar, I was familiar with quite a few of the tunes ('Living in Your Head'; 'Broken Wing' etc.).

But for me, the set really came alive with 'Purple Sage' which was incredibly hypnotic:

My old friend, Dave Dealy, views Kadavar as being kind of 'Black Sabbath-ish' around the time of 'Sabbath Bloody Sabbath' and 'Sabotage', and I kind of agree, they're really interesting for sure:

Really enjoyed this four-band gig at the Progresja, each band was great with really quick changeovers between each act.

The Shrine Live at Warsaw Klub Progresja 12th December 2015

What an atmosphere these three guys, The Shrine, whipped up, having the crowd in a frenzy.  Frontman (guitarist and vocalist), Josh Landau, is the perfect showman, and the crowd loved him:

Great humour as well, introducing one tune by telling the crowd that it was about cutting off the head of a snake.

Despite only knowing The Shrine from Youtube, the 70-minute set seemed over in a shot, it was that enjoyable with an incredible rapport between band and crowd:

Nice touch at the end when drummer, Jeff Murray, came down shaking everybody's hands at the front of the stage, as everybody sensed they'd been involved in something a bit special.