Derev is a progressive Heavy Metal band from Toronto, and they are going on a tour in Ontario and Quebec. They blend complicated high energy compositions with a hint of Middle Eastern music. It is world music for a highly trained listener.
They are creating a unique experience for fans new and old. If you go to their website and purchase their tour pass, you get to walk into every show on this tour for the price of a single ticket. This is such a cool way to get to know the band and see them live several times. You will also get introduced to a variety of opening acts. This really is a Magical Mystery Tour for dedicated music fans.
Derev showed up to a packed house at the Supermarket with 3 other bands, and they all had their own distinct blend of Heavy Metal goodness. This is what I witnessed.
Rod Rodrigues
Rod is a born shredder. Like the older masters like Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, Rod is our Toronto version. This is a three-piece band, and Rod is at the forefront with guitar strapped to his soul as he glides through cascading notes that seem to just fly off of him.
Rod is both a master shredder and a smooth operator. He is the captain of his helm as he guides his personal starship around the room of our imagination.
I am not familiar with his song titles just yet, but at one point, I swear I could hear a version of Frank Zappa’s tune, “Watermelon in Easter Hay”.
Rod had a couple of great moments that I had to mention. He performed a piece called, “Mom’s Lullaby” and it was a true hug from a child to their mother. It was an emotional experience for both performer and audience members. If you have a Mother that loves rock music, I urge you play this song on Mother’s day. Who knows this may become a new tradition in your life.
The second moment was his shout out to Rush. He had a solid rock tribute to our Canadian heroes. The piece is called “On the Road”, and I know the members of Rush would feel proud to hear this song honouring them. This certainly put me back into the Rush realm, because I went home and put on “A Farewell to Kings”.
This is Rod in his Glory:
Magna Vita
Magna Vita came rocking out with total abandon and recklessness. It was a strange blend of 80’s Hair Metal meets Punk! It was Van Halen slam dancing with Ronnie James Dio.
I loved the moment when they did a medley of Black Sabbath tunes. It was Iron Man and War Pigs getting Paranoid to NIB! You have to check out my video of this on my Instagram page, Blast_Toronto
The fun watching this band was seeing the singer owning the entire stage to get a great response from the audience. This stage was too small for a group that wants to dominate the entire building. The other guitar players were trying to move on stage but were a little stuck in their corners. I even saw the bass player telling one of the guitar players that he can’t move and stayed in the corner like a boxer who couldn’t come out and fight.
While the singer was sweating his dinner out on the stage, it was enough energy to get the crowd to go into a full on mosh pit. I smiled a bit watching the ladies run to the back of the room while the boys were getting their angst out and hearing bone on bone action. This band was running on Great White shark hunger and trying to devour an entire Mandarin Buffet restaurant.
I think they are going to need a bigger stage!
Magna Vita sweating it out:
St Doval
St Doval entered the room and said to the world: Watch me burn! They were smoothing things out with their style of fire after the holocaust that just left.
I may be wrong, but I heard this was their second live performance and they had a much more straight forward approach to their stage antics. I wouldn’t consider them a full-on Metal band. They are a straightforward no bones Rock N Roll outfit.
What made this band stand out are the lead singer’s pipes. He is a proficient and has concrete vocals. He really stood out on their song called “Sticks and Stones”.
The band finished by sticking their tongues down your throat with the Kiss classic, “I was made for loving you”.
St Doval in Action:
Derev
A few months ago, I witnessed a band with a new singer at the Rockpile. I saw a nervous singer looking to get his footing with an already tight outfit. Fast forward to this show and Derev was a solid machine ready to crush everything in sight. The singer had the confidence of a Norse God ready for battle.
Derev is here to promote their brand-new release, Troubled Mind”. As a prog fan I was really impressed with the artwork on the cover of their album. It screams progressive rock and carries its special brand for the band. It is very important to have original art representing your musical style. You just have to look at any Yes cover from the 70’s and see Roger Dean doing the band justice with his alien landscapes.
The band was excited, the crowd was excited, and the music is exciting! They are really trying to carve out a piece of original progressive rock.
This is not a band that is overly technical with a math style of rock, even though you do hear some of that. This band push’s the Heavy Metal side of sounds and have a melodic side that pulls at your emotional side more than usual. Maybe its headbanging with your heart.
Vocally, Mike Symons, brings a melodic and operatic style to the band. Most bands these days rely on deep guttural sounds, but Derev keeps it cleaner and traditionally fun and exciting.
Mike left the stage after announcing that the band is going to release its musical prowess with one hell of an instrumental. It began with a classic keyboard opening that turned into a crushing machine. Just as you are surrendering to the heaviness of this assault, they brought things back to a heartfelt mess of emotions. They kept up these twists and turns for a while, and then it got very cool when keyboardist Ran Zehavi walked to the front of the stage with his Keytar.
Derev recently shot a video and put it up on the screen behind them to accompany their new material. This band is working hard to continue putting on the best show they can for their growing fan base. You could hear the Middle Eastern vibe as it transported you like a steam train across the desert plains.
The band finished big with the last tune, “Room 9”. This was quite the monster, and the full room just ate it all up.
For Progressive Metal fans, we have a band that you can count on and be proud to wear their very cool T-Shirt.
Progressive Metal Band Derev:
Here are the links to the bands Instagram page:
www.instagram.com/rodrodriguesofficial/
Great review! This was an awesome show!