Throughout 2012 we've seen this fledgling festival grow and grow with each announcement: IOEarth, Manning, It Bites, Jump, Also Eden and Mangrove, all billed to play at this new festival. Practically a dream line-up of the best new progressive rock bands in England today.
Then, all of a sudden, Y-Prog became a three-day festival and other bands were announced: The Enid, Credo, The Dec Burke Band, Jolly, and Riverside. Even Ed Unitsky is enlisted to create a design for the festival, and as usual came up with a beautiful logo and poster. This thing was getting serious and looking like a fantastic new festival!
A new prog festival isn't something one starts lightly. The struggles and pitfalls are many. We've all seen new prog festivals stumble and fall for various reasons, and last year one of the most prestigious festivals in the US, NEARfest, bid adieu to the fans. Every year we've seen one more festival pop-up its head from the ashes of its former self (Baja Prog this year), and every year we've seen another burst into flame.
This is what seems to have happenned to Y-Prog. From a two-day to a three-day festival, now only one day remains. What looked like a promissing new festival all fired up to blaze brightly in the firmament of notable british festivals is now down to burning embers.
The Friday show is still on. Polish metal prog bands Riverside and Dianoya, along with americans Jolly will play in this first edition of Y-Prog.
At least it will be a manageable one-day fest, and while its future is uncertain it isn't dead yet. Maybe if we put a couple of logs in the embers we will be able to revive its promise of of bringing the best and brightest of new and established progressive rock acts from England and from around the world.
One can hope.
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