LOST 'N' FOUND: LIVE IN TILBURG

4.5 stars. If your a RIVERSIDE fan this is a must. This was recorded live in Tilburg, Holland on October 18, 2016. There are 100% no overdubs, so what you hear is what the audience heard. My fear is that this is the last live album we'll hear from this band although I hope they have lots of live material in the vault. After Piotr's passing I'm just afraid this band is done. I hope I'm wrong as this is a band I have a lot of history with and I also feel that their very best albums were their most recent studio recordings. They just keep getting better. We get 13 songs over about 105 minutes of music in this double disc affair. Every one of the six studio albums they have released is represented here with at least one track. Pretty cool.

One of the things that does impress me about this concert is that the band decided to change the songs up some, usually during the intro but not always there. Funny but I've complained about ballads since I was in my late teens over so many bands that had to throw in a sappy ballad because the record label wanted it or they thought it would be a hit. Well this band RIVERSIDE just hit me where it hurts with these ballads I'll tell you. The emotion I have felt this week listening to this, lots of wiping of the eyes. Interesting that this is the big appeal for me with this this live album while FATES WARNING's 2017 live release "Awaken The Guardian Live" was more about passion and head-banging. I surprisingly prefer the RIVERSIDE album.

My top five would include the opener "Lost" which for some reason reminds me of IONA when I hear it. Also "Conceiving You" which might be my favourite ballad of all time. I adore this track. They change the intro up here but when that piano arrives and Duda starts to sing I can't even tell you how I feel. "Saturate Me" just makes my top five but when the chorus arrives before 2 1/2 minutes it's pure emotion for me. "We Got Used To Us" hits a little to close to home for me. You know as I write these words for these songs I have them playing and it's hard to write if you know what I mean. I just can't get over how this music moves me. Piotr impresses me 4 1/2 minutes here. Check out Duda and the piano that follows. Gulp. "Found" is my final top five. Guitar leads instead of piano here during this ballad. Duda's warm vocals would melt the hardest heart. Check out the emotion as he almost quivers with that last word.

Thanks Piotr I will not forget what your guitar playing has meant to me over the years. I can't say goodbye though, just not there yet.

Riverside released this double CD live during their Towards the Blue Horizon tour for fans only, not available elsewhere. It is a genuine treat featuring an awesome setlist consisting of the back catalogue of the consistently brilliant albums generated by these Polish masters of prog metal.

It opens with grandiose melancholy that builds into a cacophonic maelstrom of keyboards and guitar with Lost. Duda exudes a passionate vocal throughout the concert and this is one of the last times we will be treated to the guitar prowess of the late great Grudzinski.

Feel Like Falling follows with beautiful soaring guitar and atmospheric keyboard embellishments. Hyperactive is next from the masterpiece Anno Domine High Definition, and sounds as amazing as the studio release. The melody on this is incredible and it segues into the wondrous tranquility of Conceiving You, Duda sounding mesmiric and reflective. 02 Panic Room is a masterclass performance that certainly does not disappoint, followed by Under the Pillow and the barnstorming prog workout The Depth of Self-Delusion. The Cd concludes with Saturate Me that has a powerhouse blazing guitar and shimmering keyboards.

CD 2 opens with hypnotic and passive Egoist Hedonist that builds into shadows of dark vocals and guitar riffing. We Got Used To Us is one of the best live performances of this track and the pulsating ethereal Escalator Shrine is a lengthy 20 minute multi movement suite of progressive bliss. The Same River is 13 minutes of atmospheric prog and the concert concludes with Found.

The running time is just under 104 minutes and is a mind blowing experience for all Riverside addicts. The line up of Mariusz Duda, Piotr Grudziński, Michał Łapaj, and Piotr Kozieradzki is as good as it gets. RiP Grudzinski, you will never be forgotten.

Over the last 30 years I have been fortunate to have been introduced to a great deal of Polish progressive rock, a country which surely punches well above its weight in that genre. For some reason few bands have really gained the recognition internationally which they deserve, but Riverside flung the door open with their debut 'Out of Myself' in 2003 and since then they have become the most recognized Polish group around. This set was recorded on October 18th, 2015, at 013 in Tilburg, The Netherlands, finding the guys at the end of their 'Love, Fear and the Time Machine' album and documents the group's last tour with original guitarist and founding member Piotr Grudzinski who died the following year from a pulmonary embolism.

Tilburg has long been renowned as a progressive hotspot, and quite a few bands have recorded live albums there. However, this album was originally designed to be something different so even though the performance that night was very special indeed, this was originally only available as a limited self-released fanclub/tour-edition. It was only three years after the original release, and 5 years after the recording, that this became available through Inside Out who have made it available in multiple formats. That an album of this strength and passion has only been available to a select few is nothing short of a travesty, as here we find the quartet on absolute top form.

Riverside's strength has always been their ability to combine wonderful vocals, in a manner which is reminiscent at times of Greg Lake or John Wetton, with great songs and superb musicianship. When they need to rock, then they really do, but there are also times when they are far more reflective. This means we can get wonderful piano-led numbers like "Conceiving You" where Michał Łapaj provides a rippling undercurrent for Mariusz Duda to place his vocals against, adding his bass when the time is right, drummer Piotr Kozieradzki doesn't play at all at the beginning, and then adds the nuances one expects, while of course we also have Piotr Grudziński. Piotr was a wonderfully fluid guitarist who was able to switch from driving power chords to delicate solos, and the four of them combined to create music which was always full of proper songs.

If I were to introduce someone to Riverside, this would be a great place to start, as the band are on fire, the crowd respectful, and it is such a great set. Dada says, "It was a remarkable concert. During the "Love, Fear and the Time Machine Tour 2015", the band were in excellent shape, and although we were promoting our more "song-oriented side", we played such compositions as "Hyperactive" or "Egoist Hedonist". On top of that, there is a 20-minute version of "Escalator Shrine" and a special, unique version of "The Same River" with a modified intro. The fact that it was one of the last concerts with Piotr Grudziński makes it even more emotional and memorable. Riverside have always tasted best live. On this release, their music has an exceptional, unique flavour."

I agree.