St. Elmo’s Fire
St. Elmo’s Fire were a Cleveland, Ohio based band that existed for barely a year and a half from 1979-1981, a limbo period for progressive rock if ever there was one. Tight, virtuosic instrumental work, inventive percussion, great keyboard and mellotron work, with influences from King Crimson and Van der Graaf Generator, but a distinct style all their own.
Paul M. Kollar / Subtle Matter
In the late 70s, Paul saw Robert Fripp demonstrating his “Frippertronics” setup, which used two reel-to-reel tape machines to produce a long delay. Paul began experimenting with this technique, creating huge, dreamy sound textures by playing along with the delayed sound, and would do improvisational performances with his setup as a “warm-up” act for St. Elmo’s Fire. “Subtle Matter” is a collection of these live performances.
Vasil Zook
The short-lived predecessor to St. Elmo’s Fire, Vasil Zook came together over 4 days in early 1978 to play a local gig when the opening band cancelled. The chemistry was obvious, they blew away the headliner, and were invited back 4 times. Although they disbanded mere months later, the core of the band kept in touch, and re-emerged the following year with St. Elmo’s Fire.
P3
P3 got its start in January 2003 as a last-minute replacement when the scheduled entertainment at a local coffeehouse couldn’t make it. Studio 415 owner and guitarist Paul Barton and bassist Paul Kollar called in Kollar’s friend (and former bandmate) drummer Philip Wylie, the chemistry was immediately obvious, and P3 went on to play out steadily in the Triangle (North Carolina, USA) area during the mid-00s.
Kill Tim’s Grass
Kill Tim’s Grass emerged during the mid-00s from latter-day St. Elmo’s Fire and jam-prog band Deep Green Void, eventually settling into a stable power trio format, with guitar, bass, drums and a variety of keyboards and effects. They recorded basic tracks for an album and played several well-received gigs in the Triangle (North Carolina, USA) area, including the 2007 Prog Day Preshow with outstanding French band Mörglbl, but broke up in late 2007.