Jon ZilinskiNostalgia has been everywhere in pop-culture over the last year. From the billion dollar tent-poles banking on the youthful memories of T-Rex roars and neon-laser-swords, to the reappearance of long-thought-retired rap moguls (we just couldn’t forget about Dre), it’s been a year where the biggest moments in 2015’s popular culture seemed to come from any year but 2015.
For, Canadian prog-metalcore pioneers Protest the Hero, this trend couldn’t have come at a better time. Their debut, and now classic, album Kezia (pronounced Keh-Zī-Uh) turned 10 this year and with it provided the perfect opportunity to turn back the clocks (circa 2005), give the record a dust-off, gather up some old friends and hit the road for a celebratory, headlining tour.
“Ten years is such a landmark,” long-time guitarist Tim Millar says of the band’s motivation to embark on the Kezia X Tour.
“[These tours] seem like a popular thing that a lot of bands are doing now but I think it’s a really good way to revisit albums that you have of moved on from,” Millar continues. “We don’t get to play a lot of material from Kezia in the set anymore, so it’s nice to get a chance to do that.”
The band itself is not the same as it was back in the heydays of Kezia. Lineup changes in recent years saw the departure of Protest’s original drummer Moe Carlson and bassist Arif Mirabdolbaghi. So when it came time to plan Kezia X, it was decided that the tour would not only be a chance to relive the old music, but also reunite the original group for one last hurrah.
“Arif and Moe, never really had a proper last show and send off,” Millar explains. So it seemed like Kezia X was the perfect opportunity.
Edmonton was only the second stop for the tour but already Millar noted the great appreciation and enthusiasm he saw in the fans at the previous venue.
“The response has been really good. From anyone I talked to last night it seemed really well received”. Millar says.
In tandem with the tour, Protest the Hero are also creating a commemorative booklet of fan-submitted memories and memorabilia from Kezia’s original inception in 2005. So far submissions have included everything from old concert tickets, photos with the band all over the world, and even a thesis for a college paper written based on Kezia.
With this level of dedication from their fans, it came as no surprise that when it came time for Protest to take the stage, the room was completely packed. The Starlite Room was sold out and everyone was in for a wild ride. The initial intricate riffs of “No Stars Over Bethlehem” set the tone for the rest of the set as the boys on stage sounded tighter and more cohesive than ever. A more mature effort from a now seasoned group of professionals.
Highlighted by the head banging intro of “Heretics and Killers,” the intermittent stand-up comedy of lead vocalist Rody Walker and “Turn Soonest to the Sea” with its crowd pleasing, sing-a-long finale, the Kezia X show was a prime example of why nostalgia has ruled supremely over popular culture in 2015 — sometimes, it’s just more fun to live in the past.
