Sylvan @ Midsummer Prog Festival 2025 – day 2 (May 24): Melancholy, Mastery and a Broken Finale

Sylvan : Melancholy, Mastery and a Broken Finale

Sylvan took the stage as the second band on day two of the Midsummer Prog Festival, delivering an atmospheric and emotionally charged set of melancholic neoprog, infused with Floydian elements and a strong sense of melody. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate—steady rain forced the audience to don the rain ponchos provided by the festival. The summer vibe may have been absent, but it hardly diminished the musical intensity of the performance.

The band opened with “In Between”, an epic journey from their album Home. With its seamless transitions between soft interludes and heavy riff-driven passages, it immediately set the tone for what was to come: a captivating musical narrative in which every member of the band played a vital role.

Next came two standouts from their most recent album One to Zero: “Encoded at Heart” and “Trust in Yourself.” The former opened with a delicate piano intro and unfolded into a soaring hymn-like chorus that allowed vocalist Marco Glühmann to showcase both his emotional depth and vocal power. “Trust in Yourself” began gently with acoustic guitar and piano but soon burst into life with pounding riffs and uplifting momentum—an anthem-like performance that truly came alive on stage.

“The Colors Changed” followed, offering one of the emotional highlights of the set. The track’s melodic grace and atmospheric layering were brought vividly to life, especially through the expressive and lyrical guitar work of Johnny Beck, a relatively new addition to the band who dazzled with his soulful solos.

The set continued with “Vapour Trail”, a slightly more subdued but no less evocative track that gave room for subtlety and texture. Volker Söhl’s rich keyboard arrangements floated beautifully atop the solid rhythmic foundation provided by Sebastian Harnack on bass and bass pedals and Matthias Harder whose precise and dynamic drumming remains criminally underrated.

Then came “In Chains”, a dramatic, slow-burning number that built toward a powerful climax. But just as the final three minutes of the song approached, disaster struck—the power cut out completely, bringing the performance to an abrupt halt. As a result, the planned grand finale, “Posthumous Silence”, arguably the band’s most iconic and emotionally intense piece, had to be scrapped.

Despite the setback, the band remained composed and gracious and the audience responded with equal understanding and support. Still, it was a great pity to miss out on what would have been a perfect,goosebump-inducing closer.

With a solid core lineup—Marco Glühmann (vocals), Johnny Beck (guitar), Volker Söhl (keyboards), Sebastian Harnack (bass), and Matthias Harder (drums)—Sylvan once again proved why they’ve been at the forefront of German progressive rock since their 1999 debut Deliverance. Their performance was filled with class, nuance and emotional weight. Even the rain and power failure couldn’t dampen the impression they left behind.

A band of rare balance and depth, Sylvan moves effortlessly between introspection and grandeur, between melancholy and power. And while the set didn’t end as planned, their set was a reminder of just how stirring, poetic and immersive live progressive rock can be.