Neal Morse Band (NMB) – Innocence & Danger Tour 2022
February 18, 2022
The Crofoot Ballroom, Pontiac, Michigan

Progressive rock can include a wide variety of styles, and I tend to appreciate the groups who combine amazing instrumentation along with a good sense of vocal melody and harmony. Neal Morse does this almost seamlessly. I have been fan of Neal Morse since hearing the first Transatlantic release back in 2000. I hunted down his work with Spock’s Beard, and then followed him in his solo career. Now, over 20 years later, Neal has his own touring band (NMB – Neal Morse Band) featuring drummer Mike Portnoy, bassist Randy George, guitarist Eric Gillette, and keyboardist Bill Hubauer. This group of 5 has released 5 official “Neal Morse Band” projects, the latest being “Innocence & Danger”. This leads us to the winter 2022 tour stop in Pontiac, Michigan.

The concert was at The Crofoot Ballroom. The band last played this venue in 2019, on their “Great Adventure” tour. The show in 2019 was during a snowstorm, which made driving back interesting. In 2022, travel to the venue was uneventful, but driving back ended up in a snowstorm again. I don’t know who booked a tour stop in Michigan in mid-February, but they seriously need to rethink the tour routing. Anyway, the venue holds about 800 seated – this performance had non-reserved seating (folding chairs).

At 8pm, the club lights went down, and Neal and band treated us with performing most of the “Innocence & Danger”, as well as selections from Great Adventure. The band sounded great and the vocals were outstanding, all reminding me why I am such a fan of Neal’s music. Other than the live drum kit, it appeared all other instrumentation was not using live amps on stage – everyone was going “direct” into the sound system and using “in ear” monitors. Since we were seated a bit to the side of the room, the sound was a little off for the beginning. It got better as the evening went on, but I’m sure it was great in the center of the room.

Neal seems to always be excited on stage, and having fun covering vocals, guitar, and keyboards when needed. He also does a great job connecting with the audience, and making us all part of the experience. Mike Portnoy is a master on drums and also fun to watch. Randy George is the “quiet one” on the stage, but holds down the foundation with his bass guitar and bass synth pedals. Bill Hubauer has plenty of tricks up his sleeves on keyboards, using various synth voices and gadgets from his minimal keyboard setup – Bill also handles some great vocal harmonies – and if that wasn’t enough, Bill also played Clarinet on the “unplugged” portion of the set. The “secret sauce” of the group is guitarist Eric Gillette. Eric can play both “shredder” type guitar, as well as the slow melodic styles required for the quiet pieces. He does this all on a single guitar, while also contributing much to the lead vocal and harmonies. So, while there are only 5 people on stage, they all have key roles to play in creating the complex music they write together. It is awesome to watch in person.

As the NMB – Neal Morse Band, they tend to write longer pieces of progressive work. This means songs can be well over 10 minutes. However, Neal and band have such an appreciation for melody and arrangement that I rarely get bored with the songs. There can be the extended instrumental sections, yet it all seems to fit together in a way which doesn’t lose the interest of the listener. I would equate it to combining both eras of Genesis – you get both the musical acrobatics, as well as a nice pop melody layered on top. Neal also has an understanding of great vocal melody, and frequently engages all band members to recreate the vocal harmonies – influenced by groups such as Yes, Beach Boys, Beatles, and even some Crosby, Stills, and Nash.

The NMB concert is something musically impressive, while also including emotional elements of the lyrics. While all musical elements are being recreated live, video elements help reinforce the song message, and Neal works to brings passionate expression to his lyrics. Neal is working to get a message across in an entertaining way, and the band members each work to add to this support of the song. They truly operate as a team, each working to support the whole.

Having seen the band many times over the years, I still find something new and exciting with each performance. I highly recommend finding some of Neal’s music. Being a style that doesn’t sell a ton of units, Neal Morse Band (NMB) doesn’t have the advantage of extended tours all over the USA or world, but they do try to make stops in most major markets. If they come to your town, do yourself a favor and buy a ticket – you won’t regret it.

Here’s a couple links to live video I shot at the concert:

Setlist – courtsey of setlist.fm:

Song played from tape – Innocence Intro
Do It All Again
Bird on a Wire
Your Place in the Sun
Another Story to Tell
The Way It Had to Be
Breathe (Reprise)
Time (excerpt – Pink Floyd cover)
Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon & Garfunkel cover)
Waterfall
Danger Intro
Not Afraid, Pt. 2
Beyond the Years

Encore:
Long Day
City of Destruction
So Far Gone
The Ways of a Fool
Welcome to the World
The Great Adventure
A Love That Never Dies
Broken Sky / Long Day (Reprise)