SENDELICA + Z MACHINE + THE C SIDES PROJECT

Event information

London Prog Gigs are pleased to announce an afternoon of Prog and Psych bands from Wales. Arrive for lunch (optional) at the Camden Club – an intimate cabaret-seated venue in North London - and spend the afternoon with us watching the three excellent bands, ending around 6pm.

Sendelica is a psychedelic rock trio from West Wales composed of core members Pete Bingham (guitars and electronics) and Glenda Pescado (bass guitar) and Jack Jackson (drums). The band have regularly collaborated with many musicians, artists, film makers and performers over the years and, although primarily an instrumental group, with a variety of vocalists as well.
They conspicuously wear their influences on their sleeves and their music has been described as blending "the hypnotic pulse of Can, the impressionistic atmospherics of Pink Floyd, the motorized proto-punk of Neu, the space patrolling guitar pyrotechnics of Jimi Hendrix and the otherworldly ambiences of The Orb." They are also known for drawing inspiration from the local landscapes of Cardigan Bay and the Preseli Mountains and the rich, ancient heritage of the region.
The group’s first EP, TheOwlsHaveEyes, was released in July 2006 on their own FRG Records, with additional vocals by Chris Gibbs and keyboards by Roger Morgan. Over the following years they have prolifically released CD, vinyl and, more recently, cassette albums on various record labels.
As well as their many studio releases the band also tours regularly and have produced several live albums.

Z Machine were formed in Swansea just before the pandemic hit in 2020, after a chance encounter brought together Gareth Piper and Owen Rosser on guitars, and Rob on saxophone. Kristian Rees, bass-playing school friend of Owen, was next to join - being a perfect fit and possessing the chops needed to pull it off. Finally, after a long search, our drummer Lester Greenhalgh shared our love of a variety of jazz fusion and prog bands, and with much experience playing in various jazz bands, slotted in perfectly. After a brilliant four-year stint with us, Kris unfortunately had to move on to pastures new, but we have been very lucky to find bass-wizard Maddy K in our locality, who has the skills and drive to fill Kris’s rather large shoes.
Our music is free and without bounds; heavily influenced by the prog giants of the 70s, the jazz fusion pioneers, and all the music weirdos in between. We try and create fresh and exciting music limited only by our instrumentation, pushing the boundaries of our imaginations to bring audiences something that they perhaps have never heard before…
We spent our first couple of years writing material and learning it ready for rehearsal, and played our first gig in 2021. Since then we have been playing as many gigs as we can, and released our debut album in 2023 which has received great reviews from the underground prog press!

The CSides Project : Each member of the band brings something to the mix. Between Sian and Alan the dual vocals have harmony, depth, range and emotion, and all songs have a completeness which is largely down to well written lyrics by Alan McCarthy. The guitar work is fluid, accurate and creative, capturing the mood of the lyrics by providing rhythm and melody in exactly the right places. Supporting the melody on most of the albums and live, Kevin’s keys complete the band’s sound delighting the ear and adding extra dimensions to the movements. The tight locked-in drumming drives the sound, adding definition to the arrangements and delighting the ear with in-song changes to time signature and feel. The bass guitar completes the rhythm section and compliments the music, providing contrapuntal melody lines within the arrangements while at the same time adding depth and girth to the overall sound.
They continue on their musical journey, their innovative form of progressive rock nodding to the classic prog bands of the 1970’s while at the same time finding new and surprising ways of using rhythm and melody to create a kaleidoscope of sound that is all their own. The band is made up of competent musicians that are able to tell wondrous stories in music and lyrics that transports the imagination to wherever they will take you. Their writing is fresh and imaginative with every new recording seeing the band’s style develop in new and ever-expanding forms.