Riverside (band)

Riverside
Riverside in 2009. From left: Piotr Kozieradzki, Piotr Grudziński, Mariusz Duda, and Michał Łapaj.
Background information
Origin	Warsaw, Poland
Genres	Progressive rock, progressive metal
Years active	2001–present
Labels	InsideOut, Mystic Production
Associated acts	Hate, Lunatic Soul
Website	Riversideband.pl
Members	Mariusz Duda Piotr Kozieradzki Michał Łapaj
Past members	Jacek Melnicki Piotr Grudziński (died 2016)

Riverside is a rock band from Warsaw, Poland. It was founded in 2001 by friends Mariusz Duda, Piotr Grudziński, Piotr Kozieradzki and Jacek Melnicki, who shared a love for progressive rock and heavy metal. Riverside can be described as a blend of atmospheric rock and metal elements, resulting in a sound similar to that of Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree, The Mars Volta, Opeth, Dream Theater, and Tool, while still maintaining an identity of their own.

One day near the turn of the millennium, during a short drive, Piotr Kozieradzki played Marillion in his car for Piotr Grudziński. While drummer Piotr 'Mitloff' Kozieradzki had played in two death metal bands, Dominion and Hate, and Piotr Grudziński had played guitar in a metal band, Unnamed, they both shared a deep affection for progressive rock. They were already friends with producer and keyboardist Jacek Melnicki who also owned his own studio. The three decided to experiment with progressive music but they needed a bass player to complete the lineup. Mariusz Duda, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist from the band Xanadu, agreed to attend a rehearsal in late fall of 2001 at the request of Jacek. Reactions to this first meeting between the four experienced instrumentalists were extremely positive.

After a few rehearsals, the members realized that they were involved in something special and deeply satisfying. Once a few compositions were completed, Mariusz attempted to sing in his own language, singing that was probably similar to the vocalizations in their future track "The Curtain Falls", although all future vocals and lyrics were to be written in English. Thus Mariusz began to take on the role of vocalist as well as that of the bass player. In October 2002, about a year after their formation, the band performed a pair of shows in Warsaw. After the distribution of about 500 copies of their demo, the band performed at a small club in Warsaw once again in early 2003. As the band continued to write more material for a full-length release, there grew a dissonance between keyboardist Jacek and the other members of Riverside. Jacek wished to continue with his studio pursuits so, during the latter part of 2003, he split from the group.