Friday 4 May 2012

Energy Boost With The Phantom Four & The Arguido

You may have read my review for the album from The Phantom Four & The Arguido. I got to see them without The Arguido as singer Rudeboy calls himself for this occasion. I got to see lead guitar player Frank Gerritsen aka Phantom Frank with The Arguido in an acoustic setting. But the ultimate combination is the whole bunch together. And that was finally gonna happen on one of Amsterdam's nicest squares De Nieuwmarkt that hosts the annual April celebrations days ahead of our national holiday Queen's Day. The Phantom Four & The Arguido at De Nieuwmarkt Amsterdam, April 27 2012

Before they start playing Phantom Frank announces they will play one set with Rudeboy and one set without him. They do start with the opening track 'The Arguido' which is instrumental as well. This gives Rudeboy the time to prepare and pump himself up. He jumps to the mic and fiercely starts singing in his usual way: somewhere in between singing and rapping. You can see this fires up the rest of the band as well and of course the crowd. In between songs he needs to grease his throat with some tea. Many years of touring with the Urban Dance Squad has taken its toll. Nevertheless his vocals are strong and the songs even sound more energized than on the album. Then it's time for The Arguido to take his well earned break and the band continues without him, the way their original line-up is. You can hear that without vocals they get more room to play their parts. These instrumental songs are more heavy on surfrock with Frank's great lead guitar riffs and solos. By now they already have won the crowd over and a pit has formed in front of the stage. This is pleasing the band and it's obvious they are enjoying themselves a lot. For the encore Rudeboy is invited back to the stage. With a ferocious The Ramones cover 'Havana Affair' it's game, set and match.



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