Best Kept Secret 2016 Day 2

We wake up to a rainy day but still manage to have our breakfast outside our bungalow. We can't waste any more time because the first band is waiting!

Best Kept Secret 2016 Day 2, June 18 2016

Audacity
I've seen this Californian band play before a few years ago and love their latest album Hyper Vessels. Their cheerful and powerful punkrock songs are a great way to start off the day. The lads themselves are in a good mood as well and are cracking jokes and having lots of fun at the same time. Although the jokes are sometimes a bit corny their music is far from that. The band play their music with a lot of heart and it sounds very convincing. Needless to say it goes down well with the crowd. It's a shame they play this early. because imagine what would have happened if they played later today to a crowd that downed a few more beers.

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Bewilder
Dutch musician Maurits Westerik has come a long way since he pulled the plug from his former band GEM. He had to reinvent himself and surely did a great job at that. After releasing the album Dear Island everywhere Bewilder goes they end up on top. The pop rock songs are well written and the experienced and top notch band play them with a lot of feeling. Westerik is the always active and friendly front man, that is turning into the Dutch Bruce Springsteen. His dance moves are getting more unique every time I see them. Today again the band knows how to win everyone over. Of course set closer 'Forza' ends this show on a high.



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Weaves
A name that has been buzzing around for a while is this band from Toronto. You never know if a band can live up to the hype, especially when their first record has just come out. That album is amazing by the way and the band doesn't disappoint for a bit. They play very tight and funky guitars and grooves mixed with heavy riffs and rhythms, with hints to Pixies and Pavement. On top of that is the unique voice and personality of Jasmyn Burke who is wandering around stage as if it's her living room. It combines into a crazy and intriguing show that for me was one of the best this weekend. Can't wait to see them play again soon.

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Dinosaur Jr.
When singer J. Mascis walks onto the stage he explains that is he is feeling very sick but didn't want to cancel. Instead he will be sitting down the whole show. It is very obvious he is far from healthy and therefore it's actually quite impressive that he is still able to play his wonderful guitar parts and sing at the same time. Of course this band made so many great songs and the other two musicians, bass player Lou Barlow and drummer Murph, are totally into the music. It's a shame we can't see a fit Mascis, but even like this Dinosaur Jr. doesn't disappoint.

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Wild Nothing
I listened to a few songs by Wild Nothing and kind of liked their dreamy music. I expected maybe a bit of a slow show but was surprised how they sounded live and their songs actually had quite a bit of a rock edge to it. The band themselves doesn't exactly explode off the stage with a lot of energy but they show a lot of heart and play an inspired show. I found out I saw them play a few years ago and they have shown plenty of progression. If they can grow some more they could be heading for big things.

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Editors
Today is Editors day which drives many extra people to the festival. This resulted in huge traffic jams and long lines for the toilets, bars and food stands. The weather has been bad all day long and the band walk onto the stage while the rain is still steadily coming down. "The weather is miserable and so is our music" says singer Tom Smith, referring to their dark music. But you can leave it to this band to make us all forget about the weather. Although I have mixed feelings about the last two albums, this band always delivers live. Tonight is no difference with an inspired performance and a band that is in top shape. Smith's voice is clear and dark as the rain clouds themselves. Many songs of the new album come by but I simply like their older songs better, that aren't that blown up. 'Papillon' is always good to leave the crowd behind on a high with all the fireworks, but nowadays the band leaves us with 'Marching Orders' which does sound like an anthem but at the same time is a bit too bloated for me. In the end though Editors live up to their big reputation and totally deliver today.



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Although the weather didn't exactly cooperate, today was prove the organisation didn't cope well with the extra visitors. The festival grew by 4000/5000 visitors per day and yesterday already showed the site was too crowded. Today with Editors driving in a huge crowd, it simply was too much and the festival lacked the intimate and relaxed atmosphere of the past editions. Standing in line for the toilets, that also weren't laid out very efficiently, and having to wait a lot to get a drink or something to eat became a nuisance. Of course it was a great day nevertheless with good music, but it was kind of a let down at the same time. Let's see what tomorrow brings.

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Best Kept Secret 2016 Day 1
Best Kept Secret 2016 Day 3

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Spinning: Audacity - Hyper Vessels

When the members of Audacity started their punk band fifteen years ago they were still teenagers. When you see and hear them now, they are still a group of young dogs, that by now released three full length LP's and a bunch of EP's. A few of those were released by the illustrious Burger Records label. This record company, that also settled in their home town Fullerton California, has a nose for bands that go their own way and this foursome fits in there very well. Hyper Vessels is their fourth album which is released on Suicide Squeeze Records.

On the new record you can hear that the boys turned into men and grew some balls. Not that they lost their swagger, since the band still knows how to go full force and the songs still have that garage sound. But it's clear they are on the road to adulthood and this has given the songs more edge. The catchy 'Counting The Days' that opens the LP, may sound very cheerful as if nothing is the matter, but the lads are definitely bringing some depth to their music. For example in the song 'Baseball' where they are wondering why everyone is so occupied with baseball, while the world is on fire.

So the sunny character of their music is only just first appearance, where the not always very exciting live in the small town of Fullerton found its way into the recordings. Their music now only got stronger and is still full of irresistible hooks and grooves. 'Dirt Boy' has a sharp sounding solo with a nice build up to the end where we can also hear some nice riffs. More of this is in the fierce 'Riot Train' and 'Hypo' with its heavy guitars. The record hardly loses speed and only has a few more quiet moments. Closer 'Lock On The Door' is a somewhat slow song with a very nice bass line. With garage rock giant Ty Segall on recording duties everything sounds extra sharp.

It is nice to conclude that Audacity only gained strength and quality over the years. The many hours on stage probably have something to do with that, but the band also knows how to let this reflect in their song writing. They managed to combine a grown up sound with the youthful eagerness from the beginning of their career and this makes listening to Hyper Vessels a big feast.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

Listen to 'Hyper Vessels' on Spotify.



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Into The Great Wide Open Day 0 + 1: Paradise Island

Usually the journey to a festival is more of a burden than a joyful ride. Getting up early to get a decent camping spot, the long traffic lines, dragging around your heavy luggage for too long until you finally can sit down for a well deserved beer in front of your tent. Into The Great Wide Open is nothing like that. We drive up to the harbour of Harlingen, drop off our luggage, and relax on the boat where the wind is clearing our minds and raises our spirits into the right mood. By the time the boat arrives, the rat race of everyday life feels far away. And we even are in time to see one of the bands!

Into The Great Wide Open Day 0 + Day 1, September 5 + 6 2014

Thursday
It wasn't clear if we would be able to make Magnus, but everything runs smoothly and in the dark we make our way to the new stage, Fortweg, tucked away in the dunes. There we are greeted by an unreal picture, a new world that we are eager to explore. Colourful lights of cosy food stalls and bars, a tower with a real slide on top of the mixing table. Quite a big crowd is already dancing to the band playing on stage.



Magnus
Tom Barman's electronic adventure seemed to have died after its birth in 2004. However a new album is out now and it actually is quite alive. Millionaire's Tim Van hamel is playing guitar while Barman's partner in crime on this project, CJ Bolland, is laying down the beats and base for this electronic rock crossover. Barman looks quite happy and is doing his best to get the crowd fired up. This is working the best when the balance between rock and techno is just right. Too bad the rest of the band couldn't make it, since it would have spiced up the mix even more. And of course the guest vocals like Tom Smith on 'Singing Man' can't be matched tonight. Still it is an entertaining show on this unique spot.

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So we're all warmed up for a great weekend. Time to down a few more beers and test out our dancing shoes.

Friday
The weather is a bit too cold for me to go for a swim. So it's fried eggs and coffee instead before we head to the main stage for the first performance of the day.



Erlend Øye
More than any artist has Erlend Øye shown up here. He loves this festival and seems to come up with any excuse to be able to perform here. This time is his fourth time on the island and together with his music friends is showcasing some of his Italian songs. He's living in Italy nowadays and apparently found inspiration there. These songs are quite sugar sweet and light, sometimes a bit too much to my liking. But Øye's laid-back performance and the sunny weather is quite the right setting to start off the day on a positive note.

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Dans Dans
In the woods we find an interesting name on the bill. This group is not you're middle of the road band but plays jazzy tunes. It sometimes sounds like a soundtrack to a dark Hitchcock movie. There are no vocals, only now and then guitarist Bert Dockx will play recorded voices on a cassette player, by holding it to the strings of his guitar. The band is playing well and tight and are able to create a mysterious atmosphere between the trees. It turns out to be the perfect place for their soundscapes.

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Daryll-Ann
The Dutch alternative band Daryll-Ann are still playing their reunion shows and couldn't be overlooked this year as the band that started it all for the Excelsior label who has plenty of connections with this festival. Also most of the visitors who are in their thirties or forties will remember this band and there should be plenty of fans around. It doesn't get really crowded though, but the band are in good shape and their wonderful songs go down well. Guitarist Anne Soldaat's solos and riffs impress once again, the harmonies sound fresh and today the songs get the right flow to reveal all of their beauty. The sun and the drinks are doing the rest.



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Audacity
It's time to head back to the dunes again where we find Audacity, a garage rock band on the Burger label, who are working up a sweat. This is garage rock in its purest form with vocals that are slightly off and far from perfection, guitars that are sometimes just out of tune and drums wandering off from time to time. All combined in one explosive ball of energy and played by four young blokes who give it all and are enjoying the hell out of it. Sometimes it's all you need.

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The Miseries
We move back to the sports field where there's a small stage called "Platte Kar", which hosts very new and promising bands and sometimes a surprise performance. Dutch singer/songwriter Tim Knol is performing there with his garage rock band The Miseries. Their compact songs are catchy. Maybe surprisingly, Knol's vocals go very well with these energetic rock tunes. With just one vinyl single out maybe it's time for a full album guys.



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Buffalo Tom
Remember the nineties and this band from Boston? It may seem as if they have recently reformed, but they actually never went away. Their glory days may be behind them, tonight they are showing there's plenty of energy left with a convincing performance on the main stage. The many forty-something visitors enjoy this flash back from their own glory days. Their hits from that era like 'Summer', 'I'm Allowed' and the still solid 'Taillights Fade' are greeted with big smiles. A vivid version of The Faces' 'Stay With Me' tops it off.

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Vaudou Game
The mysterious woods have a mysterious band for us tonight. Fronted by the charismatic Peter Solo this band from Togo and Benin, small African countries squeezed in between Ghana and Nigeria, offer an exotic and hot mix of afro-beat and funk. Solo, a bit dressed like a happy witch-doctor, is firing up the crowd, repeating French words like "l'eau", "nature" and "l'air", creating a hypnotic atmosphere where resistance to stand still is useless. He's backed up by a fantastic and tight band and Solo is once and a while watching one of his band mates play wonderful solos in total admiration, with a big smile on his face. I'm looking forward to their debut album Apiafo which comes out end of this month.

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After this wonderful party we don't want to stop now! Fortunately there's plenty of dancing going on at De Bolder.

More Pictures

Into The Great Wide Open 2014 Day 2
Into The Great Wide Open 2014 Day 3

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