Rock Werchter 2013 Day 2: Blurry Night

Traditionally I get quite wasted the first day of a festival and pretty bad at the beginning of the next day. But today I actually don't feel that bad. The weather is only getting more beautiful and Joe Piler never looked better. The line-up today doesn't look that good, but I don't care. Since today I'm finally going to see Blur and that alone makes it a great day.

Rock Werchter 2013 Day 2, July 5 2013



Charles Bradley
What better way to start a day with a good hug? Charles Bradley not only gives out hugs during his show. His music feels like a one big hug. He may look like your grandpa, but what a cool grandpa. His voice is strong, his music a crossover between James Brown and Otis Redding. With his James Brown-impersonator past, he borrowed some moves from the "Godfather of Soul". They may not look that flexible all the time, but I'd like to see any of us doing them at 65. Sometimes Bradley picks up the mic stand and carries it around like a heavy burden on his shoulder. And telling from the documentary 'Charles Bradley: Soul Of America' he has quite a burden to carry. Every word he sings is full of emotion and sounds honest. In the end he fills the tent with his love and puts a smile on every person's face.



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Gary Clark Jr.
It's not a bad thing when you're called the new Jimi Hendrix. At the same time it's quite a statement to live up to. Gary Clark Jr. sure looks a bit like the legendary guitar player. His drummer could even be a new Mitch Mitchell with his curly hair. Clark certainly is trying to continue the master's legacy. His blues and rock songs are topped off with long guitar solos and jams. His guitar playing skills are unmistakable, but it misses the rough edges and urgency of Hendrix. Despite that it sounds promising and maybe he will be prove to be Jimi's reincarnation after all. I'll sure keep an eye out for him.



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Two Door Cinema Club
We catch the end of The Bots' show on the main stage. Two young boys on this huge stage. The end is a bit chaotic and we don't get to watch many songs since they're chatting a lot. I guess they need to grow more. There's still plenty of time for that. Two Door Cinema Club know how to deal with these kind of stages and crowds. By now many people have found their way to the festival ground and have met Joe Piler. And so the band find a willing crowd for jumping and dancing to their catchy songs. It actually sounds nice, but I notice many songs use the same off-beat pattern and follow a similar recipe. Although I enjoyed it, they still haven't fully convinced me. Some of their songs like 'What You Know' and 'Undercover Martyn' are great crowd pleasers of course.



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The Hives
I have witnessed a few The Hives shows before and never get bored of them. This time we decide to take a look up close and we like what we see. Of course they play their usual show. Singer Pele Almqvist is acting like the biggest rock star and his brother guitar player Niklas is adding funny faces to his over the top performance. But it's all part of a The Hives show. It may not be new anymore, but songs like 'Hate To Say I Told You So' and 'Tick Tick Boom' make everyone move. In the end we had a great time once again.



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Kings of Leon
Last year the Followill boys had quite a stormy end of their tour. It looked like the band had a complete breakdown and they needed a break. It has done them well. Their performance is solid, tight and powerful. But where is the fun guys? They play everything on routine and don't seem to enjoy themselves a bit. Although singer Caleb is trying to connect to the crowd more and more, there's still no passion or love. And isn't that what a band should do when playing live? It's still quite impressive though what 'Sex On Fire' can do to a willing crowd.



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Blur
Finally it's time for the moment I have been waiting for. Blur are kicking off with 'Girls & Boys' which is getting everyone to jump right away. Damon Albarn doesn't look really pleased in the beginning but they seem to be enjoying themselves after a while. With so many great songs to choose from they come up with a nice greatest hits show. Of course 'Beetlebum', 'There's No Other Way', 'Country House' all find their way into the set. Fortunately they also play my personal favourites 'Out Of Time' and 'Coffee & TV'. It's a nicely balanced set, with some quiet moments as well. The beautiful 'Under The Westway' brings out the goose bumps. Halfway the four lads seem to be totally into it and are exchanging smiles. I'm so pleased the many British fans around me are singing their number one Blur song 'The Universal' out loud. When 'Song 2' closes the show the whole field explodes into one big "woohoo!". Just magical!



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At this point I'm just intensely happy. So me and my friends grab Joe Piler by the hand and we dance away into the night.

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Rock Werchter 2013 Day 1
Rock Werchter 2013 Day 3
Rock Werchter 2013 Day 4

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Lowlands 2012 Day 2: The Party Is Heating Up

After a good start yesterday the sun is burning us out of our tents way too early. A bit sleepy we find our way back to the festival area, where a pancake is bringing back life into my body. Let's start this day slow.

Lowlands Day 2, August 18 2012



Phantom Limb
Not exactly my cup of tea, gospel and country. But singer Yolanda Quartey is gifted with a great voice, which she already proved when singing with Massive Attack. So it's definitely worth checking out. Only half of the British band are present today, but it still is enough to impress. The songs are mostly slow, which is perfect at this point of the day. Piano player Dan Moore and guitarist Stew Jackson do a good job supporting Quartey's soulful vocals. And when they join the singing, it results in beautiful harmonies. Like angels carefully waking us up.

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Eagles Of Death Metal
Time for some good old fashioned rock 'n' roll. This time it looks like Jesse Hughes and the rest of the band are actually sober. Unfortunately the sound is awful, which makes it impossible to hear the songs' groove. Maybe the sound isn't the only problem and is the band just not focused enough to lay down a good groove. This is noticeable from the crowd and this party never really takes off. Even their great version of 'Stuck In The Middle With You' doesn't work today. Of course Jesse 'Boots Electric' is his charming self, joking around and he's trying to get the love across. But it simply isn't good enough this time.

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Willy Moon
Maybe this rocker from New Zealand can put some swing in it. It certainly looks great. Willy dressed sharply in a suit even in this heat, while his female drummer is wearing only a bra. The female guitar player, looking like a hot sexy rock diva, is playing the rock licks. The casual DJ in the back ground is a bit out of place like his contribution to the music. While Willy and his ladies are rocking, the DJ is adding some samples and loops, but it feels like there's no thought behind them. Also the breaks in between songs take too long while Willy himself is trying hard to get a move on. It does have potential though and I would love to see him back when it's all running more smoothly.

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Two Door Cinema Club
Everyone seems to love this band from Northern Ireland, and what's not to love? They wrote some great catchy guitar songs like 'Undercover Martyn' and 'Something Good Can Work' that will go down very well on the festival stages. And they do, but I keep missing something. Their stage performance is too static. It's lacking believe and they don't seem to put a lot of heart in it. The band still can't convince me. Which is a shame since it could potentially make this place explode.

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Blaudzun
Johannes Sigmond or Blaudzun released one of the best records this year. It's full of nice indie songs leaning towards Arcade Fire. He already proved that he can play them in an intimate surrounding, but what about this big Grolsch stage? That's not a problem, just make the songs a bit bigger. And that's exactly what Blaudzun did, without doing harm to the songs themselves. What follows is a great show that stays interesting throughout the whole gig. But his band could be a bit more outgoing and challenging instead of just backing up the beautiful songs. The musicians are a bit pale in contrast with the extravagant Blaudzun.



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Triggerfinger
I could've gone to see Charles Bradley or Of Monsters And Men instead, since I've seen Triggerfinger so many times in the past years. But they never disappoint and you know what you're going to get: a full on smoking rock show with tons of energy. And this time is no different. This band is simply amazing and solid as a rock. So no surprises then? There's one: Dutch happy hip-hoppers De Jeugd Van Tegenwoordig join in to play their song 'Sexy Beesten' with them. The sound is pretty bad like earlier today, but this time it doesn't seem to bother the band or the crowd. They're going on a vacation now according to singer Ruben Block and they deserve it. Next time I'll see them it will be with a new record and probably as headliner.



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The Whitest Boy Alive
We go take a peak at the Whitest Boy Alive. When we get there it's clear that Lowlands has surrendered itself to the catchy summer tunes. We watch the full tent dancing to Erlend Øye and his band mates. We only watch a small part of the show, but it's clear that they are doing exactly what every one hoped for: loosening our hips and bringing good vibes.

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Krema Kawa
Time to end this great and hot day with a bang. You want it hot? You got it with Krema Kawa. The Belgian band aren't anything special but are at the right place at the right time: a sultry summer night at the end of beautiful day at the Lowlands festival when everybody just wants to dance. And this party band knows how to do that. And so we all dance to their funky and swinging grooves.

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Lowlands already was at boiling point today, but we have to get ready for the hottest day tomorrow. So we party a bit more, drink a few more beers and try to get some sleep before that golden ball relentlessly will wake us up again.

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Lowlands 2012 Day 1
Lowlands 2012 Day 3

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Lowlands 2010 Day 3: Lowlands Goes Out With A Bang

Although the forecast promises rain later on this morning looks pretty good. It's cloudy with a nice temperature so we wake up slowly, have a bit of breakfast and then quickly head to the festival site. We already missed Blaudzun but sure don't want to miss Go Back To The Zoo's party!

Go Back To The Zoo (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)
And what a party it is! There are lots more people than fit in the India tent so all around the tent there's a huge crowd. We cannot make it into the tent either and so outside we dance to the catchy songs of the Dutch band. They play like they have been playing on Lowlands a dozen times before. They stick to the up-tempo songs which is a smart move. Their slower songs are also the weakest and this way they keep the crowd dancing and the spirits high. Another great start of the day. Watch a video over here.



Moss (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)
Onto another Dutch gem that we find playing on the Grolsch stage. They easily fill up this tent and put down a convincing set. They brought the extra drummers with them like at their gig in Paradiso. They are focused and put a lot of effort in it which is appreciated by the crowd. This results in an atmospheric and glorious performance.



My favorite scar (Ronald Says 5 out of 10)
A lot of Dutch bands are filling the stages today. One of them is a new metal band My Favorite Scar. But the members are all experienced musicians that have been around for a while. Unfortunately everything about this band is made up. The band members are dressed in sturdy looking outfits and are going through every cliche rock pose. This wouldn't be a problem if the music made up for that but as you can expect when you go for style first the songs aren't anything special. This is a concept for a metal band rather than a genuine metal band. Sorry Jeroen.

Staff Benda Billi (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
A Congo-based band with several disabled musicians that bring Afro-funk and other swinging tunes. This results in a festive performance with everyone dancing. The fact that some of these musicians are in wheel chairs or on crutches doesn't hinder them in putting down a lively performance.

Yeasayer (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)
A great performance on Rock Werchter made me want to check them out again. I've listened to their albums several times since then but they don't represent their live performance because both have their weaker moments. But on stage they play a well balanced set that sounds great. It's nice to see that their songs have many subtle elements and layers without sounding complex. Singer Chris Keating complains about the height of the stage a couple of times that makes him feel disconnected from the audience. It did look like their performance on Rock Werchter was more relaxed. Let's see what he thinks of the Melkweg stage in October.



The National (Ronald Says 9 out of 10)
After releasing probably one of the best records of the year I really had to check them out. In the meantime I listened to most of their albums and really love their music. I wasn't disappointed. Singer Matt Berninger's baritone easily fills up the tent and sounds impressive. His stage appearance is neurotic at times when he walks around like Rainman. His warm vocals can change to aggressive screams within a second which gives the songs a dramatic feel. Guitarist Dressner does most of the talking in between songs while Berninger is totally absorbed by the music pouring out his guts and soul while he seems to be facing his demons. And all we can do is watch in total admiration.



Two Door Cinema Club (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
It was no use anymore checking out Placebo so we decided to watch this band instead. Their songs are catchy and the crowd are eager to party so the vibes are good. But the guitar licks and chords all sound alike while singer Alex Trimble's voice is too thin. This makes every song sound alike and it does get really weary in the end.

Queens of the Stone Age (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Time for the final blow of the festival. And you can leave that to Queens of the Stone Age. They must have taken that literally. The sound is poor: it's very loud with lots of bass causing a wall of noise to hit you. Of course their music is powerful and rough but it does kill all the subtleties that some of their songs have. The band is really eager though and Josh Homme sure looks in a good mood. He's chatty and repeatedly mentions what a great time he was having. The crowd is eager to party one more time and every ending of a song or guitar solo is greeted with loud cheers. When they finish their set 15 minutes before time the crowd goes crazy for an encore. But when it is clear this is really the end it changes into an even louder booing. Just one or two more songs would have made this a perfect ending and maybe even a memorable performance. Now it leaves a bad taste in my mouth and only a 7-rating instead of a higher one.

And so Lowlands 2010 has come to an end. We check out some more comedy have a few more drinks, finish all our coins and more than pleased go to sleep. Only to wake up to horrible rainy weather the next day. In a rare dry moment we quickly pack up and go home. But this cannot change our merry mood since this was a great Lowlands edition with so many quality performances and great music. Better get your ticket on time next year since I'm sure it will only sell out even faster.

See more pictures over here:
Lowlands 2010 Day 3 Pictures

Lowlands 2010 Day 1 Review >
Lowlands 2010 Day 2 Review >
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