Belgian booking agency Toutpartout are celebrating their 25th anniversary by throwing a party with some of the bands they represent. With acts like Whispering Sons, STAKE and Raketkanon on the bill I'm definitely going to check those out.
I arrive at the venue when STAKE have just started. They are playing the small hall that is chuck full and I can't even come near a spot from where I can see the band. After a couple of minutes I manage to squeeze myself in and can enjoy the band without a problem. Arisen from the ashes of Stake Number Eight they changed their name and musical direction. "Sometimes you have to kill something off to start something new" and sludge metal was exchanged for grunge, although I find it more a shift into punk hardcore territory mixed with post-metal. No matter what the label is, it suits the band well who are still playing with incredible energy. The explosive songs bounce around the small hall which stays full until the end. It's a courageous move the band has made but it looks like it paid off. I certainly hope so and want to see more of these guys.
It's the fourth time I get to see this band this year, who have left quite a mark on the alternative scene in the lowlands. Without a doubt they had an amazing year, where their name took off like a rocket. The classic new wave is a great find and the young band have worked out their industrial new wave sound really well. It isn't subtle, although guitar player Kobe Lijnen's guitar lines and riffs do add enough detail to the somewhat blunt sound. And of course singer Fenne Kuppens is amazing with her low voice and passionate performance. She's the shining white centre point of the band, whose other members are all dressed in black. The dark new wave songs sound good again tonight and I'm curious where this band is going next.
This Belgian band are a unique group that unfortunately have announced this year to call it a day after their current club show. It's even hard to describe what this band is about. Noiserock with psychedelic elements, electronic elements, lots of craziness, but at the same time very clever, tight and complex. Some songs remind me of Primus, with incredible funky grooves and heavy riffs. Singer Pieter-Paul Davos is bouncing around and off stage, sometimes whispering, then screaming. His band follows him in this rollercoaster of noise and heavy music, but it always stays together. Still it somehow seems to make sense as well, which is a huge compliment. Too bad this band are calling it quits, since groups like this aren't wide spread.
The island of Vlieland is waiting for us again for another edition of that wonderful little festival Into The Great Wide Open that we visit annually. The sun is out and we are already sucking up its ray on the ferry to the island. I can already feel that lovely island mood flowing.
The festival kicks off for us with one of the most interesting new bands of the moment. Squid from Brighton play catchy and danceable punk rock songs that sound like a mix of The Rapture and LCD Soundsystem. Drummer Ollie Judge who is also taking care of most of the lead vocals has a bit of hysterical way of singing which fits their hyperactive music. The way he's phrasing his lyrics is clever and the rest of the band support him with energetic and percussive grooves. The hesitant crowd are slowly doing their first dance moves of the festival.
We head to the bigger stage in the woods and we find a big crowd there, that has been warmed up completely by Onipa. The band from the UK with singer K.O.G. from Ghana has many people dancing to their hip hop, dance and percussive music with plenty of West African grooves. That is an excellent mix and K.O.G. is a wonderful frontman who is dancing around stage with a big smile on his face. This is one of those bands that will light up a festival with positive vibes and beautiful music.
After seeing Belgian band Whispering Sons killing it a few times, we don’t want to miss them playing the only indoor stage of the festival. The dark small venue should be fitting for their even darker music. The sound is a bit dry though and it makes their music less powerful, making it harder to get into. Fortunately Fenne Kuppens keeps working the crowd with her expressive performance and low voice. In the end they are able to grab me again with their gloomy and impressive show.
I found out that I saw this band from Soweto some years ago as well on this island. Judging from my post I wasn’t really impressed. But a few months ago I really liked the energetic and lively performance. Today again the band plays a steaming show with a catchy mix of spirituals, soul and hip hop. The big drums keep the dancing going while Jovi Nkosi is singing, rapping and screaming tirelessly. Kgomotso Mokone's beautiful voice adds the soul and percussion and the wonderful bass of Mosebetsi Nzimande adds a lot of sugar to the steady grooves. The crowd keeps growing throughout the show and the band wins everyone over. There’s also time for some stories about the problems in South Africa and a message of unity. At the end Jovi has a heartfelt shout-out to his child and the man taking care of him now.
I’m really happy to see Daniel Norgren again, since I love his music so much. It’s his second time on the island where I got introduced to him his first time here and completely got swept away. The gentle Swede starts out small behind the piano and then gradually lets it rip. The new songs are once again mostly laid back Americana tunes with Norgren’s skilful guitar that he sometimes will let erupt. His loyal band is a perfect match and plays with a lot of heart. The crowd feels this and is listening in silence, grabbed by Norgren’s music. It’s beautiful that such a happy crowd can stay quiet on a sunny afternoon like today. It is the audience Norgren deserves. He states this is one of the best festivals he ever played, quickly adding that he not just saying that. This festival and this wonderful musician are a perfect match.
Some years ago Yolanda Quartey played in a band called Phantom Limb that was winning over hearts very fast. Suddenly they quit after their first album and I never got clear what happened. Now she’s back as a solo artist with similar Americana and country style songs. Mostly these songs are gentle tunes with the amazing voice of Yola. She is able to belt out incredible vocals but chooses to keep it small most of the time. The songs stay a bit on the safe side and it never gets so impressive as the first time I saw her. But the charismatic Yola is lovely to watch, looking very happy on stage performing her own music.
It’s time to fire it up again and this Belgian duo are exactly what I need. Their explosive garage rock songs are all loud little firecrackers that start a small pit in front of the stage. This wonderful festival crowd is always a bit hesitant with wild guitar bands, so it never gets out of control. Singer Thibault Christiaensen notices this and keeps firing up the crowd until the pit starts growing. The duo never lets it slip and comes up winning in the end by playing contagious raw rock music with a lot of effort and energy.
There’s a lot of music from the big African continent this year, or inspired by it. KOKOROKO draw their inspiration from afrobeat and jazz, which means they are channeling some of Fela Kuti's music and some amazing jazz as well. Indeed it’s quite jazzy with the three horn players at the front, but at the same time has exciting afro-beat vibes, making it very suitable for dancing. Trumpet player Sheila Maurice-Grey is also the front woman and the large band draws an equally big crowd to the stage in the woods. It is great to see so many people turning up for a band that doesn’t exactly play avarage festival friendly music. It proves the open mind of this festival crowd although it helps a lot that you can dance to this music. I like their sound a lot and all the happy dancing pepole around us between the trees makes for a lovely sight.
Hailing from Dublin, this group is one of the products of the exploding post punk scene there. The music of this five piece is on the dark side and the indoor stage is a good place for it. It’s an intense performance with the impressive front man James McGovern, who seems untouched by the big turn up. He doesn’t really have a great singing voice, but his vocals go very well with the dark and violent post punk. The other band members are circling around him, waving their guitars dangerously close to each other’s heads. This band is great to watch and I’m going to keep an eye out for them.
I love Belgian festival Rock Werchter, with its epic line-ups and lovely crowd that only spreads good vibes. We used to go there annually for the full four days but after a while went on to discover new worlds. However once and a while when there's an absolute must see line-up we'd like to go back for a day. With The Cure and Tool on the bill it was impossible to resist, so we went back to that lovely place.
We are lucky enough to have a place to sleep in the nearby town Leuven, which is only half an hour away by bus and allows to be on time for the first band without having to stay on a hot festival camping.
Belgian band Whispering Sons are opening the main stage today and we don't want to miss them. They blew our minds last month at the Best Kept Secret festival and we definitely want to see them take on the monstrous main stage on their home ground. It is clear many people know about them over here, since there's quite a large turn up for a first act. For a good reason because the group doesn't seem overwhelmed by the huge stage at all. Singer Fenne Kuppens shrinks the stage with her somewhat theatrical but very convincing performance. She's wonderful to watch and her tight band makes sure she can comfortably sing the dark songs with her low voice. This show is another winner for them and I just can only imagine this band is going to big.
The sun is high up in the sky and it is getting blistering hot. Under these hot conditions in front of a baking crowd, the English band are the ones to keep them on their feet. I like their sound with the great voice of Conor Mason, whose vocals are clear and strong live as well. They have a bunch of good songs and should be able to even get a cooking crowd to move. However their show is a bit uninspired and if I remember correctly I have seen them play shows more actively. Maybe it's the heat on stage getting to them, but it never gets really wild today. Part of the band certainly is trying, but Mason looks a bit absent minded today. They close their set with their hit song 'Amsterdam' though, and anyone singing a song about my hometown, stating "I left my heart Amsterdam" is okay in my book.
Jessie Reyez had to cancel her appearance today at the festival and Belgians Warhola are filling in. I recognize singer Oliver Symons, who is also fronting his other band Bazart. The music of both bands isn't very different although in Bazart he's singing in Dutch, while in Warhola it is english. Their pop music has warm electronics and the songs are mostly mellow indie songs that allow you to rock along gently, which is perfect on a hit day like this. Symons is clearly a talented and skilled musician and the music surely is interesting. Two drummers are playing the groovy beats that give the songs a bit of swing and punch. It's not exactly my kind of music though and I notice I start to loose interest after a while. But this performance is inside the air-conditioned Klub C, that is staying quite cool because of that, so we stay until the show is finished anyway.
Back in the heat at the main stage rock veterans Weezer are playing. It's been a while since I've seen this band play a live gig. I like some of their records, although they have written quite some disappointing songs as well. This makes them quite a fickly band that can go either way. This shows today as well where they open with 'Buddy Holly' straight away and have scattered their other hits like 'Hashpipe' throughout their set. It doesn't always sound very tight, but that is maybe the charm of this band. However their show does have a few weaker moments, especially when they play A-Ha's 'Take On Me' and Toto's 'Africa', that don't really sound solid. Their recent 'Teal Album' full of covers suffers from the same problem, that the songs are probably fun to play but simply cannot come near the original and feel a bit pointless. It still is an entertaining show though, that is entertaining to many people.
English legends The Cure are having a good year. They are celebrating the 30th anniversary of their classic album 'Disintegration' and are playing almost every festival there is this summer. On these festivals they have enforced long festival slots and today they are playing for more than two hours. It allows them to slowly build up their set and that works out very well. The first half has some deep cuts and fan favourites, but not many of their biggest hits. Although 'Pictures of You' and 'A Forest' which come by in that part are well known of course, this part is quite mellow but does show the incredible talent of this band and singer Robert Smith.
Smith may no longer have the slim figure he used to have, or look kind of creepy nowadays wearing his make-up like he always does, he still is an incredible musician. Bassist Simon Gallup is the only one who is actively moving around stage, pacing around like a caged tiger. Smith walks to the far end of either side of the stage a couple of times, but for the rest the band stays at the centre stage. This group has never been one that uses large gestures, let alone fireworks or other gimmicks. And why should they? When you play such wonderful music with so much intensity you don't need anything else. The band leaves the stage for a short while to return for the big climax that has all the big hits we know so well: 'Lullaby', 'Close To You', 'Why Can't I Be You?' score big cheers from the crowd. 'Boys Don't Cry' is a fitting end to an amazing The Cure, that can make any boy cry.
After that wonderful The Cure show this night is far from over, because we still have one more performance left. After seeing them play an insane gig at Ziggo Dome only one and a half weeks back I know what I'm in for. It is clear Tool has raised anxiety levels through the roof after not playing here for 13 years. Most people in this crowd will not have seen them since then and young fans probably have never seen them at all. Like the night in the Ziggo Dome, the band is unbelievable again. The setlist is only a few songs shorter and the transparent screen in front of the stage, didn't make it to Werchter. The perfection of the songs did make it though, and the songs sound just as powerful and with the same intensity. The weird twelve minute break and awkward drum solo moment are left out today, which actually works even better, turning it into a 90 minute trip into planet Tool that is simply mind blowing.
On an outside stage like this you know the sound isn't always going to be great, still there are some moments where weird things happen to Maynard James Keenan's vocals and the balance in the mix seems to behave funny now and then. It's not something the band has control over and is only a very minor detail in a for the rest stunning show. I'm sure many heads were blown tonight with monumental songs like 'Parabola' and 'Schism', a once again epic performance of 'Forty Six and 2', and new song 'Vicarious' that sounds promising for the new album. Again the band ends on an absolute high with an inspired 'Stinkfist', leaving everyone in awe and euphoric. This time I was even able to take pictures (yay!).
This was such a beautiful day and despite the many changes to the festival site, it felt like coming home. Rock Werchter still is one of the best festivals I've ever been to with one of the best crowds. I'm sure we will be back again, maybe even the whole four days when the line-up stays this good and we can find a comfortable place to stay instead of on the camping site.
Yesterday was a long day with lots of music, although I didn't even make my eighteen bands, not even close. My feet started to object against all the walking and standing. Today is a shorter day and I can take it slow. It promises to be a tropical day, so we need to hydrate. Beer is mostly water right?
I listened to some of Julia Holter's music and quite liked her experimental and jazzy songs. This could be a nice way to start the day. However after a short while I notice this is not for me. It's definitely her more experimental side, but it is too slow for me. I simply don't like music that is difficult, just to be difficult. It doesn't mean I can't enjoy complex or experimental music, because I certainly can. I just can't watch music that is too much about being complex, which seems to be the case here. So after a while I leave and hurry to stage Five.
At stage Five Lewsberg are at the end of their set. I have seen this band a few times before and like their music a lot. The nice ringing guitars, the talk singing, the groovy krautrock, the subtle solos, it's all so well done. But at the same time I just can't get around the apathetic stage act. I know it's all just an act, where singer Arie van Vliet is sometimes addressing the crowd in a cool, formal way as well. But somehow it just doesn't appeal to me, even when the music is that good. I want some kind of connection to happen between audience and artist, in any kind of way. Today this doesn't work for me, maybe because I wasn't there from the start.
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We stick around at this stage while the temperature is getting tropical. It is just right for the next band playing here, Romperayo from Colombia. Their insane mix of Afro-Colombian traditional rhythms and cumbia are perfect for dancing and cold beers. Drummer Pedro Ojeda, who you may know from Los Pirañas, is the driving force behind those rhythms. The groovy bass adds some seventies funk and the guitar mixes in some psychedelica. Finally the keyboard adds little layers of sound effects, playful organs and some tropical vibes. Everyone in the tent is dancing to this colourful band. Some songs come dangerously close to too much cheesiness, but the band is able to avoid it in the end.
After dancing to some Colombian sun, it's time for Belgian darkness. Whispering Sons won Belgian music competition Humo's Rock Rally a few years back, where some of the biggest Belgian bands saw their career take off. The young band plays dark new wave and post-punk songs, that have an industrial sound. They are sometimes described as the Belgian Sisters of Mercy, which is not a bad reference. Even on this sunny day, the band's music doesn't miss its effect. Singer Fenne Kuppens is the absolute centre point of attention. Her low dark voice is a perfect match with the music and her stage appearance is stunning, singing her lyrics full of expression in a theatrical way. She knows how to balance it very well, so it never gets too much and stays completely honest. It is clear most of the people here are equally impressed, since the tent stays full and after playing the last song the band is greeted with a well meant roaring round of applause.
Another nineties comeback was announced this week: Pavement are coming back. The band influenced so many bands and nowadays young bands still draw inspiration from the illustrious Californian group. Today one if its core members Stephen Malkmus is performing with his band The Jicks. It is different from Pavement, but not too much. His music consists of well written compact indie rock songs, with a nineties vibe. However today these tunes are performed in a quite uninspired way. Malkmus is kind of playing on auto pilot, even though The Jicks seem to be trying. Maybe it's the temperature but it all comes across as too lifeless to really enjoy.
On the main stage Kurt Vile is looking much more inspired. You know he isn't exactly a happy camper like Mac DeMarco yesterday, but his indie rock and folk sounds convincing today. As a former guitarist of The War On Drugs his music doesn't wander off too much from his former band. You can hear where it's all coming from. His songs are slowly passing by with lots of guitar solos, something that is perfect for the hot stage he's playing, in front of people that appear to be standing in a blistering desert. It shows that you can still play a convincing and inspired show despite an unmoved stage presence.
We have to leave Kurt Vile early since we don't want to miss anything from The Raconteurs. Their return was great news and I was looking forward to his show today a lot. And boy, I am not disappointed to put it mildly. It's as if they have unleashed a bunch of caged tigers (yes, weak safari park reference intended) and the band fly into it with great power. We get to hear a couple of new songs and some golden oldies. Jack White says they wish they could play longer, which is obvious. They want to make every second of this performance count and don't waste any time in between. It's great to see the chemistry in this band, where they are looking at each other, walk towards each other and are simply having a blast. I love the combination of Brendan Benson's lovely, warm and calm voice, and Jack White's high, hoarse and somewhat hysterical vocals. Within no time the last chords of 'Steady As She Goes' have sounded and the band is finished. This was an hour of absolute rock heaven and I can't wait for a headlining concert hopefully to be announced soon.
A thunderstorm is on its way to the festival site, but we don't need any other excuse to be at Interpol's show. It's part of the same tour I saw last year, which proved the band has returned to their best form. Tonight they steadily work their way through their setlist again, playing songs off their last album and EP together with some of their big hits. Like always singer Paul Banks keeps his distance, wearing sunglasses for the entire show. His thundering voice sounds strong and clear though. This band from New York has so many good songs, that never fail to impress or miss their effect. Again the band plays very tight, although I have the feeling it is not as tight as last year's show. This could just be an unjustified feeling and the fact that it is a shorter set. I still enjoy it a lot and let myself get carried away by their gloomy rock music.
When we get outside, the thunderstorm has passed and cooled of the festival site. When we walk onto the field in front of the main stage, it looks quit empty. Fortunately people were only hiding from the storm and are slowly returning for the closing act of the festival. It may have raised an eyebrow here and there, but I think Christine & The Queens is very good choice. She has impressed many people lately with well written pop songs and spectacular live performances. She proves it tonight with a live show that is well performed, very lively and also contains a message. Chris, as she calls herself now, mentions this is a judgement free area tonight, where no one will be judged for who they are, but everyone should be able to completely be themselves. It is a very relevant message today and one that comes across effectively.
The show is very well done, with dancers flying around the stage in stunning choreographed dancing, where Chris is always the centre point. Pieces of eighties music like Janet Jackson are mixed in and I can surely see the resemblance to that era. Her voice is clear and strong, seemingly singing and dancing with great ease. A piece of David Bowie's 'Heroes' finds its way into the show and it sounds wonderful. She addresses the crowd regularly, where you feel there's a real connection. It's hard not to connect because she's doing it with so much passion, enthusiasm and heart. It is a live show that has so much to offer and is high on entertainment that it is spot on as a closing headliner for this year's edition. Well done Chris and well done Best Kept Secret.
This year's edition may not have been as perfect as last year's where every band seemed to excel. However something that is not entirely perfect can just be as good because the highs are more obvious. Maybe even better? It doesn't matter, since what counts is that it was another wonderful edition and we surely will return next year.
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