Terra Gotha, Arsenaal, Vlissingen, the NetherlandsOctober 29th 2005
Clan of Xymox, Funker Vogt, Angels & Agony Misery, Zadera, Swarf
Just 100m from the sea, right next to the yacht harbour of Vlissingen there is a big amusement complex called ‘het Arsenaal’. With many halls, rooms and even an arcade hall it's the centre for Vlissingen's youth. But right next to al the flashing and beeping games there is this nicely styled theatre, home to the Terra Gotha festival of October 2005. Seven bands were booked for this edition, unfortunately we had to wait for the guestlist to arrive so we had to miss the first band of the day. But there was plenty left to see. Entering the main hall with its chandeliers and red walls this seemed to be the perfect place for this stylish gothic event.
Misery
A band from the Netherlands which was the first one to enter the stage was Misery. Due to some delays they started later, but it wasn't a bad start at all. Misery is one of the emerging bands in the Dutch Gothic scene that plays solid electro wave.
Music
The band consists of singer Lies who does draw most attention on stage. A good and powerful voice yet dreamy. At times it is a good combination with the electro music made by the two musicians Alain (keys) and Edwin (guitar). Not a bad sound though it might need a bit more diversity sometimes. Misery plays mostly songs from their recently release demo 'Nexus'. The Dutch scene isn't big, they should try the rest of Europe and try to grow bigger; they have potential. The mix was a bit weird, there was a guy with a guitar on stage but somehow his sound seemed to be lost in the music. On the other hand both vocals (female and vocoder) were very clear and so were the keys, mixed feelings about this though.
The band consists of singer Lies who does draw most attention on stage. A good and powerful voice yet dreamy. At times it is a good combination with the electro music made by the two musicians Alain (keys) and Edwin (guitar). Not a bad sound though it might need a bit more diversity sometimes. Misery plays mostly songs from their recently release demo 'Nexus'. The Dutch scene isn't big, they should try the rest of Europe and try to grow bigger; they have potential. The mix was a bit weird, there was a guy with a guitar on stage but somehow his sound seemed to be lost in the music. On the other hand both vocals (female and vocoder) were very clear and so were the keys, mixed feelings about this though.
Performance
Front woman Lies is most certainly the eye-catcher of the band, dressed in a nice black/red outfit, she looks great. Combine this with her gracious moves to the music and your focal point is clear. On the other hand both men seemed to have decided not to wear anything special on stage today, too bad. They were also rather static but looking at the front lady they must have gone to lengths to even distract the attention from her. Not that everybody in the audience was paying attention. Most people were dancing, just like what the music was made for. To accompany the performance and music there was quite a bit of light on stage, bright colours and well timed changes.
Setlist
01. Being Watched
02. No Place to Hide
03. Coma
04. Universal Trek
05. Freedom
06. Panorama
Rating
Music: 7
Performance: 7
Sound: 7
Light: 8
Total: 7
Music: 7
Performance: 7
Sound: 7
Light: 8
Total: 7
Zadera
All the way from Magdenburg this German quartet plays, according to their website, music in the finest tradition of the Batcave-Sound.
Music
There is no real way to explain what happened on stage. Did they do such great post production on their demo and get selected for the festival because of this? Or is this just about the worst ever concert they did. The singer Conny was obviously not producing any sound the audience liked to hear. People were leaving the concert hall in great haste, telling those approaching not to enter. This is serious, and after just a few seconds it was clear these people were right. All vocals were way of tune, it was too sad to be true really. Normally the review need to cover the sound at the venue as well, but because the bad vocals were so prominently present all efforts to focus on the music and sound were futile.
There is no real way to explain what happened on stage. Did they do such great post production on their demo and get selected for the festival because of this? Or is this just about the worst ever concert they did. The singer Conny was obviously not producing any sound the audience liked to hear. People were leaving the concert hall in great haste, telling those approaching not to enter. This is serious, and after just a few seconds it was clear these people were right. All vocals were way of tune, it was too sad to be true really. Normally the review need to cover the sound at the venue as well, but because the bad vocals were so prominently present all efforts to focus on the music and sound were futile.
Performance
Well there must have been something on stage that was noteworthy about this band. Their music being pretty bad they must have compensated by giving a great and vivid show, but no. A lovely lady on drums couldn't make this concert any better, nor could the bass player's white tie that somehow managed to get between the strings and the bass' neck. Conny was putting up her angry face while singing, she should have been angry with herself for singing that bad instead of pretending to be all emotional because of the lyrics. Most interaction with the audience seemed to come from the audience; by walking away in great numbers at least they made a statement. The lights during the show might well have been the only positive side to the concert.
Rating
Music: 1
Performance: 6
Sound: -
Light: 7
Total: 3
Music: 1
Performance: 6
Sound: -
Light: 7
Total: 3
Swarf
Take some Brighton DJs and have them make their own music. Swarf is the result of the collaboration between three DJs which resulted in some very danceable electro.
Music
The music just sound good, nice beats and some pretty catchy tunes to go with it. With Andrew Stock and Chris Kiefer on keys/programming the band sets a solid base for the hyper happy Liz Green to sing and express her feelings. She has a good voice with a lot of room for her emotions. Don't expect to be just dancing with this band, Liz just won't let you! A well balanced sound during this concert, good room for the vocals and of course a clean and rich sound from the keys.
The music just sound good, nice beats and some pretty catchy tunes to go with it. With Andrew Stock and Chris Kiefer on keys/programming the band sets a solid base for the hyper happy Liz Green to sing and express her feelings. She has a good voice with a lot of room for her emotions. Don't expect to be just dancing with this band, Liz just won't let you! A well balanced sound during this concert, good room for the vocals and of course a clean and rich sound from the keys.
Performance
There is a difference between listening to a CD and seeing the band live in concert. Some bands are exposed as bad performers, nothing more but a CD played live, others, like Swarf just show what performing is like. Very down to earth in one way and high in the sky in others Liz is all over the place cheering up the crowd while dancing like a leaf in the autumn wind. Her very friendly appearance and enthusiasm ensures the band they get the audience's full attention, which is most certainly well deserved. Of course sanding behind a keyboard renders you rather static but Andrew and Chris at least try their best to be part of the show. They dressed up well and seek eye contact with the audience. All these efforts however look pale compared to what Liz achieves, maybe she should start teaching other bands a thing or two about performing. To be brief about the light, it was just like Liz: energetic!
Rating
Music: 8
Performance: 9
Sound: 8
Light: 8
Total: 8
Angels & Agony
The positive people from the Netherlands, their songs dealing with the higher levels of life. Reinier Kahle, Erik Wierenga and well known scene DJ Marco van Belle are knocking at the door of the scene's greatest, ready to claim their spot.
Music
With Erik and Marco behind keys, the Dreamside's Fried at the drum pads the band sets in with some serious beats. It is a thunder storm right above your roof:, rumbling and shaking you up. This is your wake-up call; compared to the previous bands this is aggressive at times, but most certainly louder and more powerful. Still there is plenty of opportunity to dance to this music. Besides the beats there is plenty of melody and Reinier’s vocals aren't as distorted as many of the similar bands. A good warm-up for the next band but not at all any less in its own right. Besides the vocals the keyboards provided the softer side to the music as well. Marco van Belle shows he is more than the band manager and a DJ. As a live keyboard player he even takes care of the backing vocals, both clean and distorted. The mix was just as it should be, lots of power in the bass and enough room for the vocals and leaving the rest to the keyboards to do the trick.
With Erik and Marco behind keys, the Dreamside's Fried at the drum pads the band sets in with some serious beats. It is a thunder storm right above your roof:, rumbling and shaking you up. This is your wake-up call; compared to the previous bands this is aggressive at times, but most certainly louder and more powerful. Still there is plenty of opportunity to dance to this music. Besides the beats there is plenty of melody and Reinier’s vocals aren't as distorted as many of the similar bands. A good warm-up for the next band but not at all any less in its own right. Besides the vocals the keyboards provided the softer side to the music as well. Marco van Belle shows he is more than the band manager and a DJ. As a live keyboard player he even takes care of the backing vocals, both clean and distorted. The mix was just as it should be, lots of power in the bass and enough room for the vocals and leaving the rest to the keyboards to do the trick.
Performance
When the beat sets in the stage is filled with three men in impeccable white t-shirts hidden in the mists of Vlissingen's harbour. Then piercing through the haze of smoke Reinier takes the stage wearing a black outfit, his short hair and athletic body are impressive as his voice. The appearance of the band goes well together with the music; powerful. But it's not all just serious music we see on stage. Reinier calls Terra Gotha organiser Wim de Nooijer on stage and almost forces him to dance to the beat. With some more people it soon starts to look like a carnival party... with one difference: the music is still good! The interaction with the audience is good; the band clearly feels at home with this home audience. Of course Reinier is constantly trying to reach out to the people, but Marco at times almost folds himself around the top of his keyboard trying to get the people all berserk. With a hall full of people, dancing to their music Angels & Agony must have had a mission accomplished. Dark and moody lights combined with too much smoke made it hard to see expressions on the band's faces, not that too many cared being too consumed in their dancing anyway.
Setlist
01. Stronghold
02. Salvation
03. Division
04. Surrender
05. Forever
06. One
07. Civilization
08. Vanguard
09. Darkness
Rating
Music: 8
Performance: 8
Sound: 8
Light: 7
Total: 8
Funker Vogt
The names and fames are just getting bigger the further the night progresses. These German warlords from Hammeln don't fight for fun; their real message is much more against war and social injustice.
Music
Like you could expect with their lyrical background this band just needs to provide some pretty heavy and aggressive sound, and they do. But not to the extend where there is no rooms for some softer synth elements. While the BPM remains high and the vocals are still loud and violent, the softer side secretly invades their music which gves it just that bit more depth. Live this band just puts down a good piece of music which sounds richer than their album versions they tend to sound a bit too much of the same. The mix was reasonable but not great, it was a lot of noise with too little detail in the synths, the vocals however were well done.
Like you could expect with their lyrical background this band just needs to provide some pretty heavy and aggressive sound, and they do. But not to the extend where there is no rooms for some softer synth elements. While the BPM remains high and the vocals are still loud and violent, the softer side secretly invades their music which gves it just that bit more depth. Live this band just puts down a good piece of music which sounds richer than their album versions they tend to sound a bit too much of the same. The mix was reasonable but not great, it was a lot of noise with too little detail in the synths, the vocals however were well done.
Performance
Not too military this time, the main aim this time seems road works with their orange and black patterns they dominate the stage. Keyboard player and band's founder Gerrit Thomas is high on a riser behind what seems like a road barrier. On his head he is wearing a bright head light making sure he still can see a bit through the terrible smoke. This combined with bad lights must have had some purpose in their show. In the mean time Jens Kästel was running back and forth while carrying his mic stand around. Singing with great passion about war and destruction. The audience sure knew how to appreciate this and as expected they danced to the furious beats of the German band. Funker Vogt showed that seeing them live sure adds something to their music, what it is exactly, maybe it's called energy!
Rating
Music: 8
Performance: 7
Sound: 8
Light: 6
Total: 8
Clan of Xymox
Combining synthpop and wave this Dutch band manages to attract a lot of attention in the scene for the last decades. Highly accredited for all their work, which seems to be evolving all the time, the band has released a compilation album with their best tracks. Today's headliner is a stranger to their home country, but they are back to show what beauty has to play in Germany to get enough attention, such a shame!
Music
The band is experienced and that reflects on the massive pack of audience in front of the stage. It is clear that the band is enjoying the concert and the attention of the fans, because their enthusiasm is enriching their music. It sounds like they put all their emotion into the music. Of course this counts most for singer Ronny Moorings who,- with his melancholic voice,- manages to take the breath away from the listeners. On bass Mojca is playing a solid set, Mario Usai handles his guitar with flair and devotion, and behind keys the lovely green fairy Agnes Jaspers: who provides the music with some additional melody. Their music is most definitely one of the best around in this genre; their gig at Terra Gotha just makes you wonder why they don't have any more success with a bigger audience in the Netherlands. Overall the sound was rather good, though a bit more attention to the vocals wouldn't have hurt them.
The band is experienced and that reflects on the massive pack of audience in front of the stage. It is clear that the band is enjoying the concert and the attention of the fans, because their enthusiasm is enriching their music. It sounds like they put all their emotion into the music. Of course this counts most for singer Ronny Moorings who,- with his melancholic voice,- manages to take the breath away from the listeners. On bass Mojca is playing a solid set, Mario Usai handles his guitar with flair and devotion, and behind keys the lovely green fairy Agnes Jaspers: who provides the music with some additional melody. Their music is most definitely one of the best around in this genre; their gig at Terra Gotha just makes you wonder why they don't have any more success with a bigger audience in the Netherlands. Overall the sound was rather good, though a bit more attention to the vocals wouldn't have hurt them.
Performance
Apart from the odd kneeling down on stage, there really isn't too much movement. The most active is Agnes, but all her efforts are mostly obscured by clouds of thick smoke. It is no problem for this kind of music that the band is putting up a dynamic show, but a bit more interaction with the audience:, like making eye contact., That could have given it all a bit more intimacy. On the other hand it wasn't all bad the band was static, because for some reason there was even more smoke than before and the band could hardly be seen. Combine this with low light levels and expressions on faces are lost even for those in third row. Clearly the band likes smoke, but looking at our other review of the band they can play with good light. Fire that light engineer, and that of Funker Vogt as well, let there be light!
Rating
Music: 9
Performance: 6
Sound: 7
Light: 3
Total: 8
Comments powered by CComment