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Posted by Ronald on August 29th, 2008 at 04:28 pm

Yes! It’s the third weekend of August and that means it’s Lowlands time. My favourite festival was about to start. I found out that the first time I was at the festival was in ‘98 and since then I only missed out on last year’s edition due to an unfortunate event. So this year was my 10th visit and I was up for a party and a super edition of the festival…

A Campingflight To Lowlands At Biddinghuizen, 15,16 and 17 August 2008

And it would turn out to be a great edition. As always there were of course lots of nice bands I wanted to check out and the only problem would be the eight stages they were playing at the same time. So it’s time to make some hard choices. In the beginning (said grandpa) you could always discover new exciting bands but lately the program is always very safe so it’s hard to find anything new at the edges of the spectrum. But I decided to skip some of the hyped and in my opinion slightly overrated bands like The Ting Tings, MGMT and Blood Red Shoes. Besides the eight music stages (all tents) there are two cinemas, a comedy stage, dance and theater. No reason to get bored over here. Our tent was setup and looking good, our moods were up, my good friends Mr. Grolsch was keeping me company and….ooooh! Ben &Jerry’s! Mmmmm…

Friday

The Presidents Of The United State Of America (Ronald says 4 out of 5)
No better way to start a festival with this band. It’s just great feel good music. With a nicely balanced set and good spirit they were putting down a great gig. Playing some of their hits like ‘Peaches‘, ‘Lumb‘, ‘Kitty’ and their version of ‘Video Killed The Radio Star‘ and some songs of their latest album ‘These Are The Good Times People‘ they had everyone swinging and feeling good instantly.

The Hoosiers (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
I didn’t know this band too much but decided to check them out. Apparently they were having a costume party. The horns section was dressed in a skeleton outfit and had their faces painted, Spiderman was playing the keys and all other members were dressed up. Even the amplifiers were transformed into some kind of cudly toy. The music was ok but nothing special. Lots of energy on stage though. Maybe next time also pay a similar amount of time to the songs. Too much fun can become a gimmick and can work against you. These guys have to be aware of that.

The Wombats (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
One of my best friends loves this band so we were joining him to see them playing the ‘Grolsch’ stage. They are one of the bands that kind of appeared in the slip stream of breaking bands Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs, Arctic Monkeys, etc. However they lack the quality and talent of those bands like most bands from this second generation. It’s not bad but you’ve heard it all before.

The Kooks (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
Like I mentioned in my blog about Werchter I like their latest album. And despite being among lots of teenage girls (although most of them were standing in front of the stage and I was somewhere in the middle) I enjoy their concerts most of the time. And this time it was no difference.  I can’t really tell for sure but their play list sounded similar to the one they played at Werchter mixing hits and new songs. The boys looked pretty excited and played a good gig. Of course no surprises either.

Late Of The Pier (Ronald says 2 out of 5)
I only heard one song so far that I thought was pretty interesting. They mix rock music with some electronics like a lot of new bands do. Unfortunately most songs sounded a like because of that and it all became a bit sterile. I guess it was too much electronic music for me. I listened to their album ‘Fantasy Black Channel‘ this week but I didn’t really like it either for the same reasons. Just not my cup of tea I guess.

Róisín Murphy (Ronald says 2 out of 5)
Róisín played many festivals in the past including some of the festivals I attended. However somehow I kept missing her. So I really wanted to check her out this time. Because, damn, she’s definitely worth checking out. Her music is a bit of arty-pop-dance. But how hard I find it to admit I got bored during the show. Her music never gets really exciting and safely stays between the borders of this genre. And there wasn’t much happening on stage either. Even Róisín’s tight see-through-skin-coloured shirt couldn’t keep my attention. Moloko was a lot more exciting.

So it was time to get drunk and party. We didn’t really get into it at any of the parties DJs were throwing at the different stages so in the end we were drinking beers, chatting away and enjoying a lovely slightly chilly night in front of our tent.

Saturday

After a surprisingly good night of sleep (the sun couldn’t even burn me out of the tent) some rolls, krentenbollen and of course Snelle Jelle it was time to grab a nice espresso at the festival. So I got rid of my morning turd, drank a nice espresso, ate a fruit cup for the vital vitamins and headed to the Alpha tent to start of the party.

50 Jaar Nederpop (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
Dutch pop music is called ‘Nederpop’ and we were celebrating 50 years of it. So several artists were honouring Dutch hit pop songs from the past and were playing songs of artists like Peter Koelewijn, Doe Maar, Dolly Dots, Dutch hero Herman Brood and of course ‘De Vlieger‘ by our other Dutch hero Andre Hazes. The big screens were showing old clips and karaoke texts so everyone could sing along. A great way to start the day.

Volbeat (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
Try mixing Elvis with metal and this is what it might sound like. This band from Denmark plays some heavy rock music while the singer sounds like an Elvis impersonator. Although some songs actually are quite nice like ‘Sad Man’s Tongue‘ it’s the singer’s voice that starts getting on your nerves and made me want to leave after 4 songs.

Gem (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
But that gave me enough time to see the last part of the performance of this Dutch band. Their album ‘New’ is doing pretty well and they got quite some air-play with their single ‘Look‘. And I liked it a lot. They were having fun on stage and the crowd was seemingly pleased with it. Hopefully they will grow some more in the future.

Claw Boys Claw (Ronald says 4 out of 5)
What can I say about this Dutch band what hasn’t been said before. Read my blog on their concert in Paradiso earlier this year and you know enough. Again they were able to knock the roof off. Although they started out carefully it didn’t take long before Peter Te Bosch took his mic into the crowd and almost made it to the back of the ‘Grolsch’ tent. Later on his crew threw water guns into the crowd and seeing Peter running through a tunnel of spurts of water was just brilliant.

The Rascals (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
Anyone who is a friend of Alex Turner and is making music with him and is performing with his own band is worth checking out I guess. Miles Kane recorded a great album with Alex Turner as The Last Shadow Puppets earlier this year and recently released the album ‘Rascalize‘ with this band. I thought the album was a bit disappointing. Somehow the songs aren’t really great and there aren’t songs that really stick out. On stage they had the same problem although it sounded better than their album. Maybe they will grow into it and deliver a better album next time.

Franz Ferdinand (Ronald says 4 out of 5)
They have been away for a while to work on their upcoming album. But now it’s time to hit the road again and to see how people respond to the new songs. They’ve introduced some keys in these songs but for the most part they follow the same recipe as their old songs. Is that a bad thing? Live it sure isn’t. It shows that everyone was eagerly awaiting the return of the band. From the moment they show up until they leave the stage again the crowd goes mad. And for a reason. Their big hits like ‘Take Me Out‘, “Michael” and “Do You Wanna” still sound strong and “This Fire” is the ultimate set closer making the crowd almost tear the place apart. The new songs blend in nicely although of course the crowd can’t sing along. The guys seem to have fun as well. They smile at each other and cannot hide the fact that they really enjoy the audience singing and clapping along. The charismatic front man Alex Kapranos is all charms and flirts with the audience like we’re used of him. Franz Ferdinand prove they’re one of the big rock bands of the past years.

Sex Pistols (Ronald says 2 out of 5)
I kind of have mixed feelings about the Sex Pistols. I know how important they were in the 70s but I think it also was more of an image instead of true ideology. So it was all kind of fake. And suddenly they decide to go on tour again. Is it time for another anarchy? Is it time to stand up again and jump on the barricades? Judging from their concert I’d say “No, not with them”. How significant they were back in the 70s I can’t really measure but their significance now is absolutely zero. They’re actually more annoying. It started by showing up late and ended by playing too long. The band doesn’t look inspired at all. It’s a bunch of middle aged men that look extinguished and only climbed the stage to make an easy buck. Singer John Lydon aka Johnny Rotten is only getting on your nerves instead of challenging the crowd. He’s become a clown, a gimmick of what once were the Sex Pistols. No “Anarchy In The UK” can even change that.

“Schraapzucht” by Tuig (Ronald says 4 out of 5)
Bored of Johnny Rotten and friends we headed to a theater performance. Unfortunately we had to wait for the band to stop playing since the location of the open-air theater act was located next to the stage the Sex Pistols were playing. Plenty of time to check out the strange looking construction: a ground floor platform and a first floor platform in the air with on one end a huge flywheel. And lots of ropes running through it tied to several objects. During the show the flywheel would be driven by 3 to 4 actors and it would control the ropes with little sand bags for contra weight. These ropes in turn pulled up the objects to form two rooms complete with tables, chairs, book shelf and a fire place. It’s hard to explain but it was very creative and interesting to watch. The actors don’t have any dialogue which is a plus and adds to the experience. And nicely composed music to finish it off.

And then it was time for the night program to start again with DJs taking over the stages. Damn that tent is crowded. Wait a minute! Is that Ben and Jerry’s? Mmmm…

Sunday

The final day I’m aching from head to toe. I’m not getting old am I!? I’ll show them something. Come on Mr. Grolsch! Let’s check out the first band in the Grolsch tent.

We Are Scientists (Ronald says 2 out of 5)
It’s nice to have some good bands on the final day to make it to the end of the festival. Unfortunately the first band didn’t do the trick. I didn’t really know this band that well. I only heard a couple of songs that I thought were okay. Their performance wasn’t really impressive. The crowd wasn’t really digging it and their inside jokes on stage were quite annoying. I wasn’t the least impressed by their performance. Not a good start of the day at all.

Hit Me TV (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
Another new Dutch band that impressed with their first single ‘Maybe The Dancefloor‘. I love that song. It’s catchy and very danceable. So I was very interested in their performance. And I wasn’t disappointed. The band was really eager and enjoyed playing the India tent. The crowd liked it as well and seemed to be responsive to their music. I will check out their self title album ‘Hit Me TV’ soon.

Danko Jones (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
This guy is always good for a nice rock show. Although sometimes a bit too much over the top he’s always putting a lot of effort into his testosterone loaded shows giving the audience there money’s worth. This time it was no different. I still don’t like his new album and in his show it is clear that those songs are definitely not as good as the songs of earlier albums. Still it was a lot of fun. At the end of the show he mentioned that it was the last show of their tour before pushing the last bits of energy out of their bodies. Too bad he was making fun of other artists like Babyshambles. I think that’s just too easy and Danko doesn’t need it to show his own qualities.

The Fratellis (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
What goes for the Wombat goes for the Fratellis as well I think. Their major hit ‘Chelsea Dagger‘ brought them a lot of fame. But I don’t think their songs and music is good enough to become bigger than this. Still not a bad gig though. Just nothing special.

The Hives (Ronald says 4 out of 5)
Somehow I was never able to see this band from Sweden like last time on Werchter. I never gave their music a proper listen and only knew a couple of their hit songs that got enough air play. I liked those songs and a friend who did catch them on Werchter was very excited after their show. So now I have two albums including their latest one and I like em. Their show however was even more than that. They go out on stage to show you a good time. Like Danko Jones they show all the classic rock poses and clichés. However they do it in such a playful way that it actually doesn’t get annoying at all. Their played arrogance is even amusing. It’s no coincidence that the two who are most active at this, singer Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist and guitar player Nicholaus Arson, are brothers. Playing hits like “Hate To Say I Told You So“, “Main  Offender” and “Tick Tick Boom” together with new songs they know how to keep tempo and don’t stop until everyone has had enough. In the end Pelle shouts out: “They’re telling us we have to go now… Do I look like I give a f**k?” and the crowd loves it. But wasn’t that exactly what he said in Werchter? So it’s not all that spontaneous and more or less orchestrated. Who cares. It works, it’s fun and the crowd loves it.

dEUS (Ronald says 4 out of 5)
After seeing them live on Werchter I knew what to expect. They had to cut their set list short since they were only allowed to play for an hour this time. But still it’s a brilliant show. What a power! What a great musicians! And what a great song “Bad Timing” is! Can’t wait to see their full show in Paradiso in December.

Editors (Ronald says 3 out of 5)
Editors got the honour of closing the festival in the Alpha tent, the biggest stage of the festival. You can leave that to this band without a doubt. It’s one of the fastest growing bands of the last couple of years. Perfect songs for such a big stage and everything worked out to perfection. Don’t get me wrong I like their albums and performances and seen them a couple of times before. But there doesn’t seem to be any room for improvisation or just plain fun. Of course songs like “Munich“, “Sparks”, “Bones” and “Smokers Outside The Hospital Door” are great and live they sound very good too. But they should be careful no to loose themselves into trying to control every bit of the show and this way taking out all the fun.

So another festival comes to an end and it was simply great. Even the weather was nice. Only a couple of showers on Sunday night and most of the other days nice and sunny. Ooooh! Isn’t that a Ben &Jerry’s scoop shop!? Mmmm…