If things were ‘normal’ right now, I might be packing up a small suitcase in anticipation of a flight to Amsterdam. And from there, I might be hopping north on a train to Groningen. I’d pull my things through the slush on the streets (the snow never quite settles) and check in at the cheapest room I’d been able to find. I’d then reacquaint myself with all that there is to see and do at Eurosonic Noorderslag. January festivals are the best.
Clearly, things aren’t ‘normal’ right now. That giddy freedom of drinking myself silly whilst rushing around Dutch cities and watching acts that I might love or hate whilst talking nonsense to nearby punters is not on the cards. I’m glad I have the memories.
Jolene is still releasing music. Sonic Breakfast readers with particularly extensive memories might recall how we once met in Groningen (here). I would love to be back in that crowd right now. I treasured the card that Jolene gave me until my wallet got stolen about eighteen months later
“Wow that is a long time ago and how drunk was I that evening hahah”, says Jolene when I get back in touch with her to tell her how much I like her new track, Denied. It’s a dark-pop classic. On the surface, it’s a tale of love gone wrong and yet for me, right now, it takes on a much greater significance. I’m being denied these things that I love, festivals in January, and it hurts. But probably not as much as Covid does.
Eurosonic Noorderslag is sort of continuing this year. From this Wednesday, it’s programmed four free online stages where you and I can head to watch 15 minute sets from the up and coming across Europe. I might dip in and out. I’ve struggled to connect with online gigs in the way I might if I was there in person but it’s a noble substitute and there will no doubt be some fine contributions. (Sign up here). It’ll be worth watching if other lockdown alternatives are exhausted.
I don’t know if Jolene will be watching any. She’s sounds kind of flat-out . “For 2021 at the moment I’m busy with another project I’ve just started. It’s another musical side of me. I’m going to record another rock album with influences of Quentin Tarantino Dead Weather Style :)”, she says. “Meanwhile I’m looking for a producer to record 3 new tracks for my Jolene electro project. So kinda busy with creating music.”
It’s hard to believe it was just two weeks ago that I was in Groningen; it feels longer. I’m sure that as 2018 progresses I’ll continue to curse myself for the bands I missed whilst at Eurosonic. There was so much going on though so I do have an excuse.
One such band that I missed was Pale Grey. This was despite some lovely communication with Max from their record label/booking agency, JauneOrange, heartily encouraging me to head along to the Huize Maas on Thursday.
It appears that ‘Pale’ is this year’s prefix for a cool band name (taking the place of ‘Crystal’ perhaps?). Despite coming from quite different genres, there were three ‘Pale’ bands at Eurosonic. To a casual outsider, it might prove challenging to distinguish between Pale Grey, Pale Honey and Pale Waves.
The confusion gets even more complex when you consider that Pale Grey’s latest album, which has a Europe-wide release in March, is called ‘Waves’. And when you receive a press release saying ‘some acts are impossible to categorise. Pale Grey are one of those bands‘, the temptation is to throw your hands up in the air with despair.
But that’d be foolish. You’d miss out on the music of Pale Grey which very much speaks for itself. “Through the lyrics and the melody, Pale Grey works to reconcile the air with the ground, the aerial with the carnal“, says the slightly pompous PR statement surrounding the band. It’s all about combinations and fusions apparently. Let’s listen.
Latest single, Late Night, is compelling. Pale Grey’s songs don’t typically feature rap but this one’s got Serengeti involved. We descend with the band into an alcohol-infused stupor, a drunken stumble home from an excessive night out.
My favourite of their single releases from the upcoming album, Seasons, is a short and stunning consideration of how life passes all of us by so quickly. It’s quite different to ‘Late Night’ and you begin to see the complexities of a band refusing to be pigeon-holed.
The album has had a release in their native Belgium. I’m looking forward to hearing more when it’s released here.
Perhaps I’m a bit jaded after overdoing things at Eurosonic on Wednesday and Thursday. Perhaps, somewhere in the back of my head a sensible voice is telling me that ‘you’re travelling home tomorrow and you don’t want to miss your connections’. Whatever the reason, Friday at ESNS doesn’t kick off with the vigour of the previous days.
I go for a walk around parts of Groningen I’d not previously visited. I commend myself for my pursuit of something healthy as I stroll around a very pretty lake within a park. It starts to snow; not that picture-postcard type of snow but the sludgey variety that quickly turns to icy water underfoot. I curse myself for being out in the open air and yearn for a warm cafe/pub. They’re not difficult to find in these parts.
I am in Lola (Lola is a venue in this town). It’s another place that I failed to visit last year; a compact one-roomed venue, ornately decorated with chandeliers and baroque, garish art. The room is packed as ‘Afterpartees’ take to the stage. I’ve noticed that Dutch bands can anticipate enthusiastic, full crowds, probably to be expected when on home soil. For this show, the queues outside of the venue snake down the road and round the corner. It’s easy to see why. Afterpartees deliver a bubblegum power punk pop with youthful energy. Their lead singer is a ball of energy as he fizzes in angular fashion around the venue. He jumps into the crowd and breaks down, questioning his very existence, in front of a mirror hanging at the back of venue. It’s too much for two older chaps standing behind me who giggle at the ‘schoolboy band’ and yearn for ‘something heavier’. But, I think they should open their minds and chill out a bit. It’s hard not to grin in appreciation when Afterpartees are in full flow.
I’d been inside Lola earlier as well. The BUMA Rocks! showcase sounds interesting and not just because there’s free beer on offer. I say hello to a lovely chap, Waldo, who I met last year when at Fira B! In Mallorca (here). I had no idea that he’s compering this event, something that he seems to do very proficiently even if I have little clue what he’s saying. For I Am King take to the stage. Sonic Breakfast prides itself on being open to all genres of music but confesses that screamo metal mostly passes me by. You can’t get away from the fact though that when done well it’s an exciting live proposition. And For I Am King are great. I’m no expert in this field but I’d hazard a guess that the majority of screamo singers are male; it’s why it’s so great to see Alma Alizadeh front up this band. She does so with incredible presence, her guttural growls at least the equal and often better than male counterparts. The whole band put on a show, guitarists jumping into the spotlight as they unleash complicated solos on us. A moshpit forms and I’m almost tempted to jump on in. But then I remembered I’m an older man. For I Am King have definitely blown away the cobwebs.
I spotted many of the crowd from BUMA Rocks! later in the evening at Myrkur’s gig in the Lutherse Kerk. The Lutherse Kerk is another of Groningen’s wonderful church venues. There’s something wonderfully decadent and a tad inappropriate about drinking beer from a church pew looking out to an antique, wooden pulpit. Myrkur is an enigma; that’s what many say about her. From Denmark, this classically trained wonder has specialised in ethereal, folk-laced dark metal to date. As such, it seems brave to put this on in a church. But the organisers know what they’re doing. Tonight’s show from Myrkur is dreamlike and choral. She moves from piano to acoustic instruments ably supported by her band and singers. I think this might be reworkings of traditional folk songs. It’s beautiful and angelic, not nearly heavy enough for the metal fans who come to explore and leave complaining that it’s not their thing. Those that do stay (and there are many) close their eyes, ignore those grumbles and are taken away to a place of magic. Purely perfect.
Whilst you can quickly walk between many of the Eurosonic venues there are a few that are on the periphery. There are some great acts playing further out of town tonight and if it wasn’t so blooming cold and snowy I could be tempted to go and see Bad Sounds. I saw them three times in 2017 and they never failed to disappoint. I owe them a blog post of their own at some point.
I stay central and after passing time with the fine Altin Gun (1970’s psychedelia with a delightful Turkish glaze), I head to see Zulu Zulu. I had to really after they featured in a previous preview blog post (here). Since that random discovery, I’ve spent a fair bit of time with their album. It meant that I could claim faint familiarity whilst dancing along to their sunshine grooves. The masks, the lights, the sheer euphoria of it all means I never really want it to stop. But, as always happens when you’re enjoying yourself too much it’s all over far too quickly.
And that seems like an appropriate time to call an end to my 2018 Eurosonic experience. The gigs continue on Saturday with the Dutch music showcase, the Noorderslag, taking place in the Oosterport convention centre but reluctantly I have to head back to the UK.
I wander past Vera one final time and make note of the lengthy queues outside as Astroid Boys play inside. It’s been an epic adventure, a wonderful experience to spend these few days in Groningen and I’m already thinking about 2019.
I try not to have too much of a fixed plan when in Groningen for Eurosonic. It’s right to pick out a couple of ‘must-sees’ every day from the lengthy list of acts but it’s also right to follow your nose and to allow yourself to stumble upon the unexpected. Thursday throws up some delightful surprises.
I make no apologies for posting this twenty minute video from Slovenian band, Sirom. It’s the best I can find on the web that demonstrates the beauty I experienced from their set. I mightn’t have taken a seat upstairs in the Grand Theatre if I hadn’t had a random chat with a chap from Slovenian radio the day before but I’m really grateful for that tip. A rug is laid out on the stage and on it is an assortment of twenty or so wild instruments. I couldn’t begin to name half of them let alone play them but the three members of Sirom move hypnotically between them weaving a magical spell. When two of them beat out a tune together on an elaborate glockenspiel looking thing, I’m close to tears. The rug becomes a magic carpet and I’m flying on it through history. Completely enchanting and an act that should be booked for Womad or Musicport without delay.
Weird Bloom are from Italy. I pop into their set on the way to somewhere else and stay for the duration. They’ve got a psychedelic simplicity about their work; if you tried to write a nursery rhyme whilst high on magic mushrooms, you might end up with something from the Weird Bloom catalogue. It’s not the busiest of shows but those that pass by miss a treat. When lead singer, Luca Di Cataldo, leaves the stage towards of the end of the final tune, you really don’t expect him to be joining you in the crowd. He dances with those of us watching whilst making rock postures. It’s funny, delightful and massively entertaining. I’d pay to go and see this band again.
I really should be heading to bed for it’s been a long day; a brilliant one during which I’ve seen so much great art. But the crowd that’s gathered outside Mutua Fides looks enticing and I enquire about what’s going on within. Meisterjaan is from Estonia and he uses jaw harps, a looper and live electronics to make the most incredible dance music. It’s clubbing but not as we know it; an act that would go down a storm at Sonar. Weary and fairly drunk after a full day of beer, I sway from side to side appreciating the noise and performance that’s coming from the stage. I can’t help thinking that it’s been a splendid Thursday and I feel myself getting far too emotional. If I see acts that are half this great on Friday, it will have been an excellent Eurosonic.
I’ve arrived safely in Groningen. It’s been a long day of travel, sometimes fraught with fear of missing connections, yet somehow I’ve got here ahead of schedule. In truth, I could do with sleep after checking into my lovely digs but there’s an action-packed evening of bands to see on Eurosonic’s Wednesday and I’m up for that challenge.
I flit from venue to venue, confident in the layout, having largely.got my bearings last year. The main result – Sean sees lots of great ‘up and coming’ music and by the end of the evening is a little bit drunk.
Tomorrow, I head to Groningen for Eurosonic Noorderslag 2018. Needless to say, I’m very excited. My mailbox is creaking from artists, agents and PR companies who are keen to get their acts on my radar. With so many artists playing, it’s easy to overlook things without getting those prompts.
I thought it the right time to do another of my entirely random ESNS searches (here’s the previous one) to identify another band to quickly preview. The random word generator gave me ‘Waves’ and the random number generator ’16’. I’m taken right to the alphabetical end of the Eurosonic line up for ‘Zulu Zulu’ – this might be interesting!
The ESNS website describes them thus:-
“Delivering some much needed mediterranean vibes to cold Groningen, Zulu Zulu is a project born in Mallorca in 2015. Their proposal, African music based on onomatopoeia, does not leave anyone indifferent. Bright landscapes, ancestral rhythms and an impeccable staging are some of its virtues. Their first record Defense Zebra came out in January 2017, and they have quickly been picked up by many venues and festivals.”
I was in Mallorca for the lovely Fira B showcase back in September (I wrote a small bit about it here). One criticism that might have been levelled against many of the bands I saw playing was that they lacked originality. I saw some cool stuff and met some lovely people but band-wise, the level of derivation often felt clumsy. There were exceptions to that rule; bands that had gone beyond direct copycat mimicry of their heroes to add something new and vibrant. It would appear that Zulu Zulu had made great strides at Fira B in 2016, the year before I was there.
A quick listen to ‘Defense Zebra’ and a watch of their YouTube videos leaves one in little doubt; Zulu Zulu are an exciting, unique proposition. I’m a sucker for visuals, especially when it involves masks, costumes and mystery. Zulu Zulu are a band who’ve raised themselves above the humdrum and the obvious by employing a tribal theatricality of their own. They’ve overcome the barriers of language by creating one of their own.
Most of all, and the reason why they’re now on my list to watch on Friday night at the Huis De Beurs (00:15 – 01:00), they look like one hell of a live proposition.
As I mentioned yesterday (here), I’ve got a last minute press invite to Eurosonic Noorderslag next week in Groningen. I can’t wait until I’m once again on those cold streets drinking coffee and beer with music fans from around Europe.
There are a massive number of acts scheduled to play over the course of the festival. Even if I’d had more time to peruse the line up it’s inevitable that I would overlook something I’d really be keen on. I’ve asked mates with more of a handle on these things than I’ve currently got to send me their tips. Obviously, I’ll follow my nose as well and refuse to be too structured with my plans. That’s where the most joy can come from.
I asked a random word generator for a word this morning and got ‘maggot’. I asked a random number generator for a number between one and thirty and got ‘ten’. I logged onto the ESNS line up page (here) and counted ten acts down from ‘MAG’ in their alphabetical list.
‘Millionaire’, a rock band from Belgium, is what my lucky dial landed upon.
I can’t help thinking that ‘Millionaire’ are not a typical ESNS band. Many acts that are scheduled to appear might be considered up and coming. They’ll be making use of their time in Groningen to build industry contacts and to make links that’ll further their careers.
But Tim Vanhamel, the main man behind Millionaire, arguably has better links than most who’ll be around next week. This is a guy who played guitar in dEUS. Millionaire have toured with Queens Of The Stone Age, Muse and Foo Fighters. Tim’s even written a tune for Eagles Of Death Metal. On one level, it’s hard to see what gain there might be for Millionaire in playing ESNS.
They’ve been away for some time though. A decade is a long time in this fickle industry, Third album, Sciencing, came out last year when many had given up hope of seeing Millionaire again. I’m sure that fans of the band welcomed the release and lapped it up but nostalgic references to glory days will only get you so far.
And so it begins again; the incessant touring and the re-building of a fan base. I’m looking forward to their show at ESNS Play. It’ll be an opportunity to see a rock craftsman with undeniable pedigree at work.
Millionaire play ESNS Play on Friday 19th January between 22.40 and 23.20
Have I fallen out of love with blogging? A quick look at the sparse, sporadic Sonic Breakfast updates in 2017 might well indicate that to be the case. To my shame, the regular ‘Sonic Breakfast Top Ten Of The Year’ feature didn’t even feature between Christmas and the New Year.
In truth, I have perhaps lost a bit of that fire. It might come back or it might take another form but at the moment the thought of scanning through the ever-growing mountain of E-mails from PR companies and bands desperate to be introduced as the next big thing holds less allure than once it did.
There’s such a quantity of great art out there that doesn’t see the light of day; so much great music that gets released to the slightest of fanfare; so many great films that are left in the editing suite to decay and rot. It all becomes a bit overwhelming. Whilst friends did end of year lists documenting their 100 favourite albums of 2017, I simply wallowed in the corner feeling fraudulent for barely listening to a dozen albums from start to finish in that twelve months.
A couple things are happening in my life that regular Sonic Breakfast readers might care to know about.
(1) After 12 years in the day job, I’m taking redundancy at the end of March. I see this as a positive thing though it’s only natural that stepping out of a comfort zone also brings accompanying fears. My plan is to head to Spain. Sarah has a villa over there. I want to give myself the headspace to write words every day. With a view looking out towards real mountains, the ever-growing mountain of E-mails will surely seem less daunting to deal with.
(2) I’ll be renting my house out – or at least making use of the services of AirBNB. Close friends who’ve seen my house will know that there’s a fair bit of largely cosmetic redecorating work to get through if I’m going to achieve the Spanish dream in April.
(3) The day job workload shows little sign of abating. I’ll be kept busy before I go. Appalling at saying ‘no’ to things, I’ll also still be writing comedy festival reviews for the Mercury during February and knocking together the occasional piece for the fine Leicester listings magazine, Great Central. This all takes time.
(4) I’ve been developing a love for ‘random’ word generation games. I’ve been managing that overwhelming pile of E-mails by not managing them and finding other ways to unearth great music and film. The internet has some great, little tools for generating random words. I’ve been using those words with which to search Spotify or IMDB movie databases. I’ve been forcing myself to expand my horizons; to listen to the music that a random combination of words entered into search tools might spew back; to watch the awful TV movie if that’s what the search results demand. Somewhat amazingly, employing such randomness rarely fails to delight and always seem to inform. Even when the art isn’t entirely to my taste, I’m taken down new and exciting avenues of thought. I’m discovering new things in a way that feels comfortable and pressure-free. I plan to keep playing around with such practice.
Yesterday, to my general surprise, I received a press invite to the incredible Eurosonic Norderslag festival. It takes place each year in January in Groningen, Netherlands and I was lucky enough to head out last year to review it for eFestivals. (My review can be read here). It’s happening next week which gives very little time to plan but after a bit of frantic arranging it does look like I’ll be heading out again. Despite all that I’ve said elsewhere in this post, I’m genuinely excited about the new acts I’ll get to spot.
And tomorrow on Sonic Breakfast, I’ll make use of random word generation in order to introduce one of the bands on the ESNS bill. For now, feel free to take a look at this.
I can’t remember the name of the band who were about to take to the stage. Judging from the queue of people I’d had to make my way past at the entrance, they must have been an act with a lofty reputation. I was feeling hot, bothered and on the edge of heading back to my rented apartment in the centre of the city. It had been a heavy weekend.
Two swaying women, probably more drunk than I was, came and stood in my general vicinity. One was very tall and the other less so. The shorter one said something to me in Dutch. At least I assumed it was in Dutch; this would have made sense as we were all in the Netherlands.
“I’m sorry. I can’t understand. I’m English”, I apologised. This was my first conversation with Jolene.
I’ve been casually exchanging e-mails with Emiel, the guitar player from an exciting post-rock band from Belgium, The Guru Guru, for a couple of months now. They were playing one of the fringe events when I was over in Groningen for Eurosonic. I wanted to head along but a combination of it being in a maze-like venue consisting of many rooms and alcohol (yeah, Ok, I got lost) meant I missed the chance.
(Click on page 2 to find out more about The Guru Guru)
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