My humble self has reached an age where the “great day” gets noticed, inevitably, but generally swept under the rug, as the 29 3/4 party trick doesn’t work anymore ;) So what to do instead? Slipping away to a show to let the bands play for you only ;) Perfect idea - said, done! I chose lovely and lively ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN to sing for me, who - together with the wonderful Amanda Somerville and TRILLIUM - just kicked of their European tour tonight at • Zentrum Altenberg • in Oberhausen, Germany. Weather is great, autumnal beautiful, perfect conditions for an awesome evening :)

:: pics ::

Arrived, things go easy and relaxed and the doors stay closed. The queue in front is short. Damn… Sometime later doors finally open and people stream in. When :: TRILLIUM :: enter the stage the venue is still clear, but once started the club fills quickly, luckily. Crowd is very mixed with kids around (yeah, the offspring) up to very old ones (not me ;)).
I have to admit I don’t know much about Amanda Somerville and TRILLIUM, I have heard of them, yes, but that’s all. Musically (symphonic and melodic Metal/Rock) it’s not really my cup of tea (so I thought). But right from the first song I was blown away by her. She is so kind, lovely and likeable. Amanda is actually American, living in Holland (her backing band is Dutch too) and speaking the German language really well. Wow! She did a few announcements in German and scored. And so did TRILLIUM. With every new song the audience got a little bit more into it. I saw some elderly ladies leaving because the sound was too heavy for them (they told), well, it wasn’t supposed to be an evening with folksy music, right? ;) There was not a frenetic applause at the end of the show but it was definitely more the just polite respect. Besides, most of the songs came from the band’s 2011 debut Alloy, except for two tracks, which should be brand new ones (Mayday and Inner Whore). Oh, they are not! As I got told, those are from her previous, non-metal one Windows. As for me… an awesome show!
Setlist: Machine Gun, Mistaken, Purge, Utter Descension, May Day, Inner Whore, Bow To The Ego, Path Of Least Resistance, Coward

Short change-over and :: ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN :: literally hops on stage and starts rocking with You Will Never Change from the brand new album Drive. She seems to have some minor problems with her ear monitoring but she wasn’t taken aback by this, smiled and stated that these are the little dirty tricks the first tour day always offers. As already mentioned, ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN is extremely lively, overwhelming lovely, energetic and jaunty. She rocks the hell out on stage, she bounces and dances and smiles and laughs. She is overwhelmed by the frenetic response and likewise thanks the crowd. She spreads such good mood, you cannot elude. Whatever one may have had in mind before, it all changes to the better with her. She is like a spa for the soul. Incredible! Of course, Anneke take center, what makes the rest of the band to an accessory part, not meant in a bad way of course as they are all excellent musicians. It is just like that (same goes for Amanda and her band). During the set ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN plays all songs from Drive, added by a few from the previous album and two acoustic versions of older songs (Circles, Beautiful One) and one track from the The Gathering era.
When it comes to the sing-along stuff the audience is quite lazy but does not stint on overwhelming feedback generally. One and an half hour and two encores later she ultimately says goodnight and finishes the show. Bands and fans are happy. By the way, both bands have a great sound and great lights.
Quickly after the show ANNEKE VAN GIERSBERGEN returns and joins the fans at the merchandise to talk, to sign and to get photographed with fans. With all of them, patiently. Believe me, the queue was really long and it definitely took an hour or even longer till the last fan got was he wanted. Hats off for this!
Yes, it really was a wonderful evening. Gonna do it this way every year from now ;)
Setlist: You Will Never Change, Drive, Saturnine, Treat Me Like A Lady, My Boy, 1000 Miles Away From You, She, Circles, Beautiful One, My Mother Said, Forgive Me, Mental Jungle, You Want To Be Free, Stay, Shooting For The Stars // We Live On/Feel Alive, The Best Is Yet To Come