Threshold & Casual Silence - July 8, 2011
De Pul, Uden (NL)
Just in the act of preparations for their forthcoming
album, the British prog metal band Threshold
took a pause in order to give a few concerts in England and on the Continent. The
highlight of this short tour surely was the performance at the
Lorelei Festival in Germany. However, a
day earlier Threshold were kind enough to visit venue De Pul
in Uden to catch up with friends and having
a good time, but basically to give a concert. Before reviewing this gig I had
to pay attention to Casual Silence,
who gave their final concert as a support-act for Threshold.
Casual Silence
After a great farewell gig for their fans a week
earlier (see review) they now gave an already booked pre-show for Threshold. Although
the official split-up already took place they took this last opportunity to
promote their new album Vertical Horizon (see review).
With a number of major festivals like Lorelei, Bospop and even
North Sea Jazz in the same weekend people had to make choices. Therefore it's
fair to say that people showing up in Uden mostly came to see Threshold. Although
the audience reacted a bit half-hearted towards Casual Silence, the band did a
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| Mark (left) and Rob (background Igor & Ernst) |
great job and played some well-known songs from the past like
Lambrusco Evening and
Lost In Life (see review) and of course songs from their
final album like The Other Side,
The Chance and the majestic title track.
Rob Laarhoven's voice was as good as
ever and the combination of the melodic guitar work of
Ernst Le Cocq d'Armandville
and the heavy riffs of Mark van Dijk
still have a special kind
of chemistry. Also the duels between the keyboards of
Henry Meeuws
and the guitar of Le Cocq d'Armandville were a real
treat for the eyes and ears. Despite the audience mainly came to see Threshold,
Casual Silence gave all they got. You could tell by the always funny drumming
of Igor Koopmans and the jumping
around the stage by Le Cocq d'Armandville that they still enjoy playing live. I
really enjoyed the show, but it's a shame that only a few fans came to witness
their very last show, but then again, I think all these fans were present a
week earlier. It was a bit sad to listen to the final notes, but deep inside I know
this isn't the absolute end of one of the best Dutch progressive rock bands. It's
just a pity they're no longer able to promote
Vertical Horizon, for it's a great album. After the show I talked
to bass player Eric Smits for a
moment. He felt empty inside; it's still hard to realize that after eighteen years
of playing together he no longer has to attend the band's rehearsals...
Threshold
After a short break most fans gathered in front of the
stage to watch Threshold. Even before they started, vocalist
Damian Wilson was pointing and waving
at people in the audience. This immediately gave the feeling of being part of one
big family and it certainly shows how Threshold connects to their fans. For
people who saw Threshold before it's a common fact, but for those who have
never seen the band - shame on you - their singer is a very charismatic person.
There's no second vocalist like Damian Wilson. He's always talking in between
the songs, he has direct contact with the fans in the audience and in the
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| Pete (left) and Steve |
middle of a guitar solo you can even find him amidst the public. He did it all
again in Uden: walking through the public clapping, shaking hands with old
friends and climbing up the fence of the balcony. The audience loved it all, at
least I did. However, Threshold are more than this amazing vocalist. Guitarist
Karl Groom has a unique guitar sound
which was the reason why I bought my first Threshold-album in the first place.
Since then I haven't missed one. Groome's playing in combination with the
driven keyboards of Richard West has
always been the basic of numerous great songs. It's a unique combination as
well. Guitarist Pete Morten was
running around the stage to play these great riffs and it was amusing to see
how both guitarists played on the necks of each other's guitars while strumming
their own strings. The Threshold-show comprised a nice variation of old and
newer songs and the audience got plenty of chances to sing along with their
favourite ones. Falling Away and
This Is Your Life must have caused some
sore throats, for the audience sang along as loud as they could! An acoustic
intermezzo gave them time to catch a second breath. Then the band continued,
nice and heavy. It was great to see these guys giving a great performance with bassist
Steve Anderson lining up with the
guitarists playing perfectly together. And last but not least
Johanne James, a drummer who's funny
and powerful at the same time. He creates the heavy pounding, but still remains
in contact with the audience. So far every Threshold gig I saw was something
special, mostly because of the interaction with the audience. I'm glad having
seen them again; I can hardly wait for the next album and live shows. For me,
Threshold is one of the best bands ever and I hope they will soon find their
way to Uden again!
Pedro Bekkers (edited by Peter Willemsen)
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