When? Fri 11/07/2008 - Sun 13/07/2008
Where? Festival area
R&B Peer in the footsteps of Rock Werchter … when it comes to the prices of the catering.
How fast a year is passing by. I still remember very well when I left the festival last year, while Gov’t Mule was playing (but with The Allman Brothers Band in mind). Were the weather Gods on the hands of the festival last year, I fear this year it was pay back time for the ‘high water consumption’ of the previous year. Because the rain seemed unstoppable the day before the start of this pleasant festival. Fortunately it wasn’t all too bad and Sunday even was a warm and dry day.
It must have been a real setback for the organizers, when they were confronted with the cancellation of Alvin Lee. Finding a decent replacement, that can live up to the standards of the festival, with one day to go.
The biggest obstacle for the many visitors this year was the prices for the food and drinks. EUR 2,30 for a beer is a lot of money. It isn’t far from the prices we pay at Werchter: EUR 2,50. Outrageous, and we don’t even get quality beer! Fortunately this year there was more than one quality act programmed.
This was proven immediately by the Dutch band Electrophonics, who changed the damp lawn into a dance palace. A lot of fun and many visitors could not get enough of them. ‘Everything’s Alright’, and ‘Pony Tail’ were real highlights, because especially for their show in Peer, simultaneously with a similar festival in Holland, the band had added two extra horn players. The Electrophonics is a band to watch, because these guys have international grow possibilities.
We said before that Canada also has talent. The revelation of this day was, without question, The Perpetrators. There didn’t come a lot of blues from the speakers, but that didn’t seem to bother the audience that much. People are getting used to the fact that during this festival, besides real blues, they also get to hear other musical styles. Whatever, it was an act you felt attracted to ‘til the last minute. These Canadians are also multi-instrumentalists and they changed instruments frequently among themselves. From the various songs I do remember a very good version of ‘The Woman I Love’. We sure like to hear more of them.
Closing act on Friday was a band, which is becoming a real household name over here: The Seatsniffers. Our friends from Antwerp had promised us a special evening and they sure fulfilled their promises. Except for the familiar repertoire of these rootsmaniacs and the return of Bop de Houwer, we also got to see some familiar faces. A man, who sure wasn’t out of place, was Jan de Smet (De Nieuwe Snaar). Together with the sniffers and another guest, Jan Marinus, we were treated on some very fine moments. Other guests were Ruben Block (Triggerfinger), Marc Thijs (TEE, Electric Kings) and Nathalie Delcroix (Laïs), who brought a totally different sound, but it was especially Marc Thijs, who caught the eye. This man has a very soulful voice and he proved it once more with ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’, a version that would have made Ann Peebles jealous. Yes, and it was very strange to see him without guitar for once. A very solid opening day on which the opening band T-99 was completely overshadowed by the others.
Saturday
A Dutch band to kick off the day. The Rhythm Chiefs had the ungrateful task to play for an almost empty tent. But Dusty Ciggaar and his friends succeeded tot warm up the handful of visitors present. That these guys are doing well is obvious, when you see the many concert bills with their name on it. A band from Limburg, this time not Rusty Roots, but the recently founded Jim Cofey. Old guards maybe is not the right term for them, although is certainly fits Patrick Cuyvers (Hideaway, Soul Spirit). But also names from bands like El Fish, Last Call and Voodoo Boogie are part of this young group. I had the impression that some of the songs were a bit messy. And it was a mix of various styles. What I really hate is when a band is tempted to introduce a DJ on a festival. Scratching seemed to be the thing and that’s why I left them early.
A young and beautiful lady, which we saw three years ago on the Grote Markt in Antwerp, in the company of Ian Parker and Ainsley Lister, was Erja Lyytinen from Finland. Then just a little girl, but now a full-grown woman, who knows how to play the blues. It was expected that she would play some song from her latest CD ‘Grip Of The Blues’, and yet these songs sounded much better live, then on disc. A lady to watch, visually it was all right too. Unfortunately Luc Janssens (Luke Alexander as stage manager) didn’t allow her to do an encore. After the show we had a nice conversation with this Finnish Blues diva. And believe me, we hardly didn’t get a chance to say something ourselves.
Ryan Shaw, the man that should make us forget about Wilson Pickett, was the first man on this festival to give us a good soul show. That he has a catchy soul voice was obvious from the first note. Among the songs, that came from the speakers, we recognized the Beatles’ song ‘Let It Be’, but this time in a Shaw version, ‘Do The 45’ and the a cappella sung ‘Many Rivers To Cross’, a song that can be found on the summary of many artists. My favorite is still the version of The Walker Brothers, who has success with it in the seventies. For Ryan this was his first European show and that the man really enjoyed himself as he showed with the encore song, he borrowed from that other divine diva, Janis Joplin, ‘Piece Of My Heart’. Unfortunately hornplayers were missing from his band and this sure is something I miss in a soul performance.
Watermelon Slim I had to miss, because I really had to take a meal. From a distance I could hear pieces of songs and as far as I could hear, he was the real sensation, the real blues purists were waiting for. His steelguitar and harmonica were noticeable. Whether or not the biggest part of the audience liked it, I can’t really judge.
A real opposite to Watermelon Slim was a blond haired New York beauty. The way she acted reminded me a little of surfbabe Daize Shayne, which we saw at Bospop, a couple of years ago. Dana Fuchs knew how to hypnotize the audience and many photographers, but her music did too. Unfortunately her backing band, a temporary group of musicians, because she only brought her guitar player along, had only two days to prepare and on some of the songs you could clearly hear that. But she also had her convincing moments like with, let’s say, the Chicken Shack borrowed ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’, she knew to conquer the audience. Still, she tried too hard to imitate her idol, Janis Joplin, with which she forced her American break-through and on some moments I thought her throat would explode. Nice try, Dana, but once again, and let that be a lesson to everybody, you can’t imitate or copy Janis Joplin. Visually everything was OK. Shaking hips and a wild bunch of hair floating around …..
That Alvin Lee had to undergo some surgery, we learned of two days before the festival. An ungrateful job for the organizers to find a replacement. Tinariwen, or desert blues, had the task to make us forget Alvin Lee. I listened to them for a few songs and then I had to give up. And although many great music stars rave about this music, it was not my cup of tea. It’s a bit too much for me.
That’s why Little Feat was promoted to headliner. To be honest, it would have better if they had not done that, because, as we saw, Little Feat wasn’t the great band from the seventies anymore. For forty years already they are working the road and they made a large number of brilliant records, but that wasn’t the case on this festival. Paul Barrere did the vocals on a number of songs, but fortunately there also was Shaun Murphy to upgrade the quality of the vocals a bit. Some songs we recognized from their heydays, like ‘Oh Atlanta’, ‘Skin It Back’ and ‘Dixie Chicken’. But the bandmembers looked like a close family member recently passed away. We had looked forward to it, but despite their rich heritage, the closing act was below par.
Sunday
Would Sunday we better? When speaking about the weather, it sure was, because not a single drop of rain hit the ground. But when it comes to the audience, some decline was noticeable. This was mainly caused by the bad weather of the previous two days. But Sunday was better, also musically.
At a very early hour the Dutch band Big Blind had to kick off and we could count the number of spectators on two hands. But this was not a problem for our Dutch friends, music like the music of Cuban Heels and Red Devils went in well. Wesley van Werkhoven (harmonica player) knew how to catch the attention of the early birds and to see a top band this early, promised much for the rest of the day.
Indeed, because the next man that entered the stage to do his thing is, according to me, one of the biggest musical secrets of the present rock- and blues music. The man, that played with greats like Bob Dylan, and was sparring partner to the late Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Double Trouble, is a musician of the kind, there are not many around. Key Frances is technically very gifted and we could hear that in every riff or solo. Like there was a control board behind every note he produced. Frances is appreciated and respected by the professionals in the music business, but finally a bigger audience had the chance to get to know this ‘handsome’ guitar player and then I mean his guitar playing, because this man certainly hasn’t got the looks. An acquaintance I never will forget. Hopefully we get the chance to see him again soon, because what this man showed us was fantastic! Motown will regret very much, that they can’t use Key’s services anymore.
From Oregon to England, just a little step for the Peer festival and so we could welcome a man, who made his mark with Bonnie Raitt among others. Call it New Orleans blues or whatever, but Jon Cleary knew to impress during his entire set, thanks to his great voice and magnificent piano playing. But another man also knew how to impress, his guitar player Derwin ‘Big D’ Perkins. This man sat the entire set on a double sofa and it was obvious where his nickname came from. When he entered the stage we thought he used a scaled-down Fender guitar, but this turned out to me an optical illusion.
Back to the world of soul with the next act: Marc Broussard, son of Ted, who learned to know about this beautiful kind of music from his childhood. Mother and father were ardent fans of Al Green, Stevie Wonder and more of that kind of icons. So already his destination was clear. And that it was the right choice we could hear on his festival. That he had a beautiful voice he showed us in songs like ‘Sweet Soul Music’, ‘The Ghetto’ and ‘Wanderer’. Obvious there is a revival of soul music and that’s fine with me, when we judge the many acts on this festival. So why not a whole festival, dedicated to the divine soul music? People like Billy Price and Charles Walker wouldn’t mind.
The Scandinavian countries are full of surprises (musically, and I leave the metal section out). Think of Lordi, our Erja, ABBA, Mike Andersen, Björn Berge etc. New and fantastic acts keep appearing. So here we got to see a great performance by Thorbjorn Risager and his band. This man, coming from Denmark, brought along an extensive band, so we got to hear a “full” sound, which made a quite favorable impression on us, thanks to the two horn players. There is no doubt about the fact that Thorbjorn is a man who can deliver a spectacle. A firm act by musicians, who obviously know what they are doing. Those who missed him at Peer will get another chance to see him in August at the (Ge)Varenwinkel Festival in Varenwinkel. Do it!
A man, who played here three times in the last five years, is audience favorite Ian Siegal. Is there a hidden agenda for this appearance? I suspect so, because Ian hinted more than once during his show that he didn’t had ‘much time left’. From the technical service of the festival we learned that Siegal would be terminal ill. We shouldn’t be too surprised, ‘cause if you know about his lifestyle: a couple of bottles Jack Daniels a day, one and a half bottle of wine for lunch and a couple of bottles with amber colored liquid on stage. Much less could bring you down. But that couldn’t be said about his set. This is one of the best ever performances we saw from this British guitar slinger. This trio did the job. Big Blind harp player Wesley got the chance to strut his stuff. Unfortunately his choice of songs wasn’t ours. Covers and more covers, hardly any originals. We hope we can enjoy him for a long time. He deserves it.
The next act, and if it was up to me this would have been the headliner, we stayed on the British Isle. Jools Holland (ex-Squeeze) isn’t really a regular here, but about ten years ago he left a good impression. It was hard labor for the stage crew, because to get the equipment of a big orchestra ready in a short amount of time isn’t easy. That Jools brings quality we all know and also this year he had some pleasant surprises. Except for the black soul diva Ruby Turner, he had another guest: Marc Almond (Soft Cell), yes, the man of ‘Tainted Love’ fame, and for Marc, whom I saw last year in Hasselt, it must have another ‘challenge’ or ‘drag’ to sing his big hit once again. I think about that every year when John Miles has to do ‘Music’ again during The Night Of The Proms. But Jools isn’t only a master on the keyboard, he also knows how to handle a guitar and with ‘Guitar Boogie Medley’ he showed he is very capable on the strings too. That Turner and Almond were of surplus value for this act is a fact. One thing was obvious: the audience was really satisfied with this very good British big band. Can we say ‘Later ….. with Jools?’
The festival train was reaching the end of the line fast with only one stop to go and would Solomon Burke still please the audience, after Jools' show, was the big question. And indeed, not because the audience wasn’t interested, but a large number of people started to leave the festival ground. It was a sparkling show, with much eye for detail, but it couldn’t keep the audience up on their feet for the complete set. Three days, not all under good weather circumstances, it’s killing. Ofcourse, Burke had the obligate roses (without thorns), which he distributed among the charming part of the remaining visitors, also this time they were just for the women. The man gained some pounds since his previous appearance on this festival. With his glitter and glamour costume he could come directly from a fifties Hollywood dance movie. The good man entered the stage in a wheelchair under dimmed lights and four bodyguards placed him on his throne. Regardless of anything, it was a real spectacle and the music wasn’t inferior to the visual aspects of the show. Burke still has the deep dark soulful voice of the old days. And his songs give you a warm and comforting feeling. And that still matters in this world of violence and loud rock music.
Peer 2008 had a nice shopping car with goodies for us again. Nobody, really anybody, can say there wasn’t something in for him or her. Concerning the prices of the catering, the festival just followed the trend: gasoline, energy, food and now the festival prices. We won’t say this was the best edition ever, certainly not, we saw better and worse editions. Still we are very curious what the organizers will serve us on the twenty-fifth edition, where we expect some very strong surprises. And when I speak about surprises, I mean a real surprise... and not just the prices of the food and drinks.
Translation by: Ton Kok
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