An overkill of live concerts by progressive rock acts within a short period of time sometimes results in a small number of visitors. This was unfortunately the case during the triple concert at venue De Pul in Uden where the Dutch bands The Aurora Project and Silhouette and the British band Landmarq made their appearance. However, these three bands still had the professional attitude to perform as if they were playing to a full house; such an attitude deserves a big hand!

The Aurora Project

Dennis Binnekade

The first band on stage was The Aurora Project. Their sixty-minute show was more or less similar to the one I watched two weeks earlier during the first Northern Prog Festival (see review) in Siegerswoude. Once again this outfit presented

Remco van den Berg

a complete live version of the brand new concept album Selling The Aggression (2013, see review). However, unlike the previous concert they brought the supporting video show projected at the back of the stage. This video can also be seen on their first recently released DVD with the same name. Those images of war crimes, terror attacks and rebellions against dictatorial regimes certainly brought their message much clearer to the audience than just wearing an army jacket. After the concept album was finished they performed a strong version of Shadow Border, the title track of their previous album, before they left the stage. This time The Aurora Project could play on a larger podium which resulted in a better performance compared to the one I had seen earlier. Also the sound was much better since De Pul is − unlike De Uthof in Siegerswoude − a venue that was initially built to let rock bands perform.

Silhouette

Daniel van der Weijde

For Silhouette this gig was a special one. During their seventy-minute performance a new line-up was presented. The band started with the new guitar player Daniel van der Weijde. Right from the start he made clear that his contributions are a big improvement to the sound of the band. During earlier live shows the guitar parts done by singer Brian de Graeve just sounded too thin! Van der Weijde easily played all these guitar parts. Sometimes he used a wah-wah pedal to give his guitar sound more variety. Halfway the show drummer and singer Jos Uffing got the opportunity to say goodbye to his fans. He recently decided to leave the band after being a band member for ten years. Before he left he did the lead vocals on his own piece Empty Places for the last time; then he stepped

Jos (left) hands over his sticks to Rob

forward to thank all the people who supported him over the years. Quitting the band will l have an 'empty place in my heart', he said.
After the song was finished he handed over his drum sticks to newcomer Rob Nieuwenhuijzen (Incidense). Before Rob could hit the drums, De Graeve took the stage by himself to sing along with the music of the album Across The Rubicon (2012, see review). The music came from a tape and was immediately followed by the first highlight of the show: the Pink Floyd influenced track Breathe. After that more highlights could be enjoyed like the title track of their second album Moods (2009, see review). This piece featured an awesome duel between guitarist Van der Weijde and keyboardist Erik Laan. Also Don't Stop This Movie and the final piece When Snow's Falling Down were perfectly performed. It was obvious that the two new band members had left their mark on the band's music. Maybe someday Silhouette will become a real live act, which wasn't always the case!

Landmarq

Tracy Hitchings

I had already witnessed Landmarq twice this year. The first time was at Lakei in Helmond (see review) and the second time at the Rock Ittervoort Festival (see review). It's rather strange when you realize that it took them almost ten years to return to a Dutch stage without doing one single concert! Those aforementioned gigs both included the same songs from their great and latest studio album Entertaining Angels (2012, see review), but I still had the urge to see them again for the last concert on the Continent in 2013. I wondered whether they would include some

Steve Gee

older material this time, but unfortunately that wasn't the case. And did I care? I don't think so because it was again a real treat to see and hear them perform all the outstanding songs from Entertaining Angels. Well, I never get tired of seeing a prog band perform in great shape.

Partly due to the fantastic sound at the venue they gave a perfect show. Even though guitarist Uwe D'Rose had some sound problems at the start of the gig, and despite the fact that he played with an injured hand he managed to play some brilliant parts on his electric guitar. This also applied to keyboardist Mike Varty. It was a great pleasure to see him play some amazing keyboard parts. The rhythm section sounded real steady and occasionally bassist Steve Gee could shine during several songs. He played some fine bass parts on which it was difficult to stand still. The new young drummer Daniel Martin, who replaced Dave Wagstaffe, has settled down in the meantime. And last but not least lead singer Tracy Hitchings was again in great shape moving around the stage making contact with the musicians she bumped into. It's difficult to mention any highlights, because the entire set was one great highlight! By the end of 2013 they intend to release a DVD of one of the performances in 2013. I'm already looking forward to it to see if the film-makers were able to capture the strong performances in our country.

Henri Strik (edited by Peter Willemsen)