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On stage: Vanden Plas



- Vanden Plas, Dyslesia & Chinchilla - Feb. 2000 - Mülheim / Ruhr (D) -
- Vanden Plas, Dyslesia & Chinchilla - Feb. 2000 - Mülheim / Ruhr (D) -
- Vanden Plas - Apr. 2000 - Verviers (B) -
- Vanden Plas - Apr. 2000 - Büren-Hardt (D) -
- Demons & Wizards, Vanden Plas, etc. - June 2000 - Pratteln (CH) -
- W.O.A. - Aug. 2002 - Wacken (D) -
- Vanden Plas - June 2005 - Verviers (B) -


www.vandenplas.de









Vanden Plas
- June 17th 2005 - Verviers (B), Spirit of 66 -




The German progsters had to cancel the last time they were scheduled to play in Verviers. And so everybody kept their fingers crossed that this time they'll make it. And they came!
No support and so they started a little later. The band came on stage with the intro and started their set with Iodic Rain. Even during the first song it was obvious that singer Andy Kuntz wasn't in best shape. But the whole band was in a fantastic mood. They had fun playing songs like Far Off Grace, Push and How Many Tears. The last one in a special version with English and French lyrics. And the audience went crazy! The first highlight of the show. After Nightwalker, Cold Wind and Healing Tree the band presented a new track. A ballade, forgive me that I can't remember details or the title. I think it'll take a few months until we can listen to it on CD... Inside Your Head was followed by I Can See. After Rainmaker the band left the stage. A good show, even if I saw better ones of them. Then they returned for Soul Survivors and Father. The fans wanted more, but no chance to get some more.
It didn't take long and the band showed up to chat with their fans and have a beer. I chatted a little with keyboarder Günter and he told me that they'll work on the new album this fall and that it'll be out in spring. Beside that fans could see the band in Kaiserslautern with a musical production of Abydos from late February on... It'll be played several times. Information you can find on the band's website.



Claudia Ehrhardt

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Vanden Plas
- April, 8th 2000 - Büren-Hardt (D), Schützenhalle -




The day after the show at Verviers' Spirit of 66 the quintet played in Büren-Harth at the 15th Hammerfestival. Today it seems that most don't know Vanden Plas! But again the German progsters convinced the people with their talent and power. Almost the same set and solo parts which remind me of the good old days of Grobschnitt!
In France the band is very successful and they deserve it. Hopefully they soon become as famous in Germany and everywhere else as they are in France! The Palatinates deserve it anyway! Most of the other bands were local bands and so I preferred to hang out with Vanden Plas instead.



Ilia Kontitsi

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Vanden Plas
- April, 7th 2000 - Verviers (B), Spirit of 66 -




At the Spirit of 66 Vanden Plas had the chance to play their whole set which was cut down in Mülheim. Francis Geron, owner of Spirit of 66, had the band booked several times and so many fans showed up again to witness their show. The quintet kicked off their show with I Can See and Into The Sun of their latest release Far Off Grace. And the audience went crazy from the first tune. Again the five-piece played a mixture of old and new songs like they did in Mülheim. Due to the fact that the band played the full set, they had the chance to show their talent in solo parts. In my opinion the Belgium audience was much more into the music and more enthusiastic. The encores include a fantastic cover version of Kiss Of Death and a classical Vanden Plas track finished the set.... Rainmaker.
Soon after the set the band came to talk with their fans and sign stuff which the fans appreciated. Again the band proofed that they know who are their fans and appreciate their loyalty. These guys are really down-to-earth!



Ilia Kontitsi

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Vanden Plas, Chinchilla & Dyslesia
- February, 18th 2000 - Mühlheim an der Ruhr (D), Star Club -




Delays caused the late opening of this prog package and so it was already 21:30 when the French quintet started their set. Dyslesia had 30 min. to present themselves to the audience. On the small stage the quintet had now possibility for a decent stage acting and the voice of the sympathetic shouter was a hadn't a good sound in the beginning, but at the end of the 30 minutes long set it was much better. The pounding drums and the filigree guitar play the French entertained the 50 fans with their progressive melodic metal. Highlight of their set was the cover version of the Helloween classic Future World. It's always a good possibility for a support act to play a known tune to present themselves, beside that they can just introduce their material to the listeners and try to convince them.
For the next 30 minutes Chinchilla from Stuttgart had time to present their music. The Germans had just one guitarist, but there for a keyboarder with them. Songs like Queen Of The Rain, Madness and King For A Day were part of the set. The Swabian band wasn't as progressive as the opener, but offered a powerful set. Chinchilla singer didn't sang the high pitched vocals as we heard from the Dyslesia singer, therefore he knew how to use the limited space for stage acting. The guitarist played interesting lines and solos which didn't lack any power. After the ballad Where The Brave Belong To they played the powerful track Fight. Chinchilla obviously enjoyed being on stage and they also played a cover tune, they chose I Stole Your Love of Kiss.
It was already 23:15 when Vanden Plas entered the stage, they had a decent sound from the first moment. Shouter Andy Kuntz was glad to be back in Germany after playing France. They played a decent mixture of new tunes and classic ones. Killer tracks like Into The Sun were play as well as Soul Survives. Andreas Lill is a fantastic drummer and played even complex parts easily. The band showed themselves as a homogenous unit (Stephan Lill on guitar; Torsten Reichert on bass; Günter Werno on keyboards) and are all masters on their instruments. The current radio single Don't Miss You which is a beautiful ballad shows their more emotional side and Mr. Kuntz showed his talent which was accompanied by keyboarder Günter Werno who afterwards played a keyboard solo. The set list was enthusiastically celebrated by the fans incl. Inside Of Your Head, Judas (taken of the Colour Temple CD) and You Fly (of The God Thing), Far Off Grace and Rainmaker just to mention a few.
At the end of the night I was wondering even more, why on a few prog metal fans came to see this very interesting package. Especially because the tickets were just 25,- DM which is a very decent prize for an evening full of good music. Shame on you, if you haven't saw this package on tour!



Amir Djawadi
(translation: Claudia Ehrhardt)


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Vanden Plas, Chinchilla & Dyslesia
- February, 18th 2000 - Mülheim a.d. Ruhr (D), Star Club -




It was almost 22:00 when the French opening act Dyslesia started their set in front of about 50+ fans. No easy job for the French which sound a little bit like Helloween. That they been influenced by the German pumpkins were obvious when they covered Future World, but they are not copycat. They haven't found their own style yet, but musically they offered a solid set.
The Stuttgart based band Chinchilla was more impressive than the French, but still I had the feeling that I heard that before... Their style reminds me of Judas Priest. A quite good sound and musical talent made their set enjoyable.
After another break the headliners entered the stage... Vanden Plas! In 1998 the band opened up for Dream Theater and convinced the audience with their great talent and songs. Vanden Plas offered a mixture of old and new songs, the new ballad I Don't Miss You they had to play, a must. Even if there just showed up a few people the band rocked as if there were thousands! The fans appreciated it and when they played Rainmaker as an encore everybody was in motion!
All bands showed their best, even if they had a 14 hrs long ride from France to Mülheim! When the bands arrived too late the clubs sound engineer was so pissed that he left and the bands crew had to do the front-of-hall sound at their own! Thank you, guys!
But I can finally say, that it was a fantastic show! If they are somewhere in your area, you have to see them!



Ilia Kontitsi

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           ©2008-2010 by Claudia Ehrhardt • E-Mail: contact@ice-vajal.com




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