The 5th of May is Liberation day or freedom day depending on who you ask. The day the Dutch celebrate their freedom, after the horrors they suffered in WWII. The 5 Mei Festival is a large part of the celebrations in The Hague and is supported by most of the major corporate entities in the City.

The weather played its part in enticing a large crowd to the Spuiplein in the City centre. Warm sunshine with hardly any breeze made it a wonderful setting for a total of ten bands to offer up a most spectacular free concert. It was so well planned that there was never a moment to relax. Two stages, side by side kept the crowds rocking and dancing non stop for eight hours straight.

Unfortunately I missed the first few bands, but I got there in time to see the end of a Hip Hop performance by Winne. Full of bounce and energy they got the younger members of the crowd bouncing and chanting as the air was pumped full of bass. Normally I hate this type of stuff, but live, ok, I am mid forties, so it is allowed, but even I started to get in to it.

Next on stage were Jurk (pictured right). This band I discovered was to be the highlight for the Dutch in the crowd. A mixture of cabaret and pop style songs, I had even heard of one of them. Jeroen van Koningsbrugge en Dennis van de Ven scoorden are soon embarking on a theatre tour around the Netherlands and will be playing to full houses.

The highlight of the day for me came next. Highlight; as it was so unexpected. Playing on stage in their home town All Missing Pieces (pictured below left) comprise of three brothers, Camiel, Wrister en Quinten Meiressonne. The lead singer is such a powerful, vibrant and passionate performer that you could not help but get dragged into the performance.

Certainly one to watch out for in the future! My thought after they had finished their set was... I have just seen the new Mick Jagger. This is certainly a band to watch out for!!!
Moss followed next. A band that originates in Amsterdam played the kind of music I love. I had never heard of them before or their songs but have to admit to have become a fan now. I will certainly check them out next time they play somewhere locally. A rock band that played some seriously good power based pieces.

No idea what it sounds like on CD, but live, exceptional.

Two more bands followed in quick succession. Planeur (pictured right), a band made up of Turkish and Dutch members. Hard rock style with Turkish lyrics, an interesting mix, something the like of which I had never heard before; but not bad at all. A change of pace followed them with some Blues/Rock. George Kooymans of Golden Earring fame and Frank Carillo who has played along side the likes of Joan Jet and Carly Simon. AS this was later in the day, the audience at the front of the crowd had changed for this set, the lovers of blues at the front and loving it.

The final act of the night was the English Ska band, Bad Manners (pictured below left). They came on stage at 20.00 and just as they hit the stage with their form of crazy stage antics, it looked like the crowd was thinning. As soon as the heavy Ska beat began the people came back.

Buster Bloodvessel AKA, Fat Bastard had lost of his stage presence since their heyday of the late 70’s and early 80’s. He wound the crowd up and had everybody bouncing and dancing, screaming and shouting, it was almost a dance riot. Everybody young and old loved it. His famous tongue was greeted several times by wild applause. Their set should have last one hour, but for the first time of the day, the crowd demanded more. They packed in all their hits and more, and time to leave stage again. The crowd again called for their return, so Buster called across to someone at the side of the stage and pleaded to do one more. They agreed and they blasted out yet another hit. It was a truly enjoyable and amazing spectacle to behold. I managed to have a quick chat with the main man and he said he had really enjoyed it and would love to come. I think after the reception the band got, they would be welcomed with open arms.

The whole day was a complete success. Despite all the pushing and shoving while dancing, everybody remained in good spirits and I saw no signs of any trouble whatsoever. All that attended I am pretty sure went away very, very happy with what they experienced.

Text & Photos by Neal McClimon
neal@thehagueonline.com
www.itpphotography.com

Images:

Pic 1 - Jurk
Pic 2 - All Missing Pieces
Pic 3 - Planeur
Pic 4 - Bad Manners

If you wish to comment or express an opinion about this article please e-mail the editor@TheHagueOnLine.com