48 hours in Helmond
“What is the purpose of your trip to Eindhoven?” asked the very smiley passport control officer as I finally made it to the front of the queue.
“Oh, I am here to see a concert in Helmond” I replied, beaming back at him. At this, his face registered the faintest glimpse of surprise.
“A concert? In Helmond?” He said this as if he thought I was making it up, or at the very least, incredibly confused.
“Yes, a concert at Het Speelhuis, tomorrow night.” I was still smiling, but starting to think that he may believe this to be some kind of canny lie to get me through immigration, so I could commit nefarious acts across the North Brabant province.
“Who are you going to see? Are they famous?”
“Erm, no…you won’t have heard of them. They are called Exit North”
…and then came the inevitable question I was dreading…
“What kind of music do they play?”
Oh boy, just HOW am I supposed to answer THAT? After mumbling something along the lines of “sort of ambient, Nordic noir soundscapes” (I know, I know but I challenge you to try coming up with something better at 6pm on a boiling hot evening in a customs hall in the Netherlands) he raised his eyebrows and let me through.
Having finally made my way from Lancashire to Helmond via plane, bus and train, I met up with fellow fans Mark & Andrew in a bar by the canal, and spent a leisurely evening drinking pints of Bavaria beer in the glorious sunshine, all 3 of us pondering just what the next 24-hours would have in store for us. As UK fans, we have been so lucky over recent (pre-Covid) years, with the frequent small-scale live outings from Richard Barbieri, which had resulted in some great meet-ups and wonderful opportunities to witness one of our musical heroes doing just what he does best – would Exit North be equally as positive an experience, we wondered?
The following day was gloriously warm and sunny, and Helmond was putting on a fabulous show for the Exit North fans who were starting to arrive in the town, ahead of the evening’s concert. As I wandered across the centre to Het Speelhuis in the late morning (to get my bearings for later) I stumbled upon the most amazing food market and street festival, and the whole place was absolutely buzzing with energy. There was so much cheese on show, I thought I had died and gone to heaven! I think I may have to move to the Netherlands, immediately.
I finally made my way to Het Speelhuis, having been distracted by quite a few lovely dogs and some particularly lurid denim jackets, and was amazed by just how beautiful a building it was. Dating from 1914, the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk (Church of Our Lady) is a hugely imposing structure, with the addition of a ‘Grand Designs’ style modern frontage, featuring a bar and various creative spaces. What a fantastic venue. Heading back into town after a mooch around the leafy side streets, filled with tiny boutiques and cafes, I spied fellow fan Stuart McDonald and his lovely wife Tracey (who had travelled from Fife) enjoying a lunchtime drink in the sunshine and joined them for a couple of hours of nostalgic chatter, before Stuart and I headed back to the theatre to see if there was any early Exit North action to be had. We bumped into Andrew & Mark again, and the four of us wandered around the exterior of the venue, only to be treated to the faintest sounds of the soundcheck, with Thomas Feiner’s voice making light work of the imposing church walls.
And so, to the performance itself. I always think it is hard to describe a live event and expect people to really understand the experience, as it is about more than just relating which songs were played, but I shall try my best. If I am honest, prior to seeing and hearing a few clips from Exit North’s show in Gothenburg last month, I had genuinely questioned whether they would be able to pull off live versions of their material – it just didn’t seem like something that would adapt well to the limitations of live performance. I am very, VERY happy to say that they managed to do more than that; they gave the songs a warmth and depth that actually surpassed some of the recorded versions, to my old ears. It may have helped that I was sitting practically on top of the sound-desk (see top photo!) but the whole performance was absolutely breath-taking. The presence of 2 local musicians, Yvonne van de Pol and Marie-José Didderen on cello and violin, was a welcome addition; incredibly, they had only had the opportunity to rehearse together with the band for a few hours that afternoon, but their contribution to the overall sound was wonderful.
Thomas Feiner’s voice is unlike anything I have ever heard before; his octive range is impressive, from bass baritone right through to countertenor (and apologies to proper, actual musical types – I have no idea if those are the correct terms for Mr Feiner’s range, but that’s the best I can do…) and it was pretty much pitch-perfect throughout the whole performance. His stage presence matches his voice, with him absolutely commanding the space around him, arms elegantly conducting the exquisite music his bandmates are creating. His movements are almost balletic, and it is mesmerising to witness.
Multi-instrumentalist Charlie Storm was an absolute joy to behold, understated in everything that he did but brimming with enthusiasm and talent, and Ulf Jannson’s atmospheric keyboards were responsible for more than a few goosebumps covering my arms on a number of occasions during the 90 minute performance.
And so, to Mr Jansen…well, I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t more than a little giddy at the prospect of seeing Steve live on stage for the first time since the Shamans tour of ’88. The decades may have whizzed by but, once he settled himself behind the drumkit and took up his sticks, it was as if time had stood still. I have never understood how people can drum, it just doesn’t seem like something humans should be able to do, does it; all 4 limbs operating in isolation of each other, whilst simultaneously working together in perfect harmony – I mean, WHAT is that all about? But, whatever witchcraft may be at play, it is sublimely beautiful to witness.
I have spent the last few days trying to think of particular stand-out moments from the performance and it is incredibly hard to choose, as the whole evening felt like one, seamless flow of exquisite sounds and emotions. If absolutely pushed, I think highlights for me would be The Signal, In The Game and Bled Out, but also recall letting out an audible gasp at the closing bars of Your Story Mine. I asked a few fellow fans for their standout moments, and interestingly they ALL chose Bested Bones, with In The Game running a close second.
Exit North are masters at creating music which swells and groans with atmosphere, the songs often building to a spinetingling crescendo and, when performed live, those familiar tracks seem to take on a whole new depth. In amongst the lush perfection of the performance, there was a lovely moment of levity when the back curtains were slowly opened to reveal a screen which, instead of featuring the expected moody visuals, showed a Windows desktop – and a ripple of laughter from the audience was met with some amused raised eyebrows and shrugs from the band.
Following 2 standing ovations and an encore, the band members then spent a good hour chatting with fans and signing memorabilia in the bar, which must have been a fairly knackering experience for them, given just how many people were keen to meet them. The most common question asked that night seemed to be “when are you playing the UK/more shows?” and the replies were fairly positive, with the promise that potential venues and locations were currently being explored.
For those of us who love a bit of band merchandise, there was a gorgeous Anyway, Still concert print available (sadly not a practical choice for me, as I was travelling light and it would never have made it back in one piece) along with CDs and the Japanese lyric booklet. Quite a few folk brought their own JAPAN-related memorabilia along for Steve to sign, which he did with good grace – fortunately, the bar remained open so there was a steady flow of wine on hand to keep the band’s throats well-lubricated…
Exit North performing in Helmond created quite a buzz in the town, and it wasn’t just the passport control officer who seemed bemused by the thought of people travelling to this usually quiet Dutch suburb; the regional press were also in attendance and spent time talking to fans who had travelled from all over Europe to attend the show and a feature was published the following day across the Eindhoven news media. We can only hope that the success of the recent shows in Tokyo, Osaka, Gothenburg and now Helmond, will encourage the band to play more shows to their growing fan-base in the near future.
You can buy Exit North music here
Live clips from the Helmond performance of Bested Bones and Passengers Wake have been shared on Steve’s FB page
Thanks to Stuart McDonald, Mark Williams, Josanne vd Heijden, Erik Huffermann and De Cacaofabriek for the use of some images.
Just a reminder that the new UK edition (standard & collectors) of Steve’s book,”through a quiet window”, are available for pre-order from 4pm tomorrow (7th June) from Flood Gallery. This re-vamped version features around 50 additional images, including some previously unpublished photographs.
jansenphotographyblog 