Vredenburg, Utrecht
31/03/04
Belle & Sebastian are very dear to me. Well, okay, maybe not so much anymore, but back in the day, in the time after If You’re Feeling Sinister, when they were at the height of their indie-darlingness, I loved them very much. I was in college at the time, and it seemed like there was this whole secret B&S society, a group of people on campus that loved the band and learned of other people who loved the band, and people in the group said hi to me just because I was one those people. It was a unique experience, and I can’t deny liking the feeling of being a part of something.
It’s almost six years later now, and seeing B&S live was again an experience of being a part of something communal with a band that never used to ever leave their comfortable Scottish home.
The setting for the concert was unique as it was arranged by Tivoli but took place in the Vredenburg, usually the venue for classical concerts. There was a flat wooden floor area in front of the stage, but forming a horseshoe around behind that area, there were steep rows of theatre seats. The band made immediate note of this, commenting how it was a “proper music hall” and later saying how they felt like they were facing a jury with all these people in seats ahead of them. It was a slightly odd setting, and a slightly odd crowd (where did all these grey-haired people hear about B&S?), but that didn’t stop it from being a great show.
Well, one little thing was a tad disappointing: the fact that B&S didn’t play any songs from If You’re Feeling Sinister. I can see the band wanting to play different things, more songs from the new album and such, but the complete absence of Sinister songs seemed to ring resoundingly clear.
Never mind, they still played a long, varied set (lasting about two hours, and containing at least 20 songs) that included many old favourites along with songs from Dear Catastrophe Waitress. It became a running joke, this old vs. new, because the band asked the crowd early on if they’d rather hear old songs or new songs, and the voices from the crowd all voted for old. Not the best vote of confidence from your fans for your new album, but they still obliged, digging back often to play songs from Tigermilk and the older EPs. They started off with ‘Expectations’, which couldn’t have made me happier, and later also played ‘You Made Me Forget My Dreams’, ‘You’re Just a Baby’ and ‘Dog on Wheels’.
Part of what made the show so memorable was all the chatting the band did between songs, filling the time as just about every person on stage (and there were at least 10) switched instruments for the next song. Stuart and Stevie were most vocal, joking around in their lovely Scottish accents. And though the venue was rather large, they still made a point to connect with the audience, poking fun at two girls sitting uncomfortably in the back, responding to things people shouted out, and even inviting people onto the stage to play some percussion instruments during ‘Roy Walker’. They didn’t seem as shy as they make themselves out to be; instead they looked very relaxed and at home, and they easily brought their fans with them into a casual weekday night of just hanging out and sharing some music.
Marie Diamond
Photo: Darren
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