Tonight’s gig was well attended. Two third of the venue was packed, the balcony was closed and one section of the hall was covered with curtains to create more atmosphere. In comparison to The Flower Kings, a few more people showed up, but IQ had the advantage of playing on a Saturday.

One of the most striking differences was the performance of the front line on stage. No static Stolt, cramped up Gildenlöw or overacting Fröberg but a charismatic Nicholls, a characteristic - mr. prog - Holmes and a charming Jowitt instead. Even the minor technical problems that occurred tonight didn’t seem to bother anyone. IQ is clearly a band where The Flower Kings is getting more and more characteristics of a side project.

There are some negative remarks to make about tonight’s gig. For one I feel that I had heard Nicholls vocals better before. He just seemed to miss that sharpness which is so important in IQ music. A fine example was “The Seventh House”, one of my all time favorites that just didn’t seem to work out. This might also have to do with the sound in the hall which could also have been slightly better.

The band played all tracks from their latest Dark Matter alternated with some old time favorites. “Harvest Of Souls” got the best response from the crowd. There were a lot of English and Germans here and this twenty five minute epic alone seemed to be worth the travel to The Netherlands. The band played three encores. I still remember “Awake And Nervous” where the entire band jumped on stage. After two and a half hours of great music the band left the stage and a video was started. The band used the Star Wars theme to promote their new DVD in a very funny way. Next time the band visits The Netherlands, you’ll see me there!

(Review & Pics: Geert Oldenmenger)