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Dave Hause / Tim Vantol

17. June 2014, Riff, Bochum, Germany (Photos by Stefanie Oepen on Flickr)

Some concerts just leave you with a good feeling. You stand there listening to music for a few hours, forgetting everything else and when it´s over you take a deep breath, look around and wonder how it could have gone by so fast. Dave Hause and Tim Vantol in Bochum was one of these concerts. Both Singer/Songwriters rocked the house, leaving the audience with nothing to be desired.

The Dutch singer Tim Vantol started the evening in front of a semi-filled venue. Only with his guitar he came out and sang for us. Clearly, many people in the audience had heard him before and within moments he had everyone´s attention. Tim belted out his songs in a rough voice and with every note played and every line sung, it was clear that he loves doing what he does. In between songs he talked about life on the road, thanked the fans who follow him and mentioned the stories behind some of the songs. It was a powerful, honest performance, straight from the heart and I found myself thinking that I would not mind if he were the headliner. The audience rewarded him with many cheers, clapping and singing along. Everyone looked happy with what they were hearing and I´m sure a longer set would have been much appreciated. There could not have been a better warm up for what was about to come.

During the break the venue filled up and by the time Dave Hause walked on stage, it was packed. Dave came without a band as well but had brought his little brother Tim to support him on keyboard and guitar. They started with “Damascus”, welcoming us to the show with the first lines: “Welcome my friends to the show. Dance and drink if you´d like or sit back and take notes” – a good introduction to what was about to come. The audience was into it from the first note, singing along or listening closely.

Most of Dave Hause´s lyrics are far from happy or easy going but the music and the delivery of it has the power to draw people in and might even make you want to dance. He told us how, when he asked to play small clubs, he was told nobody would come and thanked everyone for the support. He joked around with his brother and most of all he sang his heart out. Dave made connections with the audience, got close and stepped off the stage twice to sing in the audience. When he asked us to sing along, people gladly complied.

Clearly, Dave enjoyed being there and his brother looked like he did, too. They were playing pranks on each other with Dave painting Tim with a German flag face paint pen and Tim in turn putting a “Germany” hat on Dave´s head. It was all good fun and made us laugh. They played songs from both of Dave´s albums as well as two songs from his band The Loved Ones. Each song was delivered with power and a passion that was truly intoxicating. Once in a while he asked us if we wanted to hear more but I´m sure he knew that just by looking at people´s faces. The show ended with “Benediction”, coming back to the start and asking “Oh my friends, time to go, did you enjoy the show? Did you dance? Did you drink? Did you take any notes?” The answer to the first question is a resounding “yes!” It was a great concert, can we do this again?

Author: Stefanie Oepen

GastmitarbeiterInnen / guest contributions

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