The Bluesbones, this Belgian band is of international allure and can compete with their fellow stage mates on all fronts this evening.
The pouring rain this evening did not detract from the joy of playing that The Bluesbones showed. Their performance was of such a level that it made you forget the rain. Led by the swinging bass parts of Geert Boeckx and the staccato drums with wonderful outbursts of Jens Roelandt, it was up to the three soloists to excel.
And they did, the passion and intensity that singer Nico De Cock used in their most streamed song “Believe me” was masterful. This song, together with “Why”, was dedicated to their deceased drummer Koen Mertens, one of the reasons why we appreciate The Bluesbones so much.
Stef Paglia, showed during these two songs that he can put so much feeling into his guitar solos. Keyboardist Edwin Risbourg, the Hammond master treated us to masterful playing. All this summarized in a setlist full of recognition, a great performance that ended with the favorite “The Devils Bride”.
Monster Mike Welch was clearly in the mood and came on stage before it was time, he couldn’t wait to start. With his European touring band with Frabrice Bessouat (drums), Erkan Özdemir (bass) and Damien Cornelis (Hammond, piano) a true blues party unfolded.
Where he was still a bit awkward on stage at Moulin Blues earlier this year, there was no Swing. It seemed that he had finally shaken off the past and was now Monster Mike. That didn’t stop him from reflecting on the difficult time he had gone through after the death of his friend Mike Ledbetter.
He honored his former companion with a beautiful, subdued performance of “Time to move”, from his latest album Nothing but time. We were presented with so many songs from this album, with Mike lavishly entertaining the audience with his guitar solos and regularly receiving applause and cheers. Monster Mike surprised with one of the best performances I’ve seen this year.
The evening was closed by The Delta Generators, a band that I had high on my list to see live since their live album “Live at the Spire”. They were the main reason to travel to Swing Wespelaar.
Due to various circumstances, I had missed previous performances of the band in 2022 and 2023. Big Mike Templeton did what I expected of him with his imposing appearance, his powerful vocals, and harmonica playing, captivating the audience. Too bad about the bad front light, his face remained hidden under his hat the entire performance.
The other secret weapon of the Delta Generators are the O’Neal brothers; guitarist Charlie O’Neal, with his razor-sharp solos and his delicious slide and bassist Rick O’Neal, who played the entire performance with one hand, something I had not seen before. Together with drummer Jeff Armstrong, they made Delta Generators classics such as “The night of the Johnstown Flood” and “The Devil Gun” a feast of recognition.
The set full of songs from their new album “The lost year pt2. that came out on August 9th, to some songs from Brian Templeton’s past with the Radio Kings and The Proven Ones. Also beautiful was the tribute to his deceased friend bassist Willie J Campbell. A top performance can’t say otherwise and glad I made the detour.
