05-12-2013 Dregen

Supports: Imperial State Electric; Venue: Tivoli de Helling, Utrecht (Netherlands)
By: Sabine van Gameren

Backyard Babies, Hellacopters, both bands of name had decided to break it up. This year Both Dregen and Nicke Andersson released material with their new projects and found it a good time to tour together.

Stormy Sinterklaasevening, a sort of Dutch Christmas, so it may have been the reason why Tivoli was not that filled up, but at the time that Imperial State Electric is ready to enter the stage it seems comfortably filled. Nicke Andersson is back with his band and now his third full length album is out, there are some people in the venue that found themselves strongly attracted to the material.
From the beginning on there were some requests shouted, but at first the band played some songs of their first albums of their own choice. When the guys are a couple of tracks into their set and some pauses in between the songs create a little moment of silence there seems to be space for some interaction. Surprisingly the band actually plays a request, but not from the loudest shouter. At the end the band plays “Reptile Brain” from their latest release “Reptile Brain Music” which seems to satisfy the fans anyway.

Imperial State Electric played a show that has the music as a key factor and does not need much extra to come alive. The listeners get it straightforward and in their face, seeing it live brings them the dynamic of seeing the skills of the musicians right away, no disguise, no smuck, just Imperial State Electric.

Dregen is a bit of a busy bee. After Backyard Babies called it quits, he teamed up with Nicke Andersson for Imperial State Electric, he joined the band of Michael Monroe (ex-Hanoi Rocks) and this year he brought his first solo album to the world.

This solo album has not completely found its ground yet as it seems not everyone has stuck around to see Dregen also. But still some curious minds are present and Dregen seems determined to give them a good show. On stage a bit more active, the whole has a bit more entertainment value for those who are not familiar with his music. With only one album out, you can be sure that most of the tracks will be played and since Dregen has the luxury of time there is also time for some extra like for example “Minus Celsius”, a Backyard Babies song that gets received well.
The chosen singles of the album (so far) are the most catchy. “Just Like That” played early in the set is a bringing people into the sound quickly and the bluesy “Flat Tire On A Muddy Road” shows the diversity that Dregen can easily put into his set while maintaining with his recognizable sound.

Perhaps it was not the most crowded show of the tour, but it seems unlikely that any visitor leaves the place unsatisfied tonight. Many years of experience show that even with a brand new solo album out, Dregen can impress people easily.