Anneke Van Giersbergen, Danny Cavanagh :An Club, 05.01.11.

Two most influential artists sharing the same stage: Mrs. Anneke of The Gathering (and many, many more) and Mr. Cavanagh of the popular Anathema.

The support act, Beggars Blues Diary was canceled, and as a result the wait of approximately one hour and a half before doors had opened, was a long, tiring one. Nevertheless, when Danny Cavanagh entered the stage, the overcrowded An Club started gibbering. Anathema tunes (Lost Control, Forgotten Hopes etc.) came one after another in unplugged form, and for once more, it was confirmed that the Greek audience’s knowledge on the British’s material is unique. The crowd literally didn’t stop singing along, contenting the performer, who was in a great mood. During this first part of the show, Cavanagh covered Pink Floyd’s High Hopes, dedicating it to Porcupine Tree, a band highly liked/ respected by him. Overall, the audience’s participation and applause was m a s s i v e and constant.

     Concerning the second part of the show, Mrs. Anneke’s ethereal singing filled the club. The crowd was equally awed and excited. The different, more singing oriented performance let no one down (the ambience was less melancholic too). The participation was large yet again, with the singer being in hell of a mood, constantly serving jokes the audience; the communication she has built up with the people is extraordinary (she even took the crowd a “facebook picture”). In any case, vocal flawlessness only fits her singing. After Anneke’s set was over, she invited Danny Cavanagh back on stage for a duo performance, thus entering the show’s third phase. The Gathering classics were also performed (e.g. Leaves) by the duo and the crowd’s excitement was unbelievable. For the encore, fragile dreams and others were summoned to end this beautiful acoustic show which was rich enough to last almost two hrs and a half.

   The sound was clear and all, but of course, the requirements for an acoustic show are minimal. All in all, a soundtrack to calmness, to melancholy, to optimism. Tunes covering a great width, and two parallel eras. Two musical worlds came unified and held pleasantness. The two revered artists’ deification by the Greek audience was only expected.

Stelios (Ω)