VANDEN PLAS & Korrigan - Live @Monster's Art - Fréjus (FR) - May 8th 2025
Updated: May 25, 2025
The reunion is long-awaited: the last time we saw Vanden Plas live was almost twenty-five years ago, with Headline and Superior in Clermont-Ferrand. This May 8, the concert takes place in the same kind of atmosphere: small venue, small stage, close proximity, at Monster's Art in Fréjus (Var, France).
Just enough time to stroll around the merchandising stand, take the temperature of the place and shake a few palms, a sparse audience welcomes Korrigan, a local band led by keyboardist Philippe Casetti, owner of the venue, with an unusual trio formation of keyboards / drums / female vocals. The band is under pressure to open for Vanden Plas, one of the pioneers of progressive metal, a legendary band with an impressive discography and a loyal following of demanding enthusiasts. The Korrigan's French-language tales of 70s rock with a hint of progressive metal are a pretty good bet, even if a good part of the set is played behind the net screen used to project images, which doesn't help to establish the contact we're looking for, although fortunately it's more obvious at the end of the set, with the net finally down.
And we're ready for the arrival of Vanden Plas, who immediately sets the tone, with a crescendo introduction that the Germans are famous for, suddenly bursting into life with the riff of the excellent “Push”, straight from 1994's debut album Colour Temple. We know where we stand: Vanden Plas, with a 30-year career behind them, have some choice tracks in store for us, revisiting almost all their works in turn, including four tracks from their latest The Empyrean equation of the long lost things. The band's line-up remains unchanged until 2023, with Alessandro del Vecchio (replacing Günter Werno), known for his work with Edge of Forever and Jorn (among many other references), joining the band on keyboards and winning over the audience from the very first chords.
One track follows another to the rhythms of Andreas Lill's drums, in top form (the little solo in the middle of the set convinces us of this) and Torsten Reichert's bass lines, supported by the keyboard/guitar duo and Stephan Lill's particularly inspired playing, while Andy carries us away with his distinctive, deeply rocking voice, in powerful, melodic flights of fancy that are impossible to resist. Above all, the charismatic singer leaves plenty of room for warm exchanges with his audience, weaving, as he did twenty-five years ago, an indestructible, sensitive bond with each and every one of us, eye to eye: the words are right, hard when he evokes the last years of doubt, “invisibility” in the COVID period, complimentary for the public who supported them and convinced them to continue, friendly for the new formation with Alessandro who brings a fresh look and energy already remarkable on the new album and will allow the keyboards, trademark of the Vanden Plas sound in the 90s to regain their rightful place.
It's clear that everyone has their place on this stage, with Andy acting as conductor to deliver powerful, melodic, almost mystical tracks. For us, the only thing missing is an extract from The God Thing, the founding album of their career (and the only one not represented with Beyond Daylight that evening), even though we've been screaming for a mythical “Rainmaker”. Let's hope Andy has heard for the next southern date, on October 12 at Cherrydon, in La Penne sur Huveaune, near Marseille, where we'll be sure to be present. The show draws to a close late into the night, but the talented members keep up the autographs, photos and other chatter for almost another hour!
That's certainly what we'll take away from this new encounter with Vanden Plas: their presence, humanity and cohesion, both on stage and off, the cement of a career and an almost unique relationship with their audience. There's a bit of a drive home, a chance to think back to the joy of Vanden Plas's days with other artists of the same ilk, and the face of André Matos emerges, so luminous, gone too soon as night lays its veil over this unforgettable evening. Thank you, Vanden Plas!
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