Date of Performance: November 17, 2003
Venue: 013, Tilburg, NL
God Arrives In Holland!
Hallelujah! That word kind of sums up what I felt after having seen Neal Morse and his "full-fledged Portnoy extravaganza" at the well-known O13 venue in Tilburg, Holland on November 17th. Having eight musicians on stage in the end resulted in a high production cost, which translated itself into there being not so many concert dates. Two dates in Britain, two in Holland and two more in Germany were what this European leg for the Testimony tour contained. Five days earlier it had been exactly two years since the Tranastlantic gig at the very same venue had been recorded for a future DVD release. Tonight, however, the entire Neal Morse show was being recorded with the intention of it being released as a DVD. Hopefully it won't take another two years to get the package out.
And package is what we got that particular evening, as Neal treated us to the entire Testimony album. Appropriately, the set was divided into two halves, enabling the musicians to take a breath during the intermission. The first half contained the entire first album of the Testimony package whilst the second half kicked off with all of the second album plus some tasty encores. For the first part, the band were all dressed completely in black, whilst everyone made sure to make as little movement as possible. After the intermission, however, it looked like all of the musicians had been injected with Duracell batteries, as they were hopping on stage from one side to the other in their completely white outfits. 
At one given moment, the semi-folk dancing, as demonstrated by Rick Altizer and Bert Baldwin, was way too mellow to fit into it all. This "cheap" part didn't really fit in with the rest of the attitude, as spread throughout Testimony. You have to know that Neal really delivers a whole set full of autobiographical information, which at times becomes very emotional. There's a section in which Neal talks about the fact that his daughter Jayda was born with a huge hole in her heart and that he prayed to God that it would heal. Now these things are very, and I mean VERY, personal, so the least the audience could do is be very silent and show some respect. I simply couldn't understand why people behind me were continously talking and drinking truckloads of beer throughout this emotional passage.
From a musical perspective, of course, it all sounded very well indeed, although I have to admit that I have heard better results in this venue. The acoustics that night simply were not the kind I had heard during other concerts. Maybe it was because they had closed the curtains on both sides simply because there were not enough people present. This surely minimized the volume of the hall, which might have had its influence on the sound. Next to that, the fact that the entire concert was being filmed certainly put some extra pressure on some of the musicians. Maybe that's the reason why Altizer and Baldwin went a little over the top at one stage, doing their bit of overacting all for the sake of DVD. Neal might have been a little nervous, too, making the odd mistake here and there. First his personal roadie forgot to turn down the volume when he connected Neal's acoustic guitar, resulting in a loud bang. Then Neal pressed the wrong preset button on his keyboard resulting in a rather funny sound. At one given point, he also started singing in the wrong key but being the professional he is he was able to quickly correct his mistake as if nothing had happened.
You could, however, clearly see that everyone in this band was happy to be part of this unforgettable experience, happy to deliver their bit, which, all linked together, resulted in some superb music. For sure Eric Brenton delivered some fabulous playing and no doubt he'll be collaborating with Neal on many more musical ventures in the future. Not only is Eric a fantastic guitar player, he is also fantastic on the violin, playing with extreme ease. Another highlight certainly was John Krovoza, who introduced some wonderful cello that sounded perfect during some of the acoustic highlights. Way in the back was Javalon [Ajalon -ed.] bass player Randy George, who not only devoted himself to the bass but also played bass pedals and keyboards. No doubt he's a great admirer of Chris Squire. Throughout the concert Mark Leniger tackled percussion duties, but for a brief moment he also delivered a stunning saxophone solo. Bert Baldwin complemented his keyboards with that of Neal Morse whilst Rick Altizer injected extra guitar and powerful vocals to it all. Mike Portnoy was there to keep the train on its rails, whilst Neal Morse became mister emotion for the evening. Behind the mixing desk Rich Mouser did the best he could, so no doubt the forthcoming live discs will even sound better than what we heard that night.
After all of the Testimony material had been played, the band got back on stage and launched into "We All Need Some Light" from the debut Transatlantic album. Eric played some superb mandolin during the intro here. Then it was time for a true surprise when the band set off for one of Spock's Beard's highlights in the form of "The Light." By the time this epic came to an end the audience went out of their minds, and although the band left the stage, the applause went on, only to cease when they all got back on stage again. This time John Krovoza's cello replaced the strings in the intro to "Duel With The Devil," the opening epic on the second Transatlantic album. By now everyone went wild, whether in the audience or on stage. What a way to end this experience. For sure an unforgettable evening which at times looked like a get together of would-be Christians, yet in the end seemed to be a get together of lovers of great music. Great to have witnessed it all and I have the utmost respect for Neal Morse for finally finding peace of mind. Earlier on that day I met Neal as he returned from doing some shopping in the city of Tilburg. 
Instead of the occasional hello, this time Neal hugged me, feeling ever so happy to see me after nearly two years, as if he finally understands who his real friends are. Better late than never Neal!
I didn't know Neal had written a song about himself way back in 1992. Contained on his Merry Christmas From The Morse Family album, the first song indeed is called "Hallelujah, The King Is Born," which is a title you could project onto the person of Neal Morse himself today. King for his family, king for his friends, king for the many proglovers around the world. Hallelujah indeed!
Links: Tranastlantic
