Femo Jazzfestival
On Thursday morning we left Amsterdam to head for the Femo Jazzfestival in Denmark. It was the third time for the band to play at this festival, which we like to call ‘the Woodstock of the jazz’, and this time we had to play the main stage on saterday evening at 9:30 pm.! In our opinion the best time to play because the marque is packed and after the gig you can still enjoy another band and have a beer.
The journey took us 12 long hours to get to Femo (you’ll probably understand how we felt after 12 hours in an Renault Traffic with 8 people). Fortunately Bram’s mum and dad were already at the Femo camping and his mum cooked us all a lovely pasta. With some more energy in our body’s we headed for the festival marque to watch TJ Johnson. It was a beautiful gig and a nice start up for the band to catch the Femo/Woodstock atmosphere.
The Friday started of with loads of rain, some coffee and bacon and eggs that were cooked by the bandmum (bram’s mum). We had to play outside that day but thanks to the rain they moved the concert inside the big marque on a little stage in the back. Our Danish friends from the Uz’ugh group were waiting first row while we were setting up the drums and piano. The gig started off slow but ended with a nice crowd and even some early dancers.
After the gig we enjoyed some pancakes which were this time baked by the bands girlfriends. In the evening we had the great pleasure to watch the Six City Stompers with Shannon Powel. Amazing to see a guy like Shannon rocking it away with his powerfull drums.
Saturday is traditionally the Citroen 2CV day. Bram’s dad has got an awesome red Citroen 2CV, which I hereby call “the duck”, with an open roof. Every year we plan the Saturday afternoon for a ride in the duck around the island. Surprisingly the sun came through the clouds and we were able to show Femo our beerbelly’s (yes Barry, you got one as well).
Again the bandmum cooked some food and we were ready for a great gig. The marque was pretty full at the beginning of our gig. We started of solid with “mack the knife”. The stage turned out te be really hot because of all the lights. After 45 minutes the tent was nicely packed and all of the guys moved backstage with a big smile. Just before getting on for the second half of the gig the organization told us to wait. The girl from the organization announced the band once again and then, by total surprise, told us that we won this years FEMO JAZZ PRICE!!!!!!!!!! We couldn’t believe our ears. After getting the Femo jazz medals we played one of the best sets in the bands history. With a feeling of euphoria we danced the night away to the tunes from Jazz Five that played after us.
What a great way to end a fantastic weekend at the Femo Jazzfestival.
