Matthew Dear in Trouw

Live report of Matthew Dear in Trouw (2010)

He stands on stage buttoned-up, impeccably dressed, and with quite a bit of charismatic presence. No, Matthew Dear isn’t one to stand behind his electronic equipment in a shoddy fleece sweater. No sir, this is old school, this is a gentleman who is here to deliver, to preach, and in more than just recorded sounds. His face contorts when he churns out his lyrics, he picks up one of the light tubes and holds It near his face for extra theatrical effect, and in the mean time he delivers the lines of his new album with bravado to a mixed crowd consisting of hip electro fans and people I’m not sure of what exactly they are doing here (and neither are they apparently, either leaving the front halfway through the gig or bullying their way to the stage with five minutes left to go. Say what?).

Matthew Dear has been around for quite a while now. Since over a decade he has been busy with the avant-garde side of electro music, transforming himself from someone on the minimal side and being no stranger to ten minute epics to a person honing his song craftsmanship. This year he delivered the critically acclaimed album Black City, an album in which he more or less ditched the minimal electro in favour of songs with more bravado and more theatrics. At least, those are two characteristics apparent on the hideously titled song ‘You Put a Smell On Me’. However, he also delivers when he descents into the more dreamy spectrum, for example when he plays the fabulous ‘Slowdance’. Promoting this new album he went on tour and arrived in the venue of Trouw, Amsterdam, one of the more electro oriented venues in Holland.

A lot of the new album is played live, and with live I mean live. Naturally the Apple laptop and the electronic hardware is all there, but a lot is played live as well. There’s a drummer, a bass player, even someone doing horns. In the mean time Matthew is singing and handling the cowbell and tambourine whilst walking around the stage. So nothing stationary here. He is a performer, a frontman, someone who doesn’t hide his face but knows there is an audience for whom he is pouring his heart out. And he does, seemingly meaning every word he says. On Black City, every word he says puts one more piece of a puzzle together which, in its wholeness, forms an imaginary, perhaps dystopic city. If there is friendliness there, it certainly isn’t the only thing walking around town.

In the mean time Matthew isn’t only playing his latest stuff. Asa Breed is also featured on the setlist, and together they form quite a nice soundtrack. There’s a good balance between some of the slower, dreamier songs and between the songs that have a bit of a beat and a bit of punch to them. So there’s something to sway to and something to dance to. One of them being fan favourite ‘Don and Sherri’, which is one of the non Black City songs he pulls out of his bag. Talking about bags, as said, the crowd is a mixed one, some coming for Matthew Dear the artist, some coming for whatever as long as it has a beat, and some coming just to be at the venue.

Everyone, however, is getting a charismatic performer who is really putting his heart and soul into his songs, visibly so. The bass and beat might’ve been too loud on occasion (literally shaking the very foundations of my body), but Matthew Dear himself is impeccable. The way he carries himself on stage certainly appeals to me. He just brings the whole package: neatly dressed, preaching to his choir with fervor, and his moves fit the tunes that are being played. It might be hip to wear your vintage, oversized, casual wear on stage, but I like a bit of fancy dress on a performer. Call me old-fashioned. The live horns really add something to his sound, and the band really hits the spot in the atmosphere department.

Now if only one could get home from gigs like these in winter time, eh? Vital functions of the railway system are frozen, but even if I had known that in advance I still would’ve made the trip to witness the preaching Matthew Dear live. I just would’ve brought something with me to put my contacts in, that’s all (or would’ve, at the very least, talked to a Chemist a bit earlier than after the fact, since apparently a bit of kitchen salt keeps the contacts from, well, dying, basically).