Matt Lang live at the Yard Club (Die Kantine)
Dutch country artist Boaz kicked off the night with a 30-minute acoustic set, handling vocals and acoustic guitar, joined on stage by a second acoustic guitarist.
It was a great start to the evening, with Boaz delivering a strong performance at the Yard Club. Standout songs were “Angel By My Side”, “Catch A Rainbow” and “Don’t Mind Driving Home”, and he closed the half-hour set with a cover of “Sweet Home Alabama”.
Boaz pulled off a pretty good set, his voice is just about right for country music and his songs were not bad at all.
Matt Lang Makes His Headline Debut in Cologne
Quebec is not exactly a country music hotspot in Canada, yet Matt Lang proved that breaking out of this unfavourable scene as a country artist is possible.
Matt Lang brought his first German headline show to the Yard Club (Die Kantine) in Cologne. He was an opener for Tyler Braden earlier this year in March, this time he returned as a headliner. The venue at the Yard Club offers an intimate, barrier-free setup for both artists and audience alike. The subwoofers positioned right in front of the stage even double as tables for the audience to rest their beers on.
The scattered audience of fewer than 100 people witnessed a first-class country show, blending traditional country influences with modern, high-energy country rock. What a pity that so few people turned up. Matt Lang is a great country artist, and I would say considerably better than many others I’ve seen performing in substantially larger venues.
The Yard Club is located away from Cologne’s main concert areas, and while the larger room at Die Kantine often sells out, the smaller club often struggles to attract a roomful of audience for country music. Hopefully, Matt Lang will keep coming back and gradually grow into larger venues. He is genuinely fun to watch and listen to, and deserves a much bigger audience.
The band took the stage early, shortly before 8 PM, and kicked off the set with “Ain’t That Bad” and “Break The Bronco”, both from his new album released in October. “Love Me Some You” followed, then a cover of John Mellencamp’s “Hurts So Good” as a further mood-lifter.
Between songs, Matt took breathers with witty stage banter that kept the mood casual and the connection with the audience close.
The night continued with “Water Down The Whiskey”, “Sweet On You”, “Getcha”, “Stoned On You” and “In A Bar”, before the main set closed with “All Night Longer”.
The band returned for a two-song encore with “Jukebox Money” and “She Stole My Truck”. It was a great evening for country music in Cologne, and the 22-song set was more than entertaining for the supportive audience.
The concert was among the first ones for the newly opened AEG Presents Germany in Cologne.
Original German review for: CountryMusicNews.de
