Donna Blue live. Thursday 9 May 2024, Rotown Rotterdam

Photo: Wout

Donna Blue has made it to this blog ever since the very first single and if I'm not mistaken, this is the third live show on the blog. It is good to see that the band still progresses tremendously. The shyness of the presentation has not changed so much. It is the musical competence and self-assuredness of playing that has evolved. Donna Blue has become a mature band that does not just play its songs but dares to go beyond the recorded versions. Playing together for years is paying off big time.

With 'Into The Realm Of Dreams' Donna Blue released its second album a few months ago. It shows the progression the band has made since 'Dark Roses'. The songs are more varied, reach for deeper ends, while remaining nostalgically dreaming of music created decades ago.

All this came together on stage in Rotown. Live the reverb and other spacey effects can come out even more prominent and full bodied and the Serge Gainsbourg / Air bass can plop even more authentic. The drummer led the band into the songs with daring pick ups, the kind that would lead to panic sweat for me. Not the Donna Blue musicians, who had an addition to the line up compared to the past, someone who played everything that was needed from maracas to keyboard or guitar and singing harmonies as well. They all fell in at the right moment during the complexer drum patterns played as an intro.

Listening to a Donna Blue song is like stepping into a time machine. The music is everything from the 1950s sugar-coated music of Doris Day and Debbie Reynolds to the 'James Bond Theme' and Nancy & Lee, honoured with a rendition of 'Summer Wine' in the encore, to 1960s and 70s (soft porno) movie scores and French yèh-yèh girls. A more modern link to Air and the Gainsbourg-Doillon clan is clear as well. The music of Donna Blue is nostalgic in all ways, except for the ways the sounds are made in 2024. Stomp poxes and synthesizers make sure the sounds are authentic. Even the drumsticks ticking a song into motion were reverb drenched. The outcome of it all is that most songs allow for soft swaying and only a few for moving a little more.

Photo: Wout de Natris

The more surprising were the long instrumental solos in two songs. Sorry, I'm a mess with song titles since I'm getting older, so not even trying. Long spun out but exciting and a refreshing interlude in the music, keeping listeners on their toes. For the first time Donna Blue came close to that other reverb-drenched duo Cari Cari.

There is a minus though. Danique van Kesteren's voice could have been better mixed, as it was near impossible to hear what she was singing. Standing later on at the back of the venue for the encore, I noticed that the bass was far too prominent. That aside, Donna Blue was in great form and hopefully ready for a next step in its career. The music deserves it.

A few days ago Duane Eddy, the master of twang, died at 86. With Bart van Dalen Donna Blue has a great modern replacement for him.

Wout de Natris

You can buy Donna Blue's records here:

https://snowstar.bandcamp.com/album/donna-blue-i