© CPU – Ann Carpentier (archive)

Poetic dream pop that starts from a melancholy that plays with dark and light, but always hits the right chord; that’s Portland. Debut album Your Colours Will Stain (2019) is up there with hits like “Step Aside”, “You Misread Me“and showpiece”Lucky Clover” crystal clear evidence of it. Just over a year ago, shortly before the release of Departures, we were told that Portland would no longer be making music as a duo. The departure of musical other half Sarah Pepels was a bitter pill to swallow for Jente Pironet, but that did not stop him from continuing on his own. However, Pironet’s diagnosis of brain cancer prevented him from performing on a regular basis for an indefinite period. In the meantime, the artist is back on track. He appeared on the stages of various festivals, both within and outside our national borders, but last night Pironet opted for the more intimate setting of De Kreun.

© CPU – Marvin Anthony (archive)

A few minutes after the clock struck eight, the figure of French-speaking electro-pop singer Orlane appeared behind the microphone. Bathed in the purple light of the spotlight, she performed her first song “Dangerous games.” She immediately went for it and didn’t wait a second to sing as soon as she was on stage. Although it is not her native language, she addressed the audience in Dutch to introduce herself. She let us know that she recently released her first EP PRISM released, adding, “Even though we don’t speak the same language, I hope you’ll enjoy listening to it.” Judging by the positive reactions from the audience, Orlane succeeded in winning over the previously small audience. Throughout a short set of barely twenty-five minutes, she showed a lot of herself. Her full, rich voice not only sounded flawless, but she played acoustic guitar, keyboard and even brought out a saxophone for two songs. Orlane’s sound switched fluidly between sensual, depressed and danceable. Before closing her set with her very first single, “What are you thinking about?”, she informed everyone present that she would be attending the event on October 29 Former Belgium comes. As soon as the last note was finished, the audience let the singer go with an applause full of praise and appreciation.

© CPU – Ann Carpentier (archive)

It became quite noisy in De Kreun while they waited impatiently for Portland. Just after nine the lights were turned off and we saw live images of Pironet walking through some corridors on the way to the stage. A number of instruments were already waiting there, but for the opening song we had to make do with the strumming of an acoustic guitar. Dressed in a deep pink velvet shirt, Pironet kicked off with the subdued, fragile “Time To Talk”. After Pironet’s companions also made their appearance, the tender and intimate atmosphere was preserved for a while with calmer versions of, among others, “Alyson” and “Sensational”.

The stage animal in Pironet slowly woke up during “Step Aside”, which he performed with a little more attitude and stage presence. The desire to increase the tempo then exploded during an extended version of the song. The vocals were eliminated by an instrumental intervention, in which Pironet introduced a new riff. He made it clear that he could no longer control the energy in his body during “Serpentine”, where he took the microphone loosely in his hand for the first time and moved diligently from one point to the other on stage. The outro was given a new look. Accompanied by a real light show, the quintet worked hard, with Pironet’s guitar and drummer Bram Van Hove taking over and Nina Kortekaas completing the whole with impressive vocals.

After quite a few apotheoses, especially with “Good Girls” and “Deadlines”, during which Pironet lay thrashed on the floor while pounding away at his strings, he had to take a breather. “Sometimes I can completely forget what’s actually happening,” he admitted, bewildered. With the heartbreaking “Lucky Clover” he finally restored peace. It took some effort not to have to shed tears. Kortekaas’s vocals were further emphasized by the added screams and high notes that she produced effortlessly and crystal clear. The same enchanting effect was continued for a while with closing tracks “Pouring Rain” and “She Really Means It”, where Pironet called on the audience to bring out smartphones or other light sources and sway on the sonic waves.

© CPU – Ann Carpentier (archive)

It is only logical that Portland completely sold out the De Kreun hall. From start to finish we were carried away by the sparkling magic of Portland. We don’t have much more to say about it than that it was ‘sensational’ and that we were able to watch the spectacle with sparkling eyes. The stardust that Portland spread floated around for a while as we returned home with our heads in the clouds.

Portland’s club shows in Bruges and Ghent are hopelessly sold out. Anyone who wants to see Portland at work this summer will have to head to a festival field. They will be the headliner on Friday, August 2 Dranouterand a day later you can see them at Sugarrock in Tienen. On Friday, November 15, Portland will play their biggest home show to date Royal Circus in Brussel.