An hour and a half before the show, we meet Chris Maas backstage at the Nile. He's momentarily ecstatic when we show him the cool interview we did last month via Zoom, which will be released next week! The tour is going well, and nine times out of ten, Sting is truly in the moment. Chris Maas: "When he's in the moment, he's happy and giving it his all. If not, he's not. Dominic Miller will soon be using his new pedalboard for the first time. He clearly has no idea how it works yet, but fuck it. It's a jazz festival, and anything goes there."

Sting is taking good care of Maas on this maiden voyage: he's genuinely supportive when he explicitly asks. When Sting asked if he could make eye contact more often, he simply replied "no." But he did. Some darlings have to be killed off: Hounds of Winter and even Synchronicity 2 are often cut. Chris thinks that's a shame too. Peter-Paul van Kouteren of Eich Amplification walks over. He developed a drum throne with a smart subwoofer for Chris. That thing is also being tested here for the first time. "I hope it's not going to rip my spine out." Chris is about to watch the first half of the European Championship final with Sting and Miller before the show begins. The Nile stage management has arranged a TV.

On "Message in a Bottle," it's immediately clear that Sting is in excellent voice. Maas continues Stewart Copeland's fervor in this first song, with all the accompanying flams, venomous "Vinnieisms" (a new word for him), and his own thick Ludwig sound. "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You": incidentally, in the original key! Guitarist Dominic Miller, as Maas has repeatedly mentioned, is very busy on this gig. No keys: so all the chords, harmonies, solos, and hooks are on the British guitarist. "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" now. Yes, also in the original key. Sting is not only a gifted composer and singer, but of course also an extremely good bassist. Steady, jazzy, and he possesses the rare gift of playing bass and singing simultaneously. That's considerably more difficult than playing guitar and singing at the same time. "Englishman in New York": recorded in 1987 by Manu Katché. The drum intermezzo with the suggestion of a double pedal works very well and the audience appreciates it. The absence of Branford Marsalis's soprano solo is forgiven. Far too expensive to invite him just for that. We would have liked to hear some of the jazz from that original track, but oh well. Fields of Gold: the ultimate tearjerker, whose nylon guitar solo from 1993 would prove to be an absolute career-changer for him.

Maas is an anchor. The last thing we hear is a free interpretation of "When the World is Running Down." Still current and with an incredibly beautiful chord progression. Yours truly has to run to get home to his girlfriend and kitties. Many thanks to everyone inside and outside our editorial team, and to the caring staff in the press room. See you next year. 

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