Vera in the 1990s, when Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam) goes to the bar to surf

Anyone who was a fan of punk or underground music in the 90s has probably been there: Groningen pop venue Vera. At that time, many bands came to the International Pop Underground club. Former employee Teus Droif explains how he views this period.

“In the 1990s, Vera was more of a punk or underground club than it is now. The programming is still quite alternative, but there were a lot of punk bands, which was a bit more so in that period,” says Droif.

For Drev, concerts at Vera were the perfect way to clear his head after a long day of work. “In those days, concerts often didn’t start until 11:30 p.m. Then sometimes it happened that you didn’t get home until 4 a.m. and had to go back to work at 7 a.m.

However, those short nights were worth it for the artists that Drif saw perform. “Pearl Jam was there in March of 1992, I saw them and they became really big.”

“The crowd led Eddie Vedder (lead singer of Pearl Jam, editor) to the bar and back. That was noticeable. A few years later the singer returned to Vera, and even then Druif was there. ‘This was unexpected. Suddenly a little man comes in with a guitar Across the room “I thought, ‘Damn, that’s Eddie Vedder,’” says Deruf, laughing.

Watch Pearl Jam’s show at Vera here: