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Join the Purr Mailing List: Happy to be part of the Independent Promoters Network Also part of
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31.10.02:
seedling + kaito +
zoppo + econoline Seedling: As one music magazine put it: "Almost everything about Seedling is extraordinary." They are three girls and one guy from Amsterdam. They play catchy pop you can dance to - guitar music with strong vocal harmonies, accompanied by a violin. Amongst their influences they list Evil Superstars, Velvet Underground and the Violent Femmes. Popularised in this country by John Peel, Seedling have recorded three sessions for John's show (two live and one studio-based). Last Christmas the song 'Sensational Vacuum' reached the No.37 position in his annual 'Festive Fifty.' The band have been around for four years and in that time they've played over 200 shows, including 5 UK tours. The band have also played the Noorderslag festival twice and all of the main venues in the Netherlands, such as Paradiso, Amsterdam, and Tivoli, Utrecht. Several of their live performances have been recorded for nationwide TV and radio shows. Their music has been favourably compared to P J Harvey, The Breeders, Throwing Muses and Elastica. Band members: MARG VAN EENBERGEN - vocals, guitars, keyboards, sampler. The typical tormented soul? Fact is that she keeps a tape recorder by her bedside to catch the songs that always come to her at night. Besides Seedling, Marg has two solo projects. One is called The Tenants, which is a duo with drummer/guitarist Maarten Kooijman (Dress, Johan). The Tenants make music inspired by Kurt Weill, and they won a spot at the finals of the 2000-edition of the Amsterdam singer/songwriter competition 'Mooie Noten'. She also makes solo appearances as Robin Brandbaar, a very Angry Young Girl who made it to the semi-finals of the Grote Prijs Van Nederland for singer/songwriters. Every now and then she also plays keyboards in an obscure disco cover band called 'De Jeanetten', featuring Bas and members of Sal and Dress. Her inspiration comes from David Bowie, Radiohead and the Smiths. Album currently in her CD player: 'This Is The Modern World' by The Jam. SUSANNE LINSSEN - violin, vocals, keyboards, tambourine A violin in a band? Well, it's got strings, so why not! Susanne refused to sing in the band for a long time, claiming that it is impossible to sing and play violin simultaneously. She had no arguments left after the band saw Tracy Bonham live. Susanne also plays in a few classical orchestras, like the Riciotti ensemble and the Crea student orchestra. A sample of Crea's recording of Bruckner's seventh symphoney is used in 'High On The Downside'. Besides classical music she's very much into Pavement, Soul Coughing and P J Harvey. BAS JACOBS - bass guitar, occasional electric guitar, sampler The most beautiful girl in the band? Besides Seedling, Bas has his own band called Pfaff. Pfaff put out a vinyl album last year: 'God Gifted Flexible Capo' (still available). Bas also plays with Maarten Speekenbrink in a band called the Liverly challenged malancoholics, although they only perform when it's a full moon on Friday the 13th. And of course he plays with De Jeanetten. He's very much into stuff like Nick Drake, Red House Painters and Sonic Youth. But he also owns the 'Greatest hits of Motorhead'! MARIKEN SMIT - drums, drum loops. The heartbeat of the band? Maybe not so visible on stage, hidden behind all those cymbals, but all the more present in the sound. She started the band with Marg, after they had played together in two pre-incarnations of Seedling. Her drum kit is a greatly admired 1970s blue see-through Sonor kit. Mariken's musical favourites include Smashing Pumpkins, Placebo and dEUS. "The Amsterdam based band Seedling is said to have been 'Transformed Dreams' best kept secret for more than a year. With their debut album 'Elevator Tourist', which consists of 10 superb songs, Seedling fully lives up to expectations." - Dutch national newspaper 'De Volkskrant' (on 'Elevator Tourist') "Never before has marriage between classical music and rock sounded so in-your-face and disturbing. Artistic ambition and depth, rarely matched by other young Dutch rock bands." - Dutch national newspaper NRC Handelsblad (on 'Elevator Tourist') "We went to the cellar to hear Seedling. I had seen them on last years Noorderslag (Eurosonic-ed) and had them on the radio a couple of times after that, and I was expecting a good performance. And they were really good. We had expected them to be competent, but they were better than I had expected. They were a delight." - John Peel "Seedlings gig downstairs brought the house down. The three-girls-and-a-boy-band excel in enthusiastically played pop with an edge. The violin adds a mostly melancholic value to the fresh, sometimes nicely out of hand songs." - Live-XS-popmagazine "The double vocal pop songs of this quartet are fresh and gripping. The wistful violin sounds give the songs just that little speciality. Together with the sparkling stage show this leads to a dynamic performance." - Parool -Amsterdam daily newspaper "The quality-level (of the festival) became at a higher standard with a blazing gig of Amsterdam quartet Seedling. With their sharp and adventurous alternative rock they also impressed English DJ John Peel, who directly after the gig made acquaintance with them in the dressing-room." - Parool -Amsterdam daily newspaper "Seedling delivered an unexpected highlight of this prestigious showcase event." - NRC (on their Eurosonic 2000 gig) "Strong is the new Amsterdam band Seedling, that throws three very young women on the battlefield. The music sometimes reminds me of Elastica, but sounds fresh because of the melodic combination of violin sounds with lo-fi pop and heavier rock. A kind of folkgrunge with a future. The sometimes stirred up and at other times modest music makes an impression on the audience." - (Regional daily-paper De Gelderlander about a gig in Arnhem) "'Elevator Tourist' their debut long-player, has enough sweetness to make you huddle up in love with your hi-fi, enough venom to make you shake while hiding behind the sofa and enough power to suggest the nailing of loose objects would prevent some kind of ceramic catastrophe by the albums close. The Seedling sound can be traced back in many ways to bands and artists such as Breeders, Belly, Hersh and Harvey, an admirable collective to aspire to, yet on the evidence of 'Elevator Tourist' they would appear to possess more than enough to equal and perhaps surpass." - LosingToday, UK magazine "Seedling produce original, confronting and enchanting rock music. Outstanding factors are Susanne Linssens' use of violin and the doubling of her vocals with those of guitarist Marg van Eenbergen, a crossgrained, creative rocktalent, able to compete with guitar heroins like PJ Harvey and Chrissie Hynde. After the promising EP 'Sham Pain' (1999), Seedling rose to full bloom on their first album 'Elevator Tourist', an album with angular songs that are full of ideas. From the threatening opener 'Every Match Must Crash and Burn' to the soothing lullaby 'Final Alarm' Seedling manage to build up a tension span that, regarding artistic ambition and depth, is not often seen in dutch rockbands." - NRC-Daily paper Websites: www.seedling.nl & www.transformeddreams.com KaitO: " Acclaimed by the likes of Steve Lamacq and John Peel, KaitO have amassed a huge following based on the quality of their live shows and the albums and singles they have released to date. Formed in Norwich in 1996 their early appearances on vinyl came courtesy of the Vibrations From The Edge Of Sanity and prompted Record Collector to proclaim them as "future gods". Their debut album, "You've Seen Us, You Must Have Seen Us" was co-produced by the band and Owen Turner of lo-fi legends Magoo. A demo version of the album found its way into the hands of Devil In The Woods records, based in Texas, who were so impressed this and by a typically ballistic live show, they decided that the album needed to be released in America and Japan. They have also released a split single, twinning KaitO with Spiral Stairs, the band formed from the remains of Pavement, on this KaitO perform the classic "Thwipside". "Thwipside" received its UK release on the Fierce Panda compilation EP "Cheffiing And Blinding". The band have recently returned from an extended and very successful tour of the USA, where they toured to support their new mini album 'Montigola Underground' (Devil in the Woods). KaitO are: Nikki (vocals and guitar), Dave (guitar), Gemma (bass) and Dieta (drums) "Boy/girl foursome KaitO are comprised of two-parts Chelsea girl chic and several bits of cute pop fury" - NME "A stunning A-side (which had us pogoing in the office) and a loopy B-side worthy of a strange worship" - Record Collector (about their debut, "Sandpaper Shuffle") "saccharine-soaked gossamer vocals and sulky guitars" - NME "Like Sonic Youth playing twister with Elastica" - Fierce Panda "KaitO's 2001 debut, You've Seen UsÉ You Must Have Seen UsÉ, mixed six-string fetishism with simple head-bobbing melodies to arrive at a sound equal parts cold sweat amphetamine come-down and dream date with Pizzicato Five. (Processed or not, Nikki Colk's voice conveys KaitO's lyrics with such charming, angular detachment that you'd swear she learned English just before the tape rolled.)" - Magnet, US Magazine "Once upon a time, all alternative music sounded like this. So while KaitO actually hail from Norwich, you might think they were from another time. Bursting with DIY exuberance and boy-grrl shouting, they're as old-school indie as coloured seven-inch vinyl. Fortunately, rather than being this year's Bis, they add paranoid electronic weirdness to their jangly songs. Meaning, 'Trailous' is bugs-under-the-skin itchy, 'Non-Descript' is anything but, and practically everything thing else sounds like being trapped inside a party balloon with only a bottle of amyl nitrate and an anarchic primary school band for company. Exhuming the corpse of guitar music's past has rarely sounded so fun, feral and cacophonous." - NME on 'Montigola Underground' "Like Sonic Youth on happy pills." - Kerrang! on 'Montigola Underground' Website: www.KaitO.co.uk Econoline: Little did they know when they flagrantly stole the registered trade name of Ford Motor Cars most successful American van that it would come to this. From their homes all over the great city of London, Econoline have been taking folk to the rock since June 2000. Already they've travelled up and down the UK and as far afield as Lecce in Southern Italy and the Irish republic. All of this with the likes of The Lapse, Billy Mahonie, Max tundra, The Dismemberment Plan, Les Savy Fav, Reynolds, Kaito, The Pattern, Kidsnearwater, Tristeza, Karate, Pinback and OWLS. Recording always with Zen engineer Phill Rodgers' place position mobile studio. John Kennedy on London's XFM Xposure show, was the first DJ to road test the band in December 2000, playing 'Topology" from the Badmusic EP. Since signing with seriously groovy around Xmas 2000, the double 'A' single "Breakfast of Champions"/"No Message Attached" has been played by John Kennedy Steve Lamacq and John Peel. John also played the "Oz's and Oz'sÉ" split too. The last single "I'm Plagued" again hit both Peel and Lamacq's turntables and has also picked up support from UK student Radio with university stations all over the country playlisting the song. "Topology" also featured on the sold out Fierce Panda "Go" EP with Jimmy Eat World and heavily feted UK bands like Stapleton and Kids Near water. "It's "Nothing Feels Good" era Promise Ring making out with earlier Superchunk in a cornfield on a blissful day with not many clothes on." - Collective zine "these newcomers have obviously siphoned the best bits from the emo scene and made them their own." - Kerrang! "like Dinosaur Jr, Get-Up Kids and The Cure swiping at swarms of bees." - NME "Though barely a year old, London four-piece Econoline have already started to make their mark. Their obvious love of big American noise-makers even extends to naming themselves after a Ford truck. The combination of angry guitars with odd tunings and well-crafted song-writing has invited comparisons with Dinosaur Jr and Pavement, while singer Ian Scanlon's uncanny vocal resemblance to Robert Smith has led to inevitable mentions of The Cure. Fortunately this doesn't extend to the visual, as he looks more like a malnourished football fan. A more accurate musical reference point might be Fugazi, in that a scratch beneath the brash, nihilistic surface reveals a surprising amount of thoughtfulness and emotion. I don't know if anyone still talks about 'emocore', but if they did Econoline's name would soon come up. New single 'Breakfast of Champions' combines heartfelt angst with an uncompromising guitar onslaught. There's also a New York-style arty element, particularly when they get all slow and tinkly, which somehow brought an involuntary broad smile to my lips. But it's what their records company call fuzzy-edged guitar wastelands that the crowd, including a sizeable Northampton contingent for some reason, have come to hear. It's refreshing to hear a band so focused and, dare I say it, committed. If they carry on maturing at such a rate, glittering prizes may await." - www.nightshift.com "Econoline open proceedings in style. In fact here is a band who have it right. DonŐt try to fake charisma because it doesnŐt work, play what you feel and it will. Econoline have the material and are just generally mesmerising." - www.drownedinsound.com "Tonight, Econoline are nothing short of amazing, a true revelation to my uninitiated brain. Who would think Ian Scanlon capable of creating such considered beauty... No offence, Ian, but I really didn't. They may pay tribute to the likes of Dinosaur Jr and The Minutemen in their set and have been compared to Husker Du in the past, but while that's not essentially wrong, it in no way captures the full glory of this set. Basically Econoline are lovers of classic pop songs, but with a hardcore heart beating not so secretly underneath. It threatens to explode into something more ramshackle or noisy, but it's gentle flow of emotion holds sway with wonderful warm vocal harmonies sometimes breaking into a burst of tense muscular riffage, or sending bolts of feedback flashing across the stage, but largely finding it's power in the quieter more reflective moments. Econoline are every bit as good as any number of American bands you care to drool over and rely on nothing more radical than simple and simply very well written songs. Current single "Breakfast of Champions" moulds little bits of guitar and vocals into something approaching genius; then "Guapo" finds Ian on his knees wringing his guitar out to the last drop as a jangly guitar riff bounces all around him. Like I said, a true revelation." - Jesus Built My Talbot Samba zine (4.5 chops out of 5) "Econoline are new to me, and from their first song I was ready to label them with the likes of Karate and Fugazi, but by the end of their set their mix of melody and standard punky/grunge seemed to have more in common with Dinosaur Jr and Swervedriver. I wouldn't be surprised if they have 'Son of Mustang Ford' in the collection. I don't know much about them, though they had one track on a recent Fierce Panda compilation which is worth checking out." - Slow Thrills Website: www.oocities.org/slowthrills Zoppo: Over the last three years Zoppo (from Amsterdam) have grown from a home-tape duo into a full four-piece band. The band's current release is their third full-length studio LP 'Les Aumonts', released late last year to glowing reviews. The album enjoyed twelve weeks in the Dutch 'Alternative Top 10' (Moordlijst). Zoppo play 'Belgian Style Pop' (the title of their debut LP) with inventive melodies. Their sound ranges from the soft and intimate to the loud and raw. Compared to VU, dEUS and Belle & Sebastian. "It's the perfect balance between charming melancholy, varied pop, hold-back anger, strange experiments and dissonant outbursts. Who won't get goose-flesh hearing 'Zoppo's finished' is without soul, who doesn't consider 'Les Aumonts' beautiful is out of senses. Absolute top!" - Gonzo Circus on 'Les Aumonts' "Their competence to drive a melody with superior finesse through bone and heart is still intact. Great band" - OOR on "Les Aumonts" "Zoppo is definitely a discovery, coping with an overdose of beautiful pop melodies." - OOR on 'Belgian Style Pop' "Zoppo proves that the high standard Barlow and pollard reached in their best times, can be reached by a Dutch band as well." - Gonzo Circus on 'Belgian Style Pop' "Great. Zoppo showed why their 'Belgian Style Pop' album got such great reviews. References could be Velvet Underground, dEUS, Sonic Youth and Belle & Sebastian, but their style is unique." - OOR live review "Like on CD Zoppo knows very well how to create a balance between hold-back, fragile guitar rock and widely floating noise. Squeaking and crackling guitars between the songs provide an hypnotic effect. During the final song Zoppo rock themselves and the audience once again to the bone, which makes you automatically long for more. But encores are boring, because gone means gone and one of Holland's best bands has understood that." - LiveXS live review "For the saviours of rock'n'roll you don't have to search across Dutch borders. Zoppo delivered with 'Les Aumonts' a more than terrific record. And know how to translate it into a challenging live set. Zoppo proves to belong to the guitar-pop review. of Holland. Whatever happened to my rock'n'roll. This is it." - Fret magazine live review Websites: www.zoppo.demon.nl & www.transformeddreams.com |
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