The Dutch have been building their reputation as a nation worth taking notice of when it comes to the new emerging artists and you can expect more of the same at this years Great Escape.
CUT_, Dakota, Jameszoo, Kovacs, Klangstof, Kim Janssen and Thomas Azier will take to the stage at The Great Escape bringing you everything from rainbow-hued synths to psychedelic guitar riffs, and huge orchestral arrangements with something for everyone’s musical taste buds.
These acts have already built solid foundations and are at the forefront of the Dutch music scene. If their growing fan base is anything to go by, these bands have exciting musical careers ahead of them and are the ones to keep on your radar in 2017.
Find out more about the bands below and if you’d like an interview or guestlist to the showcase please let us know.
About the artists
CUT_
Electronic duo CUT_ took off rapidly after their rendition of Stromae’s ‘Papaoutai’ went viral. CUT_ has since then played numerous shows, including performances at Lowlands, PITCH, ADE, Eurosonic and various appearances on Dutch national television. CUT_ released their first single on [PIAS] “Tune In Tune Out” (mixed and co-produced by Leo Abrahams), which was released late last year. Focusing on encompassing the full spectrum of artistry, CUT_ have made video and visuals an important part of their image, as well as trying to excel in their live shows. “We find that live shows are a way to really distinguish yourself as an artist nowadays, especially when, like in our case, the music is focused on electronic production. We make a point of doing everything live.” (Sebastiaan Dutilh: production & songwriting)
Website: www.cutunderscore.com
Music: https://play.spotify.com/
Dakota
Do you know that feeling? That feeling of wanting to lay back on the couch, close your eyes and drift away to dreamy and hazy music? The Netherlands’ Dakota do just that. Dakota’s new project titled “Leda” blends Psychedelic guitar riffs with indie-pop roots, coming together into a neatly packaged 6 track EP. But don’t let this lo fi charm fool you, the live show of this four piece band gets you to the edge of your seat.They seamlessly blend California feels with Garage Rock and Dream Pop. Look out for Dakota as they make their way in the underground pop scene.
Website: http://www.dakotamusic.nl/
Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zie2UuwmjwU
Jameszoo
The word ‘naive’ comes from the Latin ‘nativus’, meaning native, or natural. Today, to be naive is often seen as pejorative, a lack of experience or judgement, but in the art world the word retained some of its original meaning: a quality acquired through birth, a childlike innocence and wonder that produces spontaneous, unaffected art. For Mitchel Van Dinther, the Dutch producer known as Jameszoo, it is this quality that lies at the heart of his debut album released last year, Fool, which he calls “naive, computer jazz.” Van Dinther emerged from the small town of Den Bosch in the southern Netherlands in the late 2000s. First as a DJ – with wide-ranging crates of avant-garde jazz, prog and kraut rock, electronic experiments, and beat oddities – and then as a producer capable of impressive sonic and rhythmic incongruities. This spring, Van Dinther joins Brainfeeder with an album that fits right into the label’s expanding take on the modern evolution of jazz music.
Website: http://jameszoo.com/
Music: https://soundcloud.com/jameszoo
Kim Janssen
Kim Janssen was born in The Netherlands but raised in Bangkok, Phnom Penh and Kathmandu. His music could be categorized as pop, and it’s swinging in tone from dark to blinding technicolor, with glossy synths, huge orchestral arrangements and Kim’s vocal – at times a Bill Callahan-esque croon, at times a soaring falsetto. His latest album, ‘Cousins’, was recorded across three years and several studios. The album features contributions from Marla Hansen (Sufjan Stevens, The National) and Eiríkur Orri Ólafsson (Sigur Rós) and was mixed by Chris Coady (Beach house, Future Islands) and mastered by Greg Calbi (Graceland).
Website: https://www.kimjanssen.net/
Music: https://kimjanssen.bandcamp.com/
Klangstof
There’s a patience at play in Klangstof’s aural creations: the musician is a craftsman when constructing the chilling sound that comprises his stunning debut album, Close Eyes to Exit. It’s there in the crisp, slow-building single “Hostage,” electric guitars gently strummed, electronic beats like a rising heartbeat, all giving way to full-throated release: “I ran for shelter/But I got there,” he intones. Or in the way “Sleaze” shifts from whispered confession (“Nintendo is the only thing that makes me smile”) to propulsive, rainbow-hued synths at a moment’s notice.
Website: http://www.klangstof.com/
Music: https://soundcloud.com/klangstof
Kovacs
Kovacs music has soul. Her dark voice and her passion are what makes her music different from all the rest. Her radical emotionalism and the abyss-deep soul that she brings to her songs seems to turn her innermost self inside out and her raw style and her dark voice lead to comparisons with Portishead or Amy Winehouse. She is 24-years-old, but you perceive that she has already lived a whole life: KOVACS! With the release of her album KOVACS stands at the beginning of her great adventure and she can hardly wait for it to begin.
Website: http://www.kovacsmusic.com/
Music: https://soundcloud.com/kovacs_music
Thomas Azier
Thomas Azier grew up in a small town in the Netherlands and moved to Berlin when he was 19, in a bold attempt to find his artistic voice. After almost a decade living in Berlin, the 29-year-old Dutchman relocated to Paris in the wake of the Gallic success of his acclaimed debut album, ‘Hylas’, released in 2014. Azier refers to ‘Hylas’ as his “Berlin album”, influenced by the electronic scene in Germany’s vibrant city. Its lead single ‘Red Eyes’ was chosen for an international TV campaign for “Yves Saint Laurent Beauté”. After an extensive tour with more than 120 concerts in 2013 and 2014 (including shows with Stromae and Woodkid) he started working on his sophomore album. During his time in Paris, Azier bought a 1920s upright piano, and songs started immediately hitting him like waves
The result is a composite of piano and laptop, bound together by a ‘fil rouge’ that is his voice, in an amalgamation of passed influences and future ones. Azier will release his anticipated second album “Rouge” on May, 12th (Virgin/Mercury Music Group).
Website: http://www.thomasazier.com
Music: https://soundcloud.com/thomasazier
More info on bands here: http://www.dutch-impact.nl/category/festivals/the-great-escape
Brought to you by the Dutch Music Export. Powered by Eurosonic Eurosonci, Dutch Performing Arts and Buma Cultuur, with the kind support of the embassy of the Kingdom of The Netherlands
Contact
Nikki McNeill | Global Publicity
nikki@globalpublicity.co.uk