Mannieb
5 October 2004, 18:50
Despite growing up nearly half a continent away from the bands they were inspired by — the Black Crowes, Beck, Masters of Reality, and Radiohead are some obvious influences — the Dutch four-piece known as Cafebar 401 (http://www.cafebar401.nl/) go beyond being yet another band that sounds like every other homogenized pop band. The band, made up of Martijn Masman on bass, Dennis Kleinlangevelsloo on guitar, Wout Oosterwechel on drums, and vocalist Tije Oortwijn, manages to blend the elements of hard rock, dance, and glam to create some of the most exciting music to hit the airwaves in years.
Or at least the Dutch airwaves. Since first hitting the streets earlier this year, Cafebar 401's eponymous debut has received prominent airplay in their native Holland, as well as being featured on Dutch television. Not content with idly writing and recording music in seclusion, the band has also become a regular fixture at pop festivals throughout the Netherlands, including Dauwpopfestival, Struikpaaspop, IO-festival, and Wollipop.
The band name, Cafebar 401, came from an old automatic coffee machine that was standing in the band's former rehearsal room. "We needed a name for our first gig and we liked how the name Cafebar sounded," says Ootwijn. "We contacted the company Cafebar and they really love that there is a band named after one of their products! Over here they always ask us first: Where did the band name come from? You can watch them think: They can't be named after the coffee machine, can they? But yes, they are. There is no connection whatsoever between the name and our music," he adds. "We thought it was a cool name, and that was it!"
Having catchy, tongue-in-cheek name doesn't come close to detracting from the seriousness of the band, however. Their debut, released and distributed through Pink Records in the Netherlands and Wampus Multimedia in the U.S., is evidence of just how good a band Cafebar 401 is.
Throughout the album, the band shows an amazing range of emotions and styles, somehow making an album that calls on sounds as disparate as classical stringed instruments and *****-out rock guitar, with subjects ranging from dealing with a parent's death to casually observing women walking by, and making the album work as a whole, like some great story that needs to be read from the beginning to end to truly understand all the facets of the characters' personalities and lives.
Or at least the Dutch airwaves. Since first hitting the streets earlier this year, Cafebar 401's eponymous debut has received prominent airplay in their native Holland, as well as being featured on Dutch television. Not content with idly writing and recording music in seclusion, the band has also become a regular fixture at pop festivals throughout the Netherlands, including Dauwpopfestival, Struikpaaspop, IO-festival, and Wollipop.
The band name, Cafebar 401, came from an old automatic coffee machine that was standing in the band's former rehearsal room. "We needed a name for our first gig and we liked how the name Cafebar sounded," says Ootwijn. "We contacted the company Cafebar and they really love that there is a band named after one of their products! Over here they always ask us first: Where did the band name come from? You can watch them think: They can't be named after the coffee machine, can they? But yes, they are. There is no connection whatsoever between the name and our music," he adds. "We thought it was a cool name, and that was it!"
Having catchy, tongue-in-cheek name doesn't come close to detracting from the seriousness of the band, however. Their debut, released and distributed through Pink Records in the Netherlands and Wampus Multimedia in the U.S., is evidence of just how good a band Cafebar 401 is.
Throughout the album, the band shows an amazing range of emotions and styles, somehow making an album that calls on sounds as disparate as classical stringed instruments and *****-out rock guitar, with subjects ranging from dealing with a parent's death to casually observing women walking by, and making the album work as a whole, like some great story that needs to be read from the beginning to end to truly understand all the facets of the characters' personalities and lives.