Voicst are a three-piece
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
band hailing from
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
,
The Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. "Voicst" was the name of a stray cat at the band's very first practice space in Amsterdam.
Band members
* Tjeerd Bomhof (lead vocals/guitar)
* Sven Woodside (bass/vocals)
* Joppe Molenaar (drums/samples)
Biography
Originally formed as a school band in 1994, Voicst went on hiatus until 2001, when they decided to revive their band.
In 2002, Voicst kicked off their career with a much anticipated show at the Winston in Amsterdam. After their show they were asked to support various artists, such as
Millionaire
A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short scal ...
,
Enon, and
Mclusky
Mclusky (often stylized as mclusky), originally known as Best, are a Welsh three-piece post-hardcore group formed in Cardiff. The group originally consisted of Englishman Andrew Falkous (vocals, guitar) from Newcastle upon Tyne, Geraint Bevan ...
.
In the following years, Voicst opened for other bands like
Tenacious D
Tenacious D is an American comedy rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 1994. It was founded by actors Jack Black and Kyle Gass, who were members of The Actors' Gang theater company at the time. The duo's name is derived from "tenacio ...
,
The Raveonettes
The Raveonettes are a Danish indie rock duo, consisting of Sune Rose Wagner on guitar, instruments and vocals, and Sharin Foo on bass, guitar and vocals. Their music is characterized by close two-part vocal harmonies inspired by The Everly Br ...
, and
Nada Surf
Nada Surf is a New York City-based American alternative rock band formed in the 1990s, consisting of Matthew Caws (guitar, vocals), Ira Elliot (drums), Doug Gillard (guitar, backing vocals), and Daniel Lorca (bass, backing vocals).
History 199 ...
. Voicst built a solid live reputation and were invited to play at the
Noorderslag Festival
Eurosonic Noorderslag is an annual four-day music showcase festival and conference held in January in Groningen, Netherlands. The first three days of the festival (Eurosonic) feature artists from all over Europe, the last day of the festival (No ...
. The trio won the Essent Award in 2003, and played at major Dutch festivals like Metropolis and
Lowlands
Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland.
Definitions
Upland and lowland are portions of p ...
. The band also traveled to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
to perform at the
CMJ Music Marathon
CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events and online media company, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music Monthly'' and ''CMJ New Music Report''. Th ...
.
Their first official release was in 2003: the six track ''Eat the Evidence EP'', released on the independent Labelman label.
In 2004, the band journeyed back to New York for five weeks where they recorded their album, working with producer
Eli Janney (
Girls Against Boys
Girls Against Boys is a post-hardcore band which formed in Washington, D.C. and subsequently relocated to New York City shortly after their formation in 1989. The band released albums on the labels Adult Swim, Touch and Go Records, Geffen Record ...
), at
James Iha
(born March 26, 1968) is an American rock musician. He is best known as a guitarist and co-founder of the alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. He was a member until the initial breakup in 2000. Among his musical projects of recent years ...
's (
Smashing Pumpkins
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
Art, ...
) privately owned studio. Because of the long working days (11am to 11pm), their album was aptly titled ''
11-11''. ''11-11'' was released Fall 2004 in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Spain.
The first single released from ''11-11'' was ''Dazzled Kids'', and was a modest hit. Their follow-up single, ''Whatever You Want From Life'', was used in a
Heineken
Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star.
History
On 15 Febr ...
commercial, and was also featured in the video game ''
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
''.
The years after the release of their maiden album would be marked by tours and performances at the many festivals in the Netherlands; their album also won several awards. Voicst embarked on a UK and European tour, during which they supported
The Bravery
The Bravery is an American rock band formed in New York City in 2003. The band consists of lead vocalist Sam Endicott, guitarist Michael Zakarin, keyboardist John Conway, bassist Mike Hindert and drummer Anthony Burulcich. They are best known ...
,
The Presidents of the United States of America,
Juliette and The Licks
Juliette and the Licks is an American rock band led by actress and singer Juliette Lewis. Other band members have included guitarist Craig Fairbaugh and guitarist Emilio Cueto, bassist Jason Womack and drummer Ed Davis. Their popular songs include ...
,
The Posies
The Posies were an American power pop group. The band was formed in 1986 in Bellingham, Washington, United States, by primary songwriters Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow.
Their music has its origins in Merseybeat and the Hollies. They are ...
, and others. A remastered version of ''11-11'' was released in the United States in 2005, followed by Australia in 2006 and Japan in 2007.
Voicst went back to the studios to record their second album ''A Tale of Two Devils'' in early 2007. They partnered with
Peter Katis
Peter Katis is an American Grammy Award-winning record producer, audio engineer, mixer, and musician.
Katis is best known for working with alternative and indie rock bands. He works primarily out of his own residential studio, Tarquin Studios, ...
(producer for
Interpol
The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...
and
The National among others), and
Rutger Hoedemaekers from the Dutch band About.
''A Tale of Two Devils'' was released January 11, 2008, the first single ''Everyday I Work On The Road'' was released February 2, 2008.
Discography
Albums
* ''11-11'' (2004, Duurtlang Records)
** US re-release: 2005, Intrigue Music
** AU re-release: 2006, Cortex Records
** JP re-release: 2007, Kurofune Records
* ''A Tale of Two Devils'' (2008,
Play It Again Sam/Goodbusy Records)
EPs
* ''Eat The Evidence'' (2003, Labelman/Six-Def Recordings)
Singles
* ''Sgt.Gonzo/Major Tom'' (7" split single w/ Buffoon; 2001, Labelman)
* ''Dazzled Kids'' (2005, Duurtlang Records)
* ''Whatever You Want From Life'' (2006, Duurtlang Records)
* ''Acts Of Fire'' (2006, Duurtlang Records)
* ''Everyday I Work On The Road'' (2008, Play It Again Sam/Goodbusy Records)
* ''Feel Like A Rocket'' (2008, Play It Again Sam/Goodbusy Records)
* ''Het is je boy'' feat.
Dio (2008,
TopNotch
TopNotch is a Dutch record label specializing in hip-hop. The label was founded in 1995, and is run by Vincent Patty. After some commercial success (with rap acts such as De Jeugd van Tegenwoordig, The Opposites, Def Rhymz, Postmen, and Extince) ...
)
* ''A Year and a Bit'' (2009, Intrigue Music)
External links
Voicst official website
{{Authority control
Dutch rock music groups
Dutch indie rock groups