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B-Band
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| Interview with: Collin Leijenaar (drummer) Date: March 12th1999 Where: Over the telephone in the radioshow Sky High Other bandmembers: Herman Haan (leadvocalist, guitarist) Jessica Leijenaar (leadvocalist), Paul Crezee (leadguitar), Dave Sahanaja (bass) Band's hometown: Ede, The Netherlands Discography: Everybody Feels (single, 1995), Immortal Emotion (album, 1996) Try Me (single, 1999) Contact Address: novae@hetnet.nl Interview by MPO
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| Can you imagine? A band recording their latest effort in the world-famous Wisseloord
Studios in Hilversum, Netherlands? The same studio that was used by Metallica, Sade, Def
Leppard, Michael Jackson and the Simple Minds? Need I say more? It's pretty amazing I
guess and the band that had the honor to play there is Ede's B-Band. It also meant that
the release had to wait some time. Drummer Collin Leijenaar explains how they managed to
be included in the busy studio schedule: Yes, as you can read on the cover of the single, we recorded it in the Wisseloord Studio's in Hilversum. And that's one of the best studio's of the world. There is a certain price for hiring them so we recorded it in dead-time. That means that we could only use the studio's when no one uses it. Ah, that's why the single took so long before it was released. Is the single available everywhere now? At this moment it's only available through Novae Productions. And I'm busy at the moment with several distributors to get the single in every store. Okay. Last year you played in Holland at the Emergenza Festival. Can you tell us first what kind of festival that is? That's a big secular festival, at an European level, at which new bands of eight or nine different countries battle together for the big price. The big price is CD-recording time in a studio in England and a recorddeal is attached to it with a label for worldwide distribution and then you're the best new band in Europe. We participated in this festival and we ended up in the Dutch finale and won the second prize. So, we're the second best new band in Holland. And it's secular level, not only gospel. Yeah, and then you went to Paris for the big finale, I believe. No, because we ended secondly, that wasn't for us. That slipped us through the fingers. That's a pity. What use was your participation then? Lot's of promotion. Lots of new fans. And for ourselves...we had to do lots of gigs and lots of practicing, constantly doing better and better, and that way the band became better. Yeah, it was big fun to be part of that. We met lots of musicians, made friends. So, it was really great. It was a good time. Do you have more gigs since the festival? Definitely, yeah. By the way, I read in your biography that you do many gigs in all kinds of countries but especially Czechia and Poland That's right. Czechia and Poland have a special place in our hearts. And these countries, why are they so interested in the B-Band that they want you back everytime? Well, through all the touring that we did there several people took the initiative....People there don't have CD-players. They can buy our CD's but they can't play them. So this is what we did, we compilated a tape and brought it out on a Czechian label. All lyrics are translated in Czechian and Polish. And these tapes go through these countries. So, that's for everyone who doesn't have a CD-player but wants to hear our music. And the first pressing is totally sold out so people are enthusiastic. Last question. You also play in the band Dilemma. How do you combine these two bands? Well, at the moment it's easy. Dilemma did it well for a time. The former drummer of the band was Frank van Essen who plays for Iona at the moment. And I took over the drumpositon in Dilemma from him. Two years ago Dilemma split up and now we've just started off again. So, we're writing new material. On the 22nd of May we have our first show. That will go well again and it will be exciting. But so far it's easy to combine. |
