Three generations of unique Dutch musicians find each other in a common urge to improvise in which aesthetics, poetry and ensemble play have a major role. The listener is taken to an almost dreamlike new reality.
Under the Surface is a new Dutch band formed by drummer Joost Lijbaart (1967), guitarist Bram Stadhouders (1987) and vocalist Sanne Rambags (1994). It’s about time the very first recording (2015) is being released ! Here it all started :
On the night of 18 December 2015, we finished a recording with Under The Surface in the MCO together with Frans de Rond, Harry van Dalen and Michael van Polen.
It was a live to 2 track analogue recording .
We listened back to it and were amazed by the beautiful sound but somehow, we felt the urge to record something more.
Following a suggestion from Michael we decided to record 5 improvisations without any prior agreements.
It was late, for sure after midnight. The room was calm, the audience left, and we started to play. From the first note we were in a ‘zone’ with each other. We improvised 5 tracks which sounded like compositions created in the moment. In music sometimes ‘the magic is turned on’. This happens most of the times when musicians forget themselves, their ego and just follow the spirit of the moment. Musicians are in that moment a conduit of divine energy. We did not know how it happened that night, but it happened, and Frans, Harry and Michael recorded it in a most beautiful way.
Under The Surface became a band that night and we decided to continue with the concept of improvised concerts. We were able to find and keep that spirit again and again and started to tour for the next eight years. We performed all over the planet, from Mali to Bolivia, from India to China to Rwanda to Cuba and in every country, people could feel the spirit of our music. We played on big festivals, in Buddhistic temples in museums, on roofs of buildings and for blindfolded audiences. We grew in our improvisations and discovered so many aspects of each other, our music, and spirits during all our travels.
After 8 years and more than 200 live concerts with Under The Surface I played the music from this first recording again and it brings me into tears.
I realize the enchantment of ‘doing something for the first time’ is difficult to reproduce.
The beauty of fragility and the relativity of time are precious.
On this recording you hear Under The Surface maybe in its most pure form, as a flower just about to bloom. Just before it’s journey on this earth.
(Joost Lijbaart)