FLARE. Plantoid

FLARE kicks off with a bunch of noise. At the same time I'm under the impression to have put on an old U.K. record where rock meets jazz. What was it? 1978? When Allan Holdsworth and Bill Bruford were still in the band. Plantoid has obviously listened to this record in someone's dad's record collection.'Parasite' is the name of the song. It is quite the opener for FLARE. Many people will have started running to protect their ears, those with ears screwed on right for a song like 'Parasite' are alert and ready for more.

Just listen to those drum fills in between all that noise. Louis Bradshaw is making quite an impression here. After this energetic intro the song brakes down totally and reveals the soft, almost whispering voice of singer Chloe Spence. Her voice is regularly multitracked, stacked Chloes reaching me in all sorts of highs and lows and different levels of intensity. And all at the same time.

Musically, Dutch prog band The Gathering from circa 30 years comes to mind, like on 'Mandylion'. Plantoid is able to bring the same level of mysteriousness to 'Parasite', until the U.K. version of the band returns, with a just as intense outro as the song started with. Guitarist Tom Coyne really takes his spot here, going full out.

From here on things do not get that intense any more. Plantoid is off to show all sorts of different sides to itself and its musicianship. The band is not afraid to experiment and explore where a song can take itself. That leads to some surprising changes in songs. I leave you to explore here for yourself. What stands out is the soft voice, even girl like voice of Spence. She may enter jazz territory every once in while, but always soft and gentle.

Promo photo

The two gentlemen behind her, assisted by producer and sometimes live member Nathan Ridley, take care of the wall of sound. The play subtlety when needed, but in a song like 'The Weaver' guitar overdubs enter my ears by brute force. In the lead single 'Dozer' it is more of a wall of sound, followed by a very jazzy outing. There are several sides to Plantoid. In most songs however brevity is not one of them. Songs are there to explore, turn inside out and see what comes out. In the Welsh studio, where the band was preparing for its second album, there was improvisation and jamming for hours on end, which led to FLARE. Debut album 'Terrapath' was released nearly two years ago.

Flair is an album that is not all for me. It moves towards my fringe regularly and even beyond my taste, but no matter what, the songs on FLARE impress without exception. It comes highly recommended to take your own chances.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order FLAIR here:

https://plantoidworld.bandcamp.com/album/flare 

 

Super Sister Project live. Paard, Den Haag, Friday 6 May 2022

Photo: Wout de Natris

It had to happen at some point: the first live show since Saturday 7 March 2020! This show should have happened in the fall of last year, but bandleader Robert Jan Stips caught Covid so was not allowed to play. Honestly, the number of infections were climbing so alarmingly, the question was justified whether it would have been safe to go.

Supersister is a band from before my time. The alternative rock that the band played was not something that came by a lot on my radio. 'She Was Naked' was on a compilation record I got somewhere in the early 70s ranging as wide as 'Sound Of The Screaming Day' to Hue and the Hilltops and 'Seasons' to Supersister. The latter two tracks were my absolute favourites on the album. Also the band's second hit single did not make an impression on me when it was in the charts. So that was about it. Until in the early 00s I bought a compilation album on cd. I played it just about once, I think. This was so far removed from what I truly liked at the time.

Enter the summer of 2021. Covid was everywhere for over a year. In 2020, when music and live shows totally grounded to halt, my girlfriend and I decided to entertain our neighbours from our front garden. with the neighbours all around the street and houses, socially distancing. We've met with one of them, Léon, a drummer. Percussionist of The Analogues, formerly of Sweet d'Buster, Powerplay. Where Karen and I played more than ever before, Léon had to find a job, as his musical life had totally stopped. The street party, 'Neighbours Day' in 2020 was cancelled but in 2021 was not. Léon filled in for our absent drummer. We practised twice and played two oh so nice sets together.

Shortly after he told me he was going to do a tour with Super Sister Project, so the band decided to go together as a band outing. Time for me to bring out the compilation album alright. It turned out that 2021 was the year to turn me on to the music of Supersister. All of a sudden I heard Frank Zappa, those brilliant rhythmic interludes and solos. I heard the hard rocking side of the band, like Jon Lord's organ. I even heard the 'Barbapapa' tune in 'Radio'. A lot of things fell into place.

Photo: Wout de Natris

So here I was in Het Paard looking at a stage filled with huge desk lamps like we all had in the 70s with the springlike shape. Filled with modern lamps for sure. On stage Robert Jan Stips, as band leader and only remaining, active member of Supersister, Rinus Gerritsen, bass player of Golden Earring and Léon Klaasse. The music? Totally, hopelessly outdated, yet brought with so much enthusiasm and class that it effortlessly jumped over the 50 years plus since it was released. In fact, my advice is to record and release the recreation of the officially non-recorded demos of old, as it is fantastic music.

The three musicians each played fantastic, not flawless. The interaction between the three was great to watch. Always looking for clues and cues. To play this kind of music all three musicians had to be on their toes for every second of the show - and were. Time signatures, tempo, even chord patterns can change multiple times, during one song. It's one of the first times I saw a bass player play with a capo but to change it during a song? And having to do so frantically to keep up!? Here were three men at work alright.

A highlight? Of course, it's easy to mention the lead bass guitar in ''She Was Naked', as it's one of the most iconic parts of Dutch rock music. It comes closer to the truth that the whole show was one big highlight. From soft, beautiful ballads, to jazz rock to symphonic rock, it all came by and some of it to dance to as well. I was surprised no little. This show was so good. The surprise was double, as I did not really know what to expect. We went to see our neighbour. Without Léon, I would never have been there and would I have missed some show!

With some rock history stories told by Stips during the show while introducing the songs, told with charming eloquence, the show was interesting at several levels. And to be able to speak a few words with Rinus Gerritsen after the show? What can I say!

To return to where I sort of started, after this show I truly appreciate having played with Léon Klaasse last summer. But like he said at the time: "We are going to have fun and play music". And we did. If one thing showed last night, it was the fun the three in Super Sister Project have, playing this music together.

Wout de Natris

Supersister Project live // no, cancelled // She Was Naked

Thursday 18 November would have been the day on which I should have gone to my first live show since early March 2020. The farewell show of Canshaker Pi in Tolhuistuin on a Saturday evening. An evening in which I seriously doubted whether it was a smart thing to do, going to a venue with hundreds of other people, all potential virus carriers. I lived to tell and had a great evening.

During the first lockdown my girlfriend and I played numerous duo shows in our front garden for neighbours and friends, who all socially distanced, watched us sing and play. Late September I played a live show with my band Sweetwood, as part of Neighbour Day, standing in the muddle of the street. We played with a guest drummer, our close by neighbour Léon Klaasse. So I played myself more than ever. but going to a show, no that had not happened.

Léon told us that he was going to play with Robert Jan Stips and Rinus Gerritsen in Supersister Project. As a band Sweetwoord decided to go and watch him play. Supersister is something that is from before our time or nearly, as in my case. They were able to play all shows and The Hague was the final one. The show turned to a seated show, but we still had tickets. And then Léon phoned on Thursday afternoon, that the show was cancelled, as Stips had contracted Covid. I wish him a speedy and full recovery!

So instead of reviewing the show, let me focus on Supersister's biggest hit, as it is a curiosum of grand proportions. Somewhere in the early 70s and I can't for the life of me remember who gave it to me on what occasion, I was given a compilation album with Dutch (almost) hits from 1967 to 1971. The acts were all on the Polydor label. One of the songs on that album is 'She Was Naked' by Supersister. The lyrics undoubtedly the fantasy of a pubescent, fevered dream, appealed to me as an 11 year old who still had to see a woman naked for the first time.

Supersister was a band from The Hague with an unusual line up. Drums, bass, keyboard and flute. Having started in highschool, the band progressed from a psychedelic band to a progressive and jazzrock band. It ended up recording three albums in the original line up. There are two surviving members of who only Robert Jan Stips is active in Supersister Project.

She Was Naked was released as a single by the band and picked up by pirate radio station Radio Veronica ending in the charts on number 11, the band's biggest hit and the opening to a recording career.

The single starts with a organ that slowly swells before a single, soft bass note takes over announcing the first verse. Soft drumming, soft singing, a beautiful flute intertwining with the singing. This part of the song is so soft and yet intense, as it begs listening.

And then it is one minute and fourty seconds. A totally distorted bass guitar takes over the song in a relentless riff. Unless someone is playing guitar anyway. There is a clean bass behind the distored part, playing the same notes. The Hammond organ screaming behind it. Gone is the flute, this is rock and roll.

The surprises are far from over. The "Dona nobis pacem" part is the next surprise. Who comes up with a part like this? Now Supersister has a song with the same title as well, but it has nothing to do with this chorus in She Was Naked. The total silence invoking a Gregorian Medieval monk choir style of singing as a final farewell, but not before a crescendo of grand propotions.

This music now is totally out there. The outro has two parts, why make things simple when you don't have to? First Sacha van Geest plays a great flute solo and finally Robert Jan Stips ends it all and most likely finishes off his organ as well. I can't imagine an instrument surviving a solo like this.

Reading some more on Wikipedia, I find out that She Was Naked is as it were a compilation of different compositions. The producer picked out parts of longer compositions that he liked and glued them together. That knowledge explains a lot, reading back what I just wrote. She Was Naked is a bizarre song but at the same so much worth listening.

She Was Naked is a forgotten song or nearly, as I'm writing on it. Had I not gotten that compilation album, I doubt if I had ever picked up on the band. After Sweetwood had decided to go, I checked my record collection. My memory is still working as, yes, there was a compilation cd bought in the early 00s. I think I played it once and maybe not completely. In the past weeks I have already played it a few times and when I encounter one of the studio albums of the band second hand I think it may come with me, if priced reasonably.

Let's hope that not too far from now we can go and watch the show together. That would be nice.

Wout de Natris