The
Mellotones
This band has been around for more than
10 years. From their inception in 1993 as Mike & the Mellotones they
have been at the forefront of a new blues movement in Europe. In their
native country of Holland they quickly made their way to the top based
on a solid live reputation and an unparelleled ability to combine
musicianship with showmanship. To stay on top it is essential, however,
to reinvent yourself and keep up to date with new musical developments.
Never the blues purists, The Mellotones have always managed to
incorporate a number of styles into their music. First they named their
particular blues brand Blues & Beyond but when they saw the term
being used by more and more bands they chose a new title: Nu Bluz. For
if Limp Bizkit is Nu Metal, Shania Twain is Nu Country and Erykah Badu
is Nu Soul, then The Mellotones sure are Nu Bluz!
2003
marked the transition from the three-piece format to a four-piece one.
With the addition of bassist Mike Sedee and guitarist Ruben Klabbers to
the band, singer/guitarist Mike Donkers and his drummer Lorenzo saw
their Nu Bluz taking shape as a kind of Texas Blues meets Classic Rock.
Besides such blues influences as Stevie Ray and Jimmy Vaughan, The
Paladins and Ronnie Earl, the likes of Cream, Free, Hendrix and Led
Zeppelin became equally influential to their style and sound. It's an
approach which came naturally and which has also proven a successful one:
ever since the band started treating audiences to this unique new style
and sound the general response has been that the band has become even
better and versatile than before! Based on this stylistic and lineup
change the band has also been renamed The Mellotones.
The Mellotones are not about simply rehashing old stuff, though. Instead
they are blowing off the dust and doing something new, different and
exciting with the music they love. The Mellotones put the 'Nu' in the 'Bluz'
and they do it with a force that's impossible to deny. Key words used in
reviews to describe The Mellotones are energetic, tight, powerful,
intense, entertaining, original, and innovative.
Line-up:
Mike Donkers - guitar & vocals
Ruben Klabbers - guitar
Mike Sedee - bass
Lorenzo Hardijzer - drums
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