Spinvis (album)

Last updated
Spinvis
Spinvis album.jpeg
Studio album by
Spinvis
Released1 May 2002
Recorded1999–2002
StudioDe Ruimte (Nieuwegein)
Genre
Length46:23
Language Dutch
Label Excelsior Recordings
Producer Erik de Jong
Spinvis chronology
Spinvis
(2002)		Nieuwegein aan zee
(2004)
Singles from Spinvis
  1. "Smalfilm"
    Released: 5 April 2002
  2. "Voor ik vergeet"
    Released: 1 July 2002
  3. "Bagagedrager"
    Released: 3 July 2003

Spinvis is the self-titled debut album by Dutch music project Spinvis, the one-man band of singer-songwriter Erik de Jong. Released on 1 May 2002 when De Jong was 41 years old, the album received strong reviews from the Dutch music press and was seen as one of the best albums of the year. [1] It was supported by three singles.

Contents

It was certified Gold in the Netherlands in 2006. [2] Oor named it the best album from the Netherlands of the 21st century. [3]

Background

Erik de Jong worked at night as a mail sorter. While he played in bands throughout his life, the birth of his first child inspired him to further his ambitions as a musician, including singing for the first time as he did not like the sound of his voice. [4] [5] He sent a demo to Excelsior Recordings, a Dutch independent record label, who agreed to release his debut album. [4] De Jong wrote the album's songs in his Nieuwegein attic over an extended period of time. "I worked on that first record for a long time, far too long. Of course there was no deadline, no audience, no record company. I sat wonderfully in my own paradise." [6]

He was skeptical about finding success as a musician. "A 40-year-old man from Nieuwegein who works at the post office, who can't sing, who writes improbable lyrics — nothing indicated that it would work out. I suddenly thought, 'Is it going to work out, Erik?'." [7]

Once the album came out, De Jong had to take an unpaid leave of absence from his job in order to tour. [4] "One night I was standing in a packed Paradiso and the next I was just sorting again. No one knew what I had done before that either. That was good, because it is also a lesson in humility," he recalled. [7]

Album artwork

The album cover of Spinvis features the three-song cassette demo tape that Erik de Jong mailed to Excelsior Recordings. It was also a symbol that he deliberately chose to represent the analogue technology of the 1980s and its associated home computer era. [8]

Recording and lyrics

De Jong's attic consisted of a computer, a synthesizer, a mixing console, some peripherals, several musical instruments and a few of his children's toys. The first song he wrote was "Bagagedrager" in 1999. Excelsior Recordings decided not to re-record any of De Jong's original attic takes. De Jong himself embraced the nature of imperfection in his music because it reflected the imperfection of people's existences. This included his singing voice, which De Jong said was not a great talent. [8] The music of Spinvis has been described as indietronica [9] , lo-fi [8] and Nederpop. [3]

The decision to sing in his native Dutch instead of English was easy for him to make, because "when you sing in English, you use a accent that you only know from television. It's always fake. You're going to be imitating something." [8]

De Jong carried a notebook with him which he would write down future song lyrics in, wanting to "capture the Netherlands of today" while writing about "the everyday, recurring things" in his music. His location influenced him as well, and he said: "I see a beauty in the people who ended up here in Nieuwegein. Of course, everyone had visions in their youth about what their lives would look like. And then: streets full of disappointments, streets full of regrets. You see people just deal with it day in, day out. I think that's beautiful." [8]

"Voor ik vergeet" is often believed to be about Alzheimer's disease, but that was not the intended meaning of the song. "The crazy thing about your memory is that things you remember about your life, those aren't necessarily the big important things. I just wanted to write those things down," De Jong said. [10]

"Bagagedrager" was written about De Jong's youth and his childhood memories. One which stood out to him was when he was cycling by himself on the Afsluitdijk and felt truly alone for the first time. [7]

Commercial performance

By November, Spinvis became the best-selling album in Excelsior Recordings history. Label founder Ferry Roseboom recalled saying that after receiving the demos, he loved it but could not do anything with it. [11]

In 2006, Spinvis was certified Gold by the NVPI, indicating sales of at least 35,000 copies in the Netherlands. [2]

"Bagagedrager" was the most successful single on the charts, reaching No. 20 on the Tipparade ("bubbling under") of the Dutch Top 40 and No. 75 on the Single Top 100. [12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg

In a glowing review, AllMusic's Philip D. Huff said that "The songs on Spinvis appear to be simple and messy, but in fact they are elaborately and inventively orchestrated. Only on a second or a third listen does one hear that almost every second line rhymes, and that there are quirky sound effects beneath all the great rhythm tracks." [13]

Spinvis was praised for his lyricism. "You could hear how he had been endlessly puzzling and polishing on his own with samplers, drum computers and guitars. His productions sounded ragged and rough, and at the same time very well thought out. Within no time, others were running off with his work," 3voor12 wrote. [1]

The album finished second in Oor 's year-end critics' list for 2002, behind Queens of the Stone Age's Songs for the Deaf. [14]

"Smalfilm" finished in second place for the 2002 VPRO Song of the Year voting, behind "No One Knows" by Queens of the Stone Age. [15]

"Voor ik vergeet" was sung by Lenette van Dongen in her theatre program Vedette. It won the Annie M.G. Schmidt Prize for best theatre song of the year in 2003. [16]

Legacy

In 2025, Oor crowned it as the best album from the Netherlands of the 21st century, comparing its impact to The Velvet Underground & Nico of Nederpop. [3]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Bagagedrager" ("Luggage Rack")6:14
2."Smalfilm" ("Narrow Film")4:02
3."Voor ik vergeet" ("Before I Forget")4:25
4."Astronaut"4:15
5."Ronnie gaat naar huis" ("Ronnie Goes Home")4:41
6."In de staat van narcose" ("In an Anesthetic State")3:35
7."Mike Clark"0:34
8."Herfst en Nieuwegein" ("Autumn and Nieuwegein")3:51
9."Handige tante – jongen met geld" ("Helpful Aunt – Boy With Money")2:27
10."De talen van mijn tong" ("The Languages of My Tongue")2:25
11."Leo's definitieve aquarium" ("Leo's Final Aquarium")1:01
12."Limonadeglazen wodka" ("Lemonade Glass Vodka")5:00
13."Regen en patchoulli" ("Rain and Patchouli")4:03
Total length:46:23

Charts

Chart (2002)Peak
position
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [17] 27
Chart (2021)Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [18] 159

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nederpop</span> Style of Dutch pop music

Nederpop or Dutch pop music is pop music made by Dutch bands and artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Racoon (band)</span> Dutch rock band

Racoon are a Dutch pop rock band from Goes, Zeeland, formed in 1997. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist Bart van der Weide, guitarist Dennis Huige, bassist Maarten van Damme and drummer Paul Bukkens. Stefan de Kroon was the bassist from 1998 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marco Borsato</span> Dutch singer (born 1966)

Marco Roberto Borsato is a Dutch singer. Born in Alkmaar, North Holland, he started performing in Italian before switching to Dutch in 1994. He has consistently been one of the most successful and biggest-grossing artists in the Netherlands and Belgium for the past thirty years.

LPG is a Dutch indie-pop band, signed on Excelsior Recordings/V2 Records. In April 2005, their critically acclaimed debut album I fear no foe was released in the Netherlands, receiving positive reviews from established magazines and websites, such as Oor, VPRO 3voor12 and Volkskrant. There were few negative reviews, which mostly struggled with the applause in the opening track Speech, and the diversity of the band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Will Tura</span> Musical artist

Arthur Achiel Albert, Knight Blanckaert, known by his stage name Will Tura, is a Belgian artist considered as the most successful Flemish-speaking singer of the 20th century. Famous in Flanders and the Netherlands, Tura is a singer, musician, composer and songwriter. Nicknamed the Emperor of the Flemish Song, he released hundreds of singles and albums that cover a wide array of styles, and continued to tour into the 2010s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Di-rect</span> Dutch rock band

Di-rect is a Dutch rock band from The Hague, formed in 1999. The band's current line-up consists of Jamie Westland (drums), Frans "Spike" van Zoest (guitar), Bas van Wageningen (bass), Paul Jan Bakker (guitar) and Marcel Veenendaal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spinvis</span> Dutch music project

Spinvis is a Dutch one-man music project centred on Erik de Jong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meindert Talma & the Negroes</span>

Meindert Talma is a Dutch lo-fi singer and keyboardist whose backing band goes by the name of "the Negroes." He sings in Dutch as well as Frisian and English and has released seven albums as of 2007. Talma is notable for his humorous, satirical songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claw Boys Claw</span> Dutch rock band

Claw Boys Claw are a Dutch band, formed in Amsterdam. The core members of the band are Peter te Bos (vocals) and John Cameron (guitar). After some years of inactivity, the band started playing live again in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kensington (band)</span> Dutch rock band

Kensington is a Dutch rock band from Utrecht that was formed in 2005. The band consists of lead vocalist Jason Dowd, guitarist Casper Starreveld, bassist Jan Haker and drummer Niles Vandenberg. The band has four number-one albums in the Netherlands and three Platinum-certified albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gers Pardoel</span> Dutch rapper

Gerwin Pardoel, better known by his stage name Gers Pardoel or mononymously as Gers, is a Dutch rapper. He rose to fame in 2009, due to his successful collaboration with The Opposites on the single "Broodje Bakpao". Pardoel's debut studio album Deze wereld is van jou was released in November 2011 and was certified Platinum by the NVPI. The Nederhop artist is best known for his number-one single "Ik neem je mee", which became the most successful Dutch-language and Dutch-artist hit in the Dutch Top 40 ever.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Azier</span> Dutch pop singer and musician

Thomas Azier is a Dutch avant-pop singer and composer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lil' Kleine</span> Musical artist

Jorik Scholten, professionally known as Lil' Kleine, is a Dutch rapper, actor and singer. He collaborated with fellow rapper Ronnie Flex to produce the number one single "Drank & Drugs" and the number one album WOP!.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suzan & Freek</span> Dutch musical duo

Suzan & Freek is a Dutch musical duo from the Achterhoek, Netherlands. The now husband-and-wife couple of Suzan Stortelder and Freek Rikkerink have released music together since 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hoe het danst</span> 2019 single by Marco Borsato, Armin van Buuren and Davina Michelle

"Hoe het danst" is a song by Dutch musicians Marco Borsato, Armin van Buuren and Davina Michelle. It was released on 8 May 2019, in anticipation of Borsato's upcoming stadium concerts at De Kuip. The song features Borsato and Michelle's vocals with Van Buuren's production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meau</span> Dutch singer-songwriter

Meau Hewitt, known mononymously as Meau, is a Dutch singer-songwriter from Weesp, North Holland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Froukje</span> Dutch musician (born 2001)

Froukje Veenstra, known mononymously as Froukje, is a Dutch singer-songwriter from Nieuwkoop, South Holland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joost Klein</span> Dutch musician (born 1997)

Joost Klein, also known mononymously as Joost, is a Dutch musician, rapper, singer, and former YouTuber. Mainly a hip hop artist, his songs and performances often include influences of electronic music, such as drum and bass, hardstyle, and gabber. He has released seven studio albums, two of which reached the top ten of the Dutch Album Top 100. He has amassed four chart entries on the Dutch Top 40, and is best known for "Wachtmuziek" (2022), "Europapa" (2024), "Luchtballon" (2024) and his collaborations with German rapper Ski Aggu on "Friesenjung" (2023) and Finnish rapper Käärijä on "Trafik!" (2024).

Robin Kester is a Dutch musician and songwriter from Rotterdam. Her music style is often compared with that of Beth Gibbons and Weyes Blood.

Doe Maar was the first studio album by Dutch band Doe Maar. It was released in 1979, and was less successful than the band's later albums. A contemporary reviewer from Muziek Expres wrote "Ik zie niet in dat deze groep een positieve bijdrage zal leveren aan de toekomst van de (Nederlandstalige) popmuziek."

References

  1. 1 2 "Nederpop iconen #3: Spinvis". 3voor12 (in Dutch). 2022-03-29. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  2. 1 2 "Spinvis verworden tot 'Goudvis' - utrecht". 3voor12 (in Dutch). 2006-06-13. Retrieved 2025-01-26.
  3. 1 2 3 "Dit zijn de 25 beste Nederlandse albums van deze eeuw". OOR (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  4. 1 2 3 "Persoonlijk interview met Spinvis: 'Nieuwegein is niet deprimerend'". www.molenkruier.nl (in Dutch). 2023-01-05. Retrieved 2024-12-30.
  5. ↑ Peeters, Tom (2023-04-06). "De tingeltangel hersenpan van Spinvis draait overuren". De Tijd .
  6. ↑ Lainé, Anthe (2023-04-04). "Interview Spinvis: 'Ik ga altijd willen creëren - het plezier van het maken is datgene wat blijft'". Dansende Beren (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  7. 1 2 3 "Spinvis deed inspiratie op in het postsorteercentrum: 'Ik ben een soort strandjutter'". NPO Radio 2 (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Ode aan de imperfectie". De Groene Amsterdammer (in Dutch). 2002-07-06. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  9. ↑ Steenhaut, Dirk (2021). "'In the Silence between Words Hides a Little Poem': The Fascinating Sound Universe of Spinvis". The Low Countries: 192–199.
  10. ↑ "Spinvis legt uit: de verhalen achter Herfst En Nieuwegein, Voor Ik Vergeet en Kom Terug". NPO Radio 2 (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  11. ↑ "'Het wordt toch weer Spinvis'". 3voor12 (in Dutch). 2002-11-20. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  12. ↑ "Spinvis - Bagagedrager | Top 40". Top40.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  13. ↑ Spinvis - Spinvis | Album | AllMusic , retrieved 2025-01-27
  14. ↑ "Jaarlijst Oor 2002". muzieklijstjes.nl. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  15. ↑ "Queens Of The Stone Age schrijven Song van het Jaar". 3voor12 (in Dutch). 2002-12-28. Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  16. ↑ Produkties, Z. K. "Zwartekat.nl - Annie M.G. Schmidtprijs voor Spinvis, Lenette van Dongen". Zwartekat.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-01-27.
  17. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Spinvis – Spinvis" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  18. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Spinvis – Spinvis" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.