THE ANALOGUES
PERFORM THE LEGENDARY ALBUM BY
THE BEATLES
THE WHITE ALBUM
SATURDAY 4 MAY 2019
LONDON PALLADIUM
‘I’ve witnessed something I never really thought I’d
be able to witness again’–
Geoff Emerick, chief engineer for The Beatles
On May 4th
at London’s Palladium, The Analogues
will bring to life one of music’s most cherished and expansive LPs, The White Album – playing the 30-track record
in its entirety, from the very first to very last note.
It takes a special
kind of obsessive to perfectly recreate on stage an album never made to be
performed live. But The Analogues
are no ordinary Beatles fans. They are the type to instigate a viral campaign to
help locate the exact bell sound from “Everybody's
Got Something To Hide Except For Me And My Money", listening to every
submission on the phone (they
eventually found it in a Maritime store) – or spend months trying to track down
a real harpsichord, even if it only appears on one Beatles track (“Piggies”).
The Beatles
stopped performing in 1966, fed up of the constant hysteria at their shows that
began to inhibit rather than propel the band forward. This decision meant
albums such as 1968’s The White Album
were driven by studio experimentation and, while they changed music, fans were
never able to experience the records live. Indeed, many thought it could not be
done.
Fifty years on, The Analogues have gone to
extraordinary lengths to bring the album to life. Following on from
performances of Magical Mystery Tour
and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,
the Dutch five-piece now aims to tackle arguably their most ambitious project
to date. Their starting point remains the same: musical authenticity –
the band search the planet to locate every period-correct instrument to create
a near note-perfect homage – every guitar, piano, synth, and in this case, Mellotron
organ. “We had a difficult time finding a
good Mellotron as not many were made”, explains drummer
Fred Gehring. “We
ended up owning serial number 10. We understand Sir Paul owns number 9.”
To many, The White Album is The Beatles’ magnum
opus. It’s a quirky masterpiece that in all its diversity, when performed live,
requires the utmost from both musicians and production. It’s a project that
requires a near obsessive level of attention to detail, one that has taken The
Analogues an eternity of preparation, research and practice.
“As
someone once said "if you want to see a Beatle go to McCartney - if you
want to hear The Beatles go to The Analogues",
says Fred. Not something we would dare to
suggest ourselves but deep down that is our mission. Ignore the visual impact
of wigs and costumes and focus completely on the sound."
For more
information / tickets, head to: http://www.theanalogues.net/
Biography
The Analogues are a five-piece
group of Dutch musicians who have been lauded over the past few years for their
integral live adaptations of Beatles albums. They all share a deep-rooted passion for The
Beatles, and especially the iconic post-1966 'studio albums'.
Does the world need
another Beatles tribute band? Probably not if it’s all about wigs, suits, ‘yeah
yeah yeahs’ and the earlier part of the Fab Four’s repertoire. The Analogues,
on the other hand, focus on The Beatles’ later work. We’re talking about the
songs forged in the studio when the band’s creativity blossomed into outright
genius. The Beatles themselves never toured with this material - however The
Analogues do.
So far, the band have
travelled across the globe performing Sgt.
Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Magical
Mystery Tour, The White Album and soon, Abbey
Road - each album in its entirety, from start to finish. They bring this
magical music to life accompanied by an eight-piece string and horn section,
all performing with original period instruments, with a passion for perfection
and an unrelenting eye for even the smallest detail. More information on their
impressive ‘travelling museum’ can be found here - http://www.theanalogues.net/instruments.
What started off as a
small-scale affair is now anything but…
The Analogues are:
Bart van Poppel -
Musical director. Walrus. Sloppy execution can induce grumpiness. Wears sandals
to the office. Bass, keys, vocals.
Jac Bico - Silent
Force. Makes anything weep gently, as long as it has strings. Prefers playing
over talking. Guitars, bass, sitar, percussion, recorder, keys, vocals.
Fred Gehring -
Seriously annoyed by dwindling awareness of the Beatles songbook; chairman of
the (future) Beatles Preservation Society. Drums, vocals.
Diederik Nomden -
Born many years after The White Album was released. Likes to trump Bart as main
nitpicker on barely audible subtleties. Keys, guitar, vocals.
Felix Maginn -
Finally, a native speaker of English. Replaces the irreplaceable. Part-time
crooner. Amazing equestrian skills. Guitar, vocals.
Jan van der Meij -
Irreplaceable as ‘loud McCartney’. Temporarily unavailable due to 40 years of
faithful service in front of a guitar amp. Guitars, vocals.
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