January 23 2009 Thanks to Carrie Sharp of Femme Metal Records the Ferocity and Femininity CD will be distributed throughout the UK by Code 7 via Plastic Head March 2nd 2009. Thus Maida Vale will be in many stores around the UK ! Meanwhile the CD can still be ordered through the Femme Metal Store and Amazon. Remember, all proceeds from the release will go to Macmillan Cancer Support and Cancer Research UK. By ordering the CD you are supporting a good cause ! Femme Metal Records is a new label from the UK which only signs metal bands with female vocalists. It is run by Femme Metal Woman herself: Carrie Sharp.
January 23 2009 We got good press on our new version of Remote control which is on the Ferocity and Femininity compilation CD. According to German webzine Burn your EarsMaida Vale is a highlight of the CD because the band is original and brings fresh ideas into the Femme Metal genre. Also Dutch leading metal magazine Aardschok praised the Maida Vale contribution. Here is a selection of quotes from other reviews of the CD: ÒWhat's also remarkable is the overall quality of the bands participating. We're of course dealing with bands featuring a female singer, mainly metal, but not a single of them sounds like a Nightwish or After Forever clone. There is a wide variety in both styles and sounds, bearing in mind that most of these bands offer self-released material (whilst the rest are signed on small independent labels) it shows that we have nothing to fear for the future of the femme metal genre.Ó Beat the Blizzard, September 2008 ÒThis cd is definitely worth purchasing and you will be making a difference as well as buying an awesome package. Great work and a pat on the back to all those involved around the world that helped make this release possible.Ó Devolution Magazine, November 2008 ÒNow this is a very interesting compilation CD from a new Dutch label called ANTHEM RECORDS. All included bands are good and of a high level, so no amateurism can be found here and the good thing is that the CD costs only 6 UK POUNDS. Supporting and buying this excellent CD is not only good for yourself as all the money will go to the Macmillan Cancer Support and Cancer Research UK.Ó 8.8/10, Strutter Magazine, January 2009 ÒWith 15-songs and over 70-minutes worth of powerful music, this CD should provide a great resource for fans who are always on the lookout for new bands to support. The spotlight is shone brightly on these 15 bands, who each bring something unique and interesting to the table. This is truly a great collection of songs and bands that should please not only fans of the femme metal genre, but fans of music in general. The packaging, layout and artwork also deserve a special mention. Plus, it's all for a good cause.Ó 9/10, Femme Metal Webzine, January 2009
November 28 2008 Ronald has been interviewed for Utrecht newspaper Ons Utrecht. He talks about his career as a musician, about the Ferocity and Femininy compilation CD and also about his daytime job. Interested ? Download the two pages: first page, second page. As you may understand, it's all in Dutch.
October 8 2008 Ronald has been interviewed for Femme Metal WebZine. He talks about many things such the history of Maida Vale and the origin of the band name. Also about influences, Maida Vale as a female fronted metal band and the Ferocity and Femininity compilation CD. The interview can be found here. There are interviews with other artists of Femme Metal bands too, including Doro Pesch and Stream of Passion's Marcela Bovio.
July 27 2008 Ferocity and Femininity is CD of the week in the Alternative Girls radioshow on Radio Quartz in Belgium. On Monday July 28th, 20.00-22.00 CET, DJs Emmanuelle and Greg play 10 (!) tracks of the CD. Our track Remote control is aired in the first hour, 9 other bands from the CD are played in the second hour. To tune in go to the Radio Quartz site and click on En Direct.
July 24 2008 The Ferocity and Femininity CD is out now ! It was released ahead of schedule on July 18th. In the meantime the lot has been shipped to the Femme Metal Store. The advertizing campaign has started and preorders are being sent off at the moment. Order your copy today for only £ 5,99 !
July 14 2008 The release of the Ferocity and Femininity CD is scheduled for July 21st 2008. From that day preorders are taken at the Femme Metal Store. Shipping of the CD starts around July 30th. For only £ 5,99 (€ 7,50) you will get over 75 minutes of the finest female fronted metal bands from around the globe ! Because the profits from the CD will eventually go to Macmillan Cancer Support and Cancer Research UK, you are also supporting these charities by ordering the CD !
June 30 2008 We contribute to an international compilation CD with 15 female fronted metal bands. The CD, entitled Ferocity and Femininity, features bands from the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, Norway and the Netherlands. The CD is compiled and produced in the US by David Melanson and will be released by Anthem Records NL late July. The Maida Vale contribution is a new version of Remote control in which the vocals have been redone and new guitar lines have been added. This was done by Kinke and Ronald in Studio Moskou, Utrecht, Netherlands, May 2008. The final mix was mastered by Michael W. Higgins at the Zone Studios, Taunton MA, USA, June 2008. Ferocity and Femininity will be sold solely through the Femme Metal Store.
April 29 2008 From now on our CD's can be bought at the Femme Metal Store. For non-Dutch citizens this is by far the easiest and cheapest way to order our releases. In the same store you'll find interesting and cheap merchandise from other female fronted metal bands.
April 28 2008 Kinke and Ronald really enjoyed being in the Rock-O-Saurus radioshow on Saturday April 19th: "DJ Rock-O-Ruud was very hospitable and gave us a lot of exposure. He played 7 Maida Vale tracks in the first hour of the show and we talked a lot about the band. In the second hour he first tested our music knowledge and then played our favourite tracks of the past five decades. Ruud, thank you very much, we had a great time !" The show can still be listened to. DJ Ruud posted a comment on our myspace page on 20 April and by clicking you gain access to the stream directly. View photos and listen to tracks and interviews. You can easily browse through the tracks, they are separate. The interviews are in Dutch of course but you can hear some Maida Vale songs that you may not have heard before. More photos will be posted soon in our photos section.
In the upper left corner you'll find
a channel guide that takes you to the 2nd hour. Kinke and Ronald's five
favourite tracks were:
April 15 2008 On Saturday April 19th 19.00-21.00 Kinke and Ronald guest on the Rock-O-Saurus radioshow on L.O.E.S.FM (Limburg, Netherlands). This excellent live radioshow is presented by DJ Rock-O-Ruud who plays classic rock, progrock, hardrock and jazzrock of the past 45 years. The first hour of this show is about Maida Vale: there will be an interview and several tracks are played. In the second hour our top 5 is aired. We were given the impossible task to choose the best 5 tracks out of five decades of rock music, one track of the 60's, one of the 70's and so on. Our top 5 is ready and we will post it after the show. There is a live webstream available and the show can be listened to several weeks after the show. To listen click here. Information about the show and about DJ Rock-O-Ruud can be found following this link. More airplay: in the meantime Hugues and Shadoman/DJ King Solomon have continued playing our music in their shows. Thank you guys ! For more information see the March 12 news item. Please keep voting: we are still in the Utrecht internet top 25, number 10 at the moment. You can vote every day, follow this link.
March 12 2008 It's about time for an update. We are having a short break now but continue songwriting. Gigs will be scheduled again later. There is time for promotional activities
and myspace has proven its relevance. We were picked up by two indie
radio stations:
Our website will be reconstructed completely in the near future. In the meantime it is still in the Utrecht top 25 and has been there since November 28th 2007. You can still vote for us every day by following this link.
December 13 2007 Our website reached the number 1 position in the Utrecht top 25. Many thanks for your votes ! Let us try to keep it in that position for a while. You can still vote for our website on www.utrechtinternettop25.nl every day.
November 28 2007 Our website is in the top 25 of the Utrecht area. Every day you can vote for the site on www.utrechtinternettop25.nl. Your support is greatly appreciated !
June 18 2007 Due to unfortunate circumstances our June gigs are canceled. Nevertheless we hope to play Iduna Drachten and Wolpop Delft in the future.
December 14 2006 Our gig at Moonstock in Almere on December 10th was great and new drummer Steven did a great job. A magnificent photo series by Marc van Oers can be viewed on his site, click here. Until Xmas you can vote for Maida Vale on www.moonstock.nl. The winning band will record and release a single on the MoonStock Records label. Come on you fans out there, we need your support !
November 19 2006 The first gig with drummer Steven de Sterke takes place at the Moonstock Festival in Almere on December 10th. We start at 16.00 and will play a 45 minutes set. See agenda for details about the venue.
July 23 2006 It took some time but we have finally found our ideal new drummer. From now on Steven de Sterke is the man behind the kit. There have been several candidates and Steven proved to be the right person for the Maida Vale sound. His playing is powerful and creative, and he is technically able. We start working on a new setlist and will hit the stage again as soon as possible.
June 24 2006 Because we are still looking for a new drummer we have canceled our gig at 't Oude Pothuys in Utrecht on July 8th. Once we have found our ideal mate behind the kit we will be booked again in this venue. Candidates are still invited to send an e-mail.
 April
24 2006 Next gig at the Koninginnefestival in Utrecht on Saturday April 29th will be special for two reasons. First it will be the final contribution of drummer Michel Hooiveld to Maida Vale. Michel announced his departure about two months ago. Although good old Ton van Dort tries to fill gaps wherever possible we are still searching for a new drummer. Don't hesitate to send us an e-mail if you are interested. Second, our bass player Niels Harkink has a serious injury on his left arm, he broke it actually, and he will not be able to perform at the "Koninginne gig". Once again one of the old mates is prepared to help us. Former Anthem bass player Joop Deveer will be a Maida Vale band member on Saturday and he will rock as in his Anthem days ! Go the agenda page to see the details of the concert. Of course we hope that Niels recovers quickly. The picture shows Anthem in 1982, from left to right: Ronald Bleys, Joop Deveer, Paul Verkerk, Roel Verkerk.
March 11 2006 It was great fun again to gig in Yumbo last weekend. And the good news is that we are through to the next round, which is a regional bandcontest, called GULP ("Grote Utrechtse Live Provincie-prijs"). This takes place on March 24th in de Peppel in Zeist. Ton van Dort will be behind the kit again. And we will need your support more than ever !
 February
18 2006Due to circumstances drummer Michel Hooiveld is unable to play the final of the "Kleine Prijs van Yumbo" on March 4th. The good news, however, is that former Accidental Gap drummer Ton van Dort is willing to "fill the gap" that evening. We are currently rehearsing the set with Ton. So this is another reason why next gig is special, don't miss it ! The picture shows Accidental Gap in 1986, from left to right: Ton van Dort, Tjerk Koopman, Ronald Bleys, Rob Krot.
February 12 2006 Yesterday we won the qualifying round of the "Kleine Prijs van Yumbo". Yumbo is a very nice club in Bunnik. In a great, friendly and festive athmosphere our 30 minutes set was appreciated best by the jury. The gig saw the first live performance of our brand new song "Nightmare". We will play the final in Yumbo on March 4th, so please come and support us !
December 3 2005 We'll do a try-out on December 16th in 't Oude Pothuys (Utrecht). This will be the first Maida Vale gig featuring vocalist Kinke Miedema. Again it will be a lenghty performance, we will play classic Maida Vale songs like "Killer mouse" and "Purple velvet underwear" but be prepared for a Black Sabbath cover as well.
Today saw the release of Neo-Bliss, a maxi CD-single made for demo purposes and containing a remake of 3 Prefab Bliss tracks. These tracks have new vocals (by new singer Kinke Miedema) and there are some new melodic parts as well. Moreover the tracks have been remastered and "Guide to the game of love" has been remixed. The cover image is by the French artist Olivier Cousinou. Thank you Olivier ! The CD is for sale, go to the discography page for details.
October 9 2005 We are currently working on a demo featuring new singer Kinke Miedema. For this purpose her vocals are added to the instrumental versions of three Prefab Bliss tracks (Remote Control, Guide to the game of love, Wet dream market). The sessions take place in Studio Moskou and are almost finished now. The renewed tracks will be released on a mini CD.
August 17 2005 We are very proud to announce that Kinke Miedema is our new singer ! Of the various candidates we've had she was by far the most suitable person for the job. This lady rocks ! Her voice blends very well with the Maida Vale sound and really adds surprising elements. We can't wait to hit the stage !
June 10 2005 Two more "Prefab Bliss" reviews appeared in Metalfan and the Greek webzine Behind the Veil. Behind the Veil: "To get a
picture imagine a combination of IRON MAIDEN, KING CRIMSON, TOOL and RAINBOW
and you will have the music of Prefab Bliss always enriched with the bandÕs
personal taste. The production is really good and the sound of this album
is clearly another surprise release from Holland."
Metalfan: "... which makes
Prefab Bliss an album full of diversity, the highlights are the first track
Guide To The Game of Love and the title track Prefab Bliss."
May 19 2005 Our singer Jan-Willem has decided to leave Maida Vale for personal reasons. We are searching for a new vocalist. If you are a singer and would like to try: info@maidavale.nl What do we offer ? A good musical environment, willingness to experiment and widen our musical pallet, and gigging as much as we can. Don't hesitate, just give it a try and visit our rehearsal studio for a couple of hours !
May 8 2005 The latest "Prefab Bliss" reviews appeared in Strutter Magazine and 3VOOR12 Utrecht. Strutter Magazine: "Another
praise is the diversity of the band ..."
3VOOR12 Utrecht: "The band
combine progressive rock, metal and punk in an inimitable manner."
April 23 2005 The Free Record Shop offers free downloads of two tracks from our first album Moscow Delight: go here and download the opening track "Madhouse passion" and the only available Maida Vale song in the Dutch language "Fransje" for free.
April 12 2005 "Prefab Bliss" received positive reviews by Rockezine and the German hardrock magazine Bright Eyes. Bright Eyes: "... the title
track, Prefab Bliss, a nine minutes monumental work, that you should have
heard: the boys really expose all their skills in this track and even introduce
a few Rainbow influences."
Rockezine: "I canÕt lose the
idea that witnessing Maida Vale conquer the stage is pure pleasure. Their
music is perfect for a theatrical performance that can capture both your
eyes and your ears."
February 6 2005 "Prefab Bliss" was launched at the release party on December 17th. Few reviews have appeared thus far but there are some to be expected. Musicfrom.nl wrote a nice review about the CD, but even more importantly, decided to interview us about the tracks on "Prefab Bliss". Ronald, Niels and JW talk about the compositions, lyrics and the recording of Prefab Bliss. To read the entire interview, go here.
December 4 2004 The release of "Prefab Bliss" is scheduled for December 10th. Samples of all tracks can be heard here. Pre-orders for the CD are taken now, go to the discography page for details.
November 7 2004 We are making good progress with the mixdown of the second album "Prefab Bliss". The album will be released in December. The release is celebrated on December 17th in 't Oude Pothuys (Utrecht) where the album will be performed completely. See agenda.
Studio Moskou, control room
September 20 2004 The recording sessions for our second album are finished now. Over 40 minutes of music has been recorded. Tracks include "Guide to the game of love", "Remote control", "Wet dream market" and the 9 minutes epos "Prefab bliss". The mixdown takes place in the coming weeks. We'll keep you informed about the release date. In the meantime it is possible to download our first CD Moscow Delight completely. You can even download single tracks. Download for example "Madhouse passion", "Got to get" and " Purple velvet underwear" for less than 1.50 euro and enjoy 12 minutes of highly energetic rock music ! The discography page takes you to the download page.
July 23 2004 We are currently working on our second album in Studio Moskou. The tracks for this full length album, which will be entitled "Prefab Bliss", are recorded during several sessions in July and August. The CD will be released on Anthem Records, probably in October. The pictures are from the first session.
May 1 2004 Powerdrummer Michel Hooiveld is back ! His absence lasted approximately 10 months but now his furious rhythms and roaring fills are again part of the Maida Vale sound. We thank drummer Taco Boxman who was behind the kit from August 2003 until now.
January 13 2004 The last few months we tried several singers and are very pleased to announce that Jan-Willem van Aalst is our new vocalist. He is also a keyboard player and will add athmospheric moments to several songs with his white and black keys. At the moment we are working hard to renew our setlist. Gigs will be booked as soon as possible. Stay tuned for details !
November 8 2003 It seems to be a year of personnel changes. Reinoud has decided to leave the band. The Peppel gig in Zeist was his last contribution to the band. The band is determined to continue and considers it a chance to widen the musical pallet. We have not found a new vocalist yet. If you are a singer and would like to try: info@maidavale.nl What do we offer ? A good musical environment, willingness to experiment, plans for a second CD in 2004 and gigging as much as we can. We are waiting for you !
August 24 2003 The CD was reviewed by Oor
(music magazine): "The band continues the development of The New Wave Of
British Heavy Metal of the early eighties and adds Britpop-like vocals"
... "This band is full of grit !"
August 16 2003 Yesterday Erik van Vliet of DaluxFM
interviewed Ronald about the distribution
deal with the Free Record Shop.
August 12 2003 We will get airplay again
on DaluxFM (Gelderland) on Friday 15th, 20.15. DJ Erik van Vliet will interview
us
July 12 2003 We have found a new drummer:
from now on Taco Boxman is behind the kit. Rehearsals take place
Great news is that our CD is distributed
by the Free Record Shop, van Leest and Fame. It is available in their
June 22 2003 Drummer Michel Hooiveld announced
in April that he would leave Maida Vale. The MAXX gig in Breda was his
March 23 2003 A positive review of the CD by Gun
is available: "Maida Vale demonstrates that heavy rock music may be
We did not win the final of the Kleine Prijs van Yumbo but had a good time anyway. And ...... there may be big news in the near future !
February 9 2003 We won the qualifying round of the Kleine Prijs van Yumbo (Bunnik) on February 8th. In a very nice athmosphere our 30 minutes set was appreciated best by the expert jury. The final is on March 8th. More reviews of our CD are available now, among which a fairly positive review by LiveXS: "Maida Vale have a sound of their own" ... "Creative use of scales". A listing of reviews that we are aware of is on the discography page.
January 12 2003 Our CD Moscow Delight was reviewed on Dolopmuziek.nl, a cool new music site: "Madhouse Passion is a good opener with tight guitar riffing and good vocals. Sounds very professional" ... "Of all songs Fransje has most potency to hit the charts" ... "Good album, promising band". Read full review here (in Dutch).
November 24 2002 The first airplay was there on Friday
22nd ! DJ Erik van Vliet of DaluxFM
played "Fransje" and interviewed
November 17 2002 Our first CD "Moscow Delight" is
out now. It was released on November 15th on the
|
The
tracklisting is:
Track
listing:
November
11 2005
