Green Crow Collective
The band is an unprecedented explosion of energy and a musical steamroller. References to acts such as TC Matic, Idles, The Clash, Mano Negra and 16 Horsepower are certainly there, but their intravenous injection of punk, obscure Balkan, rock and, above all, Belgian surrealism led the Dutch OOR Magazine to name their debut album one of the best records of 2024 and praise it as a breath of fresh air.Our country has gained a raucous new trouble-making band, and its name is GREEN CROW COLLECTIVE. The band, built around singer-guitarist Roeland Vandemoortele, who has been impressing on stages for several years now, steps into the spotlight with Hard Drive Error, a mercilessly groovy debut that will leave you utterly speechless.
Vandemoortele spent ten years touring at home and abroad with the electro-punk duo Too Tangled, and later took to the road with theatre productions by the likes of Rick de Leeuw, Wim Opbrouck, and Otto-Jan Ham. His dream was to create a new, slightly obscure group capable of making a venue steam with wild delight in no time - think Mano Negra, T.C. Matic, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, and 16 Horsepower.
He sought, and found, kindred spirits in multi-instrumental violinist Andries Boone (Guido Belcanto, Mandolinman, Tijs Vanneste, and plenty of solo work), bassist Mathias Moors (Mr. Paul & The Lowriders, The Antler King), and drummer-actor-photographer-and-everything-else Bert Huysentruyt (Gorki, Het Zesde Metaal). The kind of men who make you wonder: where on earth do they find the time to start another band?
What they create, they call EuroDada. The music is fueled by Western rock, Eastern scales, and perhaps most importantly, Belgian surrealism. A song in West Flemish with a snippet from In een klein stationnetje. A track titled Valse Mélancolique that is neither melancholic nor a waltz. A cheeky wink - Putain Putain, no less - to their great hero Arno. A sample from Het Journaal about the Panama Papers opening a track called Holdup.
Because if you think GREEN CROW COLLECTIVE is absurd, remember that everyday life is even more absurd. And so the songs must and do address the madness of war (Monkey Say, Monkey Do), homo sapiens influencis (Coolcats), and other loudmouths who declare their own nonsense to be high art (Sauerkraut).
These delightfully derailing songs are exuberant raised middle fingers to the rules of life and music. Not against someone, but for so much more. Freedom, playfulness, and amplifiers turned up to eleven.
When the band sent a rehearsal tape to De Muziekgieterij in Maastricht, simply asking to perform there, the Dutch venue immediately offered them a record deal in collaboration with V2 Records. The result became Hard Drive Error, take it or leave it. The album was released on 27 September 2024.
Radio stations have embraced them warmly, with their singles regularly popping up on Radio Willy, Radio 1, and many others.
They completed a vibrant club tour through Belgium and the Netherlands, with the crow-circus stopping at Ancienne Belgique as well. Alongside several support shows, including Living Colour at De Roma in Antwerp and the Philharmonie in Haarlem, the quartet played numerous medium and large festivals such as Grensrock, Dranouter, Fonnefeesten, and Paulusfeesten.
