We don’t know much about Netherlands bunch Snow Coats. Well, we know more now we’ve spoken to them and stuff – obviously – but so far the lovely foursome had a very word-of-mouth spread here in the UK, with the kind of enthusiastic whispering that means they won’t remain a buzzy secret for too much longer. Singer Anouk, bassist Frank, guitarist Daan, and drummer Joost fill us in ahead of their imminent set at Homeschool.
Hey Snow Coats! Tell us about your band – who are you all, and where did you meet?
So we are Snow Coats, an Indie band from the Netherlands. We are a four-piece band consisting of: Anouk, who is the lead singer/lyricist – she plays mandolin and acoustic guitar. Frank plays bass guitar, and twin brothers Daan (guitarist) and Joost (drummer).
All four of us studied ‘Music’ on a Secondary Vocational School for ‘Performing Arts’ In Arnhem, the Netherlands. That is where we met each other and also where we started our band. At first, this was supposed to be a final exam project, but after we graduated, we decided that we really liked playing together, so we started playing shows and recording our first songs. We have been a band for three years, and we became best friends since then!
Have you always wanted to be musicians?
Anouk: Not really actually, I only realised I liked singing when I was like 13 years old. I learned the first guitar chords from my dad and started writing my first songs.
Frank: Personally, no, not at all. I didn’t start to play bass since I was 17 years old, so in that way, I’m a late bloomer. I casually got into music, and I never left. Still glad I made that decision.
Daan & Joost: When we started playing guitar and drums, we didn’t really consider ourselves to be natural talents haha. Without having any music lessons we figured it out ourself. We were slow learners though. I do remember when Joost and I were around 16 years old, we saw a video of The Pigeon Detectives playing in Amsterdam. We were so amazed by the energy they had on stage, their songs are ridiculously catchy and they were giving the crowd the best night of their lives. That was a very inspiring moment for us both, and we were like, “We want to be like those guys!” I think that’s when we got ambitious to learn how to play guitar and drums and become musicians.
What’s the band been up to so far, do you have many releases under your belts?
We released our debut album in August 2018. That was a very exciting moment for us because we recorded the songs ourselves in our attic, we also did the release all by ourselves, like typically DIY style. Doing this by ourselves was a bit scary because we had no idea how the release would work out, like how many people are actually gonna hear our album? Luckily for us, things really started rolling after the album release. We did an extensive tour in the Netherlands, and we went on an EU tour opening for Pinegrove which was super awesome because we already were big Pinegrove fans. We also won an award for ‘Best Album in 2018 / 2019’ by Dutch press 3voor12Gelderland.
What do you most enjoy writing songs about?
Anouk: What I like writing about the most is having great days with my friends. Going to festivals or just sitting in a park somewhere. Obviously, I’ve been missing this a lot cause right now that’s not possible. Luckily I’ve got some pretty great memories to keep me going haha. Also I write a lot about how I see myself and try to be really honest. It’s a great way to kind of self reflect.
How are you guys coping with COVID-19, what’s going on in the Netherlands at the moment?
The Dutch government announced just today that all, festivals and music events are cancelled ’til at least the 1st September. We built our own recording studio a couple months ago, and we were busy recording new songs for our upcoming EP at the time the lockdown started. So despite the lockdown, we were able to finish the recordings.
One of the restrictions of the lockdown is that you’re not allowed to be with more than three persons in one room so we can’t really meet up right now, but we are doing a lot of video calls which can also be fun!
How has the lockdown impacted you guys so far, have you had to change many of your plans?
We had a small America tour planned for June, but obviously, we had to cancel that. We already booked the plane tickets to New York, but we have no idea if we can get a refund on the tickets yet. Luckily we can postpone the shows till next year, We are super excited to go over to the US to play shows.
What do you miss the most with the current restrictions in place?
Obviously doing live shows! Playing shows is the most fun part of being a band. We also miss just visiting concerts and hanging out in the pub. Once we are allowed to play gigs again, it’s gonna be a big party! Can’t wait!
Which of your bandmates would you least like to be stuck in lockdown with?
Anouk: Hmmmm… I guess myself haha, lucky me. I’m quite an over-thinker, and I drive myself crazy sometimes. We do have a lot of online video calls with the band though, we call it “videobeering”. Gets me out of my own head.
Daan: I’d choose Joost because as twin brothers we see each other every day already. Spending some time apart could actually be good for a change. I bet he thinks the same about me, haha.
What have you got coming up?
We just finished our next EP, it’s four brand new songs that we are very excited about. We already got some good reactions from the people we secretly showed it to. We’re not sure about a release date yet, but we can’t wait to get it out there!
Snow Coats are taking part in new online festival Homeschool, which runs from 8th-10th May – visit homeschoolfest.com for details.
