Twelve years after their debut, the Dutch band De Staat remain deliciously hard to categorize. The band flirts with funk and hiphop, deep introspection and wild humor. All while the big blues voice of the frontman, Torre Florim, feels like a call-to-arms. Their new music is a mammoth collection of new songs that will roll out on all streaming platforms month by month, starting this week and throughout 2022. On November 4th they will release 3 tracks; 'Look At Me' (Red), 'Numbers Up' (Yellow) and 'What Goes, Let Go' (Blue).
Florim has embraced his band's famous eclecticism to produce rock's first auditory art project - eighteen tracks reflecting the primary colors of red, yellow and blue. Why? The colors are all present in the music. Red for tracks fueled by rock and roll aggression; yellow for funk, dancing and primal joy; blue for big-scale melodic rock songs that wear their heart on their sleeve. The challenge is to see what you hear - or hear what you see. This is a project built for listening through streaming platforms but it is also bringing back some of the visual aesthetics of gatefold vinyl. A feast for the senses from the funkiest, earthiest rock band in Europe, in which sight and sound collide.
Look At Me (Red)
"‘Look At Me‘ is an investigation of the performer‘s ego. As De Staat opened for The Rolling Stones in the Amsterdam Arena, and saw them play from up close, frontman Torre Florim asked himself: “For how much longer will we be doing this? And why? Do we want to do this? Or are we addicted to attention? Will the fans watch us slowly age on stage? Will I die, singing the same songs over and over again?“ - Torre Florim
Numbers Up (Yellow)
"‘Numbers Up‘ is about five stars, thousands of likes, a low resting heart rate and millions of views. The current obsession with statistics, and how we seem to associate high numbers with high quality. Have we come to the point that we only feel good, when our numbers are good? Can I only get close to you, if my score is high enough? You better get your numbers up." - Torre Florim
What Goes, Let Go (Blue)
"On how two people can grow apart. Is there anyone to blame, or is this just what happens? We move ahead, but drift away. How much of our lives do we actually control? In search of acceptance, although, still hurting." - Torre Florim
In the past De Staat supported The Rolling Stones and Muse on their tours. They played the stages of Lowlands Festival (main stage), Rock Werchter, Sziget Festival, Exit Festival, Glastonbury, Eurosonic Noorderslag and Down The Rabbit Hole. The band received multiple awards such as a Gouden Notekraker award, their album 'I_CON' was rewarded with the Dutch Industry award (Edison) and was voted for Best Album in Live XS magazine.The video for their song 'Witch Doctor' has gained over 6 million views, The Prodigy named De Staat's cover of 'Firestarter' their favorite one and it was featured in the 'Just Cause 3' trailer and game. 'Down Town' was used in FIFA 2014 and 'Kitty Kitty' was used for Playstations' Sackboy soundtrack. This is just a small glimpse of their achievements in the past years. The band will go on tour through Europe in 2022, see below.
De Staat On Tour
- Feb 16 - London, England
- Feb 17 - Paris, France
- Feb 18 - Zürich, Switzerland
- Feb 19 - München, Germany
- Feb 20 - Prague, Czech Republic Feb 22 - Berlin, Germany
- Feb 23 - Hamburg, Germany
- Feb 24 - Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Feb 25 - Borgerhout, Belgium
- Feb 26 - Amsterdam, The Netherlands