Dutch Art rock band Lesoir made a virtue of necessity in the quiet but turbulent lockdown period and in 2020 started working on something that would then become an ‘interim project’ for the band. Recorded at various locations in South Limburg (NL), the resulting 20-minute and 20-second epic grew into a full-fledged addition to the band’s already existing repertoire.

Under the name Babel, Lesoir presents its first epic, a 20 minutes and 20 seconds journey on which the band shows itself from its most melodic side, deepening the sound of their previous album Mosaic and mastering their creativity.

Babel sketches the experience of the disaster year 2020, in which nature takes back what has been taken from her through pandemics, forest fires and floods. Using the story of the Tower of Babel as a metaphor, a powerful epic emerges from a fragile song, after which the atmosphere changes and escalates into a musical explosion.

Ingo Dassen of Lesoir says this about the release:
“After our 5th full-length album Mosaic was received internationally with great acclaim, the global pandemic threw a spanner in the works of our live shows. But the creativity and motivation to be ready when we were and also to keep challenging ourselves creatively even in times when everything went against us was so strong that we just retreated in the height of the global crisis to see if we could make a whole out of all the little musical ideas in my and Maartje’s heads. No expectations, just being together in our bubble for a week, not worrying about the rest of the world but focusing completely on ourselves. I think that is what Babel radiates. Yes the world is on fire, but for us 2020 was also a year of joy, new life, a re-evaluation of what is really important in our lives. And we wanted to capture this personal, emotional and sometimes all-consuming year. For later, for us and for you.”

Lesoir’s creation will be released on vinyl, handmade and limited to only 250 pcs. Each piece is numbered and on request signed by the band.

The animated video was made by Crystal Spotlight (known for their work with Steven Wilson and Gazpacho, among others) and the band also released a live video of their exclusive Babel performance, recorded last summer.

Music written by Ingo Dassen, lyrics by Maartje Meessen
Poem by Stuart Watkins
Strings by Eurasia Quartet & Camila Cipoletta

Lesoir:
Maartje Meessen – Vocals / Piano / Flute
Eleën Bartholomeus – Guitar / Synth / Backing Vocals
Ingo Dassen – Guitar / Beats programming
Bob Van Heumen – Drums / Percussion / Backing Vocals
Ingo Jetten – Bass / Pedalsteel / Guitar / Backing Vocals

Guitar, bass & string recordings by Jamshid Mahmoudy
Vocal & drum recordings by Ingo Jetten
Produced & mixed by Lesoir & John Cornfield
Mastering by Steve Kitch

Artwork by Daria Khmyzova

LESOIR LIVE
10.04 Artrock Festival, Reichenbach DE
22.04 Grenswerk, Venlo NL
23.04 De Boerderij, Zoetermeer NL
28.04 Oosterpoort, Groningen NL
29.04 013, Tilburg NL
09.05 Islington Assembly Hall, London UK
10.05 Club Academy, Manchester UK
12.05 Das Rind, Russelsheim DE
13.05 Metropool, Enschede NL
14.05 De Vorstin, Hilversum NL
15.05 Yard Club, Koln DE
16.05 Spirit of 66, Verviers BE
18.05 Bahnhof Pauli, Hamburg DE
19.05 Karosserifabrikken, Helsingor DK
20.05 GARF, Gothenburg SE
21.05 WLR, Oslo NO
29.05 Q Factory, Amsterdam NL
21.09 Robin 2, Bilston UK
22.09 Musician, Leicester UK
23.09 Bannermans, Edinburgh UK
01.10 Club Zentral, Stuttgart DE
07.10 Luxor Live, Arnhem NL
28.10 Flux, Zaandam NL
04.11 Bosuil, Weert NL

lesoirmusic.bandcamp.com

www.facebook.com/lesoir.band

www.instagram.com/lesoirmusic

www.twitter.com/lesoirmusic

www.youtube.com/lesoirmusic

www.lesoirmusic.com

www.glassvillemusic.com

#psychedelicrock #psychedelicrockmusic #psychedelicrockandroll #psychedelicrockband #psychedelicrockart #rockpsychedelic #progressiverockpsychedelic #psychedelicrocktehran #psychedelicrockkaraj #psychedelicrockvinyl #turkishpsychedelicrock #psychedelicrocknroll #psychedelicrockindo