Kong (band)
Encyclopedia
Kong is an Amsterdam
-based band formed in 1988 by guitarist/synth programmer Dirk de Vries, guitarist Aldo Sprenger, bassist/synth programmer Mark Drillich, and drummer Rob Smits, whose daughter is one of the co-founders of the fashion label Cherry Red. The band's music can best be described as avant-garde containing elements of heavy metal
, electronica
, and industrial
. Furthermore, nearly all of Kong's music was instrumental with the only vocals being an eclectic blend of sampling.
The band is perhaps most notable for the quadrophonic approach to their shows: live performances are played in a quadraphonical live set-up, an idea that came from one of Kong’s very first gigs. On the opening-night of an art exhibition in a squatted Amsterdam bathhouse there was too little space for the band to play together, so each band member took his/her own independent stage and P.A.-stack by his/her side to one corner of the club. It proved an interesting set-up for the band and created a strange experience for the audience. They followed the same approach for their next gig at the Melkweg in Amsterdam and since then hardly ever played together on one stage again.
Despite modest promotional efforts and releasing a music video for the song "Stockhouse" in 1992, the band never achieved significant commercial success. Consequently, Kong went on an indefinite hiatus in 2000.
On May 22, 2007, a news post on the band's website announced that bassist Mark Drillich was looking for musicians willing to revive the band. According to the post, a collaboration with guitarist Tijs Keverkamp followed, yielding a number of songs. A follow-up news post on June 20, 2007, said that rehearsals with a new drummer Mandy Hopman had begun. In 2009 the album What It Seems Is What You Get was released.
Kong's website remains one of the few internet resources available for information on the band. Additionally, much of the band's discography can now only be purchased directly from them.
Kong are not to be confused with the Manchester based Noise Rock
band of the same name.
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
-based band formed in 1988 by guitarist/synth programmer Dirk de Vries, guitarist Aldo Sprenger, bassist/synth programmer Mark Drillich, and drummer Rob Smits, whose daughter is one of the co-founders of the fashion label Cherry Red. The band's music can best be described as avant-garde containing elements of heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
, and industrial
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
. Furthermore, nearly all of Kong's music was instrumental with the only vocals being an eclectic blend of sampling.
The band is perhaps most notable for the quadrophonic approach to their shows: live performances are played in a quadraphonical live set-up, an idea that came from one of Kong’s very first gigs. On the opening-night of an art exhibition in a squatted Amsterdam bathhouse there was too little space for the band to play together, so each band member took his/her own independent stage and P.A.-stack by his/her side to one corner of the club. It proved an interesting set-up for the band and created a strange experience for the audience. They followed the same approach for their next gig at the Melkweg in Amsterdam and since then hardly ever played together on one stage again.
Despite modest promotional efforts and releasing a music video for the song "Stockhouse" in 1992, the band never achieved significant commercial success. Consequently, Kong went on an indefinite hiatus in 2000.
On May 22, 2007, a news post on the band's website announced that bassist Mark Drillich was looking for musicians willing to revive the band. According to the post, a collaboration with guitarist Tijs Keverkamp followed, yielding a number of songs. A follow-up news post on June 20, 2007, said that rehearsals with a new drummer Mandy Hopman had begun. In 2009 the album What It Seems Is What You Get was released.
Kong's website remains one of the few internet resources available for information on the band. Additionally, much of the band's discography can now only be purchased directly from them.
Kong are not to be confused with the Manchester based Noise Rock
Noise rock
Noise rock describes a style of post-punk rock music that became prominent in the 1980s. Noise rock makes use of the traditional instrumentation and iconography of rock, but incorporates atonality and especially dissonance, and also frequently discards usual songwriting conventions.-Style:Noise...
band of the same name.
Discography
- Mute Poet Vocalizer (1990)
- Phlegm (1992)
- Konjunction (1993)
- Push Comes to Shove (1995)
- EARMINeD (1997)
- ƒREAKÇONTRØL (1999)
- 88•95 (2001)
- What It Seems Is What You Get (2009)