Pale (band)
| Pale | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| General information | |
| origin | Aachen , Germany |
| Genre (s) | Indie pop , indie rock , alternative rock |
| founding | 1993 |
| resolution | 2009 |
| Last occupation | |
| Holger Kochs | |
Guitar, vocals |
Christian Dang-anh |
| Lisse (from 2007) | |
| Stephan Kochs | |
Piano , guitar |
Jost Schiefer (from 2007) |
| former members | |
bass |
Philipp Breuer (until 1996) |
bass |
Jürgen "Hilly" Hilgers (1996-2007) |
Piano, keyboard , vocals |
Jonas Gervink (2005-2007) |
Pale was a band from Aachen that existed from 1993 to 2009. They classified themselves as an indie or pop band.
history
Pale was founded by Holger Kochs, Christian Dang-anh and Stephan Kochs in September 1993. Shortly afterwards, Philipp Breuer, the first bass player in the band's history, joined them. In the summer of 1994 the four recorded their first CD with the title Krusty Tag EP and released it on their own label "Soda Records". After some positive reactions from the press, they recorded a few more songs at the end of 1994 and released them together with the first session under the title Swear Jar . After initial attention, Philipp Breuer decided to leave the band because of his studies. After several weeks without a bass player, Jürgen "Hilly" Hilgers was brought in, who also plays on the third CD Drop Pants for Food . This was followed by a three-year hiatus before another album, Another Smart Move , was released. The vinyl version was released on the Cologne label "Defiance Records", which was just forming at the time. Pale then played one concert and festival after the other, toured Spain, England and the Benelux countries and eventually gained a certain prominence in the European underground scene.
Their breakthrough on a national and international level came the following year with the album Razzmatazz (The Arts at the Sands) . This was named album of the month in several music magazines and is a self-contained concept album in the style of The Whos Quadrophenia . It tells the story of a young man who returns to his hometown after spending some time abroad and finds everything changed. Only his love for the soul music of the sixties and for a girl named Anna brings him back to find a place in the changed homeland.
Pale played a total of 110 concerts during the year, and Visions music magazine selected the album as one of the 50 most important records of the year.
In 2002 the most successful album to date, How to Survive Chance, was recorded and released in August of the same year. Pale managed to surpass the success of its predecessor, and the CD landed on many best lists of the year. Eventually it was released in the USA, Japan and England.
In January 2006, Pale switched to the Grand Hotel van Cleef label, the house label of Kettcar and Tomte . In September of the same year the new album Brother, Sister, Bores! .
At the end of their performance at Rheinkultur 2007, singer Holger Kochs announced that bassist Jürgen Hilgers and keyboardist Jonas Gervink would leave the band after this concert. On the website of their label Grand Hotel van Cleef, Pale announced in 2009 that they would split up after four final concerts in May 2009. The band played their last concert at the Immergut Festival , to which keyboard player Jonas Gervink played again and Jürgen Hilgers briefly took over the bass.
Discography
- 1994: Krusty Tag EP (Soda Records)
- 1994: Swear Jar (Soda Records)
- 1996: Drop Pants for Food (Soda Records)
- 1999: Another Smart Move (Soda Records / Defiance Records)
- 2001: Razzmatazz (The Arts at the Sands) (Defiance Records)
- 2002: How to Survive Chance (Defiance Records)
- 2006: Brother, Sister, Bores! (Grand Hotel van Cleef)