In the Amsterdam indie band Pip Blom, the drummer became a computer: ‘Yet everything is still about live energy’

Your favorite drummer leaves the band. And then? Amsterdam indie rocker Pip Blom (27) really thought about it when drummer Gini Cameron announced that she would no longer go on tour due to the arrival of her baby. Not that Blom didn’t understand. The band Pip Blom has been away from home for about two hundred days, tour bus Dolly has already driven through many countries, especially England. But the big musical question, according to singer and guitarist Pip Blom: how will they match the energy of their old drummer?

Replaced by the next one, you would simply say. But Gini proved difficult to replace with her energetic, agile style, with which she had also won her own fans. But there was also the suggestion from Pip Blom’s friend Willem… Blom chuckles when she talks about it: having a backing track running along. So the drummer via the computer. Actually too crazy for words for an indie rock band known for its sparkling and solid live energy. “I thought: huh, what are you saying?”

And yet, she says, she has come to embrace the idea more and more. It goes like this: before Bobbie, Pip Blom’s new and third album, the band has taken a broader musical course at the encouragement of their much sought-after British producer Dave McCracken. The guitar pop songs are enriched with electronic sounds and synthesizers. The production is more open, smoothed out and yes, more danceable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5Ym4ws0nXo

A first, successful taste of this was the funky, sultry single ‘Is This Love?’, a duet with Alex Kapranos, frontman of Franz Ferdinand. Not coincidentally, also a band that freshened up rock with electronic experiment, synths and sequencers. And also the duet ‘Kiss Me By The Candlelight‘ with her boyfriend Willem Smit (known as the singer of Personal Trainer and previously Canshaker Pi) is a attractive, mutually inciting ‘banger’ become.

Performing with an electronic backing track may be far removed from indie rock, but according to Blom it can also be a perfect way to perform the new songs. She found confirmation in this from her father (Erwin Blom, founder of, among others 3for12). His punk pop band Eton Crop also used to switch to more dance music with a drum machine. “His encouragement gave me the courage to persevere.”

Exciting baptism by fire

People often have the idea that you are cheating, so let them know. “That everything is on tape, that it is not live. But apart from the beats, everything is still super live; the vocals and our guitars in every song. We just had to reinvent ourselves a bit as a three-man band.”

She sounds light-hearted, but Blom is not without nerves. It is not without reason that she mentions the upcoming concerts in response Bobbie ‘a baptism of fire’. “It remains of course very exciting how fans react to us now.”

The tour started on Thursday evening at the Melkweg in Amsterdam. Shows in Rotterdam, Utrecht and Groningen will follow from this weekend. The band will then embark on a major tour through England, Ireland, France and Germany, before performing many more shows in their own country in April. Blom especially likes the latter, because after the shows she can just shower at home, recharge and just visit grandma.

Also read
Also read the review of the album Bobbie

It is striking and admirable how the band Pip Blom has steadily worked on brand awareness abroad in recent years. From acoustic performances in record stores and small club shows, to memorable opportunities to play as the support act for The Breeders and Franz Ferdinand, to a place on the talent stage at Glastonbury and showcase festivals such as SXSW in Austin or the Reeperbahn festival in Hamburg.

Of course, she nods, it is a dream route for a Dutch rock band from Amsterdam. Foreign performances are great. But in the meantime she is willing to admit: it also takes a lot of energy. “It’s difficult to be honest about that. We put a lot of time and love into the band and I definitely feel a tour romance, riding in the van from show to show, preferably with my father at the wheel and my mother along for the merchandise. I want all that too.” But it’s a balancing act. “Because it is also a crazy lifestyle. New places cost me a lot and you don’t eat that healthy and it’s tiring. So we always have to look: how much are we going to do? What’s fun? And what is financially necessary?”

Intermediate phase

It remains exciting, says Blom. Her band has been around for almost eight years and is still going strong. “We don’t take anything for granted, because we know that we are no longer that new and therefore not that super interesting in that area. And at the same time, we are not yet at that level where you get high wages, which means you can play less. It is a kind of intermediate phase.”

She finds it strange that she has doubts about a record every time she is involved in music. “Oh dear, what if the requests to play at festivals don’t come in? Or what if all the reviews are very bad? Or no one comes? But I never doubt about being in a band! I really like that.”

Maybe it was also time for a new direction. The addition of synthesizers and computer sounds challenges them even more. She also stands behind a keyboard. The show is also different artistically. From rough rattling, tapping out and rocking, to a more well-thought-out concert with beautiful lighting and a structure. “As a band we continue to run on live energy. But before it was what you see is what you get– all very hard and overwhelming. There’s even more going on in this show, including between the songs. The light work expresses the atmosphere of the songs, there are many references to the record and the artwork, which consists of tangram figures.”

And, she says it with a little sigh: they dance more. She refers to the appearance of Franz Ferdinand singer, Alex Kapranos. How easily he dances with the rhythms and sings with confidence. If only she had more of it, she smiles. Band members Tender and Darek are easier dancers. She is no stranger to discomfort on stage. “I can really walk onto the stage and think: what an insane profession, what is this actually? Then I am not at all ready for those 400 pairs of eyes.” How does she solve that? “Good preparation helps the nerves. And I have a trick. I’m looking for someone in the audience who is really having a great time.”

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