Local Rockstars: KERK!’s profound profanity

Local Rockstars: KERK!’s profound profanity

Mar 8, 2013 |  by  |  Event, Music
About the author
Born and raised in Amsterdam, lives to dance and dances to live on electronic music, has a small vinyl addiction, appreciates a little sarcasm now and then, thinks musicals are annoying and loves those moments where you lose track of time completely.

Whether you went out last weekend to check out an uber-geeky beat magician or a depressingly awesome indie rock band, we all know there’s always some serious musical talents rocking around the Dam. You might not recognize them all yet, but don’t worry, you will soon. In this series of interviews we talk to remarkable artists about their music and their inspirations.

KERK! basically equals fun. Robert and Juri like funky bass-driven house and sexy techno with a nu-disco after taste. If that doesn’t sound great enough, their interests include dancing, chilling, rocking, grooving and vibin’. No wonder this Amsterdam based dynamic duo is one of my favourites. Next weekend they’ll celebrate their three year anniversary in Studio 80 and they’ll make you sin.

Intimate club or massive festival: “Intimate club.”
Alcohol, soft drugs or hard drugs: “All or nothing and everything in time.”
Illegal rave or organized club: “Organized club.”
Favourite club in Amsterdam: “Studio 80.”
Favourite Amsterdam party organization: “Cartel or Dekmantel probably.”
Favourite Amsterdam based DJ: “Boris Werner.”
Favourite festival: “WTTF!”

Are you guys religious?
R: “Nope. We believe in profanity. I went to Catholic school though.”
J: “I believe in good deeds.”
R: “You believe in karma…”
J: “Haha, no, I believe that people can do good things.”

Didn’t think so. So why the name KERK! then?
“Well, Rob lives in the Kerkstraat. That’s where we started playing, so we always said that we were at the church when people asked where we were. It also links a little bit to hip-hop where you say ‘church’ if you concur, like they explain in the JVT track. That’s why it’s in capital letters and with an exclamation mark, to highlight that it’s an expression.”

Barre Tijden is ‘Nederland’s hoop in barre tijden’. What makes these times so hard?
“Well, the last 20 years have been the hardest judging by the news. We bring hope by bringing parties. Without hard times there can’t be good times either .”

Since there’s two of you, you must have disagreements now and then. What are they about?
J: “Well, how should I put this… Rob can have a pretty strong opinion about stuff, mine’s a bit softer. But ultimately we have the same opinion.”
R: “Sometimes Juri will play a gay track and then I’ll throw in a harder one to balance it out. That’s our power. We’ll never get stuck in one sound.”
J: “Not gay, ‘sensitive’. Yeah, our dynamic creates an interesting tension in our sets.”


What track gives you goosebumps?

J: “During this track the hairs on my neck won’t go down. Even at a high temperature I still have goosebumps.”
R: “Deephouse before the hype, love it!”

What’s your ultimate setting for a set?
“Underneath a viaduct in an industrial setting. Or at a beach, but not Bloemendaal (Woodstock is cool though), something tropical, raw and intimate. Where the crowd dances, comes for the music and goes all in.”

You’ve been DJ’ing together for three years. Has a lot changed since you began?
“There’s been a world of difference! We started at home with computers. Then we bought record players and started really learning. It’s like when you learn how to drive an automatic car. You get from A to B without accidents but you’re not really driving. We have a lot more experience now. Back in the days we would be incredibly nervous before a gig in TWSTD (RIP). We should have more places like that, where local talent can develop. That’s why studio 2 in Studio 80 is so great.”

You’re going to celebrate next Friday in Studio 80. What can we expect?
“A lot of craziness and profanity. Expect holy bread, red wine and all the boys from Barre Tijden. Inland Knights are crazy English men who’ve been around for years. We asked them to play some real classics.”

Where do you see yourself after another three years?
“Still working strong with music professionally and also releasing music. We want to claim a spot on the international scene, anyone can do a round through Holland. Where we’ll be exactly we’ll see there and then.”

And while you’re at it, check out this awesome biblical video where Robert and Juri get some holy red wine splashed over them. Fun fact: they told me that when filming, the set looked like a scene from Dexter and they spent €100 on white shirts.

BARRE TIJDEN PRESENTEERT: 3 JAAR KERK!

When: Friday 15th of March, 23:00 – 05:00
Where: Studio 80
Tickets: Presale €11 | Doorsale €13
Facebook: Event

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