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Union Town



Last Updated: 11/26/2009

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Status: Single
City: Tilburg/Amsterdam
Country: NL
Signup Date: 2/23/2007

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Tuesday, May 19, 2009 

Hello everyone,

I've been working on our lastFM page. It has some complete tracks, including one that we didn't put up on the internet before. It's our contribution to the Glory Days EP. The purpose of this EP was to capture the sound in Dutch underground music from bands with roots in hardcore punkrock searching to write more melody driven songs.

The composition is called 'Dancing Dead' and its about the increased feelings of nihilism and despair that I sensed with a lot of people around me at the time.

The compilation EP was released in 2007 and the song was written in our first days. This is the direct link.

Please understand that  this is a very old song! We're recording in two weeks again and will make sure to let you hear our new stuff asap.

The Union Town Last.FM page is to be found HERE.

Thanks for your attention,

-hein

1:00 PM 
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Sunday, January 18, 2009 
Mind over matter - http://mindovermatter07.blogspot.com/2008/07/union-town-st-review.html

I guess sometimes things just click. When I first heard about Union Town and the individuals that made up the band, it seemed like an odd mix of people, but an interesting one at least. Bassist Miriam was in Malkovich for a long time, a band I never really quite understood, but still she provided them with some style and grace so that's cool. Drummer Dorus was in No Turning Back around the time they put out "Rise From The Ashes", yet it never really seemed like that band was his "thing". Then there was Johan Vogels, their guitarist who (to Vince and me) will forever and always be the dude that appeared to know every word to every One Life Crew song off "Crime Ridden Society" in a discussion whether or not that band was acceptable or not. That was back in '98 though so I guess I'm drifting off here. When the band found the perfect singer in Hein (who for a really short time played bass in Justice and put out a bunch of awesome demos on his tape label The Decline) and recorded their demo, things definitely must've clicked. When I heard it, I was floored, almost instantly. Obviously I wasn't the only one and despite the fact that Union Town hadn't really played much outside the Holland/Belgium area, the demo did real well and got pressed onto vinyl by Powered Records.

Where the demo mainly was an up tempo deal, with well written songs that carried a huge mid to late 80's DC vibe (Rites Of Spring, Embrace, Dag Nasty), this self titled debut album is a much more varied record. The bands that influenced Union Town when they wrote their demo are still an influence now, but as it goes when bands find their own sound, the influence is less obvious. Yet, their sound is still firmly rooted in the same soil, if that makes any sense? The variety in their songs, the maturity in their songwriting (you can really tell that you are dealing with experienced songwriters here) and most of all, the soul and spirit in their songs make it so that Union Town sounds like Union Town. There's room for experiment, slower parts and a few new things and ofcourse that can only be applauded. Some examples would be the guitar work in "The Observer" (the 5th song on the album) that has a weird Wipers vibe to it or even something as simple as the additional vocals by Miriam on the album's opening track "Regenerated". I'm a huge fan of those. That only goes to show Union Town has grown as a band.
One of the demo songs got re-recorded ("Resentment") and I guess one could always criticise that, but I don't think it's a song that's out of place on this album. The other 8 songs are all brand new and pretty much all of them rock. Rhythmically, I feel like they all have a good flow to them, with little details, breaks, drum fills and stop-start parts to keep things interesting. There are two things I'm particularly impressed by: the first is how warm and soulful this record sounds. As dumb as it may sound, you can hear the love and care that went into these songs. The second thing is Hein's vocals and lyrics. He sounds more confident than ever, with hardly any trace of an accent (well, if you ask me.. I am a Euro though) and I've gotta say that he has a voice that really carries the songs, both by the way he sings and obviously also by what he's singing. Which brings me to the lyrics... I would advise you to read them yourself actually. I found them to be real well written, spiritful and recognisable as well. Maybe it's because I'm only a few years older than Hein, but I could relate to a lot of the words I read. "Building a future from despair of the past, 'cause all is gone when you thought it would last". Especially that part. Such a great line.

Some of my favorite tracks here are, as mentioned before, the opening track "Regenerated" and "The Observer". The latter is an angrier, rougher song with a lot of drive. The song just before it, "Halfway There", is another winner, it starts off kinda like a Billy Idol song (this could very well be my imagination though) and then quickly takes a turn onto Fugazi territory. The melancholic guitars and vocals work real well together here. Other favourites are "Don't Give Up" and "Punch And Bleed". "Don't Give Up" was the first MP3 that was released off this record so I'm guessing it's one of the band's favourites too. "Punch And Bleed" is a perfect closer, as it builds up and then climaxes to its "But punch us, we will bleed" mantra.

I guess a lot of you have probably not seen or heard much about this band, but it would be a shame to miss out on an album this good, or to miss out on Union Town live, which in my case has always been a great experience. Anyone with a love for hardcore that is somewhat more melodic and soulful, that digs the bands mentioned before and/or can hang with bands like Husker Du, The Replacements and Hot Water Music should look into this.
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Spinner - http://nl.spinner.com/2008/07/15/union-town-s-t/ :

Soms heb je van die plaatjes waarbij alles ineens op z'n plek lijkt te vallen. Waarbij je hoort dat alles klopt, maar eigenlijk niet direct snapt wat er nou zo goed aan is. De debuutplaat van Union Town is er zo één, waarbij in ieder geval duidelijk is hoe belangrijk een eigen geluid is.
Tijdens Regenerated hoor je al dat deze band niet veel nodig heeft om een sterke sfeer neer te zetten. De akkoordenschema's zijn mooi overzichtelijk, waarbij kleine extraatjes vaak genoeg zijn om het nummer open te breken en in een ander licht te plaatsen. Zo wordt de dreigende vibe in The Night Is Alive op een geniale manier bijna euforisch door maar een paar simpele noten van gitarist Johan Vogels. Of ontaardt het traag en donker opbouwende Punch And Bleed uiteindelijk compleet met losgeslagen gitaarsolo in een gruizige en rockende climax. Een sterke basis dus, met subtiliteiten op de juiste plek en in de juiste mate.
Als er dan toch nog wat gezeurd moet worden: met negen nummers in nog geen half uur is het nogal een zuinig plaatje. Voor een gemiddelde punkrockschijf een prima lengte, maar die standaard wordt hier toch flink ontstegen. En dat had met een paar extra nummers nog wel best wel even onderstreept mogen worden.
Ga naar www.myspace.com/uniontownband om een paar nummers van de plaat te beluisteren.
Martijn Koetsier
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Up Magazine - www.upmagazine.nl

Met hun demo knalde deze band de Nederlandse scene binnen. De verwachtingen voor het debuutalbum zijn hoog en worden niet helemaal ingelost. In plaats van compleet doorborduren op de Engelse punksound van de demo, heeft Union Town de grenzen wat verlegd naar indiecore in de lijn van Fugazi. Daardoor lijkt het allemaal wat minder te knallen, maar dat is schijn. Opener 'Regenerated' rockt als een gek en ook verder op het album wordt het gaspedaal nog af en toe ingetrapt. Je kunt vooral zeggen dat Union Town een natuurlijk groeiproces heeft doorgemaakt, wat resulteert in een album dat niet alleen hardcore- en punkliefhebbers zou moeten aanspreken, maar ook liefhebbers van alternatieve muziek. Gelukkig is de rauwheid en de passie van de demo in ieder geval bewaard gebleven, waardoor 'Union Town' nergens saai wordt.
Arold Roestenburg
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Crossfire e-zine - http://www.caughtinthecrossfire.com/music/buzz/7115

From the Netherlands, Union Town came in under the radar in early August to play a handful of low key UK dates. I caught their Brighton gig, and was suitably blown away. This, their debut LP, purchased at said gig, has been racking up serious mileage on my turntable ever since.
At their core, Union Town are very much under the influence of mid Eighties D.C. hardcore, with Embrace, Gray Matter, Dag Nasty springing to mind, and by definition well crafted songs that are built around taught and passionate music that I instantly connect with. As witnessed by their live set, the four players in Union Town are very accomplished musicians, and that's evident in the final delivery of these 9 songs, where they take the fundamentals of their roots, and then inject a mighty powerful shot of their own rocking style and inspiration. The production is incredibly sharp, and the end result is very much a Euro-sounding record. If names like Sink, Seven Sioux, Brambilla or K-Line mean anything to you.. then I suggest further investigation on your part is required.
Check out opening track "Regenerated" on the player.. this is easily one of my favourite records of 2008 so far.
Pete Craven

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Hotwire Life Blog - http://hotwirelife.blogspot.com

Er zijn helaas maar bitter weinig punkplaten uitgekomen dit jaar. Deze bloedarmoede wordt gelukkig gecompenseerd door enkele goeie releases van Nederlandse bands. Union Town kwam dit jaar op de proppen met een uitstekend debuut. De band wordt mijns inziens te gemakkelijk afgeschilderd als een kopie van 2de golf-DC bands (Ignition, Embrace, Rites of Spring, ...). De melodieuze toets van deze lichting is duidelijk aanwezig, maar goeie songwriting heeft gelukkig voorkomen dat Union Town niet verzandt in het kopieëren van oude helden. Diversiteit is troef en invloeden van 60s garage rock en de grunge van de jaren 90 zijn dan ook her en der te vinden. Het vizier van Union Town staat open. Het is dan ook uitkijken naar de opvolger.
Tekst: We're laying low when the tide is high. No remorse for the ones who won't survive. It's inside of this situation, no place of solace in this man's creation, but punch us and we will bleed.
Favoriet nummer: Regenerated
Kris Coorde
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Asice Hardcore E-Zine - www.asice.net

THE word that best describes this Dutch punk rock band and its releases is "awesome". Because until now, everything this band has done is simply just that. An amazing demo, one unbelievable contribution to the Glory Days compilation and jaw-dropping live performances. And now there’s a new record. Well, not really new ‘cause the vinyl version of this disc was released somewhere last summer.
And luckily Union Town hasn’t changed much, if any. Virtuoso guitar parts, portentous drumming, bass lines for baby makers and impressive singing. More than before, they are not only taking cues from 30 years of punk rock but they also seem to embrace (no pun intended) acts like Creedence Clearwater Revival and late seventies Elvis Costello. The breathtaking artwork has a No Idea –ish feel to it and is done by the very talented Mara Piccione and looks even better on the vinyl release. As I may have already implied, I view everything of Union Town as essential and this soulful record is no exception. That might not mean much , coming from a punk rock junkie, but even if you are remotely interested in good music, you should pick this up.
Peter Bootsman
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Aardschok Rock&Metal magazine

Union Town gooide hoge ogen met zijn demo, en schiep zo flinke verwachtingen voor de eerste echte plaat. Met het titelloze debuut dat nu op CD verschijnt (en vorig jaar al op vinyl is uitgekomen), weet het zijn reputatie hoog te houden en zal het ongetwijfeld nog meer lof oogsten. Het Tilburgs/Amsterdamse kwartet brengt een mooie melodieuze mix van punkrock en ouderwetse rammelrock. Sommige nummers klinken alsof ze net zo goed dertig jaar geleden - zo niet langer - al geschreven zouden kunnen zijn, maar doen desondanks niet gedateerd aan. De band blinkt uit in sterk songmateriaal; er valt geen enkele zwakke track te ontwaren tussen de negen nummers. Door de opbouw daarvan én door het fraai uitgebalanceerde geluid krijgen alle bandleden evenveel kans hun kunnen te demonstreren, wat ze dan ook vol begeestering doen. Samen met het album van Tenement Kids (wier zanger Gijs Wilbrink hier overigens twee nummers op meezingt) hét product van eigen bodem dat je niet mag missen als je van toegankelijke punkrock met een hoop melodie houdt.
80 punten van 100
Diana Willms

6:44 AM 
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Saturday, August 23, 2008 

Anyone interested in buying a Union Town shirt can check out the folder 'merch' at our pictures section to see the designs available.
Prices are:
Shirt PPD Holland = €12,50
Shirt PPD World = € 14,00
Mail your orders to: uniontownband@gmail.com

9:36 PM 
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Tuesday, June 24, 2008 
From today on (monday june 23th) Union Town's upcoming self titled album will be online and available to stream for a week. Please feel free to have a listen to it on our myspace page: www.myspace.com/uniontownband

The record is available through POWERED RECORDS (www.poweredrecords.com) and will officially be presented June 28th in the Winston Kingdom in Amsterdam. Other bands performing this night will include TENEMENT KIDS, THE REACTIONARIES, THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM and FOR JAPAN. The show starts at 19:00! We hope to see you there, to celebrate with us.
2:24 PM 
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Tuesday, June 03, 2008 

The definite releaseshow:

June 28th
Winston Kingdom, Amsterdam
19:00

UNION TOWN
TENEMENT KIDS
THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM
REACTIONARIES
FOR JAPAN

Check for reservations: www.amsterdam-underground.com
See for more info the poster on our site.

2:06 PM 
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Thursday, May 15, 2008 

Good day everyone,
It is with great pride that we can now announce the release of our debut album on Powered Records.
The record will feature eight brand new songs and a newly recorded version of the song 'Resentment' that also appeared on the demo.
Next to the band a select group of other people have dedicated their effort and talent to make this release special, most notably Pieter Kloos, recordings, and Mara Piccione, who drew us a great cover.
Check out two new songs 'Regenerated' and 'Don't give up' on our Myspace-profile!

Powered Records are taking pre-orders as we speak, these editions will be on colored wax and come with a dropcard for a one time downloading of the record from the internet and another little extra.
Check their store!

Record Release Show,
Our record release show is scheduled on the 28th of June 2008 at the WINSTON KINGDOM in Amsterdam.

Other bands performing will be:
TENEMENT KIDS
GASLIGHT ANTHEM
THE REACTIONARIES
FOR JAPAN

Show starts at 19:00 and promises to be a blast!

Tour,
In addition, we are now booking shows for a summer tour that will take place from July 25th to August 7th. This tour will focus on Belgium, France, Italy and/or Spain. Showpromoters and bookers please get in touch through: info@uniontownband.com.

Thank you for your attention and hope to see you soon.
UNION TOWN 2008

5:37 PM 
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Wednesday, August 29, 2007 

Goodday people,

* It is with great enthusiasm that we can now present our much acclaimed demo on 7" vinyl format! The demo will remain available until our debut 12" drops at the end of this year. Anyone who missed out on the tape is free to seize his/her opportunity now through Powered Records: www.poweredrecords.com or www.myspace.com/poweredrecords.

* This weekend will see the demo recording sessions for the upcoming 12" EP as well as the recording of one brand new song for a four way split EP featuring the cream of the crop in Dutch independent music of our time: ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Union Town, Brat Pack, Tenement Kids and The Real Danger. The EP should be out this fall on Angry Youth records. Get in touch with them for preorders: www.myspace.com/angryyouthrecords

* In two weeks, Union Town and Vogue will be traveling the UK for four shows. UK residents are called upon to say hi, buy vinyl's or shirts and rock out at any of these occasions:
September 7 – Newport, Wales
September 8 – Leeds, England
September 9 – Newcastle, England
September 10 – Brighton, England
Anyone not familiar with Vogue should pay a visit to their website and listen to the best Belgian demo in a long time: www.voguevoguevogue.tk/


* Legendary tourbooker Kris Coorde is currently booking shows in Germany for a Union Town / Tenement Kids tour that will take place from November 9th to 17th 2007. (dates are still subject to change) Needles to say we are super stoked on touring with the Tenement Kids since they're an awesome band. If you are interested in booking a show, please get in touch with Kris: kriscoorde[at]gmail.com.

* Union Town has agreed to perform on this years edition of the great ZXZW festival in Tilburg, Holland. We are scheduled to play at the 'Little Devil' cafe on Saturday September 22nd at 23:00. Please support ZXZW and show up. More info on the festival: www.zxzw.nl

Thanks for your attention, keep checking our site for new showdates!
UNION TOWN 2007
www.myspace.com/uniontownband

2:18 PM 
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Thursday, May 31, 2007 
Our bassplayer Miriam has recently moved to the Czec-Republic for three months to focus on writing and photographing for a travel guide on Prague! Ofcourse she couldn't pass up on this awesome opportunity to establish her name as a book-editor. You can read about her experiences here: http://mirificare.blogspot.com/

Our friend Chris, who you might know from a band called RESTLESS YOUTH is currently filling in on bass.
9:22 PM 
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Thursday, May 31, 2007 

People,
Please read up on what our new label POWERED has to say about Union Town:
--------------------
Union Town
"Dutch new favourites Union Town have confirmed their next release to be a Powered records exclusive! The band plan on recording their debut 12" EP at the end of the summer, release is scheduled for fall 2007.
In the meantime, Powered records are teaming up with The Decline records to see the re-release of the Union Town demo tape on vinyl. We're finishing the artwork as we speak so we expect them to be ready in about a month. If you're keen on having the original version on tape, act quick, cause the band only has a few copies left! Anyone not familiar with Union Town should check out their song 'Resentment' at the mediasection soon or visit the band's website here: www.myspace.com/uniontownband"
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Needless to say we are very happy to receive help from our friends at Powered and are looking forward to writing and recording our debut this summer. Check out their website here: www.poweredrecords.com
Peace
Union Town

9:00 PM 
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Thursday, March 08, 2007 

Demo's are € 3 or € 5 ppd. 
Order through: uniontownband@gmail.com 
If you're outside of Europe we'll work out a deal on postage.
Send money to:
Enschotsestraat 110
5014DH
Tilburg
Get in touch for paypal or bank transfer details

Powered records is repressing the demo on vinyl, we expect it to be in in July.

2:10 PM 
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