Corijn + Ariadne

The honor of being part of the first Simplon UP in ages goes to… Corijn! The singer-songwriter from Groningen sings his songs in at least three languages and is joined on stage by Steven Willemsen on guitar and lap steel. I’m not sure how often someone with a PhD in philosophy takes the stage here at UP to sing about the fried cob fish vendor at Hoornse Plas, but tonight is the night. This one’s for fans of pop music’s classic storytellers (early Cohen, late Knopfler or Spinvis once again) and of subtle guitar parts with loads of delay (William Tyler or Steve Gunn, anyone?).

I’ve often had the pleasure of listening to the music of Julia Bekker: on stage with punk outfit OOO, via the internet with her new group POTGROND, during sporadic jam session in Het Viadukt or through quirky Instagram-videos with her own songs, sung in Dutch. Tonight Julia will perform for us under the moniker of Ariadne for the first time, opening the night with nothing but her best songs and a piano.

The Groninger troubadour Joost Dijkema swaps his guitar case for a bunch of record tonight and will provide us with the sounds of his best LP’s, singles and flexi-discs. A singer-songwriter behind the turntables and two excellent acts on stage, so no reason to not climb out of your lockdown and join us tonight at UP!