Kraak and Smaak a trio (Wim, Oscar, and Mark) hailing from Holland who I discovered via the worldwide web (Thanks Al Gore) are responsible for some great dance/electronica music as well as some dope remixes. So please read this Q &A I did with them and check out their music and add it to your collection this holiday season.
1. How did the group get together?
We all met up in Leiden - our hometown in Holland – it’s a beautiful (if fairly sleepy) old school place and we all used to hang in the same bar. Mark and Wim already knew each other from DJ'ing, but there we met Oscar, who studied at the conservatory. We all had a wish to start producing dance music, hit it off, started jamming with beats, samples and keyboards and Kraak & Smaak was born. We started out with a couple of EPs and remixes, but soon we were also making full albums. Later on, apart from our dj sets, we started our own live band.
2. Where did the name Kraak and Smaak come from?
Kraak & Smaak comes from a Dutch saying meaning crunchy & tasty, so no real pun intended if you pronounce it the English way! We think it’s kinda funny that apparently it has this double meaning for the non-Dutch but it sometimes leads people to expect us to be something that we’re not, which can lead to some silly situations sometimes.
3. How has having “Squeeze Me” in the Rhapsody commercial been for the group?
I think we sold about 60 or 70,000 legal downloads in the US and it led to loads of attention to our other songs, videos, our live band, the dj sets, etc. so really great. Besides, because of it we were able to play on the Jimmy Kimmel show and did some good touring across the US and Europe the last one and a half year.
4. What are some of your favorite cities to play in the U.S.?
Of course we love New York, San Francisco and LA but for example the shows that we did in Lawrence, Kansas and Austin at SXSW were also brilliant. But in general, for Europeans to be able to be on the road in the US - and get good crowds of course - is just a dream come true. And there's also so much vinyl to be found (we are real vinyl addicts)
5. The group has done some really nice remixes what would be the ultimate song to remix for the group?
That's a difficult one, as our remixes may have very different vibes, but I would guess the Medicine remix for Mark Rae, the Jamiroquai remixes and lately the remixes we did for Fedde Le Grand, Fort Knox Five and All Good Funk Alliance.
6. What’s up for Kraak and Smaak in 2010?
We stopped with our live band for a while, just doing dj sets and are working hard in the studio on new material and remixes for others (we just did Maxwell for instance). We are planning to release a new album before Summer next year if possible. After that it's hopefully touring a lot again internationally, including dropping by in the US again.
Check them out at the following links:
www.myspace.com/kraaksmaak
http://www.kraaksmaak.com/