(photo by Hasret Emine)

‘In This House’, the second album by Rotterdam-based Lewsberg and their first US release will be issued on LP by 12XU on April 25.

(PREORDER ‘In This House’ – 12XU / Bandcamp*)

The quartet’s latest offering seeps into your consciousness in a different way to their debut, though their tendency towards existentialism and black humour is present throughout. Harsher in sound, but more humane in spirit, In This House refuses to let the listener settle for a single moment.??The metallic, atonal guitar strum on opening song “Left Turn” leaves no room for discussion. This is Lewsberg at work. The unnerving sound of a revving car, handbrake on, suddenly coming to an abrupt and silent halt. Is the title of this opener a warning for the listener for the rest of the set, as if we’re going down Robert Frost’s “road less traveled,” or is it just a description of this lonesome character’s unexpected behaviour in this particular song?

‘In This House’ is full of surprises. The teasing guitar break on “From Never to Once”. The two instrumentals “Trained Eye” and “Interlude”. The emotionally affecting ballad, “The Door”. And there’s the pairing of the last two tracks: the fatalistic “Jacob’s Ladder” and the wild, evocative “Standard Procedures” —- as if each piece works independently from the other, gazing back occasionally on what came before and, in turn, adding a different flavour to what comes next.

“Cold Light of Day” and “Tbrough the Garden” are textbook Lewsberg ; 2 songs, provocative and enchanting in their minimalism. Whilst “At Lunch” is seemingly innocent and carefree at the start, ultimately conjures a looming sense of doubt by its conclusion.

“In this house we make mistakes
In this house we never give up”

These lines from closing song “Standard Procedures” could be the adage of the band. Not like some sort of peptalk or an expression of winner’s mentality, but as an homage to the beauty and comfort you can find in perseverance.

Lewsberg would like to draw your attention to the following:
1. Some people are nicer than they think. Some people don’t dare to show how nice they are.
2. More pixels means less imagination.
3. Next time the mice will catch the owl.
4. In Rotterdam they don’t use concrete anymore.
5. Sometimes you only find out how fragile a thing is, when you touch it for the first time.
6. Not every good deed is part of a plan.
7. There’s comfort in continuous toil.
8. In this house we make mistakes. In this house we never give up. The door is always open.?

Lewsberg are Arie van Vliet (guitar, vocals), Michiel Klein (guitar), Shalita Dietrich (bass, vocals), and Dico Kruijsse (drums)
Music by Michiel Klein.
Music for “At Lunch” and “The Door” by Arie van Vliet & Michiel Klein.
Recorded & mixed at Sahara Sound Studio.
Produced by Henk Koorn & Michiel Klein.
Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.

Lewsberg on tour
March 27, ACU, Utrecht, NL
March 28, Extrapool, Nijmegen, NL
April 5, Hafen 2, Offenbach DE?A
pril 6, Monarch, Berlin DE
April 7, Gastfeld, Bremen, DE
April 8, Tape, Aarhus, DK
April 9, Vera, Groningen NL
April 16, Latest Music Bar, Brighton UK
April 17, The Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth UK
April 18, The Smokehouse, Ipswich UK
April 19, Bobiks, Newcastle UK
April 20, Brudenell Social Club, Leeds UK
April 21, Crofters Rights, Bristol UK
April 22, Moth Club, London UK
April 25, Rotown, Rotterdam NL

(outside of North America, ‘In This House’ is self-released by the band and available via Cargo Distribution)