Release tour and party
Again it's been a while since we interrupted you. And yet so much has happened in the mean time. The new release is going like crazy, we went on tour which was a mixed succes and we played a release show that was beyond our wildest dreams.
The tour report for the tour in March, the pictures we took and the video material we shot will be up soon. As soon as the new website is up, we'll post it there. What I can tell you already is that this tour was not our best ever, we had 2 last minute shows, and 3 days off, the most we've ever had on tour, and I must say it's the worst thing that can happen to a bad and its motivation. On the other hand, the shows that we aplyed were really awesome, with quite some people coming out, and being in Portugal for the first time was really amazing. A lot of thanks go out to Joao from Infected Records who did an amazing job arranging everything for us in Portugal. Again, more soon to come.
4 days later after we got back from Portugal we had the "Testimony release show. We expected it to be a great party. But what happened was beyond our craziest imagination. The show got sold out during Gewapend Beton playing third, and unfortunately a lot of people got sent back home when they tried to get in after. Even some idiots felt the need to fight their way in. Thanks to all the bands (New Pokerface, Smash the Statues, Gewapend Beton and The Real Danger) for showing up and playing their asses off. Also a lot of thanks to Hans and Niels and everyone else at The Stage, and most of all, thanks to all people showing up, singing along, going crazy during the show and buying the new album. If you don't believe any of the above, we got pictures to proof: check. See?
in response to the new album we got a shitload of new reviews. too much to mention them all. again, as soon as the new website is finished we'll post them there. here is the review of asice.net, one of holland's most important punk/hardcore portals:
Antillectual – Testimony (Shield)
Antillectual is the only Dutch DIY band, besides No Turning Back, that is willing to take that next step in music. Touring constantly across the globe to spread their music and message, these three guys from Nijmegen and Arnhem wholeheartedly dedicate their lives to this band. Where most bands try it, Antillectual does it and makes it look really easy.“This is or testimony of the things we see happening around us and we do not agree upon”
This line is taken from the explanation of the opening track “Testimony” (a Boysetsfire-esque intro song) and pretty much sums up the lyrical content of this record. Some isssues they adress, like war, feminism and broken promises, are more important than others (“scene” issues or corporate advertising) but all lyrics are spot on and written with sincerety. And sincerity is the basis of all great things. Every song is explained to make sure that you know what they are singing and screaming about.
In comparing “Testimony” with “Silencing Civilization”, one is struck by the musical progress since that time. Dynamic changes, intelligent songwriting, richly colored melodies. A true parade of different punk rock styles. Being a conservative prick when it comes to punk rock music, I’m losing my head over songs like “Sponsorship for life” and “Benefit of the doubt”. Unbelievable! But all the pieces work extremely well together even though the ending can be a bit of challenge due to the length of both the song “I hope you got my letter” and the Shawshank Redemption sample.
A Sturm und Drang approach to political punk rock is certainly not unique but proves to be the most memorable. It should be no suprise that fans of Propagandhi and Strike Anywhere will do themselves a huge favor by checking out this uncanny record.
Rating: 4,5 out of 5
if you want to order the album, or some other stuff get in touch through email.
some interesting offers:
– our old and new album together for 15 euro
– a shirt and an album together for 15 euro
furthermore we have a lot of new shows added, especially in may with some very cool bands. check them yourself. hope to confirm some more soon as well. in april we will be hitting the (serious) road again, together with our good friends from smash the statues. really looking forward to that one. unfortunately we're still looking for some shows, if you can help us out it would be highly appreciated. also if you have a show for us anywhere else, we're always looking for places to play, even more now we have a new album to promote. so please, let us know!
As said, we're working on a new website, we're actually filling it in with content and doing tests, so it's finally getting somewhere. no promises on when it will be online though, those have been broken more than enough. hope to see or hear from you soon!
Nijmegen
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