Henriëtta official streaming

In many ways, the story of HENRIETTA is one of perseverance and reinvention. the first incarnation of the band consisted of drummer Dexter Versluis and guitarist Koen Oostendrop. They quickly recruited singer and showman Mark McLaughlin. Now for the first time, actual songs were being written and the trio started to prepare for their very first live performance, appearing the school talent show. The song that was chosen to play was an odd genre-mixing composition titled “2012”. While not particularly well played or well composed, 2012 did manage to grab the audiences attention in a way the band never expected. The crowd was won over by an energetic en engaging stage show and the antics of frontman Mark McLaughlin.

After the success of their school performance, the band (then called SMEKMUK) was selected to play in the regional finals in which they were awarded with workshops by Daan van den Bergh. But SMEKMUK proved to only be a short-lived success, when turmoil between its two founding members finally resulted in Dexter leaving the band. He would later be of great importance to the band, albeit in a whole other capacity. Now fresh out of a drummer, the band started to look for a replacement. They found this replacement in Lasse Westerhof. SMEKMUK wanted a fresh start, so they started to experiment with line-ups. The new line-up, consisting of Lasse Westerhof on drums, Mark McLaughlin on bass and Koen Oostendorp on lead vocals and guitars, turned out to be the last version of SMEKMUK. Oostendorp started to take the operation more seriously and the decision to add a singer to their ranks was made. They found their voice in Stefan Lipman. Lipman suggested to change the name from SMEKMUK to EXHILARATION, and the rest agreed. Under a new name, they started crafting some tunes. Despite varying in quality, the songs seemed to be more focused.
Influences were drawn from bands like MEGADETH, MACHINE HEAD and SAXON. Finally, the band settled one one genre: heavy metal.
As things progressed, it became more clear that Oostendorp was the leader of the group. He functioned as guitarist, songwriter and agent, despite not being very productive in his third role. After constructing and, to a certain extent, fine-tuning their set, the band started to play gigs at local venues.
Some were more successful than others but, unfortunately, there was always one audience-complaint: Lipman was a bad fit. While creative with vocal melodies, he lacked the gravitas and energy the other members showcased on stage. After careful consideration, the band decided to move on without him. One thing did become clear during Lipmans stint with the band: the crowd loves a good show. McLaughlin, who had been such a crowd-pleaser in SMEKMUK, was moved to the position of frontman again. This left a gap to be filled. Oostendorp had been in another band with bassist Sytse Sasse. They decided to ask him to join. He accepted and new material was written, once again with Oostendorp being the sole songwriter.
The name EXHILARATION was abandoned and McLaughlin and Oostendorp decided on doing something else entirely with the band. They wanted to have a more thematic live show and the concept of what would become HENRIETTA was born. They would write songs about horror films exclusively and their live show would incorporate musical segments from some horror classics, gags and gore. Now they needed a new name. HENRIETTA was chosen. The name pays tribute to one of McLaughlin and Oostendorps favorite horror icons: Henrietta Knowby from EVIL DEAD 2. With new found passion and fire the band started to prepare for live shows. Mclaughlin and Oostendorp came up with the concept of having each member “play” a character on stage. McLaughlin would be “Big Daddy Death Metal”, Oostendorp “Johnny Gore”, Westerhof “Slasher Murph” and Sasse would be Nate Slender. Each character was based on something horror-related, and the names represented parts of their visual appearance. The band got a gig at the local De Gonz venue. Oostendorp drew up a setlist consisting of 12 original songs and about 4 cover songs. The show proved to be a success. The crowd responded well to the show but most importantly, the band was noticed by producer Jeremy van Haastert. After the show van Haastert approached the band, offering them a change to record a full length album with him. The band agreed and were now faced with a daunting task. With no prior studio experience, HENRIETTA had no idea what to expect. They decided on having a 10 track long album. Two of their longtime live staples (The Thing and the excellent Burn The Mask) were dropped, and recording began with all ten songs written and perfected. The result was the album DEAD BY DAWN and it presented the songs in a more polished and complete form than the band had ever been able to do live. With several great songs and no filler, the album stands as a strong debut. It is elevated above the level of run-of-the-mill metal album by the ambient song intros by Oostendorp and the phenomenal lead vocals by McLaughlin. all this history in just 3 years. The band is currently working on a follow-up to DEAD BY DAWN. Once again with a new line-up. Bassist Sytse Sasse left because he felt Oostendorp didn’t give him enough artistic freedom. To fill the gap, Henrietta recruited Bram Van Gasteren On bass guitar and Lennard Uitenbroek on rhythm guitar.

One of the new songs is already available on the CD version of DEAD BY DAWN as a bonus track. This of course is only a demo, but increased production values are already noticeable. The new album is being produced by Oostendorp and mastered by the amazing Gerben Klazinga (who also did the first album). HENRIETTA’s sophomore album is looking to eclipse DEAD BY DAWN in every way. And that is saying a lot! The songs are better, it has superior production and a better title (THE HORRORS OF THE EVENT HORIZON)
Long story short, the future looks bright for the young metal band!

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