The Sheer

The Sheer is a rock band formed in Haarlem, the Netherlands in the summer of 2000. The initial lineup consisted of Bart van Liemt (leadvocals and guitar), Jasper Geluk (analog keyboards and backing vocals), Jorn van der Putte (bass and backing vocals) and Gert-Jan Zegel (drums). Janpeter Hoekstra (guitar, pedalsteel guitar and backing vocals) joined the band last year during the making of third album Here And Now And Long Before. Their early work is known to have upbeat 60's and 90's britpop influences, recent songwriting has grown far more melancholic and alt-country. The Sheer has released two albums to date. Their debut album The Keyword Is Excitement! was released in 2004. The band has won several Dutch awards for upcoming talent like the 'Zilveren Harp' and the '3FM Award'. Their sophomore album, Feel The Need, was released in 2006. Singles from both albums have received considerable airplay on national radio and have made it into game and movie soundtracks. The band gained a respected live reputation and played the Lowlands and Pinkpop festivals among many others. After years of almost continuous recording and touring, the band retreated in November 2007 to regroup, focus and work on their third coming, Here And Now And Long Before. The Sheer was signed to Universal Music for the first two records. As the major opted for a new deal during the making of the new album, the band saw a chance to take matters into their own hands and started her own label instead. Song One Records will release the new record together with indie label Pias in the Benelux. Here And Now And Long Before was released April 20, 2009. The record is quite a departure from their work so far. www.thesheer.com Sheer, on the other hand (without a The), which defaults to here, was a mid 80s dance project on Creation Records. It was nominally fronted by the Scot, Thomas Taft (the single, "Cascades", was credited to Sheer Taft). The recordings were mostly by members of Primal Scream. The album, "Absolutely", was released under the name Sheer.