Ks choice

The Early Years - The Basement Plugs

Since the late eighties, brother and sister Gert and Sarah Bettens have been active in the Belgian music scene. Whilst studying, they formed their own "hobby-band" called " The Basement Plugs ", and predominantly covered popular songs in the Antwerp area. Rehearsals in a friend's basement (supplied with enough plugs), gave rise to the rather amusing band name!



After a few years of innocent fun, Sarah's voice was "discovered", and this led to her first solo single. Released in 1992 under the name of Sara Beth (an abbreviation of Bettens - it sounded better and more Anglo-Saxon!), Sarah performed a cover of the Hank Williams classic " I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry " for the soundtrack of a Belgian short film "Vrouwen Willen Trouwen" (Women want to get married).



1993-1994 - The Great Subconscious Club (The Choice)

Sarah's solo single faired well in the Belgian charts, and so when record company Double T Music offered her a contract for a full album, she informed them that she had a brother who was also into music. Although this proposal was received with some skepticism, Gert joined Sarah for a trial acoustic session, and together, they effortlessly managed to win over the DTM management: The Choice was born! In October 1993, their first full CD " The Great Subconscious Club " was presented to the press.



Step by step, The Choice gained a firm foothold in musical circles; in no small part due to Sarah's successful duet with Scots R&B singer Frankie Miller on " Why Don't You Try Me ". The track was a Ry Cooder cover recorded for the soundtrack of Belgian movie " Ad Fundum ". Very quickly, Belgium became too small for the Kapellen-based quintet. In 1994, brother and sister, accompanied by Jan Van Sichem Jr. on guitar, Koen Liekens on drums, and Erik Verheyden on bass, started to cross Europe supporting American band Morphine in France, The Proclaimers in the U.K., and the Indigo Girls in Germany.



In the States too, where the band extended their support slot with the Indigo Girls, success was increasing; to such an extent that U.S. band The Choice claimed they had rights over the name The Choice, and wanted our Belgian songsmiths to change theirs!! So, to avoid confusion (and potential lawsuits!), Sarah and Gert decide to change from "The Choice" to " K's Choice ". The "K" is taken from Jozef K, the key protagonist in Kafka's " The Trial " who ironically, is continually confronted with situations where he has limited choices! The reworked name was the idea of Sarah's husband, and initially received a mixed response, but, after one stern, threatening glare, it was unanimously agreed. (A good book, by the way, for those who read!)



1995-1997 - Paradise in me (K's Choice)

In the Autumn of 1995, " Paradise in Me ", the band's second studio album, was released. The album was heavier and more guitar-orientated than the debut "The Great Subconscious Club". The opening track, " Not an Addict " was released upon the charts in Belgium and Holland, and subsequently in the rest of Europe. By now, K's Choice had become a real band, with regular Jan Van Sichem Jr. on guitar and Dutchman Bart Van der Zeeuw on drums. Only bass players kept coming and going! In May of 1996, K's Choice played at the famous Pinkpop festival in Holland, and a few weeks later, at Rock am Ring in Germany. During those festival performances, they attracted the attention of many superstars. everyone was so impressed by the Flemish band, K's Choice spent nearly a whole year in the States; supporting bands like The Verve Pipe and Tonic.



These support slots included a one-off appearance on the bill at 1997's celebrated Lilith Fair. As a result of this, "Paradise in Me" grabs the Number 1 spot for two consecutive weeks on Billboard's Heatseekers chart. In addition, "Not an Addict" spent nearly 30 weeks on Billboard's "Modern Rock Tracks" chart; peaking at Number 5.



In between the numerous American tours, the band performed in Australia, where "Not an Addict" spent almost 6 months in the chart. They also made a few club appearances in Holland, combined with festivals in Switzerland, Germany and Denmark (Roskilde). In the rare free moments they spent at home in Belgium, Sarah and Gert worked on new songs for their third album, as eager fans (especially in Europe) were yelling for new material!



1998 - 1999 Cocoon Crash

In November 1997, the die was finally cast! Together with producer Gil Norton (Foo Fighters, Counting Crows, The Pixies), Sarah, Gert, Jan, Bart and American Eric Grossman (who had been recruited as the permanent bass player), moved into the ICP studios in Brussels for the recording of their third studio album; "Cocoon Crash". The album was officially released on the 6th of April 1998.



On "Cocoon Crash", K's Choice reaffirm their status as one of the most compelling bands on the contemporary music scene. The album marks the spot were buoyant pop melodies collide with propulsive rock rhythms and vivid, imaginative lyrics. It also captures the grace, emotion and fury of the band's acclaimed live performances. And live performances abounded…



In June of 1998, K's Choice toured the States together with the Lilith Fair gang, then followed that tour with well-received appearances at a number of prestigious European summer festivals such as Pinkpop (NL), Beach Rock (B), Paléo (CH) to name but a few.



The European Cocoon Crash headlining tour, planned for the second half of the year, was postponed until the beginning of 1999 due to Gert's disease (mononucleosis), the group's popularity remaining strong all the while: 70% of the European venues are sold out. After all this, Cocoon Crash made platinum in Belgium and in Holland.



Meanwhile, Bart Van der Zeeuw, K's permanent drummer since the end of '94, was replaced by Koen Lieckens, who joined the group again after a four-year absence.



It is in this configuration that the band joined the Lilith Caravan for the third time in August '99 and toured through more than ten American states together with Sarah McLachlan and Sheryl Crow, among others. The success of Cocoon Crash didn't lose its momentum . . . that same summer even brought the group to Israel as the support act to Garbage.



2000 - Almost Happy

Despite the extensive touring, in 1999 full attention was given to a new album. Gert and Sarah made the most of their "spare" time to write new material. In the Fall of 1999 the producing duo Marshall Bird and Steve Bush (well known for their first-rate work on the latest Stereophonics) were invited to Belgium for the preproduction of the new record that would later bear the name, "Almost Happy".



At the end of 1999 Bird & Bush moved into Peter Gabriel's prestigious Real World Studios in Bath (UK) for 8 weeks to definitively finish off the album. But the recording adventure was blessed with even more luster when none other than Tchad Blake made himself available to mix the album.



However, we're talking about a very busy man. Blake, who previously worked with famed artists such as Crowded House, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, Suzanne Vega, Soul Coughing and Randy Newman, was occupied with the production of the new Pearl Jam, Binaural, throughout that spring. In May, Sarah and Gert finally flew to the Sound Factory Studios in Los Angeles for the finishing touch. As a result, the album release, originally planned for April, was postponed until the fall.



On September the 25th 2000, the fourth studio album of K's Choice, "Almost Happy" was officially released in Europe (the rest of the world will follow later).



The songs on Almost Happy are clearly more evolved in comparison to the previous albums, a development that went hand-in-hand with a stepped decrease in guitar amplification through the different albums. On their fourth album, K's Choice bring mature singer-songwriter compilations that radiate warmth and tendernes with a touch of rock, but not in excess. The album is a very natural musical evolution that every right-minded music enthusiast will surely appreciate and that will undoubtedly sound honest to the ears.