The Dutch from The Analogues did not wait for the release of Now and Then, a new single aided by the Beatles’ artificial intelligence to pay homage to the repertoire of the best group in the history of pop and rock.
While dozens of groups have fun aping the Fab Four by imitating each of their facial expressions and striving to resemble them, these musicians concentrate on the sound and arrangements of John, Paul, George and Ringo. By choosing to play the group’s late repertoire, that after the tours, they did not take the easy route.
Conceived in the studio over long hours, adding instrumental and vocal layers, the Beatles set the bar very high. They themselves have never had to play these complex pieces. Bart Van Poppel, 67, founder of The Analogues, is himself a multi-instrumentalist (bass, guitar, keyboards, percussion, vocals). “We have the particularity of only using material from the Beatles era,” he says. For fifteen years this sound fetishist has been accumulating pieces that have become rarities over the years. “We just found a rosewood Telecaster from the same series as George’s, in Italy,” she exclaims, pointing to the instrument. “We buy a lot of instruments from the United States and Germany. It took us fifteen years to put together the necessary instrumentarium. And it’s not over.”
The microphones are identical to those of the concert given in January 1969 on the roof of the group’s London HQ. This is why the sound produced by The Analogues, up to 16 of them on stage, is so close to that of the Beatles albums. On the most demanding pieces like I am The Walrus, Glass Onion or Savoy Truffle, it is even disturbing.
In the absence of records of the arrangements, the musicians had to reproduce them relying solely on their ears, often by trial and error. Active for around ten years, The Analogues give between 80 and 100 concerts per year. A great success while the competition is fierce. “I went to see the Fab Four, but it’s not the same: they use synthesizers,” explains the leader of the Analogues. A heresy! Sometimes the group plays some of the English group’s late albums (Sgt Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour, The White Album or Abbey Road) in their entirety.
Other times, as in the two concerts they give at the Salle Pleyel, they make a selection of titles from the period 1966-1970. “The Beatles stopped giving concerts in 1966 because they could not reproduce their pieces on stage. But nothing stops us, not even the most complex titles,” concludes Bart Von Poppel with a broad smile.
