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Feb 03, 2022 By Caleb Campbell

Over the past few years, Amsterdam-based indie rock outfit Personal Trainer have been building their reputation as an unpredictable live act. The band’s live shows can see anywhere from three to twelve members take the stage, a constantly shifting lineup backing multi-instrumentalist Willem Smit. Though the band started as a tribute to Amsterdam’s thriving indie scene, they began capturing their electric energy on record with 2021’s debut EP, ‘Gazebo.’ The band are now following the release up with their first release of 2022, “Key of Ego.”

“Key of Ego” is a triumph of creative soundcraft, knitting together samples, studio trickery, and towering hooks. It’s rare to find a band that feels this original, in no small part thanks to the ever-shifting lineup of creative voices at play. Smit and company pulls in post punk-tinged basslines, shouted gang vocals, warbling synth tones, horn sections, and even a orchestral Bach sample. The result is a high-wire balancing act of sounds and aesthetics, one with a contagious allure. It’s easy to see why the band are such a reputed live force.

Smit says of the new single, “I would rather see myself as a question-type-of-guy than an answer-type-of-guy. For me, that translates to being a vague-gesture-type-of-writer. Which I like, but can get really insecure about. I’m not too sure what ‘Key Of Ego’ is about yet, but I think it has something to do with masculinity, machismo, and shame.

Like most PT songs, Casper [van der Lans] and I worked from a demo I had been working on for a while. We started the recording process by traveling to the Dutch town of Culemborg, where we had Leon Harms (of Yuko Yuko, Korfbal, Canshaker Pi and Real Farmer fame) bang the drums at 120 beats per minute. Back in Amsterdam I slowed the beat down by 20 bpm and added a whole bunch of sounds on top with Casper.

We messed around a lot and the moments when something actually worked always brought forth this fun energy that I hope we’ve captured for all to hear in the final song.”

Check out the song below. The band have also announced new shows in the Netherlands and UK this year.

Catch Personal Trainer on the following dates:

TOUR DATES

2/11 Rotterdam - Rotown

2/16 Utrecht - Ekko

2/17 Nijmegen - Merleyn

3/2 Amsterdam - Paradiso Noord

5/4 Manchester - Yes Basement

5/5 Leeds - Hyde Park Book Club

5/6 Newcastle - Head Of Steam

5/7 Edinburgh - Sneaky Pete’s

5/8 Glasgow - Broadcast

5/10 Nottingham - Rough Trade

5/17 London - Moth Club