press kit
bound by this - ep
Released February 24, 2023
All songs written by Hannah Hoffman
Synths & Vocals by Hannah Hoffman
Guitars & Bass by Graham Brooks
Drums by Bruce Black
Additional synths by Mikey Allred
Recorded, Mixed & Mastered by Mikey Allred of Dark Art Audio
Produced by Mikey Allred, Graham Brooks & Hannah Hoffman
social media links
bio
Dutch Experts was born out of the Covid Pandemic amidst the crumbling of societal infrastructure. This destruction mirrored singer/songwriter Hannah Hoffman’s own experiences during lockdown. Turning one of her lowest and most challenging points into a revisitation of her approach to sound, Hoffman began experimenting with layering synths and electronic drum beats in Garageband, creating a sonic landscape that bore the fruits of Dutch Experts and the creation of a debut EP, ‘Bound by This’. Inspired by her personal challenges, the gothic landscape of The Cure, and melodic choices informed by Kate Bush and Cocteau Twins, Hoffman locked into a sound that became uniquely modern yet captured an 80s sonic sensibility: synth pop with a darkwave edge. Recorded, mixed & mastered by Mikey Allred (All Them Witches, Inter Arma), Dutch Experts' debut EP, 'Bound By This' released on February 24, 2023, available both digitally and on vinyl.
First appearing officially at Waking Windows Festival in Winooski, VT in 2022, Dutch Experts was on the bill with Dinosaur Jr, Japanese Breakfast and Dry Cleaning to name a few. Dutch Experts has opened for Circuit Des Yeux (Matador) on their “-io-” tour, and shared the stage with everyone from Troller (Relapse) and Madeline Goldstein (à La Carte), to SASAMI (Domino) and Vision Video. Currently in the process of writing a full-length album, Dutch Experts draws inspiration from excavating through darkness to find the light.
Seven Days says, “Hoffman is world-building, and the atmosphere she's cultivated is at once retro and speculative, bringing sonic comfort and uneasy emotional possibility to the same songs…this EP makes me feel as if I'm on the cusp of a vast universe, and as the Vermont music scene reemerges post-pandemic, I'm excited to see Hoffman making a fresh home within it.”
Dutch Experts is FFO:
Kate Bush
The Cure
Cocteau Twins
Drab Majesty
press / reviews
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White Light // White Heat:
" A nostalgic bittersweet exploration blends organic chunky bassline throbs, Numan-esque warped icy bright synth melodies, minimal guitar effects, and heavy pounding drum beats into a vibrant immersive reverie around a beautifully dreamy, emotional vocal atmosphere, drawing angst and longing from a shadowy realm of misunderstood bondage and dread. "
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A&R FActory:
“ ‘Bound by This’ from the Vermont-born indie pop dark synthpop act Dutch Experts is possibly one of the most cinematic soundscapes possible in our lifetime. This is an ear-filling track which will take all minds into a rather illuminating space that shall shake all cores into a much better place. When you know when to break free, the next step will present itself. ”
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Post-Punk-Online:
“ ‘Bound By This’ is a captivating journey through ego death, confronting internalized trauma and inherited behaviors, and ultimately learning the act of self-love. With Dutch Experts’ debut EP, Hannah Hoffman proves herself to be a rising force of nature. “
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Seven Days
Best VT Music 2023
Dutch Experts - Best Single, ‘Morrígu’ -
OFFSHELF.NET:
“There are those artists that play with the sounds of the dark pop spectrum, yet lyrically inhabit a vastly dissimilar port of call. Dutch Experts have pried open the gates to a sensual, bleak, feminine statement in “Bound By This”. Binding her love of Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, and Tori Amos with an ear for arena sized synth perfection, Hannah has compiled four deeply effective, separate and singular musical statements. The obsidian and syncopated rhythms of “Your Heart” and “Morrigu” serve as walls of despair that are haunted by a cautiously hopeful chanteuse. In a certain light, these songs would not seem out of place on the dance floor of London’s The Batcave, yet their sheer expanses of pop prowess would also find them at home on a Baroque top 40 radio station. Opposing forces create diamonds, and “Bound By This” is that precious stone.”