The News Page...
what's happening with the band...
22 December 2019
As some of you may already know, John has left Buckshot after his final gig on 21 December. We want to thank John for all his input and amazing guitar work over the years. Friends for life!
Taking John's place is Han "The Gibson Killer" Ernest. After 17 years Han has returned to the band he started and we are all very pleased with him rejoining Buckshot.
Our first gig with Han will be on 13 March 2020 in Bergeijk. But we need to get practice time in :-)
On behalf of everyone in the band:
Happy holidays and a very good Christmas to all our fans and followers!
We will see you all again in 2020!
Cheers.
Ruud
11 August 2018
2017 came and went. We played some gigs, did our rehearsals like good little boys and polished our setlist. As you do.
And then 2018 came. It started off great with a memorable gig in Deurne on New Year's Day. A promising start indeed. But then disaster struck. Literally. Without going into painful detail, this was the year where Buckshot proved to be a team, a family and a band of brothers. This deeply traumatic period for Hainy and his family has made a huge impact on all of us, but we are committed to carrying on. And we shall. We're getting ourselves back into action. Motivated, inspired, stronger and more united than ever before.
And yes, some gigs are planned for August and November, so we're ready to make the rest of 2018 count. We hope you'll be there too!
Cheers.
Ruud
22 February 2016
A new year, new plans and new gigs. 2016 is going to be a very busy year for the band and we are loving it! Several gigs have already been confirmed, as far ahead as September.
We are still in the process of reworking some of our 'classics' to add the Dennis factor to them. There is also some great new stuff being added to the list.
With the recent sad losses of greats like Lemmy Kilmister, Glen Frey, Scot Weiland and David Bowie planet earth has lost some of its rock gods. All the more reason for us to carry the flame and pay our respect to these inspirational mega stars. Rest in peace Lemmy, Glen, Scott and David and we hope you'll have some great jam sessions with Jimi, John, John, John, Keith and George. Rock lives on and so do their memories!
That's it for now. Be safe, eath healthy and drink lots (of water, that is).
See you from a stage somewhere soon.
Cheers lads and lasses,
Ruud
3 October 2015
Well, well... Have I got news for you! Buckshot is now, again, a 5-piece band. We are proud, and I do mean PROUD, to introduce to you our newest and youngest band member: Dennis. Dennis made his debut as a special guest at Buckshot's tribute to Queen, at the Live Aid In De Kempen festival in August 2015. All of us were impressed with his skills on piano, vocals and percussion, but mostly because he seemed to fit right in. As if he had always been a member of the band... By a strange coincidence, Dennis appeared to feel exactly the same and it took exactly one phonecall to persuade him to join on a permanent basis. Rumour has it that that particular phonecall lasted no more than 5 seconds, but we have some historians looking into that as we speak. So, Buckshot are now planning to rework the setlist, to add some Dennis magic to some of the older stuff. But more importantly, we are excited about being able to include some new and different material to our setlist. Good times are ahead folks! Stay tuned, because there is more to come.
Cheers everyone! 4 April 2015 Right. I can safely say that the update frequency appears to be once every 2 years. I guess that's how it works. But, this update is here for a good reason. "Oh really, why?", I hear you say. Well, Buckshot have been around for 20 years in 2015 and are celebrating that milestone. That's why. Not much else to report for the moment. Stay tuned and definitely check out our Facebook page as that is updated more frequently. These pages suffer from lack of updating. My bad. All the best from the Buckshot camp! 12 April 2013 OK OK, so I skipped 2 years of updates. Terribly sorry about that. But we're still here. 2013 has also started well with some great gigs and more already lining up nicely. As always, I'm gonna leave you with a lie saying that I'll update this page more frequently than before. Rock on my friends, Ruud 25 June 2011 Well, I am not going to try and find an excuse as to why there haven't been any updates on this News page. There simply is no excuse. 1 November 2009 Another 9 months on and I've finally found some time to update the news. Band news, that is.Woohoo! Bring it on. Anyways. 'Nuff said. 26 January 2009 Now then. Where to begin? Happy 2009! All this practicing gave us a real good chance to work on our
setlist, which now includes even more of our favourite songs (Stargazer, to name
but one!). We're looking forward to playing some of them live for your
entertainment. And you actually have a chance to come, see and listen to us in
2009, as we've reeled in some gigs! So check out the gig list and hopefully
we'll see you at one of the gigs. 13 November 2007 It has been 8 months to the day without any
updates on this page. That's just not right for a news page, now is it? It would
be if there was no news, but there is news. Quite a lot of it, actually. So,
without further ado... here's some news for you: We have been working hard on our set list,
which is still a rock cover bag of goodies. And we do keep adding interesting
new old(ish) material to it. Last Saturday (now this is new news) I was
introduced to an English guy called Adrian Jones, who lives in Leiden. Ade (as I
am allowed to call him. I think...) is a great guy and a marvellously creative
guitarist. He has his own band, Lie Big, which is based in England and they have
recorded a fab album with all original material. To find out they are actually
without a drummer, made me even more in awe of this guy's creative mind. The
'drums' on their album are just fantastic! They're all done by Ade and with some
help of a few Gigabytes and Gigahertz's of raw computer power. The man is
my favourite non-drummer. That's it for now. Don't forget to check out
the gig page if you fancy hearing some old fashioned rock classics. 18 March 2007 Another year gone and another started, is it just me or is it
really going that fast? On a more personal note I can break the news that I (Ruud) have
decided to relocate to Almere with my lovely girlfriend Jackie and her wonderful
sons Tom and Lew, starting July 2007. This does NOT mean that I am quitting the
band, so rest assured or be disappointed - which ever applies to you, I will
still be in Buckshot. It's just gonna take longer to get to the rehearsals! Anyway, 'nuff said. Let's get a-rockin' and a-rollin'. 30 August 2006 And it's time again for a well deserved update. It has been a while, so where to start? Oh, I know: let's do a "Questions and Answers". Sound good? Right on then, 'ere it goes.
(Q = the amazingly talented interviewer Quentin. A = the ever popular
Answering machine) Q: How is John getting on? Q: Any plans for gigs or even a long overdue trip to our friends in Devon (England)? Q: Anything else that we should know about, if only to confirm or dismiss
rumours? That concludes the update for this moment. Thanks to Quentin for the prying questions. 11 January 2006 Happy 2006 to all from Buckshot ! The boys are back in town. And they're getting ready to Rock And
Roll ! 8 September 2005 Who are you ?
That's the question. 5 February 2005 Woke up this morning with a wine glass in my hand... Cheers m'dears, 18 September 2004 Is this thing still working ? 8 March 2004 Hello to all of you out there. 31 January 2004 Have I wished everybody a happy New Year yet ? I didn't, did I...
Well, here we go then, better late then never:
28 November 2003 What can I say ? About
time for an update, you say ? Right, let's do that then. 10 August 2003 With the band on summer retreat, there's not much news to report
except for a very sad event that left us all with a sense of loss. 3 May 2003 Yawwwwn.... Is it 2003 yet ? Oh dear, Happy New Year to you
all ! Anyway, been talking for far too long. Time warp
back to days gone by...
All is well and we are working on some gigs. Some are planned, some have already been performed and some are still only early stages. But we'll keep you updated on those.
Cheerio,
Ruud
So, let's look back on 2012 briefly and bring you up to speed:
- We did lots of gigs (proof is on the gig page)
- We worked on an acoustic set, which took us well of our comfort zone (mostly mine) but was a pleasure to do
- We worked on new material - some based on the acoustic set, but also some other surprises (proof is on the song page)
Thanks to our friend Peet, we also have indulged in setting up a Facebook account. Yes, no kidding, you can now follow us and even like us. Wow eh. So please, like us and tell your friends, parents, children, pets and local police to like us too. Eternal gratefulness will be bestowed upon you.
But here's the truth: as long as this page is up and running, then so is Buckshot!
Cheerio
So, what's been going on with the band then?
As usual, we have been rehearsing hard and fruitful. The setlist is still being overhauled and updated, so that keeps us on our musical toes.
We did some really cool gigs as well, which is what keeps us alive and in touch with all of you out there. Most memorable, as far as yours truly is concerned, was the two night stint in May 2011 with the Rabo Proms in Bergeijk. Buckshot were onstage for two songs:
- Child In Time, which was rehearsed and played on special request and was performed with the Bergeijk percussion group "Echo Der Kempen" and
- I Want It All, which was given a special arrangement to suit the 'harmonie orchestra' of Bergeijk , who performed it with us and the "Kloos" choir, also from Bergeijk.
We are currently negotiating a similar, but somewhat smaller Proms performance in Giel's hometown of Liempde.
That would be sometime in March 2012. Yes, we like to plan ahead!
Also in the works are gigs in October and November. More news as it follows.
In the summer (well, according to the calender it is...) we will be hibernating a little bit, because of holiday plans of the guys and some work commitments.
But after the summer, there will be more Buckshot activity again.
Keep an eye on the Gigs page though - you never know when we might squeeze in the odd gig in the summer as well!
All the best and we hope to see you soon!
Cheers,
Ruud
PS: Any suggestions for our website are welcome at ruud@buckshot-rock.nl.
Thank you!
Not that there is a whole lotta news, really. Gigs are few and far between, but there are some lined up.
Work on the setlist continues as usual and there are a few suprises to be found on there. And to be honest, that's about as exciting as it gets.
Well, I could of course mention the fact that with the demise of the DSB bank the band funds have been temporarily frozen as well. Which means that my new 19 piece drumset and my new Aston martin Vanquish are being put on hold. But that would not be very interesting. Although...
See you soon!
Ruud
2008 was really a quiet year, with lots of band practices but hardly any gigs. I
guess we've only got ourselves to blame for that, but I do apologize for the
lack of gigs.
We did manage to change practice locations twice in 2008 though, so it wasn't a
totally wasted year. But that's about as exciting is it gets.
More news is around the corner. Just wait and see.
Cheerio and have a good one!
Ruud
First off, some personal stuff for those interested in what we do off stage,
which is rather more frequent than on stage, I am sad to say.
As mentioned (exactly) 8 months ago, I am now living in Almere with Jackie and
Tom and Lewis. We managed to get our hands on a house in the Rolling
Stonesstraat. It doesn't get any more rock and roll than that, dear reader. I
have looked for a Led Zeppelin street or even a Deep Purple street, but we had
to settle for Rolling Stones. Jimi Hendrix street is just one block away and
Elvis Presley is next door. How cool is that (if you're into Elvis)?
We've been gigging quite regularly lately, which makes a nice change. We're
trying to keep that up.
Ade is undergoing surgery today and we wish him all the best and a speedy full
recovery. Rock on, Ade!
Cheers to all!
Ruud
As the old saying goes: No News Is Good News, so I am not going to apologize for
not reporting back sooner.
The band is growing stronger and stronger in our current line-up. We have done
some memorable gigs over the past few months and our set list is evolving into a
right feast for any rocker!
Most interesting news is the fact that our old band mate Han (The Gibson Killer)
has teamed up with the Mad Cows as their lead guitarist. After a few years of
concentrating on his personal life (getting married, to name but one relevant
fact), he has finally returned to certain rock stardom. Knowing both Han and the
Cows from the past, we are sure they are a match made in heaven and wish them
all the best. Cheers guys!
Cheerio,
Ruud
Q: What has the band been up to these past 7 months since the last update?
A: Practice, practice, practice. But not only that. We have done some really interesting gigs as well, like our Coverdale tribute set on De Kempensessie and a memorable gig at the Harley Davidson Club in Weert.
We have also been adding new songs to our set list and deleted some other songs in the process. Basically we have ditched some of the slower and
more bluesy stuff and the (musically interesting but not very Buckshot-esque) Pink Floyd songs. You could say we have re-invented the hard rocking side of Buckshot.
A: In one word: brilliantly. John has turned out to be the missing link between the rough and rocking edge that our first guitarist Han used to deliver (minus the waving hair) and the more controlled and technically excellent guitar playing of our previous guitarist Jan.
The best thing though is that he has brought a really positive energy to the band. We have never had so many grins and smiles on our faces after having played a new song. Or even songs that have been part of our set for years, for that matter. They all sound fresh, upbeat, rolling and rocking (or was that the other way around?). The band never looked, sounded and felt better - and that is saying something!
A: Yes and yes. We are making plans for some more gigs at the moment. Not confirmed yet but pretty certain are 2 gigs in November and December. The Gig page will keep you up to date.
As far as a visit to England is concerned: we are in the process of making serious plans for a short mini tour, probably early in 2007. More details on the Devon connection as they follow.
A: Well, certainly. Here's the top 3 - in no particular order:
1-
Giel and his wife are the proud parents of a baby girl named Pip
2- Ruud and Jackie are engaged to get married sometime next year
3- Giel has (finally) bought himself a stage monitor of humongous proportions - a nick name for this beast will soon be revealed...
Things are looking bright, very bright indeed.
And with that bit of good news I say thee farewell. For now.
Cheers m'dears,
Ruud
The passed year 2005 started on a happy high as our 10th Anniversary Year as
Buckshot.
Unfortunately it ended somewhat less happy with the unexpected departure of our lead
guitarist JJ (Jan Jansen), who announced his plans to pursue other musical
horizons and left the band.
Those who have seen Buckshot live with JJ know that his shoes are indeed hard
ones to fill. Jan took Buckshot in a somewhat different direction, more melodic
and definitely less heavy. A change of style that was a breath of fresh air and
reinvented the band, in more ways than one.
So with sadness but gratitude for all he meant to Buckshot, we now say goodbye
to JJ and wish him all the best with his current and future musical adventures.
But... not long after Jan's departure, the rest of the band (the inseparable
trio Ruud, Giel and Hainy) set out to find a replacement for JJ. One name had
been on top of our list and to everybody's joy the guy behind the name was
available to come down and have a session with the band. That first session made
an impression on both parties and after a second and LOUD session we all knew
that the new Buckshot had taken physical form.
And so, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, the moment you have been waiting
for. Buckshot proudly present their new guitar wizard:
John "De Sees" Sesink !
Stay tuned. More news will follow. Perhaps even sooner than you think.
Cheers m'dears,
Ruud
We're still Buckshot, is the answer.
And now that that has been cleared up, where have we been these past few months ?
Well, holidays came and went, for one. We managed to do a few gigs just before our collective holiday, during which we tried out some "new" songs (new for the band, not for the listener, unless you were born after 1980 and spent most of your childhood in some cave in Afghanistan wondering what the fuzz was about those beetles from Liverpool).
The new songs take us in directions we didn't go before, more bluesy at times and definitely more melodic. I also like to think that we've improved some of the old arrangements with some more vocal harmonies.
There's also at least one new gig planned (yes, business is slow, too slow... call your local venue and have them book us !), so we're all getting into playing mode again.
And with that thought I'll leave you for now.
Take care, see you on stage soon and keep rocking!
Cheers,
Ruud
Not really, but it sort of sums up the thing that people do when they had a good
time the night before (or so I'm told). Why am I telling you this ? Not just
because I did actually have a good time last night, but really because the band
has been having a good time for 10 years this year !
Yes indeed, Buckshot has been playing (music, dear reader, I am referring to
music) for 10 years. Shocked ? Surprised ? I certainly am ! And our tenth year
together is already starting well, with gigs lined up for March and April. So it
looks like a good year.
Buckshot has grown up, but is still only 10 years old. Remember when you were 10
? Wasn't that fun ? Exactly. Ever had a proper 10 year old Scotch ? Exactly.
Celebrate with us and we'll celebrate with you.
Come and see the show.
Ruud
It's been a long time, indeed. Since the last time we spoke the band has done
its summer recess thing, finished work on the demo (sort of) and has been in and
out of the practice room working on some old and new stuff. With the summer out
of the way - and what a lousy summer it was - we are ready for gigs, drinks and
all the other things that seem like a good idea when the band is together.
I'll leave you with that thought and the fact that we are actually working on
some gigs.
Be good and take care,
Ruud
We are still coming down from our high after the support gig for Living Colour
on Saturday ! What can I say ?
Did we play better than ever ? No.
Did we dress up funny ? No. (apart from Giel... but then again, doesn't he
always wear that shirt ?)
Did we drink farrrrrrrrr too much ? No.
Did we have a good time ? Yes !
It was a very inspirational gig, at least for me. We had a great time on stage
and off, seeing so many people enjoying the show. Special credit goes to the
middle half of SQY, who graced us with their presence that evening. Cheers mates
and thanks for coming, we appreciated it.
Another, albeit smaller, novelty is the fact that we now have our very own
www.buckshot-rock.nl domain. And we
have thrown in a new email address for good measure as well:
info@buckshot-rock.nl. So, for all
those burning questions, fan mail, hate mail, blackmail and bakmeel: you know
where to send them to.
Also worth mentioning is the fact that we are recording some of our songs during
band practices. Jan is in charge of the main mixing duties and is doing a fine
job at it too. Sooner or later these recordings will find their way onto tape,
CD or MP3. But not until we feel they represent Buckshot the way we want it to.
We are already trying to get Ronnie James Dio to sing some backing vocals, Ian
Paice to play a few drum fills, Jimmy Page to do some guitar overdubs and are
considering Doug Wimbish for some additional bass wizardry. Ahem, one can always
dream...
Anyway, better dream on a bit more and say cheerio to you all for now.
See you soon, sometime, somewhere, somehow.
Until then, take care,
Ruud
Happy New Year to all you Buckshot followers out there ! Glad you're still
reading these news flashes, no matter how few there are lately.
The band has survived the turkey and red wine and Christmas puddings and we are
back in the practice room. We don't get out of there much, it seems ! Apart from
the odd gig we have been streamlining and adjusting the set lists and have some
really interesting new additions to that list. And really, we can't wait to get
out there again and play. At the moment we are working on getting some gigs
going, as we all feel we have been away from the stage far too long.
So, that's the only news at the moment. Hey, better than nothing, isn't it ?
See you all soon, somewhere in a smoky pub,
Take care for now,
Cheers,
Ruud
First of all I want to apologize for the lack of raving news these past few
months (months, is it ? Gawd, how time flies), but things have actually happened
that were worth mentioning. Put it down to laziness on my part. I'm allowed, I'm
the friggin' webmaster, aren't I ?
Anyway. After our little summer retreat, which didn't last 3 and a half months
(honestly), we did some gigs, worked on our song list and generally had a good
time. Of the gigs, the one worth mentioning most must be the SQY celebration
gig. Not so much because of what we did as Buckshot, but more because of what a
fabulous evening it was. It was great to see bands like Kalamazoo, Mad Cows
(give me cow, anytime !) and of course SQY themselves. But most of all it was a
night that I'll remember for a long time, because one of our good friends from
UK-based band Contraband Six was nearly electrocuted on stage. Shocking, as we
all said ! Such a shame, because the Contrabandits had come all this way from
Devon to play their first-ever gig in Holland and it all ended after about 2
songs, when Lou (their lead guitarist) suddenly fell flat down on the floor ! At
first we thought it was a cool stage-act, but quickly realized there was
something not quite right. It all ended well and Lou is fine now, although he
made a nasty tumble and hurt his ribs as he fell. On behalf of Buckshot we'd
like to wish Lou a quick recovery and hope to see them back in Holland soon.
Other than that word has it that Buckshot will, finally, record some songs for
posterity. I'll keep you posted.
And there you have it... news, as news should be.
See you later, lads and lasses !
Take care and cheers m'dears,
Ruud
On the 20th of July Giel's dad, Johan, suffered a fatal cardiac arrest whilst
being on holiday with his family.
I would like to quote a sentence from the obituary that says it all:
"On a beautiful day in July an even more beautiful person has left us..."
Johan was a regular visitor of Buckshot gigs whenever we played in or around
Bergeijk and was a very generous and genuinely nice man. Our sympathies are with
Giel and his family.
See you after the summer holidays !
Take care,
Ruud
Waking up from hibernation, you ask ? Not really, I say.
As I stated on this 'ere page earlier, I (still the drummer) have
been away to the UK for 3 months and have kept
in close contact with the other guys over that period of time.
Being back in Holland for me means getting back
into the swing of things, which in turn means rejoining the band
for "phase 3" in our career.
Whilst being away the other guys, mainly Jan en Giel, have been
working their fingers to the bone to get together some
acoustic renditions of classic rock songs and have even burnt a
limited amount of "home grown" CD's to hand out
to some of our dearest friends and fans of the band. Needless to
say I got one too, yippee !
On the personal front there is news to report as well. Most notably
the birth of Hainy and Ingrid's second baby, a girl
named Robin. The band welcome the little Tils in our midst and hope
to see her at some of our gigs in the (near ?) future :-)
Band news ? Yes we have some of that as well.
Very recently we have decided to keep Buckshot a proper 4-piece
band, which means we had to part onstage company with
our very good friend and trusted band mate Ramon. A decision that
wasn't easy to make, but we all agreed it would be
in the band's best interest. Ramon will perform with the band one
more time on the 30th of May, when we will playing in
Ramon's hometown of Bergeijk.
During my stay in England I was lucky enough to able to attend
gigs by ContraBand Six, Deep
Blue Reason and even SQY.
SQY were there for their annual tour of the Southwest and I had a
chance to talk to the guys... in DUTCH ! (Geweldig).
They were supported on some of their gigs by our friends from what
used to be Duckshot, who now go by the name of Contraband Six.
With a new drummer in the ranks and a new band name these guys have gone
through, and I quote the famous Thingfish, "A Massive
Improve'lence".
Better say cheers, m'dears !
Until the next time,
Ruud