Bradley's Circus

Isn't this that more than praise worthy band that I saw a year or so ago somewhere in the Northern-Brabant region doing a support act for David ' Honeyboy' Edwards? A picture of the seasoned blueslegend sided by Lidewij Veenhuis on their Internet site confirms my suspicion. The bluesharpist was in excellent form the night in question, but also on Bradley' s Circus' first official studio album her varied musical escapades slide by the sound spectrum in a prominent pleasurable manner. The equally ravishing lead singer Mattanja Joy Bradley, whose Circus further concists of gitarist/singer Jimmy The Lounge, upright bass player Toine Stout and drummer Beewee Nederkoorn, covers a wide range with her voice easily adapting to the non-conformist approach of the roots disciplines that travel by in the form of eleven original pieces. From a solidly distorted boogie such as Tomboy Boogie to the shimmering slow blues Shelter Me, or the languishing soul ballad Searching which balances its influences between Otis Redding and Van Morrison, whereas Sad Sad Song is a striking tribute to the ever all mighty Howlin' Wolf. The cd's opening track Deal is one full of lust and moist and also titel track of a movie which had its premiere in Dutch cinemas last month. Wheather that's going to take off we can't yet say. On the basis of this titillating debut we predict a golden future for Bradley' s Circus. MARCEL HAERKENS


- OOR (musicmagazine)

18 mrt 2008, 07:58 - My first guess was that I was dealing with an obscure American band, but a closer look at the cover of the cd Shotgun Bunny and Bradley' s Circus' Internet site learns that we nevertheless really are dealing with a Dutch band. From Tilburg even! On Shotgun Bunny, Bradley' s Circus portrays a contagious mixture of blues, country music, rock' n-roll and rockabilly. Strongest trump card of the band is singer Mattanja Joy Bradley who holds the perfect voice to interpret American genres of this type. Mattanja Joy is accompanied by a couple of first-rate bandmembers. Most striking bandmember is Lidewij Veenhuis on harmonica and drums. The band's own compositions are of a very good quality and somewhat contagious. The band has already established a considerable live-reputation. The record shows a well anticipated fellowship with lots of musical potential.
Very nice record!

- Label: Lizzy record Wim van Leest
- De STEM

In my cd-player I have the first studio album of Bradley' s Circus, a band which has been high on my "must go and see live"-list for quite a some time now. So far, I heard and read many goor reviews of this Tilburg-based band but, to witness a live gig by this gang hasn't happened yet, unfortunately. First have a closer look at the cd, then. I must confess that I did not really know what to expect and thus I was pleasantly surprised with what is was swung around the ears with. It's always more difficult for female vocals to convince me than for their male counterparts, but Mattanja Joy Bradley's firm and somewhat mischievous voice takes away any doubt instantly. In the first song her voice reminds me for a moment of a young Mathilde Santing and also further on the album she displays great diversity and passion whilst singing her songs. And that's one thing I do like. Show me what you,ve got! Also surprising, is that gitarist Jimmy The Lounge signs up for the lead vocals in a number of songs. Perhaps not as intense as Ms Bradley, however, in ' Searching' he sings with a lot of soul and convincing, supported by harmonious backing vocals and Lidewij Veenhuis' beautiful work on the bluesharp. Boldly the band bangs in a tribute to Howlin' Wolf with ' Sad Sad Song', for which bass player Toine Stout and drummer BeeWee Nederkoorn lay down a solid driving force. The complete cd has pleasant ' freshnessover all that works contagiously. No complicated fuss or superfluous fidling, surprisingly simple now and then, but oh, so very effective. What's causing it is the choice of tracks, the variation in styles (bluesrockandrollabillyroots), the openness in production, the bandmembers'performance, it's all nicely to listen to. It is all just present in the band, the cd matches the Internet site as well as the artwork on the cover; impertinent, funny, well looked after and generally constructed in a well-considered manner. It is complete picture that makes this cd so enjoyable. Meanwhile, the disc has been in various cd-players (in the trailer, the car, loeihard in the living room, on the head-set) for a number of days now and each time is the impact the same: this music makes me feel good and I continue pressing the play button! And I must review for more album, darned!! Any comments then, Janssen? Yeah sure, 45 minutes are too short and my youngest scion anxiously bolted away from the satanic laughter at the very end of the cd (which was in itself very funny to see).
Splendid record! --
- The Bluesman

When Bradley' s Circus enters the stage the party starts: it so happens that this 5-headed group (of which 2 women) have a gift. With their sympathetic and lively charisma they succeed to create a pleasant atmosphere instantly even in the most disconsolate surroundings. Book them as support act of Dries Roelvink and I bet that even then the evening turns out to be a success. On stage here are 5 totally different personalities who share a passion for music. With a stylish but loose stage act the tone is immediately set out, and with their enthusiasm and lovely retro blues they get the crowd up dancing in no-time. The CD was released one month ago and has been received extremely well, and they took care of the titel track of the Dutch action film Deal which, according to the expectations, will be launched in a couple of months from now (for which, by the way, some takes have been shot in "our" T-bar). In short: Bradley' s Circus are on the way up and could very well become the Dutch surprise of 2008. They are quite welcome to it, we really enjoyed ourselves in Wernhout. - Wernhout