St. Tropez

What’s the deal with St. Tropez? There’s four of them. They claim to reside in Amsterdam, converting a gay sauna into a recording studio for their debut EP. But in a flash of brilliance, they got Spring King’s Tarek Musa on board to record their first work and here they are, blasting through the fog with a mind-melting hit of adrenaline. Nobody knows anything else beyond the music, which should probably carry a hazard warning in itself.

Led by the anti-sentiment ‘I Don’t Want To Fall In Love’, EP - streaming below on DIY - clatters its way through fifteen breakneck minutes. Every word or cutting phrase is thrown out in a fit of frustration, dosed up on UK punk staples and managing to go beyond the Dutch rock ’n roll rep.

Out of the canal, the band arrive in the UK next month for their first UK shows. Catch St. Tropez at London’s Old Blue Last (10th February) and Brighton’s Green Door Store (11th February).

Listen to ‘EP’ in full below. - Jamie Milton

'The only information obatinable on St. Tropez is that they are „Four guys making garage punk in a fromer gay sauna by the canals of Amsterdam”. Their music speaks volumes, though, as can be heard in the adrenaline-fuelled gusto of their track I Don’t wanna fall in Love.' - Matt Wilkinson

Amsterdam group push the limits of showy, invigorated rock ’n roll, without dishing out clichés.

Posted on 23rd August 2016

On first glance, Amsterdam four-piece St. Tropez rely on old rock ’n roll tropes, habitual leather jackets and showy guitar solos. Peer closer and they’re creating a more refined, hellraising version of what their heroes believe in.

The group’s self-titled debut album is a blueprint for any kids picking up their first guitar. These songs are free-spirited and stupidly fun, but they’re also tightly-constructed, accomplished to a T.

We’re delighted to be streaming the debut album in full. Check out our interview with the band below, while you’re at it.

St. Tropez play London’s Shacklewell Arms tomorrow night, Wednesday 24th August. Details here.

Pre-order St. Tropez’s debut album here - it’s out Friday 26th August.


What was the aim of St. Tropez when you started the project? To make in-your-face, addictive rock ’n roll?
The aim of starting St. Tropez is to make the music that we love. Sometimes that’s straight in-your-face yachtpunk songs, sometimes that’s too long guitar solos, sometimes by experimenting and pushing the boundaries of the classic ‘pop song’ structure.

Why St. Tropez? What’s your relationship with Southern France?
For us it’s more about the contradiction of garagepunk and St. Tropez. The rawness and idealism of punk rock and the million dollar yachts and beau monde of the French Riviera. I guess we’re just kind of fascinated by this contradiction, and we like to play with it too: just like we try to put lots of unexpected plot twists in our music. Actually only one of us has ever really been in St. Tropez, and he told us it’s quiet a picturesque town too.

When did you start making the full-length, and what did you discover while making it?
We recorded and produced our debut album ourselves in our studio in Amsterdam. In the process of recording we had a lot of fun, we had all the time in the world to treat each song properly. Sometimes it would take only a day to record a song, sometimes we would work on a song for 3 months. We try to be as less dogmatic as possible: everything is possible in our studio, analogue/computer live/ or not, and also we love those authentic little faults in music. Later we send half of the songs to Tarek Musa (Spring King) and the other half to Rob Schnapf (Beck, Fidlar, The Garden), to mix them. They both added a whole new level to the music. We’re extremely proud to have worked with them on this record.

If you can’t buy a place in St. Tropez, where else do you wanna live?
We’re saving for a yacht. - Jamie Milton

Whether you’re slap-drumming your steering wheel as you sit in gridlock traffic, or firing back Jameson shots as you prep for an epic night out on the town, “Which Side Are You On” will provide you with the perfect, grungy accompaniment. It’s a short ride, but, it’s one hell of a ride, none the less.

This might be the first time you’re hearing of Amsterdam-based St. Tropez, which is totally ok. They’re on the come-up, which means you have the rare opportunity to out-hipster your friends this weekend. Just know one thing – even though they bear the same name as the beachy, Provincial French beach town, their tunes certainly aren’t for unwinding with a nice bottle of rosé as you watch the waves roll in. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

“Which Side Are You On” is a beautiful blend of multiple decades, including catchy-as-hell, anthemic punk from the 80’s, and crunchy, guitar-centric alt-rock from current acts like Tame Impala or Eagles of Death Metal. Complete with an inviting opening riff, powerful chords, a wicked solo, and a sing-along chorus, it should have you chanting along after one spin through. Just remember one thing – try to keep the singing to a dull whisper until you’re in a safe space to start belting it out.

If you happen to be one of our European readers, we highly recommend catching them at The Shacklewell Arms in London, on August 24th, or at OT301 in Amsterdam on August 26th. If you’re anywhere else in the world, well, you’re going to have to wait a while, just like us. - Clayton Warwick

The new track from St. Tropez, “Which Side Are You On,” is a thick, groovy, head-banging smash. There’s a Jack White meets Tame Impala meets Muse vibe going on in there and that’s a relationship I definitely want to be a part of. Following the last two releases “I Wanna Live in St. Tropez” and “Order” this band and their self proclaimed YachtPunk sound are exactly the kind of energized rock the world needs right now. Mixed by Grammy Award winning producer Rob Schnapf (Beck, Fidlar, Kurt Vile) the Dutch quartet have certainly got the fixings to become the next big thing in punk music.

The more I listened to “Which Side Are You On” the more I wanted to conceptualize some sort of drug induced dream forest dance party with colorful trees and shadows that morph into groupies. The song has a dangerous hypnotism to it that in weaving the echo effect throughout the track is emphasized, effortlessly morphing with the gritty guitar. The tune concludes on an electric note that I can only imagine is an absolute banger at live shows.

“Which Side Are You On” was just released on Friday and is now available for streaming and purchase on iTunes and Spotify. St. Tropez’s debut album is set to drop on August 26th and the band is celebrating with launch shows at The Shackwell Arms in London on the 24th and OT301 in their hometown of Amsterdam on the 26th! - Kelly Nice