Krezip began as a four-piece outfit in 1997, in Tilburg, The Netherlands, consisting of Jacqueline Govaert on vocals, Anne Govaert and Annelies Kuijsters on guitar and Joost van Haaren on bass. Though these four formed the core of the band, they found it difficult to get a fitting permanent drummer. During one of their early shows, Thijs Romeijn was in the audience, and was so impressed by the band's energy that he approached them after the show to commend them. During the conversation, it turned out that Romeijn was a drummer himself, and he quickly became the band's permanent drummer.
Throughout 1998, Krezip, armed with two demo tapes, played many festivals throughout the country, such as Festival Mundial, Noorderslag, and Lowlands. Studies and age became a sticking point to accept big offers in the music world. In 1999, they released an independent EP, titled Run Around.
Nothing Less (2000 - 2001)
Reportedly, the band soon received numerous offers from record companies. In 2000, they signed with Warner Music and recorded their debut album, "Nothing Less", with producer Oscar Holleman. Their first single, "Won't Cry", did little to advance their career. The band gained more exposure after a show at Dutch festival Pinkpop, with the ballad "I Would Stay" being received exceptionally well. Accordingly, the song was released as their second single, featuring a video compiled from footage of the Pinkpop show. "I Would Stay" became a #1 hit in Belgium and #2 in the Netherlands. It was the #1 song of 2000 in Belgium.
"Nothing Less" debuted at #1 in both the Netherlands and Belgium, going 3x platinum in the Netherlands (210,000 copies sold with a total of 250,000 albums sold[2]). Despite this, the two other singles from the album, "All Unsaid" and "Everything And More", failed to chart. Among others, Krezip received a 2001 Edison Award (the Dutch equivalent of the Grammy Awards).
The band toured continuously on the album, though towards the end of the tour, problems began to arise. Jacqueline Govaert began to lose her voice, while Annelies Kuijsters experienced severe pains in her hand that stopped her from playing shows without painkillers. After the tour, Govaert needed an operation on her vocal cords, while Kuijsters was diagnosed as simply not being "made" to play guitar. The band decided to go with an unorthodox solution for this problem, and moved her to a keyboard position instead. The empty guitar position was filled by Thomas Holthuis.
Days Like This (2002 - 2003)
Despite a delay due to writer's block, the band released Days Like This, the follow-up to Nothing Less, in 2002. The album was certified gold (35,000 copies) later that year, and though the album was not as successful as its predecessor, the album had several successful singles; "You Can Say" (#18), "Promise" (#16), and "Mine". Despite this success, Jacqueline Govaert has expressed disdain for some of the songs, implying that the album was too serious for Krezip, and critisizing her own singing.
A club tour supported the album through The Netherlands, including unplugged performances in theaters. A performance for The Box program Pure was recorded live and brought out on DVD and CD called "That'll Be Unplugged". The band liked the unplugged shows at first, but over time, decided to keep with rock music. Krezip also spent time promoting the album in Germany. They did two tours through the country and they were the supporting act for Bon Jovi in the Netherlands. They also were the supporting act for Sheryl Crow during her tour through Germany and France.
In 2003, guitarist Thomas Holthuis decided to leave the band to live with his girlfriend in Berlin, citing musical differences. He was replaced by JanPeter Hoekstra.
Release from record label and What Are You Waiting For?
While the band wrote new songs, Warner Music forced Warner Music Benelux to drop all of their national artists, including Krezip. The band independently released "All I'm Asking For", available on their website for 99 cents.
After their departure at Warner, Krezip received many offers from other record labels. After careful deliberation, they chose to sign with Sony BMG. In a speech during the 2004 TMF Awards, Krezip thanked their old label for everything that they had done. The band flew to Los Angeles to collaborate with American producer couple Wizardz of Oz, writing most of their new album there. Drummer Thijs Romeijn became demotivated and found himself unable to play the new songs due to not practising. Eventually, the band decided not to move on with Thijs. The new drummer was Bram van den Berg, who was originally only hired to play on the album, but decided to stay.
On May 9, 2005 Krezip released "What Are You Waiting For?". The album debuted at #1 in the Dutch Album Top 100 and stayed in the chart for 27 weeks. Three singles were released with "Out Of My Bed" as the first. It peaked at #9, making it Krezip's second top 10 hit since "I Would Stay" (2000). Two other singles, "Don't Crush Me" (#22) and the ballad "I Apologize" (#30), failed to make it into the top 20.
In early 2005 Krezip traveled to Ethiopia at the request of charity foundation Novib for an education campaign. The journey was recorded and shown on the Dutch version of MTV. The band also went on tour through Benelux, selling out 15 big venues.
The song "Same Mistake" was used in the Dutch movie Schnitzel Paradise (Het Schnitzelparadijs), which became a huge hit in the Netherlands. The band later noted that, ironically, Same Mistake is the only Krezip song that has never been played live.
In 2006, Jacqueline joined several artists in the Netherlands to record the anthem for the 2006 TMF Awards. The song was performed live during the award show. The single became available for download to support the foundation Dance 4 Life. The song peaked at #4 on downloads alone.
Plug It In (2006 - 2007)
In 2007, the band teamed up with Felix Rodriguez and Jesper Anderberg of The Sounds to record a new album. The band deliberately chose a drastically different sound, with disco influences and more electronica. The album was recorded in two weeks. On May 11, 2007 Krezip released "Plug It In". On February 6, 2007 a Dutch radio station (3FM) played a rough version of the first single, "Plug It In & Turn Me On". The song officially debuted in April 2007 at the #39 spot on the Dutch Top 40. To promote the new album, Krezip has done a promotional tour through the Netherlands.
Ten-year anniversary and break-up (2007 - 2009)
On August 17, 2007 Jacqueline announced on Giel Beelen's radio show that Krezip will give a special concert on December 29, 2007 in the HMH to celebrate their tenth anniversary. A documentary was also filmed, showcasing the band's entire career up until that point with narration by the band members. The band also recorded a cover of "Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime" by The Korgis. The song was featured in the film "Alles is liefde." Later that year, the band re-released Plug It In with the track, a new song and a number of live tracks from the HMH concert.
The band continued to tour, eventually announcing that a Best Of-compilation would be released in November 2008. It was implied that the band thought this a good point to release a retrospective. On October 2, however, the band announced in Giel Beelen's radio show that they had decided to break up. On the band's Hyves account, they elaborated that now, at their peak, was a good time for them to quit and go their own ways.
Lead singer Jaqueline Govaert has hinted she might be pursuing a solo career in the future.
Come back (2019)
On January 29, 2019, Krezip announced two live shows: Pinkpop and a gig in the Ziggo Dome on October 26, 2019. They also released a new song Lost Without You. The night of their first Ziggo Dome show, the released a new album, "Sweet High". They have several shows planned in full formation for 2020.
Lost Without You
Krezip Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I love you more now than I ever did before
For the bitter, and the sweet, and through these weary times
And I've never thought of letting you go
I've never, ever thought of letting you go
I'd be lost without you
You're someone to fight for
Someone to die for
Oh, look at us now
I'd be lost without you
You're someone to care for
Someone to be there for
Oh, look at us now
We will make it through, somehow
We will make it through, somehow
I know you're scared
And there's a million things to worry 'bout
I know you're tired
You're afraid of what you'll dream
And you can yell at me, be mad at me, just cry it out
I've never thought of letting you go
No, I've never thought of letting you go
I'd be lost without you
You're someone to fight for
Someone to die for
Oh, look at us now
I'd be lost without you
You're someone to care for
Someone to be there for
Oh, look at us now
We will make it through, somehow
We will make it through, somehow
Just let me hold your hand through night and day
And I will kiss your every fear away
Now listen closely to these words I say
I've never thought of letting you go
No, I've never thought of letting you go
I'd be lost without you
You're someone to fight for
Someone to die for
Oh, look at us now
Lost without you
You're someone to care for
Someone to be there for
Oh, look at us now
I'd be lost without you
You're someone to fight for
Someone to die for
Look at us now
We will make it through, somehow
We will make it through, somehow
We will make it through, somehow
The song "You Can Say" by Krezip is about embracing and owning your inner truth and letting it come to light. The lyrics presented in this song encourage the listener to let themselves go, to be true to who they are and to stop pretending to be someone else. The song starts with the invitation to let go and allow yourself to slide into a more authentic version of yourself. The pre-chorus tells the listener that they have the power to make their day and that they should give it their all because that's who they are. The chorus drives home the message that it's time to stop pretending and start speaking your truth.
The second verse continues the theme of the first verse and tells the listener that it's time to justify and rectify their true selves. The listener is encouraged to let it all begin, to take ownership of their lives, and their authenticity. The bridge reveals that the journey hasn't been easy, and the listener has had to sacrifice a lot to get to this point. Despite the difficulties, they are still in control and have come a long way. The song ends with a final call to let go and make it feel right, as the chorus returns to remind the listener that they have the power to say what they want.
Overall, this song is a powerful anthem that encourages people to embrace who they are wholly and without apology. It tells us that we should be proud of our experiences and use them to shape our identity. It's a message that is empowering and inspiring, and reminds us that we should never be afraid to speak our truth.
Line by Line Meaning
Come on let yourself slide
Let yourself relax and lose control
Come on take it tonight
Enjoy the moment and take action
You made it real
You made the experience authentic and meaningful
Make your day if I can
If possible, I want to brighten your day
Give it all cause I am
I will give my all because that's who I am
Chorus
The main chorus repeats the message that it's time to be honest and not pretend anymore
You can say, you can say
You have the freedom to speak your truth
Just say what you want
Don't hold back, say whatever is on your mind
'Cause we can't pretend no more
We can't live a fake life or hold back our feelings
There we go
This is us being real and honest
Can't hide myself away inside my fears
I can't keep holding back because of fear
So now let it begin
Let's start being truthful and honest with each other
Take it all if I win
I will accept the consequences if I succeed
Time to justify
It's time to explain and make things right
Time to rectify
It's time to fix the mistakes and do better
So let it come
Let life unfold naturally
It made me sacrifice some more
I had to give up some things to get where I am
I know you're watching me real close
I know I have people who believe in me and are rooting for me
'Cause I've come pretty far
I've made progress and achieved some success
I tried to run but
I attempted to escape my problems
It kicked me back just where it could
But life had other plans and put me back where I belonged
Got sick of all that comes before
I grew tired of my past and wanted to move on
...I've come quite far
Overall, I've made significant progress and growth
Come on let yourself slide
Once again, let yourself relax and not stress
Come one make it feel right
Make whatever you're doing feel authentic and genuine
Chorus
The main chorus repeats the message that it's time to be honest and not pretend anymore
You can say, you can say
You have the freedom to speak your truth
Just say what you want
Don't hold back, say whatever is on your mind
'Cause we can't pretend no more
We can't live a fake life or hold back our feelings
There we go
This is us being real and honest
Can't hide myself away inside my fears
I can't keep holding back because of fear
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jacqueline Govaert, Gordon Groothedde
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind