BAND HISTORY
How a band came to be
It would certainly be a lie to suggest that there was something unusual in the air on that evening - nothing that could be attributed to anything other than the curry, at least. But that was the evening the exiled Englishman, Ed Einsiedler and his Moroccan bondsman, Nasim Kholti formed the band of merry musicians that came to be known as SpinCycle.
Dreams of greatness
The jolly pair had trodden the same musical path for a number of years in the combo Contraflow, a name chosen somewhat as a compromise, with the percussionist not being able to identify with SpinCycle. The time for compromises was, however, now at an end...
When you form a band, a great band, then you start off faced with two choices: either you set sail on a search for worthy companions, take the time to write songs, mould lyrics, craft arrangements and rehearse as often as possible, or...you sing the Coca Cola Christmas song and, in that way, become immortal.
The Fellowship of the Spin
For personal reasons they opted for the first choice and crossed the hills, valleys, marshes and plains of south-western Germany to find the remaining SpinCyclists. In life it's often the case that the things of greatest importance are discovered without looking for them, while the fruit of impatience is "good enough". This, however, was not the case with Sammy, the drummer.
Legend has it that he was found and reared in a forest by a family of woodpeckers, thus growing up with rhythm at his very core and explaining why the band got into the groove from the word go.
Not long afterwards, Chris Gallant, the family man and Alex 'Mr Whistler' Pfeiffer joined our happy heroes. It is said that within Alex's chest beat two hearts; the one beating for music, the other (admittedly more slowly) for Switzerland. But, whoever this smorgasbord of fresh new talent were, this was a match made in heaven. In October 2004, after moderate use of forceps, SpinCycle was born.
What goes around...
In May 2005 the first demo 'I Am' was recorded, together with Flo Ostertag (The Internal Soul Federation). Sadly though, this also marked the departure of Chris, who was busy making more babies. Our boys fought on bravely with just Nasy on guitars, but before long it became clear that something was missing.
Sometimes - you know how it is - you're watching the telly, your favourite programme's about to start, your hand is gripping a chilled beverage and yet somehow you're not completely content. You rack your brains and still there's that nagging sense of lack. Then, as if the thought was inserted through your ear hole by an unseen messenger, it clicks: cashew nuts!
Matze was the cashew nut. "I'd known him for quite some time," explains Ed, "and we'd wanted to meet up for a jam for years. But honestly I never thought that we'd ever get our act together."
In June 2005 Matze took the plunge and what had sounded pretty good before, suddenly had an added depth and quality, thanks to his raw sound and creativity. This was the kind of Britpop the founders had always dreamt of. SpinCycle was now no longer just an empty word; now it was filled with the warm effervescence of life.
First steps
Very soon our five adventurers began to make a name for themselves in the Stuttgart region. Gigs in eastern and central Germany also allowed the band to travel further afield. They played their biggest show to date at Freakstock 2006 in Gotha, a festival with more than 6000 rock pilgrims.
In October 2006 they won a local battle of the bands and recorded a new version of 'Are You Ready?' which will be released as a video in early 2007.
On a wet and windy day in November 2006 the band had the opportunity to play a series of unplugged sets along the length of the main shopping street in Stuttgart. The day was a great success, winning over a host of new SpinCycle fans and rounded off with a chill-out set in the new Stuttgart art gallery.