Liesbeth Esselink (born 14 August 1965), known by her stage name Solex, is a Dutch musician based in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. Her music is a light-hearted amalgamation of

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...

and sampling.

Overview

After singing in a new wave band and performing as a member of the Dutch

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media *Independent media, media free of influence by government or corporate interests *Indie art, fine arts made by artists independent of commer ...

noise pop Noise pop is a subgenre of alternative and indie rock that developed in the mid-1980s in the United Kingdom and United States. It is defined by its mixture of dissonant noise or feedback with the songcraft more often found in pop music. Shoegaz ...

group Sonetic Vet, Esselink began the Solex project in order to give herself a more complete and fulfilling musical outlet. The name is taken from the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

moped A moped ( ) is a type of small motorcycle, generally having a less stringent licensing requirement than full motorcycles or automobiles. Historically, the term exclusively meant a similar vehicle with both bicycle pedals and a motorcycle eng ...

manufacturer Solex. Utilizing the records in her own record store, she assembled her music on an antique 8-track recorder, singing original lyrics over her musical creations. The first album, '' Solex vs. the Hitmeister'', was cobbled together using samples from albums that Esselink had been unable to sell in her store. Later albums would see her assembling tracks with samples she had informally recorded at live performances in addition to sampling records from her collection. In 2001, Solex released the album '' Low Kick And Hard Bop'' on the

Matador A bullfighter or matador () is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter, and describe all the performers in the activ ...

label. She appeared on

Gerling Gerling were an Australian electronica, alternative rock trio formed in 1993. From early 1997 the members were Darren Cross on guitar and lead vocals, Presser (real name Paul Towner) on drums and Burke Reid on guitar and vocals. Their second ...

's album '' Head3cleaner''/''

When Young Terrorists Chase the Sun '' When Young Terrorists Chase the Sun ''is the second studio album by Gerling, released in September 2001. Originally due to be released on 16 September, it was delayed due to the September 11 attacks and renamed in the UK and Japan under the ...

'' that year, and she also appeared on

The Go! Team The Go! Team are an English indie rock band from Brighton, England. The band initially began as a solo project conceived by Ian Parton; however, after the unexpected success of the Go! Team's debut album, '' Thunder, Lightning, Strike'', Parton ...

's 2007 album ''

Proof of Youth ''Proof of Youth'' is the second studio album by English band The Go! Team. Released It was released on 10 September 2007 in the United Kingdom by Memphis Industries and a day later in the United States by Sub Pop. ''Proof of Youth'' was pre ...

''.

Personal life

Esselink was raised in

Voorschoten Voorschoten () is a town and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. It is a smaller town in the Randstad, enclosed by the cities of Leiden, Wassenaar and Leidschendam-Voorburg. The municipality covers an area ...

. Her father was a chemical engineer and her mother a painter.Liesbeth Esselink (Solex) heeft last van haar geweten
- 3Voor12

Discography

Albums

*'' Solex vs. the Hitmeister'' (1998,

Matador Records Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of mainly indie rock, but also punk rock, experimental rock, alternative rock, and electronic acts. History Matador was created in 1989 by Chris Lombardi in his New York City ap ...

) *'' Pick Up'' (1999, Matador Records) *'' Low Kick and Hard Bop'' (2001, Matador Records) *'' The Laughing Stock of Indie Rock'' (2004,

Arena Rock Recording Company Arena Rock Recording Company ("Arena Rock" or "ARRCO") is an independent record label based in Portland, Oregon. Albums are distributed by Redeye in the United States and Koch in Canada. Arena Rock was formed in 1995 in Brooklyn, New York, by ...

) *'' In the Fishtank 13'' (2005, In the Fishtank) – Solex with Maarten Altena Ensemble (M.A.E.); as a part of the '' In the Fishtank'' project *'' Amsterdam Throwdown King Street Showdown!'' (2010,

BronzeRat Records Bronze Rat Records (aka Bronzerat) is a British independent record label, established in London in 2006 by Welsh musician and producer Andrew Zammit, and also encompasses subsidiary label Seriés Aphōnos. Established in 2006 as an outlet fo ...

) – Solex, Cristina Martinez and

Jon Spencer Jon Spencer (born February 5, 1965) is an American singer, composer and guitarist. He has been involved in multiple musical acts, such as Pussy Galore, Boss Hog, Heavy Trash and The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. History Jon Spencer was born ...

*''

Solex Ahoy! The Sound Map of the Netherlands Solex may refer to: * Solex (musician), Dutch musician * Solex (manufacturer), a French manufacturer of carburetors and the powered bicycle VéloSoleX * Solex College, a former private for-profit college in Chicago, Illinois * Solex Unit, a fiction ...

'' (2013, BronzeRat Records / Seriés Aphōnos)

EPs

*''Athens, Ohio'' (2000,

) * ''Solex'' (2005, JeBu Records)

Singles

*'' Solex All Licketysplit/Solex West'' (1998,

)

References

External links

Official siteSolex on ''Keeping It Peel''
(

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

memorial site)
Solex at Matador RecordsSolex at Arena Rock Recording Co.
* Solex on Allmusic {{DEFAULTSORT:Solex 1965 births Living people Musicians from Delft People from Voorschoten Dutch electronic musicians Arena Rock Recording Company artists