My HeadBangers welcome from Amsterdam, The Netherlands, the Melodic/Hard Rock Band:
Lifechanger
“Information Overload”
Let’s take a look at how this band started given to me by Wouter Smit:
Lifechanger started in 2017 as a music project by Wouter Smit (main composer and lead guitarist) and Peter Moltmaker (lead vocalist).
Wouter had been a guitarist in several local hardrock bands (Overlord, Wild Vinx) and wrote several songs. Wouter: “As a writer, composer and guitar player I am influenced by different bands like Thin Lizzy, Queensryche, Whitesnake, Symphony X, Threshold, and guitar players like Eddie van Halen, Gary Moore, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Sykes, Tony MacAlpine, Vito Bratta, Greg Howe, Nuno Bettencourt, and Dan Huff, among others.”
Peter had starred in several musical theater productions and had worked with Arjen Lucassen of Ayreon on the Theater Equation project, starring James Labrie (Dream Theater), Marcela Bovio (stream of Passion), Irene Jansen (Star One) Anneke van Giersbergen (The Gathering), Joost van den Broek (After Forever), Marcel Coenen ( Sun Caged) and many others.
Together they started recording the songs Wouter had written and also wrote some songs together, resulting in the first Lifechanger Album, that was released in 2017. The album got great reviews on the debut CD like this one: https://www.decibelgeek.com/
The band got great reactions of melodic rock and hardrock fans, and in 2019 they recorded their first music video for the song “Sara”.
“Sara”
Because the song “Information Overload” got a lot of reactions from fans, a video was created for that song too in 2020:
https://youtu.be/uWE3RwJH3us
Meanwhile the band began writing new songs for a follow-up album, with more metal-style songs, some epic songs and some songs leaning more towards melodic hardrock.
But then in 2020 the pandemic started, which was the cause of gigs being cancelled, and of several band members getting other priorities. At this moment (September 2021) the songwriting is mainly done by founder Wouter Smit, and he will also write new songs together with Peter Moltmaker in the near future. Songs are currently recorded as demo versions.
Let’s meet the band:
Peter Moltmaker is the lead singer of the Lifechanger Band. Peter gained his experience as a singer in several theater productions, among which “The Theater Equation” by Ayreon. Peter’s own words: “I began singing at an early age. My family stimulated me to follow singing lessons at the age of 17. As a classically trained singer, I have participated in many opera productions. As a former member of a musical group, I have given a number of solo performances in the theater. My musical interest however is broader. As a singer I am mostly influenced by (progressive) metal singers like Russel Allen, Jorn Lande, Geoff Tate and James Labrie, among others.”
Wouter Smit is guitarist in the Lifechanger Band. Together with Peter Moltmaker he wrote the songs for the first Lifechanger CD, producing and recording the band’s first demo’s in the process. Wouter’s own words: “After I got classical guitar lessons at age 11, my first live performances were as a guitarist in punk rock bands at age 16. Soon I started playing different hardrock and metal styles. After several years playing in different hardrock bands and doing some studio work, I wanted to create my own songs and compositions. As a writer, composer and guitar player I am influenced by different bands like Thin Lizzy, Queensryche, Whitespace, Symphony X, Threshold, and guitar players like Eddie van Halen, Gary Moore, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Sykes, Tony MacAlpine, Vito Bratta, Greg Howe, Nuno Bettencourt, and Dan Huff, among others.”
Daan van Zelm is guitarist in the Lifechanger Band. Before Lifechanger he has played with several bands and projects like Avalanche, Anne Groen and InPetto. With this he has gained a lot of live experience in various rooms including the Milky Way, P3 Purmerend and Patronaat Haarlem. Furthermore, his band Avalanche has an EP and a number of self-recorded demos with works written largely by Daan. Music he is listening to is 80’s rock bands like Iron Maiden, Queensryche and Bon Jovi. Also, records from Tool, Gojira and Pink Floyd are played gray. With Lifechanger, Daan has found a new band for extensive live performances, and to contribute his own musical stuff to any new work of Lifechanger.
Miguel Corrales is the bass guitar player in Lifechanger. Miguel picked bass inspired by his brother in law and joined some friends to form a band called Herejes when he was 17 in Southern Spain. After a long break due to course of life came back to music scene in Amsterdam where he played original music of Herr Blitz and T.U.B.T. alongside 90’s Rock cover projects like Sunday Eve of The Conservatives. By joining Lifechanger he has renewed his love for Hard Rock and Heavy Metal and rejoined the inspiration of his earlier influences like Iron Maiden, Dio, Whitesnake and of course Barón Rojo (Volumen Brutal is a must-know album to understand Heavy Rock in Spain in the 80’s).
Arjen van Alphen is the drummer of Lifechanger.
My Thoughts:
I love the story of how this band started, unlike guys that start in the garage at 16, they were in the adult world at jobs like most of us. Two people meet and with the love of the music and some hard work have made a band. Then bam 2020 and Covid, the world as we know it stops, everything changes, bands have no gigs. But with this down time most bands have retreated to their inspirational places and begin to write new songs. When gigs start back up totally again we my HeadBangers will be in for a world of new music. Until then we wait and listen to everything we can, and some old favorites. In the meantime, my job is to find bands you haven’t heard of and bring them to you. So here we are, listen and enjoy. I’ll keep you updated with any news or new music I hear.
That’s it for this week my HeadBangers. Join me next week for another band and another song. Until then don’t stand to close to the fire if you can’t handle the burn…..
Please feel free to leave me a comment or question, I appreciate it HeadBangers: