Dutch garage rockers The Covenant have had their fair share of bumps in the road during their 37 years as a loved underground band, but losing founding member and bass player Peter Stap hit them hard. Should they call it quits? After much deliberation they decided to keep going, at first with singer Frank van der Reep working a double shift during the rehearsals of the songs that they worked on for what become their new album: The Age of Rage. Stap can be heard on some of the tracks - most prominently on Loophole, which was released as a stand-alone single in 2020, but it is new guy Erol Erdogan who is taking care of the bottom end.
Grief is a fierce force for creating art and the band put it to good use to channel their anger about losing a dear friend in the title track and the pitch black Bones. The stuttering guitar part that drives Artisticus Narcisticus is 101 for getting the job done with just a few notes. Amsterdam has spawned quite a few great rock bands, but none of them comes close to the raucous energy of The Covenant. Big celebration show @ Paradiso to celebrate their 40th anniversary?
