Donna Blue in concert from the 2022 Crossroads Festival, recorded on February 2, 2022 by West German Radio.
Here’s an article about them that appeared in the music blog Here Comes The FLood, from late last year:
Dutch retro-pop act Donna Blue stick to their winning formula on their new album Into the Realm of Love: carefully crafted love songs that could have been released in the mid-sixties when psychedelic rock took off. Bart van Dalen and Danique van Kesteren take turns at handling the lead vocals, with Van Dalen working a double shift playing guitar, using old school effects that sound warm.
They allow each note enough time to reach its full potential, making it the perfect soundtrack for a glorious Spring day. With lyrics and English and French, the duo can pick the language to set the mood: dreamy psychedelic soundscapes for Fantasy Girl, yé-yé pop for for Mains De L’Amour (with plenty of ah’s and recurring keyboards motif) and Labyrinthe, and baroque pop for Aphrodite.
Donna Blue are always looking for some extra to add to the mix, hence the bit of jazz they sprinkled on top of On The Cusp of Love, a swirling, cinematic arrangement for Harmony Of Spheres, and using a spinet for White Horses. At first it may seem that Into the Realm of Love offers more of the same, but by going in at the deep end, they have come up with so many gems that a listener may have missed a few the first time around. It is a slow burn that leaves no blisters, offering plenty of food for thought instead.
Donna Blue has an international outlook, touring with their band throughout Europe (gaining support from platforms such as TV channel ARTE and Clash Music, who called their songwriting ‘irresistible’), and venturing overseas for performances in the Unites States. After the release of debut album ‘Dark Roses’ in 2022, they returned to the scene with sophomore album ‘Into the Realm of Love’ in 2024.
As for this year, not much in the way of live gigs, save for two later on in 2025 – one in Lille, France on September 26 and the other in Istanbul on November 12th.
In the meantime, dive in.
