History of...

It started all out somewhere in October 1988, when Oeb bought a ViaVia magazine (A Sell/Buy/Contact Magazine....) and saw this little add that said: “Bassplayer is looking for band, Influences: Motorhead, The Damned, MDC....” That sounded like a great mix of music to Oeb and he decided to contact this guy, Frank Motor. 10 days later they made an appointment in the rehearsal studio to jam a little bit. Oeb had the guitarplayer from LOL & DE ELLENDELINGEN in mind to join 'em on guitar but he couldn`t make it that Sunday, Frank knew another guitarplayer (that lived around the corner from Oeb, read about that in
the Brezhnev Trivia section...) Ola Carbona was his name and he stayed after that first rehearsal.
Ola Carbona started out as guitarist/singer and we did our first show in November 1988 in “Het Muzieklokaal” in Amsterdam as a trio. Recordings of that show were made and maybe available for download soon.....

Funny enough the first attempts for Brezhnev to sound like Motorhead, The Damned or MDC pretty much failed. Later in 1988 Brezhnev decided that it was time for a singer and move on as a 4 piece. The trio of Motor, Ola and Oeb walked a day through the beautiful city of Amsterdam, got really drunk and managed to put up some posters and adds as well (this wasn`t a computer era, you had to work for it!!). Brezhnev had a few singers auditioned for them that were boring the crap out of them until they met Heidi.

They rehearsed in a place called “De Binding” , that was just the hall were live bands would play to, so Brezhnev rehearsed on a stage. I remember the first practice with Heidi that he was constantly stage diving off the stage (in an empty hall!!!!) and couldn`t sit still for one moment....That was the guy for Brezhnev!

Unfortunately Heidi decided 6 months later to move to Switzerland and Brezhnev was again looking for a singer, who was found quickly in the person of Roelof. We recorded a Demotape with him ourselves and were about to do the first gig on the 8th of July, 1989. In the meantime Heidi was sent back by the Swiss customs and was again living in Amsterdam and we told him he could do a few songs with us that gig, as a sort of Farewell for him and a welcome to Roelof.... It turned out the other way; Roelof left after this show and Heidi was back in!

From that day Brezhnev went on as a 4 piece, did some more shows and recorded their First "Official" Demo Tape at Le Roy Studio`s in October 1989.

Brezhnev had 100 of those Demotapes made and recorded the b side by themselves (these were the live recordings with Roelof made in “De Binding” for a friend’s birthday). The tape sold out very fast so they re-ordered another 100 and were made with a different cover, just for the fun of it…

Early 1990 Brezhnev kicked Heidi out and was again looking for a singer, that wasn't an easy job and 2 weeks later Oeb quit as well and there was no more Brezhnev... That lasted for 3 weeks and suddenly everybody was back in the rehearsal room to practice. (why?... Nobody can recall what happened those weeks...let's keep that a mystery!!)

Brezhnev played a lot of shows in Holland and Belgium the next 1,5 years and decided it was time for some fine 7” vinyl!!! In November 1991 they recorded their first, self titled EP on the day Freddy Mercury of Queen died…several months later they released it themselves due to the fact no record label was interested in the music they made at that time. (It was the metal/funk crossover era….) Brezhnev played their first  "Out of the Benelux" gigs in Prague (Czech republic) and Bern (Switzerland) in 1991, and in early 1992 they went on a 10 day trip to Budapest (Hungary). The next 3 years every member experimented with other bands: Frank Motor and Ola Carbona had “The Sweepstakes”, Frank Motor and Oeb started Non-
Sense (yes… a funk/metal/punk crossover band!) and there were lots of other projects going on…
Until 1994!

More Soon......................................