In 1998, croony songwriter Holger F. ran into his old-school-pop companion Marek Richter in Cologne (West Germany). Sharing the same special likings - sixties mods, seventies glamour, eighties pathos - they quickly decided to set up a musical shangri-
la for the 21st century: Panamaformat!
Time on their side, they were initially trying on a trio suit together with a fellow drummer ... until multi-instrumentalist Jean Sievers joined them with a set of irreparable keyboards that sounded like Mantovani on a low-level attack. For two years they were undergoing a time-lapse metamorphosis of pop music history ("from Mersey to Montevideo") in a messy washhouse underground and played several gigs in Cologne clubs and bars. 2000/01 was the time of recording sessions at Holger´s
cosy home-studio where Panamaformat went fishing for the nineties ... and turned out to feature more and more synthetic spleens (roland programming, plastic orchestra).
With each song, they refined: frenchy melodies and playful German lyrics (very Holger), British taste and Italian elegance (very Marek), Preussian pride and Swedish ingenuity (very Jean) ... assembling bits and pieces together in a `song-bricolage´ - until the first album was completed with a pretty nonchalant care that is so typical for each of them.
lpanamaformat is a band from cologne, formed in 1998 when croony songwriter holger f. ran into his old-school-pop companion marek richter. sharing the same special likings - sixties mods, seventies glamour, eighties pathos - they quickly decided to set up a musical shangri-la for the 21st century: panamaformat. jean sievers joined them with a set of irreparable keyboards that sounded like mantovani on a low-level attack. for two years they were undergoing a time-lapse meta-morphosis of P!O!P!- music history ("from mersey to monte-video") in a messy washhouse underground and played several gigs in clubs and bars. 2000/01 was the time of recording sessions at holger´s cosy home-studio where panamaformat discovered more and more synthetic spleens (roland programming and plastic orchestra). with each song, they refined "the panamaformat way": frenchy melodies and playful german lyrics (very holger), british taste and italian elegance (very marek), preussian pride and swedish ingenuity (very Jean) ... assembling bits and pieces together in a `songbricolage´ - panamaformat's first album was completed with a pretty nonchalant care that is so typical for each of them. a record that fits with apricot records so perfectly.
love at first sight - and much, much more than a brief affair.
