After helping Duncan Laurence secure Eurovision victory for The Netherlands in May, the craziness of the contest is slowly wearing off for Ilse DeLange. The former Common Linnets member is now focusing on her latest solo work, and recently released the new single “Gravel & Dust”.
The song begins shrouded in a mysterious, dark atmosphere with a lone guitar strum. Ilse subsequently adds in her vocals, a harmonising voice and finally a drum beat to deepen the vibe.
Full of country charm, the track holds on to the familiar ‘Ilse sound’.
Ilse DeLange – “Gravel & Dust”
Lyrically, Ilse sings about stripping things back and returning to the organic matter of her relationship:
Back to the water, back to the sand
Back to the heart of where we began
Break it down till the truth laid bare
Till there’s no defence, there’s no walls to hide us
Till the stones that we built them of turn to gravel and dust
“Gravel & Dust” is the first single from the Dutch singer’s forthcoming new album. And what better place to record your new country album than Nashville.
In an interview with entertainment show RTL Boulevard, the “Calm After the Storm” singer explains that being an unknown artist in Nashville has it’s benefits: “I like being away from it all and placing myself in a sort of cocoon of inspiration. Being unknown, that’s fine with me”.
She may have been in a cocoon during the writing process, but with “Gravel & Dust” Ilse has certainly gone on to produce a beautiful butterfly.
The Eurovision 2014 participant goes on to explain more about the song’s meaning: “Sometimes you have to go back to where it all began: you. And you have to find yourself first, in order to find each other”.
Now that The Netherlands is hosting Eurovision 2020 following Duncan Laurence’s victory, Ilse is also hoping to play a small part in next year’s contest as well. But, not one to get carried away with things, Ilse knows there are other things that need to be sorted first: “They are still very busy finding the perfect hosting city first, so let’s see what happens after that”.
As for now, Ilse’s latest album is set to drop on September 6th. So we’ll have to wait a little bit longer to find out what else she and her team have created in Nashville.
Do you like”Gravel & Dust”? What role would you like to see Ilse play in Eurovision next year? Let us know in the comments below!
Please stop calling her a former Common Linnets member. She’s still a Common Linnet. They will start recording a new album this month: https://www.facebook.com/thecommonlinnets/photos/a.643944152325847/2252763388110574/?type=3&theater
So they are on good terms again? It’s a great news.
Great song!
we need a live performance of her classics so incredible n miracle as the interval act tbh
I’d love that. With the bar set so high in 2014, I’m hoping she’d give her best song and try for lightning to strike twice. But I think in the past, she often said she doesn’t want or plan to return.
Generally acts who do really well on a first placing don’t want to return because statistically they’re unlikely to improve upon their first position. Exceptions exist like Helena and Dima but they come from countries who always do well, like Greece (in its Eurovision prime) and Russia, but The Netherlands isn’t one of these, even after its ESC Renaissance.
If you have a really great song, you do well. All the returnees who failed failed with good reason. Perelli, International, Niamh, you name it. I think Ilse is in a different league.
She’s not a “former common linnets member”. Her solo career and the band co exist together.
After this cd she will bring out a new common linnets album, she wrote on her fb page
Well, she deserves to have a role in 2020
She did manage to come 2nd in 2014, taking the Netherlands a bit forward into the spotlight in recent years and she was Duncan’s mentor on The Voice 😉 (and helping him this year as well)
I lover her work and her personality. But does anyone know why is there bad blood between her and Anouk?
Ooh okaay that sounds better. Thanks! 🙂
There does seem to be a lot of snippiness among the Dutch Eurovision community. Ilse v Waylon, Ilse v Anouk, Waylon v Wiwibloggs, Douwe Bob v Hovi Star, Duncan Lawrence v press asking reasonable questions. I hope it doesn’t all boil over in Maastricht / Rotterdam / Tilburg next May.
I’m hoping she’ll be able to return to former greatness with her new material. Her appearance and song on the tv-series Nashville were actually a very disappointing and bland showcase.
I hope she will perform as interval act in ESC2020, as The Common Linnets in Semi and in the Grand Final one song with Duncan please!
I think it won’t happen :\
I’m quite sure she and Waylon don’t get along that well anymore