The Blue Van

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The Blue Van is a blues-rock band from Denmark consisting of Steffen Westmark (vocals and guitar), Søren Christensen (keyboard and vocals), Allan Villadsen (bass), and Per Jørgenson (drums and vocals). They are heavily influenced by the music of the 60s and 70s, such as the Small Faces, the Kinks, and Cream.

History

The Blue Van was founded in Brønderslev, Denmark when the members were in the 6th grade at school. Their first album, The Art of Rolling, was released in April 2005. Their second album, Dear Independence, was released in October 2006. The band toured extensively with Australian band Jet to promote 'Dear Independence'. Fans were treated to early renditions of 'Rico' 'The Odyssey' and 'Don't Leave Me Blue'. The band performed at the Danish musical festival SPOT in 2003 (SPOT09), a festival renowned for showcasing the premier Danish musical talent. The band has also gained renown in the United States, due mainly to numerous shows in and around New York City preceding the release of The Art of Rolling, as well as their participation in events such as Austin City Limits Music Festival. In the first quarter of 2007, the band announced that they would be going into a recluse state in a farm house to write material for their 3rd album. "Silly Boy", the lead single from their third album Man Up, was featured in a 2008 US commercial for the Samsung Behold cell phone. The song Man Up has been featured in the TV Series 90210 and a commercial for the new season of Scrubs, as well as in the MLB 09 The Show soundtrack. Most recently, their song "Independence" was used as the theme for USA Network's new show, Royal Pains.

Name

The band name is derived from the "Den blå varevogn" - a van that collected mentally ill persons in Denmark.^{[citation needed]} The song Don't Leave Me Blue from the Album Dear Independence was featured on the MTV Danmark show Smacking New, which showcases new and upcoming bands. The band has also received positive reviews from several international publications.^{[citation needed]}

Discography

External links

• The Blue Van's website
• The Blue Van's Myspace