DAAN

THE EARLY YEARS

DAAN (born Daan Stuyven, Leuven, 1969) is an atypical self-made musical and visual artist, with a love of pop melodies rooted in a rock philosophy and wrapped in metaphorical lyrics. As a child, he was already addicted to the hit charts — and to drawing.

He started out in the mid-’80s as a backing vocalist in the New Beat scene, reached the finals of the Rock Rally in ’88, and released an album with his band VOLT in ’93. The album’s electro-synthpop sound was deliberately so at odds with the guitar-driven sound of the time that it completely flopped.

Daan then graduated from the academy as a graphic designer and embarked on a thriving career in the cultural and advertising worlds.

THE FLOURISHING YEARS

By ’97, all those commissions had driven him into a full-blown burnout, and the only way out was a return to music. That salvation came in the form of meeting Rudy Trouvé, best known as a former dEUS guitarist but also an experimental guru. The two immediately formed the indie band Dead Man Ray and released the album “Berchem.” A few months later, they were already playing the Werchter festival and touring across Europe, with every concert more wild and unpredictable than the last.

But Daan couldn’t — or didn’t want to — completely let go of his old love for pop within the band’s equally democratic and stubborn framework. So in ’99 he released his first lo-fi solo album, “Profools,” on which he played all the instruments himself.

Meanwhile, he became a proud father for the first time, which on the one hand made life more joyful, but on the other also brought a growing pile of bills. His second album, “Bridge Burner,” therefore sounded bigger from the outset, while also being more radio-friendly, thanks in part to its first hit, “Swedish Designer Drugs.”

Around this time, he also found the core of the band he has been playing with for the past 23 years: the very young female drummer Isolde Lasoen and keyboard maestro Jeroen Swinnen.

THE GLORY YEARS

Then came “Victory,” his third album, in 2004 — packed with brutal synths and beats, including the Belpop classic “Housewife.” What followed were crazy years filled with festivals, fur coats, stolen boats, weird video clips, long nights and plenty of fun.

As a counterweight, Daan retreated to the Ardennes, became father to a daughter, and made the warmer, more acoustic album “Manhay,” which once again produced two radio hits: “Icon” and “Exes.”

In the meantime, he composed soundtracks for numerous films and documentaries and spent a long time touring venues across Belgium and neighbouring countries with an acoustic trio format. The resulting album, “Simple,” went double gold.

After the more symphonic and French-language album “Le Franc Belge,” it was time to slow things down a little, also to enjoy the birth of his third child. This resulted in the tender, understated project “Nada,” an album inspired by a journey through remote and abandoned parts of Spain with photographer Peter De Bruyne.

Daan then spent four months in Budapest, where he acted in the feature film “Eden,” while Dead Man Ray reunited after 17 years for a fourth album and a live tour: “Over.”

THE MATURE YEARS

During the coronavirus pandemic, and following the deaths of his father and sister, Daan’s musical light went out. But in 2022, it was precisely music and the landscape of the Norwegian fjords that helped him get back on his feet, leading to his return with the more electronic, vibrant album “The Ride.”

Immediately after the release of “The Ride” came another busy season, as a participant in the popular TV show “Liefde voor Muziek,” where Daan performed idiosyncratic covers of well-known artists. Among them was the surprise of the year: an absurd meta-version of Metejoor’s “Intro,” titled “Metejoor.”

Meanwhile, Daan’s older hits were also given a new lease of life. “Victory” became the official song for Team Belgium at the Olympic Games in Paris, as well as for the Memorial Van Damme, performed in front of a packed King Baudouin Stadium.

Then came “(Not A) Housewife,” recorded with his partner in crime Glints. Its live performance at Werchter ’24 was such a bombshell that the single version remained at number one on StuBru’s “De Afrekening” for an unprecedented six weeks.

And then followed the sparkling album “SPACE.” Recorded partly in a studio on a hilltop near Florence, Italy, it contains 12 baroque pop songs full of urgency & lust for life, resulting in sharp intense live shows with his overqualified band at their very best. To get an idea of how the band sounds these days, just go and see them cover “This town ain’t big enough for the both of us” live.

THE WISER YEARS

With this newly refound enthusiasm & appetite, in combination with a healthy change in daily routines, it’s time for surprises and experiments, starting with a tribute album of ’30s music: “INK”.

Meanwhile Daan continues daily to work on new song material for his upcoming “Crooner” trio theatre tour… to be continued!