The Scene

Originating from the vision of the Lau—Holland’s equivalent to John Cale—the ever-fluid Amsterdam outfit the Scene has hovered at the margins of the European independent circuit since the final years of the 1970s. Although their earliest work mixed Dutch and English lyrics, they first gained notice across the border in Belgium via the 1990s albums Blauw and Open, after which guitarist Emilie Blom Van Assendelft, keyboardist Otto Cooymans, and drummer Jeroen Booy formed the group’s steadier core. Emerging from a five-year pause, the band reconvened in 2007 and delivered Code in 2012, marking their first studio album in eleven years.