ROAN
Ultramarine
Eight songs about feeling so blue, it only felt right to name this EP after the most intense shade I’ve ever laid eyes on.
Ultramarine was written during sleepless nights, in the throes of being 24. Everything I felt was rooted in a kind of sadness I wasn’t familiar with yet. It was the restless, self-destructive thrill of chasing something doomed from the start. The inevitable fallout of getting emotionally invested in someone who couldn’t have cared less. The disgust I felt with myself for staying. The delicious crash-out at a friend who had utterly failed to act like one. The inexplicable, excruciating loss of friends I’d planned to keep for life. The alienating experience of being myself. The begrudging acceptance that I alone am responsible for healing from the ways people failed me while I was growing up.
All of this was happening as I stood on the edge of graduating college, while my student debt kept growing, the housing market kept worsening, and the therapy waiting lists kept stretching out like a cruel joke.
It sounds bleak, but I remember it all in such vivid colour. I felt alive in that new shade of deep blue.
This is not a still, quiet melancholy. This is the kind that throws you into the sky and crash-lands you into your bed. The kind that only comes from being 24, lost, and begging to belong somewhere.
The seeds of these songs were written in ultramarine ink, sitting alone on my bedroom floor.
They can now finally leave my messy room and find their way into yours!
Love,
ROAN
BIO*
*Korte bio is de vet gedrukte tekst
NL
Wat als je wakker ligt om 3 uur ‘s nachts in je kamer in het ouderlijk huis? Je kunt niet slapen, want zeventien zijn voelt als gisteren, maar op de een of andere manier ben je nu midden in de twintig. Je maakt je zorgen over de toekomst, of je ongedefinieerde relatie met die ene persoon nog wat gaat worden en je vraagt je af of je je voor altijd zo verdrietig zult voelen. ROAN’s openhartige en nostalgische pop-rock muziek, geïnspireerd door de sound van de 00’s, vormt de soundtrack voor die melancholische, slapeloze nachten.
ROAN is de artiestennaam van singer-songwriter en producer Merel Haasnoot. Geïnspireerd door onder andere Boygenius, Phoebe Bridgers, Taylor Swift en Paramore, ROAN uit zichzelf in goudeerlijke liedteksten met een melancholische en zelfbewuste ondertoon. ROAN’s goal is om een stem te bieden aan mensen die het lastig vinden om te zeggen hoe ze zich voelen en om een community te vormen waarbinnen discussies over mentale gezondheid, neurodivergent zijn en het uiten van hoe je je echt voelt normaal is en zelfs aangemoedigd wordt. Niemand staat er alleen voor. Dat is wat ROAN over wil brengen door zelf het goede voorbeeld te geven in haar nostalgische pop-rock muziek, geinspireerd door de sound van de 00’s.
ROAN begon op haar elfde zichzelf gitaar te leren spelen en liedjes te schrijven. De dingen die ze doodeng vind om hardop te zeggen zijn altijd al haar inspiratiebron geweest. Ze was het stille meisje achterin de klas die eindelijk haar stem vond toen ze de pen oppakte. De openhartigheid en breekbaarheid waarmee ROAN haar verhalen vertelt in haar muziek is wat de luisteraar het meest pakt. Het is alsof je toestemming hebt gekregen om een kijkje te nemen in iemand’s dagboek. Van het worstelen met mentale gezondheid tot gekmakende ongedefinieerde relaties: ROAN's muziek vertelt je in detail het verhaal van een laat-bloeier die zichzelf en de wereld om haar heen voor het eerst echt tegenkomt.
EN
What if you were wide awake at 3 AM in your childhood bedroom? You can’t sleep, because it feels like seventeen was yesterday, but somehow you’re in your twenties now. You’re worrying about the future, if your undefined relationship is going to work out and if you’re always going to feel this blue. ROAN’s confessional and nostalgic 00’s inspired pop-rock songs are the soundtrack to those deep blue, sleepless nights.
ROAN is the stage name of singer-songwriter and producer Merel Haasnoot. Inspired by the likes of Boygenius, Taylor Swift and Paramore, ROAN has always gravitated towards brutally honest lyricism and a melancholic, self-aware tone. Together with her band, ROAN’s goal is to be a voice for those who feel unable to say what they feel and to create a community where discussions around mental health, being neurodivergent and expressing your true feelings (instead of just pretending you’re fine all the time) are normal and even encouraged. No one is alone in their battles, that is what ROAN wants to convey by letting people listen in on her own.
ROAN started playing guitar and writing songs from the age of eleven. Her inspiration has always been the things she was too shy to say out loud. She was the quiet kid in the back of the class who finally found her voice when she picked up the pen. The confessional nature of ROAN’s storytelling is what draws the listener in and makes them feel seen. It's like opening a diary and being allowed to take a peek into someone's most personal thoughts and feelings. From struggles with mental health to sanity-shattering undefined relationships: ROAN's music tells you every little detail of the story of a twenty-something year old late bloomer, trying to make sense of the world and of herself.
MUSIC
You can now listen to my debut EP “Ultramarine” on all streaming platforms!
Watch an acoustic live performance of My First Name here:
PHOTOS
Click photo to go to full picture, then right click and select “save image as” to download
Press photo 1 | portrait
Foto credit: Denise Voss
Press photo 2 | full body
Foto credit: Ella Wijnen
Press photo 3 | live show
Foto credit: Martijn van Ditshuizen
BOOKINGS
For bookings (and other music-related inquiries) you can contact us on:
roanmusicofficial@gmail.com
SELECTION OF PREVIOUS SHOWS
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Wereldhavenda-gen
September 8th 2024
ACOUSTIC SET
InHolland Radio, Rotterdam
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True Colours Rotterdam
August 30th 2024
LISTENING PARTY
Smaak 81A, Rotterdam
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Shuffle Festival '23
June 2nd 2023
ACOUSTIC SET
De Nijverheid, Utrecht
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ROAN + music from 'ingenue'
June 1st 2023
Maaspodium, Rotterdam
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Rotown, Rotterdam
May 1st 2023
ACOUSTIC SET
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Pop op de kaap '23
May 24th 2023
Deliplein, Rotterdam
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Grounds, Rotterdam
May 9th 2022