A connection sparked 10 years ago in a tiny Utrecht club has flickered into a cross-country collaboration and a disarming debut from Lambert And Dekker. The pair have never set foot in the same studio but wrote We Share Phenomena via iPhone messages. Berlin-based Lambert, a mask-wearing pianist at the fore of the neo-classical movement, and singer Brookln Dekker, one-half of acclaimed Anglo-American outfit Rue Royale, describe themselves as a ‘ghost’ duo.
We Share Phenomena is an effortless, under-the-skin alliance that forges Lambert’s classical, at times jazzy, piano and Brookln’s soul-filled melodies with subtle rhythm glitches and string echoes. See them in concert soon, at tour dates below.

When did you start playing your instruments and why? When did you discover your interest in composing?

LAMBERT:
I had to play piano from the age of 5. The legend is that I needed piano lessons, cause I’d always hang at the piano and try to improvise on it as good as I could by that age. (obviously not good enough according to my parents…)
In my teenage years I slowly discovered why my parents forced me into all these piano lessons, and started playing drums and guitar. Those Instruments seemed to be much easier to attract attention. So I wrote my first tunes on the guitar . They sucked!
Later on I went back to the piano. I thought, if I want to become a musician, I would have to be able to write good music without being dependent on special events in my life (cause it can likely be that life continues to be boring). From that day on I every day wrote a piece of music, no matter how I felt. I just wanted to practise to be able to do it, no matter what happens around me. This is a project wich is still going on and I must say that I enjoy it very very much!
DEKKER:
I grew up in a musical home; my mom was a church pianist / organist and my dad was a singer and an actor. I started to realize that I wanted to be in bands and sing in my early teens but didn’t know where to start. I began writing songs in my early 20’s (nearly 20 years ago) but with more focus as of 2006.

What is your favourite piece of music for the piano?

LAMBERT:
‘Alone Together‘. A beautiful Jazz Standart that I would sometimes improvise on for ages. When I play it I sometimes think: If it was possible to make a living by improvising on ‚Alone together‘, I’d take the job!
DEKKER:
Anything Lambert plays

Describe your musical style in 3 words.

LAMBERT:
Instrumental song writing

Tell us your first memory of London.

LAMBERT:
We went in by train. At the border the Guard would try to talk in German to me, cause just by looking at me he knew where I was coming from. I thought: Next time I travel to London, I should wear a mask…
DEKKER:
I flew to London to visit a friend. Someone on his street owned a Mini Cooper and it seemed like a toy to me as our cars in the States were huge.

What is one piece of classical music you couldn’t live without?

LAMBERT:
Bach – French Suites (Glenn Gould interpretations), and Chopin Waltzes

Upcoming Lambert & Dekker Tour dates:
November 13 – LEIPZIG, Neues Schauspiel
November 14 – BERLIN, Burg Schnabel
November 15 – MUNSTER, Gleis 22
November 16 – COLOGNE, Art Theater
November 17 – KARLSRUHE, Cafe Nun
November 19 – LONDON, Hoxton Bar & Kitchen
November 20 – NOTTINGHAM, Jam Cafe
November 21 – DUBLIN, Bello Bar
November 23 – UTRECHT, Tivoli Vredenburg
November 24 – DUSSELDORF, FFT
November 25 – AMSTERDAM, Paradiso Noord (Tuinzaal)
November 27 – HANNOVER, Feinkost Lampe