As one of the few celebrities, actress / singer Ellen ten Damme effortlessly moves within all sections of showbiz: from Eurovision Song Contest to Lowlands and from musical to arthouse film. 'The woman who can do everything' had not yet ventured into Dutch-language pop. On Dare You? she works together with the Leiden poet Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer, the man who often presents himself as a passionate
… advocate of abstract poetry. In this project he conformed to the laws of pop song; the lyrics are more conventional than his literary work, but still a lot more original than most Nederpop. Especially the spirit of and seems to have crept into the record, due to the occasional cynicism of Pfeijffer, but also due to the sixties-like music of Ten Damme and her musicians. Sometimes Ellen tries to put too many syllables in her song melody and the music loses out against the lyrics. But just as often Nederpop is enriched with surprising, intelligent perspectives. Who dares? (MS)more
