Music / 4US (Album)

Zoek Het Zelf Maar Uit

4US (pronounced as Virus in Dutch) is a 1983 album by Dutch band Doe Maar. It provided hits such as "Pa" and "1 Nacht Alleen", along with audience favorites such as "Doe Maar Net Alsof", "Nachtzuster" and "Alles Gaat Voorbij".

After their enormous popularity with a teenage audience the group tried to shake off this demographic and released this New Sound Album where they lyrically grew the beard and tackled Darker and Edgier topics such as adultery, heroin addiction, troubled father-son relationships, anxiety and fear about the state of the world, all more recognizable to people in their thirtysomething like them. This alienated some people, but it was still a huge bestseller and didn't give them the artistic credentials they wanted to achieve. As a result they disbanded the band almost a year later, at the height of their success.

With the passage of time their original intent has been rewarded and the album is now Vindicated by History. For that reason "4US" was subject of a documentary in the Classic Albums series, but this episode has only been broadcast on Dutch television and wasn't made available on DVD afterwards.

Tracklist

Side One

1. "Doe Maar Net Alsof" (6:10)
2. "Je Loopt Je Lul Achterna" (4:52)
3. "Lajéninaja" (3:30)
4. "Nooit Meer Slapen" (4:05)
5. "Nachtzuster" (3:43)

Side Two

1. "Zoek Het Zelf Maar Uit" (3:03)
2. "1 Nacht Alleen" (3:59)
3. "Bang" (3:49)
4. "Heroïne" (2:57)
5. "Pa" (3:41)
6. "Alles Gaat Voorbij" (4:05)
7. "Walska" (1:20)

Virus provides examples of:

• Absurd Phobia: "Bang" ("Frightened"), about somebody who feels anxious and frightened of all kinds of things but is unsure why?
• Addled Addict: "Heroine" ("Heroin") about a heroin addict.
• All Men Are Perverts: "Je Loopt Je Lul Achterna" ("You Walk Behind Your Dick") about a man who was adulterous and lost his partner as a result.
• Break Up Song:
  • "Nooit Meer Slapen" ("Never Sleep Again") in which the protagonist claims to be unable to sleep again since he broke up with his girlfriend.
  • "Zoek Het Zelf Maar Uit" ("Find It Out For Yourself"), where a boy tells a girl that he's not the man of her dreams and she should try to find out someone better for her.
• Calling the Old Man Out: "Pa" ("Dad"), about a troubled son-father relationship.
• Darker and Edgier: The themes on this album were far darker than on their previous records.
• Design Student's Orgasm: The album cover, designed by Hans Toonen.
• Drugs Are Bad: "Heroïne", an anti heroin song.
• Epic Rocking: "Doe Maar Net Alsof" ("Just Pretend"), with an Epic Instrumental Opener included, over 6 minutes long.
• The End: "Alles Gaat Voorbij" ("Everything Has An End") about how all dreams have a tendency to end.
• Evil Laugh: Near the end of "Walska".
• Hospital Hottie: "Nachtzuster" ("Night Nurse") about a nurse working night shifts in a hospital and whom should help the patient relieve the pain.
• Instrumental: "Walska" is basically some wordless chanting, which ends in dirty laughter.
• Just Ignore It and Selective Obliviousness: "Doe Maar Net Alsof (Je Neus Bloedt)" ("Just Act As If You Don't See It"), a song about people shutting themselves off from the Crapsack World they live in.
• Leave Me Alone!: "1 Nacht Alleen" ("One Night Alone"), where the protagonist wishes to be left alone for one night, without a woman between the sheets.
• Letters 2 Numbers: "1 Nacht Alleen" ("One Night Alone").
• List Song: "1 Nacht Alleen" lists several girls the protagonist had over the weeks and whom he doesn't want to see again: Sylvia, Jeanette, Natalie, Fien, Elsje, Truusje, Truus, Babette, Betsie, Sabine, Greet, Margreet, Marie Marei, Angeline, Mies, Marjan, Marjo, Marlyn and Kleine Tine".
• Miniscule Rocking: The 1:20 "Walska".
• New Sound Album: The lyrics of this album were far more adult and about topics that concerned people of the band members' own age at the time.
• Non-Appearing Title: The album title doesn't appear in any of the lyrics.
• Obsession Song: "Nooit Meer Slapen" ("Never Sleep Again") about someone who can't sleep at night, because he misses his ex girlfriend.
• One-Woman Song: "Nachtzuster" ("Night Nurse")
• One-Word Title: "Lajéninaja" ("Lajeninaja"), "Nachtzuster" ("Night Nurse"), "Bang" ("Afraid"), "Heroine" ("Heroin"), "Pa" ("Dad"), "Walska".
• Pun-Based Title: The album title is a pun on the word "virus" and the word "4" ("vier") in Dutch. "Lajéninaja" is a corruption of "Laat Je Niet Naaien" ("Don't Let Them Screw You").
• Raging Stiffie: "Je Loopt Je Lul Achterna ("You Walk Behind Your Dick")
• Real Life Writes the Plot: "Heroine" ("Heroin") was inspired by drummer René Van Collem's heroin addiction and was a not very subtle warning to kick the habit. Van Collem eventually managed to do so, but it took him three decades. He also published an autobiography about it.
• Shout-Out: "Nooit Meer Slapen" ("Never Sleep Again") is also the title of a novel by Dutch author W.F. Hermans.
• Subverted Rhyme Every Occasion: "Pa", where they sing: "Ik doe de dingen die ik doe/ met mijn ogen dicht", which translates to "I do the things that I do/ with my eyes closed." Because of the word "doe" everyone expects the line to be "met mijn ogen toe ", but instead they use a synonym "dicht".

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