Fortress (the Netherlands) emerged in 2010, the four founding members, Thijs van der Heijden (drums), Cristian Oldenkotte (guitar), Daan Ottink (bass) and Mike Wolters (guitar, vocals), started because of their passion and love for music.

After a while their passion collaborated into one sound which resulted in their first album ‘Beyond a Smile’. The sound is best described as alternative / symphonic / grunge rock because of their melodic guitar, bass and drum riffs in combination with emotionally loaded lyrics.

Beyond a Smile is an album with thirteen songs. Each song has his own story to tell. ‘Situations and true feelings of life’ is the main theme of the album.