K's Choice was formed by Belgian siblings Gert and Sarah Bettens, who grew up playing music in Antwerp and briefly fronted a band named the Basement Pigs during their teens. Sarah also enjoyed some recognition as a solo artist, scoring a mild hit in 1992 with her cover of Hank Williams' "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." She soon reunited with her brother to form the Choice, and the band made its official debut in 1993 with the release of The Great Subconscious Club. Bassist Erik Verheyden and drummer Koen Lieckens were added to the lineup, and the Choice expanded their audience with European tours supporting Morphine, the Proclaimers, and the Indigo Girls. By 1994, they had changed their name to K's Choice and struck an American deal with Epic.
Paradise in Me, the band's second album, showcased a more musically aware K's Choice. It also provided the group with their first American single, "Not an Addict," which spent nearly 30 weeks on Billboard's Heatseekers chart and briefly made K's Choice an internationally-prized group. Despite such success, the band's lineup was in flux; Lieckens and Verheyden exited the lineup, leaving Bart Van der Zeeuw to take over drum duties, and several different bassists cycled through the group. Meanwhile, tours across Europe pushed "Not an Addict" further into the mainstream, and Alanis Morissette -- who was still setting flames with her 1995 juggernaut Jagged Little Pill -- took the band on tour in 1996. Such exposure led to the band's inclusion in the first annual Lilith Fair tour one year later. Somewhere in between the flurry of show dates, K's Choice hooked up with producer Gil Norton (the Pixies, James, Catherine Wheel) for 1998's Cocoon Crash.
Cocoon Crash went platinum in Belgium and Holland, with "Believe" and "Everything for Free" enjoying a good deal of airplay in those countries. The lineup continued to fluctuate, however, with Van der Zeeuw leaving the band, Lieckens returning to the fold, and New Yorker Eric Grossman taking over bass duties. Additional dates with Lilith Fair followed in 1999, but the touring took its toll on Sarah Bettens, who became ill with mononucleosis. A few months later, a newly rejuvenated K's Choice joined mixer Tchad Blake for 2000's Almost Happy. Previously only available in Europe, Almost Happy appeared in the U.S. in June 2002. ~ MacKenzie Wilson, Rovi
