Features / Series: Table Talk

To me this is the most exciting time of the year. It is also a very expensive time of the year. Yeah, I spend a lot on gifts around Christmas, but this is when I catch up with everything I have missed. Every music site is publishing lists of the … Read more

Here in the northern hemisphere the seasons are changing. Europe is finally getting some rain. I don’t know about you, but this really does change my mood and the kind of music I want to hear. The time for music I associate with spring and summer is over. So I … Read more

The kitchen table is the place in my home where I have spent a lot of time lately. Shortly after I finished my last column I didn’t feel too well. That quickly changed to feeling very ill as I ran high fevers. A couple of tests later and I knew … Read more

It is when browsing through a boatload of year’s end lists that I begin to suffer from a strange form of FOMO. It is not so much the fear of going to miss something, but the fear of having missed something. Although I enjoy browsing those lists a bit too … Read more

Welcome back! I hope you don’t mind the mess this time. I dislike it when people say this when you enter their house, as it usually means their house is ten times cleaner than mine. However, this time my house really is a mess. We are in the midst of … Read more

No, this is not like the movies, ok. I am not going to a restaurant and do a lot of impressions. I am just stealing a catchy title for my column. As you might remember from my last column, I was in the middle of a big renovation project. We … Read more

It is that time of the year again, that time of changes. The seasons change. For some reason I am much more aware of this when summer transitions into autumn than when winter becomes spring for example. It is like saying goodbye to warmer weather and saying hello to yellow … Read more

Last year was a strange year. A lot happened in my private life which led to me not doing as much as I wanted to do. Some negative, but mostly positive. However, no matter how positive the events were, it cost me a lot of energy. With my energy and … Read more

Lately I have been struggling with something of a writer's block. But what better way to deal with that than writing about it, huh? I started this year off with the intention of writing a bit more, as I realized I didn’t review as much as I had wanted to. … Read more

I’ve talked about having a writer’s block this year. So when I set myself down (after a stern talk to motivate myself) I looked at this blank page thinking: what on earth should I discuss this time around? At first I thought I would put another couple of labels in … Read more

Discussing the state of the music business at the kitchen table Welcome back to my kitchen table. Especially welcome in these strange times. I need some distraction to steer my mind away from thoughts that turn dark in an instant. Working from home full-time means I’m spending way too much … Read more

There we are again, back for another round. I don’t know how you are doing, but I am trying to focus on the positive things in life. The fact that it is summer does really help. I mean, a bit of sunshine can really brighten up your day, doesn’t it? … Read more

As we (in Europe) have entered the second wave of Corona infections and life is getting more and more restricted I have to admit I feel a bit down. One day I am more affected than the other, but it is something that is on my mind a lot. I … Read more

Just a question for you lot: what carrier do you prefer for your music? Personally, I still highly prefer to own physical products. I am old school in that sense. I don’t really have a preference for vinyl or cds. And while I am telling you this it crosses my … Read more

I listen to loads and loads of new music. Every now and then I take a break from that and I revisit music that I bought a while ago. The past few months were one of those breaks. I finally took the time to appreciate some albums I bought, but … Read more

Nostalgia Do you at times dwell in nostalgia? I know I do. One music related subject is how much I miss record stores. When I grew up I would go to the record store every weekend. Not that I would buy something every week, I would just browse through their … Read more

Sometimes I wonder how I will look back at the time I am living in. Like right now, as the world is opening up again, how will I think of this spring in 10 or 20 years’ time? I know right now I think it is one of the weirdest … Read more

July is a month I really enjoy. It is too hot to really do that much, which makes it a good time for reflecting on the past half year. Our year so far lists are a good point for me to look at what I missed. This is also a … Read more