Amet Dolorem

January 2004 was (in retrospective) a remarkable month for me. I just had concluded a huge project with the band After Forever which resulted in the two albums Exordium and Invisible  Circles. At the same time I was in the middle of rehearsals and try outs with Cloudmachine to exploit the CD Sweater for the cold world.

Process

Out of the blue, while puzzling on the arrangements of Cloudmachine, I found myself playing the first rough sketches of the songs Painting my world and Reconcile. As I had no time turning the musical ideas into fully-developed arrangements, the best option for me was to capture the songs in a basic one-take recording session and put them into my archives. Still, I felt the urge to reach the highest possible level, somehow, someway, someday.
For me it was a bit confusing (though in a pleasant way) that this process of creating new musical ideas lingered on and on (despite my busy work-schedule), writing more new songs like Several times, Maybe now  and Without looking back.

Maan

By the time I had gathered enough basic material to make a set up for my own solo-album,
an incredible change took place in my life as (very unexpectedly) Maan crossed my path, the love of my life. I then knew what I had to do: following my heart and so me and my lady stepped into a whole new world full of warmth, happiness and understanding.

Attic

It was Maan who encouraged me to build up a brand new studio in the big attic of our lovely new residence. In fact, she made the design for the studio herself! Because of her support I found the time and means to open up the archives and work out my rough sketches, finally resulting in this album  “Staircase to the attic”.

Listen

Time flies! How often have these two words been said?  Eventually, it took me more than three years to finalize my songs, just because I was determined to get the best out of it.   

And now, hopefully, you will give me the honour to listen to this CD, and if you do, please notice the beautiful vocal interpretations of the lead singers I have worked with.

Julia

If angels do exist, I expect they sing like Julia does: pure, bright crystal clear and straight to the heart. And in addition to her incredible lead vocals, Julia also has a natural talent to participate in delightful close harmonies on songs like Meet her again and From the north down to the south.

Victor

Victor literally found his way through the most extreme weather conditions like snow blizzards and heat waves! But he didn’t mind at all, as Victor (just like Julia)  felt strongly committed to this project.  Because of Victor’s powerful and warm lead vocals, the sound of my music has reached a level of completeness in such a way  that it makes me feel proud for the rest of my life, never mind what other people will say.

CEES !