December 8, 2024. Undisclosed area somewhere in Amsterdam-West. Recording overdubs for no-wave giants Sonic Deaf Squad. Seven songs in one afternoon.

Used my Danelectro, an old Proco Rat, a Boss RV-3 and a Dunlop Univibe (UV-1 in vibrato mode) on virtually every song. Played through Jeroen Ligter’s little Fender tube amp. Cool sound!

Sonic Deaf Squad: Jeroen Ligter and Stephan Konings.
Recording by Herman Ypma.

Update 17 December – Click here for part 2!

My latest record ‘Shun’ gets raving reviews and I am very humbled by that. Thank you very much! If you haven’t heard it yet, check it out here: https://kintsugiempire.bandcamp.com/album/shun

Mike Watt (Independent artist/The Minutemen/fIREHOSE/The Stooges): “Your new music is great!”

The Sleeping Shaman: “Utterly unique and thoroughly engaging, this truly is a masterclass in doing it right and leaving a lasting work of art to be enjoyed for generations to come.”

Nevermind The Hype: “‘Shun’ is quite a striking and extremely interesting record (…) A unique Sound of Niche-Gesamtkunstwerk.”

Lust For Life Magazine: “‘Shun’ is packed with powerful rock, fragile melodies, and stories of broken souls, all framed with a thick golden edge – 5/5 stars”

It’s Psychedelic Baby: “A captivating fusion of multi-instrumental talent and thoughtful songwriting (…) ‘Shun’ offers listeners a poignant exploration of human experiences. Each track is a tapestry of emotions, woven together with intricate melodies and evocative lyrics. Holkenborg’s musical prowess shines through on every track, showcasing his versatility as a songwriter and performer (…) Truly fantastic!”

Stoner Hive: “As you continue along the Shun story line you feel the album becomes increasingly more like a classic study of alienation, creativity and the outsider mind (…) There is no shortage of beauty on this album – 5/5 stars”

Eric Corton (Kink FM): “Wow (…) Looks and sounds very beautiful!”

OOR: “Holkenborg is a passionate multi-instrumentalist and guitar virtuoso (…) ‘Shun’ makes you curious again about this class act on stage.”

3voor12: “Holkenborg is clearly making his mark and manages to create a very beautiful – and cool – whole.”

OI!
Been a long time since a posted something on this “houtje-touwtje” website. Offline life is much better, isn’t it? However, I’ve just update the discography page, so check it out here: https://pieterholkenborg.wordpress.com/discography/
See you in a few years!
P.

We got a new EP out with GEISHAS OF DOOM! This cheapo WordPress website doesn’t work like it supposed to, so if you are curious; check it out here: https://geishasofdoom.bandcamp.com/album/sickest-music-for-the-sickest-people-vol-4

First release of my new band: Geishas Of Doom. Written, performed and recorded in one day on my trusty Tascam 4-track cassetterecorder. This EP is released on only 50 (!) pink tapes, so don’t hesitate to get yours. “Psychedelic violence in its best form” according to one of the Netherlands leading newpapers. Check it out!

It was a great pleasure and honor to come up with music for the poem ‘Yet You Wait’ by my good friend Dan Wilson. You may know him as the leadsinger of one of the best contemporary bands: The Cubical. ‘Yet You Wait’ is one of the songs on Dan’s new record ‘False Positives’ and is released on Misophonia. Highly recommended stuff. Check out the full album here.

YET YOU WAIT..

Wind raging
Collective breath held
Dropped From the heavens
Down with a thud
Feet on dry land
Then speeding homeward
Back to captivity
Life under the heel of your own choices
The tyranny of domesticity
Every ounce accounted for
Every second someone else’s
Always on the clock
In the sick bay
At panic stations
The unwanted guest at your own party
At each other’s throats
Life through the window

The slow turning of the wheel
The tightening of the vice
When work is your only indulgence
Exercise your debauchery
Patience the virtue
Sacrifice the aim

And yet you wait
And yet you wait ..

You must relearn
The art of tongue biting
Pride swallowing
Point scoring
Passivity
Meekness
The rising damp of resentment
Door slamming
Finger jabbing
Blood boiling
Oh the parts we play
The lies we tell

Tied by the chord umbilical
Tethered, aligned, destined to follow the same star
Through burning deserts and howling gales
Thick fog and dark forests
You are both the hostage and the captor

Ugala Arkestra is an instrumental jamband in the spirit of Can, Sun Ra, Funkadelic and electric Miles Davis. The band includes Bob Hogenelst (Birth Of Joy/Molasses) on drums, Gertjan Gutman (Birth Of Joy/Baskar) on Hammond organ, Erik Harbers (Woost/Automatic Sam) on bass and myself on guitar.

Last summer we played a gig at Waalhalla skatepark in Nijmegen. Our buddy Lars Spijkervet recorded, mixed and mastered everything and we were so happy with the endresult that we decided to release the entire gig (including a soundcheck jam as a bonustrack) on cassette. It’s a limited run of 50 tapes. Cassettes are available now and can be ordered via our Bandcamp page. Go!

Have you ever read ‘De Uitvreter’ by Nescio? It’s a very special book to me. Waalhalla is situated next to the bridge over the river De Waal. That bridge plays an important role in the story. Do yourself a big favor and read it.

“I’m not a poet and I’m not a nature lover and I’m not an anarchist. I am, thank God, absolutely nothing.” ― Nescio