Search results for "justin kniest"
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Just – Walk Slow Smile More
People often say pop music is shallow and superficial. That doesn’t do right to many pop songs. Excuse me for leaving the question ‘what is pop music anyway?’ unanswered at this point.
Dutch singer-songwriter Justin Kniest’s new single is a good example of a song with a deeper layer. Walk Slow Smile More tells the story of a good friend with MS. Last March he fled to a remote part of the Netherlands because of COVID-19, leaving family and friends behind. It was completely uncertain what the future would hold for him. Even in this desperate situation, he was strong enough to encourage himself to go on. He had his motto ‘walk slower, smile more’ tattooed on his forearm. A reminder to enjoy the beautiful things in life, even when you have to give up more and more.
This true story inspired Just to turn his friend’s motto into a song. He recorded Walk Slow Smile More with some of the finest musicians. Lothar Kosse for example, whose guitar melodies sometimes remind me of songs by Fish. Also, the track is graced with a beautiful Hammond part courtesy of Steve Smith, who worked with Dire Straits and ABC before. Minco Eggersman produced the single (as well as Just’s upcoming album Deep Cycles), and plays the drums. Just himself does a great job stretching his vocal chords to the max.
The singer is especially proud of the song’s artwork, made by James Marsh. He also designed the iconic cover art for the Talk Talk albums, one of Just’s all-time favourite bands.
Walk Slow Smile More is as close as Just has come to writing a pop song. His finest moment so far.
Recommended as well:
Just – Dark Days
Follow Just on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
single track
Just – Dark Days
At an early age already, Justin Kniest was fully focused on music. He played the guitar and performed live with his bands all over the Netherlands for several years. In his professional career, he was an innovator and a creative in the entertainment and marketing business. Kniest received award after award for his brain child Fabchannel, a ground-breaking video streaming platform for concerts. Eventually, a lack of music industry support killed the project.
Now, he returns to his first love…
Actually, it was Kniest’s wife who triggered this step. She gave him a writers’ camp as a gift for his 50th birthday. He met with fellow music enthusiasts at the coast of Spain, where he wrote his first track The Saddest Song. The positive feedback he received, encouraged him to finally pursue his dream. Just was born.
Dark Days is his new single; the first off his upcoming debut album. Once again, it’s a highly autobiographical song, which tells the story of the hard lessons that several setbacks in life taught him. Dark Days is a beautiful, melancholic song, delicately produced by Minco Eggersman, using analogue equipment. Musically, it finds itself somewhere midway Talk Talk and David Sylvian. Just the right soundtrack for leaves falling.
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
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The Vain Travail – Do You See The Sun?
The Vain Travail are a new cool collective from the Netherlands. It was formed by five musicians (Arthur Adam ten Cate, Dirk Schreuders, Jonas Pap, Dave Menkehorst and Len van de Laak), who have a wealth of experience. They play(ed) with renowned Dutch artists like Bertolf, Sevdaliza, Henny Vrienten, Sandra van Nieuwland and Navarone. Arthur Adam featured on this blog before.
In between their other commitments, the five have been working on their own repertoire for the past two years. During that time, they’ve never been all together in one room. Working in pairs or trios, they wrote and recorded songs, sent them to one another and added elements from their own studios. Eventually they produced twelve promising demos, enough for a concept album. That was at the start of 2020, a year that turned out rather different than anyone could’ve thought.
With their agendas suddenly empty, the five devoted all of their time to The Vain Travail. The first result is their debut EP All Is Quiet, which will be followed by an album full of new tracks in November.
Although the lyrics for the EP had been written before COVID-19 came upon us, they describe the ‘new normal’ in a bizarrely accurate way. All Is Quiet describes abandoned streets and loitering mischief, I Must Be Dreaming deals with the confusing conclusion that the world keeps turning, even after everything collapsed, I’d Be Dancing is about acceptance and the light at the end of the tunnel, while Do You See The Sun? is a song about hope.
The latter is The Vain Travail’s new single. An intense, melancholic pop noir track in the best Radiohead tradition. Radiohead at the time they still made ‘songs’, that is. And if you recently enjoyed my recommendations of Just’s music, you’re sure to like this as well. High quality from the lowlands!
Recommended as well:
Arthur Adam – O
Follow The Vain Travail on Facebook | Instagram | Spotify
For more great new music, follow the constantly updated Carte Blanche Music playlist.
