wh^rl. wh^rl

wh^rl is a band project with a sign in the name that sits totally unused on my keyboard. The man behind wh^rl, Jurgen Veenstra, can be found on this blog under a few monikers. At the age of 59 this is his first solo album. The songs were recorded in a home, lo-fi situation, mostly with assistance from Ruud Slingerland. These recordings were only the starting point. From there the brothers Breuer, Arno and Stefan, started to add instruments, Thea de Vries backing vocals and Rudy Lentze and Jur de Vries later added instruments in two songs that weren't there yet. All separate from the other. They only came together to hear the end result. The record called 'wh^rl' is the result. Talking about having faith in fellow musicians.

This result is totally different from what I have come to expect from Veenstra. The music could not be further apart from his bands Avery Plains or Moan. In fact, when I listened to 'wh^rl' for the first time, the album sort of passed me by. It was over before I knew it. As a result, I laid it aside as not interesting enough.

Something changed, thanks to the new Sparklehorse album, 'Bird Machine'. Because of what I heard there, I was reminded, as if subconsciously, of 'wh^rl'. Something made me put the album on and things fell into place. wh^rl is not Sparklehorse. The atmosphere is what comes close. Veenstra, most of the time, keeps out all the estranging effects on his voice and has little use for white noises in the music. What remains is the alternative singer-songwriter music. (Okay, okay, and there's 'Skeep 1'.)

wh^rl excels here with a collection of songs that on the one hand rock, that are arranged and fully finished and on the other with songs that are home recordings, ending seemingly randomly. In between are the songs that take the listener to a place to lay down the head and just listen. A good example is 'Evil Tangerine'. The ghost of David Bowie from the early seventies meanders through the song. Think 'Changes', 'Velvet Goldmine and 'The Bewley Brothers'. More difficult songs that at the same time underpinned Bowie's step to a larger audience. This may come too late for Jurgen Veenstra, but listen to him any way is my advice.

Where wh^rl succeeds is presenting a mix that is both innocent and wise. The mood is the ideal mix of both, despite sounding paradoxical. The innocence lies in some of the sounds on the album. The wisdom is in the smart way these sounds are augmented. A good example of this mix can be heard in 'Searching Through The Ashes'. Serious lyrics are supported by a child's piano. Very serious sounding instruments come in later. The result is an astonishingly beautiful song.

With wh^rl Jurgen Veenstra has totally surprised me. Nothing is always what it seems and never take something for granted, are two important lessons in life and wh^rl is one of the examples underscoring these rules. It took me a second round to grasp the record and before I allowed to enter me as it were. It has and I hope you will give it the same chance.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order wh^rl here:

https://tinyroomrecords.bandcamp.com/album/wh-rl