Sitting in the train listening to music can be a strange experience. Apart from a feeling of momentum and some vibrations you don’t really register your movement. For all you know, you’re sitting in this vehicle, and giant projections on either side of it create the illusion of transportation. You’re simply sitting there, immersed in … More Songs to Zone Out to
When I was but a nipper, say, an eight- or nine-year-old, I was first introduced to a peculiar fictional Dutch family called Flodder. They are boorish, crude, violent, criminal, antisocial, and even occasionally incestuous when brother and sister Kees and Kees engage in some choice adventures. Despite these flaws, they are lovable in all their … More From the Dutch Canon: Flodder
I put off writing this for a long time, which is unusual for a text about a video game. Then again, I put off playing that videogame for an even longer time, because I was afraid of playing it. Now I’m putting off actually introducing it… I’m writing to you today about That Dragon, Cancer, … More Experiencing That Dragon, Cancer
Forgive me, Dante, for I am a sinner. I confess. Do not judge me too harshly, oh Joyce, Tolstoy, Waugh, Saramago, and other greats that collect my dust instead of my readership. I mean well. I feel genuine pleasure and admiration when I muster the will and energy to read your famous words, but that … More Pulp Fiction: I Read Crap and I Struggle with Literature. Shoot Me.
Like many students I made the choice to pursue part of my degree abroad. Last year I submitted my resume alongside a letter of motivation and filled in a batch of forms for various institutions, in order to apply for a semester’s worth of studying at the University of Edinburgh. To my surprise and delight … More Be Prepared When Study Meets Abroad-y
Since 2013 I attend the metal festival FortaRock in Nijmegen. Like I do with most of the shows I attend, I go on my own and make new friends while we’re all rockin’ out. The weather has been glorious every time and no band has ever disappointed in their performance (save for a ridiculously horrible … More FortaRock 2015 – A Festival of Metal Fun
Music videos can be works of art in and of themselves. They are a director’s interpretation of a piece of music, and depending on the kind of song he or she is working with and their own creative capability, that visual rendering can lead to some fascinating results. A good music video can give … More From Sound to Screen – How Good Music Videos Can Be
Everyone has fond memories of a lot of films from their childhood that raise those films above and beyond everything they see afterwards. For many, those films are products from the masterminds at Disney, or the work of directors like Spielberg. Then there are the more obscure titles that just happened to be in the … More Highlander – There Is Only One
We can all rejoice once more, as youngster Spring is slowly taking over from old man Winter. A change in temperature, hours of sunlight, scenery, smells and spirit lies in our immediate future. Each season is distinct in a number of things, including the list I just mentioned. What in particular I want to draw … More Seasonal Songs
I once read that stand-up comedians nowadays fulfil a similar job as journalists, as a result of journalism becoming more concerned with commentary and opinion than with reporting. Both crafts, in any case, serve a public goal. Two of my favourite public servants in those crafts are Christopher Hitchens and Christopher Titus. I can read … More Hitchens and Titus – Gravitas and Levity
