- This is where we are now (The time at which this history is written.) I have decided that there will be no big TDW album this year. To give myself some breathing space and give Mind:Soul the attention and focus it deserves. There will however be different projects that I will attend to which have to do with TDW. So don’t worry there will be new stuff this year!

- More info will be added to this History once it is available!

- Scrapbook was finally released at the very beginning of 2011. The album comprised of 2 discs filled with 18 songs. The music was eclectic and varied and personally I think it really shows what my taste’s are. (even though not everything is on there, but I don’t think that is possible anyway…) The record was printed and pressed on a big scale again and sent out into the world both digitally and physically through Layered Reality Productions. The press wasn’t as positive as they were about The Haunts (This had to do with the length and the high diversity of the record mostly) but the record showed what I wanted to do and it broke ground with a new worldwide audience.

- The rest of the year was used to promote Scrapbook worldwide and work on LRP related matters. Mostly signing new bands and finding new webzines and magazines to promote releases. It was very different from working purely on music, but a lot of fun as well!

- First Re-Draft was a project I had been working on during the creation of The Haunts thinking that the songs on the original First Draft deserved a second chance to really shine. So I took the essence of the songs and re-wrote and re-recorded them by myself. (With only Sander Stegeman and Methilde Bouma helping out with guitar leads) The record was lying around during the Scrapbook sessions in an unfinished form, but I finally got around to finishing it in the summer of 2011 and thus it was ready in Autumn. The record was released in MP3 format with full coverart released separately. The record has been recieved quite positive so far and it is the start of more special material that will be released through the Dreamwalker’s Realm in the coming years.

- I also decided that I wanted to keep control over releasing my own music as well. And thus the plans to start Layered Reality Productions (LRP) came to fruition. LRP started in the autumn of 2010 and the main goal was to distribute Progressive and Alternative Metal music to the world through the Internet and physical distribution. It would not become a standard label or distro though. It would become a collective with a non-profit goal. (Please check this video to see how it works.) Scrapbook would become the first official release.

- At the end of 2010, me and bassplayer Joey Klerkx formed a new band by the name of Mind:Soul. The goal of the band was to create progressive and challenging music in which everything would be possible, without genre limits or conventions. This would be the type of music that I would really want to make with a band. We finally found a drummer and guitarist and started to work on our first EP.

- I joined the band NeMesyz in the beginning of 2009 and became the lead singer. The band was searching for a singer for a while, so I came in at the right moment. I was looking for a new challenge to inspire myself and they wanted a singer. So there was much rejoicing!

- In the meantime, as I was playing in NeMesyz I started to think about creating the next TDW record in a different way then the ones before it. I decided that I wanted to write the record together with a group of befriended musicians who could all bring in their own musical inspiration. I figured that this would challenge me into writing music that I would never be able to think off on my own. I decided that this was the way to go and 2009 was spent creating demo’s for the next big TDW release.

- NeMesyz released the EP Phase Zero this year which also came with the official video for the song “Time”

- The Haunts was finished and released. It was the first TDW album to be printed in a big quantity and send out into the world. The record was reviewed and received mostly positive worldwide and it was the first TDW record that created a following of sorts. Finally I was doing that what I wanted to do for years. The start was made.

- After releasing The Haunts and working on the same material for so long I felt burned-out. I could not just write another record like this. I took some time off to promote The Haunts and think about what my next step would be…

- After releasing both Brother and UCAP I got back to listening to my Reflection demo’s and I found out that the material on this disc was not what I wanted anymore. The music sounded like the person I was two years earlier, but it had nothing to do with what I wanted at this point in time. I decided that it was time to do things differently.

- I took the best material from Reflection and compiled that into a conceptual framework that would become The Haunts. The rest of 2007 was spent on recording this concept record.

- Up Close And Personal (UCAP) is released in the beginning of 2006. The record is an experimental affair featuring different styles and more musically challenging material as opposed to First Draft.

- The very first version(s) of the TDW website are released and UCAP is made available for free through this website.

- UCAP is downloaded worldwide by a small group of listeners and the word spreads. The record isn’t a big hit but it is the first step into the outside world.

- Brother is released in the autumn of 2006. The song brother was written as a reply to an intense personal experience I went through. The single was released to small audience but replies were fairly positive and I still consider the song Brother to be one of the most powerful so far. The B-side was a remake of the song Happy Day (Which originally appeared on First Draft) on which the guitars were recorded by Michiel van der Werff. (Who became my guitarist and band-mate later)

- At the end of 2006 I became the singer in the band Last Lullaby. (Together with Michiel) The band’s music could be described as regular metal with some progressive and theatrical undertones. And opposed to my other bands, the music we played here was much more sounding like my style and musical direction. The band never really took off and lasted for about half a year, but it was a very good experience writing-wise.

- Promotorium is released with a staggering number of ten copies. (There were no more copies available or made then.)

- In the summer, I camped out with three drummers to record drums for Reflection. Time is also spent on recording Guitars for that record. None of the parts turned out usable in the end because of the lack of technical knowhow from my side. I had a lot to learn still, but I learned a lot from that summer.

- The year basically ends back at the point where it began. I had a complete album written, yet it had to be recorded properly. I decided that it would be a good thing to put Reflection on ice for a while and focus on something else to refresh myself.

- My first real writing, recording and mixing experience all came together in this year. I decided that I did not just want to become a songwriter or vocalist, but that I also wanted to learn how to create, record and produce my own music. The whole experience of writing an initial idea up until creating a real recorded song fascinated me and made me decide to start building my own studio.

- The first release, First Draft is made and released independently. The release is picked up by about three people beside friends and family… but what the hell, it’s a start. This was also the first record I produced myself. You can definitely hear this as the results are far from perfect…

- It all started here.

- In this year I decided that if I ever want to give my musical dreams a proper chance I had to go for it. I decided as a fourteen year old boy that this was what I wanted to do with my life and that I would do whatever it would take to get a musical career going.

- The name TDW is coined for this solo adventure. Apparently it’s good enough and I stick with it. (I am still not sure who or what thought it up though…)