Stijn Hüwels - Tomodachi (2019)

On Tomodachi, Hüwels gives us the best of his two worlds by combining his solo studio work with his collaborative efforts: “The starting point for this album was simple. I sent out a question to fellow musicians I deeply respect and whose work I especially like. I know all of them for some time, and they all have a significant influence on my work. I asked them to send me 'something', a sample, melody or fieldrecording I could use to create a new piece of music. This exchange of inspiration forced me to approach composing in a different way than I use to do, without abandoning my main gear (guitar and laptop). Slowly, I tried to make a consistent story from the different pieces I got. That's how the album was formed and how it got its final shape. I decided to call it ‘Tomodachi’, Japanese for ‘friend(s)’. That's the only thing I can say about the album: it's about friendship and music”.