Thijsenterprise - Three Houses (2021)

‘Three Houses (Driehuizen)’ is a fitting follow-up to Thijsenterprise's ‘Lahringen’ LP, which sees him once again in full force on the saxophone backed by a rhythm section to push him through. This time though, he digs deeper for darker and more emotional tunes. Playing extended solos, while also giving the clarinet a more prominent role.

The music includes hints to a Tarantino movie, his hero playing sax between monkeys and elephants, an empty Moleskine to be filled with sad one-liners, and to a place up north in the Netherlands this album was named after. This album reflects more than ever Reinier’s personality, his thoughts, and, in a sense, his unbalanced life.

Ⅲ THERE USED TO BE YOUR NAME Ⅲ

“Unlike the track title suggests, it isn’t related to break-up or death—which pretty much would cover this record. The line is from a classic scene in ‘Kill Bill 2.’ Budd arrives late to the strip club where he works, and Larry, his boss, scraps him from the calendar saying: “there used to be your name.”

I tried to set the tone for a darker album. One where I tried to express my true feelings, and create melodies that reflect those.”

Ⅲ Y Y Y Ⅲ

“‘Y Y Y’ means ‘and and and.’ This is my philosophy for many things in life:‘Reinier, would you like to see five saxophone players play atonal music for two hours straight in a warehouse, or go to a bar and drink gin-tonics for €3,45?’Well, I want to cry listening to atonal music AND I want to drink gin-tonics all night AND fall asleep, drunk, listening to Pharoah Sanders preaching about love... Y Y Y.”

Ⅲ NEVER WEAR YELLOW Ⅲ

“An old colleague and friend from the BIMHUIS—truly a wise man—once told me to never wear yellow. Men can’t wear yellow, apparently. I still like to wear yellow, though. Only inside my house.

This song features me for the first time improvising on a clarinet; an instrument I’ve picked up recently for expanding my ideas and sounds.”

Ⅲ SUNGLASSES FOR SUMMERTIME IN THE ZOO Ⅲ

“The title of this track comes from a special concert in the Artis Zoo in Amsterdam, where my sister took me as a surprise to see my hero Benjamin Herman play between the monkeys and elephants. I had to hide my teared-up eyes behind the sunglasses of my sister when Ernst Glerum played the intro of ‘Summertime’—the same version that was heard at the funeral of my dad.

The line ‘I left home at seventeen, had to lighten the load // I was young but I was keen to survive on my own,’ comes from the NxWorries song ‘Get Bigger,’ from the album ‘Yes Lawd!’ A huge source of inspiration.”

Ⅲ TOCAR LA FLAUTA Ⅲ

“Any aspiring musician knows that friends can have little to no idea of what they are doing. Thus sprung the title for this song. ‘Reinier? Oh, he’s just playing the flute (tocar la flauta), I guess.’”

Ⅲ KOYAANISQATSI Ⅲ

“‘Koyaanisqatsi’ is a song written by Philip Glass for the documentary ‘Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out Of Balance’ by Godfrey Reggio. A meaning where I personally can relate to for the last four years. I was introduced to this piece by my saxophone teacher in 2005, and the soundtrack and movie have made a huge impact on me ever since.”

Ⅲ LESSONS IN SOLITUDE Ⅲ

“In 2017, back on my own feet again, I had a very empty Moleskine notebook—which pretty much remained empty—with on the cover written ‘Lessons in Solitude’. The tune is an adaption of the tune ‘The Italian’ from my J Dilla-inspired debut ‘Stepbacks and Setbacks,’ with a similar theme as this tune and ‘Three Houses’ album: solitude and darkness.”

Ⅲ TRIX Ⅲ

“Trix is a girl from the book ‘De Koperen Tuin’ by Dutch author Simon Vestdijk, who leads a devastating life somewhere in Friesland. The bass line was partly replayed from ‘Khadijah,’ again by NxWorries, and then expanded to create a completely new track.”

Ⅲ SUNRISE IN ROSES Ⅲ

“Roses are not only a flower but also a small town on the Costa Brava, Spain, where I live. It’s truly magical to see the sunrise in Roses in the fall, after a stormy night over the Mediterranean sea.

On this track I once again play the clarinet, exploring new sounds and digging a little deeper to express myself. Raw and uncut. Just as I’ve tried throughout ‘Three Houses.’”