September 21 - 1956

... In living memory of Johannes Breeuwsma ( 1955 - ) ...

Hello there... Welcome to my world. And no - you're not stuck in a parallel universe. It's all real. It's really me. This actually is what happened to that farmer's son ( you once knew ) who was born to dream and in doing so unintentionally created an empire, an empire of sound, stories and images.
 
The music playing here on top is more or less how I started some 38 years ago as an acoustic Springsteen / Orbison / Dylan clone. The ( very ) short stories below eventually lead to what surprisingly has been my destiny all along : an underground soundartist. All original files in the mediaplayer above date back as far as the 80's, and the early 90's. There are finished songs, sketches of songs, and a few "transition" pieces - and of course - in case you're interested - there's some poetry ( and much more ) over here
 
Now let's move over to my current art ( 1995 - 2023 ) >
   
Let us begin >


 Originally I was born as the youngest son of a farmer in the North of The Netherlands, Western Europe. Those days have long gone. Memories... Memories... Memories... 

 Cars... alcohol... girlfriends... and the breathtaking silence of the land... The breathtaking silence of the land... girlfriends... alcohol... and cars...

Influences of my youth on my later art / Invloeden van mijn jeugd op mijn huidige werk :

 01 - In 1955 I was born as the youngest son of a farmer in the North of The Netherlands, Western Europe. In the year 1959 we moved to a huge farm ( at least for me as a kid it was ) about a mile from the nearest village, Wommels. For me the next years to come ( and the years thereafter ) were like heaven - they pretty much shaped my current artistry.

 The thing I remember most about that time was sitting silently somewhere in this huge barn directly connected to the house we lived in. As the first year passed by so did the seasons - and the lights... they dimmed... November came... December came... And there I was : listening now in almost complete darkness to the omnipotent sound of the wind, the rain on the roof - and in the far away distance my mother's voice, almost certainly praising The Lord. What I remember most about her voice was when she finished a song - in one long last vibrating breath... 

 Today ( 50 years later - ) you will find elements as mentioned above in all my art : distant, almost alienated voices - the omnipotent sound of the softly howling wind ; waves of Nostalgia, and waves of Melancholy. 

 02 - When I was a young kid I used to sit a lot at the side of the road in front of our farm. For a few stretching miles to all directions of the wind there was basically nothing - but the Frisian lowlands. Totally at random someone seemed to have thrown in a couple of farms; the first b-road along our farm was only laid out somewhere in 1965. Before and after there was the overwhelming silence of the lands. I remember especially the early days of March - when everywhere around us the lowlands ( finally ) defrosted, sometimes in early spring days without any trace of wind whatsoever. Special also where those extraordinay silent days in late September, early October - as we were all watching the skies for the first storms to arrive. 

 Today ( 50 years later ) you will find elements as mentioned above in all my art : the overwhelming waves of silence, the slowly passing of time ( coming to a complete standstill - I like that! ), and the sounds/noise of Nature. 
 
 03 - I remember it well : my first addiction > the transistorradio. Already when I was 8 years old I carried it with me like it was a smartphone covering the most valuable information ever - and it did. The quality of AM radio was influenced by so many things, I only mention thunder and lightning. And I quickly got addicted... to the Static, the Noise, the Fuzz, and the Buzz... 

Also I was there when a pirate radio station launched The Animals' The House Of The Rising Sun, also I was there when they launched Dylan's Like A Rolling Stone, also I was there when they launched The Velvet Underground's debut 'banana' album, also I was there when they launched The Stones' Satisfaction ( I Can't Get No ), also I was there when they launched The Beatles' Revolver album, also I was there when they launched The Who's My Generation, also I was there when they launched Procol Harum's A Whiter Shade Of Pale, I was there when... 

 But most of all I got addicted to the Static, the Noise, the Fuzz, the wear and tear of vinyl... It was only a matter of time for this addiction to return - so here we are: the mind-boggling perfection of the digital era reaching out to a now close to mythical past, only to shake hands and say: has actually anything changed at all?

 Today ( 50 years later ) you will find elements as mentioned here in all my art ( see below ) : the static, the interference, the noise, the fuzz, and the buzz >
 
So... What then has become of This Fine Young Cannibal ( born in "the mainstream", now "underground" descended and addicted )... Well, for many, many years this has been my main project :


Gunnthrain - ( Dark ) ambientesque otherwordly surreal experimental atmospheric psychedelic post-rocky and / or neo-folky aural experiences. Gunnthrain's influences range from Joy Division to Biosphere, from Velvet Underground to Cocteau Twins, from Nick Cave to Brian Eno, from Underworld to Mathias Grassow, from Erik Satie to Thomas Köner, from Harold Budd to Pink Floyd, and all over again.
 
 


                                    

Yet currently ( starting November 2017 ) I'm seeing Magna Frisia ( see below ) as my main art ( let's call it the shifting sands of time ) - 





                                             Starting April 2019 - The Prophecy Of Silence

About The Prophecy of Silence > In a nutshell - The sounds ( and voices ) in my head. A bit longer - When I was a young kid I used to sit a lot at the side of the road in front of our farm. For a few stretching miles to all directions of the wind there was basically nothing - but the Frisian lowlands. Totally at random someone seemed to have thrown in a couple of farms; the first b-road along our farm was only laid out somewhere in 1965. Before and after there was the overwhelming silence of the lands. I remember especially the early days of March - when everywhere around us the lowlands ( finally ) defrosted, sometimes in early spring days without any trace of wind whatsoever. Special also where those extraordinay silent days in late September, early October - as we were all watching the skies for the first storms to arrive. Today ( 50 years later ) you will find elements as mentioned above in all my art : the overwhelming waves of silence, the slowly passing of time ( coming to a complete standstill - I like that! ), and the sounds/noise of Nature.
 
 

Starting May 2021 - Nearne 

 
    

   Starting September 2022 - Traach
 
 

       
   All my sideprojects ever since 1995 :


 Ecce Homo Pietoso - Ecce Homo Pietoso disintegrates then rebuilds ( most of the time ) human voice material only and is greatly inspired by the work of the Anglo-Irish painter Francis Bacon ( 1909-1992 ). His art is famous for its often bold, grotesque and nightmarish imagery. May I add: compassion...? Compassion for humanity...?
 
 


He Who Speaks In Silence - When I was a young kid I used to sit a lot at the side of the road in front of our farm - silence can be really overwhelming.
 
 

               Seelenruhe - Coming down from an atmosphere drenched in wind, rain and solitude.

 

 
 
Nachtwyn - As you can hear my most favorite sound in the world is that of a softly rumbling/howling wind - be ready for it.
 
 
 
 
 
And finally Shadows Of Forgotten Ancestors, which may not sound like your usual cup of tea. The project is all about recycling songs from the late 40's, the 50's and the 60's using the theory of granular synthesis.
 
WARNING - ( This audio has been set to private - by the artist - due to copyrights, and is only visible by invitation. Sorry for that. )
 
 
 



The Ports Of Amsterdam ( Fieldrecordings ) is a special project ( one album only ) - In the year 1984, carrying with me an old and borrowed Uher 4400, I spent several lonely nights in the Western and Eastern Amsterdam harbors to do... fieldrecordings... Scattered around me lay ruins - ruins of once thriving harbors, ruins of once thriving factories, ruins of trains (!), ruins of cranes, ruins overall. There was the distant smell of the past, the reality of the present - and in the architect's drawing a glimpse of the ( nearby ) future.
 







Peace ( and hugs for the ladies ) - Johannes



My parents as an elderly couple

The city of Sneek - where I was born

Over here - the farm where I was born, 1955

The wind, the water, and the grass ( my youth )

September 21 - 1956

Attacked by a goat - 1957 or 1958

Attacked by a goat ( photo treated in a dark Van Gogh way ) - 1957 or 1958

Me on the left, then my brothers Jan en Auke  

My brother Auke around the same time - he passed away in 1998

1960 - me and my rock'n roll sister Catharina

My sister Annie - she passed away in 1963

1965 - me on the right next to my brother Jan ( he passed away in  2022 )

1965 - me in the middle, striped shirt...

Local carnival '60s ( me as The Man In Black ... )

The summer of '75 - heatwave (and a curious horse)

Typical sunrise behind our farm ( 1959 - 1976 )

The Fellowship of the Ring (the army '76 - '77)

1984 - 1991 ( sex, theater, rock'n'roll ) - 1
 
1984 - 1991 ( sex, theater, rock'n'roll ) - 2

1984 - 1991 ( sex, theater, rock'n'roll ) - 3

Frisian horse listening to transistorradio

Atmosphere - 01

Atmosphere - 02

Atmosphere -03



Typical flooding after severe rainfall

The legendary lands of Paesens & Moddergat - 01

Coastline in the summer

The weather : sunlight peeking through clouds (01)

The weather : sunlight peeking through clouds (02)

Atmosphere - 04

Atmosphere - 06

Local sport called "fierljeppen" ( 01 )

Local sport called "fierljeppen" ( 02 )


Atmosphere - 12

Yes, we're mostly surrounded by ( the ) water

I am Frisian and I am beautiful

Frisian horse in wintertime

Frisian horse - 01


Frisian horse - 02 


Yes, some of us live below sealevel

Sleigh ride games - '60s / 70's


Black and white cows set free in springtime


Coastline - 1

                                                                         Coastline - 2


Atmosphere - 11


Atmosphere - 17

Low tide - the Frisia mainlands in the distance

Amazing sunset in ( of course ) the west


How my father collected hay in The Elvis Years

Ancient, broken machinery (50's) to collect hay

Sensational stormy lake ( Heegermeer )

Wommels, our farm top right - click for big size!

Realistic springtime image

Atmosphere - 07

Typical black and white cow

Atmosphere - 05

Atmosphere - 18

Black and white cows on the road

Busy day on the water ( I'm watching you... )

Incredible atmosphere - Hindeloopen

Atmosphere - 08

The church where I learned to sing

The black heart is where I always sat as a kid

Church organ


The highest tower around : Tzum

Typical belltower 01 

Atmosphere - 14

You may call me Misty

Typical farm in wintertime

Traditional sailing on the lake of Sneek - 02


Atmosphere - 16 ( below sealevel )

The lake of Sneek - close to which I was born

Atmosphere - 13

Nijland - where my parents lie buried

Two Frisian horses flying

Frisian horse flying


The legendary lands of Paesens & Moddergat - 02


From 500 BC_1000 AD the protection of mounds (01)

From 500 BC_1000 AD the protection of mounds (02)

Mounds ( 03 ) - in total 955 from 500 BC_1000 AD

The Romans (12 BC ) considered Frisia as bare...

The incredible ( dead end street ) Lytsewierrum

Atmosphere - 15

Yes, we learned how to skate on a piece of wood

Atmosphere - 17 ( Dokkum )

The danger of skating out into the open


Dreamy pier ( Roptazijl ) out into the sea

Stormy pier ( Roptazijl ) out into the sea

Not the South Pole, just Frisia on the westside

Serious thaw on the westside of Frisia

Traditional sailing on the lake of Sneek - 01

Incredible hare jumping ( springtime )

Atmosphere - 09


Once we had a horse like this one called My Fair Lady

Atmosphere - 10

Not me, but similar to what happened to me in '79

Again, 1979

Typical pole jumping during my childhood

Farmer breaking his pole while jumping

18,64 Miles long - protection and connection (01)

18,64 Miles long - protection and connection (02)



Sunset across the island of Terschelling


The legendary lands of Paesens & Moddergat - 03

Atmosphere - 18 

Atmosphere - 19 

Atmosphere - 20

Wierum - sunset below sealevel

Atmosphere - 21

Atmosphere - 22 

Atmosphere - 23

The Milky Way Galaxy visible above one of the islands


Aurora Borealis - the Northern Lights - 1

As the sun sets across the North Sea ( you better take care )



Aurora Borealis - the Northern Lights - 2


Realistic 21st century panorama

21st century - Farmers exploring new ways to make money


Realistic image of modern day, spreaded farms - 21st century

Ancient carriage, still in use

The city of Sneek - where I was born - 02

Our farm ( my childhood ) 50 years later - 1 

Our farm ( my childhood ) 50 years later - 2 

The End Of Time ( Roptazijl )
                              

                                                                                  
The Frisian flag 

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