About the new album Wouter says “The main difference with ‘We Could Wake...’ is that it’s situated less inside the realm of the mind... ‘Birdsongs’, in a way, calls for action. As on the previous album, the main themes are still the ‘big ones’ like desire or death, but some songs on the new album call for more rooted, personal action. And when I’m calling for action I’m addressing my little self in the first place. I’m cautious to avoid the trap of the cliché protest- singer. To preach doesn’t serve anyone and the poetry of the lyrics should always surpass any message. Poetically correct maybe, rather than politically”.
Musical influences? Wouter loves Bonnie 'Prince' Billy for his lyrics or the Icelandic group Múm for their melancholy and organic electronics, yet his preference goes to the old stuff: Mississippi John Hurt for his picking-style or the Alan Lomax field recordings for the soul captured in them. Lyrically, it’s Dylan and Cohen where he finds inspiration. Meeting Cohen once in the streets of Montreal was for Wouter the symbolic start of his music career. After a short talk about ego and being a performer, Cohen sent him on his path with the wise words: “it's a hard road and shit will happen, but in the end you'll be alright. Good luck son”.