Nijhof & Toonk - II

Nijhof & Toonk
II
aural conduct
Netherlands, 2026
LP

Latest from the minds behind that killer girotuna LP on Vrystaete!

FROM THE LABEL:

As a sequel to the 2022 self-titled debut Nijhof & Toonk, and in the wake of their youth project Girotuna issued on Vrystaete, the duo returns to aural conduct with an album of new material.

Raised on an amalgam of pre-millennium culture, steeped in social disillusionment and the technological imaginary, their influences trace distinct sounds. Think home recordings by Smog, Bugskull, Azusa Plane, alongside the electronica of Muslimgauze and Vladislav Delay.

Nijhof & Toonk’s music is shaped by decades of collaboration. They periodically set up shop with analogue gear and instruments, jamming for entire weekends as an in-the-moment practice. What comes out is what you hear. A lucid friction that carries across each note. Onvolkomen (imperfect, or unconcluded, in Dutch) is how the artists themselves describe the work.

Early recordings were captured on simple 2-track cassette recorders and reel-to-reel machines. At that time, the group used mainly rock instruments, favoring extended, repetitive jams over structured songs. As they gradually added equipment like synthesizers and grooveboxes, their sound developed further. The addition of a 4-track machine improved recording quality, though most sessions were still intentionally captured in a single take.

In 1999, they self-released a self-titled album, followed by a small number of live shows. After 2002, the girotuna sessions became less frequent until they eventually paused indefinitely. In 2011, a limited-edition anthology of lo-fi jams was released.

Meanwhile, Nijhof and Toonk, two core members of girotuna, continued to record up until now. They released an album on Aural Conduct in 2022, which led to renewed interest in their back catalog, resulting in this upcoming release on Enfant Terrible / Vrystaete: a dive into Girotuna’s electronic archive, featuring a selection of minimal electronic tracks from 2000 and 2001.