Tag Archives: Kilian Valkhof

Kilian Valkhof (Lystener) – Interview (Part 2)

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This is the final part of the interview with Kilian Valkhof (from Lystener). As I always say… share and enjoy! (The first part is here)

PART II

MUSIC & YOU

When did you become interested in music? What was the first album or single you ever purchased?

I always liked music, and I believe the first single I bought was, shamefully, ‘candle in the wind’ by Elton John. I was 9 or so, then, and was very moved by it all. I redeemed myself with my first CD: Discovery by Daft Punk. Getting really into music only happened later a couple of years after that, when I started discovering bands via the internet that I really liked that you didn’t see on television.

Are you in a band yourself, or have you been in a band in the past? Is there a clip on YouTube or elsewhere we could watch?

Nope. I tried it with a couple of friends, but I’m just not musical enough. I own a guitar and dabble on it every now and then, but it’s nothing to write home about.

Musical likes and dislikes? Favorite artists?

Very diverse. Anything from folk to hip-hop, really, with some exceptions: R&B doesn’t do it for me, and the only time I tolerate dance music is in a club. I listen most to rock music, with my favorite artists consisting of Jack’s mannequin, Say anything, Third Eye Blind, Snow Patrol, Brand New.

To you, what is the role that lyrics actually play in contemporary music? Is that wrong or is that right?

It really depends on the artist. Some artists have lyrics to accompany the music, and some the other way around. I myself am drawn to more lyric-centric musicians, but it differs per person and per band. Continue reading →

Kilian Valkhof (Lystener) – Interview (Part 1)

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Last week I caught up with Kilian Valkhof from Lystener, a startup offering an innovative way to find and share lyrics that I had reviewed the previous week.

We talked about his project, and also about his relationship with music. A special emphasis was placed on the way he perceives lyrics, of course.

This is Part 1 of the interview. Part 2 (where we talk about music) can be read here.

Kilian Valkhof, The Creator Of Lystener

Kilian Valkhof, The Creator Of Lystener

Full Name: Kilian Valkhof
Age: 22
Web App: Lystener
Position: Founder

PART I

THE  WEB APP

Tell us a little about your web app. How was it conceived? What are its most distinctive features in your opinion?

I’ve always had a problem with the way lyrics work. Some music players can display lyrics and that’s great, but there’s always one that doesn’t work as well as it should.

You can also google lyrics. This means you have to type in the artist and song title (because somehow they’re never copyable from music players) and find a working site that doesn’t have a bunch of ads and spam. Then, if you want to actually do something with the lyrics, like, copy them, most sites block that too! If you want to share lyrics on facebook, for example, you end up typing them yourself.

Lystener fixes both these problems. No typing needed to find the lyrics to the song you’re listening to now, because I just ask last.fm what you’re playing, and it updates automatically. When you select the lyrics you like, you can post the part you selected to facebook or twitter with a single button.

What was the original launch date?

I launched it on monday the 28th of june, after a week of private beta.

What has been the response so far? In which countries has it been more successful?

Twofold actually. People love the application but the lyrics database isn’t really big, so if you’re like me and listen to lots of unknown stuff, you’ll have to do without lyrics every now and then. There are ways to easily add them though, and I’m going to expand on those to make adding lyrics yourself even easier. When you have lyrics though, people are delighted because everything works very smoothly, reading lyrics, selecting lyrics, sending lyrics, it all happens in one flow.

As far as countries go, English speaking countries lead by a large margin. Continue reading →