Prominent Utrechters talking about their favourite spot in the city. This month:Erny Green/ErnstGrevink, singer-songwriter and producer, tells us about Molen de Ster. So… Molen de Ster? ‘You wouldn’t expect this oasisof calm right between Utrecht Centraal Station and Lombok. I particularly like the decking behind the sawmill; I just love wood and the way it smells. My father was an architect and he used to take me along to building sites and workshops. If I hadn’t had two left hands, I’d have been a carpenter! I’ve got great memories of that time. My album Sound of Neonlightwas recorded in an annex in the yard of the mill in 2012, I worked on a one-off theatreshow there,and in the summer of 2017,I stayed there for a week there with my new flame,who was looking after someone’s cat close by.’ Best memory? ‘Getting to know the city, when I stayed with my sisterin 1984. I’d been expelled from school in Winterswijk and wasn’t getting on with my parents, so my mother thought it might help if I spent a weekwith my sister. I was supposed to be going to uni in Nijmegen,but I was so enchanted by Utrechtthat I never went. It was spring, I walked along the canals and couldn’t believe how beautiful everything was. I mean, it was a metropolis compared with Winterswijk. And I went to the No Nukesfestival in the Irenehal, where I discovered The Sound.Since then, I’ve dedicated three successful tribute projects to this British new-wave band, and there’ll be a follow-up in 2026.’ Best food? ‘The infamous ‘Broodje Mario’ (with extra chillis) on Oudegracht, wherethe same three guys have been working forever. In the early years when I was working as a street musician, I used to order one of theirwhite rolls. They’re so filling that you don’t need to eat again that day. And when we’re working in my Vuurland Studio in the city centre, we always make time for a walk and grab lunch at Broodje Mario. Don’t tell anyone, but I sometimes go to the two imitation Marios on Janskerkhof, but they’re nothing like as good.’ Moved to tears? ‘I had Covid recently, and I watched the 1974-film Het enigma van Kaspar Hauserby Werner Herzog. Kaspar Hauser was a real person. He was abandonedas a baby in the 1800s, and spent the first 16 years of his life on his own in a dark cell. When he was finally released, he could hardly speak. Despite his romantic nature, he found it hard to connect with people. I named my current band Kaspar Baum after him. We’re celebrating the release of our third album on1 February in dB’s, where we’ll play songs from the new album and a tribute to The Sound and Joy Division.’ Recent discovery? ‘Young punk bands like the girl group Limerent and Apeshit, who we made an EP with. They’re mostly around 20 years old and call themselves ‘post-punk’, and they’re part of a pointed political scene. They have the right attitude, they’re very physical and their music is simple but effective. All in all: real punk bands. The lead singer of Apeshit is amazing. He looks so young and innocent that I wasn’t sure at first. But when he starts to screech, it’s like hearing Johnny Rotten from the Sex Pistols!’ Erny Green and his band Kaspar Baum performed at dB’s on 1 February 2025. ernygreen.nl