VINCENT KUYVENHOVEN | PHOTOGRAPHY - Vincent & The Memories

Story of recording the 'Topanga EP'
by Vincent & The Memories
Los Angeles, Topanga, California, U.S.A. | September 2025

In the middle of a night in January 2024, I woke from a vivid, feverish dream, struggling to catch my breath after double-lung pneumonia, a consequence of a compromised immune system caused by an MRSA sepsis infection I had been battling. It had been dark weeks, spent connected to an IV in an isolation room at a hospital in Amsterdam. Vivid images of making music on a wooden porch surrounded by pine trees felt like a reality that had already happened somewhere, sometime; it felt so true and real. I grabbed my phone and texted Germaine: “If I get out of this mess, I would love to visit you in Topanga. Let’s make some music.”

A year later, pretty much recovered and sitting at the edge of a swimming pool in Morocco, Germaine called me to share the moment of her evacuation from the expanding Palisades fires, which had reached Topanga Canyon, the region where she and her spouse, Buck, live. With their car packed with their dog Ringo, some essentials, and a few guitars, they were unsure if they would ever see their beloved town again, as the surrounding hills were being consumed by the rapidly spreading fires. Life and chances sometimes unfold in the nick of time, so we decided to record the songs that still had to be written right in that moment. Fortunately, Topanga was saved, and the canyon, home to so many dreams, survived, for now.

In the months that followed, Germaine tapped into her network and contacted musicians to join and become part of the project. In September 2025, we met in the studio, shook hands, drank a cup of coffee, and started recording right away at Rob Shelton’s Altamira Sound, a studio in Alhambra, Los Angeles, and at the Ringo Bingo Recording Studio in Topanga, over the span of five enjoyable recording days. “Let’s turn some songs into music”.

Topanga EP cover image

Tracklist

Pleased To Meet You
Small Unknown
Achmed
Hungry For More
Something Is Telling Me
Were An Angle
Think Of Others

photo by Germaine Dunes

Release
'Pleased To Meet You' was released on December 20 on major music platforms.
'Topanga' EP is set to release on major music platforms, with a limited vinyl edition in Q2 2026.

Vincent & The Memories, as a band, consists of a variety of band members depending on location and project. This setup allows musicians to connect and play in the moment, without any strings attached. Over time, the number of members of “The Memories” will hopefully grow, creating unique musical moments both live and on future recording projects.