The Watchman

Originating from the Netherlands, songwriter and guitarist Ad van Meurs first took up keyboards in the folk-rock ensemble Deirdre during the mid-1970s. Once punk arrived, he moved over to guitar and launched the band Bleistift. By the start of the following decade that project had shifted into experimental noise territory, now featuring his partner Ankie Keulthes. The pair launched World According To in 1983, a project with a more direct sound and Keulthes handling lead vocals. During Keulthes’s break to raise a child, van Meurs stepped out on his own as the Watchman; that act toured in support of Alex Chilton, Michelle Shocked and Jonathan Richman while issuing a self-titled album on Rykodisc in 1991.