Locally, he made an impression with the band Be Right Back in which he sang and played guitar. He left the band in the spring of 2009. Knol first gained popularity in the year prior to his official début, as the support-act of indie band Johan, who also emerged from the town of Hoorn and are on the same record label as Knol, the prestigious Excelsior Recordings.
Knol recorded his eponymous début album with the help of label mate Anne Soldaat, who also plays guitar in Knol's live band. It was released in January 2010, to overwhelming critical acclaim.
Excelsior Recordings re-released the album as a 2CD set in November 2010. The second disc, entitled Music In My Room contains nine acoustic versions of songs from the début album. Knol's second studio album, Days came out in May 2011, yet again to rave reviews from the Dutch music press.
Knol's third and fourth full-length studio records, Soldier On (release: November 2013) and Cut The Wire (January 2018), mark a shift towards indie guitar pop with more of a 'band sound'.
Knol also recorded a punk-inspired album with his band The Miseries and a bluegrass album with Blue Grass Boogiemen (see Tim Knol & Blue Grass Boogiemen).
Only Waiting
Tim Knol Lyrics
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I won't hide the way you do
Cause loving you is a devil's string
It left me bruised and blue
You can paint your lying lips
You can wear those shoes so tall
But I can't stand to see your arms
Yes I'll wait, I'll be waiting
Only waiting for you
The only way, the only way
The only way is true.
It's so easy to let it go
I won't tell you what to do
But you can't live inside a dream
Look at me, it's true
Now I won't mind going all the way
I won't hide the way you do
You are the books so hard to read
I'm turning pages, but still
Yes I'll wait, I'll be waiting
Only waiting for you
The only way, the only way
The only way is true
I would live through another day
and the demons I'll kill them too
Climb the walls, I'll take that road
The longest road to you
Yes I'll wait, I'll be waiting
Only waiting for you
The only way, the only way
The only way is true
In the first verse of Tim Knol's "Only Waiting," the singer expresses how much they care for someone, but also acknowledges that this love has caused them pain. The metaphor of "loving you is a devil's string" is a poignant one, as it suggests that the love is both alluring and destructive. The singer goes on to describe how the object of their affection can put on a façade with "lying lips" and "shoes so tall," but they will always know the truth. They are hurt when they imagine this person with someone else, but they also make it clear that they will wait for them regardless of the pain.
In the second verse, the singer is more forceful. They warn against living in a fantasy world and emphasize the importance of facing reality. Despite this, they reiterate their willingness to go "all the way" and the metaphor of the hard-to-read book suggests that the singer is still uncovering new things about this person. The final verse takes on a more hopeful tone, with the singer promising to fight off demons and scale walls to get to the person they love.
Overall, "Only Waiting" is a song about the complexities of love and the lengths one is willing to go to for that love. It acknowledges the pain that often comes with it, but also emphasizes the idea that love is sometimes worth that pain.
Contributed by Michael N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.