Koning began writing lyrics for the album before setting the words to music. He has cited the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud and Edgar Allan Poe as influences, as well as the artwork of Anton Pieck, the mythology of Pygmalion and music of The Dresden Dolls, De Kift, and The Velvet Underground. He has also spoken of researching the history of his birthplace Zaandam and neighbouring hamlets, including the notorious murder in the fitting room in 1984. He combined his research with descriptions of local architecture and folklore. During a solo show for political party Groen Links, some weeks after mixing the album, Koning surprised his fan base with a percussive version of Asbestos Poisoning. He played a similar version of the song during his show at De Groote Weiver in September 2012. During the same time, he announced the release of the album on his website. He told a local TV-channel in New York City in November 2012: "I was really enjoying this different, enormous, wide breadth of soun...