So, a little background first. Regular readers might have noticed the severe lack of reviews that say ‘Bjorn’ at the bottom. I have a severe case of writer’s block that resulted in several unfinished reviews on my desktop and several hours staring blankly at my screen, struggling to find words. People who know me will confirm that I’m quite loquacious so failing to do what you actually really like doing is a major bummer. Add to that the fact that you disappoint people who value your input as well as people who look forward to having their stuff reviewed... Thing is, my life hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing in 2017 and 2018. I always say ‘next year will be better...’ and I sincerely hope that 2019 will be just that. I managed to exorcise some of the bad stuff by releasing my full-length album ‘Sattva’ for Hellstorm Of Flaming Nothingness (gratuitous plugging, I know (sorry dude-who-hates-us)) and there are some very concrete plans for a physical release for my harsh noise / power electronics project Pask.. Making noise always helps.

I have to say though that I might have it sound like my life was/is an endless stream of bad stuff. It’s not. A lot of it is really nice. And it will get nicer, I’m confident of that. Which leads me nicely to the actual review part.

One of the nice constants in my life is going to gigs, exploring and enjoying new music, etc.. Seeing shows in the livingroom of Mr. Ashtoreth himself, Peter Verwimp, is something that I immensely enjoy. Peter and Anja host the Palazzo Sessions for several years now and each one I went to was something truly special. It doesn’t even matter who’s playing, or whatever genre they’re playing. You know you will be surprised, intrigued, immersed and entertained on a very high level that very few shows achieve.

​The line-up of the night consisted of some familiar faces (Sitka, Stratosphere and Misantronics), someone who I wasn’t yet familiar with (Distant Fires Burning) and the second ever show of the newly formed Synchyse, which I was very curious about.

First up was Sitka. I had a chat with Ben before the show where he explained that he was evolving to a more ‘noisy’ sound. Roughing up the edges, so to speak. And he wasn’t lying either. It was by no means actual noise but I have to say I really, really like the direction that Ben is going for. Delicately and with a solid vision layering his drone loops, but not afraid of letting the electronics and effects take over once in a while. It made for a very adventurous listen, and seeing Ben totally immersed in and captivated by his own sounds made it very enjoyable to watch too.

Next: Misantronics. Serge told me he was a bit nervous because he hadn’t performed live in over 5 years and he was using a new computer program. I told him it would be fine. And it was. With Misantronics, you never know what to expect. His output over the span of his career has been very diverse.

​Tonight the set he played was rather restrained and minimal. Subtle percussive beats, oscillating synths, rumbling rushing noise deep in the background and laden with samples of playing children and what sounded like broadcasts in German. What I like most though is that Misantronics sounds ‘wrong’. And I mean that in the best way possible. Sometimes slightly out of tune, sometimes a bit broken. I’m sure this is deliberate and I hope Serge never stops doing it.

​Distant Fires Burning aka Gert de Meester was up next. Shamefully I admit that I haven’t heard that much from him yet, apart from some things online, and the collaboration track he did with Stratosphere. That will change after this show though. At first I was a bit puzzled by the lack of direction in the set. It sounded like he was just fumbling at random with his bass and the electronics. The bass was rumbling, clicks and noises happening. It seemed to go nowhere. Then, after a while it dawned on me. Gert was very delicately, deliberately and brilliantly constructing a glitchy percussion track to combine with his bass lines and drones. At the apotheosis, the set consisted of a fantastic mix of very stripped-down postrock and glitchy click-techno. Unlike I ever heard before. Brilliant. I love music that forces you to pay attention and that rewards you for your invested time.

I’ve seen Stratosphere a couple of times now and I absolutely adore what Ronald is creating. First, because he is a very accomplished sound engineer you can be sure that Ronald will aim for the best possible way for you to enjoy his drones. Second, the way he manages to make his loops and drones sound so massive is really second to none. The set he played tonight was actually something he created not long before so we got a first-time exclusive track for the evening. Dreamy, ecstatic drones, lovely sparkling guitar sounds.. It was wonderful. In the end –and I don’t know how he does it- he managed to make the whole thing sound like there was a string section or french horn in there somewhere. This screams to be recorded sometime soon Ronald....

After a brief pause it was time for Synchyse. Expectations were pretty high for me, although the track ‘Aldo’ (which they started the set with) can be heard online for a while now so I knew soundwise what direction they would go to. My main ‘concern’ was how three acts, that sound very different from each other would manage to make it sound cohesive like a proper ‘band’. Turns out that I needn’t have worried. Synchyse played a solid set. Each member retaining his signature sound but together so much more than the sum of their parts. Final track ‘Rembrandt’ was where it all gloriously fell into place. Not really post rock, not really ambient, not really glitch, or shoegaze, or wave.. but a great concoction of all of those things. All three of them were also visibly pleased with how the set was going, which added to the enjoyment. Seeing as this is only their second ever show together, I predict some great things in the future. People of Dunk! Festival: are you reading this??


I left Peter’s home, riding my bike accompanied by some light drizzle, some strong winds and the gloomy streetlights of Antwerp’s cheerless periphery road. Normally that would bother me to no end, but not tonight. I was still too elated from witnessing a truly special show. Plus, I knew it would put me in the proper mood to try and actually write something again...

 

Bjorn

Well, it seems that after a lengthy pauze my personal concert season has kicked off again. It started a few days earlier when newly formed trio performance of Synchyse debuted in a converted garage in The Netherlands, along with the jazzbient duo Minus Pilots (read). Well, actually it started with a fun gig by dub-reggae-house act Fat Freddy's Drop at Ancienne Belgique. But that one was just for fun, not for journalistic reasons.

Then this little thing at Antwerp Music City came up. Ashtoreth invited me and obviously, there was no reason not to go. First of all, it's always nice to see Ashtoreth and Stratosphere perform, both solo and as a cooperative drone-force. Second: I was quite curious about this new Thisquietarmy performance with full band. So off to the legendary AMC we went.

"Sorry, Serge, you're going to hear the same two songs again", Ronald apologized beforehand. And so it was. Stratosphere played 'Desolation' and 'Lesum', which both appear on the splendid 'Collaborations I' album, be it a tiny bit different. That being said, while 'Desolation' showed the classic atmosphere sound, 'Lesum' was almost unrecognizable. After all, music like this is always subject to variation, which is perhaps the exact reason why ambient music is so interesting. Halfway through the track, it was as if Liz Fraser's voice chanted in the background. That was neat, a great example of what you can do with a truckload of effect pedals. In the end, this was pretty much a classic and thus highly enjoyable Stratosphere gig.

After 'Lesum', Ashtoreth took his place behind his pedal-rack and the two artists showed their improvisation skills. It slowly became darker in the Music City, aided by the pulsating drones and the shamanic chants. Now the smell of incense filled the air while we entered the mysterious sonic world of Ashtoreth. Together, they played an excellent variation on 'Breaking down Barriers / Reveiling the Unknown', also from 'Collaborations I'. 

Along with Tomas Järmyr and Aidan Baker, Eric Quach must be one of the hardest working people in the music industry. For thirteen years he has been travelling the world, recording albums and cooperating with others. I see his photos on facebook. A concert here, a recording session with Hypnodrone Ensemble there, travelling the continents. And now, somehow, he managed to find three people who wanted embark on his newest sonic adventure: Thisquietarmy The Band.

Most people in the guitar-drone scene have their own, easily recognizable, sound. Dirk Serries, Aidan Baker, N, and even the two support acts this Tuesday have theirs. So does Thisquietarmy. Over the years I have seen him perform on multiple occasions. Sometimes he simply unleashed his droning demons while on other occasions he added elements from doom and black metal. Yet, it was always Thisquietarmy, spot on. On this Tuesday too, with three guys behind him, playing bass, guitars, drums, Ableton, trombone and trumpet. Yeppers, now dark jazz has been infiltrating the sound of the Canadian.

The result was one of the most explosive gigs I have ever seen this man perform. Eric delivered his well known soundscapes while the band pushed the whole thing forward with a frenzy of doom and sludge metal. Thisquietarmy has become Thisoverwhelmingstampede, a massive sludge doom beast that can put its foot next to acts like Yob, Ufomammut and AmenRa. This was impressive, loud, abrasive and immersive. If 'The Body And The Earth' is as intense as this live gig, it's definitely one for the ages. 

The sonic eruption went on for about an hour. Eric and his squad nearly pulverized the Music City (but then again, that building has experienced a lot of musical demolition over the years). I'm not sure if this was the best Thisquietarmy so far. For that, the machine needs a bit more oil and a bit more gigs. Yet, given time this experiment has the potential to convincingly headline Desertfests, Dunk Festivals, Roadburns and whatnot. And so, I'd like to end this review with the most truthful reaction, coming from a member of the audience: "Fucking Hell!!!"


Serge

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past thirty years, the name Dirk Serries will probably ring a bell. The good man has been leading the way in ambient-drone land for decades and now he slowly makes the transition to jazz, in which he is already quite influential. So yeah, Dirk Serries is a talented man who has delivering intrinsic soundscapes for decades.

Perhaps, living under that same rock, you will have never heard of Consouling Sounds either. Founded by Mike Keirsbilck ten years ago, this record label has put our little country on the alternative music map again. During those ten years, Mike and Nele have been working their asses off to deliver some exquisite musical goodies from Amenra, Wiegedood, CHVE, Maudlin, A-Sun Amissa, Barst, Inwolves... The list goes on and on. And on.

So when the people from BRDCST festival invited Consouling Sounds to have a little birthday celebration, Mike quickly agreed and decided to put Dirk Serries in the spotlight. In his turn, Dirk called-up some of his henchmen and wrote down names like Stratosphere, Scatterwound, Fear Falls Burning and Yodok III. For such a line-up, I was willing to travel to Brussels, taking my own henchwoman with me, especially to witness Yodok III. She had never experienced them before. She'd be in for a wild ride.

​(p.s. read my review for 'Epitaph')

We left our apartment somewhere in the afternoon. It was warm. The sun was shining. The tulips were opening up and the mating call of the many birds in our neighbourhood provided us with a joyful mood. It's a thirty minutes walk from the house to the trainstation, over the much feared Antwerp-Ring and through two sunlit parks. Once arrived, we quickly grabbed something to eat before embarking on the train to Brussels. There, a continuously talking American was annoying the rest of the passengers. Some were trying to nap in the sunlight, others were live streaming their train ride on facebook or instagram. We? We just looked outside, trying to locate buzzard nests. 

Anyway, about an hour later, we arrived at the AB, one of Belgium's most respected venues. Young rock bands dream of playing at Rock Werchter. Young dance producers dream of Tomorrowland. But here in Belgium, every musician dreams of playing at Ancienne Belgique. Stratosphere did it for years and Dirk Serries made that dream come true. Rightfully so, too, but I'll get to that soon. I met Ronald inside the AB Club. He was nervous, just a tiny bit. Most of all, obviously, he was excited. "AB. I'm playing at AB". He handed me a copy of his "Collaborations 1" CD (read our review and listen to teasers) and we had a little chat. Then it was time for the event to start.

(oh, sorry about the either absence or the quality of photos. I didn't bring my camera.)

The buzz inside the AB Club faded away when Stratosphere sat down and picked up his bass guitar. Spontaneously, the people in the first two rows sat down on the floor. I was one of them and I really wished they had put down a bunch of chairs. But, nonetheless, my back pockets met the floor when Stratosphere's first soundscapes started filling the room. 
Soon it struck me. I didn't know the song he was playing. Or in other words, it was not 'Desolation', the track he had been playing live for the past several years. In fact, Ronald had decided to showcase the new Stratosphere, away from the post rock and shoegaze influences and deep into immersive ambient soundscapes. 
This was a remarkable gig, one that clearly shows the next step in the evolution of Stratosphere. It was also a bit short but perfectly performed.

By the end of the Stratosphere performance, Dirk and N (Hellmut Neidhart) walked up and took their place behind Ronald. While I crawled to the back to get a drink, Scatterwound replaced Stratosphere. One's drones faded out, the other's fuzzy soundscapes faded in. With this duo, the evening gained a noisy, gritty sound, like sitting in a bobsled that goes 300 kilometers per hour on a rocky slope. It was harsh, intense and pulsating. It was brilliant too, just not very friendly for people's ears. Nonetheless, this was a perfect example of Dirk's evolution. From these mesmerizing drones to the overwhelming madness that was yet to come, the evening couldn't have been better. It certainly couldn't have started better. I high-fived Ronald in an effort to congratulate him with his convincing performance and fully enjoyed the rest of Scatterwound's impressive concert.

After a brief break, in which the floor in front of the stage was being cleared, it was time for the much anticipated resurrection of Fear Falls Burning. I had seen this act once before, with Dirk fronting three drummers in one of the most impressive performances I have ever seen. Now, here in AB, the band appeared in a new incarnation, with one drummer and a saxophone. Although different, this was yet another sweet piece of music in which ambient, jazz and almost industrial drumming created a whirlpool of noise. 

The soundscapes reappeared and so did whatever it is that Tomas Järmyr does. To clarify, Tomas plays jazz, rock, metal, grindcore and black metal, plus solo cymbal sets, and with Yodok III, he does it all in one song. Supporting Dirk's drones and Kristoffer's tuba sounds, Tomas carefully explored the possibilities of his drum kit. First quiet and introvert, the music gradually built up. I, still watching the "newbies", was excited. I saw the look in their eyes, they had no idea how to feel about this stuff. The music became louder, and Tomas moved from incoherent tapping on cymbals and tripods to equally incoherent banging on toms. Some heads started to nod in approval.

Then the band decided that it was time for hell to break loose. Louder and fuller in sound still, the performance suddenly blasted off in brutal, repetitive drums and a tsunami of drones, reminiscent of pummeling death metal concerts. Now there was no stopping Yodok III as they raged on with a never seen before intensity. By now, there were people headbanging, including me. Even the die-hards were impressed and the "newbies" were simply awestruck. With their mouths open in disbelief they willingly underwent the most intense ambient/jazz performance in history. 

And then they did it all over again with a second track.

So, the verdict? Well, apart from the absence of chairs, this evening was simply perfect. We saw a new Stratosphere. We saw Dirk as central artist giving the very best of himself. With great ease, his enthusiasm radiated through the AB Club and infected everyone inside. On the way back home I wondered why I didn't have a Yodok III t-shirt yet, probably because they don't have merchandise like that. So congratulations Dirk and congratulations Consouling Sounds. This was perfect.

Oh, while we were carrying Stratosphere's equipment to his car, some bloke yelled "respect pour des musicièns". I couldn't agree more...


​Serge