ambient / post-rock / drone
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A few weeks ago, two months maybe, I was going through my collection of Belgian ambient and drone artists. Seeing the albums by acts like Fear Falls Burning, Premonition Factory, Stratosphere and Syndrome made me wonder about the latter. I really loved his previous album, 'Now And Forever', which contained one long track, seemingly divided into a few different passages. With the addition of deep spoken word this act started walking a new path in the drone-scene. Today, the new album arrived at the Merchants Of Air headquarters and I could not wait to listen.
Syndrome is Mathieu Vandekerckhove, who is also known for his work in bands like Amenra, Kingdom and Sembler Deah. While those acts usually are loud, harsh and bombastic, this solo-project is an introspective journey, calm, meditative and gloomy. Again, this album contains one huge track, divided into several parts. It opens with percussion and soon after the song turns into a mild but cinematic post-rock anthem which grows and expands. From then on, the different parts show all the different elements to make this a masterpiece, from minimalist drones to layers of ambient soundscapes to dark folk melodies to post-rock passages. And again, those awesome vocals are present.
The album shows the evolution of this project, which started on the previous album and evolves into a new highlight on 'Forever And A Day'. Obviously, this album comes highly recommended if you have either his previous album or anything from Aidan Baker, Dirk Serries or any of drone-masters in your collection. In a scene that mildly evolves, this is a landmark album you should not ignore.
​Serge
Syndrome is Mathieu Vandekerckhove, who is also known for his work in bands like Amenra, Kingdom and Sembler Deah. While those acts usually are loud, harsh and bombastic, this solo-project is an introspective journey, calm, meditative and gloomy. Again, this album contains one huge track, divided into several parts. It opens with percussion and soon after the song turns into a mild but cinematic post-rock anthem which grows and expands. From then on, the different parts show all the different elements to make this a masterpiece, from minimalist drones to layers of ambient soundscapes to dark folk melodies to post-rock passages. And again, those awesome vocals are present.
The album shows the evolution of this project, which started on the previous album and evolves into a new highlight on 'Forever And A Day'. Obviously, this album comes highly recommended if you have either his previous album or anything from Aidan Baker, Dirk Serries or any of drone-masters in your collection. In a scene that mildly evolves, this is a landmark album you should not ignore.
​Serge
