It was in a dream that Johannes d’Hoine had emerged from the winter of suspended animation. Horror Vacui, his last record, had marked a nadir: in trying to whittle the musical gesture to its core, he’d inadvertently tapped into some ungodly frequency, reduced to a shadow of a man by the bleakness of his compositions. And the world had followed suit, as though his imagination had unleashed catastrophe onto the air waves, a self-fulfilling prophecy on a global scale. Had his music infected others, or was the plague merely a mirror to his own deleterious tendencies?
II
After the fall, the double bass had remained a consolation, seeming to speak to the low-pitched times. But, by some curious operation, every time that he took to it, beautiful melodies would slip between his fingers, asserting themselves despite him. In the dream, the quag of thoughts that had been clouding his mind now crystallised. A lit door, d’Hoine walking towards it. No need for Freud: d’Hoine had conjured the dream to resolve the problem. And so the composer began to shy away from the darkness he had previously sought and started looking towards the light.
III
Sol Invictus was to be his own fiat lux, an invocation of the lighter regions of his mind. It was time to cast off the short days, to invite beauty and organic matter into his music. And so he conjured the elements: first wind, which needs air and breath to resonate. Hanne De Backer took to visiting under cover of night, saxophone secreted under her coat. Then Berlinde Deman, with her rare Renaissance serpent. For the record, the trinity united at Vooruit, joined by artist Stijn Grupping, who had devised a light installation that responded to sound. I saw them that spring. I saw rays dance a ritual over the room. And out of darkness, Jon Doe becoming One with light.
credits
released November 4, 2021
Composed, Recorded and Edited by Hannes d'Hoine
Mixed by Hannes d'Hoine (with a little help from Yves De Mey)
Serpent by Berlinde Deman
Bass Clarinet and Baritone Saxophone by Hanne De Backer
Mastered by Uwe Teichert
Text by Clodagh Kinsella
Released by ESC.REC
ESC.REC.89
That Yves bloke sure know how to put a very big smile on my face with his perfectly crafted sounds that are working both with and against the rhythm to build those wonderful dissonant slightly askew but lovely tracks of sweet (dis)harmony that only he can make.
In short, this is what it sounds like when a true master knows what he's doing and has a sound of his own.
Very very highly recommended. Finn of Tomland
Inspired by the Syrian desert, neoclassical composer and producer Miguel Del Tertre creates a soothing, hopeful sound-world. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 27, 2021
An ascetic (though mighty) sound palette, works as a canvas for an unrivaled lecture about rhythm generation & composition in electronic music.
Straight from the outermost post and beyond the explored areas of this micro universe, from where Yves De Mey sends us back his findings.
Now I’m trying to remember what was I doing back in September that prevented me from grabbing this instantly. 𝖜𝖔𝖗𝖒 𝖒𝖊𝖆𝖑