What do Krautrock, Industrial Black Metal, and Ambient have in common? Not much, you might think. But mix Klaus Schulze with Mysticum and throw in some Beherit, and you get this duo from West Flanders. The name means something like Behind a Full-moon but then in West Flemish.
Layers of dark ambient, Stranger Things-like soundscapes, and beats combined with filthy, gritty black metal riffs and wailing from the depths—a combination that works, because it truly does. The blend cuts through the soul and never lets you rest, not even in the “calmer,” more ’80s-inspired sections, which still leave you with an unsettling feeling.
A great example of this is the 13-minute-long Gefaalde Oogst—almost a soundtrack for a film. Close your eyes and see the fields of rotting crops, the emaciated farmers desperately trying to save the last seeds, digging through the decaying mass with their bare hands. A perfect track to drift away to.
Or Zwart Water, Grijze Golven, which consists entirely of analog soundscapes—a track that instantly puts you in the mood for season four of the previously mentioned series. I don’t know if that soundtrack was an inspiration, but I do hear similarities.
As a child of the ’80s, this tape—or rather, this album—brings back memories. The combination they use feels familiar: the rawness of the guitars, the soundscapes, the drum machines—it stirs up a lot.
Of course, the album also contains its fair share of pounding Black Metal, but the focus is on the experimental elements. Purists may not fully appreciate it, but I see a future in this, even if it carries a sound from the past.
With Klaagrituelen, Bacht’n de Vulle Moane has struck a chord with me, and this tape will rank high on my year-end list. It’s now part of my collection—now let’s hope a label picks it up and presses a vinyl version.
90/100
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