An artist of South Korean origin, based between Berlin and Prague, bela operates within a complex and captivating space of transformation. Between visions and invocations, the ancestral and the visionary, noise and silence, they explore the many possible intersections between these apparent dichotomies. Dissecting the musical tradition of their homeland, they draw upon aesthetic elements and collective memories to integrate them into a framework of texturally exuberant compositions. One can feel the scratch on the strings—both vocal and instrumental—in an inhospitable atmosphere, revealing details capable of opening fissures in the ground. These are synaesthetic and surrealist compositions, flesh and blood, that take root in the far reaches of consciousness. Brilliant in the microtonal handling it frequently employs, the sound melts and the metal breathes in an immersive experience that, with remarkable fluidity, never ceases to explore new territories.

One of this year’s best-kept secrets is called Korean Love Sonnets. An intensely vivid, voice-centered sound document, it offers a set of guttural mantras, raw sound, and other psychotropic fantasies shrouded in hot, steaming lava. Treading paths in the wake of acts like Wolf Eyes, Okkyung Lee, or Sunn O))), bela builds tension from a perspective that induces a deep state of emotional and sensory absorption. From the legendary Berghain to the no less mythical Café OTO, via landmark festivals such as Rewire and Unsound, bela moves without geographical, stylistic, or identity-based boundaries. A bold move in today’s exploratory music scene.
NA

A veteran figure, though still unknown to many, the French artist Romain Perrot—also known as Vomir—has dedicated more than two decades of his career to the ecstasy of the European imagination surrounding extreme music. This vision would eventually take shape in his Manifesto of the Brutalist Wall. An enfant terrible by nature, he presents radical concepts and subverts established perceptions. As the philosophical epicenter of the harsh noise wall, his exploration of the rawest sonic material seems invariably driven by a thirst to go further. Minimalist, saturated, and voluminous, his work generates an almost physical sensation of suction. Despite the harshness of his work, there is a strange contemplative—even meditative—dimension at the heart of the purest chaos. There are now nearly three hundred recordings fueling this sonic flow, which continues to expand.

A symbol of militancy within the genre, Vomir has not only gathered admirers but has also helped nurture an entire community. From his label, Decimation Sociale, to his countless collaborations and side projects, Perrot’s hyperactivity embodies sharing and resistance. A true force of nature who, on stage, has built a legend based on unconventional, elegantly conceptual, and confrontational approaches.
NA