Anyone who knows me and the music I started doing in the early-mid 90s knows that Vromb was Nothing short but THE inspiration in my abstract evolution in music. Not so much a review of his amazing debut album on the now defunct Bâtaar Records (RIP Pierre Martel, on s'ennui de toi et on ne t'oubliera jamais), but a recollection of that initial exposure and how it influenced me in my next musical evolution (of the era)
Once in a while, a CKUT DJ who had a late night radio show (the worst time imagineable: 2am to 5am!) would have his second half of the show partner / co-host cancel, and he would ask his then girlfriend to bring in weirdo noise music to fill in the gap after his own set(s). On one particular occasion, I had arrived with about a good half-hour's worth of music for a set, although back in those days I really really did not have much in terms of obscure dark ambient noise material, so I really worked with what I had. When arriving at the radio station, she had her own set pretty much ready and one disc she had was Vromb's debut album ("Jeux de Terre - Lieu et Matiere"), and I was fascinated by the look of the release. The design and illustrations were quite impressive and I was equally thrown off balance when I heard the "music" on the CD. This was, at the time, exactly what I was looking for in terms of experimental electronics/noise music.
The real blow was when I saw that this release was not just Canadian in origin ("Canadians make this kind of music?"), but also Québécois ("Quebequers make this kind of music?") but locally sourced: Vromb was from Montréal, and Pierre Martel who ran Bâtaar Recs was on the South shore, where I lived at the time as well! Insert explicit foul language used in incredulous positive surprise, they make this kind of music in Montréal and these parts? Needless to say that it opened my eyes and sparked in me the idea of starting my own label of similarly themed music. In fact, for petty much all my life since that time, I basically wanted to sound like Vromb, and would indeed start to grasp some form of basic understanding of his Genius with ARCHangel's 1994 "Skulking" release, specifically the two tracks on side 2, "Sedentary" and "Kerosine".
"Jeux De Terre" flows like a concept album, with it's centralized theme of a micro universe living alongside our own, the insect world and the "bowel" movements of our own earth underneath our feet, the soil of the planet as a form of living entity, part of the greater whole. It starts with a prologue, moves into a short introductory trilogy, explores some contaminations, has an intermission, continues forth with more sonic adventures, and ends with a long, calming, peaceful outro which closes the first chapter of this one man's long audio Journey. To purists, this debut remains his best release due to the lack of straighforward rhythms and such, as Vromb would simultaneoulsy evolve and re-invent himself with almost every single release, never really repeating himself save for making additions and addendums to projects and concepts.
I was lucky to have purchased one of the first prints/editions of the original Bâtaar Recs release in 1993/1994, and more recently (2018) purchased the Ant-Zen re-release due to the inclusion of a previously unreleased track from around the era. I have been and remain a dedicated Vrom fan and follower, making sure that I try to "collect" (for appreciation purposes, not as a collectability) everything he has done, which is more than one imagines since he has done collaborations and compilations throughout the years. 2019 marks the 25th anniversary of me being a fan of Vromb, and there is no sign of wavering any time soon!
Once in a while, a CKUT DJ who had a late night radio show (the worst time imagineable: 2am to 5am!) would have his second half of the show partner / co-host cancel, and he would ask his then girlfriend to bring in weirdo noise music to fill in the gap after his own set(s). On one particular occasion, I had arrived with about a good half-hour's worth of music for a set, although back in those days I really really did not have much in terms of obscure dark ambient noise material, so I really worked with what I had. When arriving at the radio station, she had her own set pretty much ready and one disc she had was Vromb's debut album ("Jeux de Terre - Lieu et Matiere"), and I was fascinated by the look of the release. The design and illustrations were quite impressive and I was equally thrown off balance when I heard the "music" on the CD. This was, at the time, exactly what I was looking for in terms of experimental electronics/noise music.
The real blow was when I saw that this release was not just Canadian in origin ("Canadians make this kind of music?"), but also Québécois ("Quebequers make this kind of music?") but locally sourced: Vromb was from Montréal, and Pierre Martel who ran Bâtaar Recs was on the South shore, where I lived at the time as well! Insert explicit foul language used in incredulous positive surprise, they make this kind of music in Montréal and these parts? Needless to say that it opened my eyes and sparked in me the idea of starting my own label of similarly themed music. In fact, for petty much all my life since that time, I basically wanted to sound like Vromb, and would indeed start to grasp some form of basic understanding of his Genius with ARCHangel's 1994 "Skulking" release, specifically the two tracks on side 2, "Sedentary" and "Kerosine".
"Jeux De Terre" flows like a concept album, with it's centralized theme of a micro universe living alongside our own, the insect world and the "bowel" movements of our own earth underneath our feet, the soil of the planet as a form of living entity, part of the greater whole. It starts with a prologue, moves into a short introductory trilogy, explores some contaminations, has an intermission, continues forth with more sonic adventures, and ends with a long, calming, peaceful outro which closes the first chapter of this one man's long audio Journey. To purists, this debut remains his best release due to the lack of straighforward rhythms and such, as Vromb would simultaneoulsy evolve and re-invent himself with almost every single release, never really repeating himself save for making additions and addendums to projects and concepts.
I was lucky to have purchased one of the first prints/editions of the original Bâtaar Recs release in 1993/1994, and more recently (2018) purchased the Ant-Zen re-release due to the inclusion of a previously unreleased track from around the era. I have been and remain a dedicated Vrom fan and follower, making sure that I try to "collect" (for appreciation purposes, not as a collectability) everything he has done, which is more than one imagines since he has done collaborations and compilations throughout the years. 2019 marks the 25th anniversary of me being a fan of Vromb, and there is no sign of wavering any time soon!
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