Diskonnekted

Hotel Existence: the tracklist!

2012-01-31T17:35:00.003+01:00

‎'Hotel Existence' offers you 14 songs.
Final tracklist looks something like this.
We hope to reveal the release date soon!

1. Yesteryears
2. Conspiracy
3. Justify
4. Razorsharpshooter
5. Dark place (ft GNY)
6. Empty
7. Sunblind
8. Little darkness
9. Neverland
10. Stuck in one universe
11. To have and to hold
12. Justify (short reprise)
13. Dalloway’s journey (ft Lemongrazz)
14. Tunnel vision

Septic X: out now!

2012-01-27T15:47:00.002+01:00

Today the Septic X sampler by Dependent is officially released.
It features "Yesteryears" by Diskonnekted: a first real announcement of the forthcoming album "Hotel Existence".

After some very cool reactions by fans on the internet, the track is also well received in the first reviews.
From "brillantes Stück" in Sonic Seducer to "ein endlos schöner Song mit fast schon verschwenderischer Detailverliebtheit in der klanglichen Ausgestaltung" on Madgoth.de.

[order HERE]

Septic X

2012-01-05T18:24:00.001+01:00

We’re excited to launch our new sound to the world via this cool compilation!

[order HERE]

As Dependent puts it:
"Volume number ten in this series, "SEPTIC X" once again combines a wealth of fresh sounds from all corners of the scene together with several big names. For everyone who has been drowning in the sea of MySpace and Facebook mediocrity, "SEPTIC X" will shine like a beacon of exceptional quality."

Hotel Existence: the cover

2012-01-03T11:07:00.000+01:00

We are happy to reveal the cover of ‘Hotel Existence’.

The picture by our visual artist Romuald ‘Ishoothorizon’ Swieconek reflects the general idea of the inner fantasy that promises you a better world, a place that was more than just a place, but an opportunity, a chance to live inside your dreams.

We picked up that idea from the novel ‘The Brooklyn Follies’ by Paul Auster.

We gave it a little twist though. More than an inner refuge, this fantasy can become a cancer of unfulfilled expectations. The picture of Romuald is the ideal translation of that forgotten and failed dream.

Feel free to share the cover all over the net!

Some last words

2011-12-31T15:55:00.000+01:00

I know I've been teasing you a lot lately. To make it up with you, we will announce a lot by the start of the new year. When to expect the new album, what the tracklist will look like, etc. By the end of January, you should know everything.

Too bad you can't see the cover on this picture! ;-)
Let it be the last time we teased you, as we will reveal the cover next Tuesday!

Hang on! Stay 'konnekted'.

ps: Oh, and then there was some additional great news that was a wonderful way to end the year.
And also that other thing: a vocal participation for a great German band...

Lots to talk about next year!
See you on the other side!

Dear Santa

2011-12-22T19:55:00.001+01:00

Dear Santa,

Sorry it took me four years to finish a new album.
But I promise you ‘Hotel Existence’ will be worth the wait!

I am working (as we speak) on final mixes for all tracks, and this time it’s for real.
Dear Santa, you really have to believe me on this one.

2011 was an adventurous year with lots of chaos and drama. Schidde left the band, and what was even a bigger shock: so did Christophe ‘Hitman’ Salvatore.
Emeric joined the band and I am really happy to have him with us. He’s both talented and fun, and he’s a ‘tough’ guy too as he survived a rather severe operation. Thank you for burning a candle!
And then there’s Romuald ‘Ishoothorizon’ Swieconek, following every step we take and making pictures of it. He gave Diskonnekted the look and feel we needed.

Stay tuned, Santa, because we will reveal more about the forthcoming ‘Hotel Existence’ after the switch into 2012.

See you next year!

Jan

Diskonnekted is:
Jan – Didier – Emeric - Romuald

Change of plan: Mildreda LIVE @ Twilight op 27 december

2011-12-02T12:09:00.001+01:00

Tot onze grote spijt moeten we jullie vertellen dat Diskonnekted niet zal kunnen optreden op 27 december in de Twilight.
Onze gitarist Emeric zal ‘out’ zijn omwille van een ernstige operatie en zal zich op dat moment moeten worstelen door een stevige revalidatie.
We wensen Emeric veel sterkte toe.

Mildreda is het donkere zusje van Diskonnekted. Op 27 december komen we daarom in haar gedaante spelen. Met Mildreda brengen we een harde en donkere brok electro en industrial die ergens het midden houdt tussen Combichrist, Skinny Puppy, Suicide Commando of zelfs Das Ich.
Dit jaar nog werd Mildreda door Suicide Commando meegenomen op de Out of Line compilation World Wide Electronics. Maak je alvast klaar voor meer!

Op 27 december maken we er een heuse MILDREDA vs Diskonnekted show van en graaien we enkele Diskonnekted nummers mee in een donker jasje.
Ter ere van Emeric!

Diskonnekted LIVE @ Twilight

2011-11-09T21:07:00.000+01:00

Laat de Twilight toevallig het stamcafé van Diskonnekted zijn.
We repeteren er op zolder en op andere momenten hangen we er aan de toog.

Maar op dinsdag 27 december brengen we ons materiaal naar beneden om nog eens goed loos te gaan!
Bovendien zijn we van plan er videobeelden te schieten voor een maffe videoclip. En die komt op dvd.
Doe dus je mooiste pakje aan!

Afspraak: dinsdag 27 december om 21.00 uur in de Twilight (Langestraat Oostende).
GRATIS toegang

En in deze clip van Romuald ‘Ishoothorizon’ Swieconek zie je ons repeteren in de Twilight:

Diskonnekted bangs the drums

2011-11-04T10:10:00.000+01:00

Diskonnekted is featured in the November edition of the German Beat magazine. The edition contains a 10-page special "Electronic Drums" in which Diskonnekted discloses the secrets of our drum sound. Other artists involved are among others: Tom Wax & Boris Alexander, Rotersand, KMFDM, Martin Eyerer, Sebastian Komor, Edge Of Dawn, Apoptygma Berzerk and KJ Sawka of Pendulum.

Diskonnekted also delivered some sounds for the DVD of Beat 2011/11 which contains 1.2 GB of drum samples from the mentioned artists as well as from Best Service, Ableton, Time & Space, Prime Loops, Loopbased and Xenomorph Productions.

Some words on producing beats:

"Back in the days when sequencers and samplers were hard to master there was a big difference between step sequencing a pattern and the more adventurous way of chopping up loops into a new collage.
New technologies and better environments have brought these two approaches together. Take Stylus RMX or Reason’s Dr. Rex for example: it brings both worlds together making it very easy to create cool rhythms. It enables you to make your own patterns with cool sounds without having the trouble of chopping up loop sources yourself.
I continuously invest in new sounds for my library so it can tickle my inspiration in whatever mood that I am working in. And I strongly suggest everyone to do the same: you can’t evolve sound wise without having a constant growing library that supports your inspiration.
Whenever I have new rex2-files I translate them into RMX because it fuels my inspiration in a very intuitive way. It almost feels like jamming. And once I have the sound that I am looking for after messing around with knobs and effects, I finally programme my own patterns in midi."

- Jan

Emeric playing Yesteryears LIVE

2011-10-11T11:12:00.001+02:00

Emeric playing "Yesteryears" LIVE at Shadowplay Festival last summer.
Yesteryears - from the forthcoming album "Hotel Existence".

Adrenaline: a view behind the scenes

2011-09-27T08:47:00.000+02:00

While rehearsing for the Shadowplay Festival last summer in our rehearsal room above The Twilight (the coolest bar in the world), Romuald ‘Ishoothorizon’ Swieconek was shooting images with his camera toys.

He made a cool impression giving a nice view behind the scenes. Let this be the official video for Adrenaline ft. Frank M. Spinath (Seabound/Edge of Dawn/Ghost & Writer) from our album “Old School Policies” (2008 - Alfa Matrix).

Buy @ iTunes

Another short preview

2011-09-20T15:46:00.000+02:00

Romuald ‘Ishoothorizon’ Swieconek hits the magic spot with these images of war trenches in the Flanders Fields.

This alienated view brings the hidden poetry to the surface.

You hear a short preview of “Justify” from the forthcoming “Hotel existence”.

Check the video on youtube!

If you don't like the truth you can make up your own

2011-09-11T15:19:00.002+02:00

"The truth has never
sold any better
bubblegum wisdom - magazine junk
you call them liars
you call them thieves
'cause you're really stuck
in your own beliefs

nine eleven
as a shortcut to heaven
alien nations behind the sun
robots among us
a dead president
predict the future
predict the end."

- "Conspiracy", from the forthcoming "Hotel existence"

It's been a demo for two years now, but it feels right to finish the final version today.
Fed by superstition and an unhealthy dose of paranoia, 'nine eleven' has inspired many minds to come up with conspiracy theories that are both amusing but also false and sad.
So once again, I was inspired by people who choose to create their own answers on things fed by dark and obscure ideas.
It's a sad celebration.

Shadowplay through the eyes of Romuald Swieconek (part II)

2011-08-13T12:18:00.006+02:00

Romuald Ishoothorizon Swieconek drops us some more pictures of the Shadowplay festival and the preceding rehearsals.
All pictures were shot with his special analogue panoramic toys.

More pictures @ Flickr:

Shadowplay through the Leica M8
Shadowplay through the Horizon
Rehearsals through the Noblex

Shadowplay through the eyes of Black Cat

2011-08-07T18:01:00.003+02:00

Check out some very nice pictures shot by Dani Vorndran (a.k.a. Black Cat) at the Shadowplay Festival.

black-cat-net.de

Shadowplay through the eyes of Xavier Marquis

2011-07-29T11:13:00.006+02:00

Check out some wonderful pictures shot by Xavier Marquis at the Shadowplay Festival.

More pictures HERE.

Ishoothorizon shoots Diskonnekted

2011-07-27T15:23:00.005+02:00

We updated the gallery with some nice pics by Ishoothorizon.

Sunblind - preview

2011-06-21T20:50:00.006+02:00

Video by Ishoothorizon with images shot in our hometown Ostend (B).
In the hyper reality of Ishoothorizon the imagery is often alienated. Objects, buildings or places seem to be telling their own stories. Distorted and twisted.
We are more than happy that Ishoothorizon joins our journey.
Please enjoy this preview of "Sunblind" from the forthcoming album "Hotel Existence".

Check the video at youtube.com

Chilled

2011-03-31T16:39:00.004+02:00

For those who missed it: check out this ambient set I did under my Lemongrazz moniker with a rather unusual selection of tracks featuring XPQ 21, U2, Celldweller, Aberoo, Diskonnekted, Lunatic Calm, Covenant, Future Sound of London and at the end some Lemongrazz. Chilled and mixed together with almost zero beats per minute.

Available as free download.

Lemongrazz - Afterhours I - ambient set by Lemongrazz

Picture as usual by ishoothorizon

I am Darkness - March, 26th 2011 - Tilburg (NL)

2011-03-16T12:23:00.003+01:00

Hope to see a lot of you there!

March, 26th 2011

Tilburg (NL) - Poppodium 013
I Am Darkness:
Diskonnekted + Nafta-2 + Elektronische Maschine
+ DJ -X-X-X- + DJ Krat + DJ Spud
Start: 22:00 UUR
TICKETS: € 5,00

Shadowplay

2011-03-02T10:40:00.002+01:00

SHADOWPLAY is the sequel of 5 years GOTHIC FESTIVAL in Belgium!
Reserve some free space in your agenda for July 22nd/23rd/24th, 2011.
The festival will take place at the XPO in Kortrijk (Belgium).
We’re happy to announce that Diskonnekted is one of the first bands confirmed!

Live date - March 26th, 2011: Tilburg (NL)

2011-02-10T15:48:00.003+01:00

Hurray: a new live date!
And hurray again: we are going to cross the boarder.
Hi ho, Netherlands: here we come!

March, 26th 2011

Tilburg (NL) - Poppodium 013
I Am Darkness:
Diskonnekted + Nafta-2 + Elektronische Maschine
+ DJ -X-X-X- + DJ Krat + DJ Spud
Start: 22:00 UUR
TICKETS: € 5,00

(Picture by Black Cat)

Industrial needs revolution

2011-02-01T09:21:00.001+01:00

Happy Christmas!

2010-12-23T18:41:00.001+01:00

Happy Christmas!
Have a save journey towards 2011.

Sojourner EP by Liquid Divine

2010-12-22T15:47:00.001+01:00

We just learned that Liquid Divine will release a special and exclusive EP with remixes of their great Sojourner track featuring Frank M. Spinath.
Diskonnekted is featured with a remix.
The E.P. will be strictly limited and hand numbered! Soon out for pre-order at www.infacted-recordings.de.

01 Sojourner (Single Edit)
02 Planet Zoo (Aqualite Remix)
03 Sojourner (Diskonnekted Remix)
04 Sojourner (Club Edit)
05 Die to meet you (Parasite Edit)
06 Want (Dejan Samardzik Remix)
07 Comagirl (Flaque Remix)

Split personality

2010-12-14T16:19:00.007+01:00

Distortion at the Cyberflesh Lab.
By Ishoothorizon

Personal Demon

2010-12-08T09:58:00.005+01:00

Our home photographer Romuald Swieconek aka Ishoothorizon was testing some new software and made this tryout showcasing some of his pictures and using ‘Personal Demon’ from our debut album ‘Jesus Raves’ (2003).

Into the game

2010-11-25T19:02:00.002+01:00

Mark January 7th 2011 in your calendar, because then Psy'Aviah will unleash their DJ/RMX EP based on the song “Into The Game” on which they collaborated with Ayria.
For this EP they selected very different remixers to guarantee a splendid diversity of reinterpretations of the song. From EBM mixes by Signal Aout 42 and Plastic Noise Experience to the more electric versions by Slave Republic, the electro pop of Suicidal Romance, to the upbeat progressive dance reworks by Interface and Diskonnekted, and to the dark renditions by Misery and Schwarzblut.
As a bonus, Psy'Aviah also arranged a radical remix of “Voltage” by Krystal System and they reveal the brand new song “Wired Life”, a first preview of the next album...

Order here.

Shipwrecks...

2010-11-20T19:06:00.003+01:00

It feels like an eternity since Jimmyjoe Snark III, at that time still using the moniker of The Weathermen, exploded onto the EBM and New Beat scene with the track “Poison“. Singer Frank Spinath, on the other hand, is known for his comparatively more recent projects Seabound and Edge of Dawn, both huge hits in among electro fans. Spinath managed to persuade Jimmyjoe to collaborate, and the result of their efforts is finally here.

Snark and Spinath give conventional songwriting the cold shoulder and turn instead to brazenly modern structures as well as beloved yet nearly forgotten retro-elements, or as they put it: „Mean little stories blown up to cinematic proportions. Stranded and battered electronic memorials of better days. And yet, so fresh it almost hurts.“

Seldom has the combination of old and new born such creative fruit as on Ghost & Writer’s debut LP ”Shipwrecks“. Breaking further new ground, the 8-track album also includes 8 re-workings of the songs by other artists – serving as its own remix album.
Artists such as File Not Found, Edge Of Dawn, Diskonnekted, Iris and Acretounge have given the tracks their personal touch.

The highly professional recording was mastered by none other than Front 242’s Daniel B., bringing out the fresh, new, and unconventional accents of an album sure to stand out in 2011’s otherwise rather sedentary electro landscape.

Out soon on Dependent.

The beginning of a great adventure

2010-10-19T13:51:00.005+02:00

We are excited about our collaboration with Ishoothorizon.
Ishoothorizon is photographer Romuald Swieconek. His work sometimes makes reality look twisted and somewhat distorted. In the hyper reality of Ishoothorizon objects and places are often alienated. Objects seem to be telling their own stories.
We are more than happy to announce that Ishoothorizon will follow Diskonnekted during its journey. From now on he will be our one and only personal photographer.
The future looks twisted but bright.
"The beginning of a great adventure," as Lou Reed would say...

Right said Fred

2010-10-06T09:01:00.006+02:00

Schidde won’t join us next Saturday at the Necropolis Festival in Bruges, but we are happy we found a wicked replacement in Fred ‘Freddy’ De Moor. Among other bands, Fred played in Death Before Disco with whom he toured parts of the world, not to mention his own psychedelic trips to other universes.
Fred happens to be a brilliant guitar player and adds a nice and nasty twist to the new Diskonnekted tracks.
We hope to see you all on October 15th in Bruges at The Necropolis Festival!

As additional news for those who read Dutch, please read this cool interview Dark Entries did with Diskonnekted as an appetiser for the Necropolis Festival.

Chemistry

2010-08-30T16:23:00.010+02:00

Looking back at the past six months, I guess they were the toughest in the history of Diskonnekted.
After leaving the safe zone of working on my own, clashing opinions and bashing characters were introduced to the game.
Sometimes frustrating, but often enlightening as well. As new boundaries have been broken, new territories have been discovered and cool new tracks have been made only because of the explosive but inspiring chemistry of different souls.
Knowing that we had made some very cool new stuff heavily increased the tension in the band during the last days before the Paulusfeesten.
But we finally had a blast playing the new songs out loud for a big audience.
Now I can’t wait to assemble everything into final album tracks. I guess that quest starts here.
The story continues… stay ‘konnekted’!
(Picture by Romuald Ishoothorizon Swieconek)

Picture by Tom Schoepen

Picture by Natalie Luys

Picture by Natalie Luys

Picture by Smoetje

Tough ride

2010-08-03T08:26:00.014+02:00

From smooth, to chaotic and dramatic, back to smooth again.
The rehearsals are a tough ride.
We’re sure the Paulusfeesten will be absolutely fun!
See you there!

Slightly mad

2010-07-26T11:09:00.005+02:00

I’ve been so busy with a bunch of things that I had the feeling I was slightly going mad. But it felt comfortable to see the people around me acting more or less crazy as well. For example Schidde. He went on a 10 day sunny vacation to Malta and now thinks that his future lies over there. And then Christophe, who’s becoming a father next month, is losing it too. He shaved off his hair and thus dramatically decreased the amount of hair in Diskonnekted. Finally, because Didier is moving house with his girlfriend into a new apartment, his craziness is, as Agent Smith would say: inevitable.
Why am I going mad? After revamping the old Mildreda as a side project, I had to take care of the first official gig for the Gothic Festival (last week). It went very smooth (featuring Gwenny on keys and Mika from This Morn’ Omina on percussion). Check Mildreda on Facebook, Myspace or Blogspot.
Now that I survived that trip, I am able to concentrate fully on Diskonnekted. Rehearsals start this evening for the gig at the Paulusfeesten. We will play a lot of the new stuff and I am really excited about that. I am sure we will post some videos of the rehearsals soon.

Another studio report...

2010-07-06T17:05:00.003+02:00

Same stuff as on Soundcoud, but now you see us working in the studio and what’s more: ‘Schidde’ shows us his new tattoo...

Demo preview

2010-06-28T22:39:00.001+02:00

Here you are, some demo snippets.
We've been working very hard on new songs and sounds.
What you get here are some rough studio sessions recorded during rehearsals.
Uncut, unmixed and unmastered. Things were recorded in a rush while the inspiration was burning.
Let this be a little preview of the forthcoming album "Hotel Existence".

Demo studio sessions - Spring 2010 by diskonnekted

Diskonnekted @ Paulusfeesten!

2010-05-19T14:04:00.012+02:00

We are thrilled to announce that Diskonnekted will be playing at the Paulusfeesten in Oostende this summer!

August 11th, 2010 - 21:15 - Main stage

If every Belgian city has its own major summer event, the Paulusfeesten is definitely the main and most important event of the year here in Oostende (probably even the biggest and greatest festival at the Belgian seaside).

Diskonnekted plays during the opening night on August 11th, 2010 at 21:15 on the main stage.
Daan will be headlining that night.

More info on www.paulusfeesten.be
August 11th – August 17th, 2010
Petrus- & Paulusplein
Oostende (B)

See you this summer in Oostende!
Have a nice stay at our Belgian seaside!

Neverland

2010-04-25T19:53:00.000+02:00

Sheep cheese

2010-04-01T11:05:00.003+02:00

I got the surprising news yesterday that I have a long lost uncle in Australia. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say that ‘I had an uncle in Australia’, as I received the news that the lonely soul I didn’t know about died from a heart attack at the age of 89.
He leaves us a little farm in the south part of Australia: a farm with quite some space and seven sheep.
My family was quite shocked and rather desperate not knowing what to do with a sheep farm at the other side of the world, but I see it as a private and exclusive message from God.
I pack my things and go!
Diskonnekted is on hold for a few years. The clash I had with Schidde pushed me to the limit, and I see this opportunity as a way out.
So for the next two years I will concentrate on making sheep cheese.

See you, bye!
Jan

Stay tuned - stay 'konnekted'.
Join the mailinglist.

One Eyed Jack

2010-03-30T21:25:00.002+02:00

Currently, I am far more inspired by, say, the wavy guitars of Fields of the Nephilim, the creamy distortion by KoRn, the beats of Crystal Method or even the dreamy tricks and bits by LTJ Bukem, than I am by the contemporary electro/ebm stuff. And I strangely kind of like the idea that the new stuff will piss off at least some people.
I had however a surprising collision yesterday with guitar player Schidde. I didn't see it coming that I would piss him off with new stuff. But apparently I did.
He had an accident at work and dropped by with an eye patch on. I tend to call him 'captain' anyway, but yesterday he totally fitted the 'pirate' picture. Frustrated as he was by the pain and troubles that he was in, I kind of pushed him even deeper into the pull of misery by playing the new demo I had been working on for two weeks (for God's sake).
The producer I am, I had been slicing the recorded guitar stuff and had been rearranging all the bits and pieces into a new (and for all I knew) 'exciting' new track. The guitar player he is however, he really was shocked by this totally alienated piece.
It was interesting though to have this clash. Officially it was our first real clash. Interesting, because now we can say we're a 'band'. Because yes, we found new solid ground to work further on the track. Together.

Necropolis Festival: October 15th, 2010

2010-03-27T11:16:00.004+01:00

We are happy to announce that Diskonnekted plays at the Necropolis Festival on October 15th, 2010 in Brugge (B).

CLAN OF XYMOX(NL)

ABSOLUTE BODY CONTROL(B)
(Aka Dirk Ivens & Eric Van Wonterghem, New album presentation)

THE ETERNAL AFFLICT(D)

SANTA HATES YOU(D)
(New band from Peter Spilles frontman of Project Pitchfork)

DISKONNEKTED(B)

+ Afterparty with DJ Bernd & Guests
WITH GOTHIC MARKET

Start: 20.00h
Doors : 19.00h

VVK 30 Euro/ADD 35 euro
Info & tickets : www.necropolisfestival.be

On the verge of a break beat

2010-03-05T11:49:00.004+01:00

Thanks to everyone who voted for Diskonnekted in the Celldweller contest.
We ended up 5th.

In the meantime we installed a whole new studio set up. By far the biggest change in my musical career.
Converting the old files into Cubase 5 happens to be an ideal way to divide the bad ideas from the interesting ones. Ockham's razor has never been that sharp. It feels a bit like starting all over from scratch, but in a good way.
The ideas that survive the switch feel fresh again afterwards.
Schidde will join me this weekend in the studio to record some guitar sounds and grooves.
I feel like standing on the verge of something big...

Stay tuned - stay 'konnekted'.
Join the mailinglist.

Vote for Diskonnekted (Celldweller contest)

2010-02-14T14:11:00.003+01:00

We are very proud Diskonnekted found its way into the TOP 20 of Celldweller's "So Long Sentiment" remixes as determined by the FIXT Staff and Klayton from Celldweller.

But the adventure doesn't end here. Please vote for Diskonnekted.

You can pick your personal 3 favorites. Voting is on until February 28th, 2010!

Poll: Choose the Best Celldweller "So Long Sentiment" Remix (Pick 3)

New Year's Letter

2010-01-05T11:33:00.003+01:00

Dear friends, fans and colleagues,

A year came to an end. Apart from the obligatory alcohol overdose and firework finger burns I feel obliged to post something to conclude the year with and celebrate the entrance of a new one.

What happened?

Not that much you might think, but we’ve been quite busy behind the scenes. The rehearsal room was a new thing for example: unhealthy but satisfying. It helped us invent some killer guitar sounds and grooves.
And there were also the blueprints for lots of new tracks: loved them, hated them, cursed them, rediscovered them, reworked them… well, you know the story. Who said making music was fun?

So what’s next?

A major upgrade of the studio to start with. An update on the software front, and a major update for the hardware. This should help me finish the ideas more quickly in a comfortable way.
Can’t wait to start on some final mixes that are already breeding in my head for months now.

Musically we will try to leave the conventional ‘electro/ebm’ path, exploring a new cross over between alternative underground dance styles.

Thematically we will wine about our long lost youth and the finiteness of life in general.
But don’t worry: the ‘Hotel Existence’ is a place for shelter. See you there, somewhere.

Stay tuned - stay 'konnekted'.
Join the mailinglist.

Celldweller: So long sentiment

2009-12-16T17:55:00.001+01:00

Because I liked the track, because I had a bright day full of inspiration, and because remixing is always an inspiring exercise, I made a remix for Celldweller.
Check it out here.

Later on (January I guess) you will be able to vote for this remix. But I’ll remind you guys once we get there.

Defcon 2012

2009-11-28T12:17:00.002+01:00

A few months ago we were approached by independent moviemaker Brian Delizareaux to be involved in a Sci-Fi movie he was producing. He wanted to use 'Neon Dream' in the soundtrack.
Remember the track 'Neon Dream' from our album 'Neon Night' (2005). Of course Diskonnekted was happy to agree. It has been a long old wish to be featured in a movie.

Defcon 2012 is about the world after it’s been destroyed by aliens. Luckily some tuff guys resist and fight back. Diskonnekted is there to feed the armour!
Other bands featured in the soundtrack are among others Die Krupps, State of the Union and E-Craft.

More info on www.defcon2012.com

Jam session for 'The Parting'

2009-11-24T10:06:00.004+01:00

Check this out:
A very early jam session for 'The Parting'.
Looking for guitar parts with Schidde, who has difficulty concentrating because of an urgent 'pee alert'.

After Darwin

2009-11-23T09:22:00.003+01:00

Usually I wouldn’t bother, but when I recently heard a famous colleague speak out about Darwin, I felt I had to post a reaction. Fed by superstition, an unhealthy dose of paranoia, and total ignorance about science, some statements were made about the theory of evolution that were both false and sad.

Back in the days, when writing the song ‘After Einstein’, I had this kind of ignorance in mind. The Zillo interview (October 2005) is an ideal way to bring the discussion back to the surface, and to give some clarity on ‘After Einstein’ and its underlying criticism on creationism and other blurry worldviews.

Zillo: The year 2005 sees the 100th anniversary of the theory of relativity and the 50th anniversary of Einstein’s day of death. Were those anniversaries the reasons for you to deal with Albert Einstein?

It’s actually a happy coincidence having those anniversaries this year. I picked up Einstein as he is a real symbol of scientific breakthrough and knowledge. ‘After Einstein’ reflects on knowledge in general, and how people deal with it. Science today has cleared up a lot of things, and has answered a bunch of questions that remained dark for us during centuries.
People however choose to create their own answers on things, intermixed with their own ideological, philosophical and religious ideas. This of course leads to a somewhat blurred state of mind. It’s for example very frightening to see conservative politicians trying to keep Darwin out of the schoolbooks so they can protect their religious believes.

Zillo: Please say some words about the lyrics of ‘After Einstein’. What’s your intention behind them?

Lyrically the song is an attack on people who choose to remain plain stupid while living in a world where knowledge and information is free and easy accessible. As illustrated above, people choose to have a blurry mind, instead of having it cleared up by correct information that is available for everyone (at least it should be). It is sometimes scary to see how people tend to choose dark and obscure ideas instead of clear and simple facts. But as Darwin put it: “Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science.”

Zillo: Einstein wasn’t only a great scientist, he also was a pacifist and became politically involved. E.g. he tried to prevent the bombing of Hiroshima with the nuclear bomb 60 years ago (another anniversary!). Do you think the world in our days would be better if there were more people with such an involvement?

I am a pacifist myself. I am actually quite hardcore anti war, as well as a pro environment- and pro equal rights for all races, sexes and sexual preferences-liberal.
I am not sure if an educated mind guarantees peaceful behaviour, as it takes for example a lot of scientific research to build intelligent bombs and other destructive machines. Einstein, being a scientist who clearly understood that we are just a tiny spot in both time and space, also realised that the survival of human kind can only be reached if we live properly together respecting the idea of being just a silly little nothing in a great universe. Bombing other species is in a way pure self-annihilation. Maybe the next step in evolution that humanity consciously should take is learning how to live together in a peaceful way. I guess getting rid of that blurred mind as described earlier is the first step in that direction. That’s the philosophical idea behind ‘After Einstein’.

World Toilet Day

2009-11-19T10:15:00.003+01:00

Today, November 19th, is “World Toilet Day”: a day to celebrate the humble, yet vitally important, toilet and to raise awareness of the global sanitation crisis.
More on www.wateraid.org

Of course Diskonnekted supports this initiative.

And thank God: finally I am able to use this picture (I took about ten years ago) for the better cause:

Subscribe to our newsletter

2009-11-03T16:10:00.002+01:00

You can call us a late adapter on this one, as we didn’t really have a newsletter until now.
Please join us, and receive a newsletter every once in a while.
You can sign in on this page.

The rehearsal room

2009-10-29T20:14:00.004+01:00

We’ve been busy lately. And even better: we have lots footage of that. On this video, I am working on new stuff with Schidde in our rehearsal room above the legendary Twilight in Ostend. The video features two demo snippets from the forthcoming album "Hotel Existence".

Expect more footage of me working in the studio or checking out sounds with the boys in the rehearsal room. By dropping videos, we will reveal new sounds and demos. So stay tuned – stay ‘konnekted’.

Demo preview - Yesteryears

2009-10-17T11:26:00.010+02:00

Preview - Yesteryears DEMO v.1.0
Instead of just dropping an audio preview, we thought a video is much more fun. This is a DEMO of Yesteryears. A first snippet and preview of the forthcoming album 'Hotel Existence'.

A chance to live inside your dreams

2009-10-09T12:48:00.002+02:00

NATHAN: The inner refuge, Harry. The place a man goes to when life in the real world is no longer possible.

HARRY: Oh. I used to have one of those. I thought everyone did.

TOM: Not necessarily. It takes a good imagination, and how many people have that?

HARRY: (closing his eyes; pressing his forefingers against his temples): It's all coming back to me now. The Hotel Existence. I was just ten years old, but I can still remember the exact moment when the idea occurred to me, the exact moment when I found the name. It was a Sunday afternoon during the war. The radio was on, and I was sitting in the living room of our house in Buffalo with a copy of Life magazine, looking at pictures of the American troops in France. I had never been inside a hotel, but I had walked past enough of them on my trips downtown with my mother to know that they were special places, fortresses that protected you from the squalor and meanness of everyday life. I loved the men in the blue uniforms who stood in front of the Remington Arms. I loved the sheen of the brass fittings on the revolving doors at the Excelsior. I loved the immense chandelier that hung in the lobby of the Ritz. The sole purpose of a hotel was to make you happy and comfortable, and once you signed the register and went upstairs to your room, all you had to do was ask for something and it was yours. A hotel represented the promise of a better world, a place that was more than just a place, but an opportunity, a chance to live inside your dreams.

From The Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster

Congrats to CC who awaits a copy of 'Hotel Existence' once it’s ready...

Hotel Existence

2009-10-07T08:59:00.003+02:00

Okay folks, while I’ve been filling these pages mainly with nonsense and side news for a while now, I think it’s about time to reveal some real news.
Yes, I am working on a new album and that album will most probably find its way into the annals of time as ‘Hotel Existence’. But hush hush, don’t tell anyone yet!
Btw, does anyone have a clue where the title comes from or what it refers to?
Hmmm, maybe this could be a nice way to reward those who actually read these blogs on www.diskonnekted.com. So the first one who posts a reaction on www.diskonnekted.com with (let’s be fair) the right answer will get a free copy of ‘Hotel existence’.
Once it’s ready of course. And only God knows when that’s going to be.

Willy Wonka

2009-10-02T11:42:00.004+02:00

How would Diskonnekted look like, seen through the eyes of Willy Wonka?
Probably a bit like this: the birthday cake my mother-in-law made me two weeks ago. I especially like the outfit Schidde is wearing!

Will I - will I - will I be famous?

2009-09-30T14:01:00.002+02:00

He doesn’t know it yet, but he will find out soon: a picture of Schidde is featured in the official city magazine of Ostend - De Grote Klok. The picture was taken a little while ago during a rehearsal. Somehow (I have to admit I have my connections) it found its way to the magazine’s editorial staff. Now every citizen of Ostend will see Schidde soon, as everyone receives this city magazine. The article is about alcohol consumption, music licenses for pubs, and a safe city nightlife. Really something that fits the funny ass of Schidde!
Haha, picture this!

Jam session

2009-09-13T11:37:00.010+02:00

Even for a healthy schizophrenic it's pretty easy to make music because the only possible problems you have to deal with are an inner dialogue or a compromise you have to make with your very own personal goals. Until now this has always been the comfortable way of making music for me. But since I am looking for new boundaries to break and new challenges as a musician, I invited our guitar player Schidde to be involved in finishing the new songs. Schidde is not even a 'healthy' schizophrenic so as far as having my big challenge I succeeded already.
As mentioned in the previous blog the adventure started last friday when Schidde came by for a first jam session in the Diskonnekted home studio: the 'Cyberflesh Lab'. I have footage of the afternoon and will post that later when starting a series of 'Behind the scenes' videos. We recorded straight into Cubase using Guitar Rig as our virtual amp. It still is a very cool toy but the software definitely lacks a real 'rock 'n roll' vibe. However: the beers and cigarettes made the balance right. OMFG.
When working on the recorded guitar parts this week I was happily surprised by the result of the first jam session.
Yesterday we just decided to work differently and headed for our rehearsal room above the Twilight (our favorite rock pub in the city). There we are able to play loud and to use Schidde's amp, a tube driven Switchblade by Hughes & Kettner that already makes a hell of noise at volume setting 0.5. So I really don't want to know how volume setting 10 sounds like. Anyway, the rock 'n roll vibe of the rehearsal room was inspiring and Schidde came up with some very cool and aggressive guitar riffs. Really the kind I was looking for. Not having Cubase installed on my iBook I used the by default installed GarageBand by Apple and I was happy to discover a very easy to use recording/studio interface. Simple but solid. Thanks to GarageBand I was able to record the guitar parts and now I am able to work on the demos in the Cyberflesh Lab. I am thrilled and excited. 10 years in the making: the final version of 'The Parting' will be an explosive result. Stay tuned!

Remix fever - part 2

2009-09-07T10:29:00.002+02:00

It's been a hell of a busy weekend. It started friday afternoon with recording guitar parts for 'The Parting'. I will report about that in another blog someday soon. Yesterday I finished yet another remix. Solitary Experiments will release a new album and I am happy Diskonnekted was invited to remix one of the new tracks. I fastened the original 118 bpm up to 125 bpm and pimped the track with atmospheric dance elements. Put on your dance shoes and prepare yourselves for the clubs.

Remix fever

2009-08-31T08:54:00.022+02:00

If you'd asked me one year ago if I'll ever make a remix again, I probably would have said no. But as changing my mind became a personal trademark, I can offer you a finished piece today.
Wynardtage makes dark electro in vein of Suicide Commando and Wumpscut. It was an interesting trip tearing down its concrete industrial walls and building something new from scratch. The result is still dark, but instead of rusty and industrial, it sounds rather cold and futuresque.

The Parting

2009-08-24T11:09:00.000+02:00

The year 1994: I am 16 years old and want to become a famous dark electro artist. I start my first project: Mildreda. My brother who is two years older than me wants to become a writer and a poet. He’s actually doing a very good job, so I ask him to translate some of his poems for me to use as ‘lyrics’ for my songs.
We’re still 1994: After a disastrous first demotape I make my first ‘real’ cool sequence. At that time I didn’t have my own keyboard yet, so I use the Yamaha PSR 400 that belongs to my friend. Not knowing anything about programming I still play everything in ‘real time’ straight into the sequencer and (imagine this) I haven’t discovered the quantise function yet. So yes: hi hats, beats, snares and bass line live a life of their own. But still: I feel this is the beginning of a great adventure. My brother comes up with very cool lyrics, and that’s how the first version of “The Parting” was born. It’s pretty much the blueprint of all other songs I will compose later on.
1996: I make a new version featured on my first professional-like demotape ‘De Laffe Denker’. Johan Van Roy tells me he likes it and I am the proudest kid on the planet.
1999: Heyaeb releases a cover version of “The Parting” on their debut maxi ‘Aperi ventes’.
Somewhere at the end of the previous century: The friend who lent me his keyboard back in the days is also still working on lots of music and projects worth writing a book about it. Under his new Foochow-flag, his final and most successful project, he also makes a cover version of “The Parting” but it remains unreleased on a minidisc somewhere in his attic now.
Summer 2009: Mildreda is dead. Heyaeb is dead. But the melody of “The parting” is still haunting my head. There is something mythical about the track: I still think the lyrics are absolutely übercool and all my friends who were there at the beginning can sing along with the melody even today.
So I guess I simply have no choice but to revisit the song again and make a most definitive and ultimate version of the track. Stay with us as I would like to share the making of the track with you on these pages by dropping videos and demos now and then.

We need your votes!

2009-08-19T09:29:00.001+02:00

Once again we need your votes!
Gwenny made a little short movie for the Ostend Filmfestival. It’s a contest for the best 3 minute and humouristic movie. The short movie features a soundtrack by Diskonnekted.
We had fun making it, I hope you have fun watching it.
I hope we can count on your vote! Vote for Gwenny Cooman’s “Continuum”.
You'll get a confirmation mail (in Dutch) to confirm your vote by clicking the link.

Thanks!
Please vote HERE. Vote for Gwenny Cooman’s “Continuum”.

Welcome

2009-08-19T09:03:00.000+02:00

Today we wave the traditional band website goodbye. The internet is full of interesting networks so why loose time and effort in doing everything ourselves?
From this day on we will welcome you on these pages where you can learn everything that’s new in the Diskonnekted hotel.
Stay tuned – stay 'konnekted'.