Woohoo, it’s the last episode of season 14!
To finish on a high note, we invited Maya Dhondt, with whom we prepared a sonic fireworks that we hope will be joyful, intense, and memorable! A beautiful mess made of strange and fascinating sounds. Some unclassifiable melodies, some wild herbs that grow where you least expect them…

That’s a good thing, it’s in essence a bit like this that we could characterize Maya Dhondt’s music. Her creativity is delirious. She wanders gaily, almost innocently, like a cloud lost in the middle of a blue sky. But sometimes it’s the thunder! An ecstatic ruckus that gets out of control. And for this selection, we’re embarking on this path.
Ready? Fire!

Guest’s selection

It’s so hard to chose only 3. So many great songs out there, different styles, different vibes, different urgencies. I gave myself permission to go eclectic because I believe everything will forever desire to be many things at once. What I was looking for in minimal-invasiv, the song you mention from my album, is a form of pulse and trance. So the songs I chose carry inside of them a reflection on these terms. 

Nihiloxica - Choir Chops

Maya Dhondt: ” Even through my computer I feel the energy of this song, which makes sense if you know the song was recorded with seven percussionists, one kit drummer and a synth player. Rhythm and pulse are everything here, in this collaboration between Bugandan drums & UK bass.  “

Rola Azar - هي هي يا فلسطين (Hey hey Falastin)

Maya Dhondt: ” I heard this first at protests against the genocide. Released in 2022, it’s an empowering anthem celebrating the strength and resilience of the Palestinian people, calling out for freedom. The song is one to march to, chanting the refrain together, walking up to your government while your insides (and outsides) are screaming ‘what the fuck’. “

Smerz, GAEA - Bryter, bretter til alle sider

Maya Dhondt: ” Do yourself a favor and go listen to the album these two groups recorded together. GAEA is an 8-headed vocal ensemble, Smerz a 2-headed producer duo (of my dreams). Together, they made absolutely finger licking polyphonic music with sparse electronic drums & occasionally other instruments. However chopped up, I feel the pulse in the silences, the continuity in the breaks. “

Curator’s selection

Maya Dhondt - minimal-invasiv

Anto: ” I don’t remember how I came across this track, but I remember the immediate crush. You know, it’s this special feeling, this original stimulation that causes butterflies in the stomach from the first contact. Well, I’m not naive, as an adept of limerence I know the mechanics… Except that this time, the rest of the song bewitched me. The rise in tension and this epileptic firmament: brilliant! Seduced at first, I definitely fell in love while listening to the rest of the album. And love can’t be explained. These piano notes laid in a falsely neglected way are to be adored. This synthetic air that lingers throughout the album is constantly surprising. As for this voice that pronounces words that I don’t always understand, it flirts between the human and robotic aspect while managing to always remain as voluptuous as ever. In short, love is made for sharing, I can only invite you to listen to the rest of her work! “

Asa-Chang & Junray - Hana -a last flower-

Anto: ” Do you know Aku no hana? It’s a slightly disturbing Japanese animated manga that pays homage to The Flower of Evil by Baudelaire through a strange and fascinating story that left a deep impression on me. This song is the ending theme. There, the crush was less obvious. But by dint of seeing this slightly freaky thing appear at the end of each episode, I ended up becoming fond of it, to the point of developing a kind of systematic excitement every time I hear the introductive lyrics of the song. Today, I live a happy life with it. It accompanies me discreetly and often comes back like a benevolent ghost.
Moreover, it is a rework of this piece from the early 2000s, a little more dreamy but just as great and which we also find throughout the anime. “

Bargou 08 - Dek biya

Anto: ” “Bargou” is the name of a city in Tunisia. “08” is a telephone code from the area. “Targ” is the album title and a local dialect between Berber and Arabic. While “Front Musical Populaire” is the alternative name for the project. All this alone perfectly describes the intention of these ten musicians who compiled traditional Tunisian songs recorded with elders they met here and there into nine tracks. A nice way to preserve a memory, extend the life of these pieces doomed to disappear. The entire album is a treat between trance and psychedelia, especially on this track where the zokra (traditional flute) keeps us very high. “

Sault - Bow feat Michael Kiwanuka

Anto: ” We end with a less unstructured piece, to echo the previous Free Palestine and to close this Mail Tape season on a political statement. All over the world and particularly in Africa, people remain prisoners of villainous regimes under the passive, even complicit, eye of most North countries governments. But what can we do there, us simple music lovers? Well, the English collective Sault offers some ideas. Demanding respect for human rights, shouting it in the street, or singing it to invoke it is a good start. ”

Here it is.
Thanks to Maya Dhondt for co-creating this selection. We didn’t have time for the illustration but you know, it’s already summer.

See you in September for new adventures. Until then, dance, vibrate, and enjoy your sunny days to the fullest!