VI.BE

"... the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars ..."

- Jack Kerouac

Driven by this ‘burning’ restlessness, YOUR LIFE ON HOLD is the melancholic but consoling soundtrack to a life of solitude and loss. The music expresses the inner torments when life gets stuck in sorrow and despair. But it also wants to comfort the troubled soul and soothe the consuming feeling of desolation.

A gothic rock sound seemed like natural and fitting to express the melancholic and gloomy narrative of YOUR LIFE ON HOLD. Dreamy and atmospheric guitars inject brightness and colours into the dark compositions, while a tight and solid rock sound sometimes turns the melancholy into an angry harder wall of sound. Therefore we like to call it ‘post goth’, because of the rich array of influences and textures, bringing the classic gothic rock sound to a new level.

The debut album “Burning for the ancient connection” is the result of a longer musical journey by John Wolf. After producing electronic music for over 20 years, Wolf got totally bored by the knobs and buttons of machines and computers. He bought himself some new guitars instead and started experimenting in the studio. This adventure became a true quest for sound. While drenching the guitars in dreamy ambient effects, Wolf finally forged a new sound that would become the blueprint of the melancholic YOUR LIFE ON HOLD music. John Wolf’s classic ‘goth’ voice is the perfect finalization of his modern compositions.

As if he were exorcising his inner demons, the lyrics of John Wolf deal with disillusion, pain and desolation:

“Every night it happens, every night I die I wash away the pain with a gun in my hand I have a thousand dreams so I can fill up that hole I have a loaded gun for my twisted soul” (from ‘Attawapsikat’)

But within the darkness, there’s always a hint of light and hope. The melodic melancholy of ‘Phoenix’ and ‘Falling’ are therefore far more consoling than merely depressing, while the furious monster ‘Exorcism’ is the fierce but firm translation of the burning restlessness of the soul.

“Did I wake the devil, or you instead? Did I wake the demons inside your head?” (from ‘Exorcism’)

From the upbeat gothic rocker ‘Already lost’, to the slow and melancholic ‘Hope is for dreamers’, to the explosive ‘Exorcism’, YOUR LIFE ON HOLD explores all possible shapes of the genre, making it an adventurous and divers musical journey.

After getting in touch with Solar Lodge, things got in motion. While YOUR LIFE ON HOLD found itself a safe and professional home, the album got mixed by Artaud Seth, who gave the tracks that final exciting touch.