Behold! I Make All Things New

Description

At a time marked by epidemics, war, and upheaval, Jozef Van Wissem invites contemplation of the past rather than the pursuit of ephemeral novelties. A composer and virtuoso lutenist, he uses his Renaissance instrument to detach himself from the present, while collaborating with figures from industrial music, folk, or with filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, for whom he composed the soundtrack for Only Lovers Left Alive. These modern incursions serve as Trojan horses to denounce contemporary blindness to the precariousness of human existence. With his album Behold! I Make All Things New released in 2022, Jozef Van Wissem makes a stripped-down return to his roots, abandoning singing for instrumental compositions where electronics are discreet, almost shadowy. Drawing on palindromic structures typical of the 17th century, he creates static music evoking the idea that progress is an illusion. His hypnotic melodies, with rapidly decaying tones, offer austere comfort akin to the atmosphere of an unheated stone cathedral. Each piece is an invitation to meditation, accepting the world as a valley of tears where salvation can only be found elsewhere. Through this sacred minimalism, Jozef Van Wissem transforms the time spent listening into a profound spiritual experience, reminding us that beauty lies in fragility and detachment from the agitations of the modern world.