Bio

Changelings, the fourth and final collection of original songs by Tilburg-based singer/producer Benjamin van Vliet a.k.a. Microwolf, is a concept album about becoming a father. Its six expansive, free-flowing songs deal with themes such as wonderment, fear, reverence for life and the act of letting go. The album comes out on Tiny Room Records on September 1st, 2023.

The album was written and recorded by Van Vliet while his wife was pregnant with twin daughters, and finished after they were born. The recordings were then given to a very eclectic group of musician friends (including Belgian improv stronghold Joachim Badenhorst and Hansko Visser of Dutch cult band Plan Kruutntoone) to record contributions as quickly and spontaneously as possible, without hearing the other guest contributions. Van Vliet then cut and edited the recordings he received into free yet coherent arrangements, that never could have been conceived any other way.

This process was inspired by the final two Talk Talk albums, Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock, with which Changelings shares its loose, jazzy sound with lots of space, and its slow, unhurried paces. There are also stylistic nods to bands from the 1990s Antwerp scene, such as Zita Swoon, Kiss My Jazz and dEUS, as well as to the experimental indiefolk acts that have inspired Van Vliet throughout his entire musical career, such as Sufjan Stevens, Sparklehorse and Ryland Bouchard.

Van Vliet will promote Changelings with a string of live shows, some with a full band and others entirely solo and acoustic. Vinyl pre-orders will receive a cd-r with alternate versions of these songs. Early 2024 will see the release of a live album recorded during these dates and a compilation of demos and unfinished sketches collected throughout the years, after which Microwolf will go on an indefinite hiatus.

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