Genre/Influences: Gothic, cold-wave.

Background/Info: Lizard Smile is a Belgian formation, which is already active for many years. They released a few cassettes in the 90s and albums after the millennium. They now joined hands together with Wool-E-Discs to release a new work –still available as vinyl format.

Content: “Wandering In Mirrors” features 6 cuts, which are clearly recovered with 80s cold-wave influences. We’re moving through a dark and depressed sound sphere. The guitar mainly inject this emotional flavor to the work while the vocals, -which are sometimes reminding me of Peter Murphy (Bauhaus), only accentuate the cold feeling hanging over this work.

+ + + : The guitar playing is one of the band’s main strengths. There’s a real spirit emerging from the guitar parts, which are mainly coming through at “Silence In Your Eyes”, but still at the harder “Images Of Distance”. The vocals are another essential part of the work. The songs are well crafted and you clearly can hear this band became an experienced and mature formation.

– – – : There are only 6 songs featured so it rather looks like a mini-album instead of a real full length. That’s a pity because this is a cool work, which however is maybe missing a hit song!

Conclusion: Lizard Smile is a familiar formation from the Belgian scene, but definitely an underrated band on the international scene. I hope they’ll gain more recognition because those guys deserve it!

Best songs: “Images Of Distance”, “Silence In Your Eyes”.

Rate: (7½).

Artist: www.lizardsmile.be /

Label: www.wool–e–shop.be / www.facebook.com/woolediscs

About Lizard Smile

Lizard Smile is a Belgian band whose line-up includes Nico Van Aerde, Bart Van Laeken and Albert Van Onckelen. The group released a run of cassettes in the 1990s before returning with albums after 2000.

“Wandering In Mirrors” was released on Wool-E Discs, the band’s first outing on the Belgian label.

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com

Genre/Influences: Electro-pop, electro-ambient, cinematographic, experimental, minimal-electronics, gothic, EBM.

Background/Info: This album is a perfect opportunity to get more familiar with the Belgian label Wool-E-Discs featuring this label sampler with a real interesting title to analyze… The Belgian label is a rather eclectic company interested in talented (mainly) Belgian formations. The album features 18 bands. The main songs are taken from previously released material while a few ones will be released on upcoming productions.

Artists: Simi Nah, Factice Factory, Story Off, True Zebra, LiquidTrauma, The Breath Of Life, Lizard Smile, Der Klinke, Galactic Underground ft. Erik Wollo, Starseeds, BySenSeS, Club Mayz ao.

Content: This is the perfect compilation to discover the already impressive roster of Wool-E-Discs. This label which set up an interesting series about Belgian ambient music (cf. Belgian NeuMusik) reveals several artists from that series, but still totally different artists dealing with alluring electro-pop, dark-like and minimal electronics, gothic and experimental music.

+ + + : This sampler is a must have to realize the growing impact of Wool-E-Discs, but still the great music taste of the label owner Dimitri Idunno. He made me discover fascinating ambient projects such as BySEnSeS and Galactic Underground while other more familiar names such as Simi Nah and The Breath Of Life are great names from the electro-pop and gothic scene. But this is also an opportunity getting back to darker electro formats such as LiquidTrauma. I also have to mention Der Klinke, True Zebra and the French-Swiss band Factice Factory, which all are more gothic minded. I’m also looking forward to the album of electro-pop formation Starseeds.

– – – : The only regret about this album is the absence of Daniel B. (Prothèse) and Nothing But Noise (another Daniel B. project together with early Front 242 member Dirk Bergen).

Conclusion: In times where so many labels have disappeared a few ones such as Wool-E-Discs still have the motivation and ambition to move on. And the least I can say is that this a label, which definitely deserves more (international) recognition.

Best bands: Simi Nah, Factice Factory, LiquidTrauma, The Breath Of Life, Galactic Underground ft. Erik Wollo, Starseeds, BySenSeS, Der Klinke, True Zebra, Story Off.

Rate: (8).

Label: www.wool–e–shop.be / www.facebook.com/woolediscs

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

www.side-line.com