This Morn’ Omina interview: ‘These ‘Industrial’ bands might reflect on the matter if they are a DJ or just another fake’
This Morn’ Omina
Mika Goedrijk is an eclectic Belgian artist who founded his main project, This Morn’ Omina, exactly 30 years ago. I have followed This Morn’ Omina almost from the beginning, though it took several years before a breakthrough led to a successful career. His strength lies in a distinctive blend of Tribal, Ritual, Industrial, Trance, and Electro, combined with a powerful live presence that sets him apart within the scene. Above all, he is a meticulous and passionate producer with a keen ear for detail.
Beyond This Morn’ Omina, he has been involved in several other projects, including Sygo Cries, Nebula-H, Pow[D]Er Pussy, Les Nuits Blanches, Project Arctic, Andraculoid, and more recently, Plan C. This year marks the return of This Morn’ Omina with its first album in five years. What once seemed like an ending has become a rebirth, as Goedrijk resumed the project with new musicians and a new label, Cyclic Law, releasing the album “Insha”.
More subdued yet perhaps more profound, it is his twelfth studio album and the reason for this interview. (Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)
This Morn’ Omina interview
Q: This Morn’ Omina is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary this year, and admittedly, a lot has happened during this long journey. How do you remember the beginnings of This Morn’ Omina, especially the concept behind it back then, and what remains of that today?
Mika: The original energy, focus has never left. It is in the name itself, ‘this morning of omens/portents’. Every day this happens. A renewed sense of being connected to the universe and channeling the stories.
Q: With This Morn’ Omina, you have undoubtedly established one of the few projects with a very distinctive sound and style. Where did you draw your inspiration from back then and where do you find it today?
Mika: Any sound, rhythm that invokes saccadic movement was what propelled TMO to create its own moment. Perpetuating that feeling. The ‘sources’ in and of itself are not important to that effect. Whatever makes you move physically or spiritually.
Q: I get the impression that the past few years have also been the most difficult period for This Morn’ Omina. What exactly happened, and to what extent did this influence your decision to stop and then start again?
Mika: You are the company you keep, as the proverb says. That company did not have the best intentions. Self-serving people, contributing nothing. This Morn’ Omina went through a needed tabula rasa. And hence This Morn’ Omina can exist again of fertile ground.
Q: Your new album “Insha” deals with creation so to what extent can it also be seen as a form of rebirth after everything that happened—perhaps even as a response to it?
Mika:After the tabula rasa, there was only one thing left to do: create. Going back to the roots. Just create with the basic tenets in mind and as a driving force.
Q: You worked with ‘Konchong-Gyaltsen’ from Nam-Khar. How did this collaboration come about, and what was his contribution to “Insha”?
Mika: Without direct knowledge we were fans of each other. Our early releases are in our respective CD libraries. At Oberhausen, Deluidspreker Festival 2024 we connected through our mutual live performances and it went on from there. Kindred spirits coming together.
Q: “Insha” sounds somewhat more subdued and restrained than what we are used to from This Morn’ Omina. Is this a natural evolution, or did the theme and concept shape this more subtle approach? What were the main musical pillars used to build the album?
Mika: After all the turmoil, this release needed to be grounded in truth and beauty. You call it restrained. We call it reflective. Provide a basis of stability from which we can jump again. The pillars are those who were there from the beginning. The track “7sekhem” is a good representation of that.
Q: In recent years, you have also been surrounded by a brand-new live band. Could you tell us more about these musicians and your connection with Olivier Moulin, with whom you also collaborate on side projects such as Plan C and Sygo Cries?
Mika: It was a breath of fresh air to work with real musicians again, not some wannabees. People who love to create music and overcome any hurdles that may exist along the road.
Olivier plays keys in multiple bands, Pierre is renowned DJ in France, Sam is half of DeadAstro Pilots, Maël has his own projects and releases 3 albums a year. All of them live and breathe music in their own way but find a similar path within TMO.
Plan C is Olivier’s baby. And it is a lot of fun to be in that atmosphere. Sygo Cries is centered around Syd Phoenix, an up and coming vocalist, singer, song-writer.
Q: Live, This Morn’ Omina has always been quite an experience—almost an antithesis to many Industrial acts where performers simply stand behind a laptop. How do you view the live experience, and how important is it to the artistic expression of This Morn’ Omina?
Mika: The energy within TMO cannot be expressed through a single person on stage. Multiple people have to channel that. Connecting with people does not work by hiding behind any kind of gear. These ‘Industrial’ bands might reflect on the matter if they are a DJ or just another fake. SPK, Clock DVA,…they were/are bands. TMO was and is always a band. Not an Industrial ‘push play and act like a monkey project’.
Q: You’ve mentioned your involvement in various side projects, and there have been quite a few over the years. Honestly, few musicians seem as eclectic as you. Where does this eclecticism come from, and do you set any boundaries when it comes to genres, particularly in terms of mixing and production?
Mika: Some frequencies touch me to the core, others do not. It is not related to any genre. Same for visual impressions. I tend not to search for an explanation of what you call ‘eclecticism’. I listen to the world and the universe, but I answer only when shaking to the core. Those are my decisions and boundaries.
Q: Concepts have always played a crucial role in your work, perhaps even shaping the music itself. Is that a fair statement? And to what extent do these concepts reveal something about the person behind the artist?
Mika: That is a fair statement. Within TMO, stories are told. Stories that matter in the past, present and future. Stories that come from a multitude of sources with a universal arc which ties it all the together. Many rivers flow to that sea. It might not make sense in physics, but it does on a spiritual level.
Q: Over the years, you have made numerous changes and additions to your studio. What does your setup look like today, and what advice would you give to young musicians who are just starting out?
Mika: We all suffer from GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) whether we admit it or not. But at the base, TMO equipment is based around the same principles… create and record. How exactly, does not matter. On “Insha”, “Heralds” was recorded on a 30 year old 4-track Tascam Portastudio. Just because that was the sound this opening track needed.
To create that statement for the album. Advice? For me it is very simple, have an idea/ a story you feel passionate about. Get the gear that you think will facilitate it and not give you sleepless nights or broken bank accounts. Create your idea. Connect with people through your music, only the music. Be true and honest to yourself and others.
Q: You mentioned that there is still a lot to come for This Morn’ Omina. Can you already reveal anything about what lies ahead in the coming months or year?
Mika: TMO is on-going. At moment, a compilation is ready for release on Dark Dimenions’s sublabel ProNoize. Two new albums are in the making, and should be ready end of this year. One called “Triptych” with Oksana Krasanova as visual artist, and one called “Rivers Of The Sea” continuing with Konchong-Gyaltsen wrapping up the ‘kundalini’ trilogy.
And a side-project MZN (Meandering Zombie Noise) will be released in december on LBRF. Releases on Electric Eden, continue as well.
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.
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