Why The Eye release a first single 'La Machine' from upcoming album

Why the Eye is an experimental masked quartet from Brussels citing artists including The Residents, Snapped Ankles, Société Étrange, Kokoko!, Autechre, Boards Of Canada, Fulu Miziki and Charles Frégier's ‘Wilder Mann’ as influences. Describing their music as "Prehistoric Techno", Why The Eye are set to release their new album ‘Inspirex’ on the 4th October via Exag Records.

Releasing their self-titled debut album in 2017, Why The Eye has performed across a number of underground and experimental venues including Magasin 4, Ateliers Claus and Rockerill in Belgium, Sonic Protest and Gare des Mines in Paris and Cave 12 in Geneva alongside festivals including Festival Baignade Interdite, France, Le Festival de la Cité in Lausanne, Switzerland and Festival Hop Pop Hop, France.

Having formed in 2013, the band’s first scheduled gig was for Carnaval Sauvage – an illegal, alternative carnival held in Brussels, hence the masks – where participants dress up in homemade costumes, often made from recycled materials, then dance through the city. Designed to be ‘ungovernable’ but not disrespectful, the carnival is a rebellious tradition in the ‘Marolles’ flea market and antiques district, dating back to 1969’s Battle of Marolles. However, the gig never happened but the band decided to keep the masks.

On the recording of ‘Inspirex, band lead Damien Magnette says, “The album is live music based on energy. It has a chaotic side. How do you convey the chaotic, wild, animal energy of live music on record? My point of view is that to achieve this energy, you have to do exactly the opposite in the studio. A lot of layering. Lots of overdubs that we can't do live. It's all these elements that give the album its wildness.”

First single 'La Machine' was composed at rue de la Senne, a legendary spot on the Brussels underground scene. The song was written in a flash, in a single day. The overall shape emerged instantly. The text became clearer during the covid crisis. The song speaks of the confinement generated by our capitalist society. In concert, this song sets the audience free! When Why The Eye recorded the album in the midst of the covid crisis, the song became more vindictive. The crowd noises, it's the band screaming. Initially, "les boules dans la machine" was a bit abstract. But then it took on a different meaning.