The Big Sonic Heaven 7 – Cecilia::Eyes

The Big Sonic Heaven 7 is 7 questions we ask our favorite bands.
This time we asked Cecilia::Eyes…1. Where are you from/based?
Christophe: We all live in the countryside in the southern part of Belgium (which is the French part), between Brussels and the north of France.

2. Give us a brief history of the band.
Christophe: The band was formed in 2004 by Chris (guitars) and Mike (guitars). My brother Pascal (bass) and Xavier (our first drummer) joined us at that time. We recorded a first EP Echoes from the Attic in 2005 and an LP Mountaintops are sometimes Closer to the Moon in 2007. The Belgian press welcomed the record very well. Gauthier (guitars) joined us in 2009 and we add samples and ambient soundscapes together for the writing and the recording of Here Dead We Lie released in 2010, on the theme of war. In 2014, we released a more melancholic post-rock mood album called Disappearance, which follows a personally depressing era. For family & location reasons, Mike and Xavier left the band just after the Disappearance Tour in 2014. We were lucky to open for great bands like Cranes (UK), iLiKETRAiNS (UK), A Silver Mount Zion (Canada), and Mono (China). After the tour, we recorded a live album which is available on Bandcamp and will soon see the light on streaming platforms too. In 2015, Nicolas (drums & vocals) joined us and we decided to include vocals in the compositions. We decided at this time to disappear for a long period to write the next step of our lives and include female vocals on the majority of the tracks. We invited Laura Bladt and Céline Philippart to accomplish this task. Céline finally joined the band as a member and is the current female singer.

3. What are your influences and/or describe your sound.
Gauthier: Lots of guitars, lots of reverb, lots of delays, a few voices (with lots of reverb), more guitars, some distortion, more reverb.
Christophe: I always have been a fan of Shoegaze (from Cocteau Twins to Slowdive, Pale Saints, Lush, & Cranes). I also love post-rock bands like This Will Destroy You or Mogwai.

4. What is your current release? Tell us about it.
Nicolas: Our new album is called Sore Memories Always End and was released on December 3rd. This time, we have gone for a more dreamy shoegaze style compared to our previous albums. The addition of 3 voices on most of the tracks is a big part of it. As the musical colors are different and brighter, we also opted for a more colorful and clearer cover.
Gauthier: …and it’s available in a beautiful double-colored LP via Dunk! Records.
Christophe: We wanted to work with friends that are in the same musical mood to write this album. Pictures, artwork, mixing & mastering have been done by a little “family”. And we are very proud of the result. The artwork is very close to the 4AD Vaughan Oliver’s work (this is also some sort of tribute to this great artist).

5. Tell us something funny or shocking about the band.
Christophe: I’m so stressed that I throw up before each concert. Don’t know if it’s shocking or funny. Apparently, the other f*****g members of the band find it funny.

6. What’s the best thing about being in a band?
Nicolas: I guess it depends on the people you play with. In our case, it’s the fact that, musically, everyone’s opinion is taken into account. We operate as a democracy, which is sometimes a long process but necessary. The other great thing, in any case, is the adrenaline you get at the gigs, talking to people who are interested and like what you do. Without these interactions, it’s all useless.
Christophe: I think we really found a balance with the current line-up. We are very close in our private lives too and we understand each other. There is real cohesion and we know where we want to go.

7. What’s next? Are you touring?
Nico: Yes, we had a gig at the Dunk HQ on the day of the album release. Other concert proposals are pending. We really want to go back on stage to defend our album and find again communion with people. Let’s hope that the Covid context will allow us to do it in the best conditions.

Christophe: We don’t have any tour manager at the moment, so it’s sometimes difficult but we are all really involved in our project, so we just wish to share our music and our love with people.

Thanks a lot for your support,
Christophe, Pascal, Gauthier, Nicolas, & Céline.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Darren Revell
Big Sonic Heaven Radio

Big Sonic Heaven is a 24/7 Internet radio station dedicated to the ethereal sounds of shoegaze, dream pop, post-punk, trip-hop, etc. Listen to the artists featured on the blog and discover more by downloading the app for iPhone and Android or listen at bigsonicheaven.com.