Nihilosophy by Earupt

What is Nihilosophy? Nihilosophy is the scientific study or interpretation of nothing. A concept that is both vague yet surprisingly poignant as well. Because in a way one can say that everything is either completely useful or completely pointless. Everything can be nothing andnothing can be everything. And with that concept in mind, the creative madness unleashed by Belgian Groove prog metallers Earupt on their third album, starts to make more sense.

After having delivered 2 albums on their own, with ‘Belief/Relief’ (2013) and ‘Elements’ (2019), the gentlemen created a style that borrows heavily from groove metal and prog sounds, but at the same time sounds not exactly like other bands out there. On this third album, the Belgians continue this path and dive in even deeper. Introducing new elements to their sound that fit in easily, but also leave surprising impressions.

This album was twisted into form by three main actors. Guitarists Tom Kielemoes and Walter Snoeck took care of securing the recordings and laying out the basic arrangements. Occasionally, singer Hendrik Vanhoutte came around the scene to add his vocal lines to craft the songs further. Some ideas had already sprouted before the covid epidemic, but the latter meant that the songs mainly had to be worked on remotely. After this time, it was time to implement and refine the fundamental ideas. The basic drums written before were then converted to more conventional drum patterns by ex-bandmember and friend Thijs Lammertyn who leaves a wonderful parting gift on this record.

Returning to the album’s concept, the band gave their own personal spin on it. You are born with nothing and when you die you leave with nothing. Every day things are reduced to nothing by wars, natural disasters, diseases etc... Songs with titles like Phoenix, Man Or Machine, Age Of Anarchy, Casting Shadows In The Dark deal with that... they are themes about death, change, destruction and violence, living on the margins of society... Themes from everyday life. The draw-
ing on the cover fits in exactly with this... The girl finds herself in a precarious position, high on top of a building on the edge of the roof, proverbial on the edge of society with its many excesses...! Out there she also sees something very beautiful, the many balloons, she reaches for them but misses and is left with nothing. Those many balloons can metaphorically represent the topics described, the many titles of the songs. The black and white of the drawing with a red touch makes it even more dramatic.

In the search for a suitable mixer for the album, Earupt ended up with Tom MacLean (previously bassist with Haken and now known for his projects Athemon, To-Mera, Horāsan & Psion). He provided the
compositions with a full organic sound. Occassionally enriching the songs with underlying keyboard parts and accompanying background sounds. The result is a varied album that is full of joy and creativity. Showcasing a familiar yet fresh mix of low tuned guitars with melodic vocals. Groovy metal interspersed with prog, thrash and alternative elements creating a pleasant musical amalgam.

Earupt hails from the deepest woods of the Flemish Ardennes in the East of Flanders in Belgium. They have always had their own vision for their music which resulted in two albums filled with groovy aggressive tunes with an underlying sauce of progressive touches.

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