Ibizan Memories & Mercury Rising with Rheinzand
Rheinzand is a retro-futuristic collaborative project formed of three musical minds from Ghent, Belgium. Multi-instrumentalist and prolific producer Reinhard Vanbergen, established DJ Mo Disko, and the gifted, charismatic vocalist Charlotte Caluwaerts conjoin forces to mould a highly danceable sound; merging classic soulful disco and blissful Balearica with synth-heavy and dancefloor-satisfying material.
We were intrigued to find out about how they came together to create their unique sound and how they’ve ended up having one foot firmly planted on the dancefloor; with their music having made its way into esteemed DJ’s record boxes across the globe.
So, Moon Roq’s Harry sat down for a chat with the three of them to discuss amongst other things, making music together, combining their creative energies and stories from Ibiza and legends Andrew Weatherall and DJ Harvey. As always, grab yourself a pair of headphones and enjoy the musical accompaniment to the words… Introducing, Rheinzand…
Let’s start at the beginning. When did you all meet and at what point did you decide it was a good idea to start making music together?
Mo: From time to time, I used to see Reinhard at a bar where I used to play and we were always talking about doing something together one day. Countless times later we were again in that same situation. We looked at each other thinking, surely we’re not going to have the same conversation again! So, Reinhard suggested to meet on the following Monday. I told him that I don’t play any instruments, have no clue in notes and other theoretical musical knowledge, I just know what I like and love about music and how I want it to be. He told me that was not a problem, but demanded that I would sing, which was a big challenge for me. I never thought of myself as a singer. We made our debut single ‘The First Time’ in one afternoon and that felt pretty nice. After we did our second track ‘The Way You Do’, Reinhard told me that his girlfriend was coming over that night and that maybe she could do some backings. The next day I received a file and after listening to it one time I knew Charlotte was the missing link, so from that moment it was the three of us.
What musical backgrounds do you all come from?
Mo: I come from a raw DJ background. As I mentioned, I don’t play any instruments and never sang before producing with Reinhard and Charlotte.
Reinhard: I started with classical violin, finished my masters for jazz violin and have played in different world music and pop bands. I’ve never really focused on one genre. I produced flamenco records, Irish folk music, gypsy brass bands, garage rock bands, even metal bands, lots of pop and rock records and film music. Electronic music only came when Rheinzand started. I was always interested, as I am in any genre, but never really got into it. One of my first CDs was a compilation of synth music, where a few Vangelis tracks where on the list. From a young age it got my attention, but the step to actually making it myself started when I met Mo.
So, working with each other encouraged both of you to try new things musically. Charlotte, how about you?
Charlotte: I grew up studying classical piano and classical singing. I made the switch to pop in my early twenties when Reinhard asked me to join a new band he was starting (separate to Rheinzand). I also developed a love for great, mostly female, iconic singers and performers like Donna Summer, Kate Bush, Anne Clark, Liz Torres and Whitney Houston around this time… In Rheinzand, I can shamelessly summon my inner disco singer. Even the classical singing finds a way to merge in our music. This variety in the music is also translated in the lyrics. I’ve always loved languages and admire the different tone or poetry in them. Something you write in English may sound very strange in French and the other way round. It’s nice to play with them when writing lyrics. Maybe we will add a few more languages on a future record.
It’s interesting that you each have completely different musical backgrounds. Do you share any main creative influences as a group?
Reinhard: We all have different creative influences but agree that there is so much beautiful music around that it would be a shame to leave it all behind and only focus on trying to come up with something entirely new. I am not even sure that is even possible. Everything is done before, in one way or another. The challenge is to use what was given before and combine all that creativity from the past and create something new by making combinations that nobody else would do. Music history is just a wonderful garden where you can harvest a lot of fruits and make your own shake the way you feel like it. Is it new? No, it’s still a shake. But it is unique.
How do you combine your creative energies to blend the fruits of music history and shake up a unique track?
Reinhard: Mostly Mo comes up with some inspiration tracks, and we make a basic track. Once that is getting a shape, Charlotte makes a top line and lyrics. From there on, we bounce it back and forth between us. At a later stage we bring in Stephane Misseghers and Bruno Coussée for live drums and bass. They are also incredibly talented producers and always add the final surprising touch. Some tracks on the album started from a real song written by Charlotte, or a piece of soundtrack written by me and we Rheinzand it together. As Mo has tons of experience on the dancefloor decks, he can make a lullaby into a dancefloor killer.
Is it important to you that you make killer tracks for the dancefloor?
Mo: Being a DJ, always looking for music that you can use to entertain people it was important to me that I could use it and merge our music together with all the other tracks that I selected to get a dancefloor going. Once we achieved that, it left space to explore different paths; but the dancefloor’s always lurking around the corner.
Charlotte: I come more from a pop/rock background, so it’s very refreshing to play in a band where the audience immediately responds by dancing to your tracks. It makes performing a shared experience you can feel and actually see.
Your music has been championed by esteemed DJs like Andrew Weatherall and DJ Harvey. It must be incredible listening to them play your records.
Mo: They are huge music lovers and amazing DJ’s whom I have respected since the first day I met them. Two totally different people who have one thing in common, they know how to intrigue, challenge, and move us in a musical way every time I have heard them play for over 25 years. So, hearing our production blending in with their other track selections is an amazing experience.
Can you share any memorable dancefloor experiences with these guys?
Mo: One night we were DJing in Mexico City and went to dinner with Harvey who was playing Mutek festival the next day. After our DJ set, we went to see Andrew playing at MN Roy ‘til the early hours, he had the place under a spell, a deep sonic spell. The next weekend they had to play all night long together for the first, and now unfortunately the only time together at Trouw in Amsterdam for the closing of ADE. It was great to see them each individually in Mexico the weekend before and now playing together and feeling the mutual respect for each other through their track selection. An incredibly unique experience and a beautiful night.
I was at Love International Festival last year and Andrew played your track ‘Blind’ mid-way through his set to hundreds of people dancing at the beach stage. That was the first time I had heard the track and it blew me away, lifting the energy of the crowd to an unprecedented level. Also, Harvey played ‘Mr. Mercury’ whilst I was at Pikes last year and that made Freddie’s feel even more magical. Two different tracks for two completely different but equally amazing environments. I love how your music caters for both… You've featured on both of Harvey's Mercury Rising compilations. How did this come about and what makes the sound of Rheinzand such a good fit with the so-called best party on the planet?
Mo: While working on the Rheinzand project we made a track called ‘Like Before’ and only forwarded it to Harvey. A few months later I went to the Mercury rising closing party at Pikes. Harvey played for 10 hours and at around seven in the morning, I heard our track and the reaction was fantastic. He played the entire song which is like nine minutes long! The next year he made the first Mercury rising compilation and asked if he could use the song. Then after my second visit to the closing night, the year the first compilation was released, I had such an incredible night on an array of different levels. I was so inspired, went back home, fully charged from the night and the first track we made was a kind of tribute, homage to the Mercury Rising night. We called it ‘Mr Mercury’. Again, we shared it with Harvey, and it ended up on the second compilation.
Both tracks express feelings of freedom and happiness that go hand in hand with the party. It makes sense that they were intricately designed with Harvey in mind! You guys have been visiting Ibiza for some time and your experiences have had an impact on the music you make. I'm sure you have many magical sunsets and sunrises under the belt. Is there any particular Ibiza memory worth sharing?
Mo: My first visit to the island was in 1989, I went for one night only just to check out DJ Alfredo at Amnesia. The music, the vibe, the people, and the setting had such an impact on me as a DJ, that since that day it changed the way I play, share, and connect music with people till the current day. DJ Alfredo was utterly astonishing, and I would love to thank him for that.
Charlotte: I once ended up there and stayed for three weeks when I was 19 years old. I’m just glad I made it out alive then! It was really nice to do a rematch last year when we all went to the Pikes closing party together. The look on Mo’s face was priceless when he held the first vinyl copy of Harvey’s compilation in his hands.
Sharing that experience together must have been really special; a fond memory to reflect on during these difficult times. What is your take on what's to come? Has the world changed forever due to Covid19?
Reinhard: I think a lot of people are sick and addicted to money and power. That will not change overnight. It’s like any other junkie. We are ruled by junks you could say. Corona does not have the power to change any of that, but it might speed up the whole process to a boiling point where other people start to realise that we HAVE to change in order to survive as a species. It will not come from those in power as they behave like addicts. The faster that change comes, the more can be saved of nature. By making the gap even bigger between rich and poor, corona might just give it all the push we need. Just like making music, there are a lot of lessons to be learned from the past, so our way of working as musicians could also be adapted for politics. Use the past to create something unique that works for everybody in the future. In my mind, all the artists prepare the path little by little, by trying things out on a very small scale. But if we keep repeating it enough, it might grow and become part of what everybody is thinking. Artists create thousands of new thinking patterns and some find there way to the general public. So yes, corona changed the world, by making it clearer what the problems are. On all scales in life and also where we stand as musicians.
How is society forcing musicians like yourself to behave during this crisis?
Reinhard: Suddenly the little income we had is gone while it is demanded that you expose yourself all the time on social media for free, to entertain the fans or build up new ones. Social media feels like a new form of slavery for musicians, that need to spice it up all the time, while there is no financial return for it. If you don’t do it, you won’t make it as a band, but if you do they will keep the promise before you as a carrot and it will never fill the hole. The essence of being a musician, playing shows, is gone and what is left is not really what you signed up for. That whole system got painfully clear to me because of corona because it’s so extreme right now. If it starts to go back to normal, I hope I don’t forget and act accordingly.
Charlotte: I completely agree with Reinhard. Corona is a like a looking glass on society’s problems as well as our individual problems. What really strikes me is the calm and silence of this period. It’s like the whole world is on pause, streets are empty, it’s silent at night in the city, no nightlife, no gigs… It’s a strange and quite comforting bubble that we are in. But the moment I open social media there are all these live streams, ‘corona lockdown stay in your house gigs’ and what not. It seems very forced to me because it has nothing to do with a true live experience. I hope this period of abstinence of social and shared experiences will bring back more focus to live sets and live gigs and less to making things look good on social media. I definitely prefer being a performer, singer, and songwriter over an administrator on social media.
When you first started making music, you were making one track every six months. Then came one every three months and recently, you just released your full debut album. What can we expect next? Will the pace of your creative output continue to increase?
Reinhard: For me personally I can only feel the passion grow everyday. I am making more music than ever. Not all of it is for Rheinzand, but I definitely hope we can increase our output, as we have started the second album already…
Mo: I agree, the passion continues to grow and hopefully our musical output grows with it.
Charlotte: I’m very excited to make a new album. I’m very curious what will come out!
Photographs kindly provided by the band. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this article or any other with us - don't hesitate to get in touch.