Psy'Aviah is an

electronic rock Electronic rock (also known as electro rock and synth rock) is a music genre that involves a combination of rock music and electronic music, featuring instruments typically found within both genres. It originates from the late 1960s when rock b ...

band from

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

Career

The band were formed in 2004. Later that year, they won the

Studio Brussel Studio Brussel is a Dutch-speaking radio station in Belgium, owned by the VRT. The music played is considered more alternative than the other big radio stations, and is aimed mainly at a youth audience. The channel is an initiative of the Fle ...

Demopoll with the song "The Future of the Sun". In 2007, they teamed up with Len Lemeire (from Implant/32Crash fame) to record their first album ''Creationism''. 2008 saw them signing to the

Alfa Matrix Alfa Matrix is a Belgian record label. Founded in 2001, the label releases musical styles including aggrotech, industrial music, dark elektro, synthpop, and electronica. Based in Brussels, the label consists of label and artists manager Séba ...

record label and the release of a new album, featurings and remixes. After the release of their album '' Entertainment Industries'' in 2008 Psy'Aviah performed on festivals such as BIMFest 2008, Waregem Expo Gothic Festival 2009, VK Concerts (support Subsonica), Hof Ter Lo (support Emilie Autumn), etc.. The Psy'Aviah videoclip for their single "Moments (feat. '' Suzi Q. Smith'')" got banned in 2009 by ''

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

'' which spawned a reaction of disbelief and disapproval towards ''

'' in both the press and in online communities. 2010 brought the third album of Psy'Aviah entitled '' Eclectric'', produced by band member ''Yves Schelpe'' and mastered by ''Geert de Wilde'' of '' IC 434'' in ''

''. Their third album contained a mix of electric eclecticism, showcasing varying styles while retaining a constant hint of darkness. They invited guests such as '' Jean-Luc De Meyer'' of ''

Front 242 Front 242 is a Belgian electronic music group that came into prominence during the 1980s. Pioneering the style they called electronic body music, they influenced the electronic and industrial music genres. History Formation Front 242 were for ...

'' fame to sing on the track Ophélie, and '' Jennifer Parkin'' of '' Ayria'' who guested on the track Into The Game. The album ''Introspection / Extrospection'' is the band's latest and was released November 25, 2011. It again features a wild range of styles as on '' Eclectric'', and includes a track with Swedish model and ex-'' Ashbury Heights'' singer ''Kari Berg'', Dutch singer ''Lis van den Akker'' from Dutch act ''Misery'' as well as Belgian MC's ''MC Dééjoohcéé'' & ''Thomas C. Beerten''. The album is their third to be released on

records. The first single ''Ok'' (including the remix by '' M.I.K.E.'') and the track ''SOS Overdose'' attracted a great deal of attention before the album was actually released. In 2012 A follow-up to the album ''Introspection / Extrospection'' was released in the form of a DJ-''EP'' ''Ok / Virtual Gods DJEP'' with remixes by ''NUDE'', ''Jan Vervloet''. The EP included a cappella versions and dub version of the songs. Before the release the ''Jan Vervloet'' remix of the track ''Ok'' leaked out and was already being played in various dj sets and podcasts, among others in the one by '' Johan Gielen''. Concertwise the band play at venues Nijdrop for the Pluto Festival and at

Ancienne Belgique The (''AB'') is a concert hall for contemporary music in Brussels, Belgium. Located in the historic heart of Brussels, it is one of the leading concert venues in Belgium, hosting a wide variety of international and local acts. Some 300,000 pe ...

as support for Praga Khan. The year 2013 brought the band to the classic venues Nijdrop for the audio visual Pluto Festival and at

as support for Praga Khan's special 25-year anniversary concert. Meanwhile, they've also released the ''Future Past'' Mini Album / EP which featured guest vocals by Kyoko Baertsoen, the founder of act Lunascape (band) and former member of

Hooverphonic Hooverphonic is a Belgian electronic band that was formed in October 1995. Though originally categorized as a trip hop group, they quickly expanded their sound to the point where it could no longer be described as a belonging to a single genre, ...

. The ''Future Past'' mini album spawned two music videos for the tracks "Circles" and "Letting Go", the latter one hand-drawn, animated and directed by Emily Weeks. 2014 saw Psy'Aviah return to its core, with founder and producer Yves Schelpe writing and producing the tracks for the album The Xenogamous Endeavour. An album with guest vocals on all tracks, from the likes of Kyoko Baertsoen, Mari Kattman, Miss FD, Suzi Q. Smith, Lisa Nascimento, Lis van den Akker and more...! Psy'Aviah continued this path in 2016 with the release of Seven Sorrows, Seven Stars. An album with guest vocalist, from the likes of Kyoko Baertsoen, Mari Kattman, Miss FD, Suzi Q. Smith, Roeland van der Velde, and more...! The album was widely received as
''"5*-rated"'' album
an
a real contender for album of the year
by reviewers.

Live performances

The band has played several festivals and clubs during the years, including Nijdrop club, Trix/Hof Ter Lo, Vaartkapoen and

. They also did support for bands as Praga Khan, Subsonica, Emilie Autumn, etc..

Discography

Albums

* ''Creationism'' (self-released / Digital Matrix, 2007) * '' Entertainment Industries'' (

, 2008) * '' Eclectric'' (Alfa Matrix, 2010) / ''Eclectricism'' (Alfa Matrix, 2010) * ''Introspection / Extrospection'' (Alfa Matrix, 2011) / ''Retrospection'' (Alfa Matrix, 2011) * ''The Xenogamous Endeavour'' (Alfa Matrix, 2014) / ''The Exogamous Endeavour'' (Alfa Matrix, 2014) * ''Seven Sorrows, Seven Stars'' (Alfa Matrix, 2016) / ''From a Different Perspective'' (Alfa Matrix, 2016) * ''Lightflare'' (Alfa Matrix, 2018) * ''Soul Searching'' (Alfa Matrix, 2019) * ''Bittersweet'' (Alfa Matrix, 2022)

EPs and mini-albums

* ''Into the Game'' (Alfa Matrix, 2011) * ''Ok / Virtual Gods DJ EP'' (Alfa Matrix, 2012) * ''Future Past'' (Alfa Matrix, 2013) * ''Our Common Future'' (Alfa Matrix, 2014) * ''Never Look Back / Words'' (Alfa Matrix, 2015) * ''Chasing the Speed of Light'' (Alfa Matrix, 2016) * ''Looking for the Sun'' (Alfa Matrix, 2018) * ''Dream Fever'' (Alfa Matrix, 2019)

Compilation appearances

* ''Anyone Seen My Rubber Duckie?'' - "The Future of the Sun" (Je M'En Fish, 2003) * ''Easy Everyday'' - "A Red Fox" (Sint-Lukas Brussels, 2007) * ''Fxxk the Mainstream Vol. 1'' - "In Silence" (

, 2007) * ''Till Dawn Do Us Part '07'' - "Infected" (Dead By Dawn, 2007) * '' Endzeit Bunkertracks: Act III'' - "Mine" (Endzeit Mix) (Alfa Matrix, 2007) * ''Cryonica Tanz v.5'' - "Demons in Mind" (Cryonica, 2008) * ''Re:Connected 3.0'' - "Voltage" (Re:Connected Mix), video - "Moments" (feat. Suzi Q. Smith) (Alfa Matrix, 2008)

Remixes by Psy'Aviah

* Helalyn Flowers - "Voices" on ''A Voluntary Coincidence'' (

, 2007) * Diskonnekted - "When I Come to Fall" on ''Old School Policies'' (Alfa Matrix, 2008) * Diffuzion - "No Fear" on ''Body Code'' (Alfa Matrix, 2008) * Krystal System - "Slice" on ''Underground'' (Alfa Matrix, 2008) * Left Spine Down - "Prozac Nation" on '' Smartbomb 2.3: The Underground Mixes'' ( Synthetic Sounds, 2009)

Featured artists

* Leæther Strip on the track "The Worst In Me" from ''Bittersweet'' (Alfa Matrix, 2022) * Mari Kattman (HELIX) on the track "Can We Make It Rhyme" from ''Bittersweet'' (Alfa Matrix, 2022) * Madil Hardis on the track "Lost At Sea" from ''Bittersweet'' (Alfa Matrix, 2022) * Dirk De Wachter on the track "Rainy Repertoire" from ''Bittersweet'' (Alfa Matrix, 2022) * Kyoko Baertsoen (founder of Lunascape and ex-

) on the track "Our Common Future" from ''Future Past'' (

, 2013) * Kari Berg (ex-Ashbury-Heights) on the track "Deep Dark Desire" from ''Introspection / Extrospection'' (Alfa Matrix, 2011) * Lis van den Akker of Misery on the track "Home" from ''Introspection / Extrospection'' (Alfa Matrix, 2011) * MC Dééjoohcéé & Thomas C. Beerten on the track "Nouveau Quiche" from ''Introspection / Extrospection'' (Alfa Matrix, 2011) * Jean-Luc De Meyer of

on the track "Ophélie" from '' Eclectric'' (Alfa Matrix, 2010) * Jennifer Parkin of Ayria on the track "Into the Game" from ''Eclectric'' (Alfa Matrix, 2010) * Sophie Claereboets on the track "Bad Gods Pray" from ''Eclectricism'' (Alfa Matrix, 2010) * Kristell Lowagie on the track "Kings & Queens" from ''Eclectricism'' (Alfa Matrix, 2010) *

Leæther Strip Leæther Strip is a Danish musical project founded on 13 January 1988 by Claus Larsen. Its influence has been most felt in the electronic body music and electro-industrial genres. Leæther Strip was one of the earliest and most prominent acts ...

on the track "Sweet Hard Revenge" from '' Endzeit Bunkertracks: Act IV'' (Alfa Matrix, 2009) * Suzi Q. Smith on the track "Moments" from ''Entertainment Industries'' (Alfa Matrix, 2008) * Nebula-H on the track "Paranoiac-Critical Method" from Nebula-H album ''rH'' (Alfa Matrix, 2008)

Awards

Psy'Aviah has won

's demopoll in 2003. They were also nominated for

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's The Next Big Thing in 2007 with the track "Moments" feat. Suzi Q. Smith. In 2012, they were nominated for two Hollywood Music In Media Awards: "Ok" (as pop) and "Virtual Gods" (as alternative). In 2016, they were elected as Album of the Month on ''Coma Music Magazine''.

Licensing for television and advertisements

TV

From 2014 to 2016 then the song "Our Common Future" feat. Kyoko Baertsoen was used for several episodes of TV series starring Clara Cleymans. It was audible in episode 11 of season 2 and episodes 1, 4 and 8 of season 3 - as aired on national TV station "Eén" of VRT.

Commercials

Psy'Aviah's track "Tired" was chosen in 2007 by

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

to assist in the launch of Windows 7 and their focus on music. The same track was also used in the

Dexia Dexia N.V./S.A., or the Dexia Group, is a Franco-Belgian financial institution formed in 1996. At its peak in 2010, it had about 35,200 members of staff and a core shareholders' equity of €19.2 billion. In 2008, the bank entered severe ...

"Action Banner Concerts" (video
Banner Concert "Tired"
) campaign.

Activism

Urban Sharing Experiment

In 2012 Psy'Aviah started the ''Urban Sharing Experiment'' project. By hanging and placing packages with mysterious writing and their cds inside everywhere in the city of ''

'', ''

'' in April and May 2012. By doing this, they wanted to break people's daily routine. The main philosophy behind the project is that people should be more aware of their surroundings. The band made videos on YouTube showing how they went about it, and an article on their website explaining their motivation.

References

article
by ''

Gazet van Antwerpen The (; ; popularly named ''De Frut'') is a Belgian newspaper in Antwerp and Flanders, published by Concentra. History and profile was established in 1891. Its editor was Jan Baptist Napolitaan Van Os, a Catholic. Shortly afterwards, the compa ...

'' reporting about YouTube incident
Side-Line Magazine reporting about YouTube Incident

Side-Line Magazine reporting about Introspection / Extrospection

Psy'Aviah explaining the philosophy behind
the ''Urban Sharing Experiment''
Coma Music Magazine reporting
on the ''Urban Sharing Experiment''
YouTube Video #1
on the ''Urban Sharing Experiment''
YouTube Video #2
on the ''Urban Sharing Experiment''

External links

Psy'Aviah Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Psyaviah Belgian industrial music groups Electro-industrial music groups Belgian electronic music groups Musical groups established in 2004