Animistic Beliefs are inventing a new, creole musical language. The Rotterdam-based duo forms from Techno, IDM and ‘Global Club’ to create exhilarating hybrids, applying a fresh perspective that is both deeply personal and political.
‘Animism’ is the idea found in indigenous belief systems that all objects, creatures and places possess a spiritual essence. Pre-colonial thought, traditions and music connected with Marvin’s Moluccan and Linh’s Vietnamese-Chinese heritage are key inspirations and tools through which the duo explore their experience as queer POC living in the Netherlands.
Shared introductions to dance music as underage attendees of Rotterdam's club scenes and a passion for analogue equipment were the initial catalysts to Linh and Marvin’s collaboration. Early on they would meet regularly at a group for hardware enthusiasts, where they’d solder together their own hardware from scratch.
Techno, electro, gabber and punk formed the initial backbone of their sound, but as the duo rediscovered traces of cultures that conventional history had erased, South-East Asian tonality, tribal rhythms and texts and poetry have become central components.
Parallel but distinct from their releases, the duo has honed a fast-paced and ritualistic live sound. In a dimly lit room behind a web of cables, they become a powerful force. Layering Linh’s punk vocals beneath detailed, tightly wound metallic loops and pneumatic kicks, these imposing metallic structures give way only fleetingly to passages of brooding, choral melancholy.
As performers, Animistic Beliefs have been able to transcend the club circuit, and are as comfortable sharing the bill with techno mainstays like DJ Stingray and Helena Hauff, as they are alongside artists like Lotic, Nazar and Jlin.
Driven by tireless technical, historical and emotional research, Animistic Beliefs is a constantly evolving art project.
Increasingly, sights are set beyond music, as Linh and Marvin broaden their output to new media art and alternative fashion. Their audiovisual project CACHE/SPIRIT continues this direction.
On their latest record, MERDEKA (NAAFI), the artists explore and embrace their cultural heritage in all of its pride, pain and complexity.
Moving away from western club music traditions towards an alternate dancefloor reality, the record incorporates Indonesian scales and recordings of the Tahuri, Totobuang and Tifa drums.