Illuminine Enlists Sigur Ros Engineer to ‘Be Wise, Take Care’

Illuminine is the latest musical endeavor from Kevin Imbrechts, a Flemish noise-rocker turned ambient auteur who's best known as one half of the stoner-y Belgium duo Mosquito. The former started as a humble DIY solo project— just Imbrechts, his guitar, some effects petals and a toy synthesizer or two. On a whim, Imbrechts decided to pass along the results to Sigur Rós; to his surprise, the band’s sound engineer, Birgir Jón Birgisson, replied with an invitation to lay down some tracks in the critical darlings’ Sundlaugin Studio. Together, they brought Illuminine’s debut album, #1, out of the bedroom and into the world — and they’re not done yet.

Two years after releasing that LP, Imbrechts is gearing up to release his sophomore LP, the aptly titled #2. It’s due worldwide on May 19 (April 21 in Belgium) via Imbrechts’ new Sony imprint, Illuminine Records. Judging from the sound of the record’s new single, “Be Wise Take Care,” it’s clear that he takes the Icelandic aesthetic seriously: It’s a cavernous track, as well as a paradoxical one, embodying the struggle between man versus nature. Who wins in the battle between organic instrumentation and digital artifice? You’ll have to listen to find out.