Yin Yin

In the organizer's words:

Yin Yin

Presented by Emerged Agency
05.03.2026 Cologne, Gloria Theater
Admission 19:00 hrs | Start: 20:00 hrs

Presenter: Byte FM

Shaped by both the imaginative sound waves of the cosmos and the earthly musical culture of Japan, Mount Matsu reflects a chaotic environment of influences slowly coming into focus. The infectious, strangely harmonious and highly energetic record is also the band's first to be created in a truly democratic process among four musician friends. Mount Matsu will do well on the year-end lists of all lovers of warm, tape-infused psychedelic disco, fat global funk, electronics and tribal experimentation.

Pentatonic scales and unknown sonic territories

Hailing from Maastricht, the southernmost city in the Netherlands, Yīn Yīn entered the scene in 2019 with the Thai psych-rock-influenced album The Rabbit that Hunts Tigers, followed by the more spiritual and cosmic The Age of Aquarius in 2022. With Mount Matsu, the band - who now live and record in a nearby Belgian country house and studio - find themselves somewhere between the first two albums, as their sound has gradually shifted towards the Land of the Rising Sun: Japan. The band's largely instrumental sound, based on pentatonic scales and created with a unique set of instruments, including old synthesizers and a traditional Chinese stringed instrument, the "guzheng", is characterized by large leaps between notes and melodies that transport the listener to unfamiliar oriental realms and are easy to love.

Ascending to the heights of Matsu

The songs on "Mount Matsu" were created - for the first time in Yīn Yīn's history - by all band members together. "Art and ideas are personal and precious, and the process of really doing this together was more than just making an album, it was also a study in how collectives work," notes Remy, Yīn Yīn's bassist since day one. "It's sometimes hard to see your own artistic ideas challenged as part of a group, but we're very proud of the result. When you really co-create, literally every sound on a record has been tested and thought through. We decided to use vocals sparingly, which leaves a lot to the listener's imagination: You can really let your imagination run wild while listening and dancing. The creation process felt like the arduous but very satisfying climb up a mountain, hence the title of the record: Mount Matsu.

YĪN YĪN is

Kees Berkers - drums

Remy Scheren - bass

Erik Bandt - guitar

Robbert Verwijlen - keyboards

Discography

2024 - Mount Matsu (Glitterbeat Records)

2022 - The Age Of Aquarius (Glitterbeat Records)

2019 - The Rabbit That Hunts Tigers (Bongo Joe Records)

Price information:

plus fees