That Moment / Sopa Boba

(featuring Pavel Tchikov/Ogives and G.W. Sok/The Ex, Oiseaux-Tempête)

 

 

Sopa Boba is a Belgian/Dutch, electronic, modern classical project. The idea behind the form is a so-called Oratorio from the present age which unfolds a dramatic tale within a sociopolitical framework. The compositions incorporate a neo-classical style string quartet, harsh modular sytnhs and spoken word vocals.

That Moment is an adaptation of the eponymous text by Moldavian writer Nicoleta Esinencu. The starting point of That Moment takes place in a real fact, which happened in present-time Moldavia, where a father cut his son’s finger with an axe, as a punishment for stealing a bit of money from the father’s wallet. From there the author combines the tale and its reality with a caustic irony, interrogating an unbridled capitalist society, where everything and everyone is for sale. The total playing-time is 55 minutes, somewhere in between a hybrid electronic – modern classical oratorio and a concept album, with seven tracks that serve as seven chapters of an ironic and satiric story about the downward spiral of capitalist society.

« And we thank the heavens for Sok, who uses all his stagecraft to fully inhabit the tale and worldview of the young boy…Stick in there, and you will gain enlightenment » – The Quietus

« A pervasive and fascinating piece of contemporary art, giving you plenty to get caught up on whether by means of the music itself and the details found within it, the overlying narrative, or simply all of it at once ». – Everything is Noise

« For all of those who are ready to hear how the world cracks and want to feel this brutal truth on their own skin. » – Anxious Musick Magazine

paru le 21 février 2025

Nicoleta Esinencu : story
Jean Vangebeergen : dramaturgy & artwork

G.W. Sok : vocals
Pavel Tchikov : modular synths
Maritsa Ney : violin
Roxane Leuridan : violin
Nathalie Angélique : viola
Eugénie Defraigne : cello
Stéphane Diskus : modular synths (on 1 & 5)
Timba Harris : viola solo (on 4)

Composed, recorded & mixed by Pavel Tchikov at La Rouille
Mastered by Gabriel Séverin at Laboratoire Central