21 November 2025
Photo by Turn Up The Volume
WHOLES is the new musical project of Belgian, musical chameleon Wolf Vanwymeersch who played with several bands over the years (pop, punk, rock, sludge metal) and released a pure singer-songwriter pearl with solo debut album The Early Years back in 2022.
Wholes are what remains after a soul has been detonated, what struck those around
it, what could no longer be contained says Wolf. They just released their debut LP, titled
A MASS IN THE WATER. A pitch-black noizz and very personal record about Vanmymeersch losing his beloved father.
It’s a both scary and flabbergasting opus that takes a lot of courage to make and share with the world. Turn Up The Volume had a chat about it with Wolf, but first a sonic intro
with ‘Till We Don’t Meet Again‘, which was the album’s first single.
Can you remember a day you weren’t involved in music in the past few decades?
“Music isn’t a choice or a hobby for me; it’s a current that runs underneath everything. Even on the days I don’t play or write, it’s always there. A single word in a conversation can spark something, a sound in the street can open a door. There’s always something playing in the back of my mind.”
What does your new project/band’s name stand for?
“WHOLES refers to what remains after a soul explodes — the pieces, the shards,
the echoes. It’s about scars as much as openings: holes and the spaces where new
light can enter. It also references the Whole, The desire to feel connected with
everyone and everything.
The name is raw and hopeful at the same time,
and that’s exactly where our music lives.”
Suppose WHOLES was an animal.
Which one would it be and why?
“A crow. Something living between life and decay, clever, restless, unafraid of
darkness yet still strangely beautiful. A creature that’s always collecting things
and suddenly takes off when you least expect it.
Or a cockroach: it thrives in the cracks, survives the loudest blasts, and refuses
to disappear. It’s the noise that keeps living long after the room has gone quiet.
Or a cow? WHOLES is like a cow in a storm, usually placid, almost meditative,
but when it moves, the earth itself shakes. The music carries that same mix
of calm, menace, and unstoppable presence.”
The debut album A MASS IN THE WATER has just
been released. What’s the story behind the title?
“As crazy and morbid as it sounds, I found my dead father in a brook
De Schorre. Hence Poids Lourd etc… It’s also a Mass in the sense of
a Requiem.
The album, much like the title, is about confronting grief, carrying it,
and letting it shape the sound without being consumed by it.”
My first impressions went from scary to flabbergasting.
Is the maker of this pitch-black record the freakiest
Mr. Hyde ever?
(laughs) “Maybe. WHOLES is definitely my Mr. Hyde,
the part that rages, distorts, and refuses to sit still.
But it feels less like Mr. Hyde taking over from Jekyll and more like both of them
finally being allowed to speak at the same time. The darkness in the record is real,
it’s simply the only way I could express certain emotions without filtering or
polishing them.”
It’s a very personal work dealing with the loss of your
beloved father. Now that the album is out, do you feel
some sort of healing?
“Making this album didn’t heal me, but it gave the grief a shape. It let me confront emotions I couldn’t otherwise articulate: the grief, the rage, the confusion. Sharing
it doesn’t erase the loss, but it transforms it: it becomes something external,
something that can move, resonate, and exist beyond me.
Playing this music live, in front of people, takes it
even further, it transcends the pain and the grief.”
The singles’ and LP’s artwork visualise your demons, I suppose.
Quite impressive. Can you tell us more about it?
“Yes, the artwork is very much an extension of the music and the emotions behind it. Maxime Rouquart, who created all the visuals, and I sat down and listened to the album together.
I shared some sketches and stylistic guidelines, for example, my interest in wood engraving and lithography, and then he did his thing, producing some truly beautiful
work. Niek Devos from PRINTBAaR handled the screen printing, giving the art a special finishing touch that really completes the whole experience.”
What’s your favorite track and why?
“My favorites change from day to day, today I’ll pick ‘Holes’ because it’s the only song that speaks directly TO my father. In lines like ‘to make you whole again / sleep well my friend / hope your nightmares end / from wayback when / and help the man to fill them holes again and make you whole again’.
As if I’m consoling him, singing a lullaby to soothe his pains.”
.
Suppose A MASS IN THE WATER was the soundtrack
of a movie. Which one would it be and why?
“If A MASS IN THE WATER were the soundtrack of a movie, it would be something
raw, and unflinching, a film where grief, chaos and beauty coexist. Where time
slows down and emotions speak through textures and images.
In that sense, it could work perfectly with Sirât: a father searches for his missing
daughter in the desert and the world around them spirals into utter chaos. Our album’s
tension, intensity and immersive sound would mirror the film’s themes, the landscape’s
harshness and the emotional weight of the story.”
What can we expect from WHOLES in 2026?
“In 2026, you can expect more shows and a deeper dive into the sonic language we’re developing. We’re rehearsing new songs — not sure if we’ll release them this year — but we’re only at the beginning.”
Thank you, Wolf, for this revealing interview.
May the road rise with Wholes.
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