Biography
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Born
17 May 1977 (age 46)
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Born In
Mechelen, Antwerpen, Flanders, Belgium
Gert De Meester (born may 17 1977), who is also known as the bassplayer of the world-fusion-funk combo The Seven Laws of Woo, bassplayer of Grunge-rock-americana-trippies The Hindu Needle Trick,knob twiddler of 2questionmarks, The Mental Attack and Distant Fires Burning, lives in Mechelen, Belgium.
It all started with a Commodore 64. A friend asked Gert to take care of his C64 while he was renovating his house. In exchange he got the oportunity to experiment with that machine. Gert soon discovered you could use that C64 to make electronic music. For years he played with taperecorders mixed with the C64 and a cheap Bontempi keyboard. But for Gert nothing interesting enough came out. He is clearly influenced by, The Future Sound of London, Aphex Twin, The Black Dog, Autechre, Global Communication, Biosphere and The Orb.
Around 2000 he started to experiment with PC’s and software like Cubase etc…. He took up the moniker “The Mental Attack” and started to make Breakbeat-Techno-IDM. In 2003 this resulted in the “Structures EP”. A self-released CDR with 5 tracks. One of these tracks was “Doorchaser”. He took that title as username on different internet sites. But the title actually refers to his job. He works as a social worker, councelling at home. His job is to learn people how to live independently with all ups and downs and closed doors….
In 2004 he was asked to make the music and soundeffects for the space-comedy-play called “Ark” He took up the moniker “Reverend Basstorius’ Intergalactic Funk Experience”, short R.B.I.F.E..
Gert bought himself a laptop, a midi-controller a usb-basguitar-connection, etc…, etc…. And two years later he made his first Mental Attack album called “Iluvatar”. Again a self-released CDR.
In 2007 Gert started to experiment more with ambient. He was asked to make the soundtrack of a commercial for the brand “Kinto”. At the same time he began to make an ambient album, because the genre drew his attention more. He renamed himself “Distant Fires Burning” just to state the difference with the more beat-oriënted work by “The Mental Attack”. In 2008 he self-released the CD “Messierobjekten” as “Distant Fires Burning”. The main theme of this concept CD was the work of 17th Century astronomer Charles Messier. This CD got quite a lot of media attention, though opinions were divided.
In September 2009 he releases “7 Sisters”. It's an album with 7 tracks that refer to the myth of the Pleiades. According to the Myth the 7 Sisters commited suicide at the same time, because they couldn't bare the faith of their father (Atlas). Out of compassion Zeus put them in the sky as stars.
On April 14 2010, U-Cover Records releases the third album by Distant Fires Burning, "Build on Me", on it's sublabel U-Cover CDR Limited.
In March 2011 the track Geomagnetic Disturbance was featured on the Consouling Sounds sampler Magnetic Fields & Zero Dimension Planes.
In 2016, After a great hiatus, Gert released You're Not Listening a 3-track EP with outtakes from 2010's Build on Me.
2017 will present lots of new music
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