"No further north
The lights are out here
No further north
Incandescent darkness"

Roman Hiele (1991) is a Brussels-based musician and composer whose work explores the boundaries between improvisation and electronic composition. His music unfolds as a living system of shifting harmonies, fractured rhythms, and unexpected turns.
At the core of Hiele’s practice lies a deep fascination for contrast, where his soundscapes act as both anchor and disruption, sharpening the emotional depth of images and spaces, a sensibility that extends into his collaborations with filmmakers, visual artists, and designers.

His new album, Emo Inhaler, on Stroom is an emulsifying force, blending these threads into a single, fluid whole. The record condenses compositions born from improvisatory explorations and electro-acoustic experimentation. Recorded and concluded across various studios and train coupés, Emo Inhaler is expansive, yet tightly woven, creating a singular sonic identity that explores Hiele’s own world of musical off-key vignettes, balancing between light and sinister. With Emo Inhaler, Hiele reaffirms his place as one of Belgium’s most adventurous and distinctive contemporary voices.
credits
releases November 25, 2025

Compositions, performance, recording, arrangements & mixing: Roman Hiele
Vocals: Clodagh Kinsella on tracks 2, 4 & 10
Tenor sax & bass clarinet: Joachim Badenhorst on tracks 3, 5 & 10
Kanklės: Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė on track 12
Mastering: Mathieu Savenay
Design: Nana Esi & Roman Hiele
Thank you: Asmus and Caroline, Uma and Dan Dan and Isha, Clodagh, Indrė, Michelle and Michael, Rikkert and Hans and Armeno, Christina and John, Nana and Ziggy and Wannes, Willem, Wiet, Micha, Simon, Frans, You