This page tells the true and complete story of Psycho Sye and the Bombers, a legendary Belgian psychopathic punk band, active in the mid eighties in the student city of Leuven, as an endless succession of Belgian governments tries to solve the country’s economic crisis. Meanwhile, at the edge of city life, young and restless youth are creating their own scene. Local bars like Bacho, NIX, Gladhouse, ArnoZ and clubs like Het Atelier / Belgisch Congo and Youth Center Q104 are hangouts for the young, with cheap beer and loud music. Friendships are formed, bands are started, most of them playing experimental music or raw, gritty rock and punk. Money is sparse, but creativity and ingenuity soar.

November 1985 : Koen B (ex- De Nest, ex- The Wicked Witch is Dead) and Phil V (ex- The Wicked Witch is Dead) meet Klaas J, electronic sound-wizard and farmer (ex- industrial band 20W/50). They are introduced to Hilde “Sye” L, film-student, born in Belgium but having grown up in the States, and Rob D, old-time motorcycle and sixties freak. That meeting turns into a lengthy and loud jam-session at Klaas’ remote farmhouse in the Belgian village of Opvelp. The explosive energy of that first session convinces everyone present: a new band is born. After some deliberation the new combo is christened Psycho Sye and the Bombers. Rehearsals are either retreats at Klaas’ farm or hectic sessions at Q104 in the center of Leuven.

Koen ‘Animal’ mistreats his drums fearlessly and vigorously. In a nearly autistic manner he pushes and pulls the band into a deep psychotic groove.  Klaas ‘Mr CryBaby’ plays a worn out and cheap telecaster imitation guitar with lots of distortion and wah-wah. Phil, a skilled guitarist, takes care of the more conventional rhythm- and solo guitar parts while Rob holds down the low end with his immersive driving bass. Sye rounds out the sound with her powerful, raspy voice.

The band members played in a rather unconventional way: Rob’s bass was a right handed instrument played upside down, modified by Klaas to create an ocean of free space to move around, plucking and slamming unhindered on his unique instrument. Klaas also thoroughly modified his own guitar, removing all but two plain strings, giving him space on the fret board to freely grab, strike and pull the strings. A custom made overdrive/fuzz/distortion effect built into his guitar completed a truly unique style and sound. Phil played a right handed Fender Bullet as a lefty, blasting his guitar through a 70s Big Muff into a 60s Fender tube head driving an old PA speaker.

Like most of the band, singer and front person Sye made up in passion and creativity for what she lacked in experience. Her raw, gritty voice soared about the band’s wall of sound. To this day Sye is the only vocalist I’ve ever known who managed to destroy a Shure SM58 through the sheer power of her voice! Her years living in the US meant she was fluent in English, with lyrics influenced by the likes of Patti Smith, Bukowski and Lou Reed.

Songs were written during rehearsals, based on extended improvisations. Covers of The Stooges, Undertones and Hawkwind, played loud, filled out the repertoire.

Most gigs were in and around the band’s hometown of Leuven: NIX & Q104 in Leuven, Xenon in Aarschot, Paanhuis in Diest, Lido in Leuven (with Jed Parker of New York-based band  Sloth), Ons Huis in Leuven.
A highlight was the Bombers’ performance at Heiberg Festival on May 2 1987, playing for an audience of about 500 festival-goers. The band were the opener at a festival that featured many well-known acts of the time such as The Gun Club, Aroma di Amore, Wilmer X, Soup Dragons, Ed Keupper and the Lyres.

Personal disagreements, Rob’s boredom with the musical direction of the band away from his beloved garage sixties punk, and well, life, meant the end of Psycho Sye and the Bombers. A handful of gigs with different band members followed but the band slowly fell apart and ceased to exist after a few short years.

Phil emigrated to the States, first New York, then New Orleans where he performs and records as Phil the Tremolo King. He also pursues a career in illustration and animation and lives with his wife and two dogs in a lovingly restored old barge board house. He is the proud father of a wonderful son. Klaas and Koen became professional colleagues at the archive department of VRT (Flemish Radio & Television). Klaas became a passionate luthier and today specializes in making and repairing Indian sitars . Koen became the proud father of two wonderful daughters. Rob focused on his passion for motorcycles and dedicated himself to improving Belgo-Congolese relations. Sye returned to the States, living close to her family in upstate New York, where she is a teacher and proud mother of a son.

There you have it: the story of our band’s brief but intense existence. We hope that after all these years, the listener can still feel the energy and passion that radiated from our music and performances during those crazy, wonderfully creative times. We sure had fun, our audiences did too, and we played our hearts out on every note and every song we ever played. None of us would have missed it for the world.
Warm greetings and friendly fingers.

Psycho Sye & The Bombers are:

Hilde Lowenstein – Psycho Sye – Psychotastic vocals

Phil Vanderyken – Kid Guitar – Phil the Tremolo-king – Left-handed groovy guitar

Klaas Janssens – Mr CryBaby – 2 string guitar screams

Koen Bekaert – Animal – Dragging drums

Rob Dormaels – MotoGuzzi – Mighty bass power