Here’s another favourite of ours, and perhaps the most spiritual piece we’ve ever written.

If there’s anything I take pride in, it’s having a good ear for music and a decent instinct as an artistic director. I still recall the exact moment I interrupted a conversation with Alex (Arnaoutoglou) during a ‘guitar strumming session’. Something caught my ear, as it were, and I made sure to save it from disappearing into the void of forgotten riffs.

That moment gave birth to the first two chords of Ibidem. I began scribbling lyrics while humming the melody, and not surprisingly, that initial draft ended up being kept as it is often the case. It came about almost in an automatic fashion, as though it had always existed and simply flowed through us. That section in particular carries a Zeppelinesque Ten Years Gone-like quality; hauntingly beautiful and full of yearning.

Without giving too much away, I’ll just say the lyrics explore the notion of undergoing a profound spiritual experience, only to find oneself exactly where one began; or something to that effect. Ibidem has been a staple of Phase’s live set since our very first gig, often featuring in radio showcases and other intimate performances.

We also had the great pleasure of working with the incredibly talented Elias Kirdiapkin on a beautiful video for the 10-year anniversary cassette and vinyl release of In Consequence. Originally, we’d envisioned interjecting footage of the band performing in a forest, but Damos had a prior commitment he couldn’t miss, something that relieved the Saint who found the idea a bit too ‘metal’ for his liking!

Ibidem on IMDb

Back to its captivating chords, it turns out, that perhaps we weren’t the only ones enchanted by those. Not long ago, Spotify notified me that Antimatter had released a new album. Being a fan, and having shared stages with them, I gave it a listen and enjoyed it so much that I bought a physical copy in support. But during that listening session, something uncanny happened. Following the album finishing, Spotify began playing more of their tracks, and at the 2:07 mark of one song, something eerily familiar came up:

Curiously, it had been released just a month before In Consequence. I naturally then checked whether we had nicked it and looked into the original version by Duncan Patterson, at 2:28, that was completely different.

In Coincidence?

It seems likely we simply landed on a similar idea independently, though the mood and execution are nearly identical. Interestingly, they hadn’t played it that way in earlier acoustic sets either, as evidenced in their 2004 internet release of unreleased material.

Now, during the (excruciatingly long) time it took us to complete In Consequence, we’d shared some rough mixes with Duncan. He seemed particularly fond of Ibidem and his girlfriend at the time even figured it out on guitar. Duncan, ended up contributing some ethereal synth layers and soundscaping, which made it into the final mix. This was also around the time he and Danny Cavanagh were collaborating in Antimatter.

On the Nature of Musical Inspiration

This brings me to a broader reflection, that musicians have always drawn inspiration from one another., and that this is how musical tradition evolves; through echoes, reinterpretations, and subtle exchanges across time and space. No piece of music is created in a vacuum. We hear something, we internalise it, and sometimes it re-emerges transformed in ways we can’t even trace. In fact, this shared well of creativity is what keeps music alive and evolving. Rather than seeing it as a source of rivalry, it should be embraced as a conversation that spans generations.

In any case, in the remote event that musicians that inspire us, have been inspired back, we can’t but take that fact as a compliment. Ibidem clearly casts a spell, and it’s entirely the song’s fault for being so incredibly enchanting.

See you anon,
Thanos

PS Here are some other fellows somebody had told us about,  that really seem to have thoroughly enjoyed it too (even though they most likely got directly influenced by Antimatter). Ibidem‘s done it yet again!