Brussels-based band Factheory dropped “Bird of Time” last week, featuring Michel Sordinia, vocalist from legendary Belgian post-punk band The Names. The song carries weight beyond its runtime. Dominique Nuydt composed it during a school trip to Buchenwald in spring 2025. After visiting the concentration camp and watching footage of Nazi atrocities, he needed a moment alone with a guitar to clear his head. That’s where this track came from. The lyrics, written by Bruno Uyttersprot, explore childhood memories and the unstoppable march of time. Mixed by Thomas Neidhardt and Jack Gallows, the track benefits from having Sordinia on board, a vocalist whose band connected with Factory Records at a Joy Division show in Brussels back in the late 70s. Factheory and The Names will share a stage in December in Germany, and again in March 2026, when Factheory celebrates their tenth anniversary in Brussels.
The song starts with its most memorable component: the guitar motif that sets the wistful canvas for the lyrics to tell the story of how time flies away. The drums carry the dynamics from a post-rock-style groove in the verse to a straighter, driving groove in the chorus as the guitar amps up. A pretty unique merge of styles, especially considering the psychedelic bridge featuring some unnerving guitar lines as the phrase “Birds of Time” is repeated.
“Bird of Time” works because it doesn’t try to hide where it came from. The circumstances of its creation, the heavyweight collaboration with Sordinia, and the genuine emotion threading through the composition all add up to something that feels earned rather than manufactured. Factheory‘s been building on the ashes of various alternative groups since the 80s, and that experience shows. This isn’t just another post-punk track with darkwave leanings; it’s a song with actual history behind it.
