From gothic synths to progressive shreds: the shape-shifting musical world of Minorarc
Ivan Bullock’s musical odyssey defies genre, spanning continents and genres, a restless creative journey that has taken him from classical concert halls to Tokyo’s underground clubs and Melbourne’s progressive metal scene.
Equal parts neoclassical, progressive metal, and cinematic electronica, Minorarc stands as a deeply personal and atmospheric exploration of emotion, memory, and decay.
As the driving force behind Minorarc, Bullock has spent over two decades crafting a sound that defies easy categorisation – where neoclassical elegance collides with industrial grit and progressive metal’s technical fury.
The story begins in Canberra, where a young Bullock immersed himself in classical violin and piano training.
His instrument – a striking zebrano-wood violin handcrafted by his late father – became an extension of his musical identity until a neck injury at 18 forced an abrupt departure from performance.
What might have been an ending became instead a transformation, as Bullock dove headfirst into Tokyo’s thriving underground scene during the late 1990s.
The city’s neon-lit chaos and cultural dislocation proved fertile ground for his first project, Mystral Tide, which began with a borrowed Roland digital piano and grew into a fully-fledged dark electronica act.
Tokyo’s clubs became Bullock’s proving ground.
At venues like the legendary Labyrinth Club, Mystral Tide’s brooding synthscapes found an eager audience among Japan’s goth and industrial devotees.
By 2001, self-released CDs were appearing in Shibuya’s Tower Records, and a performance at Germany’s Wave Gotik Treffen festival as a guest artist for Seij minus aÇ brought international attention.
“There was this incredible energy in Tokyo’s scene,” Bullock recalls.
“You’d have noise artists playing alongside EBM acts, with visual artists projecting experimental films behind them – it taught me that genre boundaries were meant to be broken.”
The transition to Minorarc in 2009 marked both an evolution and a homecoming.
Returning to Australia, Bullock began incorporating his classical roots into heavier, more organic compositions.
The 2022 album Untold represented a creative breakthrough – a concept work about drowning and rebirth that fused djent-inspired guitar work with mournful piano passages.
“I wanted to create something that felt physically immersive,” Bullock explains.
“The low-tuned guitars create this suffocating pressure, while the piano offers these moments of desperate clarity.”
Inclusions (2023) pushed this approach further, earning widespread acclaim for its seamless blending of progressive metal complexity with neoclassical grandeur.
Tracks like “Seven Times Burnt” showcase Bullock’s signature style – intricate guitar work that recalls Meshuggah’s polyrhythmic precision suddenly giving way to delicate piano interludes that wouldn’t sound out of place in a Chopin nocturne.
Beyond his own music, Bullock has become a linchpin of Australia’s experimental scene.
His Enzyme concert series (2005-2015) provided a crucial platform for emerging artists, while Darkstereo continues to champion underground talent.
“There’s incredible creativity happening outside the mainstream,” Bullock notes. “I’ve always believed in building infrastructure to support that.”
Now, as Minorarc prepares for live performances with violinist Eric Shek and bassist Brendan Henriques, Bullock is also revisiting his past – planning a 25th-anniversary reissue of Mystral Tide’s Whirlpool of Souls.
It’s a fitting full-circle moment for an artist who has spent his career in constant motion, always searching for new ways to merge technical precision with raw emotional power.
