Le Guess Who? 2010 Program Guide by Le Guess Who?

Foto: Nick Helderman

www.converse.nl/mixtape

5 1

TIVOLI OUDEGRACHT & TIVOLI SPIEGELBAR Oudegracht 245

TIVOLI DE HELLING Helling 7

EKKO Bemuurde Weerd WZ 3

THEATER KIKKER Ganzenmarkt 14

DBâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S CAB-Rondom 100 (Cartesiusweg)

RASA Pauwstraat 13 a

KARGADOOR Oudegracht 36 a

7 6

2 6

ALASDAIR ROBERTS 33 ASTROPOSER 15 AWESOME TAPES FROM AFRICA 15 BATHS BEACH HOUSE BEAT ME UP BLACK BREATH BLACK DICE BORN RUFFIANS BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE CARIBOU CAVE DAM MANTLE DEMONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S CLAWS

33 23 23 34 23 15 15 24 47 34 16 8

DIMLITE

EAGLE BOSTON ELEPHANT MICAH ERIC CHENAUX ESBEN AND THE WITCH ESKMO

47 24 16 35 35

FIELD MUSIC FITZ FM BELFAST FRANCIS FREEK FABRICIUS

36 25 25 47 36

GANGLIANS GIANT SAND GIRL UNIT

25 17 36

GRASSCUT THE GREENHORNES GROWING GYEDU-BLAY AMBOLLEY & THE GHANA FUNK PROJECT

26 17 26

QUASIMODO

ROB YOUNG

IDIOT GLEE IDIOT WIND

37 48

40 40 40

JAMES BLACKSHAW JUNIP

13 26

KAZANCHIS KNALPOT

18 18

LONNA KELLEY LUIK

19 19

SANDEMAN SAROOS SCIENTIST (LIVE) SECRET PROJECT ROBOT A/V SYSTEM SHUGO TOKUMARU SISKIYOU SLEEPY SUN SLEIGH BELLS SMALL BLACK THE STRANGE BOYS SUBTITLE SWANS

MARNIE STERN MENOMENA MIKE SLOTT MUNCH MUNCH

48 27 37 49

NIKOO

THE ONE ENSEMBLE FT. DANIEL PADDEN

PETER BRODERICK PICTUREPLANE PIEN FEITH PINCH & SGT POKES PLAY

38 38 20 39 45

41, 44, 49 27 28 28 41 41 20 42 13

THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH TAPEWORM 50, 52, TORCHE TREMBLING BELLS TRUMANS WATER TY SEGALL

49 53 43 43 29 20

VOICE OF THE SEVEN THUNDERS 29

WOMEN WOODEN SHJIPS

50 50

YURI LANDMAN

29, 30, 31, 43

Welcome to the Le Guess Who? Festival 2010. The festival will take place from 24 to 28 November at several venues in the city of Utrecht. Le Guess Who? focuses on the true, the original and the honest. No matter what genre or style. So you will get a diverse line-up ranging from pure pop music to experimental sounds to singersongwriters to psychedelics. Challenging (pop) music might be the best word to describe it. Special mentioning is for the projects presented by kindred spirits Yuri Landman, Rob Young, Tapeworm, Awesome Tapes From Africa, Fitz, and Secret Project Robot A/V System. More about all these artists you can ďŹ nd in this guide. Enjoy and explore!

ARNO COOMANS

Thanks, Johan Gijsen & Bob van Heur

(UK) American Primitive, Folk

The English musician James Blackshaw is seen as one of the major talents of the ‘American Primitive’ - guitarists, ﬁngerpicking guitar players like the late Jack Rose, who are inﬂuenced by John Fahey and Indian ragas. Blackshaw is surely one of the top players of that group when it comes to his playing skills, but his taste and interests drive him away from his colleagues, who are mainly focussed on old playing styles, and further towards minimal composers like Arvo Pärt, Steve Reich and Terry Riley. The very precise and balanced end result is beautiful and causes a truly humbling experience when seen and heard live. 20.15 - 21.00, Tivoli De Helling

(USA) No Wave, Post - Punk

SWANS

Swans, the inﬂuential no - wave band and one of the loudest and ﬁercest bands ever, is back with new material. Michael Gira, who seemed to have found his peace lately with his band Angels of Light and as a label boss for (among others) Devendra Banhart and Akron/Family, suddenly felt himself longing again for the ecstatic and divine feeling that performing with Swans used to give him. And it must be said: The image of Gira, dressed in nothing but a loincloth, uttering primal screams over pounding, monotonous and minimal grooves, still makes all the hair on your body stand straight up, even when watched in a grainy YouTube clip. Everyone that wants to know where the industrial genre began, must go and experience Swans. 21.30 - 23.00, Tivoli De Helling

puts it online on his amazing blog awesometapesfromafrica.blogspot. com. On Le Guess Who? he will do a DJ-set, without LPs, CDs or iPod, but with a suitcase full of amazing cassettes. 23.30 - 02.00, RASA

(NETHERLANDS) Electronica, Dubstep

On the Utrecht festival Roffest, 3VOOR12 ﬁrst got to know the producer and DJ AstroPoser. AstroPoser has his dark roots in hardcore gabber, but now he’s found a home in glitchy house, deep techno and dubstep. Future music to dance to. 01:20 - 01:50, dB’s - Club 3VOOR12: Hollandse Nieuwe

(CANADA) Indie Rock, Post - Punk

It stammers and stutters and skips a beat, jams and tumbles over, then comes back to life in a jolt and suddenly bursts out into a catchy chorus. The neurotic, slightly manic rock sound of the Canadian band Born Rufﬁans refuses to be pigeonholed, and slips out of every category like a slimey eel. But just like with Vampire Weekend, Dirty Projectors, Peter Bjorn and John and Hot Chip, in the end it’s your heart and feet that win from your desire to understand. So surrender to the cosmopolitic, boundless summer hits of Born Rufﬁans. 19.45 - 20.30, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Obscure African Funk, Jazz

It’s a well-known story to many: You’re on a holiday in a far, exotic land, you walk on a street and suddenly a car stops next to you from which the greatest music you ever heard blasts through the windows. After 30 seconds the car leaves and you know you’ll never hear that music ever again. This is usually where the story stops, but it’s only the beginning for Brian Shimkovitz. Shimkovitz is the owner of a huge collection of cassettes from Africa, that he all bought at local markets. He digitalises one every week and

(CANADA) Indie Rock, Dream Pop

After some great solo albums by band members Kevin Drew, 15

Brendan Channing, Emily Haines and of course (Leslie) Feist, the Wu - Tang Clan of indie pop Broken Social Scene is back as a collective. Just like Modest Mouse and Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene make exuberant songs that go in all directions, with a depth and width that make sure you never get bored, but also with a lot of strong melodies that stick in your head right away. Enthusiastic, innovative pop music that elevates and inspires. 22.15 - 23.45, Tivoli Oudegracht

25 YEARS GIANT SAND

BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE

creepy horror theme that they borrowed from Black Sabbath and Roky Erickson. Demon’s Claws makes the soundtrack to the teenage party in the cabin in the woods, where the lunatic serial killer creeps around and everyone’s enjoying the mushrooms. 19.45 - 20.30, EKKO

with a gospel choir, Gelb always manages to remain unique, because in Gelb’s own words: “Giant Sand is a mood.” Anyone that appreciates musicians such as Lambchop, Sparklehorse and Mark Lanegan is invited to Howe Gelb’s party! 21.30 -23.30, Tivoli De Helling

(CANADA) Experimental Folk, Singer-songwriter

The experimental guitar player Eric Chenaux is one of the most productive members of the scene around the Canadian label Constellation Records. Chenaux contributes to no less than 12 bands and projects, as a versatile improvisational guitar player with a completely free and highly ﬂexible playing style. On his solo records, he lets himself be inspired by jazz ballads, bossanova and folk, but with the same free - spirited and experimental approach as in all his projects. Leading to an extremely soft, subtle and smokey sound that you can’t seem to get any grip on, but that in all its evasiveness fascinates, stimulates and captivates. 19.45 -20.30, Tivoli De Helling

(CANADA) Garage Rock

A band that claims to sound like the Canadian band Guess Who on their own MySpace, do we still need to explain why they play on the festival? Well, alright then: Because Demon’s Claws exuberant, completely mental Black Lips-like country garage punk can turn even the dullest Tupperware party into a wild orgy-partly thanks to the 16

(USA) Americana, Desert Rock

Giant Sand, the experimental americana band of Howe Gelb, has its twenty-ﬁfth birthday this year and they have selected Le Guess Who? as one of the places to celebrate. That means an extensive retrospective to the broad, freakish works of these pioneers of alt.country, that will all be rereleased by Fire Records. Their dry, dusty desert rock sounds like a more adventurous Calexico, which is not a surprise, since Calexico’s founding members John Convertino and Joey Burns learned the trade by playing as the rhythm section of Giant Sand. Whether he sings country rock songs, makes soundscapes or collaborates

(USA) Garage Rock, Indie Rock Now that The Raconteurs are taking a break for a while, the rhythm section of that band can turn back to their former group, The Greenhornes. And that’s something to be very happy about, because The Greenhornes play some juicy R&B, in the original meaning of that word. Good, golden oldies, simple rock ’n roll that’s good for 17

(GHANA) Afrobeat (African), Hip Hop Anyone who has been following the stream of afrobeat collections that were released in recent years on labels such as Honest Jon and Soundways, has likely noticed one particular singer who rivalled James Brown with his great, energetic delivery. It was the Ghanaian singer Gyedu Blay Ambolley, who is seen as one of the pioneers of afrobeat and (African) hip hop. On Le Guess Who? this living legend will play together with The Ghana Funk Project, an initiative of the Amsterdam soul/boogaloo band Juicebox, who invited Ambolley and various other Ghanaian musicians and singers for a tour through Europe. A ﬁery evening is ensured! 22.30 - 23.30, RASA

(ETHIOPIA) Jazz

(NETHERLANDS) Folk

Trio Kazanchis play devilishly exciting Ethiopian jazz with irresistible grooves that make your head and hips dazzle with joy. The Dutch saxophone and farﬁsa player Jeroen Visser, the French drummer Fabien Duscombs and the Ethiopian krar player Mesele Asmamaw tie jazz and world music together to an intoxicating unity. Visser has often played with The Ex, a band who are known for their love of Ethiopia, and it’s the same self - willed and fresh approach of that band that can be found in Trio Kazanchis. Punky and funky wicked music! 21.00 - 22.00, RASA

With Luik, we’re on to a very new Hollandse Nieuwe: The young band has only existed since last summer. So fresh that they can only be heard on the next Hollandse Nieuwe compilation. The band makes psychedelic, low rock songs in the vein of Low, with a jazzy undertow. Nice! 22:00 - 22:30, dB’s - Club 3VOOR12: Hollandse Nieuwe

(NETHERLANDS) Experimental, Free Jazz

French/Austrian duo, raised and living in The Netherlands, who play an impressive live show with their inimitable electro bleeps, beats and breaks. They made the roof come down in Lowlands and released their ﬁrst EP in 2009 on the new label Eat Concrete. The follow-up will be released soon. 00:30 - 01:00, dB’s - Club 3VOOR12: Hollandse Nieuwe 18

LONNA KELLEY

everyone, heavily inﬂuenced by the British 1960s pop of bands like The Zombies, The Animals, The Yardbirds and more of those pop geniuses. From the time when a good song was still a good song and you had to write some damn good songs to have any success. 21.00 - 21.45, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Singer-songwriter

Oh, to live at the edge of the desert, in an old, wooden house with a veranda and a rocking - chair and rattlesnakes in the bushes: Don’t we all dream of that sometimes, here in cold, crowded and chagrin Netherlands? Luckily, there are singer-songwriters such as Lonna Kelley from Phoenix, Arizona, who give us a short feeling of freedom, stateliness and grandeur, as if our life is one everlasting Sunday morning. Howe Gelb of Giant Sand is already a fan, and he brought her along on tour several times already; everyone that loves Alela Diane, Mazzy Star, Cowboy Junkies and Heather Nova will soon be a fan too. 21.00 - 21.30, Tivoli De Helling

(NETHERLANDS) Indie Rock, Noise

Does everything that songwriter Joep van Son (FOAM, The Sugarettes, The Very Sexuals) touch turn into a gold or what? One would almost start to believe so. Now the Eindhoven resident has started another gritty and exciting new noise formation. Listen to that EP right now, and expect more from Nikoo this year. The American guardian of indie morals Pitchfork are fans already and begging for a second EP. 23:40 - 00:10, dB’s - Club 3VOOR12: Hollandse Nieuwe

do. Lovely, care - free music for fresh young boys and girls who are only a tiny bit strange. 21.00 - 22.00, EKKO

(NETHERLANDS) Singer-Songwriter, Electronica

From bare bones to whimsical rock to experimental electro, with her own band or side projects Neonbelle or The Very Sexuals, the career of Pien Feith has had a wild course over its ﬁve years. On her new record ‘Dance On Time’ and during the accompanying tour she sounds almost unrecognizable and poppier than ever, with a sound full of keyboards, synths and drum computers. 22:50 - 23:20, dB’s - Club 3VOOR12: Hollandse Nieuw

(USA) Garage Rock, Psychedelic Rock

Apart from drumming, singing and playing the guitar in four different garage blues bands, Ty Segall still has the time for his own band, in which he makes tophole neo - psych garage. With little fuss but lots of energy and excitement, he rages through his short, slightly unﬁnished songs, that ﬁlter 1960s rock riffs through thick layers of fuzz and reverb and that classify Segall as a worthy heir to the throne of the late Jay Reatard, Black Lips, The Oblivians and Jack White. Fresh, crispy and delicious. 22.15 - 23.00, EKKO

(USA) Garage Rock, Psychedelic Rock

TY SEGALL

Whoever thought that innocence doesn’t exist anymore, should go and listen to The Strange Boys. Their music has the same naivety as the best 1960s psychedelica of musicians like The 13th Floor Elevators and Syd Barrett. Lively rhythm & blues, country and garage rock thrown together in a sound that softens and delights and makes you forgot all the bad things in the world for a short while, just like The Strokes used to do and like The Black Lips still 20

BEACH HOUSE

from Utrecht thought: “Hey, wouldn’t it be fun to create a dance night filled with the music we like to dance to in our living rooms, but can’t dance to in any of the clubs around town?” The result is Beat Me Up, named after the famed Vechtclub venue (which translates into Fight Club) where the party first took place. It’s filled with cosmic disco, italo, dubstep, wonky, digital dancehall, and just the right amount of indie rock and pop music mixed in. But, you know, not the kind that MTV likes. 23.00 - 04.00, EKKO

(USA) Indie Rock, Dream Pop

The dreamy and spacious sound of Beach House invites you to slowly lose your way, walk in the water and never look back. With the unique, Nico - like voice of Victoria Legrand, lovely 1960s organs and the reverb that they seem to have borrowed from Galaxie 500, they make the ultimate dream pop. The perfect mix of Big Star, The Zombies, Grizzly Bear and The Beach Boys, and the best ﬁtting soundtrack for some indeterminate yearning in a lowering summer evening sun. 23.00 - 00.15, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Noise Rock, Psychedelic Rock

The experimental noise band Black Dice started out as a trash and hardcore band, but soon decided that the merciles

(NETHERLANDS) Indie Rock & Pop, Italo, Dubstep

A year ago three DJs (De Plezante Duivenmelkers and Dustbunny) 23

and aggressive attitude of those genres would be served just as well, or even better, by a crazy, improvised sound orgy, in which a hallucinating cocktail of acid, psychedelica, electro and tropicala wipe away the last remaining sense of reason in the audience’s mind. Beautiful insanity for advanced listeners, on the label of LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy, comparable to Excepter, Growing and Wolf Eyes. 02.00 - 02.45, Tivoli De Helling

(CANADA) Electronica, Psychedelic Pop

Caribou is the alias of Dan Snaith, a man that has both a PhD in mathematics on his wall and a good supply of LSD in his cupboards. Just like James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem, he combines a great love for dance music to a certain intellectual distance, and with a treacherous detour puts you exactly where he wants you be: ecstatically dancing to a joyous mix of dubstep, krautrock, disco and the psychedelic indie pop of The Olivia Tremor Control. Trippy, challenging and very uplifting. 21.30 - 22.30, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Folk, Singer-songwriter

(IRELAND) Psychedelica

Elephant Micah is the singersongwriter Joseph O’Conell; not the sort of man that likes to make it easy for his audience. His records are hard to ﬁnd, his voice is soft and difﬁcult to understand and his songs are often hidden behind noise and reverb. When playing live, he prefers to hide behind his guitar and he tells the audience in his lyrics that he’d rather stayed home. That his songs are wondrously beautiful, his voice is beautifully vulnerable and his live shows make the time stand still is something he’d therefore probably rather not admit himself. But fans of Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy and Jason Molina know where they should do. 23.00 - 00.00, Kargadoor Beep! Beep! Back Up The Truck

DJ Fitz is one of the key ﬁgures of the international psychedelic underground scene. His Fitz Killer Riff compilations and his DOODcast podcasts, in which he collects the most awesome riffs and raunchiest obscure jams from his enormous record collection, are considered a must for collectors of early psychedelica. His friends, among whom are members of Animal Collective, Howlin Rain, Gang Gang Dance and Six Organs of Admittance, often join in on the podcasts to browse along through Fitz’s amazing collection. Whether it’s San Ul Lim from Korea, Omar Korshid from Egypt, Four Levels of Existence from Greece or the new girl group Kim Ki O from Turkey, DJ Fitz knows where to ﬁnd the real gems, averse to any hype or trend. Between bands, 02.45 - 04.00, Tivoli De Helling

Those are only two of the bizarre, original ideas of the Icelandic band FM Belfast. And their own electro pop songs are equally cheerful and appealing, like the best work of Vive La Fête, The Whitest Boy Alive and Stereo Total. FM Belfast, who have members of múm in their live line-up, prove that the next generation of Icelandic musicians keep the selfwilled and original nature of their country’s music scene alive. 02.00 - 03.00, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Indie, Psychedelic Folk - Pop

If Phil Spector had hit upon the idea to avoid prison by permanently escaping under water in a yellow submarine, his subterranean music might have ended up sounding like Ganglians. Their psychedelic folk - pop is hazey, muddy and very lo - ﬁ, but always catchy and deeply rooted in 1960’s pop. Just like Wavves, Panda Bear and Girls, Ganglians makes surf music for people who are too stoned to stand on a surf board: Wildly creative and totally out of this world. 21.30 - 22.15, Tivoli De Helling

FITZ

(ICELAND) Indie Pop, Electronic

‘Killing In The Name Of’ by Rage Against the Machine sung by a drawling singing girl over a tight, sexy beat, or ‘Pump Up The Jam’ turned into a creeping ballad: 25

The music by the British duo Grasscut sounds as if a young modern classical composer like Nico Muhly has discovered the cut-up style of DJ Shadow and Coldcut. Modern classical meets fucked up electronica, with prewar voice samples, toy keyboards and string quartets. Or, as the gents call their music themselves: Fisher Price ECM. A killer song like ‘Muppets’, for example, starts with a cacophony of intertwining samples, then takes shape in an increasingly bombastic post-rock groove, then falls apart again, only to end in Gregorian chanting. Masterly music that you can’t begin to image, overwhelming and mesmerizing. 01.00 - 01.40, Tivoli Oudegracht

(SWEDEN) Indie, Folk

The name of the band Junip won’t be familiar to a lot of people, but the name of one of its band members will: José González, the timid sounding singer-songwriter who opened the hearts of many with his fascinating solo albums, is the singer and guitar player in the band. Just like González, the other band members never were very focussed on the band either, but in 2010 their debut album will ﬁnally appear after 5 years of silence. Think of solo González’ intimate folk, mixed with Low - like slowcore, dynamic post - rock passages and exciting krautrock. 20.00 - 21.00, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Noise Rock, Experimental Rock

Go swimming into the sea on a windy day too far from the coast, and you’ll be dragged along by a complex web of waves, in which no system or pattern can be found, and to which all resistance is futile. Dive deep into the music of the noise band 26

JUNIP

Growing and a similar sensation takes you by surprise. Growing makes ingenious drone and ambient improvisations, with fascinating out - of - sync loops and complex patterns of guitar pedals. Comparable to the appealing madness of Black Dice, Boris and Wolf Eyes, the ideal soundtrack for a surf trip to the moon. 00.30 - 01.15, Tivoli De Helling

(UK) Electronica, Experimental Pop

(USA) Indie, Experimental Rock

(NETHERLANDS) Underground Pop

Three incorrigible perfectionists that constantly cut each other’s songs to pieces and screw them back together in entirely new and unexpected ways, such is the line - up of Menomena from Portland, Oregon. Menomena puts out its feelers, explores and searches relentlessly for the ultimate groove or sound, knowing that details are the essence. Their music is impalpable, full of loops, effects and seemingly unstructured sounds of beauty. For the adventurous pop lover who just can’t get enough of The Flaming Lips, Hot Chip, The Notwist and The Sunset Rubdown. 22.00 - 23.00, EKKO - Beep! Beep! Back Up The Truck

Quasimodo has been playing eclectic sets long before this became a fashionable style. As a resident DJ of Klub Radar at Tivoli De Helling he plays electro, danceable indie and the occasional dubstep track, yet always the tunes that really matter. Between bands, 01.40 - 04.00 Tivoli Oudegracht

(JAPAN) Experimental Folk, Singer-songwriter

For real life-afﬁrming, naive pop music that is totally devoid of cynicism, there really are only two nations you can turn to: Sweden and Japan. The Japanese singer-songwriter and multiinstrumentalist Shugo Tokumaru 27

MENOMENA

amount of beautiful songs of himself, but indirectly also for the collection of beautiful songs on the debut album of Siskiyou on Constellation Records. Siskiyou is, after all, the band of Erik Arnesen and Colin Huebert, who met while playing in Great Lake Swimmers. The duo plays intense, lo-ﬁ indie folk, fragile but full of suppressed ﬁre, and the music is raw, emotional and spontaneous. Another gem from Canada’s amazing folk scene! 21.30 - 22.15, Kargadoor Beep! Beep! Back Up The Truck

makes shamelessly poppy songs that scream out their love for life. Tokumaru uses all registers of joy and tries to ﬁt in as many instruments and melodies as possible in his huge and constantly shape-shifting sound. In the USA the man is already a star, now his candy sweet pop music will put a big smile on our sour faces too. 19.30 - 20.15, EKKO - Beep! Beep! Back Up The Truck

(USA) Psychedelic Rock, Experimental Rock

That lovely languid feeling of a devastatingly hot summer’s day, on which the air is full of sultriness and excitement, but really it’s too stuffy to make an actual fuss: it’s omnipresent in the music of Sleepy Sun. Trippy, psychedelic blues in which Black Sabbath, Jefferson Airplane, The Grateful Dead and more recent Black Mountain can be recognized. Listening to Sleepy Sun, you can already feel the sand of the Californian desert burning

(CANADA) Folk, Indie

Tony Dekkers, the talented singerongwriter of Great Lake Swimmers, is not only responsible for a vast 28

in your eyes and gnashing your teeth. Equally soothing and exciting, equally hypnotising and lethargic, Sleepy Sun makes the sound of summer in all its paradoxical heaviness. 22.45 - 23.45, Tivoli De Helling

(UK) Freak Folk, Psychedelic Rock

Voice of the Seven Thunders is the relaunch of Voice of the Seven Woods, the previous, Nick Drake inspired folk band of guitarist Rick Tomlinson. The lovely woods where Tomlinson used to stroll around, have now been scorched by apocalyptic ﬁres. Voice of the Seven Thunders makes no lush folk anymore, but howling 1970s psychedelic that should make Carlos Santana jealous and that only Comets On Fire has been playing recently. But one can also hear touches of krautrock, world music, Bert Jansch - like folk and the early Pink Floyd in this wonderful, adventurous rock for space heads. 20.15 - 21.00, Tivoli De Helling

(USA) Noise Rock, Math Rock

The legendary, jazzy post-hardcore band Trumans Water is back after a hiatus of 7 years. With the release of their new record ‘O Zeta Zunis’ it seems as if their home country America is ﬁnally starting to discover the band. In Europe, though, we’ve loved the band since in 1992 John Peel liked their LP ‘Of Thick Tum’ so much that he decided to play it completely on one of his radio shows. Their dissonant, improvised music is like Pavement at their most angular, somewhere between Captain Beefheart, Sonic Youth and Sun City Girls, with crooked rhythms, screaming vocals and razor sharp guitars. Asthmatic Kitty, the label of Sufjan Stevens, will rerelease the band’s massive back catalogue. 20.45 - 21.30, EKKO Beep! Beep! Back Up The Truck

Workshop

Please see pages 30 and 31 19.00 - 23.00, Tivoli Spiegelbar

sounds that can be associated with bells and Eastern music. Saturday 27 November, 18.00 - 22.00, Tivoli Spiegelbar, €125,-

KALIMBA

Like last year Yuri Landman, designer of musical instruments, will be present to show visitors his skills and teach them how to build their own instrument. This time round two of his designs will be subject to his classes; one workshop regards the electrical kalimba, the other one concerns the home swinger. during live performances. Trouble with feedback is being avoided with electromagnetic pick-ups, like in an electric guitar. On top of that Landman has converted the pitch spaces to the Western system. This is to make the sound better to combine with piano and guitar, which is not possible with traditional kalimbas. Tuning can be turned to traditional settings and fan-shaped setting.

Quick Steps Kalimba At Le Guess Who? 2010 Yuri Landman will present his new workshop ‘Quick Steps Kalimba’. During this four-hour workshop participants will build their own electrical kalimba. The instrument, originating in Africa, is being played by plucking the reeds or tines. Going by several other names, among which mbira and thumb piano, this member of the lamellophone family is being sed in percussive dance music, R&B and hip hop. Friday 26 November, 19.00 - 23.00, Tivoli Spiegelbar, €85,-

collaborates closely with the artist and introduces his workshops in the Netherlands. The Home Swinger workshop has been attended by a series of famed musicians, among them David Holmes (Ocean’s 11), Wu Fei, Micachu, members of C-mon & Kypski, Hospital Bombers, and A Place To Bury Strangers.

About Yuri Landman Yuri Landman (1973) is musician and designer of experimental musical instruments. Landman gained international acclaim as inventor and built unusual instruments for artists like Kate Nash, Blood Red Shoes, The Dodos, Sonic Youth, dEUS, Liam Finn, Jad Fair, and many others.

In 2010 duplications of his famous Moodswinger and Home Swinger have been acquired by the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, USA - the world’s largest museum for musical instruments.

In 2009 Landman developed the Home Swinger workshop and presented it at several noticeable festivals in both Europe and the USA. The Le Guess Who? festival

For more information and to enlist please get in touch with Jet Karelse: jet@tivoli.nl. Please make clear in your email WHICH WORKSHOP you would like to enrol for, your NAME + SURNAME, and your PHONE NUMBER. You will receive an email with details on method of payment. After receiving payments you will receive conﬁrmation and you will be enrolled for the workshop.

Home Swinger Participants of this four-hour workshop will, like last year, take home their very own home swinger, a twelve-stringed table instrument. A bar is clamped underneath the strings which causes the sound of the instrument to change into

Landman has developed an electronical version of the kalimba, which is of beter use 30

BATHS

Bonnie Billy he collaborated under the name The Amalgated Sons of Rest, but his chilling solo work should also be able to convince every americana lover to search his music a little closer at home. 23.00 - 00.00, Theater Kikker

(UK) Folk, Singer-songwriter

Even though our country is constantly ﬂooded with American folk music in any possible incarnation, British folk for some reason remains a curiosity for a few enthusiasts. Alasdair Roberts, a singer-songwriter from Glasgow, shows how unjust this really is. Roberts is for British folk what musicians like Jason Molina (Magnolia Electric Co.), Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy and Bill Callahan (Smog) are for American folk, and he reaches the same blood - curling beauty as they do, with his slow, special songs. With Molina and

(USA) Electronica, Glitch - Hop

Baths is the 21 - year - old musician Will Wiesenfeld from Los Angeles, who has already been making music for six years under the name [Post - Foetus] and who debuted this year on the experimental hip hop label 33

leather pants, point your index ﬁnger and your little ﬁnger 22.30 - 23.30, dB’s

(UK) Experimental, Dubstep

Beatmaker Dam Mantle is a man who prefers to only leave his house to buy obscure records. His music therefore lends itself perfectly to close your eyes, disappear into your headphones and let the world take care of itself. With its virtuoso mixes of cut-up samples from every corner of the world, broken beats and numerous indeﬁnable sounds, Mantle proves himself to be a brilliant beat smith on the level of Dimlite, Gold Panda, Mount Kimble and Gonjasuﬁ, and builds a bridge between hip hop, world music and indie psychedelica. 00.30 - 01.30, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

(USA) Death Metal

From some genres you just want to hear what you expect and nothing else. Death metal band Black Breath from Seattle is the sort of band to fulﬁl those needs. Their death metal is based on the old school Swedish Göteborg sound of bands like Entombed, Dismember and Unleashed: Brutal, but melodic, and with a slight swagger. The hardcore past of the band member sounds through as well, which adds an extra aggression to the already ﬁerce cocktail. You don’t go to Black Breath to let yourself be surprised, but to put on your

(SWITZERLAND) Electronica, Instrumental Hip Hop

When you feel like you’ve lost all grip, you haven’t slept for three days and life seems like one big, incomprehensible trip, the Swiss producer Dimlite is there to 34

reassure you: Life is indeed one big, incomprehensible trip. His drunken instrumental hip hop, full of sick samples, studio - wizardry and sound magic transcends any genre and taunts all of your expectations. Thanks to colleagues such as Flying Lotus and Gonjasuﬁ, this type of music has entered the collective awareness, but Dimlite was already doing it seven years ago. Let Dimlite kick around all of your senses and we’re sure that you’ll be thankful afterwards. 22.30 - 23.30, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

EBSEN AND THE WITCH

Anticon. As Baths, he makes baroque, cut - up pop songs, driven by hip hop beats, with glitchy IDM melodies and lovely harmonies. Just like a real bath, his music one the one hand makes you nicely rosy, and on the other hand brings you back to the here and now. Lush, warm electro - acoustic music that sounds like Washed Out, Toro Y Moi, Gold Panda and Department of Eagles. 23.30 - 00.15, EKKO

Records and, with their debut record on the way, is one of the big promises for the future. 21.15 - 22.00, Tivoli Oudegracht Klub Radar

(UK) Post - Punk, Post - Rock

The ghosts under your bed that kept you awake through your childhood years may have drifted off thanks to your mother’s lullabies, but if you thought they had disappeared for good, you’re wrong: they are back once more and they’re making music now, under the name of Esben and the Witch. The music from this Brighton trio is chilly like The xx, with a dark tension lingering just below the surface. With only a handful of songs spread across one EP and two singles, the band got the attention of Matador

(USA) Dubstep, Glitch The productions by the glitch hop producer Eskmo from San Francisco sound so organic that you could almost forget you’re listening to electronic music. The watery sounds ﬂow into each other perfectly, only interrupted by the powerful, dusty dub step beats. Just like Amon Tobin, with whom he cooperates under the name Eskamon, he regularly weaves live ﬁeld recordings through his ingenious soundscapes. Eskmo has made releases for Ninja Tune, 35

Warp and Planet Mu and is a must-hear for everyone who thinks high of Bibio, Nosaj Thing and Flying Lotus. 02.00 - 03.00, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

Field Music harks back to the classics, but meanwhile their own brilliant songs are new classics for the future. Beautiful pop music for indie pop connoisseurs. 20.00 - 20.45, Tivoli Oudegracht Klub Rada

(UK) Indie Pop, Chamber Pop

No, Field Music doesn’t do field recordings, so no whale sounds or rippling beaks here, nor do they make military battlefield music, but what they do make is uplifting, energetic indie rock, that’s sonically as rich as most field recordings and just as stimulating as the average battle hymn. Their ambitious pop songs are complex and full of detail, with delicious, exquisite arrangements, by turns reminding of XTC, The Beatles and Fleetwood Mac. So yes,

(NETHERLANDS) Electronic

Freek Fabricius is one of the DJs of the Utrecht collective 030303 and his DJ sets have become synonymous for a great, eclectic night. Freek couldn’t care less to what genre he should belong and if he’s playing by the rules, as long as the crowd goes wild. From Flying Lotus to Funckarma, from AFX to acid, from Squarepusher to Burial, Le Guess Who?’s own DJ Freek Fabricius keeps the night going. 22.00 - 22.30 / 01.30 - 02.00, Tivoli de Helling - Swipe

(UK) Dubstep, Experimental

GIRL UNIT

The London-based DJ Girl Unit from the ultra hip, young label Night Slugs (run by Bok Bok and L-Vis 1990) has become a much-hyped man in just a short amount of time. His style is a seamless mix 36

of juke, R&B, commercial hip hop, kuduro, balearic, grime, dubstep and house. Very eclectic and very much here and now. Girl Unit has only released one 12” so far, but the many mixes by him that can be found on the internet prove that he has a fantastic ear for the best new and obscure dubplates and as of yet unreleased gems. 04.00 - 05.00, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

(IRELAND) Electronica, Hip Hop

Futurism, too, is not what it used to be. Nowadays we are constantly bombed by depressing doomsday scenarios, but the hopeful science ﬁction of the 1970s remains wonderfully appealing. The instrumental hip hop of Mike Slott reminds of the enthusiasm and optimism of the early electronic music pioneers, with joyful bleeps, jubilating synths and ecstatic beats. Out of 1980s hip hop, free jazz, electro and boogie, Slott has moulded a heart - warming and hopeful sound that makes you think it’s spring again. 23.30 - 00.30, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

(USA) Experimental Pop

Have you ever had that feeling? That you were listening to Grizzly Bear and suddenly secretly imagined how great it would be if Ed Droste went solo and would only make sugar sweet doowop and girlie pop songs from now on? In that case you’re lucky, because Idiot Glee sounds just like you imagined that solo project from Droste would sound. James Friley from Kentucky makes lovely dubby songs with his Korg synth and pile of loop pedals that try to ﬁnd the common ground between The Zombies, The Ronettes, Brian Eno and Animal Collective. Nice, hazy songs to comfort your tired and confused heart. 23.15 - 23.45, Tivoli Spiegelbar

(UK) Folk

The One Ensemble, the side project of Volcano the Bear frontman Daniel Padden, plays boundless folk with a Beefheartsian twist. Unlike many contemporary bands, The One Ensemble doesn’t use the folk genre for a nostalgic tourist trip, but as a still very much alive source for great stories - such as the story of James Duthie a.k.a. 37

PETER BRODERICK

Dummy Jim, a deaf Scot who travelled by bike from Scotland to the Atlantic Circle and back in 1951, and for whose ﬁlmed life story The One Ensemble made a soundtrack. Beautiful music comparable to Yann Tiersen, Beirut and A Hawk & A Hacksaw. 21.45 - 22.30, Theater Kikker

(USA) Electropop, Synth Pop

Pictureplane is the artist name of Travis Egedy from Denver. His synth pop songs refer explicitly to times long gone: To the glossy adult oriented pop from the 1980s, and to the early days of house and trance at the end of the 1980s and the start of the 1990s. Looped and ﬁltered through a hallucinating layer

(USA) Folk, Ambient

Everything that Peter Broderick does, he does with care and attention. As a highly demanded guest musician for M. Ward, 38

of echo and reverb, his music sounds like you’re completely far-out and listening to a mashup of Cindy Lauper and ‘Finally’ by CeCe Peniston. So forget all those boring ‘Back to the 80s and 90s’-parties, for a truly relevant re-evaluation of that music, Pictureplane is your man. 00.30 - 01.30, EKKO

PICNH & SGT. POKES

Efterklang, Laura Gibson and Machinefabriek (among others), but also as a versatile, young solo musician. From folky singersongwriter songs via modern classical piano compositions to experimental electronics, Broderick’s music touches on numerous genres, but is always beautifully melodical and light. His calming voice and soothing, perfectly timed piano, guitar or violin playing are always a feast for the ears. Live, he impresses most by skilfully handling the sampler the same way as Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy) and thus creating a full, dynamic sound all by himself. Beautiful music like a shoulder to rest on. 21.00 - 21.45, EKKO

(UK) Dubstep

If you want to understand where all the fuzz surrounding dubstep is coming from, there is still no better place to go than DJ Pinch’s brilliant single ‘Qawwali.’ The sucking sound and sinister melodica motives make you wish the song would last forever. With ‘Qawwali’ and his debut album ‘Underwater Dancehall’, Pinch established himself right away as one of the great visionaries of dubstep, alongside producers such as Burial, 2562 and Flying Lotus. At Le Guess Who?, Pinch’s masterly productions will be accompanied live by the voice of MC Sgt Pokes, the vocal star on many productions by the great label DMZ, and the dubstep legend Scientist. 03.00 - 04.00, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

(UK) Writer

For a true folkie, paradise lies in Great Britain. Nick Drake, Vashti Bunyan, Fairport Convention, John Martyn, The Incredible String Band, Bert Jansch - the list of great British folk musicians from the twentieth century is a long one. Rob Young, writer for the inﬂuential British magazine on modern music The Wire, wrote the book ‘Electric Eden: Unearthing Britain’s Visionary Music’, in which he unveils the rich history of British folk music. In this monumentary work, Young unearths the soul of the genre, puts in it a broader context of a nostalgic longing for a lost Eden, and even sees connections with musicians 39

like Kate Bush, Talk Talk, Current 93 and Coil. And as if writing this folk bible wasn’t enough, Young also writes a weblog, www.electriceden. net, that’s like a treasury for folk lovers. For Le Guess Who?, Rob Young will give an introduction to British folk music, in Theater Kikker. 20.00 - 20.30, Theater Kikker

(GERMANY) Indie, Experimental Electronica

(NETHERLANDS) Alternative, Pop

DJ Sandeman is the DJ name of Sander Kerkhof, who in his daily life works as a pop journalist for 3VOOR12, Nieuwe Revu and Parool. Kerkhof has been keeping up the old craft of the nonstop megamix for some years now on 3VOOR12. Just like Veronica DJ Ben Liebrand, who used to make a yearly Grandmix in the 1980s of the best dance records of the year, Sandeman makes continuous mixes from for example all the bands in the Lowlands line-up of one year, or all his favourite glo-ﬁ summer hits. As a DJ, he played on various editions of Lowlands, 5 Days Off, Amsterdam Dance Event and Pukkelpop, and with of his wildly eclectic style, he is perfect for Le Guess Who? too. 01.30 - 04.00, EKKO

(JAMAICA) Dub

Scientist is the maker of the best dub album ever, according to many - including himself, for he shamelessly named his debut 40

(USA) Audiovisual Art Experiment

Please see page 44 19.00 - 04.00, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

SCIENTIST (LIVE)

The combination of the melancholic neo-hop making Germans The Notwist and the American hip hop label Anticon is a very tasty one, as we saw from the fantastic project 13 & God (The Notwist collaborating with Themselves). Saroos brings these two worlds together again. Saroos consists of members of The Notwist and Lali Puna and releases records on The Notwist’s label Alien Transistor and the new record was produced by the semi-ofﬁcial fourth member Odd Nosdam, the briliant producer of instrumental, dusty hip hop on Anticon. All this together leads to a sound full of details, where some unknown danger can creep up to you anytime. Warm, fuzzy, magical and slightly melancholic music in that shadowy area between hip hop, post-rock, krautrock and electronica. 22.15 - 23.00, EKKO

album ‘Introducing Scientist - The Best Dub Album in the World.’ Others would suggest that it’s his later album with the beautiful title ‘Scientist Rids The World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires’ that’s actually the best dub album ever made. Anyway, it’s clear that this former protégé of the godfather of dub King Tubby has taken over the holy torch in a more than splendid way. Scientist, who turned 50 this year, will release an album this summer with remixes from work by dubstep producers such as Kode9, Shackleton and Pinch. Now he’s touring with a group of equally legendary sidemen: The Upsetters (the house band of Lee “Scratch” Perry and the core of Bob Marley’s band The Wailers), producers Pinch, Mala and Loefah and singer Sgt. Pokes. To sum it up, this will be a night that will make every dub fan drool with anticipation. 21.00 - 22.00, Tivoli De Helling - Swipe

(USA) Noise Pop

“Finally, Beyonce has recorded a heavy metal record!” Someone who hears Sleigh Bells for the ﬁrst time without knowing anything about them might think crazy thoughts like these. Sleigh Bells pair lovely, R B-inspired vocals to heavily distorted metal guitars and bigger-than-big beats. They share their insane over-thetop-aesthetics with M.I.A., who signed them on her N.E.E.T.-label. Fluorescent bubblegum noise that just like the music of HEALTH, Andrew W.K. and M.I.A. feels like a ride on a fucked-up rollercoaster. 23.45 - 00.30, Tivoli Oudegracht Klub Radar

(USA) Indie Pop

The music of Small Black gives you a feeling like you’re stoned and frisbeeing in one of those 41

Volta and everyone that likes hip hop to be experimental and adrift, should come and see Subtitle. 22.00 - 22.30, Tivoli Spiegelbar

‘Prince’ Billy is not too shy about his love for the British folk band Trembling Bells, as this unusual compliment shows. The legendary folk producer Joe Boyd is also a fan. No wonder, for the dashing, medievalish music of Trembling Bells sounds like ‘Liege & Lief’ - era Fairport Convention has resurrected and is ready for the future, more adventurous than ever. Trembling Bells brings the old England back to life without all the touristic nonsense, but with a welcome injection of psychedelica and excitement. 20.30 - 21.15, Theater Kikker

SLEIGH BELLS

(USA) Stoner Metal, Sludge

typically American streets where all the lawns are identically trim, while you’ve just heard that your mother has passed away. The same summery full-colour sound of bands like Washed Out and I Got You On Tape, with an undertow of pure desperation that keeps popping up through the cracks. The debut EP was an internet hype at the end of 2009 and their debut record has just been released. Brian Eno and Gary Numan look on approvingly, while the low sun blinds you and you wonder if you’re really fainting. 22.30 - 23.15, Tivoli Oudegracht Klub Radar

(USA) Hip Hop, Experimental

Subtitle is the DIY - rapper and –producer Giovanni Marks from Los Angeles. Marks raps with a somewhat waggish ﬂow and stammering, robotic timing about topics such as his self - made bad haircuts, female legs in leggings and of course all the reasons why he is as good as he is. His highly personal style makes one think of playing video games in a room well ﬁlled with cannabis smoke. His productions refer to funk, disco and electro in a crazy, wobbly mix. Subtitle has worked with Thavius Beck, Madlib and Daedelus and toured with Islands and The Mars 42

Playing loud may be fun, but without a good hook and a killer riff, even a metal band won’t get very far. The Miami band Torche have so many strong hooks that they just call their genre ‘stoner pop’, or ‘sludge pop.’ Just like Melvins, who aren’t afraid of a strong melody, Torche make music that is both massive and destructive and melodic and appealing. Don’t whine, just play, is their motto, and that also means that you shouldn’t fuzz about genres and what is cool and what isn’t. Torche just keeps it simple, honest and awesome. 21.30 - 22.15, dB’s

Workshop

Please see pages 30 and 31 18.00 - 22.00, Tivoli Spiegelbar

(UK) Folk, Psychedelic

‘Jesus fucking shit! These jamz claw so hard at the tatties below methinks the Lord misnamed them, having intended to say Trembling BALLS!’ Will Oldham a.k.a. Bonnie 43

their completely anarchistic and visually mind-blowing band nights, open air concert and art openings in their home town New York with amazing live VJs, where bands as Lightning Bolt, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and The Liars provide the live soundtrack. For Le Guess Who?, they have brought their scenery to Utrecht, to put up an experience that will leave much to talk about afterwards... 19.00 - 04.00, Tivoli De Helling

Come on, a concert night with just a band playing on a sober, high stage, isn’t that completely outdated? Right, so better check out the parties by Secret Project Robot. The Secret Project Robot A/V System is an art experiment that aims at stimulating and supporting the audience participation, and in that way, the fun in art, music and nightlife. Cultural events as the starting point for a dialogue, that’s the idea, and of course that works best if those cultural events are organized as colourful, varied and beautiful parties. That’s why the Secret Project Robot organises

of the festival to mash-up film scenes from the Dutch film history. On Stekkerfest, they organised races for crazy hens. And for Le Guess Who? That festival of course is still a month away, so too far for the people from PLAY, who are continuously thinking things out and associating, to really have a full and finished plan. What they do know already is that it will have something to do with mysterious cassettes that will pop up at the strangest places on the festival, and it will have something to do with RFID tags.

Monobanda and Le Guess Who? have teamed up to develop a PLAY Pilot for the 2010 festival; a project that aims to let the visitor playfully experience culture. PLAY is a young, Utrecht-based organisation of designers, concept makers and creative people that wants to bring playfulness back into cultural events. That sounds vague, and vague it is, on purpose,because more rules and borders means less playfulness. During the Le Guess Who? 2010 festival not only your ears will be put to the test. This time round there is also a game for your eyes to play! At all festival locations cassette-tapes are hidden by Monobanda and PLAY Pilots. Lost mixtapes or tapes containing stories, and also tapes giving away new secrets. Interactive secrets that will make your Le Guess Who? experience complete. If you are curious, don’t hesitate to look around carefully while waiting for your favourite band!

If you want to know more, you can follow the process on blog. playpilots.nl, as long as you know that knowing what you’re doing and playing do not necessarily go well with each other. So, have fun! A PLAY PILOTS LIVE GAME www.playpilots.nl.

For the Nederlands Film Festival they made the Stereoscoop, a machine that allowed visitors 44

Wooden Shjips and Cave play them. Great desert disco for all your inner road trips. 16.00 - 16.45, dB’s

(USA) Psychedelic Drone

The psychedelic drone band Cave from Chicago takes you with them on a trip to caverns in your brain that you never dared to imagine. Their devilish jams, with tribal drums, insane organs and indecipherable vocals give you the nauseating, disoriented feeling like you’ve been staring at a stroboscope for several minutes. This jazzy, spacey krautrock bewilders and hypnotizes, and when you ﬁnally regain conscience, you appear to be ﬂoating 10 meters above the ground. For fans of Wooden Shjips and Sunburned Hand of the Man. 17.15 - 18.00, dB’s

(SWEDEN) Blues, Folk

The young Swedish band Francis took the heritage of Tom Waits back home, baptized it in their cold, Swedish lakes and sang a gospel song along with that in such a manner that it seemed as if they were cursing someone. The music of Francis romps around somewhere between blues, gospel, jazz and folk. In a nicely dusty atmosphere of brushes, upright bass, melodica and guitar, the fantastic singer Petra Mases gets all the space she needs to properly stretch up her vocal chords. The band is

(GERMANY) Space Rock, Krautrock

FRANCIS

The Eagles? Boston?! No, Le Guess Who? has not suddenly converted to classic rock nostalgia. The Berlin band Eagle Boston plays stretched - out, fuzzy stoner grooves with new wave synths and disco rhythms. The band has not made any releases yet, but that doesn’t matter, because their sound is enjoyed best in a never - ending live jam, just like 47

and ﬂighty as Will Oldham used to be when it comes to naming. But why not: It’s the songs, not the singer that count, and her songs are especially heartbreakingly beautiful. 21.20- 22.05, Tivoli Oudegracht

(SWEDEN) Singer-songwriter, Folk

Idiot Wind is the Swedish singersongwriter Amanda Bergman, who sings vulnerable, slightly swinging songs with a hoarse voice, in the same tradition as Joan As Policewoman, Cat Power and The Tallest Man On Earth, with whom she is friends and who brought her along to Le Guess Who? Bergman, by the way, already wore out two other stage names in her short career, and appears to be as self - willed

Visuals, music, drinks!

From 23.00 on, EKKO - Subbacultcha!

(USA) Math Rock, Noise Rock

IDIOT WIND

The New York master guitarist Marnie Stern likes the simple things in life: Sleeping, knitting and heavy metal. Her music is one big, colourful orgy of joie de vivre and manic emotion. Even her most recent single ‘For Ash’, that deals with the suicide of an ex, sounds like it’s an ode to all things ever, wherever and whatever. Big, bombastic, full of amazing tapping guitar work, but also as touching as 1950s girly bubblegum pop singers. Freak - rock that forms the missing link between Dirty Projectors, Andrew WK and The Who. 20.45 - 21.30, EKKO - Subbacultcha! 48

(UK) Noise Pop, Experimental

‘This is the part where you lose control’: The quirky, highly energetic indie pop of Munch Munch resembles a wild horse cheerfully galloping towards the equator. The nervy minimal music of Steve Reich and Philip Glass is paired to the powerpop of Weezer. Doesn’t that sound completely mental? Yes, it does, and damn cool as well. Deftly slaloming around pop conventions and outdated structures, Munch Munch bravely follows its own path. A path that fans of Friendly Fires, Man Man and Field Music will be happy to follow. 19.30 - 20.15, EKKO - Subbacultcha!

(USA) Audiovisual Art Experiment

Please see page 44 19.00 - 00.00, EKKO - Subbacultcha!

(SWEDEN) Folk, Singer-songwriter

A raw, golden voice and beautiful, dexterous guitar playing: The Tallest Man On Earth proves once more that this little can already be enough. It’s under that moniker that the Swedish singersongwriter Kristian Matsson makes us forget his in reality rather inconsiderable height, by singing his bare, intense songs, performed ﬁercely and with

THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH

working on its debut album and is after The Tallest Man On Earth and Idiot Wind, yet another recent revelation from Sweden. 20.30 - 21.15, Tivoli Oudegracht

WOMEN

Cool, slightly detached, with a consciously applied lo - ﬁ production. The songs are melodic and poppy, but delved under a dusty sound, as if you’re listening to an old cassette that’s full of grains of sand. The spirit of Brian Wilson, the sunglasses of Velvet Underground, the effect pedals of Sonic Youth and the absurdity of Pavement, they’re all ﬂoating around somewhere in the strange, impalpable music of Women. 22.00 - 23.00, EKKO - Subbacultcha

a ﬂamenco - like passion. When he’s on stage, he does indeed for a moment seem like the tallest man that ever lived. And that there ever were people like Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan that preceded Matsson, well, so be it: The Tallest Man On Earth puts that tradition in his trouser pocket and he’s off with it, jubilant and self - willed. 22.20 - 23.30, Tivoli Oudegracht

(USA) Psychedelic Rock, Space Rock

The groove, the groove and nothing but the groove, that’s what it’s all about in the psychedelic krautrock of the band Wooden Shjips from San Francisco. Glorious riffs in endless repeat with lots of fuzz, echo and reverb dominate the sound, with references to The Doors, Suicide and The Velvet Underground. Their music makes even the holiest virgins go light in the head. During the concerts of Wooden Shjips, all the songs seem to ﬂow into one another, forming one big, hypnotic, never ending jam. Groovy! 18.30 - 19.30, dB’s

(UK) Indie, Noise, Experimental, Art

Please see pages 52 and 53 19.30 - 00.00, Theater Kikker

(CANADA) Shoegaze, Noise Pop

Women, despite their name, make some real men’s music: 50

Biosphere (under a 1980s pseudonym), Stefan Goldmann, John Butcher and Terre Thaemlitz, alongside unknowns such as Zachary James Watkins, Baraclough and Souls on Board (a project with Bruce Gilbert of Wire). Last but not least, there are also spoken word pieces by Derek Jarman, Jean Baudrillard and Cathi Unsworth. What The Tapeworm does is not intended to be about retro-chic, boutique label cool. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The Tapeworm is

An evening curated by cassetteonly label TAPEWORM with Leslie Winer, Leif Elggren, Zerocrop, Ananizapta, Savage Pencil, People Like Us and Philip Marshall. There is nothing retro about the current growth of the cassette culture: the medium once close to extinction is now used for the most progressive exponents of alternative music and sound art. Established in June 2009, The Tapeworm is a true cassette label. Articles in magazines such as The Wire, Gonzo Circus and RUIS are testament to the label’s status. No barcodes, but styled in typical black and white and adhering to the relentless pace of releasing two tapes every month, mostly speciﬁcally made for The Tapeworm, the label has featured a dazzling line-up of artists since its inception. Every tape is strictly limited; to only 250 copies in most cases.

very aware of its love for the format: the shape, the feeling, the problems and the limitations, the package. In an era of convenience music, indolence and ‘convenience above all’ in life and music, The Tapeworm is a question posed to artists and consumers, asking all parties involved in the process to embrace a set of fascinating restrictions. Summarised by the motto: The cassette will never die! Long live the cassette!

In the lobby of Theater Kikker, sound installations feature the ‘Wormcast’ mixes of released and unreleased works from the Tapeworm catalogue. There’s more: Savage Pencil exhibits his art in a gallery setting and Leif Elggren and People Like Us are featured with their video art. PAUME also invited The Tapeworm to produce an exclusive cassette release for this event. Featuring a splendid selection of artists from the label, The Tapeworm presents ‘The Tapeworm Comes Alive!’ in a limited edition of only 100 copies for sale at the event only.

PAUME, the Utrecht-based platform for avant-garde and urban media explorations, invited The Tapeworm to curate a programme presenting all aspects of the cassette label’s roster and vision. The Tapeworm gladly accepted the invitation and presents its selection on the closing night of Le Guess Who?

Le Guess Who? 2010 and PAUME present: THE TAPEWORM COMES ALIVE! (Leslie Winer, Leif Elggren, Zerocrop, Ananizapta, Savage Pencil, People Like Us, Philip Marshall) 19.30 - 00.00, Theater Kikker

On Sunday 28 November 2010 Leslie Winer, Leif Elggren, Zerocrop and Ananizapta all perform live in a continuous ‘revue’ performance, hosted by The Tapeworm. PAUME also commissioned a special and exclusive sound art piece by Philip Marshall based on ﬁeld recordings made by PAUME in Utrecht.

Contributors to The Tapeworm catalogue have so far included: Fennesz, Philip Jeck, Simon Fisher Turner, Stephen O’Malley, 52

www.paume.nl www.tapeworm.org.uk

SUBBACULTCHA FOR LE GUESS WHO?

MARNIE FOR STERN LE SMALL GUESS BLACK WHO? WHO? ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEWS WITH

SLEIGH BELLS, BATHS, WOMEN, JUNIP, GRO OWING, BLACK DICE THE T TALLEST ALLEST MAN ON EARTH AND MORE

This is an editorial section produced by Subbacultcha! Magazine. Containing ‘Le Guess What I’m Doing Today?’, talks with Marnie Stern and Small Black, a series of ‘One-Question Interviews’, a comic, drawings and some photos.

Download the free unofficial, yet thoroughly awesome Subbacultcha! Le Guess Who? Sampler, featuring Marnie Stern, Small Black, Women, Baths and many more here: http://www.subbacultcha.nl/2010-10-18/lgw-sampler 54

SUBBACULTCHA FOR LE GUESS WHO?

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEWS ‘HOW TO FIT A LOT OF BANDS ON A FEW PAGES?’ WE ASKED OURSELVES. ‘ASK THEM ALL ONE QUESTION’ WE ANSWERED. ‘WELL, THAT QUESTION HAS TO BE PRETTY ESSENTIAL’ WE SAID. AND THEN WE SAID ‘DAMN RIGHT IT HAS TO BE!’. SO HERE IT IS, ANSWERS TO THE QUESTION: ‘WHAT IS YOUR FIRST MUSIC- OR SOUND-RELATED MEMORY?’ TURNS OUT IT’S A PRETTY ESSENTIAL QUESTION INDEED. Illustrated by Martyn F. Overweel

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Jeffrey Allen Clarke (Demon’s Claws)

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? My grandpa’s foot on my dog’s neck. The sound of the dog choking and him singing ‘Where Have All the Good Times Gone’ (Van Halen version). Demon’s Claws play on Thursday at 19.45 in Ekko ( C O N T I N U E O N PA G E 8 ) 2

SUBBACULTCHA FOR LE GUESS WHO?

MARNIE STERN

SUBBACULTCHA FOR LE GUESS WHO?

By Brenda Bosma. Photos by Esther Kamphuijs

long and neurotic title (This Is It and I Am It and You Are It and So Is That and He Is It and She Is It and It Is It and That Is That, ed). Were you inspired by Fiona Apple’s similarly long album title for that? No, my drummer Zach Hill came up with the title. Don’t know if he listened to Fiona Apple for inspiOn the last tour you were ac- ration. We both liked it immedicompanied by a female bassist. ately and didn’t realise it would be Is that thing true about men- such a big deal for journalists. What is ‘it’ by the way? struating simultaneously? It might be true, but we didn’t. At It just means that everybody is it least as far as I know. We did get and that you just have to go for it. Okay, I will. Your latest album very in sync in other ways. I’m curious about the other is self-titled. Did it take three albums to be comfortable with a ways. What are those? You get used to finishing each oth- self-titled one? Are you ready er’s sentences. You get to know for ‘it’ now? how the other thinks. Those sort I think so. Also we just wanted a shorter title this time. of things. No gossiping behind each oth- And what are the songs about? These songs are more personer’s back? al. They’re about loss mainNo, we’re real friends. That’s lovely. Are you a real ly. You know, feeling like in life you’re fighting against the grain of blonde? things, but trying to come out on Nope. I have dark brown hair. That’s no biggie. Brunettes can the other end. have fun too. Like dyeing your Are you a serious person? No, not really. Well, sometimes. I hair blond. That’s fun. have different sides to me. Let’s talk a bit about music. Typically Pisces! For instance, Your second album has this very Best Coast’s Bethany sings

WE PHONED FRET-TAPPING INDIE ROCK QUEEN MARNIE STERN ON A PRACTICE DAY RIGHT BEFORE SHE TOOK OFF FOR HER BIG OVERSEAS TOUR. READY TO HIT LE GUESS WHO?. WE DISCUSS VERY IMPORTANT MATTERS LIKE HAIR COLOUR, PETS, KISSING AND ASTROLOGY.

o, who’s the guy playing that wicked guitar in your band? (laughs) I had to pause for a second to think about that. Just kidding. I’ve seen you play. You’re awesome. And I’m not saying that because you’re a woman.

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about superficial stuff like buying t-shirts for her boyfriends all the time. How many t-shirts can you buy? That’s so Gemini. Geminis are known for being very superficial. (chuckles) I get personal and straightforward on a different level. On my other records the lyrics were more conceptual. When did the change come around? In the past year or so I’ve had more of a personal life. Talking about your personal life... how’s your dog? My little Fig! She’s a ‘morky’. That’s a Yorkshire Terrier mixed with a Maltese. She’s blond like her mom. I take her with me as much as I can. She’s very attached to me, so when I leave her she gets very depressed. That’s sad. What’s your favourite thing to do on a free day? Apart from shampooing Fig, I don’t do much. I’m not outgoing at all. I’d rather be at home reading. My brain is always very neurotic. Books are the only thing that really help me to calm down.

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That was just a cute idea. We needed some money to pay for a speeding ticket we got during the tour. Being musicians, we couldn’t pay for it so we figured out this scheme where I’d kiss hipsters for money. How much did you make? Barely anything. It was pretty embarrassing. Maybe like a hundred dollars. Turns out indie boys are cheap bastards. I will just write down that you collected a couple of thousands of dollars and that you’re going to collaborate with Kanye West and a Russian child choir for your next album. Do you have anything Oprah-like to say to young people, in particular struggling female musicians? To try and be patient and not expect it to come at once. There are a lot of bumps. In the beginning there’s a big growing spurt, when you’re first learning. Then there’s a long period of time when you’re not growing at all and you might get tempted to quit. The secret is to keep on practising, because eventually it will take you to the next step. Making music is not for people who want instant gratification.

I read something about a kissing booth. Exploiting your female Marnie Stern plays on Sunday at 20.30 in Ekko sexuality there? 6

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ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Derek Miller (Sleigh Bells )

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tional Raceway in Riverside, California. My father took me to the race. It was the first race I had ever been to, and the first time I experienced the deafening sound of 42 cars with V8 engines that push 850 horsepower open up as loud and fast as they could go. That probably kick-started my appreciation of wild, high-volume, all-encompassing sound.

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? Ritchie Valens’ ‘La Bamba’ was a favourite at an extremely young age. I watched the movie religiously and was very disappointed when I learned Lou Diamond Phillips wasn’t actually Ritchie Valens.

Growing play on Friday at 00.30 in Tivoli de Helling

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With The Tallest Man On Earth

Sleigh Bells play on Saturday at 23.45 in Tivoli Oudegracht

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Kevin Doria (Growing)

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? My mom and dad singing a lullaby for me. Some obscure Swedish folk song in an old-time dialect only my grandmother could explain. But it was pretty, and it made the boy go to sleep. When I woke up, it was the record player spinning some Rod Stewart. Or ‘Words’, by F.R Davis. What a massive song. I need to cover that one.

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? My first sound-related memory is from the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup race at Riverside Interna-

The Tallest Man on Earth plays on Sunday at 22.20 in Tivoli Oudegracht 8

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ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Pat Flegel (Women)

cause of the red colour and the sound of the car running, I thought it was some sort of demon. I was terrified and crying in fear of my life.

Elementary school carpool, The Lion King soundtrack, Sir Elton John. Tuesday Hebrew school prayers. The laziest singing there is.

ten to a cassette of Markama, an Argentinian band my dad was friends with. I would sing along without knowing any of the lyrics.

Baths play on Saturday at 23.30 in Ekko

The Strange Boys play on Thursday at 21.00 in Ekko

Junip play on Friday at 20.00 in Tivoli Oudegracht

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Yuri Landman What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? The Fred Penner theme song. Fred Penner was a low-budget Canadian television show geared towards eight-year-old kids. Fred was around 40 years old. He lived in the woods mysteriously and the entire show took place in the forest. At the beginning of the programme, he typically emerged from a hollowed-out log with an acoustic guitar. I now believe that he was a wrecker, a bastard and a rapist on the run, singing and teaching to apparitions in PJs.

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? Debbie Harry on stage wearing a Doctor X T-shirt and no underwear. Yuri hosts workshops on Friday and Saturday in Tivoli Spiegelbar

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Ryan Sambol (The Strange Boys)

Women play on Sunday at 22.00 in Ekko

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ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Aaron Warren (Black Dice)

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Colin Huebert (Siskiyou) What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? My first musical memory is of walking down Electric Avenue in my parents’ attic....and feeling altogether strange about it. Siskiyou play on Friday at 21.30 in Kargadoor

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? Chuck Mangione, ‘Feels So Good’ . I remember being a little kid, hearing this tune over and over on the radio, and maybe my folks had a copy of it too. Sacramento, CA, 1978. I was four years old and it was the sound of life to me and it still sounds pretty good today!

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Alexis Krauss (Sleigh Bells)

Black Dice play on Friday at 02.00 in Tivoli de Helling

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With Will Wiesenfeld (Baths) What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? When I was still in a stroller, I was being pushed past someone’s driveway, and they were waiting to pull out in their stupid red corvette. Be-

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? 10

What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? Singing and dancing along to Paula Abdul’s ‘Opposites Attract’ video.

ONE-QUESTION INTERVIEW With José González (Junip) What’s your first music- or sound-related memory? I was four or five and I would lis-

Sleigh Bells play on Saturday at 23.45 in Tivoli Oudegracht 11

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SMALL BLACK

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JOSH KOLENIK, MEMBER OF THE NOISY BROOKLYN POPBAND SMALL BLACK, TELLS US HE’S ‘PUMPED UP LIKE EDGAR DAVIDS’ FOR THE SMALL BLACK DEBUT ALBUM NEW CHAIN. WELL JOSH, WE’RE PUMPED UP LIKE AN ARMY OF EDGAR DAVIDSES TO HEAR IT. By Willem Sjoerd van Vliet. Photo by Danielle van Ark

So the Small Black debut album is coming up, as well as a big tour. You guys must be pretty psyched about it? We are pumped up like Edgar Davids in those sick stunner shades. Hahaha! That answer really made my day! I’m glad to hear Edgar is popular in the US too! I was deep into the Netherlands ’98 squad. They had about seven cool dudes with good haircuts... Kluivert, Bergkamp, Seedorf. You know, Davids went to a First Division club in the UK? He missed the game, apparently. Hard to stay off the pitch I bet! Crystal Palace it looks like! Good for him! It’s hard to age well in

soccer. Once you lose that first step, you’re usually done. Yeah, that’s the team! The man doesn’t seem to slow down, but I’m going to, for now. I had a great talk and I hope you are all fit for the day. I’m getting there! Just had a tofu breakfast burrito and an iced tea. It’s a good start! A good start is half the work! See you around, when Small Black is doing Holland. Can’t wait! Bye Read the whole interview in Subbacultcha! Magazine Small Black plays on Saturday at 22:30 in Tivoli Oudegracht 12

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MELKWEG AMSTERDAM PRESENTS:

CMY

This is Pat Flegel of Women in the trunk of a red Toyota Celica GT. The photo was taken in Calgary by Nick Helderman 16

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Subbacultcha! Supplement Editors Leon Caren and Bas Morsch Editorial assistants Sarah Gehrke, Loes Verputten Design Bas Morsch Text Brenda Bosma, Leon Caren, Bas Morsch, Willem Sjoerd van Vliet and all the one question interview respondees. Image Daniëlle van Ark, Zoﬁa Ciechowska, Nick Helderman, Marc van der Holst, Esther Kamphuijs and Martyn F. Overweel Info www.subbacultcha.nl Memberships Become a member of Subbacultcha!. For only €6 a month you get free access to all Subbacultcha! shows and the monthly magazine sent to your house. Plus, you get a fresh Subbacultcha! bag. Check the website to sign up.

Bookings and concept Johan Gijsen (Tivoli) & Bob van Heur (Distorted Channel) Managing Director Margriet van Kraats (Tivoli) Partners NFPK, Utrecht City-Marketing, dB’s, EKKO, Kargadoor, RASA, Theater Kikker, TIVOLI, Distorted Channel, Klub Radar, Swipe, Beep! Beep! Back Up The Truck, PAUME, Play Pilots, Tapeworm, Yuri Landman, 3VOOR12, KindaMuzik, Kink FM, Plato Utrecht Production coordination Peter de Koster, Gijs Cals, Thijs van der Krogt (Tivoli) PR/Promotion Cas Boland, Maurice van de Berkt, Yoni Drijfhout, Jet Karelse (Tivoli) Artwork PresentProjects (www.presentprojects.com) Festival copywriting and translations Benjamin van Vliet (benjaminvanvliet.wordpress.com) Le Guess Who? App Flashfly (www.flashfly.nl) en Medicode (www.medicode.nl)

Le Guess Who? is a TIVOLI & DISTORTED CHANNEL Production

Check www.leguesswho.com for information and more

Thanks to everybody who made this festival possible. You know who you are. 72

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CUSTOMS (B) + Pioneers Of Love CUT IN THE HILL GANG (USA - EX SOLEDAD BROTHERS) BOMB DIGGY CREW THE EX + RaaskalBOMfukkerZ THE SITUATIONS (NZ) SOUTH CENTRAL (UK | YOUNG TURKS) + DJ Spliph PERQUISITE + Urita NINA KINERT (SWE) PIERRE OMER (CH - EX DEAD BROTHERS) SUBTITLE (USA) A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS (USA) ELF POWER (USA) SCRAM C BABY + Believo (B) MULATU ASTATKE (ETH) BALTHAZAR (BEL) + Tommigun (BEL) THE MAD TRIST + Colossa BAR9 (UK) + Bukez Finezt (GER) HANGGAI (CHINA) BROKEN GLASS HEROES (BEL) THE DUKES (FR) PETER PAN SPEEDROCK + The Shavers + Cheap Thrills GO BACK TO THE ZOO ELÄKELÄISET (FIN)

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