Subbacultcha BE May 2013

By Sofia Ciechowska Illustration bi Basje Boer

Unruly Music Magazine May 2013

What’s Cooking

Food The Always-On-The-Run Issue

White Fence, Allah-Las, Chelsea WolfePage 1

ST THE FINESINGER R E SONGWRIT FEST

JONATHAN JEREMIAH XAVIER RUDD PATRICK WOLF * RON SEXSMITH KEN STRINGFELLOW & GUESTS MISTER AND MISSISSIPPI MESCHIYA LAKE * LINNEA OLSSON LAKE FOREST * JEFFREY FOUCAULT DYLAN SNEED * AD VAN MEURS THEO SIEBEN * ROGIER PELGRIM AND MORE TO COME...

MUZIEKGEBOUW EINDHOVEN

* INFO & TICKETS: WWW.NAKEDSONG.NL

The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Top 5 06 New Music 09 We Saw You 10 White Fence 12 ALLAH-LAS 18 CHELSEA WOLFE 22

SCENE REPORT: DALSTON, LDN 24 ART 28 Agenda 33 subbacultcha! shows 34 other shows 43

We’re all drifters in life, constantly longing for new experiences in countries far, far away. Unfortunately, to seek those thrilling experiences abroad, we need more than just filthy lucre in our wallets.

In these times, when a generous salary is but a dream for most of us, fresh ideas are needed to fill our pockets. Those ideas come from deep down. We are best at what we love to do, and that’s what we are going for - so back off, crisis! Generation Y, with its enthusiasm, inspiration and nomadic spirit, is richer than the one with company cars, big houses and annual trips to Tenerife.

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Colophon

Who we are and what we do Subbacultcha! magazine is published by Subbacultcha! www.subbacultcha.be. magazine@subbacultcha.be Subbacultcha! Belgium Karperstraat 26, 9000 Ghent, Belgium Subbacultcha! Netherlands Da Costakade 150, 1053 XC Amsterdam, the Netherlands We are Editors: Herlinde Raeman and Kasper-Jan Raeman

Editorial assistants: Megan Roberts, Niels Jonckers and Eveliina Petäjäaho Design: Marina Henao Good girl: Nina Strebelle Contributors: Gerlin Heestermans, Will Martin, Antonio Marques, Kasper-Jan Raeman, Herlinde Raeman, Jonas Nachtergaele, Cameron Deas, Valeria Cherchi, Adam Harper, Byram Tunez, Nina Strebelle, Christopher Schreck, Suzanna Zak, Logan White, Ye Rin Mok, Jussi Puikkonen and Julien Van de Casteele Distribution Brussels: Gertjan Rasschaert, Arne Nouwen, Julien Van de Casteele, Pieter Serkeyn, Eveliina Petäjäaho, Gertjan De Boeck Ghent: Lisette De Greeuw, Stephanie De Keukeleire, Eno Swinnen, Maarten Van Nieuwenhove, Ruud Van Moorleghem, Linda Baumsteiger Antwerp: Antonio Marques, Egon Parmentier, Thomas Konings, Anna Bagues Leuven: Vincent Baptist Kortrijk: Sofie and Stefanie Devriendt Luik: Collectief Jaune Orange Pick up Subbacultcha! at Brussels: Les Ateliers Claus, Botanique, Beursschouwburg. Ghent: Vooruit, DOK, S.M.A.K., Music Mania. Antwerp: Scheld’apen, Trix, Think Twice, American Apparel.

Kortrijk: De Kreun. Leuven: STUK, Depot, M Museum. Luik: Jaune Orange Advertising To advertise in Subbacultcha! magazine send an email to magazine@subbacultcha.be.

Memberships Become a member of Subbacultcha!. For only €7 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 our website to sign up.

Cover: Photograph shot by Suzanna Zak Page 4

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Top 5

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We recommend

Book: Hotel California

Barney Hoskyns’ Hotel California covers the LA Canyons’ singer-songwriter scene of the 1970s and is the main influence on Kurt Vile’s latest record, Wakin On A Pretty Daze. A must-read!

2

Party: Naast De Kwestie II

Experience the sequel to last year’s winner of the Wildest Party of the Year award on 25 May at Audio Plant in Antwerp and see for yourselves how we got so many scars and bruises on our legs last summer!

3

Show: Charanjit Singh

Apart from his musical contributions to Bollywood from the 1960s to 1980s, Charanjit Singh is one of the pioneers of the acid house genre. Accompanied by an impressive array of synthesizers and his beautifully dressed wife, we saw him play one of the best shows of last year. Go see him at Netwerk, Aalst on 09 May and Bonnefooi on 23 May.

4

Series: Freaks and Geeks

A 1999 comedy-drama series set in 1980 dealing with the high-school struggle of both a group of nerds and ‘cool people’. Starring the young James Franco and Jason Segel, the show only lasted for one season. Cult material.

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Podcast: Reverberation Radio

Reverberation Radio is a pirate radio show put together by Allah-Las and friends. ‘It used to be an FM radio show on KXLU, but they got kicked off for not playing enough new music.’ They made one especially for us, which will be online soon!

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Adam Harper By (The Wire, Dummymag)

This month’s recommendation

New Music

KARMELLOZ

karmellozaurelius.bandcamp.com

Karmelloz has been rapidly developing his niche online as a producer of notable and disquieting imagination. Starting, like so many artists, with drum machines and samples, Karmelloz nurtures a curious and increasingly recognisable atmosphere, the scarcely explicable mystique of which emanates from somewhere deep within its deceptively sluggish rhythms and unpredictable juxtapositions.

Like a slowly burgeoning bacterial culture feasting silently on nutrients under warm illumination, Karmelloz’s releases have been steadily growing in power and distinctiveness with each test. He engineers robo-percussive tools and armatures to work alongside nascent organic matter, swelling ectogenetically behind high-security fibreglass filtration. His earlier collections, Beauty, Resident Evil and Feel Better, show a flair for subtle yet surprising ambient beat-making, with highlights including Beauty’s UV-fried Lexus, Resident Evil’s Safe Room, Feel Better’s Broken Soul and the standout percussion skirmish Jungle, also of Feel Better. On later releases, however, such as ArchaiC and KarmellOz we find him very confident in a new and dangerous strain of weirdness. The latter release’s Grls and Lawofattraction show a combination of creativity and veiled malice that can only draw you in deeper.

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We Saw You

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Spotted at Subbacultcha!

Photo by Nina Strebelle

If you could take Sun Araw anywhere, where would it be? We’d go to Portree, a small village in the Isle of Skye. With its houses of different colors, it’s one of the most beautiful places in Scotland and there are more fish markets than people on the island.

Yasko Deboodt, spotted at the Sun Araw show at Les Ateliers Claus in Brussels on 16 April 2013.

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Features

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The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Features

White Fence

The Los Angeles-based one-man garage band White Fence has picked up some swell shine thanks to his collaboration with Ty Segall in 2012.

The man otherwise known as Tim Presley crushed out excellent long-players such as Family Perfume Vol. 1 and the recent Cyclops Reap. He explained what it’s like being a ‘lifer’ and a one-eyed focused cyclops always running away from something.

‘I have my own gang of weirdos that I love, and we’d do anything for each other in the name of bettering the situation.’

Interview by Will Martin Photos shot by Suzanna Zak in Los Angeles, USA

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Features

White Fence

‘Music is a way for my soul to survive, and I am a soul man.’

Your music as White Fence seems pretty tied in to your life in LA. I imagine a lot of the art scene there is made up of people who either have enough money to live off and create, or those who create because they can’t do anything else.

Yes... there are both sides of the spectrum, and both sides are valid.

I guess a lot of people would define work as being anything that they don’t want to do, which would subsequently make music a refusal of work. Is that how you view your music?

I’ve worked before, music is not work... it’s a piece of work. The same applies to any art… but yes, doing music is my refusal of work... though at the same time, you must be active with it. And work very hard. And in turn it’s actually swallowed me whole.

It’s all I think about.

Has making music almost become a means of survival?

I do know that without it, I would shrivel up like a raisin in the sun and be hopeless. I think for me it’s something I can release demons through... because I can’t afford therapy. It’s a way for my soul to survive, and I am a soul man.

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White Fence is named partly after an LA. gang. Do you see relationships amongst musical contemporaries as holding a similar relationship to that between gang members? Travelling and creating together as a means of breaking away from social norms etc...

Yes, but I saw that more in the punk scene, growing up in San Francisco and the East Bay. That had more of a community feel. Looking after each other, literally feeding each other etc... Now, with my contemporaries it’s a bit like that, but mostly everyone is too cool to give a shit about one another. And too worried about a career, God bless them all. But I have my own gang of weirdos that I love, and we’d do anything for each other in the name of bettering the situation.

There’s a generation of kids now who are probably never going to be able to buy their own homes, moving from place to place, trying to be creative in the ways that they can make money: always on the run. Is a nomadic lifestyle the way forward?

I don’t know: I’m going through that now. I wonder if I’ll ever have a house, garden and child. Things our

The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Features

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Features

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The Always-On-The-Run Issue

White Fence

Features

‘There are times where I would rather die homeless and poor in the name of making art.’

parents had. The problem with being a ‘lifer’ is that you never know.

There are times where I would rather die homeless and poor in the name of making art. But there are the other times where I think it would be nice to have a family and a home with a pet goat.

Do you think owning property is even relevant any more?

It’s near impossible where I live.

Honestly, I don’t know how many of my friends will own property. This is a sad interview.

In Be at Home you talk about retreating to ‘the room [you] go to while [someone] wash[es] underwear in the sink.’

I get the impression that rather than wanting to run away from home, you have a pretty strong attachment to it.

I do. Or a strong attachment to the ‘unit’: a two-bedroom apartment with the wife, and two cats. It’s like an alternate universe. Because I’m always making music in my room, and because Los Angeles can be isolating, it feels like my LA. is in my apartment.

How does that work out when you’re on

tour? Is touring the solution to homesickness…? Little breaks to make the heart grow fonder?

Yes indeed! It’s the time when I can explore and get my kicks, and at the same time romantically miss something and someone. I think it’s healthy. Maybe. Plus, my wife is the only girl that understands how this touring life works. I’ve had girlfriends that thought I was abandoning them.

So fuck those needy girls/partners.

Has the music you’ve made ever come as a result of you running away from anything?

Yes. I think I’m always running away from something. Either physical or mental. I’m trying to outrun sadness and being unhappy. I think that’s why I’m so focused on writing music and recording. I am the one-eyed focused cyclops. I build swords and armour all day. I am a blacksmith.

White Fence plays at Magasin4, Brussels on 19 May. The show is free for Subbacultcha! members

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Features

Allah-Las

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The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Features

Aware of things to come, Allah-Las aptly named their first 7-inch recording Catamaran/Long Journey. The Los Angeles garage psych outfit have been on tour ever since releasing their self-titled debut LP last year, making them the perfect band to feature in this month’s issue. They allowed us to tag along for a while and talked to us about Amoeba Records, space exploration and their encounter with tiger sharks in Mexico.

Interview by Gerlin Heestermans Photos shot by Christopher Schreck in NYC, USA

Well, I guess the theme of this month’s issue is pretty obvious for a touring band like yourselves. Doesn’t it kind of feel like you’re always on the run?

We’ve been touring a lot in the last six months so it does kinda feel like we’ve been on the run. A different town every night. We like to travel and have been going to a lot of places we’ve never been before, so it’s been fun.

Why on earth would you wanna be on the run from L.A. though? From what I’ve heard it’s pretty peachy.

We grew up in Los Angeles and like living there but we’re enjoying

traveling to far-off lands and playing music.

Is playing music an escapist activity to you? Does it make you forget everything else in that moment?

I don’t think we have an escapist relationship with playing music.

I read that all of you do some decent surfin’. If a wave were to take you far, far away, where would you like that to be?

I would definitely have the wave take me into outer space. It’d be like Joe Satriani’s Surfing with the Alien but I’d make sure the music was better.

It is often said that ‘our generation’ (not sure how old you guys are – I’m 24) is on Page 19

Features

Allah-Las

‘They didn’t run but they did swim for their lives and barely made it to the beach alive.’ the run from any responsibility whatsoever. How do you feel about that? I’m not sure how much the US differs from Europe in that respect.

I think we can relate to that sentiment. When we started the band, three of us were working at Amoeba Records, which in some ways was a response to not wanting to get ‘real’ jobs, or at least jobs that would have taken away some of our flexibility and given us more responsibility.

It just seems like young people these days postpone everything: being in a serious relationship, settling down, buying a house, having kids, all of that.

Would you agree and where would we find you?

None of us are looking to settle down and have kids right now but we’ve got our eyes peeled for dream homes when conditions permit.

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you literally had to make a run for it?

Miles and Matt were surfing in Mexico once and found themselves being circled by three tiger sharks.

They didn’t run but they did swim for Page 20

their lives and barely made it to the beach alive.

Can you run a mile? Can you surf a mile? Is that even possible?

There are these tidal bores (google it) around the world which you can surf. They break for several miles so it is possible to surf a mile, but you have to do it in remote rivers around the world, which are generally infested with piranhas and other things that could eat or kill you.

Do you ever see yourselves going back to stacking shelves at Amoeba or doing another, more boring job to bring in money? Or do you reckon this always-onthe-run thing will be permanent?

Amoeba was fun while it lasted but I don’t think they would take us back, so we will have to move forward into new and interesting directions.

Perhaps we will look into future careers in mountain rescue patrol, deep sea diving, or space exploration.

Allah-Las play at De Kreun, Kortrijk on 24 May. The show is free for Subbacultcha! members.

The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Features

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Features

The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Chelsea Wolfe

We ran into Chelsea Wolfe just before her show at Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco, and briefly talked about a life of constant comings and goings.

Interview by Kasper-Jan Raeman Photo shot by Stine Sampers in Ghent

Is touring running away from the real world? Or do you make sure everything is settled before you hop on the plane?

Being on tour can feel like being on the run, but I don’t feel like I’m running away from the real world.

When you’re on tour it becomes your real world. Every day holds something new and that’s the new reality.

When on tour, does the idea of going back home ever creep into your mind?

I don’t usually want to go home but I do desire more rest sometimes.

I got really sick on my last European tour and it was really hard to keep Page 22

pushing through and singing when I really needed to rest. I didn’t care if I was at home or at a hotel, I just wanted to sleep it off.

Imagine you’re sixty years old, you’ve had it with the music business and you want to be at ease for the rest of your life. Where would you run to?

I want to return to living in Northern California eventually. It’s my home and I love it there.

Chelsea Wolfe plays at Trix, Antwerp on 06 May. The show is free for Subbacultcha! members.

Features

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Scene Report

The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Scene Report

Dalston (ldn) EN LA D

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Dalston, LDN

Scene Report

From every perspective, London seems like one of the hardest cities for an artist to survive in.

Yet the movement of people in, out and around London is constant. This movement, along with the city’s vast size, makes it hard to discuss a scene in the traditional sense. It seems to lack the connections between areas and people that a place usually requires for an active, city-wide, artistic community. However, as a multiplicity of committed micro-scenes it becomes an overwhelmingly diverse and active city.

Text by Cameron Deas Photos shot by Valeria Cherchi in Dalston, London, UK

‘Always On The Run’ seems an appropriate theme for a piece on London. I was born in London and grew up in the suburbs. I moved to Sheffield to study music and spent the following few years touring Europe.

During these years I felt London was impossible. Unwilling to give up music for money, I couldn’t see how I could survive. However, after deciding to take a break from touring I returned regardless. I found work and lived in five different residences in a matter of months until finally finding

somewhere I could call a fixed address, paying double my rent in Sheffield.

I’d like to give a brief impression of the area I’ve lived in for the best part of the last year as this is what I have come to know: Dalston, East London. For the past few years this area has gained the reputation as an apparent ‘hipster’ area. However, amongst a high street full of trashy bars and clubs are countless spaces hosting exciting events. Above all, Cafe Oto has probably become the greatest purveyor of explorative music in London.

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Scene Report

Dalston, LDN

With mostly in-house programming it covers nearly every corner of contemporary music, up to seven days a week. Minutes away you have venues such as The Vortex, working more with improvisation and folk, and Power Lunches, running a broader approach to programming than most of the others. Nearby there are countless other cafés, bars, clubs, community halls and houses which are also hosting and being used to host similar events. Veteran promoters Upset The Rhythm and newcomers BleeD are regularly using such spaces. The former have upcoming shows from the likes of Grouper, Supreme Dicks and Sun Araw, whereas the latter, working more with new electronic muPage 26

sic, have held label showcases for the likes of PAN and Blackest Ever Black.

Local artists Jake Blanchard and Simon Fowler have both been strongly involved in music over the past few years, producing countless posters and record sleeves between them.

It’s also worth mentioning the airwaves across London. Resonance FM considers itself a ‘laboratory of experimentation’ rather than a radio station, hosting shows from many individuals, collectives and venues. Furthermore, there’s Dalston’s own NTS internet radio, a new freeform platform taking inspiration from WFM and hosting over 100 different shows in an attempt to cover all sides of new music.

The Always-On-The-Run Issue

Of course this is an incredibly brief look at London and what’s happening. I haven’t discussed any of the diverse record labels operating here such as Mie Music, Blackest Ever Black, The Great Pop Supplement and Bo’ Weavil. Nor have I talked about actual London-based musicians, a particularly difficult task as I can barely keep up with who’s actually living here. Firstly, one of London’s ongoing strengths seems to be improvised music. Evan Parker, Steve Noble, John Edwards and John Butcher are just a handful of the renowned mainstay improvisors here, all regularly performing. I’d like to finish by mentioning a few of London’s current electronic practitioners. I feel that art-

Scene Report

ists such as Helm, Lee Gamble, Mordant Music and Raime are some of the contributors to a new shift in electronic music, one which unites different audiences through the drawing together of a wide range of influences, from musique concrète to industrial, to dance, to psychedelic, placing listeners within immersive, arresting, electronic sonic environments.

Essential London spots: Cafe Oto, The Vortex, Power Lunches Essential London bands: Raime, Lee Gamble, Helm, Mordant Music, Evan Parker, Steve Noble, John Edwards, John Butcher Page 27

Art

Featured artist

Byram Tunez

Continually on the move, Brussels-based Byram Tunez uses a strong work ethic and a hands-on mentality as tools in his neverending quest for finding energy and inspiration all around the globe. Never too keen on being determined by space or time, Tunez is always looking for ways to connect his art with whatever local signs, shapes and/or graphics that come across his path. ‘Running is a healthy thing to do.’ Artist selected, liked and approved by Ladda & Topo Copy www.byramtunez.com

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Art

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Art

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Byram Tunez

Featured Artist

Art

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Agenda

Shows in May

DE KREUN VZW · CONSERVATORIUMPLEIN · 8500 KORTRIJK MUSIC, INFO & TICKETS WWW.DEKREUN.BE

CHILLOW PRESENTS: ‘WHEN WE UNITE’ 03.05 JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON & BILL MORRISON 04.05

(ISM FESTIVAL VAN VLAANDEREN KORTRIJK)

KING KONG CLUB WITH KENJI MINOGUE 11.05

FRED HUSH, MICHAEL FORZZA, IRIS MENZA...

DEATH GRIPS 13.05 GODFLESH 14.05 HESSIAN

MOUNT EERIE 15.05 SINKSEN 18-20.05 PARTY MET EPPO JANSSEN,

KABUL GOLF CLUB, ERAAS, KING TUFF + PARTY MET TLP, THE GERMANS, CONDOR GRUPPE, LIGHT ASYLUM

ALLAH-LAS 24.05 DO MAKE SAY THINK 26.05 VOLG ONS OP FACEBOOK.COM/DEKREUNMUSIC EN TWITTER (@DEKREUN, #DEKREUN).

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Agenda On the following pages:

Subbacultcha! concerts and films totally free for members Page 34

Other shows Page 43 Overview Page 46

This image of Alex Zhang Hungtai (a.k.a. Dirty Beaches) and his friend Frank was taken by Jussi Puikkonen at the Lloyd Hotel in Amsterdam. Dirty Beaches plays on 14 May at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. This show is free for Subbacultcha! members before 21.00.

See all these shows for free. Sign up at www.subbacultcha.be.

Lecture Adam Harper + Film: Robocop

02 May - WIELS, Brussels 19.30 | €5 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Music theorist Adam Harper is a prominent contributor to The Wire and Dummymag in addition to his very own acclaimed blog Rouge’s Foam. He will be in Wiels for a lecture on pop vanguardist John Maus, connecting him with some of the key issues in today’s underground pop music. The lecture will be followed by a screening of John Maus’ favourite film, Robocop.

Chelsea Wolfe + Heirs

06 May - Trix, Antwerp 19.30 | €17 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Hailing from Los Angeles, Chelsea Wolfe provides lusciously grim folk experimentalism. Also labelled as ‘doom folk’, Wolfe’s spacey lo-fi ambience and contrasting bouts of dissonant noise tend to draw comparisons to early PJ Harvey.

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As a member you will also receive this magazine every month plus a stylish tote bag

Co La + Tg Gondard

09 May - Madame Moustache, Brussels 20.00 | €7 | Free for Subbacultcha! members Co La’s Matthew Papich describes himself as a ‘Music Designer/Reggae User/Lifestyle Producer’. His interest in music re-purposing and emphasis on mood thereby implied are reflected in his hypnotic, sample-based loops.

Blue Hawaii

12 May - Botanique, Brussels 19.30 | €14 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Blue Hawaii are Raphaelle Standell-Preston, frontwoman of Braids, and Alexander Cowan. This Montreal duo released their new full-length Untogether, full of fresh tropical electro pop, earlier this year through the revered Arbutus label, home of Grimes and Doldrums.

Veronica Falls + Dirty Beaches

14 May - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels 20.00 | €19 | Free for Subbacultcha! members until 21.00

Exactly a week after his show in Brussels, Alex Zhang Hungtai, the man behind Dirty Beaches, will be releasing his most experimental effort yet.

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See all these shows for free. Sign up at www.subbacultcha.be.

Whilst Hungtai could help you to reach some form of experimental lonerism with cuts from his forthcoming double album, Veronica Falls will definitely bring a more Britpop vibe to this Tuesday night occasion in Brussels.

Mount Eerie

15 May - De Kreun, Kortrijk 20.00 | €13 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

When he’s not crafting fuzzy, gong-heavy tracks in a repurposed church, Phil Elverum can probably be found touring the world as Mount Eerie. No stranger to experimentation, his latest records instil strokes of black metal and krautrock to his trademark oddball songwriting.

The Ex & Brass Unbound

15 May - Vooruit, Ghent 20.00 | €16 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

These Dutch anarcho-punks have carved out quite the legacy for themselves over their 30-plus years of existence. They’ve added layers of intricacy and influences to the lo-fi backbone of their music, influenced countless other bands, built a worldwide following and set an excellent DIY example by booking their own shows and releasing and distributing their music themselves.

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As a member you will also receive this magazine every month plus a stylish tote bag

Chris Cohen

18 May - Madame Moustache, Brussels 21.00 | €5 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Chris Cohen has subtly contributed as a member or touring player to a long list of excellent bands including Deerhoof and Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, but now he’s found time to focus on his solo work. The psychedelic pop on his debut, Overgrown Path, is delicately dreamy and sympathetically idiosyncratic. We’re delighted that he’s finally stepped into the spotlight.

White Fence + Night Beats

19 May - Magasin 4, Brussels 19.30 | €14 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Besides playing with space rockers Darker My Love and backing up The Strange Boys and The Fall, LA’s Tim Presley also transforms his neural nectar into sweet psychedelic honey via his solo work as White Fence. In 2012 alone he’s released two White Fence albums (Family Perfume Volumes 1 and 2), whittled down from over 80 (!) tracks, plus his remarkable collaboration with Ty Segall, Hair. While his extremely lo-fi home recordings are weird and warped in a stoned and lonely sort of way, playing live brings out his inner hornet, with notched-up tempos and blistering guitar solos stinging your ears in a sonic attack more similar to his work with Segall.

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See all these shows for free. Sign up at www.subbacultcha.be.

Purling Hiss

22 May - Madame Moustache, Brussels 21.00 | €5 | Free for Subbacultcha! members 23 May - AreaFiftyOne, Eindhoven 20.30 | €7,5 | Free for Subbacultcha! members Philadelphia’s Mike Polizze played with jam-punks Birds of Maya before setting off on a solo mission to Planet Purling Hiss, a world where all previously recorded traces of the existence of guitars were so corroded by exposure to harsh elements, they only vaguely resembled their earthly equivalents. Polizze recruited a team of rock ‘n’ roll rovers to help him explore a new garage rock galaxy, and Purling Hiss’ fourth album Water On Mars documents what they found from there.

Film | Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson 23 May - KASKcinema, Ghent 20.30 | €5 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

By means of rare archival footage, this documentary by Alex Gibney draws a tender portrait of Hunter S. Thompson, gonzo journalism pioneer and author of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. As your attorneys, we advise you to go watch this shit.

Allah-Las

24 May - De Kreun, Kortrijk 20.00 | €13 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

The dudes of Allah-Las recorded their self-titled debut full-length to analogue tape using old microphones to obtain as authentic a sound as possible, with retro soul man Nick Waterhouse handling production duties.

Though they say you can’t learn by osmosis, musical molecules resembling the Byrds, Love, the Beach Boys and The Animals somehow seeped into their decidedly ’60s-inspired sound.

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Shows in September

Agenda

As a member you will also receive this magazine every month plus a stylish tote bag

Pete Swanson + Mathieu Serruys

29 May - 019, Ghent 20.00 | €10 | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Relentless noisemaker and ex-Yellow Swans member Pete Swanson released the astonishing Man with Potential and Pro Style for Type Records last year and now he returns to his deformed warehouse techno sound with Punk Authority. Support from harsh electronic act Mathieu Serruys, who runs the Ghent-based DIY label Smeltkop.

Ekster Label Night (with R. Hiele, TCF, RP GM KRC) 31 May - Scheld’apen, Antwerp 21.00 | TBA | Free for Subbacultcha! members

Ekster is a brand new Antwerp label that aims to collect and immortalize good music. Their first drop, Roman Hiele’s debut album, will be released at Scheld’apen. Hiele, Norwegian noise wunderkid TCF and Belgian ambient duo RP GM KRC will be showing their electronic skills. Expect dazzling live shows.

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02 MEI 08 MEI 10 MEI 17 MEI 23 MEI 30 MEI

MY BLOODY VALENTINE ÓLAFUR ARNALDS JACCO GARDNER THEE OH SEES + BLEACHED PURLING HISS + RICHIE DAGGER SEX JAMS + MILE ME DEAF

kijk voor ons volledige programma en locaties op www.effenaar.nl

Focus

Agenda

Les Nuits Botanique Kicking off the Belgian festival season, Les Nuits Botanique offers an eclectic line-up of 2013’s most promising bands and upcoming talents. This year the festival celebrates its 20th anniversary, so expect one big party in the following Botanique venues: Koninklijk Circus, Chapiteau, Orangerie, Rotonde and Museum!

30 April-13 May, various locations, Brussels How To Dress Well How to Dress Well is the one-man recording project of Tom Krell, globetrotter, lo-fi artist and sort-of-R&B crooner.

Dan Deacon Equally adept at composing Steve Reichinspired contemporary classical music as multi-coloured, spastic 8-bit symphonies to God, Dan Deacon sure is something alright.

His latest album, grandly entitled America, represents the most seamless fusion of his classical and electronic work yet. His highly interactive live shows are simply legendary.

Woods Woods’ vintage guitar sound, falsetto vocals and tape manipulations will transport you back to the psychedelic heyday of yesteryear.

SUUNS With their jaw-clenching sing-speak vocals, minimalistic drumbeats and angular riffs, Suuns has the sonic tools to mess with your mind on a whole new level.

Phosphorescent After years of making gorgeous, contemplative Americana alone under the name Phosphorescent, Matthew Houck recruited

a backing band and Phosphorescent started sounding uncharacteristically traditional and loose almost to a fault. Thankfully, the band’s latest album, Muchacho, is their most sophisticated yet, while Houck’s fragile voice and heartfelt, heartbreaking lyrics are as comforting as ever.

Blue Hawaii Blue Hawaii are Raphaelle Standell-Preston, frontwoman of Braids, and Alexander Cowan. This Montreal duo released their new full-length Untogether, full of fresh tropical electro pop, earlier this year through the revered Arbutus label.

Savages Hyped before even touching a guitar string, London all-female post-punks Savages are well known for their simple but intense performances. Expect their forthcoming Matador release Silence Yourself early May. Beach Fossils Beach Fossils returned this year with their sophomore album Clash the Truth. This Brooklyn team, fronted by the gifted Dustin Payseur, are renowned for their clean, jangly guitar riffs and energetic live shows. www.botanique.be Page 41

Agenda

Shows in May

14.05 I VERONICA FALLS + DIRTY BEACHES

22.05 I CRYSTAL FIGHTERS

16.05 I MOUNT EERIE + THE HAXAN CLOAK

26.05 I KURT VILE & THE VIOLATORS

21.05 I DEERHUNTER

28.05 I ANIMAL COLLECTIVE

19.05 20.05 09.06 07.10

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I I I I

NILS FRAHM + LUBOMYR MELNYK + SPECIAL GUEST GREGORY EUCLIDE GREG HAINES + POPPY ACKROYD RAUELSSON CARLOS CIPA + SAFFRONKEIRA

Agenda

Shows in May

Death Grips

Chelsea Wolfe 06 May - Trix, Antwerp 08 May - 4AD, Diksmuide Hailing from Los Angeles, the gothic doomfolk songstress Chelsea Wolfe will soon cast her shadowy stripped-down spells over Trix in Antwerp. Read more on page 34.

Co La + Tg Gondard 09 May - Madame Moustache, Brussels Co La’s Matthew Papich describes himself as a ‘Music Designer/Reggae User/Lifestyle Producer’. Read more on page 35.

Michael Hurley + Ignatz 09 May - Les Ateliers Claus, Brussels 72-year-old folk troubadour Michael Hurley has been singing about tea, blueberry wine and werewolves for the past 50 years with striking depth and wit.

Haunted Inbox ft. Je Suis Le Petit Chevalier, The Cyclist, Charanjit Singh + more 09 May - Netwerk, Aalst AudioMER curates this contemporary experimental music festival. The label typically specialises in avant-garde sounds, pair-

ing its music with beautiful artworks. Expect sonics without borders from Je Suis Le Petit Chevalier, The Cyclist, Charanjit Singh and more.

Death Grips 13 May - De Kreun, Kortrijk Dropped from their label after releasing their last LP too early on free online sharing platforms, Death Grips are outrageously angry dudes, always looking for a new strategy to shock. The noisy punk-hop act is even more conspicuous when it comes to their live performances, with the shirtless MC Ride shaking his fully inked torso whilst barking echoing profanities.

Veronica Falls + Dirty Beaches 14 May - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels Exactly a week after his show in Brussels, Dirty Beaches will be releasing his most experimental effort yet. Alex Zhang Hungtai expertly buries Elvis-like yelps and croons and occasionally very romantic melodies under layers of no-wavey distortion and reverb. Veronica Falls will definitely bring a more Britpop vibe to this Tuesday night occasion in Brussels. Read more on page 35.

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Agenda

Shows in May

Chelsea Wolfe photographed by Logan White.

Eraas 14 May - STUK, Leuven ERAAS’s 2012 debut was a post-rock rocket ship which transported listeners to a dark, lonely world nearly devoid of human emotion but filled with ominous atmosphere, propelled forward by the occasional motorik groove.

The Ex & Brass Unbound 15 May - Vooruit, Ghent These Dutch anarcho-punks have carved out quite the legacy for themselves over their 30-plus years of existence. Read more on page 36.

can probably be found touring the world as Mount Eerie. Read more on page 36.

Nick Waterhouse + Jeff Hershey 16 May - Trix, Antwerp It is difficult to believe that Nick Waterhouse’s first ever recorded single only dates from 2010: the R&B prodigy seems rooted in a whole different decade. His bountiful talent saw him produce Allah-las’ self-titled debut and allowed him to share the stage with other top LA acts such as The Strange Boys, Ty Segall and White Fence.

Mount Eerie

Le Guess Who? May Day ft. Deerhunter, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Bleached, Dirty Beaches, ERAAS and more

15 May - De Kreun, Kortrijk 16 May - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels When he’s not crafting fuzzy, gong-heavy tracks in a repurposed church, Phil Elverum

18 May - Tivoli, Utrecht If you’ve ever been to Le Guess Who?, there’s no doubt you agree that taking in so much good music in such a special place

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Agenda

Shows in May

once a year just ain’t enough. Someone upstairs was listening: consider the inaugural LGW? May Day the answer to your presummer festival prayers.

electronic music. Now the legendary Indian inventor of acid house music is playing an exclusive show at Bonnefooi.

Chris Cohen

24 May - De Kreun, Kortrijk The dudes of Allah-Las recorded their selftitled debut full-length to analogue tape using old microphones to obtain as authentic a sound as possible. Read more on page 38.

18 May - Madame Moustache, Brussels The psychedelic pop on Chris Cohen’s debut, Overgrown Path, is delicately dreamy and sympathetically idiosyncratic. Read more on page 37.

Sinksen ft. Eraas, Light Asylum and more 18 - 20 May - De Kreun, Kortrijk This annual three-day festival of high quality music brings you a mix of local indie talents and Subbacultcha! faves. Dark and groovy post-punk outfit Eraas ft. ex-members of Apse, garage rocker King Tuff and danceable dark wave duo Light Asylum will definitely provide a feast for your ears.

White Fence + Night Beats 19 May - Magasin 4, Brussels LA’s Tim Presley transforms his neural nectar into sweet psychedelic honey as White Fence. Read more on page 37.

Purling Hiss 22 May - Madame Moustache, Brussels 23 May - AreaFiftyOne, Eindhoven Philadelphia’s Mike Polizze played with jampunks Birds of Maya before setting off on a solo mission to Planet Purling Hiss. Read more on page 38.

Charanjit Singh 23 May - Bonnefooi, Brussels Three years ago, the rediscovery of Singh’s 1982 album Ten Ragas to a Disco Beat caused quite a stir in the world of dance &

Allah-Las

Raime 24 May - Studioskoop, Ghent As industrial dark ambient duo Raime, Joe Andrews and Tom Halstead put out a string of bleak and spotless releases via the London label Blackest Ever Black.

Kurt Vile 26 May - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels This young prodigy and his band of constant hitmakers churn out guitar-focused, um, ‘new’ classic rock. On his new material, Vile stripped away most of the effects and production grime that muddied his earlier work, revealing songs that are more spacious and sensible than ever, yet still capable of transporting you back to listening to music with your dad as a kid.

Animal Collective + Laurel Halo 28 May - Ancienne Belgique, Brussels This experimental psych band’s latest album, Centipede Hz, was inspired by the idea of an alien band listening to bits of sound coming from Earth, then imagining what sounds they would make. Avey Tare and Panda Bear take on the role of alien vocalists, their joyous harmonies and childlike words imposing some extraterrestrial sense of order to scrambled and smashed sounds lovingly collected from the ether.

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Overview of all Subbacultcha! shows in May

02 May

Lecture Adam Harper + Film

WIELS, Brussels 19.30 | €5 | Free for members

06 May

Chelsea Wolfe + Heirs

Trix, Antwerp 19.30 | €17 | Free for members

09 May

Co La

Madame Moustache, Brussels 20.00 | €7 | Free for members

12 May

Blue Hawaii

Botanique, Brussels 19.30 | €14 | Free for members

14 May

Veronica Falls + Dirty Beaches

Ancienne Belgique, Brussels 20.00 | €19 | Free for members until 21.00

15 May

Mount Eerie

De Kreun, Kortrijk 20.00 | €13 | Free for members

15 May

The Ex & Brass Unbound

Vooruit, Ghent 20.00 | €16 | Free for members

18 May

Chris Cohen

Madame Moustache, Brussels 21.00 | €5 | Free for members

19 May

White Fence + Night Beats

Magasin 4, Brussels 19.30 | €14 | Free for members

22 May

Purling Hiss

Madame Moustache, Brussels 21.00 | €5 | Free for members 23 May - AreaFiftyOne, Eindhoven 20.30 | €7,5 | Free for members

23 May

Film | Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson

KASKcinema, Ghent 20.30 | €5 | Free for members

24 May

Allah-Las

De Kreun, Kortrijk 20.00 | €13 | Free for members

29 May

Pete Swanson + Mathieu Serruys

019, Ghent 20.00 | €10 | Free for members

31 May

Ekster Label Night

Scheld’apen, Antwerp 21.00 | tba | Free for members

See all these shows for free. Join at www.subbacultcha.be.

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LES NUITS

may 2013

STay + (03.05) • BB BrUNES (04.05) • how To drESS wELL (04.05) woodkId & moNS orchESTra (05.05) daN dEacoN (06.05) • darkSTar (07.05) • Low (08.05) • EfTErkLaNg (09.05) PhoSPhorEScENT (09.05) • woodS (09.05) • chvrchES (10.05) • SUUNS (11.05) ghoSTPoET (11.05) • mUjErES (11.05) Two gaLLaNTS (12.05) • mac demarco (12.05) • mIkaL croNIN (12.05) • BEach foSSILS (26.05) aNd maNy oThErS, chEck BoTaNIqUE.BE

EEN GREEP UIT ONS CONCERTAANBOD …

EEN GREEP UIT ONS CONCERTAANBOD …

WO 15.05

THE EX & BRASS UNBOUND feat. Ab Baars, Ken Vandermark, Roy Paci & Wolter Wierbos

16.05 THE SPECTRA ENSEMBLE feat. Walter Hus & Chirs Ware - Lint WODO15.05 EX & BRASS UNBOUND feat. Ab Baars, Ken Vandermark, Roy Paci & Wolter Wierbos VR 17.05 IAN MCCULLOCH (Echo & The Bunnymen) DO 16.05 SPECTRA ENSEMBLE feat. Walter Hus & Chirs Ware - Lint ZA 18.05 PLANET PAWLOWSKI: Hitsville Drunks, Mauro and the Grooms, Di Pawlowski, …

VR 17.05 IAN MCCULLOCH (Echo &Gruppo The Bunnymen) 31.05 PLANET STEF HEEREN - Postersessie ZAVR 18.05 PAWLOWSKI: Hitsville Drunks, Mauro and the Grooms, Gruppo Di Pawlowski, …

ZO 26.05 SELDA BAĞCAN

VR 31.05 STEF HEEREN - Postersessie DO 13.06 MARC RIBOT - Bread & Roses ZOVR 26.05 SELDA BAĞCAN 14.06 DE BEREN GIEREN - Postersessie DOZA13.06 - Bread & Roses 15.06 MARC MAJARIBOT RATKJE & POING feat. 100 zangers – Wach auf!

VRWO 14.06 BEREN 26.06 DEPERE UBUGIEREN - Postersessie ZA 15.06

MAJA RATKJE & POING feat. 100 zangers – Wach auf!

INFO & TICKETS: T. 09 267 28 28 – WWW.VOORUIT.BE

WO 26.06

PERE UBU

ism Democrazy

INFO & TICKETS: T. 09 267 28 28 – WWW.VOORUIT.BE ism Democrazy