February 2016 The Suavemente Issue
artefact artefact is een initiatief van de provincie
vlaams-brabant
i.s.m stad leuven
Powell William Basinski Lorenzo Senni presents AAT. Shapednoise Amatorski
Hantrax Fis. Ansatz der Maschine. Kiss the Anus of. a Black Cat. Kassett.
09, 18, 19 21 FEB 16
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MUSICMAKERS HACKLAB 17 - 21 FEB 16
MUSIC FESTIVAL LEUVEN
FilosofischeStilte. Rafael Anton Irisarri. Sagat John Bence.
Christina Vantzou Samuel Kerridge presents Fatal Light Attraction Hiele Nosedrip WWW.ARTEFACT-FESTIVAL.BE
Subbacultcha magazine
The Suavemente Issue
Without getting political, it ain’t the best of times to be different. The norm is measured with a rigid yardstick, held by ageing dorks prone to bad toupees and rank breath. Yet elsewhere there’s a boy with blue hair at a reggaeton party, and a girl with galaxies and watercolour fireworks in her eyes, and the potential for cultures and ideas to melt into something new and soothing. Suavemente – ‘smoothly’ in Spanish – is a word that conveys warm sensations and the best kind of transitions. It’s also a song by a nasal-voiced Puerto Rican, inviting us to kiss him softly, over and over again. An anthem for rough times. 03
Colophon Subbacultcha Belgium, Dendermondsesteenweg 80A, 9000 Ghent, Belgium www.subbacultcha.be - magazine@subbacultcha.be Editors in chief: Herlinde Raeman & Kasper-Jan Raeman
Advertising & Partnerships: Kasper-Jan Raeman (kasper-jan@subbacultcha.be)
Editors: Julien Van de Casteele & Gabriela González
Volunteers: Anna Baqués, Victor Van Wassenhove, Jonas De Ruytter, Elise Dupré & Lieve Keustermans
Copy editor: Megan Roberts Design: Marina Henao
Printer: Drukkerij GEWADRUPO, Arendonk, Belgium
Online editors: Ruud Van Moorleghem, Thomas Vanoosthuyse & Lisa Wallyn
Cover image: Femke Fredrix
Distribution: Gerlin Heestermans (gerlin@subbacultcha.be) Contributing writers: Sabzian, Karly Salama, Valerie Steenhaut, Gerlin Heestermans, Gabriela González, Bart Bruneel, Mathias Bourgonjon, Julien Van de Casteele & Sasha Ermakov Contributing photographers: Tina Herbots, Femke Fredrix, Karly Salama & Sameer Raichur Contributing artists: Elias Smekens & Dieter Durinck Thank you: Dauwke Fredrix, Isaac Barbé, Mattias Baertsoen, Jens Van Lathem, Louise Vervaet, Kasper Mussche, Ragna De Moor, Victor Van Wassenhove, Valerie Steenhaut, Sasha Ermakov, Lisa Fraipont, Virginie & Julien Van de Casteele, Kellan Smith, Nikolaas Verstraeten, Jerca Susman, Naoki Karathanassis, Floortje Kattemölle, Nelson Henry, Laurent Müller, Lara Decrae, Olivier Wouters, Dries Vancauwenberghe, Gert Van Dijck, Matthias Heylen, Vicky De Visser, Saraya Richter, Amaury Wilkin and friends, Thomas Vanoosthuyse, Frederic Busscher, Marie Shuqha & Tijs Delacroix Partners: Beursschouwburg, Het Bos, Vooruit, Democrazy, Botanique, Madame Moustache, Kultuurkaffee, KASK Cinema, OFFoff, Cinema Zuid, KVS, 4AD, Offscreen, Museum Night Fever, JauneOrange, HE4RTBROKEN, De Kreun & Argos
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THE DARKNESS + The River 68’s 04.02 - VOORUIT BLAUE BLUME 06.02 - CHARLATAN SAYWECANFLY 14.02 - CHARLATAN ARBEID ADELT! + Meneer Michiels 19.02 - VOORUIT FILOUS: ‘FROM DUSK TILL DAWN TOUR’ 21.02 - CHARLATAN ALICE ON THE ROOF 24.02 - VOORUIT THE VALERIE SOLANAS (CD-VOORSTELLING), YOU RASKAL YOU 25.02 - CHARLATAN BIG NEXT WHITNEY 25.02 - TREFPUNT LIVE TRACK CINEMA CHVE + JEROEN MYLLE 26.02 - KASKCINEMA THE KIDS 40 JAAR 27.02 - DE CENTRALE
SOULFLY 02.03 - VOORUIT DE STAAT + Drive Like Maria 02.03 - CHARLATAN FUN LOVIN’ CRIMINALS ‘COME FIND YOURSELF’ (20 YEAR RELEASE) 04.03 - VOORUIT ANSATZ DER MASCHINE, CHARLIE CUNNINGHAM 06.03 - VOORUIT FADED ABRA 11.03 - CHARLATAN EVA DE ROOVERE & THE WHODADS (CD-VOORSTELLING) 12.03 - MINARD MARBLE SOUNDS, ISBELLS 15.03 - VOORUIT STEAK NUMBER EIGHT + Hypochristmutreefuzz + Crowd of Chairs 16.03 - VOORUIT
DEMOCRAZY.BE
STEAM PRESENTS: WILKINSON (LIVE) + Crossbeat 18.03 - VOORUIT LEFTO PRESENTS: THE GASLAMP KILLER, + STUFF. 22.03 - VOORUIT LFDY SPECTRES, MAZE 23.03 - CHARLATAN GLENN CLAES 29.03 - MINARD EEFJE DE VISSER 30.03 - VOORUIT JOSEF SALVAT 31.03 - VOORUIT JACK PAROW 07.04 - CHARLATAN BIG NEXT NAO 13.04 - CHARLATAN BENT VAN LOOY 15.04 - HANDELSBEURS WILLIAM SINGE 16.05 - DOK
Contents
Aïsha Devi 14 Photo Essay: SKY H1 20 Scene Report: Buenos Aires 26 — Recommendations 09 We Visit You 12 Featured Artist 32 Style 38 Books 42 Films 44 Subbacultcha Shows 47 Agenda 59 Focus 61 Overview 62 07
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February Recommendations
Each month our staff provides you with a selection of the finer things in life. Enjoy! Art: Yann Leguay
Music: Staycore 117
Franco-Belgian trickster Yann Leguay is already a Brussels gem, what with his experimental, low-key venue HS63. But his work as an artist and sound performer are as intriguing as they are perplexing. An obsession with sound technology in all of its material expressions underlies his research: diagrams and outlines are omnipresent, as if constituting the blueprint for an alien escape pod. Applications run in the form of installations, musical compositions, experimental machinery and conceptual takes on sound recording, most notably through his label Phonotopy. — phonotopy.org
Stockholm-based label Staycore 117 was launched in 2014 by producers Dinamarca and Ghazal. Heavily influenced by the sounds spouting from the Caribbean and Latin America, they have good contact with labels like N.A.A.F.I in Mexico City (remember our November Scene Report?) and JANUS in Berlin (which boasts Kablam and Lotic on its roster). With rising stars such as Toxe and Mechatok, there’s more than enough fresh sounds guaranteed to cure your February blues. Who’d have thought Eternal Summer would come from the deep north? — facebook.com/staycore117
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February Recommendations Misc: See You!
hole, especially on long nights indoors with your favourite record playing over the howling wind and winter’s soft, pattering rain. — davidtoopblog.com
Looking for something weird and fun to keep you on your toes this winter? Beursschouwburg is launching a citywide game to keep you all out of trouble. Quite aptly titled See You!, the three-month-long competition is all about keeping your eyes open. While details are still shrouded in mystery, it sounds like an urban, non-lethal Hunger Games where you’re assigned targets to eliminate and be the last man standing. Though it’s meant for Brusseleers, the concept has potential for contagion. Registrations end 6 February, and the heat is on from 13 February until 30 April. — beursschouwburg.be
Art: HYPERMOBIEL
Antwerp’s Borgerhout district is home to a lot of stuff: grey buildings, highway arteries Scouts’ headquarters (RIP Echnum), Moroccan bakeries and a long-fermenting art scene on the brink of bubbling. HYPERMOBIEL, spawned by the renowned DOP Platform, is a new space for exhibitions, art experiments and artists at large. Opened in January with a one-night exhibition featuring up-and-coming talents, HYPERMOBIEL is already proving to be a dynamic hub for artist projects and research. Keep an eye out for the launch of ABC, an exploration of the link between typography and people, coming at you on 14 February. — Appelstraat 27a, 2140 Borgerhout — dopplatform.be/hypermobiel
Music: David Toop More than music, this is musings on sound. If you caught last month’s book review, you probably have an idea of what Toop’s blog is about; for the infidels who didn’t, it’s all about exploring sound as an entity and as an experience. His blog posts are poetic analyses often regarding the physical and spiritual nature of music and the act of listening itself. Contemplative, deep and visionary essays are in order: let yourself be drawn into the rabbit
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February Recommendations Shop: BRUT
Art: 50 Watts
Peering out from an unassuming corner in the Marolles is a miniature jungle, seemingly from another planet: majestic ivies drape from the ceiling, oddlyshaped cacti sit nonchalantly, and from behind thick foliage hide monkey statuettes and African masks as if lurking in their native grounds. Part exotic plant showcase, part design shop, BRUT was launched last September and offers a much-welcome sanctuary for these grey days. The owners Lucie and Jacqueline can be found pottering about this acid dream palace, and gladly offer valuable insight on their plants – most of which, it’s safe to assume, you’ve probably never seen before. — BRUT, 202 rue Haute/Hoogstraat, 1000 Brussels
For many an art/design blog aficionado, A Journey Round My Skull was pretty much a virtual Walhalla: Japanese visions of space, crawling plant psychedelia, magical etchings, outlandish book designs and every single oddball delight you can imagine. It’s been pretty quiet around there for a while, and the reason is probably its spin-off website, 50 Watts. More streamlined and, let’s admit it, less 2010 than its blog predecessor, the visual journey continues, with offerings of the same ilk as before and with full archival access to its blogger past. Subscribing to the newsletter comes highly recommended. — 50watts.com
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We Visit You Photo by Tiny Geeroms
Name: Liv Boss(uyt) Age: 23 Zodiac sign: Aquarius Website: cargocollective.com/ livboss
Clubbing till dawn. What does an ideal lazy Sunday look like for you? Sleeping in, having a long brunch with poached eggs and avocado, and unlimited amounts of coffee. Reading a book, taking a walk, gossiping with friends, bargaining at a flea market. Any guilty pleasures? Tinder, Drake’s ‘Hotline Bling’ and Speculoospasta! Especially the crunchy one. It’s so delicious, and super addictive. We don’t have it in Sweden. Oh, and also peanut butter, in or on ANYTHING. Pleasures should never be guilty, though. What makes you dance? ‘This Must Be The Place’ by Talking Heads. Always. Or anything by Destiny’s Child or Beyoncé. Which future Subbacultcha show are you looking forward to? The Wastelands Festival this summer!
Tell us, what do you do in life? Daytime, I’m a dreamer and an aspiring graphic designer and copywriter. Nighttime, I’m a club kid and a heartbreaker. What inspires you? The internet, cool girls and books. What do you like best about your place? Back home in Norrköping, I live in the most amazing building, an old converted water tower. My outer wall is rounded and my flat is shaped like a pizza slice. It’s awesome. What kind of music are you listening to at the moment? Swedish R&B with loads of autotune. And Grimes’ latest album! Also always groovy Swedish house <3. Like HNNY, La Fleur, Genius of Time and Kornél Kovács. Any Swedish bands we should know about? You should check out AnnaMelina, 1987, and Little Jinder. What’s your favourite pastime? Making out. Cooking vegetarian food. Travelling. Dancing Lindy hop.
Every month we visit a Subbacultcha member’s place. If you want us to visit you, please send an email to magazine@ subbacultcha.be
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Interview
Aïsha Devi Descending from a Nepalese-Tibetan father and a Swiss mother, Aïsha Devi’s worldview has always straddled two cultural poles. Today, it is clear to her that modern society has taught us to preconceive the wrong ideas: one is lost without money, not winning means losing and success is happiness. She sees her bass and dance music-making process not only as meditation for herself but also as a way for her audience to reconnect with itself and to let go of these false ideas. We talked to Aïsha between Christmas and New Year, right before she was about to leave for her annual trip to India. That’s right, guys, we took our phone, dialed the +91 and organised a photoshoot in India.
Interview by Gerlin Heestermans Photos shot by Sameer Raichur, in Bangalore, India
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The Suavemente Issue
‘Music doesn’t just make me happy though, the way of processing it is very close to meditation. Making music is like opening another dimension’
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Aïsha Devi I haven’t packed a single thing [Laughs]. I really feel at home in India. I like to go there once a year to reconnect with the Asian state of mind and metaphysics. I started meditation six years ago, became a vegetarian and all that stuff. When you do something to change your way of living you start doing one thing and then another one just follows. Your brain is changing, and your way of living quickly follows. With meditation I also had this life-changing experience in the Touareg desert. My mother is married to a Touareg and I went to the Sahara with them. I had such a fantastic experience there. I knew instantly that I had nothing to do with Europe. I work in Europe and I observe it, but I don’t belong here. I still live here because of my eightyear-old daughter who goes to school and has been growing up in Switzerland. If it wasn’t for that I would’ve moved to India or South America long ago. I think Europe is collapsing. If you look at France now, it’s a nightmare. It’s chaos, which is good, because it anticipates change. You never reach huge change without chaos and sacrifice but people have to start changing. The definition of happiness is totally wrong in Western civilisation. I believe capitalism is coming to an end. I’m kind of afraid of the future. I’m not, because we have many more resources than capitalist society lets us believe. They make us believe that we are lost if we don’t have money, we’re losers if we don’t win enough and that success is happiness. People are so frustrated – you can feel it everywhere. I can feel the energy of change though. All around me people are dropping everything they wanted before. I’ve always been a utopian, but now you can just see that the current system doesn’t work. Does music bring you happiness? I felt crippled in the world from a young age and it was my only form of
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Aïsha Devi expression. When you’re a kid and you’re very angry, you have a lot of energy inside you, and when you sing, that anger is transformed into something like [sings loudly]. Music doesn’t just make me happy though, the way of processing it is very close to meditation. Making music is like opening another dimension. I can do that through both meditation and music. When I play live I try to open the fifth dimension and stimulate all the senses. I think raving together in a collective place with music can be a spiritual moment. I want to be as close as possible to something where people connect with their primordial feeling. It’s our only way of finding a collective ritual. Does it always work live? For me personally, almost always. Going into a trance is going back to that ancestral connection we have with our environment and energy. When you say about someone, ‘They have such a good vibe!’, that ‘vibe’ comes from vibration. Sound and music is a vibration and the way you play it has an impact on your body and your brain. We forgot why we use this expression. We used to know that everyone had a vibration, that words, objects, living beings – everything – had vibrations. When you meditate, the ideas elevate your vibration. When I’m playing music, and we’re in a collective trance, the vibration is uprising and connects the audience with a transcendental feeling. It’s a new era of consciousness and you can feel it, it’s all around. More and more people are becoming vegetarian, living in and focusing on communities and so on. More and more, we will understand that our neighbours’ happiness is also our happiness. And everyone will feel better. Aïsha Devi plays Suavemente at Vooruit, Ghent on 04 March. The show is free for Subbacultcha members.
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The Suavemente Issue
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Photo Essay
SKY H1
by Tina Herbots SKY H1 is the newest addition to the ever-fascinating Belgian electronic scene. Her melancholic and atmospheric synths caught the attention of hype label Creamcake, which took her under its wing last December to release a threetrack EP entitled Fluid. By collaborating with the Berlin-based label, she joins the collective uniting some of the most progressive and modern internet talents out there (think: Kamixlo, Hiele, Arca, Yung Lean). It was therefore of the utmost urgency that we took the young producer out in the now-freezing streets of Brussels to capture this event in space and time. soundcloud.com/sky_h1 Photos shot by Tina Herbots, in Brussels, Belgium
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The Suavemente Issue
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Photo Essay: SKY H1
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Photo Essay: SKY H1
SKY H1 plays HE4RTBROKEN at Universal Club, Brussels on 12 February & Suavemente at Vooruit, Ghent on 04 March. The shows are free for Subbacultcha members.
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The Suavemente Issue
Scene Report Buenos Aires
Words by Karly Salama Photos shot in Buenos Aires, Argentina by Karly Salama
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Scene Report — Buenos Aires Always been curious about the music scene in other cities outside your own little cocoon? We assumed you were! So we feed your hunger for insights and secrets in the Scene Report. A year ago, Karly, our Venezuelan correspondent, packed her bags and left Caracas to settle in Buenos Aires. She agreed to guide us through the local music scene as a way for her to explore and discover new hot spots and bands in the city of good winds. Almost two years ago, I was introduced to Buenos Aires for the first time. Its cultural offering, its magnitude, its people, the ease of getting around, the 24/7 options were enough to charm me and make me consider moving there. I’ve been living in Buenos Aires for a year now, and I have a lot of faith in this city. These are my impressions as a Venezuelan expat. There should be various chapters reporting the Buenos Aires scene, as this place spoils you with uncountable delights – among which my favourite one: music. There are endless places and events to immerse yourself in throughout the week. Depending on the day and area you go to, there are various music styles and places to choose from. Niceto Club is an intimate venue that has held a lot of local and international shows. Every Tuesday, they have a night called ‘Martes Indiegentes’, a weekly showcase of the Argentinean indie scene, and some international artists. Stepping out of the doors of Niceto, you can easily find a lot of venues close by. If you’re up to doing something else the
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The Suavemente Issue
‘There’s something so sensual about the music fused with the dance that expresses such intense feelings’
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Scene Report — Buenos Aires
same night, all of these are just a block or two away: The Roxy, Makena, Vielma Café and the fantastic Thelonius jazz club. El Emergente, Vuela El Pez, Ladran Sancho and Naranja Verde are bars, clubs and warehouses that gather more of the local scene and that are worth the visit, not just for the music. Most of the places I’ve visited have a particularly characterful entrance, distinguished by old doors followed by narrow paths or winding staircases which have to be navigated to get to the heart of the venue. If you’re looking to buy records, head over to Mercurio. They have a considerable collection of albums, especially local stuff. The store is in a wonderful location on Av. Santa Fe, in the Galería Patio Del Liceo; an inner courtyard surrounded by designer boutiques, bars, cafés and stores. You can easily spend an entire afternoon there. Band-wise, check out Diosque, their latest LP Constante is great and promises a strong new album in the works. From record label Sadness Disco Group, D.I.E.T.R.I.C.H. and Bauer need your attention. Sobre-
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Scene Report — Buenos Aires nadar and Altocamet, which I have experienced live, are great bands to see if you have the opportunity. Mueran Humanos, now based in Berlin, are presenting their latest album, Miseress. Finally, my friends’ project Colisionador, a synth-pop duet, has new EP underway. Something not to be missed in Buenos Aires is a milonga: people dancing tango. There’s something so sensual about the music fused with the dance that expresses such intense feelings, that one can’t look away. There’s a particular old place called La Catedral Club, which used to be a dairy factory and is now converted into a wooden dance floor with a huge ceiling decorated with paintings and surrounded by tables and chairs, for the public to enjoy a drink. If you want and are brave enough, you can take lessons for a fair price. It’s not easy, but fun to experience and get a sense of what it’s about. Very frequently, there are big tango festivals in the city, which you simply can’t miss. San Telmo, the oldest barrio of Buenos Aires, is a blissful place to visit with so much to offer, and has a unique kind of vibe. You can grab a drink and listen to great music at Kirie Music Club, Debar and La Puerta Roja. It’s very common to go there after work, to break routine and extend the day with a more enjoyable end. Frameless Events has been offering a series of house parties across the city. It brings a diversity of people together to experience a different kind of party. Every time it’s a different house or area, a breath of fresh air, with invited DJs and great options for food and drinks. Buenos Aires is humongous and Essentials has plenty to offer, there is just too Venues: Niceto Club, Club Culmuch to gather in a short essay. tural Matienzo, La Trastienda, Writing this report has left me with The Roxy, Konex, Groove a hunger and encouragement to Bands: Diosque, D.I.E.T.R.I.C.H., explore and enjoy this melting-pot Bauer, Sobrenadar, Altocamet, city further. Mueran Humanos, Colisionador
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Featured Artist
Elias Smekens
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Elias Smekens
Former KASK student Elias Smekens is chiefly inspired by the concept of the paracosm: a detailed imaginary world created inside oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mind. This fantasy world involves tangent, existent things, but can also contain entities that are entirely imaginary, alien and otherworldly. From this a flow of different worlds, situations, forms and structures originates, which is combined with elements of the occult, fashion, sci-fi, human anatomy, cosmos, sex, geography and history, expressed through video, photography, illustration, sculpture and installations â&#x20AC;&#x201C; or all of the above. eliassaileeliassaile.tumblr.com
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Featured Artist
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Elias Smekens
Selected & approved by Subbacultcha
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Style Photos & styling by Femke Fredrix
Fire Walk With Me 38
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Styling/photos: Femke Fredrix Model: Valerija Kaufmann Make-up: Elinor Ta’amneh Clothing: Stylist’s own Thank yous: KITTY and Jannik Schneider
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Books Text by Gabriela Gonzalez. Artwork by Dieter Durinck
k7 by Dieter Durinck Like the foam of an allegorical Nineties wave, DIY books and zines are constantly washing up around your feet, catching you by surprise with a presence that’s both ephemeral and persistent. Their makers tend to embody this fact through their boldness and timidity, their inventiveness and orthodoxy, their familiarity and their reclusiveness. Through Social Harmony, Dieter Durinck & co have time and again proven to be well acquainted with this strange balance, integrating their visual identity and ethos into the annals of zinedom and beyond. A latest example is k7, a compendium of imagery ripped from Arabic tapes, Xeroxed (natch) on yellowed paper and sealed in a bubblegum pink plastic baggy. No information is given about the nature and provenance of the images, and content overrides context in an absolute yet non committal way: young musicians beam from a glowing background; seasoned singers motion from behind a studio mic; label logos symbolising the Atlas Mountains, passages from the Koran, Nubian glory and a myriad manifestations of the sun are peppered throughout. Special accent is placed on typography and graphic design, highlighting the disparate yet convergent aesthetic visions between a supposed ‘us’ and ‘them’, that point where you almost can’t tell if an image is from another place or from another time, or both. Collected from Durinck’s personal music stash, it’s easy to imagine the tunes that could emanate from the flashing script, the puckered lips, the portable keyboards and different manifestations of facial hair. Something unintelligible and fleeting, but evocative and atmospheric nonetheless.
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Films by Sabzian
Letter to Harmony Korine
Undoubtedly, Harmony Korine’s 2012 film Spring Breakers was the year’s pièce de résistance. Both loathed and applauded for its extreme sensualism, its shameless blending of high and low, the film remains a contentious case for contemporary film critics. Following up on a recent revision of the film, Sabzian contributors Anton Jaeger and Gerard-Jan Claes wrote an open letter to Korine, putting forward questions and thoughts on the film’s artistic legacy. We consider Spring Breakers to be an aesthetic provocation, questioning both contemporary cinematography and the deceitfulness of the image in our epoch; a cluster of concepts that, for us, hints at a crucial problem confronting contemporary cinema. To read ‘Letter to Harmony Korine’, our selection of Cornelis’ work and many more articles on cinema, go to sabzian.be
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Films Jef Cornelis Retrospective â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 30/1-29/02
Inside the White Tube is the title of the retrospective exhibition of Belgian film and television director Jef Cornelis, which opens at the end of January in Argos, Brussels. Cornelis worked as executor, director and scriptwriter for the VRT, the Dutch-language Belgian public broadcasting corporation from 1963 until 1998. Over those 35 years, Cornelis accomplished an impressive body of work. It comprises over 200 titles and is generally considered ground-breaking, both artistically and cultural-historically. In his essayistic television films he focuses on visual art, architecture and urbanism, following his desire to create and maintain a space for these subjects within the public sphere in Flanders. Throughout his career, Cornelis has tried to achieve this in various ways, ever challenging the set of laws of making television. Along with the exhibition, Cinematek presents a two-month film programme of Cornelisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work. Check out our selection at sabzian.be. Sabzian is a collection of online reflections on cinema and maps cinephile events in Belgium and its surroundings. Articles are written in Dutch, English and French.
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Subbacultcha Events. Free for members Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
Film: Eau Zoo
landscapes beaten by the wind, the movie flirts with a certain anticipation cinema, proves to be a Shakespearean drama and becomes a captivating, peculiar tale.
02 October - Cinema Zuid, Antwerp 18.00 | €5 | Free for members Emilie Verhamme is a promising young director. Her first full-length
Things to do this month — February 2016
was screened at several movie festivals. Lou and Martin are adolescents living on an island with their overprotective parents, trying to escape. Against a backdrop of
Music, art and film 47
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CONCERTEN AGENDA
Free for members us 19.02Subbacultcha GUN OUTFITEvents. 20.02OnEMPRESS OF uspages you’ll find all of this the following us month’s Subbacultcha events. You can buy a ticket 21.02 LNZNDRF at the door or become a Subbacultcha member us 21.02andCAR SEAT enter for HEADREST free. Join at subbacultcha.be 27.02 JAAKKO EINO KALEVI fi 05.03 SEINABO SEY se 08.03 !!! us 18.03 RÜFÜS au 20.03 ALESSIA CARA ca 01.04 ANIMAL COLLECTIVE us + GFOTY gb 07.04 THE BESNARD LAKES ca 09.04 GIANT SAND & JASON LYTLE us 09.04 CHOIR OF YOUNG BELIEVERS dk 13.04 ADMIRAL FREEBEE be+ VISMETS be 13.04 STEREO TOTAL de
Subbacultcha Events. Free for members Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
On the following pages you’ll find all of this month’s Subbacultcha events. You can buy a ticket at the door or become a Subbacultcha member and enter for free. Join at subbacultcha.be
Expo: Inside the White Tube. A Retrospective View on the Television Work of Jef Cornelis
Le1f
31 Jan-27 Mar - Argos, Brussels 11.00 I €5 I Free for members Narrating the story of Jeff Cornelis’s work is not solely coming back to the professional journey of a man; it is first and foremost embracing the evolutive process of Belgian television from one individual’s perspective. As head of the arts division of BRT Television in Flanders (formerly VRT – Flanders’ main public television channel) between 1963 and 1998, Jeff Cornelis helped shape arts and culture through his unique and groundbreaking stylistic approach to the medium. This exhibition consists of selected pieces of Cornelis’s work that communicate the visionary aspect of the project of a lifetime.
02 February - Botanique, Brussels 19.30 I €17 I Free for members Out-and-proud gay rapper Khalif Diouf a.k.a. Le1f is one of those rare true-meaning-of-the-word innovators. Creating refreshing, socially enlightened hip-hop sprung from the roots of the early-’90s drag and ball culture, Manhattan native Le1f in a Wesleyan graduate in ballet and modern dance and has established himself as a transcendental fashion icon.
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Subbacultcha Events. Free for members Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
Film: Revenge of the Hard Egg
rectors such as Toshio Matsumoto and Takashi Ito created a variety of work that twisted and mutated the moving image in ways that had never been seen before. These filmmakers often butted heads with the government, which is why many of their films remain obscure and unrecognised to this day. Luckily the incredible curators at Between the Frames have gathered a rare collection of cinematic works that encapsulate some of the most riveting and unique minds in Japanese cinema. The films will all be screened on rare 16mm prints on 08 February.
03 + 10 Feb - KASK Cinema, Ghent 20.30 I €5 I Free for members With such a blunt and non-metaphorical title, Revenge of the Hard Egg already deserves a respectful smile. This Hungarian animated movie – halfway between a pastiche of movie standards and a darkly humorous, introspective contemplation of our current era – centres on two prisoners who plan on taking revenge after spending two weeks in jail for a crime they did not commit. In his fast-paced story, director Zoltán Miklósy presents a society whose citizens are actual hard-boiled eggs. It’s an artistic choice that definitely pays off.
Party: HE4RTBROKEN ft. Malibu + SKY H1, Ssaliva + more 12 Feb - Universal Club, Brussels 22.00 I €7 I Free for members
Film: Between the Frames
Two days before Valentine’s Day, Brussels will be heartbroken for the fourth time. For this Valentine’s edition, the H4BKN team, Liyo and Steff, have cooked up a line-up that promises to be cute and wild. SKY H1, who released her
08 February - OFFoff, Ghent 20.00 I €5 I Free for members During the late ’70s and early ’80s, the avant-garde cinema scene in Japan was at its peak. Seminal di-
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Subbacultcha Events. Free for members Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
latest effort, Fluid, on Berlin label Creamcake, will team up with Malibu to get you disoriented with sincere and melancholic synthinfused electronics. On the other side, Neverland, the product of Ssaliva (Cupp Cave) will join forces with Munix (Folies Douce) to throw heavy beat drops to wipe those teardrops away.
keep the machinery of rock going, the American ternary formation doesn't need to beat around the bush when it comes to making lively tracks. The trio brings back each instrument to its origins: a cracking-clear lead/rhythm guitar, a deep autonomous bass and vigorous drums. The evening will first be initiated by Mozes and the Firstborn, a band based both in Eindhoven and Antwerp whose psychedelic garage rock augurs a bustling live experience.
together PANGEA + Mozes and the Firstborn
Marching Church
18 Feb - w/Charnier - Het Bos, Antwerp 20.00 I €13 I Free for members 19 Feb - w/ Onmens - De Kreun, Kortrijk 20.00 I €15 I Free for members 13 Feb - Madame Moustache, Brussels 20.00 I €10 I Free for members
When Elias B Rønnenfelt said that he wanted ‘to create something that sounded half asleep and like it was being dragged across the ground (or smoldering in a bonfire) in order to keep on playing’, he probably never expected to hit the bullseye with his side project, Marching Church. Based on
Just like the supercontinent their name refers to, Californian band together PANGEA's music seems to have originated at the beginning of time. Assembling all the gears that
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Subbacultcha Events. Free for members
EEN GREEP UIT ONS CONCERTAANBOD Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
VR 12.02
LUCA MS20 ORCHESTRA / FELIX KUBIN A Choir of Wires
Een ode aan de Korg MS20 door cultcomponist Felix Kubin en 20 LUCA-studenten - ism LUCA School of Arts & Turnlab
VR 26.02 GRATIS
BLACK DEVIL DISCO CLUB / GWENNO / MUSIC MANIA DJ’S
Franse tijdloze Italo disco + melodieuze electropop uit Wales
VR 04.03
VOORUIT & SUBBACULTCHA PRESENT: Suavemente
Passionele tunes door Kamixlo, Aïsha Devi, DJ Marfox, Coco Haram & Sky H1
DO 17.03
VOORUIT & CONSOULING SOUNDS PRESENT: Jozef Van Wissem, CHVE & Monnik Gentse labelnight vol bezwerende avant-folk en introspectieve drone INFO & TICKETS:
WWW.VOORUIT.BE - T. 09 267 28 28
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Subbacultcha Events. Free for members Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
Live Fast Die Young x Beursschouwburg
some half-thought-out ideas and sketches, the band’s experimental music sounds raw and expressive, with a lead singer who appears to be releasing the agony of his very existence. Listen to the tunes of their debut, This World is Not Enough, and you’ll discover a band that leaves you ‘hungry, hungry, hungry’ for more.
19 Feb - Beursschouwburg, Brussels 20.00 I €5 I Free for members If you read last month’s issue, you might remember we interviewed Youff, and they mentioned Live Fast Die Young, the Ghent-based booking agency that has played a major role in the band’s evolution. For one night only, LFDY will take over Beursschouwburg and bring a roster of six northern Belgium bands: Rumours, Crowd Of Chairs, MAZE, Youff (woohoo!), 30,000 Monkies and MOVOCO. When selecting bands, the guys at LFDY always ensure they all share the same ethos: do it loud. Earplugs should be considered.
Artefact Festival
Samuel Kerridge presents Fatal Light Attraction + Shapednoise + Kiss The Anus of a Black Cat 19 February - STUK, Leuven 20.00 I €16 I Free for members This year’s Artefact festival will be about all aspects of the airspace, especially with Samuel Kerridge. The Berlin-based artist will perform his recently released project Fatal Light Attraction; a noise adventure guided in real time by a live coding system and a source of intense light surrounding the Mancunian performer. Kerridge shares the line-up with 10-year old neofolk band Kiss The Anus of a Black Cat and italian noisetechno artist Shapednoise.
The Scrap Dealers
20 Feb - Mad Café (JauneOrange), Liège 20.00 I €7 I Free for members Had the psychedelic souls of shoegaze pioneers ever shown their ferocious side, the result would-
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have been very close to what Liège-based band The Scrap Dealers offers with its ‘Glam bien carré’. Lead by glamorously arrogant vocals, the Belgian quintet delivers rough performances where groovy, crunchy bass lines, hammered drums and hybrid guitar interventions intertwine. The noise that emerges from this combination is spread across genres and tastes, flattering all musical egos. The event is brought to you by our favourite curator, Jaune Orange, and yours truly.
her video clips (writing lyrics on postcards or simply eating a watermelon) – which isn’t especially surprising, given that she named her debut album Me. If you need convincing further, Bjork, one of her very first fans, will probably tell you that you’re missing out if you don’t check her out.
Dance: Kinshasa Electric
Empress Of
20 Feb - Botanique, Brussels 19.30 I €18 I Free for members Curly Honduran-American Lorely Rodriguez started her Empress Of project with the ‘Colorminutes’ series: 15 super-short episodes of musical delight. Today she has grown into a light psychedelic pop artist with such characterful feelings in her lyrics, they could almost be short poems or a collection of fragmented diary entries put together. Rodriguez also incorporates a lot of her own persona into
25-27 Feb - KVS, Brussels 20.30 I €17 I Free for members Feel like watching some booty shake this month? Then KVS might have something for you: a dancing show representing the mishmash
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Subbacultcha Events. Free for members Sign up for €8 per month at subbacultcha.be
Film: Rams
that is African club culture. Four dancers, one DJ and choreographer Ula Sickle present a colourful performance that narrates the stories of individual voices and identities that come together through cultural dancing movements. Focusing on unity in the midst of diversity, Kinshasa Electric celebrates beauty in multiculturalism.
26 Feb - Cinema Zuid, Antwerp 18.00 I €5 I Free for members Premiered at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard category where it won the top prize, Grímur Hákonarson-directed Icelandic drama Rams has since been collecting international awards upon critical acclaim. The movie focuses on two brothers who have burned their bridges with each other for 40 years and who decide to join forces in a desperate attempt to save their flock of sheep. Rams depicts the intricacy of brotherly bonds and shows how they grow tighter in the most uncommon circumstances.
Whitney
25 Feb - Trefpunt (Democrazy), Ghent 20.00 I €10 I Free for members Already anticipating those heavy February winter blues, former Smith Western band members Max Kakacek and Julian Ehrlich decided it was time to take us back to late ‘southern night’ drives. With warm guitars and a high-pitched voice, Whitney makes the perfect music for dancing around barefoot ‘on a night when the moon is low’, and that might be exactly what we need right now. Though their debut song was called ‘No Matter Where We Go’, this concert might be the one place this month you should most definitely be going.
Film: Chick Strand
29 Feb - OFFoff, Ghent 20.00 I €5 I Free for members New York’s Museum of Modern Art. The Tate in London. These are just a few places where the prolific Chick Strands’ films have been screened. Her combination of world music and juxtaposition of documentary footage and original
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Kamixlo
visuals creates a unique viewing experience. Strand’s films have been obscured by time, and are generally hard to find through your local streaming service. Fortunately, the folks over at OFFoff have compiled a fantastic collection of her works, representing decades worth of her films. Whether you’re a cineaste or a casual moviegoer, Strand’s personal and surrealistic films will leave a lasting impression long after you’ve left the theatre.
A Latin-American producer based in London, Kamixlo has been putting out his own tracks as well as edits for a while now. He is featured on Blaze Kidd’s mixtape and has been a part of venue-changing South London party, Endless. The party incubates London’s most exciting new producers, with the likes of Lexxi, Shanti and Kamixlo cocking a snook at genre barriers. Demonico is his first full release, and promises to ‘combine influences of reggaeton and bachata with punishing crunch and spat percussion’.
Suavemente
04 Mar - Vooruit, Ghent 20.00 I €13 I Free for members ‘Suavemente’ means soft, subtle, loving or smooth; all sensual and danceable music. Suavemente also has an exotic undertone, referring to various genres like cumbia, R&B, reggaeton, kuduro, hip hop – in fact, all music that radiates passion, the fire in all of you.
— Aïsha Devi
Subbacultcha Belgium and Vooruit present Suavemente, a gathering for passionate and sensual music, featuring Kamixlo, Aïsha Devi, DJ Marfox, Coco Haram and Sky H1.
Besides founding her Swissbased imprint Danse Noire, which releases leftfield electronic music
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such as IVVVO and Vaghe Stelle, Devi’s latest solo productions are further testament of her personal evolution. Devi’s reconnection with her origins meant a newly formed approach to music production under her birth name. Of Matter And Spirit, her debut LP, tackles dense subjects, confronting metaphysical constructs as well as political ones. Using sound and vibrations to create a sense of healing and awareness, Devi’s production dilutes and skews traditional formats.
sic scene. The search for a name to capture this frantic mix of high-tempo African dance music, techno and trance, mainly made with early ’00s software FruityLoops, continues. But it might just be the new grime, and 26-year-old DJ Marfox is undoubtedly one of its masters. His recent Lit City Trax Lucky Punch EP is pretty waist-winding. When in Lisbon, experience the trance at the monthly Noite Príncipe.
—
Coco Haram
DJ Marfox
Coco Haram is Antwerp duo Jonas de Houwer and Gavin Vanaelst (Kassett), who call their music ‘emotional electronica’.
—
— Sky H1 Sky H1 just released her new Fluid EP on the Berlin Creamcake label – pretty prestigious for a Belgian act. According to M.E.W., Chantal produces disorientating, strawberry-sweet electronics.
The neighbourhoods in the outskirts of Lisbon are not only home to social housing, but also to Europe’s most thrilling new mu-
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AT
TRAVELING ART FESTIVAL
near Brussels-South station
full agenda on www.kultuurkaffee.be
BAI
CURATED BY JOHANNES VERSCHAEVE _THE VAN JETS
w/ Jan De Cock, Friends Are Magic, Stijn Meuris, Glints, Faces On TV, Jeroen De Pessemier, Jef Verbeeck, Dirk Hendrickx, Joost Vandecasteele, Bismuth, The Van Jets (acoustic) and many more...
18_2 - 25_3_2016
THE BRUSSELS ART_INSTITUTE
AUGUST GEVAERTSTRAAT 15_22_24 _1070 BRUSSEL Bohren & Der Club Of Gore DE
Met de steun van de
beursschouwburg .be
Hangman’s Chair FR + Hemelbestormer BE
[PIAS] NITES: Témé Tan BE + Few Bits BE
Th 03.03
We 18.05
KRAAK FESTIVAL
26–28.02
The KVB UK + Dear Deer FR
Live Fast Die Young Showcase with Crowd of Chairs, Maze, Youff, 30.000 Monkies, Rumours & Movoco
Fr 19.02
Fr 22.04
Baio US + Moonlight Matters BE
Th 18.02
Tu 12.04
Sango US + SPZRKT US
We 17.02
Jazzeux 2016: Curated by LEFTO & Lander Gyselinck
Origami Classics: 4 saxos, 1 piano, 1 painter
Su 14.02
08 - 09.04
I/O with Synkro UK + Illum Sphere UK/DE + Palsembleu BE + Shades BE
Sa 13.02
[PIAS] NITES: M o n e y UK + FEWS SE/US
Damien Dubrovnik DK + Cremation Lily UK
Fr 12.02
Vök IS + Sonøren BE
Black Box V: DRIFT BE
Mo 08.02
Tu 15.03
NOSE JOB with Syracuse FR & Mittland och Leo
Sa 06.02
Fr 04.03
Stikstof + Roméo Elvis
Fr 05.02
Agenda — February Music: together PANGEA + Mozes and The Firstborn 12 February - Het Bos, Antwerp It’s a Burgers Records powwow at Het Bos, with garage rockers together PANGEA rollin’ it with Dutch counterparts Mozes and the Firstborn.
about ‘facts, freaks and fun’. The shoegazers of Steeple Removers and krautrockers of The Loved Drones fit that description. Music: Stellar Swamp 2016 19-20 February - Magasin 4 & Atelier 210, Brussels Let your freak flag fly at Stellar Swamp. The festival brings together psychedelic bands from across the world, such as The Oscillation and Night Beats.
Music: Damien Dubrovnik + Cremation Lily 12 February - Beursschouwburg, Brussels With bands such as Iceage and Communions under their wings, Posh Isolation owners Stadsgaard and Rahbek aim to outdo their disciples in making noise.
Music - Shetahr/Organic 25 February - Café Central, Brussels Organic is good for you, for the planet and also a post-new wave band.The trash pop of Shetahr is served on the side.
Music: De Neus’ Grote Friemel Partij 13 February - In De Ruimte, Ghent The slightly erotic name may be suggestive, but the only thing that will get tickled are your eardrums. Fidgeters are Köhn and Mathieu Serruys.
Music: KRAAK festival 26 February - Beursschouwburg, Brussels What’s even more underground than Subbacultcha? It’s KRAAK, bringing the 18th edition of its festival to the Beursschouwburg. Lineup includes Hermann Nitsch and Mark Fell.
Music: Youth Lagoon + Mild High Club 14 February - Trix, Antwerp Youth Lagoon’s Trevor Powers turns to the outside world on his new album, Savage Hills Bathroom. Mild High Club delivers more psychedelica.
Music: Hinds 28 February - AB, Brussels Probably the most fun girl group since the Spice Girls, Hinds bring ramshackle pop songs with crooked harmonies that make you dance.
Music: Gonzaï Night Brussels with Steeple Remove + The Loved Drones 18 February - Madame Moustache, Brussels Gonzaï is a magazine that is all
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Introduce your friends to bands at first hand.
Join the #subbafam at www.subbacultcha.be
AT
BAI
TRAVELING ART FESTIVAL
CURATED BY JOHANNES VERSCHAEVE _THE VAN JETS w/ Jan De Cock, Friends Are Magic, Stijn Meuris, Glints, Faces On TV, Jeroen De Pessemier, Jef Verbeeck, Dirk Hendrickx, Joost Vandecasteele, Bismuth, The Van Jets (acoustic) and many more...
18_2 - 25_3_2016 THE BRUSSELS ART_INSTITUTE
AUGUST GEVAERTSTRAAT 15_22_24 _1070 BRUSSEL near Brussels-South station
full agenda on www.kultuurkaffee.be
Agenda — Focus by Julien Van de Casteele & Gabriela Gonzalez
Artefact Artefact is the annual arts meeting in Leuven centred around contemporary visual culture, current events and societal challenges. The festival, this year themed ‘Up in the Air’, questions how poetic, political and economic parametres guide our relationship with airspace. Each year, it also includes a music component. These are our picks for the opening night and the 3-day festival. 09, 18—21 February - STUK, Leuven 09 February - Opening night Line-up: Lorenzo Senni - AAT + Hiele + Hantrax Our pick: Lorenzo Senni - AAT Senni is back for a Belgian premiere of his new piece entitled AAT, short for ‘Advanced Abstract Trance’. AAT is a 36-minute and 48-second audio piece assembling ‘breakdowns, falling basses, flattened pre-build-up states and non-uplifting musical regions in trance, hard trance, hardstyle and hardcore’. Yeah?
ridge - Fatal Light Attraction + Kiss the Anus of a Black Cat Our pick: Samuel Kerridge - Fatal Light Attraction Berlin-based artist Samuel Kerridge will set foot in STUK for the duration of an evening to perform his recently released effort Fatal Light Attraction.The seven-track LP is a noise adventure guided by a live coding system and a source of intense light surrounding the Mancunian performer. 21 February - Day 3 Line-up: William Basinski + John Bence + Amatorski + Christina Vantzou + Ansatz Der Maschine + Rafael Anton Irisarri Our pick: Christina Vantzou Hailing from Kansas and based in Brussels, artist and musician Christina Vantzou creates hypnotic, meticulously crafted compositions through modular synthesizers and orchestral arrangements. A meditative, immersive experience.
18 February - Day 1 Line-up: Powell + Fis + SAGAT + Kassett + Filosofischestilte + Nosedrip Our pick: SAGAT A mysterious shape-shifter whose tunes are as elusive and murky as their maker. Expect slow-burning techno heard from within the confines of a concrete dystopia. 19 February - Day 2 Line-up: Shapednoise + Samuel Ker-
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Subbacultcha Events in February See all these shows for free. Join at subbacultcha.be
Expo: Inside the White Tube.
31 Jan-27 Mar Argos, Brussels 11.00 I €5 I Free for members
Le1f
02 Feb Botanique, Brussels 19.30 I €17 I Free for members
Film: Revenge of the Hard Egg
03 + 10 Feb KASK Cinema, Ghent 20.30 I €5 I Free for members
Film: Between the Frames
08 Feb OFFoff, Ghent 20.00 I €7 I Free for members
Party: HE4RTBROKEN
12 Feb Universal Club, Brussels 22.00 I €7 I Free for members
together PANGEA + Mozes and the Firstborn
13 Feb Madame Moustache, Brussels 20.00 I €10 I Free for members
Marching Church Empress Of 20 Feb + Charnier Botanique, Brussels 18 Feb Het Bos, Antwerp 20.00 I €13 I Free for members
Festival: Artefact
Samuel Kerridge presents Fatal Light Attraction + Shapednoise + Kiss The Anus of a Black Cat 19 Feb STUK, Leuven 20.00 I €16 I Free for members
Marching Church + Onmens 19 Feb De Kreun, Kortrijk 20.00 I €15 I Free for members
Live Fast Die Young x Beursschouwburg
19 Feb Beursschouwburg, Brussels 20.00 I 5€ I Free for members
The Scrap Dealers
20 Feb Mad Café (JauneOrange), Liège 20.00 I €7 I Free for members
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19.30 I €18 I Free for members
Dance: Kinshasa Electric
25-27 Feb KVS, Brussels 20.30 I €17 I Free for members
Whitney
25 Feb Trefpunt (Democrazy), Ghent 20.00 I €10 I Free for members
Film: Rams
26 Feb Cinema Zuid, Antwerp 18.00 I €5 I Free for members
Film: Chick Strand
29 Feb OFFoff, Ghent 20.00 I €7 I Free for members
Suavemente 04 Mar Vooruit, Ghent 20.00 I €13 I Free for members
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