Subbacultcha Belgium - Feb 2017

Clean and Heavy February 1 2017

2

s u b b a c u l t c h a e v e n t s in February All events are free for members. Join at subbacultcha.be

music

film

3

Toad + Ignatz & De Stervende Honden

3

Born In Flames

Le Vecteur, Charleroi

4

Yersinia Pestis + Aymeric de Tapol

5

Because We Are Visual + Grands Travaux

5

Deerhoof

Vooruit (Democrazy), Ghent

8

Tommy Genesis

Beursschouwburg, Brussels

17

Stellar Swamp

Eden, Charleroi

17

Mercurial George + Dana Michel

Campo, Ghent

STUK, Leuven

expo

Botanique, Brussels

until STEP UP!: Belgian Dance 19 Mar. and Performance on

Camera 1970-2000

Argos, Brussels

Vooruit, Ghent

23 Cosmonauts Madame Moustache, Brussels

25 Feb. Marthe WĂŠry -23 Jul. BPS22, Charleroi

23 Robbing Millions + Glass Museum

KulturA (JauneOrange), Liège 26 Tropic Of Cancer

8

KVS, Brussels

23 Ah! Oh! A Contemporary Ritual

Handelsbeurs, Ghent

23 Hexa + MIAUX

Odysseus (part 2)

19 Nadia Reid

Cinema Zuid, Antwerp

3

18 Peter Broderick

Hell Or High Water

theatre/dance

18 Mei Tahat +

Terrence Grindrocket

Juenglingshaus (Meakusma), Eupen

Het Bos (De Imagerie), Antwerp

15 & Naked Lunch 22 KASK Cinema, Ghent

In De Ruimte (KRAAK), Ghent

Cinematek, Brussels

Het Bos, Antwerp

3

This publication was printed by

GEWA DRUPO Drukkerij GEWADRUPO Hoge Mauw 130 — gewa.be 4

intro

Clean and Heavy Some folks spend January doing the whole renewal thing, with dropless days, clean habits and a polished sense of purpose, incarnating the ‘be the best you that you can be’ ethos.

Some of us stay in the party loop, forfeiting resolutions and turning denial into a dogma.

But come February you see that between good intentions and complete abandonment is a thin wire, suspended over the metaphorical void of the rest of the year. We’re indeed expert funambulists, traipsing blindfolded from one end to the other and meeting fellow tightrope walkers along the way. To tread that line is to simultaneously get clean and stay heavy.

5

Michael De Cock Patrick Lateur 24>25.03.2017 marathon  KVS

02 > 04.02.2017 première  KVS

EEN ZWERVER KOMT THUIS



Rashif El Kaoui Valentijn Dhaenens Bruno Vanden Broecke Lisbeth Gruwez …

WWW.KVS.BE

6

V.U. Merlijn Erbuer - Arduinkaai 7 - 1000 Brussel - © Gaëtan Chekaiban

content

clean and heavy

subbacultcha events 9—19 Cosmonauts 20—25 Nadia Reid 26—29 we visit Charleroi 30—35 film 36—39 artist 40—45 style 46—49 book 50—51 recent finds 53—59 we visit you 60—61

7

MR. SCRUFF: ALL NIGHT LONG 13.01 - VOORUIT

AVEC LE SOLEIL SORTANT DE SA BOUCHE 11.03 - TREFPUNT

LEROY SANCHEZ 18.01 - CHARLATAN

THE BLACK HEART PROCESSION PLAYS "1" + Sam Coomes (Quasi) 16.03 - HANDELSBEURS

RAE SREMMURD: SREMMLIFE II TOUR 26.01 - VOORUIT

WITH CONFIDENCE, SAFE TO SAY, MILESTONES 17.03 - CHARLATAN

DEERHOOF + MANNGOLD (CD-VOORSTELLING) 05.02 - VOORUIT

EMMY THE GREAT 22.03 - TREFPUNT

STEVE MASON (SOLO ACOUSTIC) + Low Land Home 11.02 - CHARLATAN

ALL EYES ON HIP HOP ROMEO ELVIS & LE MOTEL + CABALLERO & JEANJASS 23.03 - VOORUIT

MEURIS: ‘TIRADE’ 13.02 - MINARD AMONGSTER + Wanthanee 14.02 - VOORUIT

SOPHIA 24.03 - HANDELSBEURS BLAUDZUN 26.03 - VOORUIT

THE NOTWIST + Pick A Piper 16.02 - VOORUIT

SWANS: FINAL CLUBSHOW! + Little Annie 30.03 - KOMPASS

ZIMMERMAN + DVKES 22.02 - VOORUIT

RECORD STORE DAY 22.04 - VOORUIT & MUSIC MANIA

MAURITS PAUWELS GROEP + Wardrobe 25.02 - MINARD

PROTOJE & THE INDIGGNATION + Nattali Rize 25.04 - VOORUIT

LEFTO & RED BULL ELEKTROPEDIA PRESENTS JONWAYNE 05.03 - VOORUIT

WAAR IS KEN 26.04 - CHARLATAN

GLITTERPAARD: THE SAD & BEAUTIFUL WORLD OF SPARKLEHORSE 06.03 - KASKCINEMA

OMAR SOULEYMAN 28.05 - VOORUIT

INFO & TICKETS: DEMOCRAZY.BE

8

subbacultcha events in February

music film theatre/dance expo

All events are free for members. Join at subbacultcha.be 9

Yersinia Pestis + Toad + Ignatz & Aymeric de Tapol De Stervende Honden music

4 Feb. – In De Ruimte (KRAAK), Ghent 20.30 – €5 – free for members

3 Feb. – Le Vecteur, Charleroi 20.00 – €4 – free for members Think bagpipes, violins and body percussion (with a twist) and Toad might just pop into the picture. Taking inspiration from the music of Auvergne and Limousin, this three-piece teeters on the line between traditional and experimental folk — and they’re ready to share the fruits of their labour after a residency at Le Vecteur. They will be joined by the enigmatic Ignatz, aka Belgian guitarist Bram Devens, and his backing band De Stervende Honden.

Gear up for a ghostly combination of bluesy ballads and sparse, wispy vocals.

Go underground and keep the 2017 celebrations ringing with KRAAK’s New Year’s Snifter. Supported by the artistic platform In De Ruimte, they’ve lined up two acts for your delight. First up is French artist Aymeric de Tapol.

From modular synth to found sound, and from talava to sound art, he’s not one to shy away from dappling in the diverse. Also joining the line-up is Yersinia Pestis, the self-dubbed ‘Death Wave’ band from Brussels. Their recent release is Sekhmet, a go-to for warped vocals and headbang-worthy beats.

#subbafam Introduce your friends & get your membership for free

10

Deerhoof

has gone straight into various forms of the arts, like poetry, painting and playing in local DIY bands. It wasn’t long before she was performing solo – or before her crude, organic performances had resulted in popular demand for more. Please meet the most provocative, inspirational underground rap empress: Tommy Genesis.

5 Feb. – Vooruit (Democrazy), Ghent 19.30 – €20 – free for members

Stellar Swamp

Satomi Matsuzaki and her boys have been around for a while, but it’s still impossible to adequately define their erratic musical style. Some call it ‘experimental indie’ while others prefer ‘noise pop’ or even ‘punk rock’. Best known for their unconventional song structures, the band never ceases to surprise. Tonight they’ll present their latest album, which was recorded in just seven days. Despite their dynamic history, the sound remains cohesive but versatile. Expect a surrealistic scene and a gazillion rhythm changes at maximum volume.

Fuzzy guitars and Satomi’s high vocals will lead to chaos more than once.

17 Feb. – Eden, Charleroi 21.00 – €13 – free for members Three years ago, a member of Moaning Cities organised the first festival dedicated to psychedelic music in Brussels. It was to take place over two days, with a first night at the warehouse of Magasin 4 and a second at theatre Atelier 210. For this third edition, the festival expands a little and adds a third date and venue to the schedule: Eden in Charleroi.

Scheduled two weeks ahead of the other dates (3 & 4 March), Eden welcomes four bands to Belgium’s foremost post-industrial city: Radar Men From The Moon (NL), Rats on Rafts (NL), Phoenician Drive (BE), DJ Nasty Bartender (BE). See you on the psych side!

Tommy Genesis

Mei Tahat + Terrence Grindrocket

8 Feb. – Beursschouwburg, Brussels 20.30 – €14 – free for members Not everyone’s got the guts to spit our verses that blend explicit sex acts with religion, but Tommy Genesis isn’t shy of speaking up without reservations. Much of her time spent in Canada’s Vancouver

11

18 Feb. – Juenglingshaus (Meakusma), Eupen, 20.00 – €10 – free for members

CONCERTS THU 16.02 THU 23.02

HYPOCHRISTMUTREEFUZZ Noise rock kamikazes from Ghent

free entrance CafEconcert Maak meer mee

HEXA WITH DAVID LYNCH’S ‘FACTORY PHOTOGRAPHS’ / MIAUX A sonic response to David Lynch’s photo’s of disused factories

WED 01.03

VOORUIT & GOUVERNEMENT PRESENT: ALEX ZHANG, DAVID MARANHA & GABRIEL FERRANDINI / REMÖRK

Ex Dirty Beaches goes no wave free jazz @Gouvernement in collaboration with Gouvernement

THU 09.03

OUTER LIMITS CLUB: REBEL UP! / GATO PRETO / IBAAKU / OCTA PUSH / AFTERPARTY Hyperkinetic afrofuturistic party in collaboration with Rebel Up!

SAT 01.04

THIS IS NOT THIS HEAT

The legendary postpunk band returns

INFO & TICKETS:

WWW.VOORUIT.BE - T. 09 267 28 28

12

Dayworld, the debut album of Ilya Ziblat Shay and Jordan Czamanski — aka Mei Tahat — is best approached with an open mind. Floating somewhere between electro and free jazz, they seek out musical limits, which results in various exotic-yet-digital bird and animal-like sounds. Following the examples of Sun Ra and Bill Dixon, Dayworld is a beautiful though nightmarish record full of sharp cello strokes and tonalities.

Peter Broderick

18 Feb. – Handelsbeurs, Ghent 20.15 – €18 – free for members Multi-instrumentalist Peter Broderick has been part of projects like Efterklang, has worked with artists like Nils Frahm and has numerous solo projects to his name. This all-round artist is now back on tour with his new album, Partners, which he released on the Erased Tapes label (see also: Olafur Arnalds, Nils Frahm, Kiasmos). And although his last album was more within the singer-songwriter genre, Partners sees Broderick re-entering a more instrumental phase. Inspired by John Cage’s In a Landscape, Broderick has put together an intriguing new record. Through

minimalistic compositions he displays a gripping sincerity, which will surely resonate long after the record ends.

Nadia Reid 19 Feb. – Botanique, Brussels 19.30 – €15 – free for members A flow of pitched vocals breathe warmth and tenderness, backed by unusually hooky and varied arrangements. Nadia Reid may sound like a pixie, but her narratives ain’t no fairy tales. Wrenching stories address hopeless relationships, from losing faith to post-heartbreak gravities. The fragile songwriting suits the grain of her voice, combining solemnity and intensity. Reid’s mettle to confront her audience with those personal lyrics, only supported by an acoustic guitar, should be envied. Melancholic stories and rich vocals will enlighten your mood whilst all worries and futile thoughts disappear in a hazy fog. See page 26 for more

Cosmonauts 23 Feb. – Madame Moustache, Brussels 20.00 – €8 – free for members If you need your monthly dose of garage and psychedelic fuzz rock, you know Subbacultcha has got your back. Burger Records act Cosmonauts released their new album, A-OK!, last year and are finally making their way over to Belgium.

See page 20 for more

13

Hexa + MIAUX 23 Feb. – Vooruit, Ghent 20.30 – €13 – free for members Never made it to Brisbane in 2015 to go see The Factory Photographs exhibition

by David Lynch? You get a (better) rematch on 23 February in Vooruit, Ghent.

HEXA, a project by Lawrence English (Room40) and Jamie Stewart (Xiu Xiu), have created an abstract and unique soundtrack for this photo collection and are performing it live. Go to Vooruit and get blown away — just don’t forget your earplugs. Dreamy support is from the ever-charming MIAUX, who hypnotizes and sets the mood for a wonderful evening.

Robbing Millions + Glass Museum

23 Feb. – KulturA (JauneOrange), Liège 20.00 – €7 – free for members

While our crazy friends from Robbing Millions don’t need another introduction, Glass Museum could be a hidden treasure for you. Undeniably part of the bandwagon comprising classical- and jazz-inspired contemporary bands such as BBNG or Go Go Penguin, the duo more than distinguish themselves with their instrumental frames that sometimes hint towards techno structures.

Positioned face to face, it seems they like to challenge each other live on stage. Alternating between moments of grace and powerful takes, they evoke twisted emotions like anger, grief and euphoria. Catharsis will surely follow.

Tropic of Cancer 26 Feb. – Het Bos, Antwerp 20.00 – €11 – free for members What began as a collaboration with her partner, Juan Mendez, has developed into the Tropic Of Cancer of today: the solo project of California native Camella Lobo. After debuting way back in 2009, she has become more visible and has taken ultimate control over the project.

Restless Idylls is her richest work to date: Lobo has taken her sensual synthpop to the next level, featuring intimate, soft-voiced love songs. Recommended to fans of Carla Del Forno.

14

Naked Lunch

film

Born In Flames

15 & 22 Feb. – KASKcinema, Ghent 22.30 – €5 – free for members

3 Feb. – Cinematek, Brussels 19.30 – €6 – free for members

Grab your pesticides and sharpen your minds: the hippest ‘90s bug flick is back in town. Taking an unfilmable ‘50s relic, remixing it and adding a dash of his own surrealistic imprint, David Cronenberg creates a visual descent down a rabbit hole of sex, drugs and pest control. Double-crossing double agents, shape-shifting typewriters and hip Beat generation lingo swirl together into an unforgettable experience that’s bound to leave you bugged out.

Lizzie Borden serves up an unsettling concoction of sci-fi and social documentary that’s a little too close for comfort. Exploring subjects such as racism, classism, sexism and alternate history, she creates a remarkably strong statement that feels as relevant today as it was upon its release back in 1983.

Because We Are Visual + Grand Travaux

High Or High Water

5 Feb. – Het Bos (De Imagerie), Antwerp 14.00 – €5 – free for members – (booking required) Set in the Anneessens-Funck Institute, a Brussels vocational school, Grands Travaux follows youngsters as they pick up the trades and skills that may one day steer their future. It’s a piercing social commentary and a meditative aesthetic exercise by KASK alumni and Sabzian honchos Olivia Rochette and Gerard-Jan Claes. Also screened is another film by the duo, Because We Are Visual, a glimpse into the lives of public video journalists. Admission is free for members but booking is required via memberships@subbacultcha.be

17 Feb. – Cinema Zuid, Antwerp 18.00 – €5 – free for members This solid neo-Western was one of 2016’s quiet achievements. The story of a man whose bad luck sees him teaming up with his ex-con brother in order to stage a series of heists that will save the family ranch and save them from destitution. The only thing in their way: an almost-retired Texas Ranger looking to save the day for the last time. Beautifully shot and superbly written, with great performances from Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, and Ben Foster.

15

Februari in het bos Ankerrui 5/7 Antwerpen

hetbos.be

Donderdag 2 februari, 18u Closet of Records: Dj MIA PRCE (Miaux) Donderdag 2 februari, 21u 10 jaar CAPSULE / Kartonnen Jubileum Zondag 5 februari, 12u EKSTER presents: ELKO B. LP Release Dinsdag 7 februari, 20u CHROME + Dj Svn Donderdag 9 februari, 18u Closet of Records: AUDIO.VISUALS.ATMOSPHERE. Tape Release Donderdag 9 februari, 20u WEDERGANGER + Djevel + Panchrysia Vrijdag 10, Za 11 & Zo 12 februari SCREENSHAKE 2017 International Indie Game Festival Zondag 12 februari, 20u FRED & TOODY (Dead Moon) + Top Down Maandag 13 februari, 20u WOLF PEOPLE + Dj Jay Petrol

Donderdag 16 februari, 20u Closet of Records: Dropa Disc labelnight met JEPH JERMAN & TIM BARNES (live) Do 16 t/m 26 februari VISITE: filmprogramma door De Imagerie Woensdag 22 februari, 19u WORMROT + Sick Of Stupidity + GI Joke + Smäris Donderdag 23 februari, 18u Closet of Records: B.A.A.D.M. presents: Mattias Gustafsson Lp Release Vrijdag 24 februari, 20u BARATHRUM + Countess + Blackdeath + Ars Venificium Zaterdag 25 februari, 20u OATHBREAKER Zondag 26 februari, 20u TROPIC OF CANCER Donderdag 3 maart, 20u GHOUL Vrijdag 10 maart, 20u ZIG ZAGS Zondag 12 maart, 20u GRAILS + Majeure

16

theatre/dance

Odysseus (part 2) 3 Feb. – KVS, Brussels 16.00-midnight – €20 – free for members The Odyssey: the all-time classic story of a drifter who, after a long war, makes an equally long journey home. Women, islands, the sea and a merciless god hinder his way. At home the ultimate fight to become a father, a ruler and a husband awaits him. It’s an ancient story that still resonates in these times and will be reenacted in a performance of over 24 hours, which you can see over three days (2, 3 & 4 Feb.) or, for the bravest, as one theatrical marathon (24 & 25 Mar.).

Mercurial George + Dana Michel

8 Feb. – Campo, Ghent 20.30 – €13 – free for members An acclaimed and unique performance

by Montreal dance artist Dana Michel,

Mercurial George is coming to Ghent.

In it, Michel focuses on the stereotyped ideas of black identity and tells us her experiences only using her body, a tent, a lectern, a microphone and a pile of dough. With a fun and bizarre twist, Michel explores the concept of identity and what it means in our society.

Ah! Oh! A Contemporary Ritual

23 Feb. – STUK, Leuven 20.30 – €14 – free for members – (booking required) When six performers enter the dark stage, they seem lost in oblivion, longing for contact. The work of the Greek choreographer Kat Válastur is based on great intensity and body awareness, whereby she has created a personal, invisible logic to which the dancers are subject. Are they living in a post-apocalyptic world?

Or in a Berlin nightclub? In an expressive manner, the dancers evoke a memory of dancing together and human contact.

Due to limited capacity members need to make reservations with an online code.

Email us at memberships@subbacultcha. be to get yours.

17

18

Marthe Wéry

expo

STEP UP!: Belgian Dance and Performance on Camera 1970-2000

until 19 Mar. – Argos, Brussels 11.00-18.00 – €6 – free for members The period 1970-2000 saw Belgian dance and performance flirt outrageously with film and video. Dipping into their extensive archives, Argos centre for art and media bare all in their three-part exhibition series STEP UP!: Belgian Dance and Performance on Camera 1970-2000. Curated by Andrea Cinel and Ive Stevenheydens, the exhibition presents the work of industry titans such as Thierry De Mey, Lili Dujouri, Sven Augustijnen, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, Jan Fabre and Steve Paxton.

23 Feb.-23 Jul. – BPS22, Charleroi 11.00-18.00 – €6 – free for members Belgian painter Marthe Wéry (19302005) was famous for her geometrical monochrome works that test the strength of light and of colour. Today the ‘carolo’ museum BPS22 — which, by the way, basically stands for the location of the building — holds the largest collection of works, documents and research by the artist. So come to bâtiment provincial (boulevard) Solvay (numéro) 22 to discover some of her most famous paintings as well as some previously unseen ones.

19

music

Cosmonauts

Interview & Photos by Josh da Costa shot in L.A., U.S.A.

20

Cosmonauts hail from Los Angeles and belong to a special set of artists who, while unique, all have one thing in common: Sofia Karchi. As their manager, not only did Karchi help set up this interview with guitarists/singers Derek Cowart and Alex Ahmadi, she was also our hostess for a delicious lasagne feast at her house, which is a safe haven for all manner of freaks and friends. It was the perfect setting for a casual chat that confirmed something we first suspected when we saw the band live last year ‌

21

I saw you guys play at the Echoplex in L.A. somewhat recently.

Derek: For our release thing, right?

Exactly. I hadn’t really heard much of your music but as I was watching you, it occurred to me that you’re really good guys.

Derek + Alex: Ha-ha Seriously, though: you guys were creating a wall of sound, and all of a sudden you were very clear …

I guess what I’m getting at is that life is pretty complicated, but it seems like despite the chaos, you’re trying to come through with good intentions.

A: We have sincere intentions.

There’s a sincerity, if that’s maybe what you’re referencing.

D: I hope that’s what you’re referencing! I don’t know if the intentions are good but at least there’s a point to it. Especially on the last record, lyrically and performance-wise it really is the experience that we’ve had — being there.

A: Being in a band since we were 19, 20 years old there’s a certain kind of accountability …

say anything at all. You can tell when somebody’s posturing really hard and hopefully we don’t come off that way. It might not be cool or sexy enough, but at least hopefully someone that cares about songs comes out to see us and thinks, ‘Hey, they seem like okay guys.’

As a matter of fact, just yesterday I ran into a mutual friend of ours, Jenn Prince.

D: Yeah, yeah – sweetheart.

I was telling her that I don’t know much about you but I have a feeling you’re really good guys, and sure enough she told me about how one time at SXSW you ran into each other when she was wasted.

Apparently Derek sat her down and got her something to eat.

D: Ha-ha yeah, that did happen.

I didn’t know she was vegetarian, though. I accidentally made her eat a cheeseburger.

Well, it seems like you have the best intentions but I can’t expect you to big yourselves up or say you’re the nicest dudes you know.

D: Definitely not.

A: ‘I’m the best roommate I’ve got.’

D: … Say what you mean or don’t

22

23

24

“I feel like we’re the backbone and they’re the legs that carry us.”

that you played with the Brian Jonestown Massacre. They’re pretty clean and heavy.

A: They’re mad clean and heavy.

Ha. Your rhythm section, however. What about them?

D: They’re nicer than us.

D: Yeah, they’re great. They were heroes of ours when we first started. And still now probably.

What would you say about them, now that they’re not here?

They’re pretty influenced by Spacemen 3.

A: They’re the backbone.

D: That’s probably where we go straight back to.

D: I feel like we’re the backbone and they’re the legs that carry us.

A: It’s hard to say though because we’ve had so many different drummers.

It’s funny because they’re the sound of confusion, and I do reckon that you’re the sound of clarity.

D: Yeah …

Oh yeah?

A: Cool.

A: It’s weird.

You’re taking what they did and kind of taking it full circle.

D: Maybe like Oasis, we are the three worst cunts of all time who can’t be helped.

D: Most complimentary interview ever. [To Sofia, their manager] He opened this up by saying we were good guys.

I might have to abbreviate that to three worst c*!@s …

Sofia: Because you are!

D: We’re the three worst … cowboys that anyone’s ever met.

D: I’ll take it.

So, I’ve been informed that the theme of this issue of Subbacultcha is Clean and Heavy. You mentioned

25

Cosmonauts – 23 Feb. – Madame Moustache, Brussels free for members

26

music

Nadia Reid

Kiwi folk musician Nadia Reid combines melancholic stories and rich vocals to lighten your mood while all worries and futile thoughts disappear in a hazy fog. Just before hitting the hay we had a little chat with Reid as she was waking up 12 hours ahead of us. So as she was sipping coffee and we were knocking back the mouthwash, we chatted about The Dunedin Sound, the ’80s indiepop-rock music style native to New Zealand, her Summer plans — soon to become Winter plans in Europe — and her resolutions for the New Year.

Interview by Julien Van de Casteele Photos by Justyn Strother shot in Dunedin, New Zealand 27

Hey Nadia, how’s your Summer going downunder?

I had a really nice christmas up north in Auckland actually and I took some time off for a couple of weeks. We’ve also been preparing the release of the new album and this upcoming tour in Europe. To be honest I am bit worried about how colds it’s going to be. Leaving Summer for Winter, I guess we got it all the wrong way [laughs].

Well last year it was in Summertime. Was this your first tour in Europe?

Yeah. It was the first time for playing music. It was great, it couldn’t have been better. I mean it was hard work but I think, you

know, it’s something important for artists to do. To go outside of your comfort zone. I feel really fortunate to be able to do that. It was like next level of stuff. You’re forced to ask yourself ‘why’, ‘Why am I actually doing this?’.

I hear you’re currently based in your hometown Dunedin, is it a good place for artists?

I think artists are sorta drawn to this place for it’s affordability to live. You don’t have to work so much on the side and get to focus more on your work. I find the place inspiring. It’s ruggedly beautiful and the weather is quite harsh.

So definitely, I think it attracts a certain type of person. There has

28

“It was hard work but I think, you know, it’s something important for artists to do.

To go outside of your comfort zone.” been some amazing artists that have been based here in the past.

The music community is small and I don’t play often too much in Dunedin, but it’s okay. It’s a two hour plane ride to the top of the country [laughs].

to be making music at a certain time. People are so intrigued by this Lyttelton movement but in the end it’s just a small group of friends. How do you see it?

The city has been quite popular for its music scene in the past though, no? Personally, I have been quite intrigued by The Dunedin Sound and bands like The Chills and The Verlaines.

I am reading a book actually about the guy who started Flying Nun Records. It’s interesting hearing him talk about this whole Dunedin Sound. Actually, you know, it really was a small community of people that happened to live sorta between Dunedin and Christchurch. And it’s still happening you know. You always hear about this collective of musicians from Lyttelton, which is a little bit below Christchurch by the water. I recorded both of my records there and connected with these people.

So I mean, I feel like all it is is just a collective of people that happened

For me it was more something that disappeared along the years …

Yeah, I guess. For instance our best venue closed down last year which was the Chicks Hotel. It was a major loss for all the bands that toured here. So yeah, I think Dunedin is suffering from losing that venue.

Aww. On a positive note, any new year’s resolutions?

Yeah, I was thinking that I want to be more fearless this year.

I have this tendency to worry and overthink. I am never a hundred percent confident. But I’ve learned to embrace it and to like this slight uncertainty. But yeah I’d like to be able with music to go for it, like what’s the worth that can happen.

29

Nadia Reid – 19 Feb. – Botanique, Brussels free for members

music

We Visit Charleroi

This is it, guys. It’s happening! Charleroi joins the list of cities to host regular Subbashows. For this New Year, we’ve cleaned out our drawers and pulled out a heavy list of new partners. First up is Le Vecteur, a multidisciplinary platform that hosts gigs, movie screenings, exhibitions and workshops. Then there’s Eden, a theatre/music venue and a brasserie. Our exhibitions also see an expansion with BPS22, the art museum that will host an exhibition programme focusing on social issues, together with its own art collection and various works from the Province of Hainaut. Finally, to complete the roster of venues from Le Pays Noir, we added the Rockerill, aka The Wonderland of Charleroi, an old ironworks transformed into a temple of alternative music.

Here is a little preview of what awaits …

Photos by Sasha Vernaeve shot in Charleroi

30

31

32

33

34

Toad + Ignatz & De Stervende Honden 3 Feb. - Le Vecteur, Charleroi free for members Stellar Swamp 17 Feb. - Eden, Charleroi free for members Marthe WĂŠry 25 Feb.-23 Jul - BPS22, Charleroi free for members

film

selected by Sabzian

We were happy to see two films by our own kin at the International Film Festival Rotterdam this year.

Grands travaux by Olivia Rochette and Gerard-Jan Claes has already been screening throughout January in Belgium and on 5 February, Het Bos in Antwerp is screening a double bill with their 2011 Because We Are Visual. IFFR also selected Elias Grootaers’ Inside The Distance, which will have its Belgian release soon.

Meanwhile, at sabzian.be, you can read a long interview by Bjorn Gabriels with Rochette and Claes on the conception of their film, in both English and Dutch.

36

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.  sabzian.be

Grands Travaux + Inside The Distance Olivia Rochette & Gerard-Jan Claes

Grands travaux and Because We Are Visual will be screened at Het Bos, Antwerp on 5 February, in collaboration with De Imagerie. This screening is free for members, but requires your booking via memberships@subbacultcha.be

‘Grands travaux might be considered a tentative cartography of the vocational school Anneessens-Funck. We mapped the various spaces of a place where the fragments of a disintegrated city converge. Just like with Because We Are Visual and Rain, constructing Grands travaux was closely related to a tension between inside and outside, between private and public space, between darkness and light … Essentially, Grands travaux is about how we might create new spaces in film. It’s a flowing geography, a movement through the polymorphous spaces inhabited by the boys.

We also want to make contemporary films. On the one hand, a lot of films that deal with our current world remain locked within themselves, as if they don’t relate back to reality. On the other hand, as a filmmaker you wonder if you’re condemned to work along the lines of Pedro Costa or Wang Bing, even if what they do is brilliant and virtuosic. I think that is something many filmmakers struggle with. To us, they may be the most important contemporary filmmakers, but I don’t know the world and the time of their films, nor do I belong to them. Of course, they film places that do exist in our times, but precisely the fact that they are in decay, gives them a materialistic quality that seems to be lacking over here. Filming a smooth surface requires a different approach than filming cracked walls.’

37

Born In Flames Lizzle Borden

Born In Flames (+ talk with director) will be screened at Cinematek, Brussels on 3 February, 19.30. This screening is free for members.

‘The recent restoration of this downtown NYC, guerilla-style produced science-fiction fable manifests a radical vision that detonates like a Molotov cocktail amid an actuality that is marked by political unrest and reactionary tendencies. Perhaps as never before, the speculative vision of a post-revolutionary world order which, despite rhetorical promises of change and equality, indulges in systematic discrimination and oppression evokes multiple echoes of recognition. No wonder that the film serves as a blueprint for many activist movements in the US: its zealous and kaleidoscopic portrayal of dissident struggle against heteropatriarchy and racism appears to have only gained in urgency and pertinence.’ — Stoffel Debuysere

38

Rear Window Alfred Hitchcock

Rear Window will be screened at KASK Cinema, Ghent on 21 February, 20.30.

Rear Window is likely one of the most acclaimed films about voyeurism, heightening the tension between watching and being watched in dignified Hitchcock fashion. The film is entirely conceived in a meticulously designed studio set, with the colours of the background walls functioning as an orientation for the audience. LB Jeffries, the protagonist of the film, played by James Stewart, is in fact a very competent voyeur, a professional photojournalist who, when confined to his wheelchair with a broken leg, starts nosing in the lives of his neighbours by observing the windowsturned-screens facing his Greenwich Village courtyard apartment. Long shots map the space between the buildings, through the lens of Jeffries’ very own tracking apparatus. This formal expression of voyeurism in Rear Window clearly becomes an allegory for what Hitchcock called ‘the purest expression of a cinematic idea’.

39

40

artist

selected by Les Brasseurs

Arnaud Eubelen

41

Interview by Gabriela González Photos by Tiny Geeroms shot in Liège

Born and bred in Liège, young industrial designer and artist Arnaud Eubelen need only step outside his house to find inspiration. With a keen sense of the connections between the tangible and the immaterial, the transient and the permanent, Eubelen photographs what many might consider mere banalities, and in so doing subtly shifts not only their meaning but also their function in our everyday surroundings. His current exhibition at Les Brasseurs’ Vitrine Jeune Artiste series has him fashioning an ordinary setting for passersby to look into. We popped into his atelier (and home) for a closer look at the galvanising forces shaping his work.

Tell us, what are you up to right now?

I finished school two years ago — I studied industrial design in Liège as well as in La Cambre. I’ve been part of a collective called La Superette for five years; we started off as a gallery but in order to pay for the space we started doing parties and concerts where we built entire sets and decors to give them a distinctive touch — we just did our first festival last Summer. As for me, I’m still doing design, although it’s less industrial and more in the order of sculptures, as in sculptural design or object-sculptures with a focus on furniture pieces. And then there’s photography, which is a discipline that I carry out simultaneously and that I use as a means to find ideas

42

in terms of textures and finding associations between materials and colours and that kind of thing.

Was there something intrinsic about industrial design that led you to take up photography as an artistic practice?

Photography for me is more a way to diversify in many directions, with the excuse of only taking photos. I’ve worked in buildings a lot, which was annoying sometimes but which also gave some insight into things I wouldn’t see anywhere else and which could be inspiring in their own right. Some people make moodboards by looking up images online; I do it by going out into the streets and focusing on textures, forms and objects — never people.

43

“Some people make moodboards by looking up images online; I do it by going out into the streets and focusing on textures, forms and objects – never people.”

“I like the idea that things have a life of their own and that even if they’re not as beautiful as they once were they are worth keeping around.”

What is it about these objects that attracts you?

When I take photos it’s mainly a spur-of-the-moment thing: if I see something that’s interesting, I snap it. But indeed there are things that attract me more than others, like buildings and construction sites, dilapidated places where it’s hard to tell if they’re being built or demolished … There’s a lot of places like that in Liège where you don’t really know what’s going on and where places and objects are often crumbling. I like the idea that things have a life of their own and that even if they’re not as beautiful as they once were they are worth keeping around.

Is Liège an interesting city for you as an artist?

Personally, I could be anywhere — I’m not particularly attached to any one place. But it’s true that rent is cheap, and there’s not a lot of pressure on who does what. It can be a bit of an aquarium — you have to get out of Liège if you want to get more recognition, and our waves don’t resonate that strongly out there, not even in the rest of Belgium. But I do love this city, it’s very cosy and bon enfant: you can have some great times here but staying here forever is something else [Laughs].

45

arnaudeubelen.com lesbrasseurs.org

style

by Renée Verhoeven

Heavy Dresses & Clean Stones Photography: Renée Verhoeven Styling: Renée Verhoeven Hair & makeup: Jennifer Vlieghe Models: Ellen Sterckx & Ilona Desmet

46

47

48

49

50

book Wanderlust Rebecca Solnit

text and artwork

by Gabriela González

I know: it’s smack middle of winter and I’m about to extol the virtues of walking and not being in our natural habitat of couch and pyjamas (the latter being less a physical place than a state of mind). But Rebecca Solnit’s Wanderlust: A History of Walking is neither a lifestyle manual nor a literal history in itself. It frames the mundane act of walking within its paradoxical expression of an automatic, ritualistic, meditative, universal yet subjective experience, as studied and understood by philosophers and artists through the ages. Our relationship to walking is a distinctive trait of humanity (sadly, my cat is not contemplating the day’s cloudless sky and simultaneously reliving childhood reveries as she saunters to her feeding dish) and one that, as pointed out by the author, has scarcely changed since the beginning of time.

Beyond the physical ability to walk, Solnit highlights the importance of moving while seeing, experiencing the world through roaming as opposed to living in the haze of interiors and the hyper-productivity apparatus.

Even though this was written before the smartphone era, she presciently laments the creation of shortcuts for everything — relationships, knowledge, travel, communication — and that journeys are sacrificed in the name of efficiency. Solnit, like Thoreau before her, is ultimately on a path to liberation from the traps we set for ourselves. It’s a path that takes us to places known that are always different and vice versa, to moments lurking within other moments like a great Matryoshka of experienced consciousness. ‘Exploring the world is one of the best ways of exploring the mind, and walking travels both terrains.’ Consider it an ode to stillness in movement, to buoyancy in contemplation — an annotated guide to the most natural fusion of the physical, the mental and the spiritual.

51

© Nicolas Fong

presents

Brussels, Flagey

24 Feb> 5 March 2017 THE BRUSSELS ANIMATION FILM FESTIVAL

www.animafestival.be - Info: 00 32 2 502 70 11

52

recent finds Artefact Festival

artefact-festival.be

From 21 February until 9 March, a spell will be cast on the city of Leuven. Indeed, The Art Of Magic is the theme of this year’s Artefact Festival, the STUK’s annual exploration of correspondences between the visual arts, current events and social challenges. With past editions bearing enigmatic titles such as Up In the Air and You Must Change Your Life, Artefact is not confined to the STUK alone but will also take place in several locations in Leuven. The festival comprises more than two weeks of performances, lectures and an ongoing exhibition, with interventions by Eric Arnal Burtschy, Verena Friedrich, RYBN.org, Marjolijn Dijkman, the Centre for Tactical Magic and many more. And of course, with magic comes music: Aïsha Devi, Sky H1, Orphan Swords, MIAUX, Helm, Actress and many, many more will render and embody their own special magic for us to behold.

53

Handelsbeurs Concertzaal

ZA

18.02

Peter Broderick (solo)

Kouter 29, 9000 Gent T ICK E T S Tickets Gent Sint Baafsplein 17 09 265 91 65 www.handelsbeurs.be

pop / rock

DI VR

24.02

Elias Stemeseder (solo) / 10 jaar LABtrio (cd-release) Jazz, elektronica & underground

02.03

Flying Horseman Bezwerende nachtblues

VR

28

T/M

An evening with Damien Jurado Solo in de Sint-Jacobskerk

ZA 29.04

Ha’fest met o.a.

STUFF. (cd-release) Festival

54

vorm: Pascal Van Hoorebeke

DO

21.03

recent finds Bozar Elextronic Series: Croatian Amor + Gazelle Twins bozar.be

For this installment of the Bozar Electronic series, happening on 2 February, you have two bonafide heavyweights and instant Subba faves helming the ship. Namely, Croatian Amor, the solo project of Loke Rahbek (of Damian Dubrovnik and Lust For Youth), whose highly conceptual sci-fi meanderings push the boundaries between conventional social narratives and the dream world; and Gazelle Twin, alter ego of Elizabeth Bernholz, who will be presenting her dystopian audiovisual fantasy Kingdom Come where fascism, tribalism and consumerist conditioning are chanted in a poetic warning. An evening to get cosy but never comfortable, in the best sense possible.

Anima animafestival.be

Calling all animation freaks: the iconic Brussels Animation Film Festival is once more landing in Flagey, from 24 February to 5 March. Over 40 different full-length movies and 240 shorts will be screened, with a VR room for the more intrepid travellers out there. We here at Subbacultcha are especially digging the Animated Night: spread out over three heavy programmes, it’s a full night of humour, irony, the crazy and the trashy, alongside animators from all over the world. With special guest Mirai Mizue, the young Japanese filmmaker famed for his abstract animations. He will be giving Anima a taste of his second passion, VJ-ing, along with a DJ from Meakusma.

55

3-5 March 2017 — Beursschouwburg (Brussels)

KRAAK FESTIVAL

info & tickets: www.kraak.net/festival2017

20 FEB

TAXIWARS

21

DUKE GARWOOD

17

WIZARDS OF OOZE RE-RELEASEPARTY

5

DAYMÉ AROCENA

20 APR

COLIN STETSON SOLO

7 MEI

ILLUMININE

FEB

MRT

APR

MUSIC

+ THE FAYE DUNAWAYS

FREE FOR SUBBACULTCHAMEMBERS !

FILM

9 MRT

L RN SOU NORTHE USTER TB + DJ BEA

L I, DANIE BLAKE SASSIN 18 THE AS APR

6 APR

6 2 APR

HOME

TURNHOUTSEBAAN 286 BORGERHOUT (ANTWERP) INFO & TICKETS: WWW.DEROMA.BE + 03 600 16 60 + FNAC

recent finds Killavesi

by Hannes Rooms

soundcloud.com/killavesi

Associated with the popular Bala Club collective, Killavesi’s name and voice may already sound familiar. However, now backed by partner-inlife-and-work Adamn Killa, 2017 might be the ultimate breakthrough year for Killavesi. The Chicago rapper with the unmistakable pink hair, formerly in a duo with Nina Tech, is now forging a career of her own. She has a distinct style of rapping characterised by autotune, mumbling and a good sense of rhythm, spit over stunning productions from the likes of h!tkidd, Hi Tom and others. She often sounds almost annoyed, marking the influence of professional sad boys Yung Lean and Uli K. Still, with catchy hooks and melancholic verses, she grabs the gaze of the Instagram generation like no one else. Catch her together with Adamn Killa and an insane lineup of other promising artists at Sonic Acts in Amsterdam later this month.

Le Makeup soundcloud.com/lemakeup

Le Makeup, the moniker of Osaka born and raised (Keisuke Iiri), recently surfaced from the seemingly endless SoundCloud universe.

Still under 20, but already grabbing international attention, the producer’s work recalls the atmosphere of Fade to Mind’s repertoire or even Arca.

His first release, Esthe, just came out on the Ashida Park imprint, a freshly founded label from Vienna’s vibrant club scene. Its hybrid electronic arrangements are made for dim dancefloors only disturbed by sparse light beams. The EP’s highlight, ‘Akasithia’, echoes obscure thoughts and self-reflection, while sampling repetitive Spanish vocals. Different ominous patterns flow seamlessly on and into each other, conflicting with synths or drums which, in the end, will leave you alienated and euphoric at the same time.

57

16―19 FEB 2017 GENT

waterproof2000.be

BelgiumArtDesign.be Thursday 16 Feb.: 5 - 12.00 pm (preview - by invitation only) Friday 17 Feb.: 1.30 - 10.30 pm Saturday 18 Feb.: 10.30 am - 10.30 pm Sunday 19 Feb.: 10.30 am - 6.30 pm

recent finds Yay team. I know I can do it.

Just put me in, coach.

Bert Huyghe

by Isaline Raes

until 11 March Rossicontemporary, Brussels free entrance rossicontemporary.be

Art gallery Rossicontemporary presents the first solo exhibition of Ghentbased artistic wunderkind Bert Huyghe — musician, writer, performer, graphic designer. Currently, most of his time is spent in his studio, creating multi-layered canvases with a punk-pop attitude. At his current expo, Huyghe — aka the Golden Boy of Oil Paint — shows a series of abstract pictures inspired by football shirts. Teaming sports imagery with contemporary art, he aims to tackle the divisions between ‘high art’ and ‘pop culture’. And that intention trickles all the way down to his influences, which include both artists like Raoul De Keyzer and football heroes like Zidane.

White sun grey thoughts

until 3 March Deborah Bowmann Studio Brussels, free entrance deborahbowmann.com

Founded in Amsterdam but relocated to Saint-Gilles in 2015, Deborah Bowmann is a project space run by two French artists, Amaury Daurel and Victor Delestre. Crisscrossing the division between shop and art gallery, Deborah Bowmann is an independent platform where the founders showcase and sell their own — and others’ — work. Although we’re still recovering from our holiday hangover, the two artists/shop managers are pleased to announce their Christmassy solo show, White sun grey thoughts, exhibiting two monstrous winter displays filled with homemade chocolate figurines. Unlike in Brussels’ surrounding chocolate stores, at Deborah Bowmann even the chocolate stands are for sale — as is everything at this artist-run space.

59

we visit you

Name: Valerie Steenhaut Age: 23 Zodiac sign: Virgo Website: valeriesteenhaut.tumblr.com Subbacultcha member since: December 2014

Tell us, what do you do in life?

I’m doing an internship for a creative studio in Barcelona and studying graphic design. I also try to fill my head with meaningful stuff and to ignore Netflix’s existence.

Your first ever music-related memory?

Screaming out songs from Studio 100 musicals with my sister at home. And listening to the We’re Going to Ibiza song in our attic. We only had one CD of ’90s hits so we repeated it over and over again. Good times

Any New Year’s resolutions?

To be happy, brave and eat more vegetables.

Any guilty pleasures?

Dirty Latino music, like Spanish reggaeton or Brazilian forró. It’s such a waste that men and women here in Europe are no longer capable of dancing sensually together or shaking their asses without any further sexual expectations.

What inspires you?

Positive people, conversations with friends, art, trying new things that make me nervous at first.

What do you like best about your place?

My roommates and the fact that I feel very lucky to have found this place so quickly.

Which future Subbacultcha show are you looking forward to?

I really like the theatre and contemporary dance shows, so it’s a little sad I’m not in Belgium to go see them.

What kind of music are you listening to at the moment?

I recently discovered Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo is actually kind of cool.

I’m also going through a very classical phase when it comes to music while working, which compensates for the overload of electronic music at parties during the weekend.

What’s the first record you bought?

A Jónsi album and Mumford and Sons’ Sigh No More. They were perfect for those melancholic adolescent moods and I have to admit I still need them from time to time.

60

Photo by Anna Baqués, shot in Barcelona, Spain

61

front cover: Renée Verhoeven

thank you: Isaac Barbé, Mattias Baertsoen, Koi Persyn, Nilou, Hannes Rooms, Jules Labath, Lindsey De Laet, Mirte Van Goidsenhoven, Ibo Bonduelle, Junior Bokele, Paulina De Vleesschouwer, Margaux Fabris, Kris Vanslambrouck, Kellan Smith, Lynn Cailliau, Naoki Karathanassis, Eva Menga, Virginie Van de Casteele, Nelson Henry, Lara Decrae, Eduardo Garcia, Gilles Vanesse, Eline De Vos, Axelle Vertommen, Gert Van Dijck, Jente Maes, Saraya Richter, Sofia Van Laer, Amaury Wilkin and friends, Hanne Konings, Lies Hermans & Frederic Busscher

editors in chief: Herlinde Raeman & Kasper-Jan Raeman magazine editors: Julien Van de Casteele & Gabriela González copy editor: Megan Roberts design: Chloe D’hauwe

partners: Botanique, Beursschouwburg, Het Bos, GEWADRUPO, Vooruit, Democrazy, Handelsbeurs, STUK, De Roma, KVS, Anima, Argos, BAD Belgium Art And Design, KASK Cinema, Kraak, Le Vecteur, Rockerill, BPS22, Eden, Campo, Cinematek, Cinema Zuid, JauneOrange & Madame Moustache

website editors: Valerie Steenhaut & Thomas Vanoosthuyse social media editor: Lisa Wallyn advertising & partnerships: Kasper-Jan Raeman (kasper-jan@subbacultcha.be)

office: Subbacultcha Belgium, Dendermondsesteenweg 80A, 9000 Belgium

distribution: Herlinde Raeman (herlinde@subbacultcha.be)

contact: magazine@subbacultcha.be

printer: Drukkerij GEWADRUPO, Arendonk, Belgium contributing writers: Sabzian, Gabriela González, Julien Van de Casteele, Thomas Vanoosthuyse, Valerie Steenhaut, Hannes Rooms, Isaline Raes, Laura Bonne, Francesca Pinder, Alexander Ermakov & Josh da Costa contributing photographers: Anna Baqués, Renée Verhoeven, Tiny Geeroms, Sasha Vernaeve, Josh da Costa & Justyn Strother contributing artist: Arnaud Eubelen

62

3 FEB—8 APR 3 FEB—8 APR 2017 2017

PERFORMING ARTS PERFORMING ARTS

3 3& &4 4 FEB FEB DANA MICHEL DANA MICHEL MERCURIAL MERCURIAL GEORGE GEORGE 10 & 11 FEB, BERNARD VAN 10 & 11 FEB, BERNARD VAN EEGHEM EEGHEM & & STEFANIE STEFANIE CLAES CLAES OMERTA OMERTA 10 10 & & 11 11 MAR, MAR, ORION ORION MAXTED MAXTED HUMAN SIMULATION HUMAN SIMULATION 17 & 18 MAR, 17 & 18 MAR, JULIAN JULIAN HETZEL HETZEL THE AUTOMATED SNIPER THE AUTOMATED SNIPER 31 31 MAR MAR & &1 1 APR, APR, ROBBERT&FRANK ROBBERT&FRANK FRANK&ROBBERT FRANK&ROBBERT CAMPO CAMPO DON’T WE DESERVE DON’T WE DESERVE GRAND GRAND HUMAN HUMAN PROJECTS PROJECTS THAT GIVE US MEANING THAT GIVE US MEANING 7 7& &8 8 APR, APR, BERLIN, BERLIN, SVIZDAL SVIZDAL 63

.be .be

21 FEB AÏSHA DEVI, SKY H1 22 FEB OATHBREAKER, ORPHAN SWORDS 2 MAA WWWATER, OAKTREE DJ, BJEOR B2B KLÅPS 3 MAA ACTRESS, NOSEDRIP 5 MAA JAN SWERTS, AMIINA PRESENT FANTÔMAS, HELM, MIAUX, MARIS 25 FEB - 1 MAA RAINFOREST

LEUVEN

SOUND ART WORKSHOP

Een initiatief van de provincie Vlaams-Brabant i.s.m stad Leuven

www.artefact-festival.be

64

#artefact17