Subbacultcha Belgium Sept 2018 by Subbacultcha

Rise like a phoenix September 2018

s u b b a c u l t c h a e v e n t s in September All events are free for members. Join at subbacultcha.be 21.9 C12 x 54Kolaktiv C12, Brussels

music 1.9

22.9 C12 Night C12, Brussels

C12 Season Opening II C12, Brussels

30.9 C12 x Nuits Sonores After Party

6.9 Psst Mademoiselle! C12, Brussels 7.9

Rockerill & Eden present: Wooden Shjips Rockerill, Charleroi

7.9

C12 x Pierre Debusschere

7.9

Shannon & The Clams

Botanique, Brussels

C12, Brussels

9.10 Negative Gemini

Beursschouwburg, Brussels

film

C12, Brussels

7.9

Lean On Pete Cinema Zuid, Antwerp

8.9 High Art Cinematek, Brussels

8.9 Deep in House – Atomium Free Festival Atomium, Brussels

theatre / dance

8.9 C12 x Cultivated Electronic Label Night C12, Brussels

7.9

9.9 Holy Wave + King Fun

20.9 Love at First Sight: Wagner: de halve ring Monty, Antwerp

KulturA (Go With The Flow), Liège

9.9 The Transcendence Orchestra + Razen Friedenskirche (Meakusma), Eupen

28 + Wild Life FM 29.9 Beursschouwburg, Brussels

De Kleine Hedonist (Hotjumenas), Antwerp

29.9 Not Another Diva NTGent Minnemeers, Ghent

12.9 Infinite Bisous

Madame Moustache, Brussels

15.9 C12 Night C12, Brussels

expo

14.9 Big Next: SoccerMommy DOK (Democrazy), Ghent

22.9 - US OR CHAOS 9.12 BPS22, Charleroi

20.9 Vooruit & Slagwerk present: Gazelle Twin + ssaliva

Monty, Antwerp

22.9 Love at First Sight: New Skin Troubleyn, Antwerp

11.9 Lithics + Lewsberg

TheaterFestival: HOUSE

27.9 - IS IT DARK? 10.9 Het Bos, Antwerp

Vooruit, Ghent

27.09 – 29.09

W WW. STUK.BE

STUK RESTART

STUK, HUIS VOOR DANS, BEELD EN GELUID — STUK, HOUSE FOR DANCE IMAGE AND SOUND V.U.: S. VANDERVELDEN, NAAMSESTRAAT 93, 3000 LEUVEN

intro

Rise like a phoenix Rise, friends: fall is calling, beckoning from beneath the dried grass and charred ruins that the heat wave left behind. Our brave new summers give way to autumns of respite and rebirth; after all, those who didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t escape the scorch could only tread imaginary waters and find shelter in their own curtained-off dwellings, giving them time enough to picture what would come of their resurgence. A phoenix coated in fallen leaves? The Quetzalcoatl of impending winter? Never mind all that â&#x20AC;&#x201C; what is left for us now is to refresh, resurface and rejoice in this strange, tentative season of awakening and renewal. 5

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Drukkerij GEWADRUPO bvba Hoge Mauw 130 B-2370 Arendonk info@gewa.be +32 (0)14.67.86.69 6 6

content

Rise like a phoenix

subbacultcha events 9—21 Negative Gemini 22—27 Infinite Bisous 28—31 Scene Report 32—37 artist 38—47 style 48—51 recent finds 53—57 film 59 we visit you 60—61

Psst Mademoiselle!

music

C12 Season Opening II

ft. Furor Exotica + Soumaya Phéline 6 Sep – C12, Brussels 23.00 – €5 – free for members

ft. Varg (live) + Evigt Mörker + Ian Tocor + Kafim

Hosting monthly sessions with cutting-edge female performers, PsstMademoiselle is ever-ready to oversee the future-is-female prophecy in Brussels, with women taking over the stage. Next up is their night at C12 with Argentinian nu-disco duo Furor Exotica and Brussels’ Soumaya Phéline, aka DanceMachine. Furor Exotica’s lustrous live sets shape the perfect vibrations for some real elegance on the dance floor, while Soumaya Phéline’s unique style, ranging from house to techno, will warm the crowd with baselines and mesmerising melodies until the early dawn. In case you need a small reminder: women are taking over the stage!

1 Sep – C12, Brussels 23.00 – €10 free for members until 01.00 While the endless summer is gradually descending from its peak, our beloved festival season is merging into that of clubbing again. Sweaty tents turn into sweaty basements, plastic jetons into ‘unbreakable’ euros. This also means one of our favourite venues, C12, will kick off the new season. To celebrate this, they’ve invited none other than Northern Electronics affiliates Varg and Evigt Mörker. Expect the Swedish delegates to captivate you with their moody, reverberating techno fused with experimentalism and Nordic black-metal aesthetics. Also on the bill is French producer Ian Tocor, celebrated for his deep ’n’ dubby house/ techno productions and persistent smile. To top that off, Brussels-based Deep in House resident Kafim will warm up the venue. There you have it; that’s how you open a new season in style.

Rockerill & Eden present: Wooden Shjips 7 Sep – Rockerill, Charleroi 21.00 – €15 – free for members

We’re looking for distributors! mail herlinde@subbacultcha.be

First off, it’s written ‘Shjips’ but you pronounce it ‘ships’. Secondly, this spot has a limited capacity of 250

people. Thirdly, don’t be afraid: the crowd will for once be your best buddy. Results? Rockerill welcomes the ever-inspired San Franciscan icons of experimental rock. Their ‘spacey psychedelic rock’ sound convinced Jim Jarmusch to add them to the lineup of ‘All Tomorrow’s Parties Music Festival’ in New York 2010, when he was the festival’s curator.

Roi Perez. Recently moved to Germany, he never forgot his past as resident of Tel Aviv’s underground scene with his record bag full of hypnotic, obscure electro well-combined with coloured and groovy sounds. Also on the decks are our locals heros, Sixsixsities and Fais Le Beau.

Shannon & The Clams

C12 x Pierre Debusschere

ft. Roi Perez + Sixsixsixties + Fais Le Beau 7 Sep – C12, Brussels 23.00 – €10 free for members until 01.00 Music and art in perfect combination – think: chilling on the dancefloor while passing by an artwork. With that in mind, here’s the next event you’ll need to pencil in your agenda: C12 x Pierre Debusschere, an attractive night hosting the eclectic Berlin-based DJ,

7 Sep – Botanique, Brussels 19.30 – €18 free for members until 01.00 The band Shannon & The Clams have proved themselves time and again over the past decade, drawing influence from the Californian sounds and emanating nostalgia for the Sixties. They will be presenting their fifth studio album, Onion, at Botanique. It’s the first record to come out on Nashville label Easy Eye Sound, run by The Black Keys frontman Dan Auerbach. Get ready for two grainy voices, doo-wop grooves and some jangly, staccato guitar riffs.

Deep in House – Atomium Free Festival

we are the only animal on earth that goes mad. Prepare yourself to go really deep with a new number from the C12 boys, the Atomium Mini Festival After party. On the Lineup: Morphology live, which fuses early electro sounds with haunting melodies to create a deep blend of atmospheric future funk. They will also host Sync24, a fresh dive into deep downtempo and acid ambient soundscapes. Finally, for the closing, the boys have invited Silicon Scally, flawless and acid electro science by the truly professional grand master Carl Finlow.

8 Sep – Atomium, Brussels 14.00 – free for all Yep, the deepin’ boys are taking it north this time. Squeezed in between the Japanese tower and the Atomium, three stages will be hosting your favourite artists: Atomium Stage (ft. PLO Man, Le Motel live, Supafly Collective, DJ Kwak, Francis99, Chris Ferreira), Trade Markt stage (ft. Blue Hour, A. Brehme, Neila, Shades, Kafim), and yesss the Subba Stage (names TBA). See you there!

Holy Wave + King Fun

C12 x Cultivated Electronic Label Night ft. Morpholgy live + Sync24 + Silicon Scally 9 Sep – KulturA (Go With The Flow), Liège – 20.00 – free for members

8 Sep – Sync24 + Silicon Scally 23.00 – €10 free for members until 01.00 Human beings are the only animals that form ideas about their world. We perceive it, not through our bodies, but through our minds. We must agree on what is real, and because of this,

Holy Wave’s surf-psychedelic shoegaze immerses you in sepia-coloured gloominess with echoes of a slightly drugged Tame Impala or a lazy Unknown Mortal Orchestra. Originally from El Paso Texas, the five-piece band released their fourth album, titled

Vooruit

MUSIC

thu

20.09

GAZELLE TWIN / SSALIVA + more TBC

thu

27.09

CHRISTEENE

fri

28.09

ATA KAK / BOROKOV BOROKOV

with Slagwerk

electro / avant-pop electro-punk hip house / highlife

Vooruit & FILM FEST GENT present wed 10 till fri

19.10

N R SCREE IONS FO MPOSIT NEW CO

in association with: Gouvernement, Slagwerk & All Eyes On Hip Hop

wed 07.11

WITH

THURSTON MOORE scores the films of MAYA DEREN KILBOURNE plays ‘BLADE’ + AFTERPARTY BY SPRINGSTOF GHOST: HAUNTED HOUSE with CHRISTEENE / HANTRAX / DOLLY BING BING & ALIEN OBSERVER / RAVEYARDS / OISOI / … KEVIN TOMA plays ‘FRANKENSTEIN’

HAUSCHKA & O’HALLORAN OONA LIBENS / LEA BERTUCCI LENA WILLIKENS & SARAH SZCZESNY: ‘PHANTOM KINO BALLETT’ AÏSHA DEVI / ABYSS X / SLAGWERK DJ’S GAIKA plays ‘AKIRA’

EN OR SCRE ITIONS F S O P M NEW CO

AHMED FAKROUN / ART FEYNMAN

avant-pop / disco

it.be ts: vooru e k ic t & o inf

Adult Fear, after working on it while touring with Hope Sandoval. This last album leaves behind the heavier bass melodies and hyperactive drums, embracing the hazy Sunday-picnicon-the-grass melancholy with lush, instrumental soundscapes. Support act King Fu, punk grunge band from the vivid Liège punk-rock scene, will jolt you out of your shuffle shoes.

The Transcendence Orchestra + Razen

If three full days seem somewhat too much, there’s always side-programmes to attend during Meakusma Festival. One of the many performances bound to transcend space and time will be – what’s in a name? – The Transcendence Orchestra. On the aptly-named double LP Modern Methods For Ancient Rituals, Anthony Child and Dan Bean’s drone-led project melts acoustic and synthetic timbers together, evoking a modern age esoteric ceremonial. The Brusselsbased Razen, themselves keen on comforting purrs of all kinds, expanded their original duo formation (Brecht Ameel & Kim Delcour) to a party of five, featuring Pieter Lenaerts (five-string double bass, sarangi), Paul Garriau (hurdy-gurdy) and David Poltrock (ondes Marthenot).

Lithics + Lewsberg 11 Sep – De Kleine Hedonist (Hotjumenas), Antwerp 20.00 – TBA – free for members

9 Sep – Friedenskirche (Meakusma), Eupen 13.00 – €10 – free for members

Experimental band Lithics will come to Antwerp to present their second LP, Mating Surfaces, out last May. More mature without ever losing their weird touch, the album draws a picture of the effervescent Oregon scene. Following the original roots of punk, the band explores once again the limits of the comfort zone of their listeners. Their delivery is so vibrant and disturbing that your mind (and ears) won’t forget the experience.

Infinite Bisous

12 Sep – Madame Moustache, Brussels 20.00 – €8 – free for members Infinite Bisous is the solo project of Paris-based musician and producer Rory McCarthy, who is also the founding father of the internet collective and label Tasty Morsels. As if that weren’t enough, he earns a living by playing almost all instruments possible on record and live for artists including Connan Mockasin, Mac DeMarco, Beck and Charlotte Gainsbourg. It will be a shame for the poor souls who can’t make it to his concert. Don’t be one of them. Seriously.

C12 Night ft. Shifted + Baby Ford 15 Sep – C12, Brussels 23.00 – €10 free for members until 01.00

That’s it, summer is coming to an end, and we have to confess that this is not always pleasant. Back to work, increasingly shorter days, increasingly busy agendas… Your moments of beach and relaxation seem to be far away. It sucks, we know, that’s why the C12 gang has prepared a night and lineup that will transport you elsewhere for a while. It starts with Shifted, the Berlin-based musician and producer Guy Brewer. The rebel UK artist has successfully managed to develop his own distinctive voice while constantly evolving the techno genre. Also on the lineup is Baby Ford, aka Peter Ford, who makes experimental, minimal techno and is one of the founders of the UK acid house scene. A true genius of British quality electronic music, a cult figure for the underground of the ’90s.

Big Next: Soccer Mommy 14 Sep – DOK (Democrazy), Ghent 19.30 – €13 – free for members Back in 2015, Nashville-based artist Sophie Allison, aka Soccer Mommy, started posting home-recorded songs on Bandcamp – ‘just for fun’. Mind you, these bedroom songs already led to tours with acts such as Slowdive, Mitski and Franky Cosmos. Earlier this year Allison released her studio debut Clean, on which the 20-year-old seems to effortlessly echo the melodrama of youth into dazzling pop-rock songs. She’s able to soundtrack self-discovery whilst

staying uncommonly familiar. Pitchfork labeled Clean some of the ‘best new music’, DIY mag gave it four out of five stars and The Fader called Soccer Mommy ‘2018’s chillest new rock star’. It seems somewhat safe to say Allison is the next big thing. For once, do believe the hype and come find out what all the fuss is about.

The British composer, producer and musician Elizabeth Bernholz, stage name Gazelle Twin, will play her only Belgian show of this tour. She brings us industrial, deconstructed avantpop that sounds like the love child of Björk, The Knife and Easter. ‘Hobby Horse’, the raw and hyper first single off her latest album Pastoral, to be released 21 September, sounds like the guarantee for an unforgettable night.

Vooruit & Slagwerk C12 x 54Kolaktiv present: Gazelle ft. Jensen Interceptor Twin + ssaliva 21 Sep - C12, Brussels 23.00 - €10 free for members until 01.00

You’d better head down to C12 on 21 September, because Australian electro DJ Jensen Interceptor is coming all the way to Brussels for a special 54Kolaktiv night. Put your dancing shoes on and get in the mood for some acid-electro ravy beats. Fridays are for dancing, aren’t they?

C12 Night ft. Perc + Surgeon + Exal 20 Sep – Vooruit, Ghent 20.00 – €15 – free for members Vooruit and the Brussels-based collective Slagwerk host an evening full of experimental electronics.

22 Sep - C12, Brussels 23.00 - €10 free for members until 01.00 C12 never disappoints when it comes to line-ups. The new season promises

21.09 22.09 24.09 26.09 28.09 28.09 29.09 04.10 05.10 12.10 12.10 21.10 21.10

CONCERTEN

07.09

CHIEF KEEF US - K1D BE SHANNON & THE CLAMS US HALF WAIF US LA LUZ US GREAT NEWS NO MARBLE SOUNDS BE release - MOONBOAT BE MOSES SUMNEY US BAD SOUNDS GB MIKAELA DAVIS US MOODOÏD FR DILLY DALLY CA BAGARRE FR SWEET JANE BE album release AGAR AGAR FR MOTORAMA RU - R. MISSING US

SEPTEMBER / OKTOBER

04.09

MORE CONCERTS & TICKETS: BOTANIQUE.BE 16

Negative Gemini

to be intense, with global techno key figure Perc and his twisted beats, iconic UK techno producer Surgeon, wellknown for his unique hardware live set on his own modular system, and local favourite Exal. We get deep.

C12 x Nuits Sonores After Party ft. Zadig + Kafim 30 Sep - C12, Brussels 23.00 - €10 free for members until 01.00 The Belgian edition of the famous Lyonnais festival, Les Nuits Sonores, is a luxury for lovers of independent electronic music and the C12 collab night will not disappoint. Breastfed by the techno of the ’90s, it is not surprising that Zadig manages to ignite his audience at each of his live and DJ sets. With his own label and known as one of the most beloved managers for his protégés, Zadig is considered the human face of techno. The beauty of his compositions, the coherence of his melodies and the synchronisation of his tempo make him a true master. C12 chose Brussels-based DJ Kafim to close the night. With a large background in classical music he plays dark groovy beats and has become a recurrent feature of C12 nights.

9 Oct - Beursschouwburg, Brussels 20.00 - €14 - free for members Negative Gemini is Virginia native singer and producer Lindsey French. Her self-produced debut EP, Body Work, received critical acclaim because of its unique mix of underground dance and pop, reminding people of Gwen Stefani and Hope Sandoval. With ‘Infin Path’, the opening track of her last EP Bad Baby, French surprises and reminds us of Nineties Madonna mixed with today’s rap beats. However, the other songs on Bad Baby wink at the indie bitter sweetness of No Doubt, taking us back to broken-hearted evenings indulged in ice cream and red wine.

film

Lean On Pete

A leak in her bathroom ceiling leads Syd (Radha Mitchell) to cross paths with her upstairs neighbour, Lucy (Ally ‘Breakfast Club’s basket case’ Sheedy). The former is a young, ambitious assistant editor at an art photography magazine; the latter a once-acclaimed photographer back in New York after a decade spent in Berlin trying to escape the tightening noose of success. One bathtub plugging attempt after the other, Syd enters Lucy’s routine of heroin lines, couch slouching and drowsy artsy verbiage; what starts as a banal domestic encounter turns out to be pivotal in the two women’s lives.

7 Sep – Cinematek, Brussels 18.00 – €5 – free for members Fifteen-year-old Charley (Charlie Plummer) lives with his loving but half-baked father in a Portland shack. When a gruff and unscrupulous local racehorse owner (Steve Buscemi) hires him as his assistant, Charley becomes infatuated with Lean On Pete, the sweet loser of the batch; but soon the animal’s inexorable destiny as horseflesh gives rise to a feeling of disgust in the kid’s mind. Adapted from a novel by author and country musician Willy Vaultin, Lean On Pete is a road trip unfolding at walking pace, a naturalist tale of quiet despair and finding one’s own place through thick and thin.

High Art 8 Sep - Cinematek, Brussels 19.00 - €4 - free for members

theatre / dance

TheaterFestival: HOUSE 7 Sep – Monty, Antwerp 20.00 – €16 – free for members To be aware of what’s new with the theatre scene in Flanders, Brussels and the Netherlands, TheaterFestival offers an eclectic selection of the most innovative performances. Charismatic performer Ariah Lester is known for crafting a mix between art, music and performance, where imagination and reality blend to form an unusual yet magnetic result. For the lovers of contrast, get ready to be bewitched.

Love at First Sight: Wagner: de halve ring

for alternate ideas of what prosperity is, and what we reckon as success. Written and performed by Hannah De Meyer, New Skin is a play that shows you the indignation, firmness, energy and love that grows out of living and maturing in such a world.

20 Sep - Monty, Antwerp 20.00 - €16 - free for members

Wild Life FM

Richard Wagner, one of the most controversial and important people in classical music, won’t let you remain indifferent. De Hotshop, the junior company of Dutch theatre collective De Warme Winkel, understood this very well. They bring a modest reinterpretation of the opera composer’s true magnus opus, Der Ring Des Nibelungen. Only the first two parts, that is, since it’s one of the most extensive works in music history. The first part of the tetralogy, Das Rheingold, which they have been performing since 2013, was well received and extended with Die Walküre. A real Gesamtkunstwerk brought in austerity.

Love at First Sight: New Skin 22 Sep - Troubleyn, Antwerp 20.00 - €16 - free for members Millennials woken up in a ruptured society asking: ‘Really? Is this what you’ve left us?’ The anger as a breeding soil for climate activists, anti-racist writers and economists to stand up and make a fist. Together searching

28 + 29 Sep - Beursschouwburg, Brussels 20.00 - €14 - free for members Wild Life FM is live radio show on how to discover yourself through music. Nine musicians from London and Norfolk join musician Jakob Ampe, performance artist Kim Noble and director Pol Heyvaert (CAMPO, Belgium) to create a raw representation of what it’s like to be young nowadays. Their radio show is never what you expect, so be prepared for their show at Beursschouwburg.

DEMOCRAZY MUZIEKCLUB GENT 08.09

DAN OWEN + RAMAN

DOK

09.09

AMEN DUNES + LAUREN AUDER

DOK

14.09

BIG NEXT: SOCCER MOMMY + BROOKE BENTHAM

DOK

20.09

BERT DOCKX

DOK

25.09

MARBLE SOUNDS + MOONBOAT

VOORUIT

25.09

MASEGO

VOORUIT

30.09

AUTUMN FALLS: JESS WILLIAMSON

06.10

MONO, A STORM OF LIGHT + JO QUAIL

10.10

SUPAFLY: FATIMA, MEDS & ROXY ROSE

10.10

BIG NEXT: YELLOW DAYS

CHARLATAN

19.10

AUTUMN FALLS: JO PASSED

CHARLATAN

23.10

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT

VOORUIT

DOK DE CENTRALE VOORUIT

24.10

MR. CARMACK (LIVE)

VOORUIT

25.10

STIKSTOF

VOORUIT

26.10

KAMAAL WILLIAMS

27.10

PHUM VIPHURIT

CHARLATAN

28.10

THE GARDEN

CHARLATAN

30.10

BOMBINO

30.10

CONNAN MOCKASIN

31.10

LEFTO & RED BULL ELEKTROPEDIA: JUNGLE BY NIGHT, JOE ARMON-JONES, JD. REID

07.11

AUTUMN FALLS: NOTHING

CHARLATAN

08.11

THE KVB + M!R!M

CHARLATAN

18.12

HUNA SOUNDS: AMAR 808, AUNTIE FLO

VOORUIT

13.11

IVY FALLS, TRISTAN + RAVVEL

VOORUIT

15.11

CAR SEAT HEADREST

VOORUIT

DEMOCRAZY.BE

HANDELSBEURS VOORUIT

Not Another Diva 29 Sep - NTGent Minnemeers, Ghent 20.00 - €20 - free for members The South African artist Hlengiwe Mhlaba and Congolese choreographer Faustin Linyekula explore our common perception of the term diva: always related to a woman, what are the characteristics of a diva? Surrounded by sparkles, fantasies and idols, the diva creates a palpable emotion in their audience. They invite you to question your own concept of a diva, and provide a new image of what she is supposed to look like in the future.

expo

US OR CHAOS

dichotomy between order and chaos. Curated by Becky Haghpanah-Shirwan, the director of the London a/political collection, this unique private a/political collection with about 40 powerful works will be on show. Inspired by an anti-riot policeman’s retort to a member of the Spanish artists’ collective Democracia, the exposition takes a look at control techniques and resistance strategies, attempts to order the chaos and tendencies to challenge the prevailing order.

IS IT DARK? 27-30 Sep – Het Bos, Antwerp 12.00-18.00 – TBA – free for members IS IT DARK? is investigating strategies to deal with personal experiences of fear through the sonic. In this case, the sonic in speedcore music, an extreme form of hardcore electronic music that developed in the 1990s at the fringes of youth culture in Europe.The research and work will be produced by collectives ENCORE and SEXES, which will include a cyber experience of medical vegetation, a hyperventilating video sculpture, an algorithmic play, an offsite performance and a virtual/ material screen installation. Opening party on 27 September at 23.00.

22 Sep-09 Dec – BPS22, Charleroi 10.00-18.00 – €6 – free for members BPS22 presents US OR CHAOS, a committed expo that brings together wellknown international artists to study the

music

Negative Gemini You might expect an interview with rising deepinternet club-pop star Negative Gemini (aka Lindsey French) to be as sublime and seductive as her music. Yet as we quickly discover, chatting with French is more akin to getting a big hug: warm, fuzzy and lifeaffirming. In the span of a few short minutes, we’re sharing daily intimacies like two friends meeting for a drink: we hear about her parents, her partner and her dog. By the time we shift the conversation to music, we’re completely under the sway of her southern Virginia drawl. Read on for insights into weirdo rock music, the New York house scene and the journey that led to French’s chart-topping, heartstopping and highly-addictive new EP, Bad Baby.

Interview by Julia Yudelman

Photos by Casey Doran shot in Atlanta, USA

Something that I’ve been nerdily dying to ask you is, what’s the deal with your name? Is it astrology-related? Okay, so, I’m not a Gemini. I’m a Sagittarius. I’m not a negative person either, I don’t think. When I made up the name I had written down 100 words that I liked on a piece of paper, and then I was pairing words to see how they sounded. Negative Gemini was one of them. Another was Oxygen Rave, which I was going by for a little while [Laughs]. But I like the way Negative Gemini sounds and I kind of relate to the Gemini sign. They’re known for having two personalities, and that resonated with my music. Especially with my first album, the songs were really sad and low and gloomy, and my personality was really not that way – I’m more free-spirited. Your EP Bad Baby is a pretty big departure from your previous work in almost every way: production-wise, your use of analogue instruments, and then the whole vibe is a lot more dreamy, ethereal and warm. Was that a conscious decision on your part? It definitely was a conscious decision, but it also happened really organically out of the desire to want to go in that direction, just feeling like I want to produce more of a tactile work. I began

writing songs on guitar when I was a kid, and recently I was like, I want to return to that. It just feels more stripped down and honest to me. More personal. I think this part of my life just needs this kind of music. Why do you think you felt inclined to make something more personal? When I made Body Work, I was living in New York and I was getting super into house music and was just obsessed with the idea of making that kind of music. I think that when I’m feeling settled and happy in life, I’m more drawn to learning about technical things like production and I end up making songs like I did on Body Work. Then if something goes awry in my life, I’m feeling more emotional and I’m feeling the need to express myself in a more succinct vocal way. That was definitely what was going on with this new EP. I think I just had a lot to say, and just wanted to get out there and scream on the microphone. It feels good. You’re four albums deep into Negative Gemini now. What have you learned along the way? I’ve learned a whole lot technically about producing and recording music, and that’s been super fun because the more you know how to do, the more you can change about a recording.

It’s allowed me to be so independent with the way I write. Artistically, I’ve learned that the things that seem the most random sonically and not attached to some kind of trend end up being some of my most successful work. And just really to trust your instinct and not worry about the end product so much. It’s interesting you’re saying not to think about what’s trendy, because I can’t ignore that there’s been a lot more attention on women electronic artists in the last few years. Do you feel like you’re part of a growing movement?

Yeah! I guess I do feel part of something happening. It’s hard to tell whether it’s me changing or the world changing around me, because I do feel a lot more respected as a performer and artist than I felt in the beginning. Nobody asks me anymore if I produce my own music or write my own songs. That was honestly why I first started this project. I had been making music with two guys, and I was getting really involved in the production, but people would make remarks assuming that I had no part in it, and sometimes that I didn’t even write my own lyrics. I do think things are changing, and I’m determined to be a part of women getting equal rights and equal respect. Who are your biggest influences? I’d say right now that I’m really inspired by what they call ‘weirdo rock music’. When I heard Weyes Blood that was a big turning point. I’m really into artists that fall into the same thing, like John Maus and Ariel Pink. They’re all still pretty under-recognised, but they definitely inspired Bad Baby – going on musical tangents, and that intentionally crappy sounding, lo-fi, psychedelic feel. Growing up I had a lot of definite pop influences too. I loved the Beach Boys, and I had a lot of women that I looked up to, like No Doubt, Lauryn Hill and Destiny’s Child.

Negative Gemini 9 Oct â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Beursschouwburg, Brussels free for members

music

Infinite Bisous Paris-based musician and producer Rory McCarthy is not only the founding father of the internet collective and label Tasty Morsels, heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also the man behind Infinite Bisous, those tunes youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll slap on the deck late at night when you bring that midnight encounter home for a last drink. As a man who only makes music when it feels right, the kissing boy reappeared on the net this year like a phoenix rising from the ashes, pressing a 12-inch of his previously digital-only album W/Love. He also released two new songs bearing the Infinite Bisous trademarks we love: bedroom pop drenched in sensuality and wine. For the occasion we dug into the good old archive folder and retrieved pics from our last visit to his Parisian apartment back in late 2016. Photos by Jules Faure shot in Paris, France

Infinite Bisous 12 Sep â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Madame Moustache, Brussels free for members

scene report

Mumbai Always been curious about scenes in other cities outside your own little cocoon? We assumed you were! As much as we can, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll feed your hunger for insights and secrets in the Scene Report. This month we hit up our boy Abhi Meer, born and raised in Mumbai, the Gateway of India and metropolis of close to 20 million people, home of Bollywood movies and where the best street Pani Puris are served. Meer was an editor at the seminal music criticism magazine formerly known as NH7.in, before turning to DJing and producing experimental music with modular synthesizers. He currently manages the radio programme (among other things) at the New Delhibased online community radio station, Boxout.fm.

Text by Abhi Meer

Photos by Zoya Khan, Evolve Stills, 32 Abhi Meer and Motion

To say that Mumbai has a true underground or alternative music scene is both a stretch of the imagination and not. Through the last two decades, only two microscenes thrived in Mumbai – metal and psychedelic trance – managing to retain a semblance of what it meant to be an underground or alternative community against the odds. Everything else that took a stab at remaining relevant purely on its own merit, eventually buckled to corporatisation for better or worse. Traditional rock music had a bit of a hey-day in the ‘80s and ‘90s, but most bands of the day moved on because of a lack of viable opportunities. Left-field UK underground music had a moment well ahead of its time thanks to a forward-thinking crew called Bhavishyavani Future Soundz, but that was before bigger, more mainstream forces cornered what was left of this growing market. Soon enough, non-mainstream dance music was limited to

the kind made popular in Ibiza by folks such as Sasha and John Digweed, and its popularity in Mumbai began to surge, soundtracking bougie seaside cocktail dos and what was, at best, PG-13 raving. That said, few people in music had musical careers on their minds. It was an investment too time-consuming and far too volatile. The third wave of ‘festival fever’ hit the United States around about the same time It’s hit India, sometime in the late 2000s. it’s worth noting that like America, India has always been a little late to the party. Most documentarians of music would agree that this particular vein of tardiness would often profoundly impact music within a culture, especially in a place like India where Western music, at least at the time, followed an informal hand-me-down system. Be that as it may, once music festivals began to blossom and sponsor money began pouring in, musicians had a new raison d’etre. While brands and corporate sponsors do get called

out for ‘exploiting the culture’, so-to-speak, the conversation around this in India is often unproductive. Without financial support, it would have been nigh on impossible for the underbelly of diverse electronic music, cementing its presence at Mumbai’s smaller, alternative clubs, to come to the fore. Like it or not, this was Indian alternative music’s ‘fall of the Berlin Wall’ moment. It’s also only around this time that music became a viable career for some, who were making a name for themselves at home and subsequently across borders. Mumbai’s Sanaya ‘Sandunes’ Ardeshir immediately spring to mind, a talented classical pianist who now operates in the live experimental/ dance space with a sound that is quite unique. Bands like Ape Echoes, whose free jazz-like improvisations across the genre spectrum make for some very enjoyable music, are small testament to the widening of tastes.

Over the last couple of years, REProduce has been shining light on a legion of music out of leftfield despite experimentalism and avant-gardism as a movement having flown over most people’s’ heads for years. REProduce have chosen to subvert a lot of what is common practice and have stuck to showcasing experimental music and performance art at non-traditional venues through their regular Listening Room events, offering up hours of music with an open-door policy. Algorave culture also seems intent on making its mark in India in 2018, with the newly-formed Algorave India crew setting the bar high from the get-go. Burning its way slowly out of Mumbai’s gullies and heading towards the national stage, hip hop is perhaps the best known form of regional music that is 100% local, and doesn’t borrow from the hugely

influential genre anything other than its time-honoured musical mappings. But gifted Mumbai rappers like Vivian Fernandes b.k.a Divine, Tienas or the Dopeadelicz alone won’t be responsible for hip hop’s takeover of the Indian mainstream, something many would call a pipe dream altogether. A lot will have to change for this or any non-commercial music to gain any real cultural capital in a city like Mumbai. Unless Mumbai’s and India’s musicians start to better understand the political and social context in which their music exists, we’ll still remain light years away from truly breeding subcultures. In an increasingly divisive political climate, truly alternative music will need to cut across social classes and infiltrate age and generational barriers, something quite distant when most of it can’t even get any radio play. But, this is Mumbai, and for better or worse, we persevere.

Essential Listening: boxout.fm Festivals: Magnetic Fields Festival, NH7 Weekender Venues: Above The Habitat, Levi’s Lounge, Khar Social/Antisocial, The Quarter Record shops: Music Circle, Haji Ebrahim, The Revolver Club Labels and promoters: KRUNK, Nrtya Bands: Pangea, Ape Echoes, FUNC, Purva Ashadha, Sandunes, Blackstratblues, MILK Food: Seafood, anywhere in Central or South Mumbai and all of it at once preferably.

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Love at first Sight #3 Text by Ana Laborie Photos by Tiny Geeroms

Love at First Sight 19-23 Sep â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Various locations, Antwerp loveatfirstsight.be

We became misty eyed when we first experienced the five-day, late-summer feast of the imagination that is Love at first Sight. Presenting works by (new) artists in venues across the heart of Antwerp,

and put together by a temporary alliance of cultural connoisseurs Arenberg, De Studio, d e t h e a t e r m a k e r, Monty, Troubleyn / Jan Fabre, Zuidpool and Toneelhuis, for this edition Het Bos and deSingel join the partnership. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve selected four intriguing artists and companies but there are many more delights to be discovered. What are you waiting for?

Hannah De Meyer ‘If this work is a response to a damaged, fragile earth, I’d rather respond with something soft than something heavy.’ Hannah De Meyer graduated in 2015 from the Maastricht Theater Academy. Inspired by the work of a generation of activist writers working on decolonisation, sci-fi feminism and ecology, De Meyer is in the process of creating an answer to this, a show called new skin. She claims: ‘Theatre as we know it is not that common around the world – getting together to watch something, without the fear of being bombed or being arrested for something you say or do on stage. Many places in the world are not safe enough to do that. That makes me want do something kind and light-hearted rather than dramatic. Something like walking in nature, a landscape with trees and stars, and a sky.’ 41

Hannah De Meyer ‘new skin’ 22 Sep – Troubleyn, Antwerp free for members

Laura Vroom ‘I admire everyone who has made a painting/theatre show/movie/song and showed it to someone else.’ Vroom began her career when her ballet teacher asked her to move like a butterfly. She hasn’t looked back since. In the future, she imagines herself with perfectly grey hair and red pumps, but also as an artist who is developing herself by improving her method of creation and learning while constantly evolving. The biggest challenge as an artist, she says, is to find a balance between your passion, an existential connection to your work, and maintaining a healthy distance from it. ‘As an artist you are vulnerable, you put yourself out there, your mistakes are visible for everyone. On the other hand I’m grateful to be able to share my thoughts and feelings on this world with others.’ Vroom is currently working on her new show, Langzaam gleed een berg het dal in, the poetical and absurd search by an old woman for her place in this world. 42

Tibaldus ‘The most complex [thing] is the work itself. How should we “act”?’

Simon De Winne, Hans Mortelmans and Timeau De Keyser founded Tibaldus while studying at KASK/ School of arts in Ghent and they’ve been working together since they were 19. Being an actor brings a lot of responsibility, they say. It’s your voice. Your body. Who are you going to lend it to? What will you tell? What will you leave out? An actor is never neutral. He plays a fundamental game with reality, and in that game you always take a stance. Currently Tibaldus are working on Gombrowicz’s second play: The Marriage. It’s a production with a large cast that forces them to act in a way that makes their own position as actors problematic. In that way they engage in a struggle with the medium of theatre and the idea of ‘representation’ connected with it. But at the same time, when they are actually performing, they abandon this form of complex drama and try to be as open, non-dogmatic and crazy as possible. Child’s play. 45

The Hotshop ‘I remember being a child and realising how sad it is that I can only live one life. So I started playing all the lives I could never live. And I think that’s how it started.’ Sara Lâm

Verbakel: ‘The future = I want to keep working with talented, outspoken people. I also see myself working on more international movie sets and working abroad… Being an actor means to be vulnerable, vital, sensitive and disciplined. A lot of people forget that you need to train the whole year round to keep up the work of a physical performance months in advance. Also mentally you need to know how to recharge your batteries on a daily basis.’

The Hotshop is the juvenile wing of De Warme Winkel, the antiauthoritarian actors’ collective based in Amsterdam. During Love At First Sight, it’s represented by Sara Lâm, Lauranne Paulissen, Verbona Verbakel, Jonas De Vuyst and Lukas De Wolf. Lâm: ‘What does it mean to be an actor? I once read this sentence: “I love how we light fires, which the rest of the world wants to see burn.”’ Paulissen: ‘We’re working together with four other actors from the Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp and Ward Weemhoff (from The Hotshop) on an opera by Richard Wagner, more precisely der Ring des Nibelungen.’

De Wolf: ‘If you asked me to describe my work in one sentence, I’d say it’s about telling stories.’ De Vuyst: ‘Showing the human being.’

The Hotshop ‘Wagner: De Halve Ring’ 20 Sep – Monty, Antwerp free for members

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CHENGDU

Chengdu-based fashion designer Agu Chen wears her own brand Poor Pool. Photos and styling by Femke Fredrix

14 - 15 - 16 SEPT ‘18

FESTIVAL LEFFINGE - MIDDELKERKE

ICEAGE (DK) A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS (US) AMMAR 808 (TU) STIKSTOF (BE)

LUMERIANS (US) WHY? (US) JIMOTHY LACOSTE (UK) BAD BREEDING (UK) THE MAUSKOVIC DANCE BAND (NL) THE OSCILLATION (UK) DONNY BENÉT (AU) BOYTOY (US) PUBLIC PSYCHE (BE) HER’S (UK) SYLVIE KREUSCH (BE) BOROKOV BOROKOV (BE) GUNN TRUSCINSKI DUO (US) PRETTIEST EYES (US) CABBAGE (UK) MDC III (BE) MICHAEL MIDNIGHT (BE) MALE GAZE (US) SWEDISH DEATH CANDY (BE) FLYING HORSEMAN (BE) AMYL & THE SNIFFERS (AU) BOY AZOOGA (UK) AND MANY MANY MORE

DUYSTER-LIVE

Sessies & interviews in de kerk hosted by Ayco Duyster en Eppo Janssen

WILL SAMSON (UK) FAITH HEALER (US) BRAM VANPARYS (BE) BERT DOCKX (BE) WWW.LEFFINGELEURENFESTIVAL.BE

recent finds Gohda — 2kxx2

by Laura-Andréa Callewaert

soundcloud.be/gohda

This actually isn’t such a ‘recent’ find – but it’s still on repeat on my phone (and that’s got to count for something, right?). Gohda, the best producer to ever be birthed, released this EP a couple of months ago and I’m still very much in love with it. You could describe this Philadelphia-based genius’ style as dreamy trance with a touch of RnB. He’s been called the epitome of the neo sound and we heartily agree. Not only is this record amazing, his other stuff is pretty cool as well. He’s planning on releasing another EP at the end of this month, so keep your eyes on this one!

Pieter Chanterie Pieter Chanterie, Front Space 1 6 - 30 September Valerie Traan Gallery Antwerp free entrance instagram.com/piechant

My lovely friend and roommate, Pieter Chanterie, is having his first solo exhibition at Valerie Traan Gallery in Antwerp, called ‘Front Space 1: Pieter Chanterie’. His work represents the future of painting in my opinion. With his bright approach to painting he creates new universes that feel like your most deranged dreams. Every canvas has a different storyline and fills your imagination with joy and euphoria. Pieter has clearly built his own specific visual universe, often with a funny hidden touch. If you watch closely you can spot characters like Donatella Versace, Lil Wayne or Sophia The Robot, which lightens up your mood instantly.

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SLOWTHAI W/AB DJ TAYE + LE MOTEL & DTM FUNK W/FOOT JUICE ART. NEGATIVE GEMINI W/AB PHOENICIAN DRIVE RELEASE PARTY BOIBAND SOUK SESSIONS NADAH EL SHAZLY DEENA ABDELWAHED BOSAINA + NUR EARTHEATER TONY NJOKU W/AB KERO KERO BONITO

WE 26.09 FR 28.09 TU 09.10 TH 11.10 FR 19.10 SA 20.10 TH 25.10 FR 26.10 SA 27.10 SA 10.11 TH 22.11 FR 23.11

In the framework of TASHWEESH, a 10-day multidisciplinary festival about feminism in the Middle-East, North Africa and Europe.