LIST MANIA 2010

I only saw 2 absolutely brilliant masterpieces on the big screen in 2010: Edvard Yang’s A BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY from 1991 and Yoshida Kiju’s EROS + MASSACRE from 1969. Both were screened at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. It’s hard to pick 10 favourite movies out of the 126 I saw in various theatres in 2010. Here’s an attempt:

1. HOW I ENDED THIS SUMMER
2. ENTER THE VOID
3. UN HOMME QUI CRIE
4. SPRING FEVER
5. THE KILLER INSIDE ME
6. THE ROAD
7. ALAMAR
8. TALES FROM THE GOLDEN AGE
9. TOURNEE
10.LES AMOURS IMAGINAIRES

As far as albums go, I became somehow addicted to EILEN JEWELL’s 'Sea of Tears' but since it was released in 2009, I couldn’t give it a pole position here. Same goes with JOHN WESLEY COLEMAN's 'Steal My Mind' on Certified PR Records. I think I could get away with putting AZ238 at n°1 although the album was officially released in December of 2009.

1. AZ238 - TOKYO ELECTRON
2. Tin Boat to Tuna Town - DRUID PERFUME
3. The Black Jaspers – THE BLACK JASPERS
4. Reform School Girl – NICK CURRAN& THE LOWLIFES
5. Soft Crash – NOTHING PEOPLE
6. Onecept - DAVID S. WARE
7. City of Rotten Eyes – OVERNIGHT LOWS
8. The Goodnight Loving Supper Club - THE GOODNIGHT LOVING
9. Defrosting of DEMONS CLAWS
10.Bad Lady Goes To Jail – JOHN WESLEY COLEMAN III

As usual, I wish I could’ve read more books last year. Fortunately, the ones I read were almost all top-notch.

1. Zee en Aarde – ÁLVARO MUTIS
2. De Wilde Detectives – ROBERTO BOLAÑO
3. Alma Mahler-Werfel – OLIVER HILMES
4. Revolutionary Road – RICHARD YATES
5. The Road – CORMAC McCARTHY
6. De tuin van de Finzi-Contini's – GIORGIO BASSANI
7. Nero, de bloedige dichter – DEZSÖ KOSZTOLÁNYI
8. 1q84 – HARUKI MURAKAMI
9. La carte et le territoire – MICHEL HOULLEBECQ
10.Die gore klerezooi in de Via Merulana – CARLO EMILIO GADDA

I missed some shows I really wanted to see this year (TY SEGALL, ROKY ERICKSON, THEE VICARS+THEE SPIVS). Here are the ones that blew my mind:

1. EYEHATEGOD (Minus One, Ghent)
2. SHARON JONES & THE DAP-KINGS (L’Aéronef, Lille)
3. ROTTEN SOUND (Neurotic Deathfest, Tilburg)
4. THEE OH SEES (Trix, Antwerp)
5. EILEN JEWELL (Ha’, Ghent)
6. MAHMOUD AHMED+ALEMAYEHU ESHETE (ZPH, Antwerp)
7. WOLF EYES (Netwerk, Aalst)
8. THE PALADINS (Sjock-festival, Gierle)
9. SANTOS & LUIS WILDFIRE (Rockin’ at the Drive-in Barn, Oosteeklo)
10.NAPALM DEATH (L’Aéronef, Lille)
11.WHEELS ON FIRE (Pit's, Kortrijk - oops, that's 11!)

One of these days, I will publish my favourite COMPILATIONS and REISSUES from 2010...