i'm outta here!

It’s about time to expand my life-experience once again, this time by making a three-week journey through Morocco. I hope to get this blog on the right track again when back home at the end of August. Stay tuned!

The Best of FATS WALLER: The Original Masters (Sony 3CD)

Here’s one of the best deals in recent months: the legendary RCA recordings of FATS WALLER, one of the biggest jazz icons in history, at an incredibly low price. The sound is excellent, there’s some brief information about the artist in the booklet and the packaging looks cool. Even though it overlaps with other Fats Waller budget titles on JSP and PROPER, this 3CD box set is really unbeatable at 5,75 EUR. In the same Original Masters series, Sony has just released compilations by Glenn Miller, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra and Louis Armstrong (his legendary Hot Fives and Sevens recordings).

6 critic’s darling bands that I don’t seem to like no matter how hard I try:

WIRE
HÜSKER DÜ
THE CLASH
MOTÖRHEAD
THE BEATLES
KING SUNNY ADE


6 of my alltime favorite bands/artists:

THE FALL
PERE UBU
LOS LOBOS
TOM WAITS
ALEX CHILTON
CAPTAIN BEEFHEART

El Cant Dels Ocells - Albert Serra

I missed Albert Serra’s second feature “Honor de Cavalleria” in Rotterdam last year but yesterday I’ve seen his third feature film “El Cant Dels Ocells” and it’s a stunning piece of film art. Here’s an accurate description of the movie and I really don’t feel the need to add any words. Serra is only 33 years old so let’s hope he’ll treat us to more gems like “El Cant Dels Ocells” whose genuine absurdism and sublime black and white landscape photography are truly unique.

Howdy!

House renovations are over, Spanish tests completed and tax forms filled out, so I guess it’s about time to breath some fresh life into this blog.

I haven’t seen many new movies lately but I was recently impressed by the Rotterdam Tiger Award winning WONDERFUL TOWN by Aditya Assarat. This fragile but powerful movie recently saw a nationwide release which today means that it was shown in 4 Belgian theatres for about 3 weeks. The film tells about a love affair, shot in a Thai village devastated by the 2004 tsunami, that ends on a morbid note. The impressively photographed desolate villages and their surroundings, the reflective & enchanting mood re-enforced by minimal dialogue and an evocative guitar-dominated score are just a few reasons why I loved every single moment of this memorable film. Aditya Assarat's debut film marks him as a talent to watch!



Concert-wise, I was rather disappointed by a rather boring Matthew Shipp Trio in Bruges, a mediocre-at-best Boss Tweed from NY and some kind of Johnny Dowd-goes-fusion show in my hometown. To make things worse, The Handsome Family – who impressed me at the Blue Highways festival a few years ago – got on my nerves after a couple of songs by overemphasizing the “weird” aspect of their music. I mean, every song was introduced as some kind of lullaby-with-devils so the whole thing became rather artificial and predictable after a while. Weird for the sake of being weird? No, thanks!

Fortunately, I also went to a couple of shows that set the place on fire! Here are my favorite ones:

1. The Hex Dispensers (May 23 - Pit's)

Alex Cuervo at the Pit’s was like a wet dream coming true. Expectations were very high but the Hex Dispensers left the competition far behind with songs that borrow a lot from The Wipers and Ramones but still do stand on their own. An adrenaline shot from some of the nicest people you could ever meet! Click here if you don't believe me.

2. Toby Dammit w/ Jessie Evans (April 3 - N9)

I haven’t seen or heard anything quite like this: sax player and extravaganza Goddess Jessie Evans w/ drummer Toby Dammit mixed afro beat with no wave and spiced the whole thing up with Brazilian and Mexican sounds. Awesome!

3. Haunted George (May 15 - Pit's)

Despite his ghoulish lyrics and primitive music, Haunted George turned out to be a real gentleman who knows how to boogie. It ain’t a thing if it ain’t got that swing!

4. The Seatsniffers (May 16 - N9)

Belgium’s best live band has just released their seventh album and this release show was another tour-de-force. Great cover of Alex Chilton’s Bangkok too!

5. Carbonas (April 9 - Pit's)

Full-throttle punkrock by a bunch of cool dudes from Atlanta. The day after, Carbonas paid a visit to the Westvleteren abbey and flew home with a couple of six packs from the brewery. My kinda guys!

6. Whiskey Daredevils (May 12 - 't Schransken)

Out of the ashes of the Cowslingers and still a great mix between punk rock and country. A funny band to watch too!

Next are the legendary SONICS at the Sjock Festival in Gierle this Saturday. Can’t wait to see one of my all-time favorite bands live on stage!!!

I think our world is rotten to the core and that if there's a God, he must be indifferent for human suffering (to quote Anton LaVey). Still, Austrian director Ulrich Seidl's films feel like a kick in the head. His second long feature - after a handful of amazing documentaries - is essentially another intriguing film about humiliation and loss but it is great to see how the two main characters courageously struggle for a decent life. IMPORT/EXPORT is a MUST SEE!


I also found some DEKE DICKERSON & The Ecco-fonics pictures from that fabulous Turnhout show at this Swiss girl’s myspace. Damn cool, ain't it?



I hope to breathe new life into this blog once my house is finished (hopefully next month). I will post MP3's very frequently and will include more film reviews so stay tuned!

Here's another soul compilation bootleg album that I need to check out 'cuz it looks full of promise. Maybe after all, there IS a GOD!!!

Rockin' Around Turnhout

Some 15 years ago, I saw DEKE DICKERSON play a fabulous live show with Norton Records recording artists The Untamed Youth and ever since I've become a huge fan of this Californian guitar wizard. A couple of years ago, I saw Deke for the second time in Belgium with his new band The Ecco-fonics when he played a fierce rockin' set with a tight band including standup bass and wild sax at the annual Rockin' Around Turnhout rockabilly festival. The show was so good that I promised myself never to miss the opportunity to see Deke live on stage so I jumped back in my car a few years later to see him play again with the Ecco-fonics in a club in Antwerp. Again, it was a very entertaining & crazy set with an audience that really adored Deke & his band.

Last weekend, I drove again to the Rockin' Around Turnhout festival where Deke was scheduled as headliner on Saturday night. Before the power trio took the stage, THE MEAN DEVILS from Portugal played a wild & reckless set with a boppin' standup bass player and very exciting piano man. The singer was wild as hell: he sounded like a male Wanda Jackson and tore the house down. I was deeply impressed!

After The Mean Devils, DEKE & THE ECCO-FONICS were announced as power trio featuring Deke, Chris "Sugarballs" Sprague, and "Crazy Joe" Tritschler. The show was a blast and will end up high in my personal year end's list with favorite live shows of 2008! Deke has a CD compilation out entitled 'Mr. Entertainment' and I think that's hitting the nail on the head as he is like the ultimate entertainer! For some songs, Deke, Crazy Joe and Sugarballs switched instruments (once in the middle of a song without a break) and at the end of the show Deke & Crazy Joe played the same double neck guitar! One highlight followed the other and fun was had by the band and the audience! A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!!



The next day, my car broke down while driving back to Turnhout for the bar crawl where some 15 bands play different sets at various small clubs around town. Fortunately, the road assistance installed a new battery and I was just in time to witness the incredible raw juke joint blues of STINKY LOU & THE GOONMAT. This threesome has just released their debut album on the Swiss Voodoo Rhythm record label and on stage they revive 50's juke joint blues in a very fascinating way. The bass player rams a one-string cord attached to a broom that sticks out of a big washtub, the drummer plays guitar and sings while a wild harmonica player goes loose, jumps and shouts. My God, these guys are nothing short of spectacular!!

Before we went to see Sunday's top of the bill, we enjoyed half an hour of Germany's SMOKESTACK LIGHTNIN' with Seatsniffers main man Walter Broes on additional guitar. A very nice set witch well-chosen covers by Merle Haggard and Percy Mayfield (the marvelous 'Louisiana', a song he recorded for Specialty Records at the time). Smokestack Lightnin' has a wonderful sound, somewhere between the aforementioned Seatsniffers and Calexico. A great band!

At 11PM, we headed for the main hall again for THE DAVE & DEKE COMBO featuring Deke Dickerson and Dave Stuckey. Many years ago, this hillbilly outfit played at the festival too so this show felt like a homecoming for these boys. With false teeth and barefooted, they played a very funny and swinging set and everybody was having a good time again. Mr. Entertainment did it again!



Three incredible days of high quality roots music: oh what a weekend!!! Don't forget to check out the new Deke Dickerson and Stinky Lou albums!

(As I hate taking pictures at shows, I googled some up for your viewing pleasure)

CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS

If the Anthology of American Folk Music is your musical bible and if you can’t get enough of those amazing old time music compilations on Old Hat Records and Dust-To-Digital, you really own it to yourself to check out a band called CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS. Last Friday, this African-American string trio played a show at my hometown and I am still amazed by their inspired, hearty and genuine performance. The handsome trio played a very varied set that included covers by Jimmy Rogers, Hobart Smith and Othar Turner. Next to the amazing performances, we got to now all kinds of very interesting details like the fact that the banjo originates from Africa and that the Appalachian Mountains are not the real source of traditional banjo and fiddle music (more info on this subject can be found here). All three performers were very devoted professionals but never became pedantic. Although the CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS play music from the 1920-30’s, the band never sounds outdated because the energy level and sheer enthusiasm is unparalleled. What a band!!!

Go to http://www.fabchannel.com/ and typ 'CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS' to see the live show from Paradiso, Amsterdam from 18-03-2008. Thanks to my pal FILIP for the tip!

Carolina Chocolate Drops website
Carolina Chocolate Drops myspace

Cinema Novo Film Festival in Bruges

... more info here.

the Muffs - Democrazy, Ghent - 1993

Gee I’m getting old! This video was taken near my hometown at the Democrazy in Ghent in 1993. All the interesting guitarbands from the 80’s – early 90’s used to play at the Democrazy (Screaming Trees, Nirvana, Killdozer, Jesus Lizard, Thin White Rope, etc) and this club almost became my second home. I still think the first Muffs album is a killer album but all I remember from this show is that Kim Shattuck looked damn hot in that cool red dress!

The New Reviews Are Online!

Finally, the new reviews are online! I intend to update the review section every three months from now on!

an old pic from an incredible hunches show at the mighty pit's( 03.03.03 or 24.09.04)
what on earth is it that attracts us to this dirty garbage rock 'n roll mayhem?
i suppose it's just the perfect antidote to the dreariness and predictability of the daily grind?

Some of my favourite movies always leave me confused upon first sight. When I left the theatre, I didn’t think THE BANISHMENT would make my TOP 5 of 2008. Three weeks later, the movie still hasn’t left me mind and for that reason alone, I know it will be in my top 5.



I also think that the latest DIRTBOMBS album on In The Red is the best one Mick Collins & C° ever recorded. And that West-Vleteren is still the best beer in the world. And that my new house starts to look pretty great.

Next week Westmalle + COCOCOMA/HEADACHE CITY at the mighty Pit’s.

Mood? Ç&Oµù$^!?

Will put some reviews on my site this Monday.

In the meantime, check DAVE THE SPAZZ and MICHAEL SHELLEY, two guys that brighten my days at work with their wonderful programs on WFMU.

Nigeria Special

Here's a nice fansite set up to celebrate the release of Nigeria Special: Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds & Nigerian Blues 1970-76 on Soundway Records. Just click the image below.

IFFR 2008

Here are my favorite films, seen at the recent International Film Festival Rotterdam:

1. LA GRAINE ET LE MULET (The Secret of the Grain) - Abdellatif Kechiche


An intense comedy-drama of a North African dockside family in the Southern port of Sète, France. A richly characterized and colorful movie with some terrific acting and a dynamic, captivating plot.

2. SZTUCZKI (Tricks) - Andrzej Jakimowski


A touching and intimate film about a six year old boy who wants to get closer to the father who abandoned his mother. The impressive, natural acting, beautiful cinematography and genuine storytelling makes this the best Polish film in years!

3. THE MAN FROM LONDON - Béla Tarr


Another mesmerizing Béla Tarr movie with the well-known but unrivaled ingredients. Once again, the Hungarian master portrays his utterly bleak visions of the human condition by means of ultra-slow camera movements and gloomy atmospheric accordion music. Another hypnotic tour de force!

4. LIFE TRACK - Jin Guang Hao


A Chinese-South Korean film about an armless man and a mute woman on the run from police. A static and ice-cold rural drama but captivating from beginning to end.

5. SAD VACATION - Shinji Aoyama


Shinji Aoyama won't probably make another tour-de-force like EUREKA, but I very much enjoyed his latest atypical family drama that demands multiple viewings.

2008 Reading List

Here are some books that I really want to read this year:

The Magic Mountain - THOMAS MANN
The best book a good pal of mine has ever read. And it seems that he's not the only one who thinks that this is one of the best novels ever written.

Confessions of a Citizen - SÁNDOR MÁRAI
Sándor Márai has become one of my all-time favorite writers and this book has just been translated into Dutch.

Donau - CLAUDE MAGRIS
Subtitled "A Sentimental Journey from the Source to the Black Sea", this book has been written back in 1986 and is part history, part philosophy, part travelogue. I also heard that it's above all, literature in the richest sense!

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle - HARUKI MURAKAMI
Believe it or not, I still haven't read a single Murakami note. This is going to change very soon...

Kaputt - CURZIO MALAPARTE
On the cover of this new Dutch edition, a well-known Belgian writer states that what Célines' "Journey to the End of the Night" means to WOI, Curzio Malaparte's "Kaputt" means to WOII. "An unforgettable masterpiece from a European master." This makes me very curious about this book from 1944.

Aleksandr Sokoerov: "Regisseurs zijn dieven"

De Russische regisseur Aleksandr Sokoerov, te
gast op het festival vanwege de vertoning van
zijn nieuwste film Alexandra, laakte gisteren tijdens
een gesprek met de Nederlandse filmmaker
Jos Stelling het niveau van de filmkunst. ‘De literatuur
is een onvergelijkbaar grotere kunstvorm
dan de cinema. Cinema is een zwakke, onderontwikkelde
kunstvorm. Als ik in mijn studeerkamer
zit, zie ik in de boekenkast het werk van
Tolstoj en Dickens. De films van Eisenstein
komen daar niet bij in de buurt. Artistiek, intellectueel
en ethisch bevindt de cinema zich nog
absoluut niet op dat niveau. We moeten veel beter
worden voordat de eerste films op de laagste
plank van die boekenkast belanden.’ Een filmregisseur
is volgens Sokoerov een dief van andere
kunsten en weet nauwelijks de eigen kracht van
het medium te gebruiken. ‘We stelen beeld van
de schilder, geluid van de componist en teksten
van de schrijver.’ Toch kan de filmmaker volgens
hem iets wat de schrijver niet kan. 'Cinema gaat
om het creëren van sfeer. Een schrijver, ook grote
sfeerscheppers als William Faulkner en Thomas
Mann, moet altijd ergens ophouden met beschrijven.
Er blijft altijd iets te raden over. Een film
toont alles en dat moet de regisseur naar zijn hand
zetten.’ Maar ook hierover had de goedgemutste
Rus slecht nieuws. ‘We kunnen studenten op de
filmschool alles leren, maar niet het creëren van
sfeer. Sommigen kunnen het, anderen niet.’

from DAILY TIGER 5

The new Sean Penn movie INTO THE WILD is a wonderful movie about escapism and introspection. It's a screen adaptation of Jon Krakauer's bestseller "Into the Wild" which chronicles the real-life adventures of a middle-class college graduate who leaves everything behind and pursues a romantic freedom fueled by the writings of Tolstoy, Thoreau and Jack London. His goal is to live in complete isolation in the Alaskan wilderness. Unfortunately, his ultimate freedom ended in 1992 with food poisoning and starvation.

Unlike the wacko bear freak in Werner Herzog's GRIZZLY MAN, 22-year-old Christopher McCandless - now calling himself "Alexander Supertramp" - stays in touch with people by living off the land and taking pickup jobs. During these genuine encounters with people, Penn never overwhelms us with new age spirituality but instead, he puts Alexander's ramblings in perspective. The guy however is determined about this quest for freedom and constantly secludes himself from people in an abandoned bus in the wilderness.

His motives become clear through his sister's voiceover narration about their parents' sad marriage. His seclusion is an act of revenge against his parents. But in the end, on his deathbed, one thing becomes clear for Alexander: "Happiness is only real when shared". A powerful and cathartic climax.

The lengthy picture (147 min.) never feels overlong and although I didn't really like the bombastic Eddie Vedder songs, I still think that INTO THE WILD is an inspiring and fascinating film that demands viewing on the big screen.

Tomorrow, I hope to make some time for the Coen brothers’ adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. After South Korea, Argentina and Romania, it looks like America is delivering the best movies these days…

International Film Festival Rotterdam 2008

Here’s the movies that I will see at this year’s International Film Festival Rotterdam. There’s always a bunch of films that already screened in Belgium and I also ignore those that I will see at the Cinema Novo film festival in Bruges in March. Still, there’s such an overkill of interesting movies that it is very frustrating to make a selection, especially if you’re limited to only a few days. Anyway, I am really looking forward to the movies I selected:

The Summer Solstice (China, 2007)
Remote Access (Russia, 2004) (from Svetlana Proskurina, one of the 3 film makers in focus)
The Rebirth (Japan, 2007) (from Kobayashi Masahiro, another film maker in focus this year)
Le Ballon Rouge (France, 1956)
Le Voyage du Ballon Rouge (Taiwan, 2007) (the new Hou Hsiao-hsien and a bit of a letdown I heard :-()
English, August (India, 2004)
Les Amours d’Astrée et de Celadon (France, 2007)
Pure Coolness (Kazakhstan/Kyrgyzstan, 2007)
The Best of Times (Russia, 2007)
The Man From London (Hungary, 2007) (the new Béla Tarr!!)
Sztuczki (Poland, 2007)
Allein in vier Wänden (Germany, 2007)
Own Death (Hungary, 2007)
Autumn Ball (Estland, 2007)
Wanda (USA, 1970) (cult film, read more about it here)
Sad Vacation (Japan, 1970) (from Aoyama Shinji, maker of the brilliant Eureka)
Life Track (China, 2007)
Recycle (Jordan, 2007)
La Graine et le Mulet (France, 2007) (very curious about this one!)
At the Beach (China, 1984)
Black Snow (China, 1989) (both from the Cinema Regaines section which dives into the history of cinema and this year focuses on the Fourth Generation filmmakers from China (1978-1989)

Like i said, I ignored a couple of movies that I absolutely don't want to miss but I will see those at the above mentioned Cinema Novo Film Festival: Ploy, Help Me Eros, Secret Sunshine. Other movies I ignored are movies that will be screened in Belgian theaters in the near future (Import/Export, The Darjeeling Limited, No Country For Old Men).



Fuck, I am really counting the days ‘cuz I need some brain food!