Another Saturday night in Brussels
...9pm: Hit the Grand Place where Hooverphonic are playing a free gig as part of the city council's Iris Festival (the yellow iris is the symbol of Brussels). The place is rammed and the band, Belgium's answer to Morcheeba or Moloko, seem to be going through the motions a bit. But the combination of loud music, warm weather and a beautiful square overcomes any misgivings.
...10 pm: Slipping out the back of the square just before the encore, we make our way to Windows, for sets by two local bands inspired by 60s Americana: Monsigneur Lafayette et ses Virtuoses and Eddy Tornado et les Scandaleux.
The monsignor and gang play psych rock of the Seeds/Os Mutantes variety. A six piece (including a guy playing bongos and theremin), they really got the place moving: an extremely tight, well drilled and skilled combo. Cool outfits and facial hair too. As my mate Leigh said, if they were 10 years younger and in London you could imagine a scene forming around them.
I've written about Eddie and the Bhoys before. Since the last time I saw them, they have dropped the burlesque (no maked visen with billy club), dropped the Sham 69 cover, added a double bass on some tracks and generally got a whole lot better. Twirl your partners, ladies and gentlemen.
...12.30 am: Off to the Zebra bar to catch the end of a live set by Aschka (aka Debbie) and the DJing skills of Sensu. Some people say he is the best DJ in Belgium. I don't know about that, but he certainly has skills. A recent conversion to Dubstep seems like a good way of taking the Brussels club sound beyond its minimal torpor.
1.30 am: A private party downstairs in Biberium. The birthday girl has already gone and we are left with the stragglers and a tech house soundtrack. Another whisky coca, s'il vous plait.
2.45 am: Washed up at Celestin, the bar that opens 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This time there isn't a fist fight between Albanian gangsters going on (unlike my previous visit, but then that was at 8am). It ain't what the Dutch would call gezellig, and the R&B soundtrack can get a bit wearing, but it's a great place to end the night. Cheers!
...10 pm: Slipping out the back of the square just before the encore, we make our way to Windows, for sets by two local bands inspired by 60s Americana: Monsigneur Lafayette et ses Virtuoses and Eddy Tornado et les Scandaleux.
The monsignor and gang play psych rock of the Seeds/Os Mutantes variety. A six piece (including a guy playing bongos and theremin), they really got the place moving: an extremely tight, well drilled and skilled combo. Cool outfits and facial hair too. As my mate Leigh said, if they were 10 years younger and in London you could imagine a scene forming around them.
I've written about Eddie and the Bhoys before. Since the last time I saw them, they have dropped the burlesque (no maked visen with billy club), dropped the Sham 69 cover, added a double bass on some tracks and generally got a whole lot better. Twirl your partners, ladies and gentlemen.
...12.30 am: Off to the Zebra bar to catch the end of a live set by Aschka (aka Debbie) and the DJing skills of Sensu. Some people say he is the best DJ in Belgium. I don't know about that, but he certainly has skills. A recent conversion to Dubstep seems like a good way of taking the Brussels club sound beyond its minimal torpor.
1.30 am: A private party downstairs in Biberium. The birthday girl has already gone and we are left with the stragglers and a tech house soundtrack. Another whisky coca, s'il vous plait.
2.45 am: Washed up at Celestin, the bar that opens 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This time there isn't a fist fight between Albanian gangsters going on (unlike my previous visit, but then that was at 8am). It ain't what the Dutch would call gezellig, and the R&B soundtrack can get a bit wearing, but it's a great place to end the night. Cheers!
Labels: Belgium, nightlife, on live music
posted by Justin Toland at 2:09 pm
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