SONIC WARFARE – 4 YEAR BIRTHDAY BASH WITH MOUNT KIMBIE 10 Dec - Melkweg, Amsterdam Local dubstep label and promoters Sonic Warfare celebrate their four successful years with a little help from the Hotflush roster of electronic and dubstep artists including Mount Kimbie, Scuba, Sepalcure and George Fitzgerald. Mount Kimbie will look to build on the tempered, atmospheric electronica of their debut Crooks & Lovers in what will likely send Sonic Warfare off to a nice start in their fifth year. GONJASUFI 10 Dec - Paradiso, Amsterdam Yoga teacher-turned-rapper Sumach Ecks, otherwise known as Gonjasufi, will project his scrappy-voiced hip hop beats through the walls of Paradiso for a night in December. Gonjasufi’s spirituality and otherworldly fascinations pervade his debut album A Sufi and a Killer, which was promptly followed by remix LP The Caliph’s Tea Party. HANGGAI 11 Dec - Vera, Groningen 12 Dec - Patronaat, Haarlem With so many bands and trends in popular music, it’s difficult to avoid the clichéd classification that comes with professional musicians – unless, that is, you mix various genres of contemporary rock music with centuries-old Mongolian folk songs, which is precisely what the SinoMongolian band Hanggai do, and do well. BEST COAST 12 Dec - Bitterzoet, Amsterdam LA’s Best Coast exemplify everything that’s good about the prolific production of low-fi pop bands who’ve turned their Californian upbringings into both contemporary and vintage-influenced pop music. With ex-Vivian Girls drummer
Ali Koehler now firmly in tow, Best Coast frontwoman Beth Consentino looks to deliver the quaint lyrics and fuzzy magic of this year’s Crazy For You to the Bitterzoet.
AGENDA SHOWS IN NOVEMBER
MATTHEW DEAR 14 Dec - Trouw, Amsterdam FREE TICKETS. SEE PAGE 59
Break from easy listening by spinning Matthew Dear’s latest album, Black City, for a hot second. Challenging and gritty (kind of like you), dearest Matthew’s latest stuff has gotten darker. But don’t be shocked if he brings to the surface some of his earlier, brighter blends. Either way, you’ll hate how much you love the complex techno-pop twist, still raw and rough around the edges. DELOREAN 15 Dec - Paradiso, Amsterdam With a mesh of indie-rock with Balearic influences, synthpop quartet Delorean, released their third album, Subiza, this year. If your empty vintage wallet won’t send you clubbing in Barcelona this winter, let Delorean bring the Spanish nightlife to you instead. Rave on with modern, sunny club techno that’ll be sure to keep your body movin’. THE DRUMS 17 Dec - Melkweg, Amsterdam A couple of Brooklyn-based pretty boys with ’80s postpunk influences and a growing sea of fans. The Drums’ story isn’t uncommon - yes, we’ve heard it with The Strokes. But stacking a combo of appealing pop singles in their self-titled first album, frontman Jonathon Pierce keeps the Drums consistent in their nosurprise post-punk-pop. LOWER DENS 18 Dec - Vera, Groningen It’s no wonder that Jana Hunter’s smooth alto vocals and dark, dreamy guitar got her signed as the first artist on Devendra Ban-
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