WHAT’S ON IN AMSTERDAM. poster 15 Volume 01 1 April-14 April
earth poster by Hrafnhildur Helgadóttir
inside: is talking shit really a craft too? the minimalisation of machinefabriek cinema’s dying breath. finally www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
Free every second thursday
music
Space is only noise By Steven McCarron Illustration by Geoff Kim
of music and Machinefabriek
R
utger Zuydervelt, AKA Machinefabriek, is one of the Netherlands’ most prolific recording acts, but you’ve probably never heard him on the radio or seen him on TV. It’s certainly not a setback, however. His continuous flow of experimental albums, field recordings, soundtracks and collaborations attracts attention from London to Tokyo, but the World Minimal Music Festival has taken him to Muziekgebouw. Will your sets in Amsterdam and Eindhoven this month be comprised of previously composed works or new improvisations? My concerts are always improvised. I wouldn’t even know how to perform my recorded works live. These shows will be Machinefabriek ‘at his most minimal’, I think. But you never know what’s going to happen... How does it feel to be up there with Steve Reich and other renowned minimal composers? It’s fantastic to play, although it feels strange to be in the same programme as brilliant composers like Reich, Glass, Ten Holt, etc. I must confess, I feel a bit out of place between those legends. But on the other www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
hand, these minimal composers have definitely had an influence on my music. Reich’s phasing methods are particularly inspiring. A major aim of the festival is to bring minimal music to a broader audience. How would you encourage newbies to these concerts? The influence of minimal music in modern electronica and ambient is evident. If you’re into artists like Deaf Center and Max Richter, or stuff like Aphex Twin and Plaid, it won’t be difficult to hear the beauty and purity in the pieces the ensembles will be playing. It’s not a world apart. We’ve got Gagarin fever… On your recent release Apollo, you soundtrack Makino Takashi’s short film In Your Star. Is this music inspired from your own preconceptions about space travel? The concept of the film is to do with seeing yourself as a star in the universe. It’s all a bit abstract. But I used NASA sounds and field recordings to fill in some story. I think it gives the film an extra layer, but still leaves room for the viewer to create their own meaning. World Minimal Music Festival takes place until 3 April. Machinefabriek will also perform an improvised soundtrack with Gareth Davis at Theater Kikker (Utrecht) on 9 April.
what’s on. where. when. why.
Tuesday 5 April The Low Anthem
Paradiso (Grote Zaal), 19.30, €16 + membership
Picture this: it’s one of those early spring nights, not yet warm enough to satisfy your cravings for summer, but pleasant enough for you stay out late with a couple of friends, enjoying a few beers without the need to wrap up in a jacket. You’ve got the weather, the drink and the company, all you need now is the perfect soundtrack. That’s where Rhode Island outfit The Low Anthem come in. These guys and girl take folk, gospel and blues, then melt it down into their own beautifully fragile interpretation of spiritual Americana. There’s a whole lot of troubadour wisdom in the mix too, bringing to mind the likes of Tom Waits, Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen. They’ve been refining these influences for a good while already, only breaking through a couple of years ago with Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, and they’re carrying that momentum over to new album Smart Flesh. (LS) Gagarin Brothers
Maloe Melo, 22.00
It feels very auspicious that the Russian rock’n’roll band Gagarin Brothers are playing Amsterdam exactly a week before the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin getting his ass blasted off towards the stars and in the process becoming the first human in space. In tribute to Cosmonaut #1, who said he saw no borders from outer space, this accordion-fuelled quartet manages to mine a full half-century of different musical influences: rockabilly, surf, gypsy jazz, twist, polka and a whole array of former Soviet republic party styles. As Gagarin also said, ‘Off we go!’ (SK)
Wednesday 6 April Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Paradiso (Grote Zaal), 22.00, €18 + membership
Mardi Gras has come and gone this year, but when it comes to brass bands, the party never need slow down. This original New Orleans set have been on the go since ’77, adding funk, bop, hop and perpetually broadening the street parade repertoire to pave the way for contemporary groups like the hiphop-infused Youngblood Brass Band and the slick G-Starwww.unfoldamsterdam.nl
powered Hypnotic Brass Ensemble. Thirty years of marching around the globe hasn’t yet taken its toll because when these guys come to town it ‘Ain’t Nothin’ But a Party’.
For all music visit: www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
Thursday 7 April
Thursday 14 April
James Blake
Melkweg (The Max), 21.00, sold out
So this Brit boy has been one of the biggest hypes of the year, highlighted by this show selling out in about eight seconds. It’s fair enough… his self-titled debut is an emotionally draining but sonically interesting mix of autotune R&B, short bursts of thunderous bass, lyrically whining loops and moments of abstract nothingness, setting him apart from the creative electronic/dubstep crowd he emerged from last year. As such, The Max will be primarily seated this evening. Away from the dancefloor, Blake wants you to embrace the awkwardness of each carefully composed silence rather than dancing or standing chatting at the bar.
Wednesday 13 April Haino Ambarchi O’Malley Trio OCCII, 21.00, €7.50
When it comes to experimental sounds, Amsterdam is overflowing with creativity this month. There’s the World Minimal Music Festival at Muziekgebouw (until 3 April), Monolake at Trouw (2 April), Knalpot presenting their new EP in OT301 (9 April), the programmed Robotic Ensemble at OT301 (13 April) and even our poster boys Earth. But these three guys coming to town tonight always make a noise to get excited about. They’re passing through Amsterdam on their way to Tilburg, where Stephen O’Malley and Oren Ambarchi’s doom lord alter-egos Sunn O))) curate the internationally renowned, stonerfriendly Roadburn Festival. Their black cloaks won’t be required tonight, but you can still expect something of an off-the-wall ritualistic performance in this collaboration with Japanese experimentalist Keiji Haino. Together they’ve just released their second live album, examining the space and textures that can be created via guitars, drums, vocals and electronics. Tickets are only available at the door so get there early. There’s DJ support afterwards from the DNK and Viral Radio crews.
Earth
Sugar Factory, 20.00, €14 + membership
Keeping with the Roadburn theme, this Seattle band are also on their way to Tilburg for some suitably incestuous sonics. See if you can follow… Sunn O))) are curating Roadburn, inviting Earth down south on this tour. Sunn O))) originally began as a tribute to Earth. Sunn O)))’s Greg Anderson is the boss of label Southern Lord, who’re currently handling Earth releases. And the Earth name was originally a nod to Black Sabbath, whereas tonight in Amsterdam a band called Sabbath Assembly will support them. But aside from that, Earth is a very different beast to the band born in the late ’80s. No longer a super doom outfit tuning into the lower frequencies of the planet, Dylan Carlson’s experimental instrumental band embrace melody, as well as alternative instruments such as cello. In fact, whereas their earlier works reflected Black Sabbath on a malfunctioning turntable, the songs on recent album Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light I recall the dark, melodic twang of The Sadies, though still slowly grinding to a halt. De Kift
Paradiso (Grote Zaal), 20.30, €18 + membership
Ah, the thrill of a new album by De Kift. Like their good friends The Ex, this long running collective will never escape the ‘art punks’ identifier, if only because their always-evolving sound is too complex to navigate by normal means. Their new album Brik is a suitably adventurous global adventure, from Africa to South America via small-town Friesland street scenes. Percussion rules, staccato guitar rhythms dance amongst rhythmic brass bursts, and sad gypsy strings entangle with melancholic vocals. It’s been far too long since they took to Paradiso’s main stage, so embrace the experience. Likewise, grab a copy of new album Brik – each copy is hand-packaged by local pixies; the CD coming inside a book covered in recycled jute.
highlights 1 April-14 April
film
Death is not the End? By Luuk van Huët
Greenaway speaks ill of the cinema suits
O
n 2 April, the world-famous filmmaker and artist Peter Greenaway is set to give an illustrated lecture at Kriterion, explaining how the art of cinema is dead but the business just doesn’t realise it yet. He’ll also outline his vision of the next incarnation, which he’s lovingly dubbed ‘Zinema’. Although this event sold out in six hours, making it highly unlikely you’ll be able to bask in the wisdom of the master himself if you haven’t already reserved a ticket, our faithful friend YouTube has clips of a similar lecture, which you can access through our website. The curator of the lecture is none other than Jeffrey Babcock, the inexhaustible champion of Amsterdam’s underground cinema, and it’s part of a series of lectures and performances that take place at the Rietveld Academy and Kriterion under the header ‘Cinema Degree Zero’. Babcock’s screenings of rare, obscure, bizarre and always memorable films have provided breaths of fresh air for almost five years now. They’re certainly a welcome counter to the
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increasingly insipid blockbusters in the multiplexes. As Babcock states: ‘In retaliation to the impending crisis, Hollywood pumps more and more money into their productions in the vain hope that they can survive with their old fashioned formulas.’ To prove the point, feel free to peruse our online review of the visually amazing, over-the-top bombastic action flick Sucker Punch. While it’s fairly entertaining popcorn fluff, the fact that director Zack Snyder has clearly constrained his fantasy to incorporate a PG-13 rating and reach the teen demographic is potent proof of the creative wasteland that is contemporary Hollywood. But isn’t Greenaway preaching to the converted here anyway? Kriterion is an art-house cinema that draws crowds of eager young cinephiles, not a multiplex filled with hooting teens. Nor is it an LA boardroom filled with suits developing Transformers XIII and Sudoku: The Movie. Cinema might be dead, but whatever is said this week, vultures will still feed on its rotting corpse for years to come. If you’re ticketless for 2 April, Greenaway’s surreal 1985 film A Zed & Two Noughts will be screened at Muziekgebouw on 1 April. what’s on. where. when. why.
Notable new releases From 31 March
Africa United
This road movie could very well be Stand By Me, transplanted to Africa and starring three Rwandan kids desperate to take part in the opening ceremony of the 2010 World Cup. But whereas their American counterparts sought out life-changing experiences, here the kids take a wrong turn out of Rwanda while heading to a football trial and end up in Congo. Having missed their official opportunity to be part of the opening ceremony, they opt to reach South Africa by any means necessary. Encountering refugee camps, corrupt soldiers, sex workers and dealing with life in the shadow of HIV, it’s not quite the good-natured, brightly coloured family adventure it all seems on the surface. But following on in the spirit of Slumdog Millionaire, it’s certainly a story of the underdog.
Black Butterflies
This film about the life of the troubled South African poet Ingrid Jonker has two aces up its proverbial sleeve: iconic screen legend Rutger Hauer is pitted against Carice van Houten, who typically shines in dramatic parts like this. (LvH)
Autumn Gold
The Myth of the American Sleepover A familiar tale of cinematic adolescence, as four American youths head out on separate-yetinterwoven suburban adventures in Detroit at the very end of summer. Documenting crushes, sexual encounters, parties and the quieter moments between, first-time director David Robert Mitchell recalls the spirit of Dazed and Confused and John Hughes, albeit with a touch more drama.
special screenings & festivals
From Wednesday 13 April Kriterion
De Balie, 20.00
From 7 April
The Angelic Conversation
Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart play a married couple trying to come to terms with the death of their infant son. Based upon a successful play by David Lindsay-Abaire, it’s all very serious… as it should be. For her efforts in glumness, Kidman even got an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. But as the couple’s lives degrade, subtle details pushing them apart and towards chaotic, harmful behaviour, there’s a lack of grit or genuine personality. That the characters are sad, fragile and find it hard to move on is understandable. But the chaos they face is all too calculated, hoping to pull on heartstrings and wrap you up in serious glances without ever really surprising or enlightening.
OT301, 20.30
www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
Imagine: 27th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival
Saturday 2 April
A Belgian immigration drama about a former teacher from Russia living illegally with her son. She’s eventually caught and separated from him, but she fights deportation in order to find him once more. (With Dutch subtitles)
Rabbit Hole
denying Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Dekalog – known as The Decalogue in English – is a highly regarded cinematic experience. This 1989 drama comprises ten one-hour films, each exploring one of the Ten Commandments through contemporary Polish stories. Now forming the core of this springtime Polish programme, you can revisit them, with two episodes packaged per screening (although with Dutch subtitles). As a bonus, on Friday and Saturday you can catch instalments of Dekalog 89+, a group of ten reinterpreted shorts, made to mark the 20th anniversary of the original series. These are served with introductions from Andrzej Mankowski and Tomasz Stroynowski, and will be screened with English subtitles.
Go Short
Last month this international short film festival took over Nijmegen for five days, showcasing around 280 movies and throwing in exhibitions, workshops and performances. Its visit to Amsterdam is a smaller aftershock, squeezing an impressive ‘best of’ programme into one very busy night. Fiction, docs, animations and the winning films will all be represented.
Illegal
For more film visit: www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
Remember the thrill of wheelchair rugby in Murderball? Well the latest sporting heroes to grace the silver screen in documentary form are a group of geriatric athletes between 80 and 100, aiming to compete at the World Masters Athletics Championships in Finland. These international competitors each have a life story to tell, while doing their best to beat the clock in more ways than one. (With Dutch subtitles)
Tuesday 5 April
A ‘Cine Qua Non’ night of experimental film, centred upon Derek Jarman’s The Angelic Conversation (1987). Jarman created an ethereal, magical world, telling a story of two men’s spiritual journeys of desire and love, utilising stop-motion photography, a soundtrack by the band Coil, and narration by an unseen Judi Dench, reading aloud 14 Shakespeare sonnets.
4e Poolse Filmlente
From Thursday 7 April Melkweg Cinema
It’s not their first screening in Amsterdam and it probably won’t be their last, but there’s no
Yoshihiro Nishimura’s Hell Driver After a rocky rebranding, the Imagine festival successfully regained its footing at the cosy Kriterion last year, so Amsterdam’s prime celebration of sci-fi, horror and all things fantastical returns to said cinema for this edition (apart from the fan-favourite ‘Night of Terror’ in Tuschinski). As well as cult classics of the past and future, check out special programmes such as ‘Power to the People’. This focuses on the growing participation of film fans in the movie industry, leading to remixed trailers, ‘Sweded’ films and LEGO versions of The Matrix and Star Wars. And if you have any urgent questions regarding your very own reimagining of Barbarella or Conan, a masterclass with Bob Murawski, the Academy Award winning editor of The Hurt Locker and Army of Darkness, should set you straight. Plus you can even catch a sneak preview of Murawski’s own Grindhouse release of the obscure Gone with the Pope. (LvH)
highlights 1 April-14 April
art (& crafts)
Doing it by hand
Read theA full Q&e onlin
By Steve Korver Illustration by Joshua Walters
wanted the crafters to be able to create their own boozy drinks. Et Voila: the DIY cocktail bar was born!
CRAFTING REQUIRES FIERCELY FOCUSED FINGERS AND A STRONG LIVER
What’s the most deeply odd craft ever? I can’t speak for anyone else, but my craziest piece was a self-portrait done on flesh-toned leather using my own hair as thread. Never, ever try this at home. A dear friend in LA has an amazing, freaky modern art collection and an enormous collection of Victoriana woven hair memento mori. One day I saw an embroidered piece by my hero Jenny Hart that used human hair on leather and SHAZAM! I decided to create this self-portrait for his collection. It was the single most frustrating piece I’ve ever made, as hair doesn’t like to be threaded or sewn. Go figure.
O
nce a month a group of crafty crafters come together for an evening of hardcore knitting, interpretive sewing, freestyle macramé and other forms of raw expression – including cupcaking and cocktailing. We speak to Katie Holder, the hostess of Katie’s Cosy Craft Corner. What is a craft? I reckon anything unique one makes by hand. At de Anita we welcome crafters of all persuasions: knitters, stitchers, hookers… even weavers of bellybutton fluff. Heck, if you’re into something kinky with string, who am I to judge? Is talking shit a craft? Most certainly! Crafting a mean cocktail and talking up a storm are two of the most prized skills at craft night. One of the evening’s features I’m most proud of is the Craft-ini bar. Miss Olga of de Anita and I www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
What makes a mighty crafter? A mighty crafter isn’t afraid to wrangle with branding equipment one day, and take on delicate lacework the next. They should also be open to stuffing themselves stupid on our delicious cupcakes and cocktails. Crafters aren’t afraid of carbs. Crafters have no fear. Katie’s Cosy Craft Corner: every second Thursday of the month at De Nieuwe Anita, 20.00-23.00. what’s on. where. when. why.
For more art, scan this or visit our website: www.unfoldamsterdam.nl/art
C&H Art Space
GALERIE GABRIEL ROLT
Jårg Geismar - Essence Neon, glass and mixed media photography. 1 April - 5 May Opening 1 April, 18.00
Ryan McGinley - somewhere place Dramatic photographs conveying abandon, liberation and youth. 9 April - 14 May Opening 9 April, 17.00
Tweede Kostverlorenkade 50 www.ch-artspace.com Open Thur-Sat 11.00-18.00 or by appointment
Delicatessen zeeburg
Sumatrastraat 32 www.delicatessenzeeburg.com Open Wed-Sat 12.00-17.00
Elandsgracht 34 www.gabrielrolt.com Open Wed-Sat 12.00-18.00
Mediamatic
PS
Vijzelstraat 68 www.mediamatic.net Open Sat, Sun 13.00-18.00 mediamatic garage sale Kitchen sinks at bargain-basement prices as this art project space unloads their unwanted! 2 April - 3 April
Sébastien Agnetti, Audrey Marnay De: Paris Group photography show featuring 13 Parisbased photographers. Until 7 April
Outpost
Jan Toroopstraaat 35 www.outpost-slotervaart.tk Open Fri-Sun 12.00-17.00 or by appointment: slotervaartoutpost@gmail.com
FOAM
the book is the space!
Keizersgracht 609 www.foam.nl Open daily 10.00-18.00, Thur, Fri 10.00-21.00 Anne Schwalbe Blindschleiche und Riesenblatt Photographic odes to nature, light and slowness. 1 April - 11 May Opens 31 March, 17.30
GALERIE AKINCI
Lijnbaansgracht 317 www.akinci.nl Open Tues-Sat 13.00-18.00 Jaap van den Ende New work from the abstract painter. 1 April - 6 May Opening 1 April, 17.00 www.unfoldamsterdam.nl
The Book is the Space! A 12 artist book-based collaboration. 7 April - 10 April Opening and book launch 7 April, 16.00
Paradiso
Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl Open daily Palais Paradiso Installation, videos and performances in the venerable music venue. 7 April Doors open 20.00
Leidsekade 60 www.psprojectspace.nl Open first Sunday of the month or by appointment. Rob Scholte - Zakdoeken New work from the Amsterdam artist. 3 April - 30 April Opening 3 April, 14.00
RONMANDOS
Prinsengracht 282 www.ronmandos.nl Open Wed-Sat 12.00-18.00
Carl-Johan Högberg, Health Through Sports Carl-Johan Högberg Health Through Sports Paintings, collage, photography and installations. 2 April - 7 May Opening 2 April, 17.00
TEGENBOSCHVANVREDEN Bloemgracht 57 www.tegenboschvanvreden.com Open Wed-Sat 13.00-18.00
highlights Rosa Everts - Setting Mixed media work from the Dutch artist. 9 April - 21 May, Opening 9 April, 17.00
1 April-14 April
featured artist Hrafnhildur Helgad贸ttir Born in Reykjav铆k, Iceland. Lives in Amsterdam. Studying fine arts at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie. Interested in virtual spaces and honest feelings. Forms of nature and surfaces. Drawing the impossible. Looking to master the skill of slowing down time. http://hrafnhildur.carbonmade.com
unfold recommends
sarah maple, kochxbos gallery, until 2 april
HoW BADLY Do YoU WAnt tHis oR AnY otHeR oF oUR PosteRs
the emmI collectIve robotIc ensemble, ot301, 13 april
Win tickets to FeAtUReD conceRts, PARties, FiLMs AnD MoRe: WWW.UnFoLDAMsteRDAM.nL/Win
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horse feathers, Paradiso, 1 april
Josef von sternberg retrospectIve, eye film instituut, from 31 march
The Haiku Cosmonaut Review. yuri gagarin He did not see God Out there fucking with the stars. Then he became one. (On 12 April remember to party like it’s 1961. For Yuri.)
wHat’s on in amsterdam. volkskrantgebouw wibautstraat 150 1091 gr amsterdam
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Poster artists
Design: russell Joyce Poster: Hrafnhildur Helgadóttir contributors: lauren Comiteau, aquil Copier, sarah gehrke, katie Holder, luuk van Huët, geoff kim, steve korver, megan roberts, natalia sánchez, arun sood, livia stier, Joshua walters. Printing: Zwaan Printmedia
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