Tue, August 2: VROOOM 41

TUESDAY, AUGUST 2: VROOOM #41 
– GOAT (jp)
– ALBATRE (pt/de/nl)
– YPY (jp)

location: Pink Pank – Delftsestraat 9, Rotterdam
doors: 20:30 / start: 21:00 / entrance: €6
www.facebook.com/events/151127555301252/

We're rounding off the first half of the season with this A-class line up! Don't sleep on the rhythmic assault of Goat; a mesmerizing syncopated pulse of synchronized muted harmonic picking, saxophone and drums. Rotterdam's noise rock pride Albatre are no slouches either, and with YPY (Goat's guitarist and Boredoms touring member Koshiro Hino) we're able to sample the current cutting edge of Osaka's experimental electronica scene.

GOAT (jp)

This Osaka-based quartet play guitar, saxophone, bass & drums. What sets this fantastic band apart is the intentional disregard of the musical scales of its instruments. Goat creates painstakingly crafted songs (yes; songs!) that consist of mesmerizing muted sounds that are produced naturally, in real-time. The trance-inducing 'minimal techno'-like pulse brought about from relentless repetition and the melodious sounds that comprise harmonics outside the twelve-tone system are both 'urban' and 'tribal'. Goat has been somewhat lazily compared to Nisennenmondai and Battles; but we think they're much better!

www.facebook.com/Goat-408629939245915

ALBATRE (pt/de/nl)

Whoever still needs to be introduced to Rotterdam's noise rock champions have been missing out. Albatre is a commanding display of urgent bass & sax noise, skewed jazz elements, meticulous drumming and abrupt moodshifts. Albatre spearhead the scene of artists highlighting the crossover of improv, noise rock and jazz made in Holland.

www.facebook.com/albatremusic

YPY (jp)

YPY is the solo project from GOAT's Koshiro Hino, who is a key member of Osaka's experimental music scene. Besides playing with Goat and touring with the Boredoms, he also leads another band called Bonanzas. His work as YPY can be described as oblique, dense electronica / techno with a heroic dash of industrial grittiness. Hino debuted in 2015 with the 'Visions EP' for the Berlin-based label Nous, which included moody and dance-orientated tracks ignoring the unspoken rules of club music. He also runs the birdFriend label.

soundcloud.com/koshiro-hino

birdfriendtapes.tumblr.com

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This event is made possible with kind support of Popunie Rotterdam.

Thu, July 14: Chupame El Dedo + Mdou Moctar

Remember last year's VROOOM x PANTROPICAL that took place at Roodkapje SUB? The event that featured a smoking live set by the Colombian LOS PIRAÑAS. Well, both Los Pirañas' Eblis Álvarez (also of Meridian Brothers fame) and Pedro Ojeda are back in town Thursday July 14th with their project band ChupameElDedo! And if that's not enough; Tuareg desert rock heroes Mdou Moctar/official (Sahel Sounds) are on the same bill as well; what's more to ask?

THURSDAY 14 JULY
location: PANTROPICAL @ WORM Rotterdam – Boomgaardsstraat 71, R'damdoors: 20:30 / start: 21:00 / entrance: €6
www.facebook.com/events/1642597676061053/
www.worm.org/home/view/event/68761

MDOU MOCTAR (ne | sahel sounds)
In the crowded scene of Tuareg guitarists, Mdou stands apart. He is one of the few original artists willing to experiment and push boundaries. His unconventional style have won him accolades both in Niger and abroad. Mdou Moctar comes from Abalak, a town in the Azawagh desert of northern Niger. He taught himself guitar at a young age on a homemade instrument. Inspired by Ishumar, Mdou traveled to Libya where he worked odd jobs and managed to meet some of the now famous guitarists. This furthered his musical studies, and he returned home with an actual guitar and a dream. Rising to the status as local celebrity, he traveled to Nigeria in 2008 to record his debut album 'Anar' – a psychedelic electronic album of Tuareg guitar; which became a success throughout the mp3 networks of West Africa. “Tahoultine” – one of the standout tracks, was later featured on the 'Music from Saharan Cellphones' compilation. In 2013, Mdou released 'Afelan', his first international album. In 2015, he starred in the first ever Tuareg language film, a fictional story of the struggle of a guitarist trying to make it against all odds in Agadez.
http://sahelsounds.com/mdou-moctar/

ChupameElDedo (co)
Chúpame El Dedo (suck my finger) is a new band from Bogota, Colombia, featuring Eblis Álvarez (Meridian Brothers, Los Pirañas, Frente Cumbiero) and Pedro Ojeda (Romperayo, Los Pirañas, Frente Cumbiero, Ondatrópica). Their bold sound marries disorientating 'death metal' influences with manic salsa, cumbia, currulao & reggaeton rhythms. Get ready for a high energy live performance from this duo; you'll be headbanging whilst trying not to spill that damned mojito.
https://chupameeldedo.bandcamp.com/

Thu, July 7: VROOOM 40

THURSDAY, JULY 7: VROOOM #40
–– YZ & GOGOLPLEX (ma/be)
–– ZEN LU + CHEN MULIAN + ZO-ON SLOWS (cn)
–– SPOELSTRA (nl)

LOCATION: Pink Pank – Delftsestraat 9, Rotterdam
doors: 20:30 / start: 21:00 / entrance: €6
https://www.facebook.com/events/743488305754244/

Vrooom hits 40! Oftewel uitgedrukt in percentages: plusminus 40% bijzondere electropop en post-postrock; 35% electronica made in China, 25% visueel vernuft… Younes Zarhoni zong al als zesjarige in de Antwerpse en Brusselse moskeeën en jeugdhuizen. Inmiddels geschoold in de mystieke soefi-zang en koranrecitatie maakt hij nu als YZ zijn versie van de eerder genoemde electro pop en het resultaat is verbluffend. YZ wordt live bijgestaan door het Brusselse Gogolplex videocollectief. Verder is er de XY records label showcase uit China. Zen Lu, Echo Ho en Mulian Chen zijn afkomstig uit Shenzhen en Peking, en alledrie gelieerd aan eerder genoemde, hard aan de weg timmerende label. Hekkesluiter is niemand minder dan onze eigen Spoelstra.

YZ & GOGOLPLEX VJ's (be)
YZ is the artist alias of Younes Zarhoni; born of Moroccan parents in Antwerp, but now active in Bruxelles. Little is known about this emerging artist but that is likely to change soon judging by his intriguing music; a catchy mix of gritty electro pop and Arab singing (Younes is a scholar of Quran recitation and mystic sufi singing). YZ is about to release a vinyl record on the Belgian Lexi Disques (Colombey, City Hands, TAV Exotic, The Rebel). At Vrooom, YZ will perform with the Brusselian audio-visual collective GOGOLPLEX.
https://yz-music.bandcamp.com/
http://gogolplex.be/

ZEN LU (cn)
Zen Lu is a sound artist, event curator, and founder of the Shenzhen city based independent label 'We Play!' as well as and numerous other projects. The reception of Zen Lu’s meticulous digital music and the events organized by him has played a major role in bringing a new wave of art activities to Shenzhen, for which the latter has been long considered a cultural desert.
www.zenlu.com
https://zenlu.bandcamp.com/

ZO-ON SLOWS a.k.a. ECHO HO (cn)
Echo Ho is a Beijing-born, Cologne based artist. Her work covers installations, live performances and audiovisual compositions. She works with field recordings and experimental electroacoustic composition. In 2015 she launched her solo project Zo-on slows; merging voice, experimental beats and pop.
www.echoho.net
soundcloud.com/zo-on-slows

CHEN MULIAN (cn)
Chen Mulian is a sound/visual artist based in Beijing who co-founded of XY Records. His electronica blends ambient/soundscape elements that alltogether evoke the guarded qualities of the eastern spirit. Most of his video works are made out of raw documentations.
http://chenmulian.weebly.com/

SPOELSTRA (nl)
Spoelstra: brilliant one man mutations of noise rock and electronics made live on the spot on a guitar, a synthesizer, samplers and effect pedals. Spoelstra knows how to mold his riffs, stumbling patterns, country style outbursts and tearjerker twists into a good song. To everyone's detriment, the man is sadly still one of NL's best kept secrets, musically. So enjoy his genius now if you haven't already. Think: U.S. Maple, The Rebel, Skin Graft.
https://narrominded.bandcamp.com/album/sports-and-finance

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This event is made possible with kind support of Popunie Rotterdam.