THE MANIA LOCKDOWN PICKS BY MATTIAS DE CRAENE.
06 Apr 2020
No better escape than music, right? The coming weeks Music Mania will publish short Q&A's with Belgian musicians and people from 'the scene'. Main objective: supporting our local scene and getting to know some new music whilst doing so.
What's not to like? First up: sax 'head' Mattias De Craene!
1) What new record you recently bought blew you away?
We exchanged an MDC III album with the band Black Midi
“Schlagenheim” when we played at Moers Festival in
Germany. I mean, a lot -if not; the most- of the albums i
choose to listen to blow me away because there are just so
many good bands and musicians out there, but Black Midi
jumps out because they're kind of gamechangers, they're
fresh in a “genre” that's been... Played a lot for a long
period of time.. A fresh guitarband, I mean;... What?!
2) Which record is intertwined inseparably with Music Mania for
you?
Not one specific record actually.. For me it is more about the “vibe”
that the recordstore sets. Since Ghent is my hometown, I started visiting Music Mania since I can remember. I noticed from a young
age that they support there local musicians and bands, so.. That's
what Music Mania stands for. That's the place where I bought most
of my local albums.
3) Let’s go back into time. The annual holidays with your parents, a
long and warm drive to the South of France. Which tape or cd was
on repeat for hours in the car?
Depends on how much time we go back... I'd say going from
Sesamestreet to kleinkunst & most classical music.
4) Sunday morning, breakfast & coffee: what would be the first
record you put the needle on?
Depends on my coming activities of that day, the weather, good
sleep, bad sleep, Anyhow... Somewhere between “World of echo”
By Arthur Russel, “The Viking of Sixt Avenue” by Moondog, “Le
Meilleur De Dick Annegarn", “The Lounge Lizards” by The Lounge
Lizards, A best of... Roy Orbison maybe? Brian Eno, Radiohead,
Wilco, Coltrane, Tortoise, Arvo Pärt, Chopin ,... And a good cup of
coffee!
5) You, a record player and a room full of music connoisseurs:
which record do you put on?
I'd take “Fourth World Vol. I Possible Musics” by Jon Hassell & Brian Eno. That's the real deal, man...
6) Which Belgian record do you cherish the most?
If I really have to choose one.. An original 7” single from my uncle
Wim De Craene “Portret van Gisteren”.
7) What record is still missing from the shelves of your collection?
Too many to sum up... One I'm still looking for and pretty hard to
find is “The Elements” Joe Henderson (ft. Alice Coltrane).
8) Which record stands out for its remarkable artwork?
I find this a very difficult question. Lot's of good stuff is coming up.
I can't remember any album artwork that I was really really REALLY
blown away from. But since we're using the term “remarkable” which means
“opmerkelijk” in Dutch; in november Lennert Jacobs (The Germans,
MDCIII) & me where in a small local recordstore in Helsinki. There we found an album called 'Niin Kaunis on maa” by Kari
Rydman (very unknown I guess). The cover of the album is a picture of a naked child. We were kind of flabbergasted. Really strange & very
uncomfortable, so uncomfortable we laughed & we bought it.
Niin Kaunis on maa - Kari Rydman
9) Could you enlighten us with some ‘staying in tips’?
TIME IS ON OUR SIDE! People tend to forget how expensive time is
in this shit society. So, ENJOY IT, USE IT, .. Contemplate, relax, go
wild, do nothing/do everything, be creative, don't be creative, clean
up your house, don't clean up your house. Listen to music, watch
films, enjoy your loved one,... Whatever... Just try to be conscious
about everything and try to be grateful!
10) What will be the first thing you’ll be doing after this social
distancing adventure?
Have a beer, give some hugs to my loved ones, have dinner with
friends.
You can read more about Mattias on his Facebook page, or buy some music here.