Double bill - Anemic Cinema / Julien Tassin

Anemic Cinema (named after the eponymous short film by dadaist Marcel Duchamp), is an instrumental quartet led by Ghent-based guitarist/composer Artan Buleshkaj. The band features (besides Buleshkaj on baritone guitar) some of Belgium’s most adventurous young improvisers: Rob Banken (alto saxophone, clarinet), Steven Delannoye (tenor saxophone, bass clarinet) and Matthias de Waele (drums).

Combining jagged sonorities and riff-based passages from heavy metal (bands like Tyft, Zeus!, Meshuggah, … come to mind), metric structures and (freely) improvised sections inspired by (avant-)jazz, and harmonies reminiscent of modern classical composers such as Olivier Messiaen, Anton Webern, … the band creates an eerie atmosphere featuring intensely nervous and volatile passages that coexist with moments of disquieting reverie, combating monotony but also amplifying both ends of the musical spectrum.

The omission of a conventional bass instrument allows other instruments to assume this role (or not). This creates certain compositional/improvisational challenges which in turn bear new, exciting avenues of musical conception with ample room for freedom within clearly marked boundaries. This all results in a listening experience equal parts visceral, hard-hitting and unpredictable.

The band will release its debut full album (Ramble Records), “Iconoclasts”, in January of 2023.

Julien Tassin is a guitar player with a strong identity who values the expressive power of music. His playing is raw, emotional, lyrical and above all uncompromising. Through his compositions and improvisations he’s constantly in search of essence and purity. His work incorporates elements of minimalism, ambient, twisted harmonies and repetitive music into compositions based on blues, jazz, avant- garde and rock music.

‘primitiv’ is his third solo album. ‘primitiv’ is about human beings in their most primitive and essential form. An interpretation of how humans began roaming the Earth, came together, mingled and fell apart. Setting to music the initiation-like dimension of existence.

‘primitiv’ as a quest for essence. Most of the tracks are composed of a handful of notes that can be played once or repeated again and again, like a mantra, leaving space for a sort of improvisation void of any constraint. Music with a universal character, blending European, American and African elements.

© Thomas Van Caeneghem