The Blog Flamingo

OFF THE GRID FESTIVAL Normally I write about a song that caught my attention or that has a special meaning to me but this article is a tribute to this small festival that I had the honor in attending in Croatia's capital Zagreb at the Vintage Industrial Bar This story actually starts in June 2022. While I was watching the amazing band L.H.D.  at the Trash'n'Burn festival in Croatia, I met some great people who were also in a band called Melewai . We started talking, drank some beers and after the festival we stayed in touch. From time to time they released a new song on Bandcamp and I just loved their songs. I promised them that whenever they would play their first live gig I would do my best to be there. And then the news came that Melewai was going to play at the Off The Grid festival, organised by L.H.D. and together with Sumski  and Psycho Mutants . So, keeping my promise, I was there on the 27th of December. Melewai opened the festival and a lot of people did not reall...

ASERMOIETUITKOMT - Mijn Zin  As a harbringer of the new album "Miauw" (scheduled for the 20th of April 2024), Asermoietuitkomt released the new single "Mijn Zin", free translated to "I Do Whatever I Want". Asermoietuitkomt continues to deliver their characteristic punk/hardcore style with the energy and intensity that fans appreciate. The inclusion of Fleddy Melculy's Jeroen Camerlynck in the chorus adds a great dynamic to the song. The use of footage from various former gigs in the music video provides a nostalgic and energetic backdrop to the music. I'm glad they also used some footage from The Black Flamingo where at one point I even get my one second of fame as a living furniture cameo. Looking forward to "Miauw"

THE MONO KIDS - LITTLE HANSI The Mono Kids is a two-headed garage punk band from the City of Light (Eindhoven) in the Netherlands. Michel (guitar and vocals) and Roelof (drums) are two friends who played together in different bands before but are now on their own musical adventure.  They only know one way to play and that is straight forward but they do it with such great enthusiasm that it's almost impossible to stand still as a bystander.  I had the privilege to welcome them on The Black Flamingo stage last month and what a show that was ! From the first chord till the last drumbeat it was pure excitement. They even turned a Hank Williams song into a Mono Kids classic. And they played Little Hansi, a song about a boy that is afraid of horses. It's loud and loaded with energy and when they played it we even had two "horses" on stage (the audience was completely into The Mono Kids).  Michel and Roelof told me that there was a video for the song that was about to be r...

 ØSTELLA - EASY TO KEEP ØStella, the tenacious Irish-Canadian alt-rock sensation from Edmonton, Alberta, is set to captivate global audiences. She merges Canadian rock tradition, Irish storytelling, and folk music for a mesmerizing sound. As I write this she is on her Who Needs This Tour-tour that already brought her from Canada to Europe. And she is doing this tour ... on her bicycle ! Driven by her passion for sustainability, ØStella's name reflects her commitment to responsible touring (hence the zero). She already covered an astonishing distance of more than 7.000 kilometers from gig to gig and we're still counting. It was hard to choose a song to put on my little blog, I like them all ! But Easy To Keep is the last song that she released. It's an earworm and I love the video that comes with it. Easy To Keep is a song that comes from ØStella's latest album Skyward. Skyward is the second of two mini albums (Freefall and Skyward) that comprise one larger record, Pe...

 STATIC - BROTHER It's a habit of mine to use Youtube-video's to go with the songs I write about. In this case I could not wait because this one is special to me.  Static are the artists in residence at The Black Flamingo (I wrote about them before in this article) and for Brother I had the privilege to see the song grow from scratch for they recorded it here on Flamingo soil. The song starts of in a tranquil way and builds up to be almost impending and there is a reason for this : Brother is a song about betrayal and backstabbing. Lander (the singer) sets of in a fragile, hurt voice but as the song evolves you can hear his anger. This, in combination with the secant guitar parts, tense bass and impressive pounding drums turns this into a song that gives me goosebumps when I hear it. No Youtube-video like I wrote before but you can listen to Brother on Spotify and Soundcloud . Stream their music, go see them live if you can (you won't be dissapointed), buy their merch an...

 ANDREW McGIBBON - FLAMINGOES OF LOVE Do you know The Bonnevilles ? The Northern Irish duo from Lurgan that don't so much play punk blues but rather used it as a spring board to create a completely new genre. They take Mississippi Hill Blues and Punk Rock and mix it into their own unique dark Northern Irish Punk Blues stew. If you don't know them it's your loss (seriously, just check them out) and you did not read this blog very well because I already mentioned them in this blogpost. Andrew McGibbon is one half of The Bonnevilles and in 2020 he already touched my music-loving hearth with his first solo album Northern Gothic and I was glad to hear that there is a new album coming up : Northern Gothic 2 - Letters To a Young Rebel. The album will not be ready for a while yet but Andrew already released a first single : Flamingoes of Love. It's a song in different layers. The first half of the song is very cinematic. When I close my eyes listening to it I see landscapes ...

 THE GREAT FAULTS - HOW DO YOU FEEL The Great Faults are an Indie Rock duo from Mülheim an der Ruhr in Germany. The two musicians switch instruments on stage, between guitar, drums, piano and bluesharp, expressing their love for old rock'n'roll and soul. The resulting energy always shows their earliest musical punk and grunge influences. How do you feel, for me, is a song that sticks in your head and the creative (diy?) video that comes with it is awesome. If you get the chance, go see them live, I think it's an amazing experience. And who knows, in the near future, they will come to a Black Flamingo near you. Lyrics : Partially in the video.

  TUESDAY VIOLENCE - MARABOU Last Friday I had the privilege to attend the Bridge City Sinners gig at Trefpunt in Ghent.  The gig was completely sold out but thanks to some great people (you know who you are) I still could go. The icing on the cake was that Tuesday Violence opened for BCS. Tuesday Violence is a Belgian (and a little bit of Dutch) trio that brings querky primitive garage punk... with an organ. And this (vintage) organ is important. Next to the straight in your face guitar rifs and pounding drums this organ provides a haunting atmosphere to the songs that throws you straight back to the sixties. All this combined with great vocals and an endless source of energy makes it almost impossible to stay unmoved by their show. The reason I chose Marabou was completely random. It could have been any of their songs, they are all amazing. Just check out the rest of their songs and I think you will know what I mean. Better yet, check them out live. I'm sure they will play...

  HE SAID NO - ALL THE BEST DAYS A new Eindhoven punk sensation. That's about all the info I found about this band. I don't know how they crossed my path but when I heared All The Best Days for the first time they drew my attention. You might have noticed on this blog that I am into a lot of different music styles and the songs I listen to are mostly influenced by the state of mind I'm in. Listening to (ska) punk music can give me energy to start my day when it comes from a band that "connects" with me. And I can feel a connection with He Said No. They stick with straight-forward, no nonsense punk and I like it. This video is not in the best quality but it seems that He Said No is not easy to find on Youtube. You can also find them on Spotify if you want to listen to them with a better sound. And in this version you also get a brass-section with it: ALL THE BEST DAYS (SPOTIFY) So, remember the name and go see them live. They are on my "wanna see" list f...

BLAKEFIELD - IN MY ARMS Blakefield is a Belgian band formed around Hans Bekaert (aka John Blakefield), a singer-songwriter hailing from the city of Leuven. Blakefield's music is a deeply personal reflection of his own struggles and experiences. The debut single, In My Arms is - according to the band - a meditation on love and loss but it also gives me a positive vibe. There is a fragrance of hope throughout the song. It's one of the songs I would like to listen to on a roadtrip where the journey is more important than the destination. And that's why it went on my playlist from the moment I heared it.  Lyrics : Did not find any yet.

  NELE NEEDS A HOLIDAY - ONE FAN IN JAPAN A big question that has been the topic of many conversations I had is : when is an artist succesful ? I entrusted my friend Google to find me an answer and of course the usual suspects like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones showed up in some of the results that were based on the amount of albums they sold. But (without wanting to say anything wrong about the merits they had in writing their music) doesn't it just make them succesful businessmen ? Another quote I found was this one : "Succes comes from an alloy of curiosity, imagination, passion, talent, craft, hard work, not giving up, doing the impossible and being in the right place at the right time with the right stuff." and this sums it up a bit I think.  In my humble opinion it's even more simple than this. If an artist can reach someone's (even if it's just one person) heart and soul, then this artist is succesful. One Fan In Japan confirms this. The song star...

  ELLI DE MON - GRINNIN' IN YOUR FACE Elisa De Munari aka Elli De Mon is an artist that has been on my Spotify-playlist for quite some time now. With her rezophonic guitar, drums, bells, voice and saturated sound she is a real one-woman band. Strongly influenced by the primordial blues tradition (Bessie Smith, Fred Mc Dowell, Son House) as well as by the very first garage punk appeal, Elli's sound is shaped into a lysergic journey through her soul. I just found out this morning that she was touring Belgium and that she played her last show yesterday in a town nearby (thank you for that social media 😒) so I still did not get a chance to see her perform live. It's still big on my "wanna-see" list but for now we'll have to do with this live recording of Grinnin' In Your Face. Don't forget to check out her other songs or go see her perform when you can. Lyrics : Don't you mind people grinnin' in your face Don't mind people grinnin' in you...

J.R. AUGUST - MIND HEART  John Raven August is a singer-songwriter, music producer and multi-instrumentalist (piano, guitar, harp,...) from Zabok, Croatia. Born on the 30th of Januari 1989 in a small village surrounded by a forest, J.R. spends most of his time playing piano and writing melodies and poems. Even though he already played arrangements with orchestra and choir (see the video of Crucify Me ) it's his more intimate songs that hit me the most. Mind Heart is one of those songs. Just a guy and his piano (and perhaps a little backing vocals) singing a song of a struggle that we all know : the struggle between the mind and the heart. It's a song that can bring me solace for my mind AND my heart. Mind is the rain, And the heart is the sun, The rainbow is made, When the first one meets the second one. Lyrics : In the video

 JAMES LEG - FEVER Last month I talked about The Belgians Are Coming by The Bonnevilles. I got to know them at the Trash'n'Burn pre-party in Croatia.  Last year at that pre-party (same party, different year) I heared James Leg for the very first time and what a revelation that was !! Reverend James Leg (John Wesley Myers) is the son of a Texas preacher, raised in the South on Gospel music. Some people might know him from the Black Diamond Heavies or The Immortal Lee County Killers but now he travels around the world preaching the punk blues. Only accompanied by drums he handles these two old keyboards - I remember at the show I saw that he had to do an emergency fix on one of them - but the sound he creates with this setup has no comparison. Some people say that James' voice resembles Tom Waits but I don't think you have to compare. James Leg growls like James Leg and that's it. In this video of Fever you can see the zeal he has while playing. It could as well hav...

 JOEY HENRY'S DIRTY SUNSHINE CLUB - I DON'T CARE IF YOU ARE THE OCEAN Joey Henry is an artist who can play a tune or two, or a whole bunch. He'll tickle unique, reverb-loaded yet rhytmic sound scapes out of his banjo, his ukelele and his guitar that will simply give you goosebumps. Joey Henry's Dirty Sunshine Club is so much more than only that. It's about photography (check out his puddlescapes, sunsets and street photography), pinball machine philosophy, skateboard existentialism, ripped pages from a Kansas diary and street corner storytelling as much as it is music. Listening to Joey Henry's Dirty Sunshine Club gives me positive vibes. Listening to him play live is almost a revelation. Music can have a healing force and Joey Henry is one of the artists that proves this. The interaction with his audience is breathtaking and it doesn't only effect the bystanders but the artist as well. Group therapy, that's what Joey calls his shows. There is no partic...

 FREDDIE WEBBER - KEEP YOUR COOL Freddie Webber, the lead singer of Freddy & The Fabs is a young, talented singer/songwriter with his roots in the UK. You won't hear the previous sentence out of his own mouth because he doesn't want to toot his own horn, but I had the chance to say it... so I did. What he will say about himself is that he is completely head over heels, besotted, engrossed, infatuated and obsessed with making and playing music. He has a somewhat strong (some say unhealthy) obsession with his guitars and he has not slept more than two feet away from his six string lover since he picked up that bad boy. And if you really would like to know how good looking and talented he is you should come to his shows, buy his EP's or just ask his mother. Keep Your Cool is a song that really intrigues me. The song gives me a bit of a bluesy feeling and the almost threatening tones draw me into the story. A story about a guy that thinks someone is after him and he reall...

  DOGTOOTH & NAIL - LEARNING HOW TO UNLEARN Dogthooth & Nail are - in their own words - two punks playing folky, bluesy political tunes about environmentalism, feminism, anti-capitalism, healing and creating change. Many of their songs are about personal struggles and struggles they are in solidarity with.  Learning How To Unlearn is a song about de-stigmatizing mental health and is dedicated to anyone who has struggled with mental health, been affected by suicide or lost a loved one to suicide. Somewhere in the lyrics it says : "I step out of straight lines, A box can't define my story" and I must say that's what hit me the most. I guess if we would all step out of the straight lines and stop with putting everything in "boxes", the world would be a better place.  Thank you for this song Dogtooth & Nail, and for the healing power that comes with it !! Lyrics : Everything I love seems to be falling apart  You're not broken but you just need s...

BERANG - EVERY OTHER YEAR  Berang is the indie/folk project of songwriter and guitar player Bert Janssens. Sometimes acoustic, sometimes electric. Even sad from time to time, but always full of hope. And a tiny hint of punk peeks around the corner. He got inspired by Elliott Smith, Kurt Vile and Frank Turner. For me Every Other Year is a song that is filled with hope. It has got this drive to keep me going and it brings me positive vibes every time I hear it. Next week Berang will be playing at The Black Flamingo together with Freddie Webber (must write about one of his songs too) and I must say I'm really stoked about it. I chose this video in particular where Berang is performing in the Rua room. Songs From The Rua Room is a YouTube channel created by Daithi Rua. It's a real treasury that showcases awesome songwriting talent from Belgium and beyond. You can find out more about The Rua Room here . Lyrics : Did not find any yet.

SAUN BANKS - COCKROACH If you are more fortunate than I am and you are in the Slovenian area, find your way to Rogaska Slatina tomorrow. Some cool friends of mine (they are a bit crazy but awesome) are organising Monosus II , the second edition of a one-man band festival. And on their line-up they have Saun Banks. Saun Banks is a one-man band project who comes from the ancient mining town of Idrija. He gets his energy from punkrock, takes the soul from the blues and melts it together to his own kind of garage rock.In his music you can feel the mixture of the countryside and urban industy. Influenced by artists like Robert Johnson, The Black Keys and The White Stripes he created his own sound. At his shows you can experience the true meaning of a one-man band. He plays guitar, drums and he sings but meanwhile he also plays the organ. Cockroach is a song about ... cockroaches. Not only those who want to start the occasional war, but also those who are hidden in our society.    ...

 BLUR - THE NARCISSIST Coincidence does not exist. That is a phrase I often use because so many things that happen in my life can not be assigned to chance. At a time that I seem to be dealing with several narcissists in my near environment, I come across this Blur song. In essence narcissism is a mental health condition in which people have an unreasonably high sense of their own importance. This translates in seeking too much attention and lacking the ability to understand or care about the feelings of others. It seems to me that lately more and more people are having narcissistic traits. Is this something that society or social media is responsible for ? Or is it just that in recent years it comes to the surface more ? The Narcissist is a cautionary song about the dangers of excessive self-love and addiction and the importance of breaking free from them. The chorus of the song narrates the determination of following a different path and heed the signs that will lead them away f...

KAREL GOTT - ROT UND SCHWARTZ  A mind can play crazy tricks on you. I'll rephrase that : my mind can play crazy tricks on me. During the corona-lockdowns I frequently tuned in to Ready, Steady, Stay In ! This was an online event that was put together by Bill Kapelj aka Bill Carson where dj's from around Europe played 30 minutes sets with the more alternative music from the 60's. On one of the sets I heared Rot Und Schwartz by Karel Gott and for some reason I thought that this was the original version of Paint It Black by The Rolling Stones. It has this old and traditional sound with a Slavic twist. This song clearly had to be older than the version of The Stones. Perhaps I linked it to Frank Sinatra's My Way that originally was a French song (Comme d'Habitude) by Claude Francois. But looking into it a bit closer soon learned that the credits for the song belonged to The Rolling Stones. Karel Gott (known as The Golden Voice of Prague 1939-2019) recorded the German ...

  HUMANGA DANGA - LIMA BEAN BUNNY BOARD Summer in February, that's how it felt when Humanga Danga came to play in The Black Flamingo last winter. They played with so much energy and excitement bringing surf music to another level. That night I promised them to come and check them out in June at the Surfer Joe festival in Italy (the biggest surf-rock festival in Europe, perhaps even in the world) but due to circumstances I had to bury my roadtrip-plans for this year so I could not make it.  Humanga Danga is a Ghent based band that celebrates the rich tradition of instumental surf music. Going beyond the roots of the genre that originated in California they also put influences of Arabian folk music, tiki-tunes, space age, chica, spy and western in their songs and that's what makes them special. Never a dull moment when you see them play. Lima Bean Bunny Board is one of the first songs I heared of them and I think it's a really catchy tune. A great companion for a road trip (...

  MR. PAUL & THE LOWRIDERS - CINNAMON BLOOD Mr. Paul really does not need any introduction I guess. Recently he retired from Triggerfinger but the heritage he has given us playing bass with Belgium's best-dressed rockband can't be put in words. We really should be thankful for having such great bands in such a little country.                                       Mr.Paul with Triggerfinger @ Casablanca Festival Now Mr. Paul has turned the page and he started a new project called Mr. Paul & The Lowriders. He mentions names like Duane Eddy, early Pink Floyd, Joni Mitchell, T-Rex and lots of other big names as influences for his new band but also steak tartare & endive soup and Creole food. A whole banquet of influences but still creating their own sound. Mr. Paul & The Lowriders is a t...

 CYNN' - DAUGHTER Some days music has to give me a kick in the butt to get my day going. Today is a day I need a more gentle approach. Whilst enjoying my morning coffee I'm listening to CYNN' (I already mentioned them in an earlier post about Alps . CYNN' brings me the perfect soundscape to put my mind at ease without getting clingy. They have a great new single out that's called Wide Awake (you can listen to it here ) but since day one it was Daughter that had a great impact on me. The song has a serene built up and the voices sounds so pure but it also has this little menacing twist lurking around the corner and I just love that. Lyrics : It's only love  I know you wouldn't set me free  We'll buy the tears  so you wouldn't feel anything     We'll make it easy  We'll make it easy    If only your love  could once be more then letting go  When all my fire  would end up beneath your waves    When you take me home...

 COLTER WALL - THE DEVIL WEARS A SUIT AND TIE My mind can play crazy tricks on me. The first time I heared this song it was the voice that completely drew me into the song. It's not just a country song. It's loaded with blues and it sounds like it's sung by someone who lived through many life changing events. So in my mind I saw an older man with grey hair (perhaps a beard) who was playing a decrepit old guitar, sitting by a bonfire at his camp and looking out over some wide fields. And now let me introduce you to Colter Wall, a Canadian singer/songwriter who was born in 1995. The Devil Wears A Suit And Tie was released in 2017 which made him 22 years old at that time. Never could I ever have imagined that a singer with a voice that kicks you in the head, brings you solace and wants to take you out for a drink at the same time could be this young. This song proves that country music sure is not dead. Perhaps it is wearing a new jacket, but with artists like Colter Wall it...

GIPSY RUFINA - THE SHACK  In a pure outlaw troubadour spirit, Gipsy Rufina constantly toured from 2005. He rolled and rambled around playing thousands of shows across Europe, Eastern Countries, USA and South America, daring sometimes places where few others did. He tells stories coming from his life and travels, obscure sometimes, simple others but always deep, soaked with grace and far from cheesy songwriting. The Shack is a song that always gives me the chills (in a good way). The almost menacing banjo sound together with Gipsy's penetrating voice is breathtaking. Even though I've been following Gipsy for some years now I've never had the chance to see him perform live. But somewhere next September his travels will bring him to The Black Flamingo and I'm already stoked to see his performance. Lyrics : Did not find any yet.

  CHIP TAYLOR & THE NEW UKRANIANS   FUCK ALL THE PERFECT PEOPLE This song pops up frequently on my playlist and - shame on me - I never knew who Chip Taylor was until I recently did some research.  Anyway this proves my earlier statement about not being a music connoisseur. Chip Taylor (real name James Wesley Voight) is an American singer-songwriter and he's the brother of actor Jon Voight which also makes him Angelina Jolie's uncle. Apart from these famous family ties Chip Taylor is also the author of hits like Wild Thing (The Troggs) and Angel Of The Morning (Evie Sands).  Artists like Janis Joplin, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson and The Hollies also recorded some of his creations. I'm sure I will never forget this any time I hear Fuck All The Perfect People again. And being not perfect I'm glad this song isn't about me.  Lyrics : To be or not to be To free or not to free To crawl or not to crawl Fuck all those perfect people To sleep or not to sleep ...