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| | Arts Calendar / September 20 / Concerts |
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20:00 | Balthazar (Belgium) |
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 With hints of neo-psychedelia, electro-pop, and garage punk in their catchy, snarling indie rock, Belgian group Balthazar formed in Kortrijk in 2004. Their second album, Rats, went all the way to number one in Belgium in 2012. After starting Balthazar as teenagers, the lineup of Maarten Devoldere (lead vocals/guitar/keyboards), Jinte Deprez (guitar/vocals), and Patricia Vanneste (violin/keyboards/vocals) won a national youth talent competition in 2005 with the song "Lost and Found." They included the track on their self-titled debut EP, released in 2006. By then, they had begun touring with additional members Joachim Quartier (bass) and Koen Verfaillie (drums). In early 2007, the rhythm section was replaced by Simon Casier and Christophe Claeys. The following year, the band played their first shows outside of Belgium, visiting nearby countries including France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, and in 2009, they did a club tour of South Africa before returning to the studio. Their first full-length record, Applause, arrived in March 2010 and spent a week at number 13 on Belgium's album chart. They followed it up with appearances at European summer festivals such as Pukkelpop and Rock Werchter as well as tours in support of the Joy Formidable and dEUS. With mixing by Noah Georgeson (the Strokes, Joanna Newsom), the band's second studio LP, Rats, was released by Play It Again Sam in 2012. It topped the album chart in Belgium, also charting in France and the Netherlands. Featuring the line-up of Devoldere, Deprez, Vanneste, Casier, and drummer Michiel Balcaen, their third long-player, 2015's Thin Walls, was their first with an outside producer, Ben Hillier (Depeche Mode, Blur). It reached the number two spot in their home country and the Top 20 in the Netherlands.
Arbat Hall  |
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20:00 | Dennis Rowland (USA) |
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 Dennis Rowland is a jazz vocalist born and raised in Detroit. He is still best-known for his association with the Count Basie Orchestra but he has been working hard in recent years in building up his solo career. He remembers hearing Joe Williams' "Every Day" with Count Basie on record regularly when he was five or six and it made a strong impression. Rowland worked as both an actor and a singer locally for a few years in the mid-'70s. The young singer was in Williams' spot during the last seven years (1977-84) of Basie's life, touring the world with the classic orchestra. After that period ended, Rowland worked as an actor on stage, settled in Phoenix, Arizona and began recording as a leader for Concord in 1995. Trying to branch beyond the swing/blues/standards repertoire, Rowland's second Concord album (Get Here) had some R&B-ish numbers and selections open to the influences of pop and funk. His main strength, however, rests with his swinging style and appealing voice which is best displayed on his third Concord disc, Now Dig This, a tribute to Miles Davis.
Aptekarsky Ogorod |
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