LP—LV

LP—LV

For its opening Zwart Huis invites Bent Van Looy as the musical guest.

Bent Van Looy (1976) studied painting at Sint-Lucas in Ghent. He won Humo’s Rock Rally in 1998 as a member of Das Pop, after which the band toured Europe and Japan. Back home, he engaged in both radio and television work and also created his own fashion label ‘The Jante Law’. He remained active as a drummer with the band Soulwax and released his first solo record ‘Round the Bend’ in 2013. He featured as a coach in the TV show ‘The Voice Van Vlaanderen’ (2014, 2016) and in the section ‘De Wandelaar’ of ‘Café Corsari’ (2014-2015). In 2016 his second solo album ‘Pyjama Days’ was released and in 2018 the album ‘Yours Truly’ followed. In 2019 Bent played himself as a character in the Flemish television series ‘Fiskepark’.
Bent has already exhibited at S.M.A.K. Ghent, BOZAR Brussels, Gallery Sofie Van De Velde and Plus-One Gallery in Antwerp, as well as at Super Dakota Brussels.

We asked Bent some questions

The expo will show painted record sleeves, what we would like to know is what record sleeves are in your opinion masterpieces and why. It can be your all time favorite sleeve or just the sleeves you came across this past month.

“I adore the 10” LP Look Sharp by Joe Jackson. The sparse and feverish sound of the ultra short and punchy power pop songs is absolutely thrilling, but the sleeve , featuring a pair of immaculate white leather boots with pointy toes, is pure class. The composition within the square format, the simple lettering and the fact that the sleeve is shot in black and white makes it a timeless classic.”

When buying records I guess you also visit recordshops. What recordshop do you recommend, in Belgium or elsewhere? 

I love Tower Records in Tokyo, the last one left. The bright red letters on the buttery yellow background speak of a bygone era, where music was still the throbbing vein of pop culture. An absolute time warp experience.

The expo refers to vinyl and also to jazz, what is your favourite record of the moment, it might be your favourite jazz record or another genre. Feel free to tell us why this is your LP of the  moment.

“It’s not a jazz record pure sang, but one of my favourite records to put on whilst going about my business is the OST of the Paul Verhoeven Film Turks Fruit. It features the harmonica stylings of national hero Toots Tielemans and lush string arrangements by the late cult composer Rogier Van Otterlo. The backbone of to all is provided by the far out grooves of Trio Louis Van Dyck.”

There’s been, for some reasons, quite some increase in music streaming the past 2 years.  What’s your point of view in that and how often do you tune in to an online radio while working, painting, cooking,…?

“As a consumer, i have to admit it’s a convenient way to listen to songs (note that I say songs, not records.). As a musician it depresses the hell out of me. The fact that music is supposed to just gush out of the socket has changed our relationship to it. We no longer have to invest in an artist or a career, which in my humble view has led to shallower listening.”

If you would be asked to have a word or sentence made in neon. What word / sentence would that be?

“Romance.”