LP—LV

Bio: Jo De Smedt (1974, Asse) Visual artist associated with gallery De Ziener and gallery EL. www.jodesmedt74.be

1.

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. 

Killers by Iron Maiden (I made many drawings of this as a child. That’s where it all started for me as an artist), Christ-The Album by CRASS (the style, simplicity, graphics and content have been very influential in my thinking about art and society), Never Mind The Bollocks Here’s The Sex Pistols (the simplicity with just lyrics and color make a powerful image), Reek Of Putrefaction by Carcass (their concept of the music and the album cover was to make it unmarketable. That contrarianism is very captivating. Fantastic band), all orange-black album backs from the Impulse! Jazz label. A great collection within my vinyl collection. (In my opinion, the best jazz label. Their orange-black backs look great in the record case.)

2.

When buying records I guess you also visit record shops. What record shop do you recommend, in Belgium or elsewhere? 

The Collector Brussels, Vinylspot Rotterdam, Fnac and a lot online

3.

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

best jazz: Trust In The Lifeforce… by The Comet Is Coming, Tauhid by Pharaoh Sanders, Complete Village Vanguard recordings 1961 by Bill Evans, One Mirrors Many by De Beren Gieren.

Best Other: Divide and Exit by Sleaford Mods, All 24 (a ood punk compilation), There Is Always Blood At The End Of The Road by WIEGEDOOD, Everything by Ol’Dirty Bastard, Vexovoid by Portal.

In my studio I play Er Staat Een Paard In De Gang by André Van Duin once a day. That sounds strange but I find that a very topical song. That’s no joke.

4.

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

At home I only play CD and vinyl. In my studio old cassettes of mega dancings from the 90s like Cherry Moon and Extreme. And streaming via Applemusic. I have no problem streaming music but actually you don’t own anything that way. As a collector I also want to own. That’s why I buy a lot of vinyl and CDs.

5.

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

 KEEP DREAMING