in otherness oneself

‘This is music so far beyond us it is almost scary’ – one of the great musicians from Bruxelles present last night @Ha Concerts told me after an amazingly information-packed, but oh so moving concert by the trio of Slovenian pianomarvel Kaja Draksler, with her kindred spirits Petter Eldh on soulful double bass and Christian Lillinger on far out drums-from-the-year-2080. Almost one third of the audience came from Bruxelles tonight, just to witness Kaja’s stellar trio (btw if you read this tonight 13.2 Punkt.Vrt.Plastik plays the Bimhuis Amsterdam, don’t miss it!). Most of the audience were young musicians like those from the group Bodies with a.o. Camille Alban-Spreng. Check out Bodies next sunday (16.2) at the Ancienne Belgique in Bruxelles, opening for Nubya Garcia.

Meanwhile I rediscover the truly gorgeous album In Otherness Oneself (Unsounds 2022), recorded in Splendor Amsterdam, with a historical quartertone keyboard set-up, and some truly divine singing by Laura Polence and Björk Níelsdóttir, based on the poetry of Robert Frost. It took me back immediately to the haunting time of living alone in Ostend during the lockdowns – I guess those years somehow are still under my skin.

Stijn Buyst wrote an interview with Kaja for Ha, see here (in Dutch).