Les Nuits Weekend 2024: Festival Day 3 Ignites with Eclectic Blaze
On the last day of Les Nuits Weekender, the organization seemed to put a little more emphasis on accessible guitar bands. With many groups that can bear the broad stamp of post-punk on the list, expectations were high. Especially with a name like English Teacher, who presented himself as the headliner of the day with the most people in the room, we knew there could be a lot of nice acts and that turned out to be the case, resulting in some really interesting sets only .
Font @ Museum
Early in the day, at 1 pm to be precise, Font had to take the stage of the Museum. Unfortunately for them, there weren’t too many people present in the Botany at the time, so they had to give themselves up in front of a handful of people. The absentees were wrong, as is often the case, because their optimistic post-punk contained a rich sound that carried a mixture of Talking Heads and Squid. Especially the double percussion in the back gave the sound that little bit of extra power it needed to come in. In addition, there were also the angular sounds, the unexpected electronic extras or the fast tempo that won us over. The audience there certainly enjoyed it and the last day of Les Nuits Weekender had already started in an excellent way.
Urika’s Bedroom in Orangerie
Urika’s Bedroom came from Los Angeles on Sunday and the trio had a brand new album to present to the audience. That sound immediately had something very dreamy because the band took their time to let the songs fully develop. That immediately turned out to be the band’s trademark, along with some samples played in the background. It all sounded rather relaxed and we didn’t hear anything that bothered us anywhere, but it wasn’t really convincing.
Friko @ Orangery
Earlier this year Friko released a great debut album and we were very curious how this would translate live. The band from Chicago started the set with frontman Niko Kapetan all by himself to start the set dreamily. Kapetan had already brought his energetic self to Brussels, because he started the set so quickly with empathy and energy. A little later, the other two members of the band joined and what followed were excellent indie rock songs that allowed you to rock hard on the one hand and react to emotions on the other. The harmony singing between drummer and frontman gave the music its unique sound, but mainly because it was played with empathy and energy we were fully involved in Friko’s story. It’s a band we haven’t heard the last of yet because the songs are quite catchy and they still lack one hit.
Chanel Beads at the Museum
Chanel Beads was on stage with three of them, but he has many more instruments in his music than that. The result was that there was a lot of background tape, which meant that spontaneity quickly disappeared from the set. The frontman’s vocals were a bit reminiscent of WU LYF, which created a kind of strange atmosphere, although it also had a negative effect. Here too, it didn’t have to be too fast or too intense, but peace and empathy prevailed. And yet there was a very enthusiastic keyboardist who sometimes came into the audience to cheer everyone up, even though everyone remained rather calm. That common thread ensured that no one song really stuck, although there was nothing that really bothered. A pleasingly simple set.
Ultra Girl @ Orangerie
Girl Ultra from Mexico came to the Orangerie with a drummer to back her dreamy R&B. It was fun, but after three songs we had heard everything we needed to hear. The music remained too flat and the beats did not provide the nice energy that we expect from Spanish music. It was mainly the drummer who stole the show by playing with great empathy, but Girl Ultra didn’t really blow us away.
Quad @ Museum
The peace was kept for a while at the Botanique with Quade, a band that brought a very constructive post-rock that stayed very quiet and could, above all, let us dream away. The spectators sat down to listen very carefully to exactly what the band was presenting. We heard a piano which, together with dark guitars, always tried to create a special atmosphere. To complete the feeling, violins were also added to the whole and so each layer in each song added something, although we could simply enjoy the beauty that lay in this intimacy and that is also a talent.
Mabe Fratti @ Orangerie
Mabe Fratti’s show always brings surprises. Sometimes she works with quiet, dreamy soundscapes, other times the visuals are very important. In the Botaneg the noisy aspect of her music was mainly emphasized, with an additional guitarist and drummer as support to reinforce that message. It was fascinating to see what he could get out of his cello through the many effects he put on it. With her very deep voice she could sound a bit scary at times, but it was still fascinating somehow. When it sounded a bit louder and the guitar really went crazy, we were completely sucked into their world. In this way, Mabe Fratti managed to make people travel to a place other than Botany by immersing them completely in the intensity.
On Sunday November 10, Mabe Fratti will play at Sonic City in Kortrijk.
Untitled (Halo) @ Rotonde
The dream shoe Untitled (Halo) welcomed a packed Rotonde during their show. The young band was clearly impressed by him, but he didn’t let him get to their hearts. They played in peace by putting the guitars in a bath of reverb and not even having a drummer with them. What’s more, the drummer was replaced by a person who could make a few CDJs and thus provide some percussion. He pointed out that Untitled (Halo) is a band that can appeal to the new generation and he did that by bringing very beautiful indie rock songs. With a singer who had a very high voice and then a singer who sounded very rough, it also had enough stunning effects to keep people interested.
English Teacher @ Orangerie
English Teacher recently received the Mercury Prize for the best album for their debut and so things are moving very quickly for the British. The band also seem to improve with each live show and that was no different at the Botanique. From the outset it was clear how high their level was compared to all the other bands playing there on Sunday. The English teacher was clearly standing over him and was also visible to the whole audience in the Orangery. The band quickly charmed everyone with the “R&B” cut before slowing down and playing a bit more quietly. Suddenly the emphasis was placed on the singer’s soulful voice and it turned out to be very impressive. With her natural charm and strong stage presence, she won over everyone. Towards the end a fast version of “The World’s Biggest Paving Slab” created quite a bit of enthusiasm in the room, but by then the band had already won everyone over with an excellent show. A mix between soul, post-punk and even a drop of pop means that the limit has not yet been reached for an English teacher.
General Treasurer at the Museum
The most atmospheric set of the last day at the Museum came with Kassa General. The rapper and drummer started his set very strangely with some high breaths and weird jazz parts, but once the band found their groove, we had no choice but to move and dance. The fact that the band members also provided additional dynamics with some bongos and saxophone also helped. Kassa Generally himself was the forward of his dreams. He rammed his audience, said the most absurd things and, above all, put a smile on everyone’s faces. This way everyone could enjoy refreshing drum solos, fun jazz intermezzos and even soul pieces for an hour. The fact that everyone took part in the show by having to sing ensured that the last bit of energy was taken from everyone, making Kassa General a last minute surprise of the day.
Charlotte Day Wilson @ Orangerie
The first autumn edition of Les Nuits was closed by Charlotte Day Wilson. The singer has a beautiful voice and that was immediately apparent from the first notes she started singing once she crawled on stage. Along with a lyricist, guitarist and drummer, she had a band that could take her music to a higher level. It all sounded so flawless and perfect that the set also lacked a bit of spontaneity. It was all very well thought out and the background vocals were great, but after a while the music became too monotonous. Even when Day Wilson picked up his guitar or picked up a saxophone, the tempo remained as relaxed as the previous songs. It’s a shame, because with a touch of spontaneity, Charlotte Day Wilson could become a great artist. Now we only hear music in every coffee bar: it sounds good and doesn’t bother us, but we won’t remember it.
The first issue of Les Nuits in November turned out to be a successful issue. The bands sets were great, the band members themselves also checked out other bands and discovered a lot. The question remains whether it will be the same again next year, but for now the autumn edition has already been very successful musically.