Ancienne Belgique

“An exceptionally sparse debut, but utterly disarming too.” (BBC) “Belle belle belle comme la nuit.“ (Les Inrockuptibles) 9:00 pm - Agnes Obel (DK) It has been no false start...

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“An exceptionally sparse debut, but utterly disarming too.” (BBC)
“Belle belle belle comme la nuit.“ (Les Inrockuptibles)

9:00 pm - Agnes Obel (DK)

It has been no false start for 28-year-old Dane Agnes Obel. She's already impeccably selling out medium-sized venues in Paris (La Cigalle) and Amsterdam (Paradiso) with barely one EP and one album (‘Philharmonics’ ) to her name. Obel has now left her home in Copenhagen and is operating out of creative Berlin. On her first EP ‘Riverside’ (“a song about water, because the sound of piano is like running water." according to Obel), she covered John Cale’s ‘I Keep a Close Watch’ (here re-named ‘Close Watch’) in an intriguing manner. Obel: “Like no other, Cale can mix classical, minimalist and pop music into one homogeneous style.” Which was at once the reason for Obel to do almost everything on her debut herself: singing, playing, producing, writing and arranging. Kate Bush has been a big influence for her too: “She is the reason I decided to do this. A beautiful melody is worth its weight in gold and that's what it's all about for me. That's what I've learned from her”. Obel is also a fan of Bach and Debussy, something that seeps through in her melodious piano playing (just like Satie). Anges Obel (piano/vocals) performs live with cellist Anne Ostsee at her side. Fans of Norway's Ane Brun, Feist or Emiliana Torrini: unite!

8:00 pm - Clare Louise (FR)
Clare Louise is a young French alternative folk-artist who resides in Brussels. She makes a strong impression, right from the first listen, with merely a cello, an acoustic guitar and an impressive voice. Her voice is pure and the arrangements simple. We hear Nick Drake, Vashti Bunyan and Alela Diane resound. No lesser gods by any means. She self-released an untitled EP in ‘09 (again with fine artwork by illustrator Astrid Yskout from Ghent).

SOUNDTRACK BY... AYCO DUYSTER @ agora

►►► DOMINO FACTS…
Agnes Obel was not the only lady with style to command respect at Domino. Stronger still: they effortlessly snatch a handful of positions in the final ranking of ‘unforgettable Domino moments’.
Remember ALELA DIANE (in ’08) at the time of her debut ‘The Pirate’s Gospel’ or of her best friend MARIEE SIOUX who also charmed us that evening. You will also find JOANNA NEWSOM in the Ultimate Top 3. She passed by in ’05 (for only 230 paying visitors) and in ’07 (but then for a full house), after her classic ‘Ys’ had been released.
More impressive ladies: the unusual LARKIN GRIMM (’07) and also FEIST (’04), three years prior to her releasing the ‘The Reminder’ album that contained ‘The Limit To Your Love’. Which would in turn (and in reworked version) become the breakthrough hit for James Blake in '10.
Beyond classification: VASHTI BUNYAN, just call her the mother of the new weird folk movement, who in ’06 sounded just as fresh and perky as her influential debut ‘Just Another Diamond Day’ did in ’70. Bunyan was indeed the oldest woman to appear at Domino (at 61 years of age). Lou Reed easily overtook her though with his 68 years. Finally, spoken-word artist/poet LAURA DOCKRILL – friend of Dan Le Sac and Scroobious Pip – performed for the first time outside her homeland, on the AB stage during Domino.