Poster by Violette Gorgiard (@qt_sangl)
After a delightful first edition, Ekumen is already happy to welcome you all to its second concert night on the 2nd of May, this time in Etterbeek at atelier 210. For the occasion, we invited Chinese-British singer and producer Organ Tapes to present his A/V live show. You will also get to listen to the local duo Nykolaes & Daniël Paul and to electro-acoustic musician and composer Z.
Buy your tickets on atelier 210's website: atelier210.be.
Organ Tapes
Organ Tapes, photographed by Megan Bruinen.
Active for over 10 years under the Organ Tapes moniker, Timothy Zha patiently crafts a unique body of work, standing unrivaled in the contemporary music landscape. Born from a Christian mother and raised between China and the UK, identity was never something he could take for granted. This early experience of fluidity, coupled to a boundless curiosity and a certain disregard towards notions of good and bad taste, might explain his extraordinary trajectory. Where his first releases (amongst others: Word Life and Into One Name) cultivated a hybrid sound in-between cloud/mumble rap vocals, bodily dancehall rhythms and ethereal melodies, his latest album veers towards a more embodied pop rock sound. Some ingredients are nonetheless to be found in every release throughout his oeuvre : a fierce honesty, DIY laptop production straight from his bedroom and, instanlty recognizable, his autotuned voice, equally at ease on a trap instrumental as accompanied by an acoustic guitar.
A glimpse at his numerous influences can be found in his DJ Corpmane mixtapes, gathering various edits and mashups made over the years, or in his monthly mixes as NTS resident.
Recommended listening
Organ Tapes, Joyride (self-released, 2023).
Organ Tapes, 唱着那无人问津的歌谣（Chang Zhe Na Wu Ren Wen Jin De Ge Yao) (Worldwide Unlimited, 2022).
Organ Tapes, ON MELANCHOLY (COVER) (self-released, 2023).
Artist's links
Instagram: @corpmane
Bandcamp: organtapes.bandcamp.com
nykolaes & Daniël Paul
nykolaes & Daniël Paul, photographed by Wietse Thomas.
What should folk music sound like in 2024? Brussels-based duo nykolaes & Daniël Paul have their own answer, explored on their debut album neofolk, which came out last year on local family-label Toverberg. Singer-songwriter guitar songs... but with autotuned vocals and sprinkled with homemade field recordings, blending English and Dutch (their mother tongue). Partners on stage and roommates in real life, they will present their vulnerable and hybrid music on the 2nd of May at atelier 210.
Recommended listening
nykolaes & Daniël Paul, neofolk (Toverberg, 2023).
The duo's online presence
nykolaes' Instagram: @nykolaes
Daniël Paul's Instagram: @mauriceluijten
Toverberg's Instagram: @toverbergcollective
Z
Z.
Hailing from Portugal, Z is studying acousmatic composition in Mons, Belgium. Influenced by Pauline Oliveros's pratice of "deep listening", they develop a synthetic, partially improvised music, designed as an invitation to slowness and sensitivity.
They are also a DJ (resident on Kiosk radio), writer, crafter & activist, amongst other things involved in the curation of the Sounds4Resistance compilation, with benefits for occupied Palestine.
Artist links
Instagram: @__oqre