Skip to main content

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Reimagining Véronique Vincent & Aksak Maboul’s Not-So-Lost Masterpiece

Aksak Maboul
Image used with permission by copyright holder
16 Visions of Ex-FuturOn October 14th, Crammed Discs will release 16 Visions of Ex-Futur, a collection of 16 reinterpretations of tracks from Ex-Futur Album, itself a collaboration between Aksak Maboul and Véronique Vincent, released in 2014 after a 30 year delay. The record, noteworthy on its own, gains a lot from understanding its context. So let’s start from the beginning.

Seminal art-rock band Aksak Maboul came into existence in the spring of 1977 when Marc Hollander and Vincent Kenis, both Belgian musicians, began to record together. The collaboration would come to fruition later that year with the band’s debut record, Onze danses por combattre la migraine (Eleven Dances for Fighting Migraines).  By 1977 the slickly produced sound of disco and prog rock was being to get push back in the Anglophone world. The punk rock movement was coming into full force. 1977 saw both The Clash and the Sex Pistols release their debut records Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols. Whether rebelling intentionally or not, Aksak Maboul took a different but equally uninterested approach. The band incorporated a wide variety of elements, including as they describe it “fake jazz, electronics, imaginary African & Balkan music, [and] minimalism.”

Veronique Vincent - I´m Always Crying

Aksak would release one additional album (Un peu de l’âme des bandits) and begin work on a collaboration with Véronique Vincent and her band Honeymoon Killers before dissolving in the mid-80s. The band’s partly-formed third album would not be uncovered for three decades. In 2014 Hollander found demos and rough mixes of the record and along with Véronique Vincent used them as the basis of what became Ex-Futur Album.

I'm Always Crying (Je pleure tout le temps)Version de Lena Willikens

Ex-Futur Album was warmly received, and that reception inspired Hollander and Vincent to tour in support of it. More than just a warm reception, however, the Ex-Futur Album inspired a multitude of artists from all around Europe to reinterpret some of the album’s songs. The result? 16 Visions of Ex-Futur. The album contains a variety of established and up-and-coming artists, including Lætitia Sadier of Stereolab, Burnt Friedman, and the-recently-featured-on-The-Manual Aquaserge.

Flavien Berger x Véronique Vincent & Aksak Maboul - “Je pleure tout le temps”

16 Visions of Ex-Futur, by Véronique Vincent and Aksak Maboul comes out October 14, 2016 via Crammed Discs, and is available for preorder on Amazon, Crammed Discs’ online shop, and iTunes.

Terence Praet
Terence Praet contributes to The Manual’s New Music Monday column. He studied Philosophy and History at Skidmore College…
Is ‘Family Guy’ on Disney Plus in 2023?
Get the scoop on streaming 'Family Guy'
The Disney Plus sign-up menu is displayed

Whether you can watch Family Guy online via Disney Plus depends on what part of the world you call home. Simply put, Family Guy is available on Disney Plus in some areas, but not all. Why? Well, not all streaming services possess the rights to the popular animated comedy, but that's all changing as we speak.

In short, Family Guy is only available on Disney Plus if you live in one of the countries where Star is included in your Disney Plus subscription. That means countries like the U.K., Australia, and Canada have Family Guy on Disney Plus, but the U.S. misses out.

Read more
The 10 best Timothee Chalamet movies ever, ranked
He's definitely been in some incredible films
Timothee Chalamet in Call Me By Your Name.

 

During a time when Hollywood has tried to grasp onto older stars like Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise, other young men from a new generation have attempted to carve out their path to stardom and take the movie world by storm. In this regard, not many male actors working today have experienced the success of Timothée Chalamet. With a boyish grin and a sculpted jawline, Chalamet's raw charisma allows him to play characters in a variety of genres, from wounded teenagers in LGBTQ+ dramas to heroic protagonists in sci-fi flicks. Still under 30 years old, Chalamet's career is just getting started, but he already has a grand portfolio of award-winning performances. These are the 10 best Timothée Chalamet movies ever, ranked.

Read more
Ranked: The 11 best Tom Hanks movies ever
From a toy cowboy to Mr. Rogers, Tom Hanks has played it all. Here are our favorite performances
Tom Hanks in The Post

When it comes to beloved actors in Hollywood, there are several names that come to mind. Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are legends of dramatic film. Jim Carrey is a comedy icon like no other. Still, when you take into account both funny and serious work, Tom Hanks is probably America's most relatable actor. Appearing in nearly 100 films since the 1980s, Hanks has lent his talents to directors like Stephen Spielberg and Ron Howard, earning himself multiple Academy Awards along the way.

It's always a good time to appreciate the greatness of Tom Hanks. We'll go over the 10 best performances of his career, a list that is both diverse and focused. Any cinema fan is sure to find something they can enjoy when they take a look at a list of the best Tom Hanks movies, and they can look forward to more as he continues to pursue new and interesting projects today in his mid-60s.

Read more