The Ex - The Ex at Bimhuis (1991 - 2015) [Ex Records 143 / Bimhuis 011 Promo]

36 years is a long time for a band. And it's been 36 years since Dutch musical outfit The Ex has come to life back in 1979, a lifetime career still in progress which took the band on a journey from Anarcho Punk to Improv, Jazz, Noise and beyond. And it was the jazzier side of things that led to the first The Ex show at the now legendary Bimhuis venue which became their unofficial homebase in subsequent years, with thirteen gigs - both concerts & festivals - played at that venue within a twenty-five years timespan. These days Bimhuis is celebrating this very special anniversary with a special double CD album including 24 selected live recordings from Bimhuis concerts, a massive 32-page booklet featuring photos, trivia and loads of information about the bands history. Following a chronological order we see the band evolving from raw Punk vs Free Jazz roots to fascinating, repetetive workouts ("Pretty Cattle Office"), catchy PostPunk flirtations ("Lied Der Steinklopfer") and spooky, Theremin-sporting scores, ritual'esque ecstasy ("Sonic Broom") towards noisy excess ("Ex Guitars'n'Han"), heavy machine-reminiscing grooves ("Symphony For Machines"), cinematic drama vs. Dutch poetry  ("Gronings Liedje"), funky excursions, contemporary Indie ("Bourgeois Blues" / "24 Problems") and way beyond, taking us - and especially their fans, of course - on an exciting journey for sure. Defo a nice one.