The Memory of ... Vincent Coomans

Vincent Coomans is from Ypres and has been living in Kortrijk for fifteen years. He is a singer, guitarist, and songwriter.

What is your first memory of Kortrijk or the region?   

“I find it very difficult to pinpoint what my first memory was. I think it was Kortrijk Congé, a night of performances in special places. Performing during the simulated traffic jam! Furthermore, I have many memories of Den Trap, Den Bras, concerts at De Kreun, the Schouwburg, festivals (Novarock, May 1 festival, Student Welcome) and unique concerts by Balthazar én Goose (the concert where every musician performed in one studio / on one floor of the Budatoren).”

Do you have a specific place in Kortrijk that is special to you and why?

“I don’t have one specific place in the city that is special. There are just so many places where I feel good. My own spot in the Sint-Janswijk, the neighborhood school that also turns out to be a warm nest for parents of children, the many lovely coffee bars (deDingen, Julia’s, Den Bokaal), Crèmeux (hehe), the library where I work, … But what I really find special is that I can walk from my house to my work in the center and tumble from park to park. Wonderful!”  

What place do your roots hold in your artistic oeuvre? 

“Quite a significant one. Even though I left the city where I was born and grew up, I notice that many elements from Ypres return in my music. In ‘Lower Your Gun’ for example, ‘I blow the horns under the bridge’, which is a reference to the Last Post. Or the album ‘The Great Rebuild’: a nod to the great reconstruction, but applied to the rebuilding of a person. Or from the title track of that album ‘You lay wasted in these war lands’.”

What would you like to say to the young generation of artists from Kortrijk? 

“Work incredibly hard on your thoughts. Be true to yourself and don’t be discouraged by non-selections for rock rallies, rock competitions, or whatever. A programmer from a concert club in Diksmuide once said that I could still make an album at 40. In the meantime, I have made two, so he was right. Let your music mature!”