This one’s bound to add more fuel to the fire of all those Banksy-is-a-member-of-Massive-Attack rumours.
The enigmatic artist and international man of mystery has just opened a new art hotel in Bethlehem of all places, and among other things, it’s packing a piano bar that’s set to feature pre-recorded recitals by Massive Attack , Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor, film composer Hans Zimmer and Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea.
The gigs have all been pre-recorded specifically for a creepy self-playing piano, which will clunk along to the songs unmanned (kinda like that saloon piano in HBO’s Westworld) inside Banksy‘s so-called ‘Walled Off Hotel’.
As Consequence Of Sound reports, Banksy’s new project is a “full-service art hotel” located in the West Bank city of Bethlehem and billed as having “the worst view in the world”, with windows overlooking the wall separating the Palestinian territory from Israel #eep.
According to Banksy’s official website though, the hotel is located in totally safe, tourist-friendly territory, and its opening in 2017 coincides with “a hundred years since the British took control of Palestine and helped kick start a Century of confusion and conflict”.
Set up and financed by Banksy himself, the hotel is not aligned with any political movement or pressure group and “offers a warm welcome to everyone from all sides of the conflict and across the world”, which is nice.
The main attractions also include customised guest rooms that have been curated by Sami Musa, Dominique Petrin, and of course Banksy himself, which are designed to be like “living inside a work of art”.
If you fancy taking a trip there you can find out more here, or check out Sir Elton John’s piano bar performance at the Hotel’s opening party below.
