WOMADelaide 2010 part 3

Sunday

A gentle start to the day as Ross Daly leads his ensemble to the stage performing for the thousand or so bleary-eyed gathered. The Crete master has been instrumental in combining the tradition and heritage of the Greek islands with various other Mediterranean sources. He plays a long suite called The Circle At The Crossroads which is mostly upbeat and Daly's skill on the lyra is matched by that of his three-piece band including an Iranian percussionist.

There's also plenty of workshops happening at the same time. The first one being that of Australian musician David Bridie who talks of his band Not Drowning Waving and their groundbreaking album Tabaran- the first Australian album to be collaborating with musicians from Papua New Guinea. Bridie is a passionate advocate of Melanesian music and he's slightly critical of the WOMAD-organisation not programming more music from the rich, varied cultures 'just outside our doorstep'. He also is a political advocate for the freedom of West Papua and in the Not Drowning Waving-song Blackwater he play with Airi Ingram he depicts the Indonesian military's shameful exploitation and terror campaign it holds in the nation. Next to his own material Bridie introduces two Papuan artists who beautifully perform several native songs, illustrating Bridie's point about the wealth of talent just across Australia's border.
Another workshop I visit is that of the Japanese drummers of Yamato who put all their percussion equipment out on the lawn and invite the audience to have a bash...shamelessly I attack the biggest mofos of the lot and have to concede that you have to have a very good condition to perform a show like they do....
It's great to canter along the many stalls and have chats with people about the various good causes they represent- it's more than just appealing to your conscience, it's a gentle reminder that we are merely custodians of a planet in pain...

Anyway...I check out several of the roving acts, including the Slack Taxi Bouncers and De Stijle Want...keeping folk amused with their comical skits wandering through the fields. Then it's back to the music as local Adelaide band Monkey Puzzle Tree take the stage for plenty of friends and family- their ambient-rock with violin doesn't really fuse my light so it's off to see Cuarteto Patria holding a son-workshop on the small stage. With one member of the band the only one being able to speak English their tale of Cuban music goes slowly and it's getting even more confusing when band members go into discussion amongst themselves about the importance of certain Cuban music styles and instruments...but belatedly the session gets rescued when guitarist Humberto Ochoa sings a lovely bolero-song, getting such crowd approval so he sings a couple more...perhaps not the workshop the band had planned but some good music emanating from it.

Vulgargrad brings us the ballads, blues and gutterfolk from the dark alleys and gutters from Moscow, wrap it up into oompah-punk with a Russian dash of wodka-fuelled fun and a large crowd discover another new favourite band. The seven-piece band including brass and balalaika is on song, lead singer Jacek Koman looks like a cross between Serge Gainsbourg and Philippe Noiret and sings with a raspy baritone in Russian about prisons, revenge and partying- transforming Russian lullabies to songs like A Pissup Starts With One Bottle gives you an idea of their evil intentions. The Russian Pogues? As rollicking as MacGowan's mob they are for sure and the hour really flies by in a hurry.

Another odd duck in the pond- The Armada led by former Tea Party-frontman Jeff Martin rocks up to the main stage. In this band Martin can act out his love for Led Zeppelin and marry that sound with influences from the Arabian and Middle-Eastern world. I'm not exactly waiting for the heavy-handed rock he brings, the Armada-material is a bit bland, let alone his Led Zeppelin-medley but when he pays tribute to Dead Can Dance admirably by performing Rakim his west does meet east the best.

Speaking of odd- Jane Siberry has got a very coloured career which has brought her from chanteuse to avant-garde performer and, based on her show here, even comedienne. This one-hour woman show consists of a full rendition of her latest album With What Shall I Keep Warm? on which she accompanies herself on guitar or piano and, in some cases, uses backing tracks via a MP3-player. It's like watching Laurie Anderson on speed, the spoken word-bits connecting songs, fragmented thoughts and occurrences are interconnected via the main storyline which basically is Siberry walking in a street. The show is more hit than miss, mostly because Siberry is such a charming raconteur, even if the tale gets a bit maudlin she shifts into a song and her voice, slightly hoarser than in her early material is still majestic. She impresses most with a tribute to her mother in the beautiful ballad Mama Hereby. Just as quick as the narrative goes, the show is over. Very interesting, to say the least. Afterwards I connect with Siberry, getting my CD signed and ask her if this is her United States I-IV....she laughs and says it's more like her Raw Power.

If there's one international musical style that does well everywhere you go it's reggae- there's no shortage of top reaggae acts performing here (next to the Skatalites there's also Dub Colossus from Ethiopia). Tonight it's Australian band Fyah Walk's turn to keep the ganja ablaze. It sounds all good but it all gets a bit samey for me, which is something that happens a lot with reggae for me....

With darkness now surrounding us it's time to seek out the action (after all, Sunday night is allright for dancin') and Babylon Circus is just the band to do it. This young French skapunkfolkband whip up the biggest pogo so far of the festival, infusing their 10-piece big band cabaret with influences from Eastern Europe, chanson and African riddims and it's that diversity that keeps the act from getting boring. Just like the Amigos yesterday afternoon it's the kids going off at the generally high octane tracks but where the Venezuelans lost themselves in too many jams the French keep the tracks concise and the crowd constantly involved. The highlight of the day simply on the basis of audience participation and entertainment skill of the band- don't miss them when they play in your neighborhood.

After that amazing high it's difficult for Ojos De Brujo to follow suit- their more intricate mix of flamenco and Afro-Cuban rhythms takes a little while to get going, mostly because they employ a dancer in the opening number which is a slower track. The band obviously is not out on providing the crowd with its biggest common denominator but wants them to take notice of the full Ojos-experience which not always flies off at 180mpH. But when the band hit their straps, especially when they introduce hip hop, rumba and eastern influences to their distinctive Spanish sound the spark hits. Led by formidable singer Marina Abad the band thrills people looking for genuine crossover with an original twist. Added bonus is the use of animation on the big overhanging sails of the number one-stage to emphasize the socio-political context in some of their songs. .

And then it's time to shift the gears right back as Dean & Britta on a small stage present the live soundtrack to the movie "13 Most Beautiful Songs From Andy Warhol's Screen Tests"...on a big screen in black and white the faces of Factory-luminaries like Lou Reed, Nico, Susan Bottomly, International Velvet, Dennis Hopper, Edie Sedgwick, Ingrid Superstar, Billy Name an Freddy Herko form the inspiration for the songs played live by Wareham, Phillips and friends. It's like hearing Velvet Underground B-sides, at times as sharp as Lou's solo-material a la New York, mostly moping, close to shoegazing but at times also burlesque (Mary Woronow). It's interesting enough to watch but is this the festival for it? For contrast in musical styles this performance deserves top marks but the (seated) outdoor venue perhaps is not the most intimate way to take the memory of some of the most tragic figures in the American entertainment industry in....but as a Velvets-fan I enjoy reveling in the melancholic moods.

The weather has been fresh all day, with rain threatening to fall but, like Kevin Rudd's government, not delivering...